Opinion
Republican presidential candidates (L-R) former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum, former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich (R-GA), former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and U.S. Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) participate in a debate sponsored by CNN. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) WJBC Forum: Are you a Mugwump?
21 minutes ago
Some of you older listeners may remember the term “Mugwump”.
Originally it referred to Republicans who in 1884 supported Democratic candidate Grover Cleveland. They rejected their party’s candidate who was associated with financial corruption. Their idealism led them to oppose political corruption.
Whitney Houston sings at a pre-Grammy party saluting David Geffen (Getty Images/Kevork Djansezian) WJBC Forum: Celebrating ‘our’ heritage
Yesterday
This is wonderful time of the year to celebrate OUR heritage and reflect on the contributions Africa Americans have made to our nation and world.
Notice I said “OUR” heritage…we may have come over on different boats, but we’re all in the same boat now. I would like to take a moment to recognize a great American who broke all color barriers… singer/actress Whitney Houston. She will be remembered for your contributions to American pop-culture in many ways.
President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush greet President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama at the North Portico of the White House. (Photo by Brendan Hoffman/Getty Images) WJBC Forum: What is true leadership?
2 days ago
We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.
Happy Presidents Day. Perhaps you didn’t recognize the Preamble to our Constitution as I read it. After memorizing it for when ever we last took the Constitution test, we most likely set it aside never giving it another thought. It is clear that many of our leaders at all levels of government have done that.
The historic Illinois State Capitol building in Springfield, Illinois. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images) WJBC Forum: Over-legislating our lives
5 days ago
When my children were small, we took a trip to Laramie, Wyoming to visit Uncle Ronnie and Aunt Susan, owners of Grand Avenue Pizza.
Ron and Susan took a “hands on” approach to spending time with the kids. Using their culinary expertise, they cooked wonderful meals with them. I will never forget Ron teaching the kids not to touch the hot stove. He pointed at the burner and said, “That’s hot!” Then he would point at it again and ask each child in turn, “Alex, what is this?” Alex’s reply: “Hot!” “Brandon, what is this?”
(Photo by WJBC's Stephanie Pawlowski) WJBC Forum: Sweatheart deal
6 days ago
No, the title of my commentary doesn’t refer to Valentine’s Day, which was two days ago.
Rather, it refers to what could only have been a “sweetheart deal” between the city and someone to include “Auto Row” in the street resurfacing program that was before the city council this past Monday night.
This “street”, and that is using the term liberally, is a dead end service road behind one, count ‘em, one auto dealer, not a ROW of auto dealers, as its name implies.
Photo of the State Capitol in Springfield. (Photo by WJBC Staff.) WJBC Forum: It figures
The Illinois tax system is as dysfunctional as the rest of Illinois government.
Illinois imposes a use tax, which in effect says, “If you bought items in Illinois, you would pay sales tax on them. If you bought them elsewhere, whether over the internet, or mail order or when traveling outside of Illinois, you cheated us out of our sales tax on those items, so we’re going to impose a tax on your use of the items equal to the tax you cheated us out of by buying them out of state.”
An employee arranges roses at a flower shop on Valentine's Day. (Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images) WJBC Forum: Recognize the wonderful things about you first
2 weeks ago
I always get a kick out of fictional TV-towns that have every business imaginable to service a plot point.
Even as a young boy watching Superman, I remember Metropolis conveniently had a dam, a prison, a power plant, and among many other ridiculous concerns, a federal mint. Though it’s a real-life community, Bloomington-Normal has the diversity of businesses to keep TV show writers busy for years of programming.
People shop for the new Microsoft Windows 7 operating system at Best Buy in Altamonte Springs, Fla., in 2009. (Photo by Matt Stroshane/Getty Images) Building the perfect Windows starter kit
You just gotten a new Windows computer, or your computer just ate itself and you need to start over.
Where do you start after you get Windows installed? Which software was on the computer? Do I want to recreate what I had or begin somewhere new? If these questions are on your mind, here's how I have tackled them.
Mayor Steve Stockton, center, speaks during a Bloomington City Council meeting. (Photo by Ryan Denham/WJBC) WJBC Forum: Government needs to pay as it goes
2 weeks ago
There are two sides to every transaction.
For everybody who pays for a product, someone receives the money and gives up the product. In order to see the whole picture of any economic transaction you must add the inflow and the outflow. Accountants call that double entry accounting.
It is impossible to have one side without the other, although we often prefer to ignore what we don’t want to see. Government accounting is no different. For every program and for every payout there has to be money coming in.
Fourth-grade students read books in the elementary school library. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images) WJBC Forum: Beyond the Books
2 weeks ago
Recently we have been privy to a deluge of negative stories in the media that tell the sad story of non-profits that have gone awry.
Organizations that have worked tirelessly for years to gain the trust of constituents and their dollars, and then sadly in the blink of an eye, lose it. This is a textbook example of what happens when leadership loses sight of its mission, and instead imposes personal agendas.
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