Cap City
Untitled Document CHANCESARE, HISNICKNAMEISN’TZIPPY A few months ago it was noted in an Illinois Times story that criminal cases against Dan Mills and John “Jake” Kelley — the two former assistant Sangamon County state’s attorneys named in the “cocaine ring” investigation — would be virtually impossible to prosecute because of the protection conferred by immunity…
Why “clean” coal isn’t
Untitled Document Coal used to fuel power plants and other industrial activity is a key culprit in pollution and climate change. So what is “clean coal”? The term “clean coal” describes various processes that remove pollutants from coal, our cheapest, most abundant, and dirtiest energy source. By reducing coal’s environmental footprint through technological wizardry, the…
Never-ending excitement
Untitled Document Have you heard about the live-music series sponsored by WUIS (91.9 FM)? For those of you who still think the UIS “college radio station” only plays classical music and intellectual talking programs, well, you’re wrong. Even though a good percentage of the programming is dedicated to the aforementioned programming (we’re not complaining), the…
Recipe for a crumb-y morning
Untitled Document Jersey, New York, Philly, Baltimore — they all know about the crumb bun. A yeasty sweet roll with a streuselly topping, the crumb bun is a miniature version of the crumb cake (a.k.a. Streuselkuchen), a breakfast and late-morning coffee staple among East Coasters who grew up around diners, old-school bakeries, and second- and…
Spared
Untitled Document During a special meeting of the Springfield City Council last week, aldermen slashed the city’s fiscal year 2009 budget — five firefighters here, five policemen there, and all the city’s food supplies, furniture, and gasoline thrown out for good measure — but Lincoln Library was again spared from the chopping block. Ward 6…
Counting the wrong thing
Untitled Document Dave Comerford is unhappy with Scott Reeder and the Small Newspaper Group, a family-owned chain of Illinois newspapers. Comerford, media director for the Illinois Federation of Teachers, says he’s frustrated by what he sees as dishonest reporting and the twisting of quotes to fit a political agenda. Four months ago, for example, as…
People’s Poetry
Untitled Document farmerpoem #3 (this is from a 1956 letter from my retired U of Michigan writing professor and small farm owner, who taught me so much of what I know about writing and living) I shall never go through anotherlambing season without living onthe place I drove back and forth twice a day…
On top of his game
Untitled Document It’s been said that Will Ferrell is simply repeating the same old shtick from one film to the next. As long as he keeps me laughing, I couldn’t care less. Ferrell knows what pays the bills, and though his latest, Semi-Pro, does contain many of the same elements in his previous two sports-themed…
“A key component”
Untitled Document What’s the difference between a person with a mental illness and one with diabetes or a broken limb? Groups that specialize in providing mental-health services would argue that the only distinction is that, assuming they have enough health insurance to pay for the treatment, people are more likely to seek help for a…
Letters to the Editor
Untitled Document We welcome letters. Please include your full name, address, and telephone number. We edit all letters. Send them to Letters, Illinois Times, P.O. Box 5256, Springfield, IL 62705; fax 217-753-3958; e-mail editor@illinoistimes.com. OPPOSES PROPOSED MEGADAIRY The Illinois Department of Agriculture is considering whether to approve an application by a California dairyman to build…
Gimme shelter
Ruth Capler never imagined that she would own a home. The soft-spoken, stalwart mother raised all six of her kids in rental apartments across Springfield and, at the age of 50, was living with two of her grandchildren in a cramped two-bedroom unit on North Fourth Street. She slept in one bedroom and young cousins…
My last supper
Untitled Document What would be your last meal on earth? What would be the setting? What would you drink? Would there be music? Who would be your dining companions? Who would prepare it? Melanie Dunea posed these questions to 50 renowned chefs from around the world. Their answers are the subject of her 2007 book…
Wrapped in Old Glory
Untitled Document Should a top federal official who flagrantly violates the law of the land be allowed to wrap himself in the flag? That’s what a guy named Ronald Meisburg is doing. Appointed by President George W. Bush in 2005 to be general counsel to the National Labor Relations Board, this former corporate lawyer has…
Music says “hope” better than politics can
Untitled Document The subject of hope has gotten so much press, there was bound to be a pushback. During a recent debate, our guy had to carefully explain that hope doesn’t mean there’s no struggle, but the vision of what we’re struggling for empowers the work and makes it worthwhile. His hopeless opponent knows better,…
The beef with corn
Untitled Document Dwindling supplies of foreign oil, rising prices at the gas pump, and hype from politically connected U.S. agribusiness have combined to create a frenzied rush to convert food grains into ethanol fuel. The move is badly conceived and ill advised. Corporate spin and pork-barrel legislation aside, here, by the numbers, are the scientific…
Tax hike?
Untitled Document Normally a tax hike would be the last thing that state legislators would consider in an election year. Tax increases are usually approved in “off years” to give voters time to forget before they vote again — so you’d think that any talk of a large income tax increase in Springfield would be…
