By Dave Dahl SPRINGFIELD – You know that there are plenty of calories summoning you to the vendors at the Illinois State Fair, and the Golden Abe awards – the winners voted on by fairgoers – have formally recognized the favorites for the past few years. Behold the 2022 grand prize winner: fried key lime…… MORE
By Dave Dahl SPRINGFIELD – The newest member of the Illinois Supreme Court, Justice Lisa Holder White, is a true trailblazer. “I’m very honored to be the first Black woman, and, quite frankly, I’m thankful for the people who came before me who maybe didn’t have that type of opportunity,” Holder White said during an…… MORE
By Dave Dahl SPRINGFIELD – When Republican Bruce Rauner was governor, he arrived at his party’s Illinois State Fair rally on a Harley-Davidson motorcycle. State Sen. Darren Bailey (R-Xenia), the GOP candidate for governor this year, may have done him one better: showing up in a green John Deere 410 tractor. That was part of…… MORE
Illinois State Police is announcing the result of a summer firearm enforcement blitz.… MORE
By Dave Dahl SPRINGFIELD – Illinois Republicans Thursday will respond to what the Democrats had to say on their day at the fair Wednesday. “Look at who is winning these primaries on the Republican side,” said secretary of state candidate Alexi Giannoulias, a former state treasurer. “They are crazy as hell and are saying and…… MORE
By Dave Dahl SPRINGFIELD – Riverton’s Curry’s Family Pharmacy hosted both U.S. senators Tuesday. Pharmacy benefit managers, which have grown rapidly as a kind of middleman and seizing the mail-order prescription market, have the lawmakers’ attention. U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) said, “I have co sponsored the PBM Transparency Act, which is going to look…… MORE
By Dave Dahl SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB and First Lady MK Pritzker reprised their routine as the two final bidders for the grand champion steer at the Sale of Champions at the Illinois State Fair. The first lady again prevailed, tying her own 2021 record with a $105,000 bid. It’s a prize that will partly…… MORE
By USDA SPRINGFIELD – There were 5.6 days suitable for field work during the week ending August 14, 2022. Topsoil moisture supply was rated 7 percent very short, 16 percent short, 64 percent adequate, and 13 percent surplus. Subsoil moisture supply was rated 9 percent very short, 12 percent short, 71 percent adequate and 8…… MORE
Gov. Pritzker used Senior Day at the Illinois State Fair Monday to roll out a new program for the most senior Illinoisans.… MORE
By Dave Dahl SPRINGFIELD – For quality after school care, you need quality employees, and for that, you need more money. That was the gist of an online panel discussion led by ACT Now Illinois, in which the ACT stands for Afterschool for Children and Teens. “One of the things we need to be serious…… MORE
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.” …
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…
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…
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…