Jerome lays off police chief
Jerome police chief Craig Kennedy has been laid off. Today was Kennedy’s last day on the job. He said that he wasn’t surprised when he was told last week that he would be laid off. He said it was a matter of money in the village that ceased 24/7 patrols late last year due to…
Tepid Pace Nearly Undoes “Split”
I’m glad that M. Night Shyamalan has wandered out of the wilderness of big budget mistakes and has returned to the world of modest thrillers. His distinct voice has been sorely missed in the genre, something I didn’t realize until the arrival last year of The Visit, an entertaining piece of business that followed the…
McConaughey Shines in “Gold”
Stephen Gaghan’s Gold certainly doesn’t tell a new story but at least it does so in an entertaining manner. Based on the Bre-X Minerals scandal from the 1990’s, the film is propelled by a compelling, manic performance from Matthew McConaughey; his good looks may be suffused by 40 extra pounds, a dental appliance and his…
Homework
The outgoing Obama administration reportedly prepared hundreds of memos — more than 300 from the National Security Council alone — to aid the Trump transition. Those memos, apparently, were never read. Citizens ought to do some reading to get ready for a Trump presidency too. I suggest we start with The Emperor’s New Clothes.
UIS responds to rape stories
The University of Illinois Springfield on Thursday responded to recent stories regarding Xuesong “Gary” Yang, a former UIS employee who has been charged with raping a student (“Springfield businessman charged with raping UIS student,” Jan. 20, 2017; “Accused UIS rapist had power,” Jan. 27, 2017). In an email to Illinois Times, UIS spokesman Derek…
Form over function
I’m terrible at anniversaries, so I wasn’t surprised that I’d forgotten that this year marks 30 years since the City of Springfield changed from an at-large commissioner form of government to its present aldermanic form. For those readers who were too busy growing up to notice, the switch was the result of a 1987 consent…
We can beat back the reign of Trump
Buckle up, friends. Most Americans are about to be detoured onto a rough and rocky back road called “Trump Way.” The autocratic tycoon was unabashed on the campaign trail in promising his victory would ensure millions of people a dire future, including mass deportations of immigrants, refugee bans and frontal assaults on women. But they’re…
Ambition isn’t always blind
On a fairly regular basis back in the day, state Sen. Barack Obama would walk up to the Senate press box and bum cigarettes off me. That was when people could smoke in the Senate chambers and back when both of us smoked. Now we both chew nicotine gum and smoking on the Senate floor…
Letters to the Editor 1/26/17
WAR ON COPS?As Barack Obama’s presidency came to an end, there was a lot of talk about how his tenure impacted police officers. In the last few years there have been several high-profile tragedies where police officers were targeted and killed in ambush attacks. Obama’s detractors contend that his words and actions contributed to…
Editor’s note 1/26/17
Just as we were wrapping our heads around the oxy-moronic concept of “fake news,” the Trump administration introduced us to “alternative facts” as its new name for lies. The Washington press corps was left sputtering, resorting to making too big a deal about the administration making too big a deal about the size of Inauguration…
When students tried to raise a flag in Panama
Pedasi, Panama — While Jan. 9 was just another Monday in the U.S., it was a major national holiday in Panama, marking perhaps the lowest point in the inextricably close relations between the two countries. Sparked by high school students, the incident the holiday commemorates is credited with leading to the eventual return of the…
The ins and outs of lobbying
On Friday, join the University of Illinois Springfield’s Institute for Legal, Legislative and Policy Studies for a seminar on how to effectively lobby the Illinois General Assembly. The program will impart information and tips relating to practical lobbying skills and resources, strategies and tactics, state budget insights and information, as well as winning efforts from…
Springfield Area Many Ethnicities
As our world increasingly turns to digital media, it is easy to underestimate and overvalue the role of libraries as cultural and community centers. But according to Lincoln Library director Nancy Huntley, “The library is much more than a place with books. We are a community space where people from all backgrounds come in person…
Figure drawing
Attention artists of all skill and experience levels: Are you interested in honing your figure-drawing skills? Come to the The Pharmacy Gallery and Art Space on Monday and Tuesday nights for a series of non-instructed, figure drawing sessions featuring a live model. The Monday night sessions will feature clothed or costumed models; the Tuesday night…
Flee Willy
I’m a 27-year-old woman, dating again after a six-year relationship. I slept with a guy on the third date and was dismayed when he didn’t spend the night. It didn’t feel like just a hookup, and it wasn’t a work night. Is this just how people date now – going home immediately after sex –…
