Page 1

Honest money
Am I the only one? Watching the Republican gubernatorial primary reminds me of a homecoming king contest that pits the quarterback whose dad bought him a convertible against the student council vicepresident, the swim team equipment manager and the Key Club treasurer.

Balancing liberty and security
In January it was the revelation that spy agencies in the U.S. and Britain have been snagging personal data from the users of mobile phone apps.

Don’t close our post offices
Not Wal-Mart-style jobettes, but real jobs – stable ones with good salary and benefits, union jobs so workers have a say in what goes on, jobs that have strong protections against discrimination. A job one can make a career, do useful work in, take pride in, earn promotions and be respected for what he or she does.

LETTERS
REQUIRED READING Lauren P. Duncan’s takeout story, “Cash helps Rauner climb” (Feb. 27), ought to be required reading for everybody who votes in this month’s Republican primary, probably the November election too.

Quinn’s anti-violence program mess
Some Illinois Legislative Black Caucus members are saying “I told you so” in the wake of a stunning state Auditor General’s investigation into misspending, waste and possibly even fraud in an anti-violence initiative hastily created by Gov. Pat Quinn..

IEPA pushes for rules on coal ash disposal
The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency is pushing for new administrative rules ensuring the coal ash doesn’t poison the public’s water. The rules come as regulators clean up a Feb. 2 spill of 35 million gallons of coal ash and arsenic-tainted water into North Carolina’s Dan River.

SHOPPING STATE
How about an old cop car, a cabinet to store acids, or a spectrophotometer to do whatever those things do? (We had to look it up. It involves measuring light.) The State of Illinois has all that and more – a lot more – in a warehouse at Laurel and 10 ½ Street.

KIDZEUM TO INCLUDE PET CARE EXHIBIT
The Kidzeum of Health and Science, a former children’s museum that closed in 2001, is raising money to again opens its doors. It announced it recently received a $50,000 donation from the Illinois State Veterinary Medical Association (ISVMA) to feature a “Pet Vet Clinic” at the new museum.

Case reveals lax oversight
Wright was a bit player, prosecutors say, in a scheme that has resulted in several guilty pleas. The case revolves around a crooked former Chicago cop named Regina Evans who has pleaded guilty to fraud, witness tampering, obstruction of justice and conspiracy.

Young renters wanted
The Springfield Sustainable Design Assessment Team (SDAT) has been working since 2012 to find a way to revitalize the city’s downtown area. The group joined architects and residents at a Feb. 28 Citizens Club meeting to provide an update on the team’s latest focus: bringing businesses and residents back to the .

No smoking, anywhere
January marked six years since Illinois became smoke-free. The initial ban, which limited the use of cigarettes in indoor public places, aimed to both decrease the prevalence of smoking, and to protect non-smokers from the dangers of secondhand smoke..

Mental health court planned
More than a dozen Illinois counties already have so-called mental health courts aimed at helping, not jailing, defendants whose crimes are rooted in mental illness. Getting treatment for mentally ill defendants and keeping them out of jail is a concept welcomed by judges, probation officers and cops.

Dead dogs walking
Even with a doggie sweater on, it weighs just four pounds, five ounces, with hair so sparse it would risk a sunburn if this were summertime instead of mid-February. She is deaf, blind and toothless, with cloudy eyes and a tongue prone to hanging limp from the side of her mouth.

Local playwright brings The Rev to life
In the theater class he teaches at Robert Morris University, George A.M. Heroux advises students to look for plot details from one’s life. “I’ve done that with the plays I’ve written,” he says. He’s definitely taken that advice in his latest work, The Rev – A Musical Comedy,.

Storyteller with Springfield ties
In considering his early years, Lam says, “I did not really write anything in high school worth mentioning. But I did have wonderful teachers, particularly Daria Neece and M.J. Peters (English) who encouraged me to continually improve my writing.

Non-Stop flaws
Neeson is Federal Air Marshall Bill Marks, who we immediately identify as a man haunted by his past. The actor’s haggard look and the fact that he starts his day with a couple of shots of whiskey in his coffee are dead giveaways, but of course our man-in-the-air perseveres while we’re safe in the knowledge his woes will be revealed in time.

German feast
Peter had been talking about hosting the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign German club for months before our wedding. He’d formed friendships with several of his fellow members, and I’d gotten to know them too. Sauerbraten was a logical choice.

PUB CRAWL
Acoustic Showcase with Tom Irwin, Josh Catalano, Matt Skinner.

BAND SPOTLIGHT | Charlie King
After 50 years of performing and 40 years of songwriting, the quite well known and extremely well traveled, Charlie King celebrates by releasing another record and making a Midwest March tour. The retrospective album So Far, So Good.

March in the meantime
Just one week into March and perhaps the big thaw is here, but whether or not, there are plenty of events to experience in the meantime as we patiently (all right, already) wait for the warmth of spring to heat up the scene. I can just smell the outdoor beer gardens, alive with the sound of music.

THE CALENDAR
SPOKEN WORD Springfield Poets, Writers Open Mic.

FILM | Fighting poverty
An important documentary, Girl Rising,.

ART | Perfecting the portraiture
New York City photographer Sean Fader brings his acclaimed contemporary photographic series to the University of Illinois Springfield Visual Arts Gallery. Fader’s exhibition SUP?, reviewed in Slate Magazine.

MUSIC | Folk and Celtic accords
Americana and Celtic music duo Brian FitzGerald and Martin McCormack return to the Hoogland Center for the Arts March 8 for another amazing concert. They will be joined on stage by the Central Illinois Irish Dancers.