by John Laesch, posted on Tuesday, December 28th, 2010 at 11:52 pm
The war on the middle class continues to be waged on both sides of the aisle. This is less of a comprehensive blog about the topic and more of a call to action. After America more or less lost our manufacturing base and moved to a service economy that exports bad debt as our main source of GDP, Wall Street types decided to start making profits off of government services. In Illinois, this means that the fight to protect our education system from Wall Street profiteers is on. An Oregon-based organization is pushing legislation that will deter the best and brigthest from teaching and ultimately enter Illinois’ schools into the race to the bottom.
State Representative Keith Farnham, an Elgin Democrat, is holding a town hall forum at the Gail Borden Public Library (270 N. Grove St., Elgin, IL) on Wednesday, Dec. 29th at 7:00 p.m.
Representative Farnham is on the education committee and it is important that he hear from teachers, parents and community activists before returning to Springfield in January. It is believed that this legislation is being put together in a hurry and that it is part of a backroom deal (Republicans will get a large part of their anti-middle class agenda in exchange for a tax increase). It is expected to pass before January 11th, 2011 (when the new assembly takes office).
This bill does not have an official number yet, but here is a screen capture of part of the copy that I obtained. Click the pic to read the most significant part. Click the link to read the entire bill.
by John Laesch, posted on Saturday, December 4th, 2010 at 12:09 pm
While the Illinois General Assembly has yet to create jobs, pass a balanced budget, or find a way to fund the $80B pension liability, they did a very courageous thing during veto session by passing a civil unions bill. This strikes me as one of the biggest “change” votes taken by the ILGA and perhaps the biggest act of courage in my memory. It was a positive step forward for residents of Illinois as we seek to join other states who view equality as a centerpiece for social and economic justice.
In the 21st century, I find it hard to believe that there are still people in Springfield and Washington who honestly feel that some in our society should be treated like second class citizens in the eyes of the government. But, some still voted “nay.” You can see the entire Senate vote here. You can see the entire House vote here.
If you agree that this is a good step for Illinois, please call or write members in the Fox Valley to let express appreciation or disappointment. Altough he has delayed signing the bill until 2011, it is expected that Governor Quinn (312-814-2121 / Online Contact Form) will sign the bill. It probably does not hurt to send the Governor a note to thank him for his support of equality. See list of Fox Valley Representatives below.
I thought progressive readers might enjoy something new to read other than the same stories about Alexi and Quinn struggling in the polls. The idea of going on television with something new, real and positive was created along the same line of thought. Sick of the negative – tune into something new. Watch Owens Television Commercial.
These ads are running on several news programs, but most of the commercials will hit television programs that attract larger female audiences (Owens base). It is a simple ad that targets people who are frustrated by their options this election cycle. The ad aims to provide an authentic answer from an authentic candidate. The St. Charles/Batavia Comcast broadcast market covers the entire 95th district.
Candle Light Vigil, Thompson Center, Chicago, June 29, 2009. From across Chicago and Illinois, hundreds gather to mark the names and programs that will be cut out of the new budget in the final hours before the end of the fiscal year. This will eliminate vital community programs and devastate thousands of families.
Chicago, June 18, 2009. Thousands responded to the “Doomsday Budget” which would deeply cut social service organization’s funding by the millions and devastate families by the thousands throughout the State.
by John Laesch, posted on Tuesday, June 2nd, 2009 at 11:26 pm
Most scientists, supported by concrete data, agree that the earth is heating up. Over the last ten years the average temperature has climbed about 1 degree Fahrenheit around the globe. And, even if you choose to reject science and the assessment that global temperatures and sea levels are rising, it would be difficult to ignore the economic recession. Rising gas prices compound the economic crisis caused by the mortgage meltdown and rising unemployment numbers
So, what do we do about it?
Do we all put solar panels on our roofs? Is it enough to replace our light bulbs with compact florescent light bulbs (CFLs)? Do we have what it takes to start carpooling to work, turning the thermostat down in the winter and up in the summer? I started asking myself all of these questions after being laid off from my last job as a carpenter at the LaSalle Nuclear Power Station (a touch of irony) in January of 2009.
Initially I came to the conclusion that we should focus our efforts on conserving energy or producing energy from non-carbon emitting sources like windmills or solar panels. It turns out that solar panels are actually a poor return on investment and wind only makes sense in rural areas. Nuclear invites controversy while we try to develop a better way of disposing of nuclear waste.
Because Rod Blagojevich is still looking for a post-political TV gig, the title of this blog post should probably be 100 days of reform and leadership under Governor Pat Quinn.
Following the attempted sale of Barack Obama’s Senate seat and the subsequent removal of pay-to-play Rod, Illinois voters have had a taste of democracy under Pat Quinn. You all weighed in on Blagojevich and you deserve an opportunity to weigh in on the Quinn reform agenda.
We have had more progress under Governor Pat Quinn than we did under both of his predecessors who are, or will be in jail. We will use the space below to highlight Quinn’s 108 days of success, make a case for keeping Governor Pat Quinn and encourage Speaker Madigan to get behind Quinn’s reform agenda.
