THAT’S A RAP On Friday night, hip-hop came to Springfield
— but not for long. The March Madness “Final
Four” rap competition was shut down before the microphone was
warmed up. Despite the fact the event had been planned for weeks
and was the culmination of a month-long competition, promoters
apparently didn’t square things with management at Vinegar
Hill Mall, and police were called to disperse the crowd. Too bad — the young people who gathered
weren’t the raucous types who show up far too often where rap
music is played. With the rash of shootings in Springfield’s
streets lately, so many young people coming together to do
something positive should have been a welcome sight. “They sent 200 kids into the street who
otherwise would have had a safe, fun, and entertaining
evening,” says event promoter Emcee
R-Two the Second of Capcitill
Promotions. Rhavan Whittington, who was working the door at the event, expressed the
view of most of the disappointed patrons: “I’m tired of
hip-hop going up and down [Interstate] 55 between St. Louis and
Chicago and skipping over Springfield.” Amen, brother. HOW MANY FINGERS DO YOU SEE NOW? Jobs are neato. After all, no one likes being
unemployed. That’s why the General Assembly should
be cheered for creating the Central Illinois Economic Development
Authority, which will dole out cash to worthwhile businesses that
promise to put folks to work. In a press release breaking the news to the
world, however, state Sen. Larry Bomke, R-Lincoln, would have done well to spend a few
bucks on a proofreader. According to the release, the authority
will have an 11-member board. But wait a second — one
paragraph later, the board has magically grown to a dozen members. Hold
on, though: In describing just how the board will be selected,
Bomke’s press operatives — we assume that he’s too
busy to do this kind of stuff himself — say that the board will
comprise three appointees from the governor’s office and another from each of 11
counties. That adds up to 14. The bill itself pegs the actual number of
board members at 15 — three from the governor, 11 from the
counties, plus someone from the state Department of Commerce and
Economic Opportunity. Eleven. Twelve. Fifteen. Put it in the “close enough for
government work” column. THE LADIES’ MAN Word is, a few local broadcast journalists
— all women — have taken to referring to Sam Cahnman as
“Quagmire” after Glenn
Quagmire, the womanizing pilot on the
Fox animated series Family Guy. According to the show’s official fan site,
Quagmire’s catchphrase, “Giggety-giggety-goo,” is
known to “simultaneously arouse and repulse women.” The
joke’s lost on Cahnman, a member of the Sangamon County Board
and the Democratic candidate for the 99th House District seat now
held by state Rep. Raymond Poe. Cahnman, who has a bit of a reputation as a
ladies’ man, says that he’s never seen the show.
“I sure would like to know where all these ladies are that
I’m supposedly getting it on with,” he says. THE PRICE OF FREEDOM The local chapter of the American Civil
Liberties Union and Illinois Times present “Beyond the Patriot Act,” the
first of a 10-part film series, The
ACLU Freedom Files, at 11:30 a.m. this
Tuesday, April 18, in the Carnegie Room of Lincoln Library, Seventh
Street and Capitol Avenue. The film explores the impact of the
Patriot Act on people forced to defend their constitutional rights.
After the 30-minute show, Ngozi
Okorafor, ACLU legislative director,
will lead a discussion. The Freedom
Files are directed by Jeremy Kagan and
produced by Robert Greenwald. MYSPACE, THE FINAL FRONTIER Myspace.com, a hip hub for networking, is
popular with 18- to 25-year-olds, but that hasn’t kept
Illinois politicians and their supporters from crowding in.
Here’s how the free service works: A user signs up for a
personal homepage and asks other users to be “friends.”
The friends get access to one another’s homepages. Of course,
not all of the pages are official — or even real. A homepage
for U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin has most of the facts about the veteran politician
right, and, judging the number of “friends,” he’s
among the most popular Illinois lawmakers – but is outranked
by U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, who has racked up a staggering 2,700 friends and
counting. Republican members of Congress don’t fare as well.
A page devoted to U.S. Rep. Ray LaHood has attracted a mere 16 friends — one fewer
than a page for U.S. Rep. John Shimkus. If only real lawmakers would get as excited about
passing laws as their fake counterparts do — take, for
instance, this fake message from “U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer”
to Durbin: “Hello my fellow senator. I have this kick-ass
bill I want you to sign. . . . ” — From staff reports
This article appears in Apr 13-19, 2006.
