
BY FUSUN AKMAN Fractals are shapes that repeat themselves at smaller and smaller scales, as broccoli florets are wont to do. I have been thinking of fractals geopolitically: whatever is happening in the world is happening in the U.S. is…
Seldom does an event occur in the history of civilization that is the culmination of centuries of struggle and sacrifice by hundreds of thousands of people and perseverance in the belief in a system of law and order. Such an…
A referendum to dissolve West Peoria Township will be on the ballot Nov. 3. West Peoria Township Trustees voted unanimously at a special meeting Aug. 13 to place the item on the ballot. This meeting followed a public hearing Aug.…
Even change will need civic action, says Postal Workers’ Prez. Saying “movements move Congress and politicians, and not the other way around,” Postal Workers President Mark Dimondstein nevertheless warns movement activists to be ready for a long haul –– even…
It’s time to abandon the notion of a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine and instead embrace the goal of Jewish-Palestinian equality, Peter Beinart said during a Peoria Area World Affairs Council talk via Zoom conferencing. Beinart, editor-at-large for Jewish…
All eyes are on the United States as we approach the next presidential election on Nov. 3. As we approach the election, now may be a good time to review the history of voting in this country. Initial voting rights…
Our good friend Norm Kelly is gone, another victim of cancer. A few months ago, I wrote about my high school friend and his special writing accomplishments. I did it then because he told me he was not long for…
People aren’t stupid. We learn. Sometimes lessons are fanciful fables that reassure us; sometimes they’re difficult realizations of our past, and ourselves. Columbus statues aren’t symbols of humanity’s progress, one man’s courage or Italians’ intelligence. However, they represent racism and…
BY ELLEN KRASIN We often tell children that they can grow up to be whatever they want to be, but is that really true? Is our society set up to allow such an idealistic theory? In the case of young…
There is no surprise that our country is in a state of unrest. From the pandemic to the riots, to questioning and challenging the mattering of Black lives to the rebuttal of all lives. From the challenge to mask or…
“Normal” is not quite the right word. But a new reality is taking shape for local governments in 2020. On July 28, Peoria City Council mulled changes to the 2020-2021 budget in the wake of COVID-19. Staff was directed to…
Are new insights the result of thoughtfulness or impulsiveness? At the end of your life would you rather have achieved maximum happiness or maximum productivity? What causes and sustains your happiness? How much does your happiness add or detract from…
I know three people who collapsed from heat stroke. Doctors told frantic parents of two kids to immerse them in a cold-water bath. The third, a high school runner who collapsed during a race, attended a school where the athletics…
Civil-rights, labor groups demand Senate pass HEROES Act. The New Poor People’s Campaign flooded Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s office with calls on Aug. 3, demanding he let lawmakers pass the HEROES Act to aid the poor and workers nationwide,…