Category Archives: Opinion

WJBC Forum: Body shaming

Posted on June 1, 2015

By Nancy Cruse Ladies, who among us would turn down the chance to have the body of a Victoria’s Secret model?  And guys, would you jump at the chance to have the body Patrick Swayze had in the skit on Saturday Night Live when he and Chris Farley auditioned to be Chippendale Dancers? These images…… MORE

WJBC Forum: Twin Cities parks

Posted on May 22, 2015

About this time each year, parents begin to wonder and sometimes worry about how to keep their children busy and entertained all summer.… MORE

WJBC Forum: ‘Oil bomb’ trains

WJBC Forum: ‘Oil bomb’ trains

Posted on May 18, 2015

While waiting recently for a passing train on East Oakland Avenue, I pondered the question as I witnessed numerous oil tanker cars rolling within 50 feet of my van: Could this train be one of the infamous “Oil Bomb” trains I have heard so much about?… MORE

Blogs

Labor Day – Expanding voting rights for all

By Mike Matejka Because of COVID, there is no Labor Day Parade this year.  It’s always a great event for our everyday workers to march proudly down the street and enjoys the festive crowd. If there had been a parade, this year’s Labor Day theme was to be “150 years of struggle: your right to vote.” …

Is federal mobilization the answer?

By Mike Matejka As President Donald Trump threatens to send federal marshals into Chicago, over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, recall another Illinois Governor who protested the incursion of armed federal personnel into the city.   Those federal troops, rather than calming, escalated the situation, leading to deaths and violence. Illinois poet Vachel Lindsay…

In these troubled times, to my fellow white Americans

By Mike Matejka Our nation is at a unique watershed in human relations. African-Americans have been killed too many times in the past before George Floyd, but the response to this man’s death is international and all-encompassing. I was a grade-schooler during the Civil Rights 1960s. I watched Birmingham demonstrators hosed and the Selma – Montgomery…

Workers’ Memorial Day – Remember those whose job took their life

Looking around our community, when we say employer, most will respond to State Farm, Country, or Illinois State University.   We too often forget those who are building our roads, serving our food, or our public employees. COVID-19 has made us more aware of the risk.  Going to work every day for some people means…