Guest Opinion | Thursday, April 4,2013

Will school controversies bring voters to the polls?

Tuesday, April 9, is Election Day and, if past trends hold true, only a small percentage of voters will head to the polls to select new representatives to guide Springfield’s beleaguered educati

Guest Opinion | Thursday, March 28,2013

It’s time for a Lake Springfield maintenance plan

By Bob Gordon

Lake Springfield is the crown jewel of the City of Springfield. It is the most valuable and most important asset the city owns. It is our only water supply, the coolant for the power plant and host to

Guest Opinion | Thursday, March 21,2013

Fossil fuel and nuclear knock renewables

By Grant Smith

The makeup of the electric grid of the future is at stake as the fossil fuel industry continues to falsely lessen the impact of renewable energy.So it’s no wonder that the American Wind Energy A

Guest Opinion | Thursday, March 14,2013

Florida makes Illinois look good

By Burnell Heinecke

Anyone thinking Illinois state government is more screwed up, or more corrupt, than probably any other state in the union should have seen Florida as I did during a recent 10-day visit to the Tampa Ba

Guest Opinion | Thursday, March 7,2013

Pension reform proposals that might work

By John Kindt

On Feb. 20, 2013, Rep. Lou Lang, D-Skokie, introduced HB 2375 which he described as “credible, comprehensive, constitutional pension reform legislation.” This constitutional proposal by Re

Guest Opinion | Thursday, February 28,2013

Keep pushing for excellence in education

By Sheila Stocks-Smith

School reform has proven to be tricky business in Springfield. Leading up to Dr. Walter Milton’s hire as superintendent in 2007, Springfield Public Schools were under growing public pressure to

Guest Opinion | Thursday, February 21,2013

Beat that red light

By George A.M. Heroux

Have you ever noticed how many reported car crashes take place in intersections? That’s one of the big problems, causing injuries and deaths, that do not get the attention of the other baddies.

Guest Opinion | Thursday, February 14,2013

Act now to get mortgage relief

By Mary R. Kenney

As the headlines shift to a recovery in the housing market, with an increase in national home values and home sales, it would be easy to forget that many of our friends and neighbors are still struggl

Guest Opinion | Thursday, February 7,2013

School safety is larger than Newtown

By Sheila Stocks-Smith

On Dec 14, 2012, the nation was stunned and sickened by a senseless tragedy that took the lives of 26 innocent people at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. This horrific act has again brou

Guest Opinion | Thursday, January 31,2013

My memories of Musial

By Larry Harnly

Stan Musial, 92, died Jan. 19. I first saw Musial play in person in 1951. I was 9 and he was 30, in his ninth full season with the St. Louis Cardinals. My mom got me interested in baseball and the Car