Illinois’ troublesome asian carp problem could be a bigger issue for the Great Lakes than originally thought. … MORE
Category Archives: State News
Rockford man faces up to five years in prison and a quarter-million dollar fine
Federal prosecutors are throwing the book at a Rockford man who admits aiming the beam of a laser pointer at an airplane flying overhead.… MORE
Report finds harassment at Illinois Capitol
A report just out Tuesday lays bare the culture of sexual harassment and bullying at the Capitol. It rises from the Springfield connections to the #MeToo movement.… MORE
Harvest could start soon for some Illinois farmers
Illinois crops are trying to catch up to the averages.… MORE
Narrow council majority backs Bloomington cannabis task force
A Bloomington City Council member wants the city to become a “cannabis pervasive” community that would take advantage of the economic benefits of a new state law legalizing recreational marijuana use.… MORE
Pritzker launches Connect Illinois, initiative for broadband statewide
Grade school principal Ken Gilmore contrasts today with the earlier days of the “information superhighway.”… MORE
GOP members gather at Illinois State Fair
A day after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) came to Springfield, it was the Republicans’ day in the sun Thursday.… MORE
ISP exhibit shows ‘Lacy’s Last Text’
You can’t miss it if you walk past the Illinois State Police tent at the state fair. A pickup truck which hit a telephone pole broadside, almost smashing the truck in two and killing the driver.… MORE
Pelosi makes a stop at Illinois State Fair
“A mainstream agenda can also be a progressive agenda. It’s been proven in Illinois; let’s make that happen for the rest of the country.”… MORE
Governor signs legislation expanding the state’s medical marijuana program
A Schaumburg girl – hit with cancer and epilepsy before turning five – is now a middle schooler with a future, thanks to medical marijuana.… 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…