Knight Watch

Quality of jobs is on the decline in Peoria

The Peoria area lost 2,800 jobs between July 2013 and July 2014, when its percentage of employed people fell 1.6 percent, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics second-quarter report, but the five-county metro area is stable overall, says Bernard…

Propaganda, not facts drives the GOP

  The mere accumulation of facts doesn’t always lead to good conclusions, judgment or wisdom. Too many of us, progressive and conservative alike, can fall victim to extrapolation or correlation. An example of extrapolation is extending some inference based on…

After Garner, westerns still offer heroes, certainties

Last month, a progressive actor equally at ease playing a ne’er-do-well gambler, private eye or astronaut died: James Garner. He was the best among favorite actors – and still lives on old black-and-white western reruns. As he recounted in his…

150’s super-security: ‘Mayberry, WTF’

(Middle-age woman in an old-style, gingham dress seated at a table, talking on an old-fashioned phone) G- Clara? Aunt G. Did you get your paper? Me neither. It’s getting so thin, you’d think it’d get easier to deliver. What’s that?…

Claims that FEMA had decided not to grant the state any funding, is accurate but incomplete and misleading

As the income-tax deadline looms, taxpayers should connect widespread resentment at what many feel was an unresponsive Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) with available resources resulting from choices made in Washington. Outrage also may be tempered by a more complete report of actual government response.

One Small Step for a consumer; one giant leap for public schools

Reminiscent of Neil Armstrong, the opportunity is “one small step for a consumer; one giant leap for public schools.” The ballot reads: “Proposition for a 1% Sales Tax for School Facility Purposes – ‘Shall a retailer’s occupation tax and service…

Vatican questionnaire not distributed to area laity

In the New Testament, Jesus says, “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches,” and “Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.” Nevertheless, it’s unclear whether Pope Francis will be able to…

Predicting holiday shopping is a cynical ‘game’

When the Peoria County Board in mid-November unanimously passed a resolution supporting Small Business Saturday on Nov. 30, it rekindled an appreciation for independent retailers with local owners and workers – and the merchants who refrain from making forecasts of…