Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s bluster on the state’s pension problem is dangerous.

I tell you, folks. I am so tired of all this impeachment news, quid pro quos, emoluments, obstruction of justice, with an occasional ‘who’s zoomin’ who?’ thrown in for good measure it’s getting difficult to watch. It would be laughable if it weren’t so funny, so serious.

THE CONVERSATION “A televised theatrical performance staged by the Democrats.” With these words, Republican Rep. Devin Nunes expressed his discontent with the beginning of presidential impeachment hearings. He indirectly invited listeners – both supporters and detractors – to consider the re…

Illinois’ economic fortunes are turning around. After years of struggling to recover from the so-called Great Recession of 2008, the tide seems to be turning. Here are some of the headlines this year from the Illinois Department of Employment Security:

Formerly defined as simply the opposite of being asleep, “woke” in the era of Black Lives Matter and the #MeToo movement frequently describes an awareness of important facts and issues, particularly in areas of racial and social justice.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker has had a lot to say about corruption as more details have emerged about federal corruption probes aimed at state lawmakers, lobbyists and other elected officials.

It’s promising to be a banner year for the business of media, thanks to the 2020 elections just under a year away.

For the sake of Illinois and its highest court, Anne Burke should step down from her role as chief justice of the Illinois Supreme Court, to which she was recently elected by her fellow justices.

Last week, as a member of the Board of Governors of the American College of Surgeons, I attended its annual congress in San Francisco. During the meeting about 2,000 surgeons were inducted as new fellows adding to the 85,000 fellows of the college. Surprisingly, 40% of the new fellows were f…

At a May 2016 campaign rally in Charleston, West Virginia, Donald Trump, the presumed GOP nominee for president, told the faithful: “If I win, we’re going to bring those miners back. You’re going to be so proud of your president. For those miners, get ready, because you’re going to be working your asses off.”

If you live in non-metro or rural America, you’ve been left behind by the economic boom cycle that came after the Great Recession. You also endured a more severe recession than people who live in bigger cities.

Yogi Berra once famously gave this puzzling advice to a college graduating class, “When you come to a fork in the road, take it.” The quip became lore, along with other Yogi-isms attributed to the legendary baseball player.

Current “must win at all costs” campaigning — where big money and trashing one’s opponent in a close race seem de rigueur — may be at the heart of what ails American politics. There are other reasons, and good ones, to run, even if the candidate doesn’t expect to win.

It’s amazing what sort of thing might spark an impassioned debate.

I was deeply touched by the column by Harry Reynolds on Saturday, Oct. 26, “He was my grandson. On his 79th day, he died.”

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez had a question for Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg.

Political corruption in Illinois is back in the news. (When did it leave?) A reader writes: Why so much corruption, and so little in neighboring states?

This is roseworthy news that the Associated Pess reported on Friday: “An Illinois task force that examined the safety of pharmacy practices in the state is recommending that pharmacists take breaks and take more time when dispensing medications. State officials created the task force after …

We put Ian in his grave. We put him under a huge oak tree. We put him by a glen where the breeze sings and leaves rustle. We put Ian in his grave. We put him by a glen on a summer’s day

The intent of this column is to leave you with information that may enhance your perspective of the Father position. I know this is a unique article to present, but it is a very powerful ingredient in the strengthening of the community.

State Senate President John Cullerton repeatedly said that he wanted to make an “informed” decision about state Sen. Martin Sandoval’s leadership role before Sandoval resigned as chairman of the Illinois Senate Transportation Committee.

Anyone who has waited and waited at the Effingham Amtrak station for a train can believe this thornworthy report by the Chicago Tribune: “Amtrak’s Illini and Saluki trains, which provide transportation for thousands of college students, have among the worst on-time performance records in th…

Am I the only one who does not get it? I keep scratching my bald head trying to understand the bizarre way that we have been conducting our foreign policy in the Middle East. I am writing this column from Cairo, Egypt. As I read the European, American and Middle East newspapers, I can see th…

Presidents and presidential candidates try to manipulate public opinion whenever they consider press coverage embarrassing, unhelpful or worse.

I haven’t written anything in a long time, but I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity to thank Marilyn Wirth for the finely written satirical piece that appeared in the Wednesday, Oct. 16 edition of the EDN.

Illinois drivers paid an extra $100 million in gas taxes this July, according to new state reporting. That’s because Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed a doubling of the state’s gas tax to fund an infrastructure package. And the hike took effect July 1.

I think the one thing everyone can agree on is that the dissension in our country is very troubling. However, it’s not the first time in our nation’s history we’ve been at odds with each other.

You might have been asked recently to sign a petition to put a candidate on the ballot in 2020. It’s that season and, though a truism, if good people don’t run for office, democracy doesn’t work. You ought to try running. Here’s how.

It’s been less than week since Yoshi has passed – his 8.5 pound body no longer able to sustain the ravages of swollen lymph nodes and other unseen damage caused by cancer.

WASHINGTON – The judge took 130 pages to explain that Harvard’s “holistic review” admissions policies – which include ascribing particular attributes to certain ethnicities, such as Asian Americans, and assessing the value to Harvard of those attributes – are, considering 41 years of Supreme…

Once upon a time, having a job at a newspaper meant working in one of the most imposing buildings in town, inhaling the acrid aroma of fresh ink and the dusty breath of cheap newsprint and feeling mini-earthquakes under our feet every time the presses started to roll. For those of us old eno…

For centuries, citizens have turned to their local news publication for local breaking and investigative news, as well as to learn about hot-button issues in their communities. In the last 15 years, with the rise of digital communications, many readers have changed their preferences to digit…

With just 45 words the founders guaranteed five — no six — basic freedoms, fundamental American rights.

With Bernie Sanders’ heart attack, perhaps precipitated by the stress of campaigning with unabated revolutionary fervor, coupled with head-snapping contradictory pronouncements from spinmeister Rudy Giuliani, some found themselves wondering if millennial ageism is warranted.

The Associated Press reported this roseworthy news on Friday: “The U.S. unemployment rate fell to 3.5% in September, the lowest level in nearly five decades, even though employers appeared to turn more cautious and slowed their hiring. The economy added a modest 136,000 jobs, enough to like…

Roses to the City of Effingham for giving water customers a 10-day grace period after water bills somehow got lost in the mail. According to the City of Effingham Facebook page, payment of bills will be extended to Oct. 25. Typically, water bills are due on the 15th of each month. “Although …

This column is dedicated to the endangered position of the father and a commitment to revive this position in the eyes of the family. When the necessary respect for the father is restored to family, then and only then will the societal ills no more run rampant as they have been allowed.

Illinois higher education is in disarray as a result of an exodus of students from our state, uncertain state funding, declining high school graduation numbers, excess capacity, and the seeming implosion of several state universities.

SEOUL, South Korea – In 1950, when Han Sung-joo was 10, shrapnel from an artillery shell lodged in his hip. This happened as Gen. Douglas MacArthur’s troops, fresh from the bold Incheon landing, were retaking this city – it would be lost and retaken again – after North Korea’s June invasion.…

Career politicians in Illinois have mastered the art of disenfranchising voters to the benefit of themselves and their partisan interests. The most prominent example of this can be found in our current system of drawing legislative maps.