By: Diane Benjamin As long as the data is interesting I will continue to update this story. The Illinois Department of Public Health updates this information every Wednesday. They used to say they don’t track it, obviously they did. Last weeks story: https://blnnews.com/2021/10/14/the-data-idph-doesnt-want-you-to-see/ Last week cumulative hospitalizations and deaths in vaccinated people: Today: Breakthrough cases […]
By: Diane Benjamin The ONLY reason I started this site IS the Pantagraph. I watched years of their misreporting that turned to lack of reporting. They messed with the WRONG person! Citizens deserve news, the Pantagraph doesn’t report it unless it fits their purpose. They are completely in bed with local government, Steve Vogel’s daughter was […]
Update: The City promptly replied to my FOIA for missing information I amended the information received below in BOLD. See the receipts here: 201503241124_Redacted Even if only one person ate, why are taxpayers paying the bill? Does your boss pay for your lunch? By: Diane Benjamin http://www.cityblm.org/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentid=8396 ADMIN City Council Expenses American AI $ 384.20 […]
If you have a child taking Economics at any area high school, ask them what they are taught. Story tomorrow. Hint: what some teachers teach isn’t in a textbook
by: Diane Benjamin Bloomington owns 3 golf courses. I previously report that these 3 courses DO NOT pay for themselves, even if Mayor Renner likes to say they do: http://blnnews.com/2014/03/29/golf-pays-for-itself-hahaha/ It’s hard to keep track of what is in the budget and what isn’t, but I think the $250,000 for path resurfacing at Prairie Vista […]
At last nights Bloomington City Council meeting the financial statements for the year ended 4/30/2013 were presented. City staff and the Auditor were there to answer questions. Only 1 person elected to the Council had questions for the Auditors – Alderwoman Judy Stearns. She asked questions CITIZENS want answered. Start watching the video at […]
by: Diane Benjamin There once was a mayor named Tari Who campaigned on promoting transparency Evidently a myth Too difficult to deal with Free speech must no longer exist! Excerpts from emails sent from Tari to me: From June 2013 Thank you Diane for your diligence! Your parody was actually MUCH closer to reality that […]
by: Diane Benjamin Contrary to the belief of Rob Fazzini, he can not under the law declare himself a private citizen, then work with 2 other Council members and include the Mayor’s email address on correspondence without violating the Open Meetings Act. The Attorney General is now investigating their attempt to change the Bloomington City […]
The Meyers Report: The Promised Land? For the first time ever, we are looking at a new movie to be released on December 28th. The Promised Land, starring Matt Damon, who also was supposed to be the director, but Damon turned it over to Gus Van Sant. The Promised Land, has a clearly “anti-fracking” theme. […]
Editor Note: Alderman Judy Stearns voted against at least 2 budgets specifically because of unfunded pensions. She was ignored by the Mayor, City Manager, and the rest of the Council. by: Carl Woodward CPA The two communities where I am located (Bloomington/Normal, Illinois) have not fully funded their pension and health care obligations over the […]
by: Diane Benjamin Government thinks they are capable of making better decisions than citizens. There is no more obvious example than the take-over of the healthcare industry. Massive regulations and fees are issued every month by the un-elected, all supposedly to cover the un-insured. Regulations do nothing to promote healthcare for all. Large providers […]
by Diane Benjamin Please read Parts 1 and 2, the narrative continues from the progressive ideas spelled out so far. Part II of The Little Blue Book is titled: The Epidemic of Extreme Conservatism. The concept that conservatives follow the strict authoritarian father model continue painting anyone wanting limited government as a threat to democracy. They fail to mention […]
This report was released by the tax foundation in 2011 for 2005-2009. http://taxfoundation.org/article/property-taxes-owner-occupied-housing-county-ranked-taxes-paid-2005-2009-five-year-average The comparison is for ALL Counties in the United States. McLean County isn’t far down the list: #130 for medium property tax paid on homes #61 for % of tax paid based on home value #151 for % of tax based on […]
