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The EPA is good for our health
As I reflected on last month’s Earth Day and the current attack by the Trump administration and Republicans in Congress on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), I considered what impact this agency has had on the environment and the health of the nation.

Ride sharing
Buildings are coming down along Ninth Street to make way for an off-street transfer facility for the Springfield Mass Transit District, with an eye toward construction someday of a full-scaled transit center served by bus, taxi and Amtrak.

Populism is not about angry mobs
For me, the “ism” that best encompasses and addresses this reality is populism. What is it? Essentially, it’s the continuation of America’s democratic revolution. It encompasses and extends the creation of a government that is us.

LETTERS
As a professional historian who spent 20 years at the Papers, the last seven as assistant director, I can tell you that Mr. Lowe’s comment is not merely false, but outrageous. It is a lie and a slander against the work that my colleagues and I conducted at the project during those 17 years.

Kennedy’s best and perhaps only path
Both candidates won because they ran as firm, anti-establishment outsiders. Fitzgerald was best known as a state Senator in the 1990s for railing against the elders who ran his Republican Party, including many who had been supplying the GOP with loads of money over the years and who’d used their positions to handsomely profit off of state business.

TORCH TUESDAY TOSSES IN THE TOWEL
For over seven years, Torch Tuesday has been Springfi eld’s premier showcase for local and touring hip-hop music.

Higher ed rally blames Rauner
The rally began as students and faculty gathered around Illinois’ Statehouse Rotunda, chanting “Fund our futures” and “Do your Job,” calling on Gov. Bruce Rauner to fund higher education. It continued outside the Statehouse by the Abraham Lincoln statue with speakers firing up the crowd about the effects of the budget impasse on higher education.

NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS
A controversial plan before Congress that would permit companies to fine workers who refuse to share their genetic information through workplace wellness programs has prompted Illinois lawmakers to tighten up a state law protecting workers from such repercussions.

UIS strike ends
A joint statement released by UIS Chancellor Susan Koch and United Faculty President Lynn Fisher expressed relief that both sides came to a resolution. “After a productive weekend of good faith negotiations, we are pleased to report that a tentative agreement between the university administration and the new UIS faculty union has been reached.

SoS employee tried ducking restitution
Spokesmen for Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White will say little more than Wanzo is on administrative leave pending an investigation by the inspector general’s office for the secretary of state. Wanzo was hired as a secretary in 1999, the same year that White became secretary of state.

Contest-gate
Craven said that Porter gave him a copy of the scoring sheet last fall, but a question remained as to whether Simmons was the only judge. Now, Craven said, the investigation has been reopened, and the IPA is searching its computer system for records relating to the contest.

Enos Park presses ahead
It has not been easy. Elegant Victorian-style homes are in assorted states of elegance, some restored to magnificence, others waiting for saviors. There are a few blue-tarp specials with peeling paint, questionable roofs and assorted detritus in unkempt yards.

Farming on the earth
I grew up in a subdivision outside of Chicago in a 1960s ranch house so close to our neighbors that I could lean out my bedroom window and knock on my buddy’s window. Our little suburban homestead had only enough sunny land to farm some chives, parsley, two tomato plants and four bell pepper plants.

City of Z a fascinating, compelling journey
Repeatedly passed over because of a stain on his family name, Lieutenant Percy Fawcett (Charlie Hunnam) is eager to find a way to advance through the ranks. An opportunity falls in his lap when he’s approached by England’s Royal Geographical Society to lead a small expedition to determine the actual border between Bolivia and Brazil.

More than a Fat Ass
We’ve circled back around to Fat Ass time this weekend, as the popular event takes over the downtown area Friday night and Saturday day. But never fear, because along with your Fat Ass stuff, many other cool and equally appealing things are happening..

PUB CRAWL
Off the Wall, Fun DMC, The Shenanigans.

BAND SPOTLIGHT | Chris Vallillo
A nationally-acclaimed singer-songwriter, folklorist, musician and producer, Chris Vallillo has cultivated a status as the go-to guy for original and traditional folk-based song-playing during his 30-some years performing music.

THE CALENDAR
Theater & Comedy Comedians Dan Chopin and Greg Batton.

FILMS | Summer movie fun
Join the Springfield Park District on Friday, May 12, for the first showing in their 2017 “Movies in the Park” series. The film shown will be The Secret Life of Pets,.

PETS | Fur-ever homes for felines
The APL takes in hundreds of stray kittens every year, and they need your help in providing for and caring for these fine young felines. On Saturday, May 13, join the APL in the lobby of their spay/neuter clinic from 1-3 p.m. for games, refreshments, door prizes, and visits and playtime with the kittens.

FESTIVALS | This race has everything
Corn dogs, beer, doughnuts, ice cream, crazy costumes, professional timing for runners, live music and dancers are just a few of the zany things you’ll spot during the tenth annual FatAss 5K and Street Party for Charity. Runners and walkers of all ages, athletic abilities and walks of life will enjoy the 3.