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LGBT rights important for the country

LGBT rights important for the country Some states are trying to legally establish who gets to use men’s restrooms and who has the bon fides to use women’s restrooms, but this issue is about a lot more than access to…

Follow the money behind gun violence

Why is anyone opposed to common-sense gun control laws like waiting periods and background checks? The reason is purely financial, suggests a new documentary “Making a Killing: Guns, Greed and the NRA.” The film will be shown at 5:30 p.m.…

Editorials

Hoosick Falls versus  Bedford Falls: Guardian angel for one but not the other Greed almost ruined Bedford Falls, the idyllic fictional town in the Frank Capra classic “It’s a Wonderful Life.”  When George Bailey (James Stewart) felt overwhelmed by a…

Scalia’s death means a reprieve from Supreme Court’s bifurcated thinking on free speech

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia’s death leaves the court balanced between conservative and liberal positions on free speech rights and unions. Scalia and the court’s other conservatives comprised a winning five-block coalition that had been expected to issue a conservative…

Food Stamp spending cut nationwide but Illinois, thankfully, bucks the trend On the campaign trail in early January, presidential candidate Jeb Bush called for an end to Food Stamps, replacing the federal program with “Right to Rise” grants awarded to…

More jobs in clean energy than in fossil fuels

  Aaron Mair, national president of the Sierra Club, spoke in Peoria at the state NAACP conference and said it’s a “false trick” to protect the coal industry because it provides jobs. Now Robert Pollin, distinguished professor of economics at…

Cuts to child care subsidies bigoted and illogical

It was toward the end of her press conference advocating to restore funding for child care subsidies that State Rep. Jehan Booth-Gordon expressed her shock. The TV cameras were off and most print reporters had gone when Booth-Gordon said she…

Editorials – HOW “EFFICIENT” ARE HUMAN RIGHTS?

WHAT’S THE COST-BENEFIT ANALYSIS OF MORALITY? Words that obfuscate: Cut the Illinois income tax surcharge: This really means a tax savings bonanza for high-income earners and a miniscule savings for middle- and low-income earners. Right to work: This really means…

College Adjuncts Paid Below Minimum Wage: UNIONIZE

Colleges and universities are increasingly relying on adjuncts rather than full-time faculty. Adjuncts are part-time teaching staff who often have master’s or doctoral degrees. They are usually paid a set amount per course taught. Adjuncts don’t receive health insurance or…