2 Down, a couple hundred to go.
I hear Jennifer is very upset her petitions are being challenged. Evidently following the law doesn’t matter – things like putting the correct date for the election on the petitions aren’t important. Pretty sad an elected official doesn’t even know the right date! How smart can she be? Funny, Jennifer tried her hardest to keep Judy […]
Dollars for leaders Of the 177 Illinois state legislators, 136 receive some type of salary boost for a leadership post, which will cost taxpayers an additional $1.7 million this year. Annual salaries for all 177 is $64,716. Both Dan Brady and Bill Brady receive extra money for their leaderships rolls: Dan $9,851 Total $ 74,567 […]
Now you need to Remodel for Sustainability! Questions: Who decided we weren’t sustainable? Who appointed anybody to be in charge of deciding what is and what isn’t sustainable? Why are their opinions forced on you? Bloomington – Where to you think the idea of requiring sprinklers in new construction came from? Note the word “vision”, that would be the one […]
1) They are illegal! Why should anybody who entered our country illegally, breaking the law to do so, be given any privileges? 2) If the law keeps bending to accommodate illegal aliens, why have any laws at all? or is that the point! 3) American laws have always worked on the “honor” system. Citizens aren’t assigned a personal monitor by […]
MoveOn.org sent the following information. Those of us who would like to defend ourselves (like the people in 49 other states), hope this means the issue will be brought back in Springfield! Guess Mr. Goodman hasn’t heard about all the people being mowed down in Chicago or that concealed carry is about DEFENSE. Below is an […]
Isn’t it amazing how the City Council of both Bloomington and Normal are suddenly conservative? Members who never met a tax increase they didn’t like, are suddenly looking for cuts to balance their budgets – you know the ole’ property values are down, incomes are down, citizens are suffering . . . Can’t possibly have […]
by Diane Benjamin This is the 2nd investigation, even though the State’s Attorney’s Office hasn’t made a decision on the first investigation. Here is a link to the first investigation: http://blnnews.com/2012/07/18/city-of-bloomington-investigated-for-violation-of-the-open-meetings-act/ The only response available for why it is taking them so long is: Thank you for contacting the Public Access Bureau. You requested an […]
When buzzing in my ear is too great to ignore – I must report! http://blnnews.com/2012/09/26/fly-on-the-wall/ This report from way back in September is suddenly getting lots of reads! Is somebody nervous? Is somebody at the County looking to close that budget deficit by actually looking at County Offices and their spending patterns? Is somebody at […]
by Diane Benjamin http://www.ilhonorroll.niu.edu/scripts/awards.asp?searchStr=L&awtype=E&year=2011&so=name Which area schools achieved: 2011 Academic Excellence Awards No Unit 5 Schools No Dist 87 Schools Tri-Valley Elementary Tri-Valley Middle School No Leroy schools Lexington Elementary No Heyworth Schools Olympia West Elementary Ridgeview Elementary Also See: http://blnnews.com/2012/11/12/school-district-comparison-continued/ Also See: http://blnnews.com/2012/11/12/school-district-comparisons/
by Diane Benjamin (continued from previous post) From the Illinois State Board of Education website: http://www.isbe.net/ See the chart below: Close to 50% of all 11th graders in the state are BELOW average in all 3 subjects Dist 87: 52.5% below standards in reading 57% below standards in math 58.6% below standards in science If your […]
by Diane Benjamin From the Illinois State Board of Education website: http://www.isbe.net/ See the chart below: Unit 5 and District 87 have less Administrators per pupil, but the percent spent on Instruction is low. Where is the money going? Graduations rates are way below surrounding districts. Leroy, Lexington, and Ridgeview have high pupil to admin percentages. […]
by Diane Benjamin Didn’t think so. The site doesn’t say how many people participated or if they were blocked from voting more than once. The problem is they are using their poll results to formulate policy! Below are 3 of the questions asked. You are blocked from voting more than once. I will compare the […]
Update: I’ve now learned the replacement flag was purchased by a citizen, not the City. by Diane Benjamin Numerous citizens have asked the Bloomington City Council to remove the UN Flag from the Council Chambers. They have refused to openly discuss the issue, but privately they email each other. Here’s how they feel about the […]
