Robin Schmidt hired as prosecutor
Robin Schmidt, a member of the Springfield Park Board and widow of the late John Schmidt, will start work next Monday as a prosecutor in the Sangamon County state’s attorney’s office. Robin Schmidt Schmidt will be an assistant state’s attorney and will be handling felony cases, said state’s attorney John Milhiser. Schmidt previously worked for…
Pritzker’s path
Sources in both parties said last week that their tracking polls were showing a dip in support for Sen. Daniel Biss and a trending increase for Chris Kennedy in the Democratic primary race for governor. That’s the most likely reason why billionaire J.B. Pritzker’s campaign began airing negative ads against Kennedy last week. Pritzker has…
Springfield fire chief set to retire
Springfield fire chief Barry Helmerichs will retire effective next month. Helmerichs declined comment, but Mayor Jim Langfelder confirmed that the chief, who joined the fire department in 1991 as a firefighter, will retire in April. “He just felt the time was right,” Langfelder said. “He left the department in a better spot than he found…
From Honduras to health care reform
When Dr. Jerry Kruse headed to Honduras in 2005 to volunteer, he thought he was going on a simple medical mission trip to a rural village devastated by Hurricane Mitch. Instead he discovered a hurricane of ideas and organization that gave him a vision for reforming the U.S. health care system. Kruse, who for many…
What will the Trump mob kill next?
From the start of his White House tenure, the Trumpsters have plotted, stalked and serially killed vibrant members of the English language. The word “fact” was the first to go. Robust and universally respected, fact was assassinated last year when one of Trump’s hired killers poisoned it with an unknown substance nicknamed: “alternative facts.” Their…
A different sort of ‘Madigan tax’
Every election cycle, House Democratic candidates have to pay what can be thought of as a “Madigan tax.” The “tax” is the amount of extra campaign money, labor and ingenuity required to overcome the voting public’s strong negative perception of being in any way associated with House Speaker Michael Madigan. The tax has always been…
Letters to the Editor 3/1/18
ADLAI INTERESTING The article about the Stevenson family (“Adlai’s still talking sense,” by Fletcher Farrar, Feb. 15) was extremely interesting. There were many interesting thoughts, quotes and comments. Having been a lifelong citizen of Illinois, familiar with the history of the Stevenson family and the roles they played in Illinois history, made this article all…
Editor’s note 3/1/18
Big policy changes can happen fast. Politics and economics can move quickly. That’s one lesson I got from Dr. Jerry Kruse, dean of the SIU School of Medicine, when I interviewed him on health care reform for my column on this page. The nation’s response to sexual harassment is changing swiftly. High schoolers are leading…
Why arming teachers is a bad idea
Some are calling for teachers to be armed. This idea has many flaws and shows a lack of understanding about a teacher’s real role. There are better solutions. I studied to be an English teacher, attended conferences and seminars and took classes to hone my skills and to learn ways to reach students and help them with…
Awaken the force within
Children ages 4 and up are invited to learn the ways of the Jedi on Saturday, Mar. 3 with Master Jedi Panniken Moonjumper, played by family entertainer and Pirate School creator David Engel. During a training session with the Master Jedi, young Jedi will enjoy comic antics, exciting physical challenges, magical mayhem, lightsaber lessons, a…
ECCE Speaker Series
On Tuesday, Mar. 6, join Debbie Olson, Ph.D., assistant professor of English at Missouri Valley College, for an ECCE Speaker Series presentation that examines the depiction of African American children in the media against the ways in which African American children in the U.S. are prone to violence and criminality, and the ways in which…
Film eight of eight
Take in the final film of the Molly Schlich Film Festival on Sunday, Mar. 4, at 1 p.m. or 4 p.m., or on Tuesday, Mar. 6, at 7 p.m. The 2017 film titled The Midwife stars French actresses Catherine Frot and Catherine Denueve and tells the tale of the unlikely friendship that develops between Claire,…
The pill pipeline
H.D. Smith is a titan in the drug industry. Founded in 1954 on the outskirts of downtown Springfield, the drug wholesaler has grown to become the nation’s fourth largest distributor of prescription drugs, with annual sales surpassing a reported $4 billion in 2015. After years of swallowing competitors to build a nationwide distribution network, owners…
Future unclear for campus buildings
The Springfield campus of Benedictine University will be sold and all local classes will be taught at other community sites after the conclusion of the 2018 spring semester, according to an announcement made this week by university officials. The sale of the historic campus at 1500 N. Fifth Street will also mean the loss…
After 22 years, fire science sets convict free
“You’re readjusting to just walking down the street, being in crowded elevators, things that everybody goes through all the time,” said Bill Amor, whose 1997 convictions on charges of arson and murder were vacated by a DuPage County judge last week. He eventually spent 22 years in prison on a 45-year sentence. “It’s just so…
MAYORS WANT MORE HOME RULE
Mayors across Illinois are calling on the General Assembly to pass a resolution that would put a referendum on the November 2018 ballot to grant home rule status to 169 of the state’s 1,298 municipalities. If placed on the ballot, this constitutional amendment (SJRCA9, primary sponsor Sen. Toi Hutchinson, D-Chicago Heights) would allow Illinois voters…
BUSH BIOGRAPHER AT ALPLM
Historian Jeffrey Engel will discuss the legacy of President George H. W. Bush, particularly in relation to his handling of the end of the Cold War, during a speaking engagement at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum on March 6. Engel is the author of When the World Seemed New: George H. W. Bush…
Bateman and McAdams make Game Night fun
I don’t think that great comedy teams are consciously made; they’re stumbled upon. Case in point, take a look at Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams in John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein’s Game Night, a consistently funny film that embraces its ridiculous nature and runs with it. It’s a movie that has more than its…
March music
Leave old February behind as we march into March with plenty of live music for the lamb or lion in you. This weekend blues rules at Third Base Sports Bar with two remarkable shows featuring nationally acclaimed powerhouses. Friday brings in Johnny Rawls, a major player in soul blues who spent a good deal of…
Jim Scott
Jim Scott has added much to our human consciousness in terms of song and substance, very possibly influencing your life without you knowing it. From his work as guitarist with the Paul Winter Consort and co-composer of their celebrated Missa Gaia/Earth Mass, to decades of collaboration and friendship with folk singer and humanitarian Pete Seeger,…
Poetry Out Loud
Wynton Gage, a senior at Southeast High School, has a deep voice made for TV or radio. At the recent Regional Poetry Out Loud contest he commanded the stage during his memorized recitations of “Four Glimpses of Night” by Frank Marshall Davis and “The Universe as Primal Scream” by Tracy K. Smith. Wynton was named the winner. Awarded…
Fermented foods
It is estimated that our body is composed of over 10 trillion cells; inhabiting our skin and respiratory passages and digestive systems are 10 times that number of bacteria. These bacteria are known as our micro flora and many of these organisms are essential to our health, existing in harmony with our bodies in a…
CHANGE-OF-HEART POEM
CHANGE-OF-HEART POEM I am now a prexy rooter – he’ll jump inside and SHOOT THE SHOOTER!!! ©2018 Jacqueline Jackson