Measuring beyond the scale
When I first started my journey to fitness and better health almost five years ago, I knew I was overweight. I even had to admit that I was obese, based on my body mass index (BMI) being over 30 and my weight being 235 pounds at 5 feet 11 inches. But knowing my weight did…
What the scale didn’t tell me
I have lost 40 pounds over the past two years and I work out four to five days a week. When I stepped onto the InBody device, which measures where fat is distributed on your body, I knew in advance, or thought I did, that the results would be fantastic for a 61-year-old female. I…
Yoga in the Land of Lincoln
Over the past several years, the practice of yoga – derived from a broad range of ancient Indian mental, physical and spiritual practices – has been on the rise as a form of exercise throughout the West. Several dedicated studios and gyms in Springfield offer a variety of yoga options, ranging from introductory programs to…
Here’s what worked for me
It’s that time of year when articles about diets, resolutions, healthy eating and exercise are rampant. Although I’ve been active and generally fit, for several years I made the same resolutions – lose 10 pounds, eat more healthily and exercise more consistently. These types of resolutions lack concrete actions, and often good intentions that accompany…
High intensive laser therapy
A new form of therapy at a local chiropractic office promises to decrease pain and speed up the recovery process. Dr. John Folkerts of Sherman Chiropractic located at 420 Crossing Drive in Sherman is offering high-intensive laser therapy (HILT) to patients with several different ailments. HILT is described as a drug-free, cost-effective laser beam treatment…
A touching display
DEMO Project may be the best-kept secret in the Springfield art scene, even after four years of presenting thoughtfully programmed monthly exhibitions by innovative artists from a variety of locations. The small house located on the Springfield Art Association campus was formerly living quarters for caretakers of the historic Edwards Place and is slated for…
Accused UIS rapist had power
Accused rapist Xuesong “Gary” Yang reportedly had extraordinary power over Chinese students who came to University of Illinois Springfield to learn English. Students feared Yang, according to a Springfield police report written after a 17-year-old student accused him of rape. Yang, who has been charged with two counts of sexual assault (“Springfield businessman charged with…
After successful rally, Call 2 Action plans next event
Over 1,000 people gathered on Jan. 21 near the Old State Capitol to protest in solidarity with the women marches across the country, such as those in Washington, D.C., and Chicago. The event was sponsored by Springfield Call 2 Action, a local alliance of organizations that advocates for social justice issues. “It’s a bunch of…
Teen court under scrutiny
The Village of Sherman has withdrawn from North County Teen Court, a diversion program that handles cases of minor crimes committed by juveniles, and an Illinois State Police investigation is underway. The court includes a “jury” of teenagers that decides what penalties youthful offenders should face for minor offenses such as vandalism and underage drinking.…
Portman returns to form with Jackie
Much like a kaleidoscope that provides rapidly changing perspectives, Pablo Larrain’s Jackie gives us a wide variety of glimpses into the life of Jacqueline Kennedy as the first lady tries to come to terms with her place in the world after her husband’s assassination. Eschewing the traditional structure of the Hollywood biopic, the film careens…
January jams are open
Well, that month seemed to fly by. Maybe it was the political activities keeping things moving or the ice scare one weekend followed by temps in the mid-60s the next. Whatever is going on, 2017 seems determined to be an interesting year, to say the least, and I always say the least I can say…
Switchback
Since 1993, Martin McCormack (bass, vocals) and Brian FitzGerald (guitar, mandolin, vocals), known as the duo Switchback, have released several CDs of Celtic and Americana music and traveled a good deal of the Western world playing classic folk songs and original tunes filled with extraordinary vocal harmony. Based out of Chicago with deep Iowa roots,…
springfield poem for jan 21
spfld’s last weekend was five star – fromcheers at the buses leaving pennys 110women pink pussy-capped bearing pbj’s– to saturday before the old state capitolmore than a thousand folk young old allethnicities all faiths all sexes wonderfulsigns GOD MUST LOVE GAYS HE MADEUS SO CUTE then the speeches! all bylocals – ACA, health: women’s, water,soil, sea, air,…
Romance tips for the college chef
In the fall of 1971 I was a skinny, pimply-faced, pathologically shy college freshman at the University of Illinois in Urbana. I desired female companionship, but was too timid to ask anyone out on a date. The weekends were long and lonely and, with nothing better to do, I ended up studying. I got straight A’s…
