Columnist

The candidate who has a shot at giving Pritzker a run

Published by admin on Sat, 01/22/2022 - 1:30pm

Richard Irvin is a Republican. Period.
Irvin might not be enough of a Republican for the purists. And Democrats might want to weaken Irvin in the Republican primary for governor by pointing to some of the nice things he's said about Democrats (including the governor) over the years. But Richard Irvin is still a Republican.
I've covered and watched the Aurora mayor for years and it's always been obvious to me that he's a Republican.

Drugs and advertising, nothing has changed

Published by admin on Tue, 01/18/2022 - 8:42am

No matter where you look you can see those ads, the ones advertising some sort of drug. Prime time television, magazines and the internet - and all of them with beautiful images of people in bathtubs on the beach or some such nonsense. So was it different back in the day? Let's see.

To catch a thief, or citizen's arrest

Published by admin on Tue, 01/18/2022 - 8:21am

Time was when law enforcement was everyone's business. The code of behavior, at least for men, was one of disregard for one's own welfare, but regard for the welfare of your fellow citizens. Today we look at several instances of citizens' enforcing the law with their own bare hands.

Illinois’ soft on crime bills may hurt Democrats

Published by admin on Sat, 01/15/2022 - 2:02pm

House Speaker Chris Welch marked his one-year anniversary as his chamber's top leader with a series of news media interviews last week. One of the questions I asked was what his legislative district's constituents were talking to him about the most.
"The number one issue in my district, and this is across the state, is crime," Speaker Welch said.

Make the most of dry January with this non-alcoholic cocktail

Published by admin on Tue, 01/11/2022 - 10:27am

It's Dry January! Well, at least is it for one in seven Americans. The “Dry January” trend of abstaining from alcohol for one month has caught on since introduced as a public health campaign in the United Kingdom in 2012. With each passing year more of us are taking a break from consuming alcoholic beverages to begin the New Year, but this doesn't mean that we can't make the most of our Dry January.

What happens when nothing happens

Published by admin on Mon, 01/10/2022 - 5:26pm

So, what is an editor to do when nothing happens? That's the dilemma that all editors, reporters and columnists have faced, what the heck do I write about this week? It was no different back in the day. Today we look at one editor's creative ways to fill up space in his newspaper (and my column). Set the dial on the wayback machine to 1877.

Booming business at Horse Creek Docks

Published by admin on Mon, 01/10/2022 - 5:17pm

Horse Creek Dock, now known as Custer Park, was for a short time in its history a seaport. Well, almost anyway; and after that a profitable stop on the Wabash Railroad. For a time it looked like Custer Park might rival Wilmington for business. Let’s look at the booming business prospects for Custer.

The gamesmanship behind getting more Democrats as judges

Published by admin on Sat, 01/08/2022 - 9:58am

The Illinois Senate's covid mitigation protocols (testing, masks and limited remote voting) didn't anticipate a partisan attempt to use a record-breaking virus surge to shut the chamber down, but that's what almost happened last week.

Escape the snow sipping on a Rum Collins cocktail

Published by admin on Tue, 01/04/2022 - 1:05pm

In a normal year, January would be the height of “wave season”. This is the time of year when cruise lines typically offer their best deals to get you out of the snow and into a far away port for fun in the sun. This year, well, the deals may be out there, but who knows what cruising is going to look like as the industry continues to evolves to provide a safe experience for all passengers.

January 1920, remnants of the war remain

Published by admin on Tue, 01/04/2022 - 1:04pm

I am changing my usual topic today, normally it would have been January of 1922, 100 years go, but for unknown reasons, very few newspapers exist from that month. So, I went back one year to 2020. Nothing spectacular that month, but the undercurrents of the last war still influenced the community.
During the first week, a new business on Water Street opened, the Electric Shoe Repair Shop. The ad does not mention how electricity was used, but it does mention that shoe repair was now double quick and your shoes could be repaired while you wait.