Some things can’t be — mustn’t be – hidden. Fortunately, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan and Illinois Supreme Court Justice Anne Burke are initiating actions to disclose facts about sexual abuse of children, facts apparently covered up by high officials…
Editorial | American Fascism?
Letter to the Editor | School safety in our time
“Run. Hide. Fight.” That’s what potential victims of mass shootings in schools are learning now, according to Peoria County’s Regional Schools Superintendent Beth Crider. She spoke to a recent Greater Peoria League of Women Voters meeting on school safety. Though…
Letter to the Editor | Not a mandate; loyal opposition necessary
A recent comical farce written by a former CEO of a business located in Morton was published in the editorial section of the Journal Star. It was nothing but gibberish. The writer began by implying that elections had consequences. Since…
Op-Ed | A true quagmire
Reflections From The Clergy | Embracing change
“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven. – Eccl. 3:1-13 Recently, I came back from a visit to Scotland, which is a pilgrimage for Presbyterian pastors like myself. Presbyterianism was founded in Scotland…
Real Talk | Chasing our identity/dream catchers
I walked into the Lorraine Motel, and chills ran down my body as I visited the now-museum and place where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. walked out on a balcony to die. As I walked through this monument of what…
Nature Rambles | Autumn goldenrod ablaze
Serendipity | Writing
Students’ complaints about writing assignments in grade school were in sharp contrast to my enjoying them. I tried to mask my feelings because being different wasn’t comfortable. Neither did I express apprehension about science, art and anything geometry related. Writing,…
Inland Art | Pillars of Dust
Art: What is it Good For? | The face of Peoria is changing
Arts Beat | October 2018
MUSIC Oct. 1: Dark Star Orchestra. 7 p.m. Monarch Music Hall. 966-0826. Oct. 2: Drive-By Truckers, with T. Hardy Morris. 7:30 p.m. Monarch Music Hall. 966-0826. Oct. 3: Sons of Korah. 7 p.m. Trinity Lutheran Church. 676-4609. Oct. 5: Dexter…
West Peoria News | Fall cleaning
The West Peoria Residents’ Association will meet 6 p.m. Oct. 18 in City Hall when the Beautification Committee will announce the award for the resident with the most improved lawn. The committee will soon store away the planters and clear…
Journal Star newsroom contracts while digital marketing and advertising grow
The Peoria Journal Star’s new, young, part-time publisher –– with a background in marketing and advertising –– zooms through the parking lot at the once-venerable daily newspaper on his motorcycle, helmetless and heedless of speed limits. Staffers observe and shake…
Labor Roundup | October 2018
UNITE HERE and five other unions prevailed in bargaining with Walt Disney World, announcing early last month that they’d reached agreement for a 50 percent pay increase bringing the corporation’s minimum wage to $15 an hour by October 2021, plus…
Straight Talk | Loss of a friend
I was shocked and broken-hearted upon learning my dear friend, Alicia Butler, had died suddenly. I knew she had been suffering in recent days because she told me, first on a Monday afternoon and then two days later. I said…
New cancer treatment offers patients hope; powerful economic stimulus for Peoria
High cost of debt: jobs, taxpayers, opportunities
Once lauded as an outstanding retailer, Toys “R” Us liquidated 735 stores in the U.S. this year, including the one in Peoria. You could blame competition from Walmart or the internet. You would have a point. As Toys “R” Us…
EPA orders Peoria to pay almost $800,000
After decades of discussion, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is imposing a fine on Peoria for failure to resolve its combined sewer overflow problem. The EPA has still not approved Peoria’s so-called “green solution” and is ordering the city to…
Why I joined the Democratic Socialists
I didn’t leave the Democratic party; it left me. Technically, I’ve been an Independent for years, occasionally voting for Republicans, Democrats and Greens. But Democrat candidates often got my vote. However, three things got my commitment to become a member…
Straight Talk | Bad timing
I won’t argue the city council’s decision about its two top management hires, though I could. The creation and hiring of a chief diversity and inclusion officer and assistant city manager at a time when the same people are laying…
Views & Perspectives | Elections make a difference
As I begin this column, we are in “the dog days of summer.” As you read this column, we are beginning the real start to the November campaign season and November election. Although I am sure you are sick already…