Happy New Year to all. May this year bring you closer to the knowledge of your purpose and the knowledge of your creator. May you learn to maximize the manual for life as a creation. This is one of the greatest times for the father positon.

Remember as a teen when you devised a strategy to convince your old man to let you have the family car to go on a date Saturday night? You we’re lobbying, trying to get what you wanted. We’re all lobbyists.

Illinois lawmakers broke a resolution to get serious about the state’s property tax problem before the new year even started.

The press is uniquely protected by the First Amendment.

A group that advocates for the separation of church and state wants the City of Effingham to remove a cross from a mural on city-owned property. Among the hundreds of comments on our story Friday about that and on an online poll on the topic is the roseworthy suggestion that the city sign o…

In a recent column, I noted that most, not all, downstate school districts perform below statewide averages on 11th-grade English and math tests. I didn’t blame anyone, instead noting that performance is inversely correlated to the household incomes within each district; the lower the averag…

As the clock wound down on 2019, two things happened related to the state of journalism in this country.

When someone writes a book about this moment in American history, Mitch McConnell will likely play a starring role.

These roses go along with the hope that you and your family had a wonderful Christmas, and wishes for a happy New Year. The holidays are a time for reflection on the year that’s winding to a close, with an eye toward even better things ahead. Your EDN editor enjoyed a quiet Christmas with f…

In this season of joy, I am reminded, as we all are, fleetingly, that not all share our joy. Several years ago, for example, the circus came to my rural town. A friend and I decided to ensure that all kids could have the very few bucks needed for tickets and some cotton candy. Fifteen single…

Long before today’s votes were scheduled, my wife Karen and I made arrangements to visit our son Joshua in Tanzania where he’s serving in the Peace Corps. At the White House last week I informed President Trump that I would not be present for the these votes, and he was supportive of me visi…

Honor Flight is among the most roseworthy of causes. Proceeds from the Santa Stomp 5K Run/Walk on Saturday, Dec. 21, in Teutopolis will benefit Land of Lincoln Honor Flight, whose mission is to provide free round-trip transportation for World War II, Korean and Vietnam war veterans to see th…

The word on the street, say my insider friends, is that a lot of indictments are coming down soon as a result of federal public corruption probes in Chicagoland and Springfield, probably including both legislators and lobbyists. So, to stay ahead of the curve, I write this week the first of …

When an index finger and truck door disagree, the outcome needs no elaboration. And that, dear reader is (I hate state of being verbs) the reason for the absence of my column for, if memory and math are correct, five weeks.

TV trumps Twitter. At least this election cycle.

[rose] A reminder that we are still taking nominations for Effingham Daily News Citizen of the Year. The newspaper is again looking for individuals of extraordinary ethics who strive to improve the welfare of our community and its citizens. For its Citizen of the Year, the newspaper looks fo…

The Father position is one of the greatest opportunities this world can offer. This type of statement can be a bit of a stretch for some. I don’t know of many positions in this world that provide the opportunity to give the best of you and have it received with love. In addition to the oppor…

A number of readers (actually two) have requested a column about Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s tax initiatives. I have rattled on about this in the past, yet the topic is important to the future of Illinois, so here goes again, at least for the benefit of the two readers with interest.

The path to financial stability in Illinois begins with pension reform. It is key to lowering the tax burden on residents and unlocking the vast economic potential that is being wasted in Illinois, and yet for those running our State Government, the issue is nearly untouchable, rarely spoken…

EDN reporter Kaitlin Cordes reported in Friday's paper one of the events that always makes your EDN editor glad he lives in this community: For some community members like Julie Ohnesorge, the Effingham County FISH Community Thanksgiving Dinner was the beginning of a new tradition. Ohnesorg…

This column proposes a powerful, practical, if highly unconventional, way to start a national conversation, even a movement, that could possibly help restore a healthy American democracy and solid economic future, and maybe even replace one of our two bankrupt political parties.

Thanksgiving is upon us. We tend to list all our blessings to be thankful for, including family and friends. My family and I count America as one of the most important blessings what we are thankful for. Being an American Citizen is something we don’t take for granted. For most Americans who…

Give thanks.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren is a person of uncommon intelligence. But like all of us mortals, she sometimes makes mistakes.

Let’s hope these turn into state championship victory roses for the Effingham football team. The players, coaches and everyone else involved with the team certainly deserve roses for a fine season. As your EDN sports editor, Zach Rainey, wrote in Friday’s paper: The Effingham Flaming Hearts …

As readers might surmise from reading the news about Illinois, our state is arguably embedded in a political culture (patterns of behavior) of corruption (unearned personal gain at public expense). This doesn’t mean that everyone in the Prairie State is corrupt, but that there is a learned d…

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

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.