by Diane Benjamin First Fact: The whole Global Warming, Global Cooling, Climate change propaganda that is bankrupting the entire globe is being slowly debunked by actual science – see prior post: http://blnnews.com/2012/06/25/significant-evidence-that-mankind-has-an-insignificant-impact-on-the-climate-of-planet-earth/ If you really do believe in global warming, how many billions or trillions of dollars are you willing to spend with no guarantee the […]
Explanation from the Pantagraph: (like we all haven’t seen lie filled letters printed from the left) From: Pantagraph Letters <[email protected]> To: Charles Nicholson <[email protected]> Sent: Friday, October 12, 2012 9:27 AM Subject: RE: Letter to the Editor It is your letter; I cannot tell you how to write it. But to ME, it comes off as borderline racist; get […]
When buzzing in my ear is too great to ignore – I must report! Because citizens have the right to know who they are voting for: He doesn’t live in his district, and hasn’t for a long time. He is back with his domestic violence abuser-evidently it involved a meat cleaver and a felony arrest. […]
MSNBC Caught Lying in Romney smear It’s not the first time they have doctored videos for their agenda. How long are the affiliates going to keep supporting NBC? How long is the public going to support NBC affiliates? Anybody still watching NBC NEWS? Does WEEK do the same thing to video? How would we know, […]
by Diane Benjamin According to an editorial in Sunday’s Pantagraph, 58% of voters surveyed think Illinois is more corrupt than other states. They sited some culprits – 2 ex-governors in prison and voter fraud across the state, but they miss the obvious – who is in bed with the politicians? Media. According to the survey, 41% […]
The County ballot for the November 6th, 2012 election has been released. There are 24 races on the ballot, most will have less depending on where you live. Of the 24 races, 7 have a choice of who to vote for. REAPEAT: 17 of the races give you NO choice of who to vote for. Bill Brady […]
On November 6th, the voters in McLean County will be asked if they want to move the Recorder of Deeds office into the County Clerk’s Office. Since private property rights are critical, and what makes us different from other countries, weakening control of land documents puts our freedom and liberty at risk. Please vote NO – keep the Recorder an independent and and […]
The writer of this article is fighting the same battles that CityWatch and BLNNews have been reporting on – control of local government by the federal and state government. as directed by the United Nations. John F. McManus is from the Rockford area. The McLean County Regional Planning Commission recently tried to get Bloomington to […]
by Diane Benjamin Currently the Town of Normal is not in trouble because of the massive spending to create Uptown. They have a broad source of funding, and taxes were raised to pay for it. Unlike Bloomington’s investment in the Coliseum that CAN’T pay for itself, it’s easier to spread the Uptown cost over the […]
by: Diane Benjamin I firmly believe the American people are too smart to fall for the same Obama lines again and they are WAY over voting for the first Black President. McCain was a lousy candidate. We were told banks would collapse without bailouts, I don’t blame anybody for saying – let’s give the guy […]
by: Diane Benjamin The article published September 5th was a glowing endorsement of wind energy – typical left wing propaganda. Here’s the subsidy facts according to the US Department of Energy and Institute for Energy Research: Federal Subsidies for electric power – fiscal year 2010 Total in millions $ $ […]
byline: Stanley Wonder Is it just me, or is something missing at Bloomington City Hall? No, not the usual trappings of government – the podiums, microphones, gavels, and flags. They’re all there, complete with the beautiful blue and gold of the United Nations. Huh? The UN? Isn’t that the organization that wants a New World […]
Cute, aren’t they? We hear the Bloomington Zoo wants to add them and other attractions totaling $16.7 Million – YOUR tax money. The financial statement for the year ending 3/31/2012 are NOT issued yet, but here are some notes from the 3/31/2011 statement: The City continues to retire compensated absences liabilities for employees; however, for […]
