A vision for Ferguson, and everywhere
This month the nation acknowledges two political milestones. On Aug. 9 we marked the one-year anniversary of the unrest in Ferguson, Missouri. Two days later we marked the 50th anniversary of the uprising in Watts. A third civil disturbance, located in time between these two, offers lessons learned from the failures of 1965.

Reforming what matters
Reform. Our problem is not that everybody talks about it but no one ever does anything about it. Our problem is that everybody talks about it but only a few people get listened to. Take the vexed issue of public employees unions. Our Mr. Rauner has a plan to reform the relationship between employer and employed in these regards.

Marijuana: demonization to legalization
And, apparently they were right, for I’ve now learned that even the state fair is going to pot – literally. A press release from the organizers of the DC State Fair exclaims: “It’s true! For the first time ever, we’re hosting a new contest for local cannabis growers to show off their plants’ finest buds.

LETTERS
GHOSTLY QUIETUDE Being unable to know the time of day the picture was taken, I could not help but notice the shot of downtown that accompanied James Krohe Jr.’s column (“A place for business to live,” Aug 6.) was almost completely devoid of human life on the sidewalks.

Winning isn’t everything
As you know, the governor has refused to negotiate a budget until the Democrats accede to his demands to essentially neuter the power of labor unions. The Democrats won’t ever back down from his more radical proposals, including forbidding school teachers from negotiating their own salaries.

Springfield panhandling ordinance ruled unconstitutional
The case started in September 2013, when Springfield panhandlers Don Norton and Karen Otterson filed a class action lawsuit against the City of Springfield, alleging the city’s anti-panhandling ordinance violates their First Amendment right to free speech.

FLOATING WITH THE CORAL
For 10 years running, the Springfi eld-based LGBT group Coalition of Rainbow Alliances (CORAL) has won an award in the Illinois State Fair Twilight Parade for their impressive fl oats. They’ve become local icons for their dedication and imagination, and they’re changing things up in hopes of winning once again.

MATTRESSES FOR MOMS
One Springfi eld mother in need got a welcome gift last week: a brand new mattress. But this mother wasn’t looking out for herself. The mattress, a donation from a Springfi eld retailer, was for her child. Mattress Firm, 2808 Southwest Plaza Dr.

Nice work if you can get it
The district’s current collective bargaining agreement with operating engineers calls for 3 percent raises in each of the first three years of the five-year contract, then 75-cent hourly increases for the final two years.

Five years for $13 million rip-off
He turned emotional, putting his forehead down on the defense table for several minutes after tearfully apologizing to U.S. District Court Judge Sue Myerscough, who sentenced him to five years for stealing more than $13 million from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency.

The high cost of budget cuts
In August 2014, a young, African-American student in his junior year at Lanphier High School was caught carrying a gun at school. The student, whose name is being withheld because he is a minor, wasn’t trying to cause trouble. He was trying to protect himself.

West Side wows
The events that have made headlines throughout this past year make me question how much progress we’ve actually made since that time. [West Side Story] While this story takes place on the streets of New York, its message is applicable to more than one address and echoes true still today, some 50 years after its fi rst run on Broadway.

Chicken, local
“Hi, Mom! Hey, how much do chicken wings cost at the store? Some guys are coming over tonight to play cards, and I want to make hot wings. I’m going to have to get them at the grocery store, ’cause the farmers market isn’t until Saturday.” It was my son, Robb, calling from Vermont.

CuisineScene
Mess Hall Restaurant - American Legion 32.

Four far from fantastic
If nothing else, the book has always had a sense of fun to it, something director Tim Story achieved with mixed results in his 2005 and 2007 film adaptations. There’s no amusement, mirth or even a bit of whimsy this time out as Trank takes a dour approach that renders this film dead on arrival.

Fair time
For many of us Springfield-area natives the fair is a lifelong companion, like some far-off family member that comes to visit once a year. I remember going as a kid and climbing on the big tractors, going through the livestock barns and collecting all the free stuff we could in the Exposition Building.

BAND SPOTLIGHT | The Shunpikers
Originally formed in late 2013 as a one-time get-together of friends to play a benefit show, The Shunpikers hit it off so well they just kept going.

PUB CRAWL
Looming, Park, Choir Vandals, Hidden Hospitals.

THE CALENDAR
Free. springfi eldartsco.org. 217-753- 3519. Old State Capitol Plaza, Between Sixth and Fifth Streets at Adams..

ART & ARCHITECTURE | Contemporary collaboration
This contemporary art exhibit features large-scale, mixed-media installations by Kentucky-based artist Cody Arnall, sculptural work by Iowa’s Edward Kelley, plus digital and 3-D collages by Chicagoan Meagan Stroech.

NATURE | A bird-banding bash
Enjoy an up-close-and-personal examination of one of the world’s tiniest breeds of birds this weekend at the Sangamon River Audubon Society’s Hummingbird Festival.

BULLETIN BOARD | Be business-savvy
Learn how to bring your business-owning dreams to reality at the Starting Your Business in Illinois seminar on Wednesday, Aug. 19. The complimentary program, hosted by the Illinois Small Business Development Center, is offered monthly at Lincoln Land Community College’s Capital City Training Center.