By George F. Will, Published: May 23, 2014 All modern presidents of both parties have been too much with us. Talking incessantly, they have put politics unhealthily at the center of America’s consciousness. Promising promiscuously, they have exaggerated government’s proper scope and actual competence, making the public perpetually disappointed and surly. Inflating executive power, they have […]
Sorry – you get a 2 month reprieve. Gas will go up August 1st! . by: Diane Benjamin Good for the local paper to put gas prices on the front page. During the Bush administration reporters camped at gas pumps to hear sob stories from citizens when the price got to $3.00 a gallon – […]
by: Diane Benjamin I really appreciate the Bloomington website managers NOT updating it in a timely manner. It makes my research easier. Below is what the Liquor Commission used to look like – note 5 members and the Professor. MEMBERS POSITION NAME TERM EXP Chair Renner, Tari N/A Member Stockton, Stephen N/A Member Jordan, […]
by: Diane Benjamin From an article in today’s Pantagraph – Professor Mayor Tari Renner: You do attend the Council meeting Tari, right? Have you noticed that any Council member who questions what is presented is vilified, or at least cut off? Did you notice the empty pots vote for whatever they are told to vote […]
by: Diane Benjamin You can’t understand why politicians do what they do unless you know where their governing information comes from. Professor Renner used to work for the International City Managers Association. They are having a convention in September, I expect City Manger David Hales and probably Tari will attend. Of course, it will be […]
by: Diane Benjamin Show of hands please – How many of you shop downtown? Go to downtown restaurants? Maybe you go to the Farmers Market, but ever go downtown for anything else? Maybe jury duty, go to the BCPA or Coliseum occasionally, hit the bars, any other reason? There are people in downtown Bloomington, […]
by: Diane Benjamin It seems like an organization charged with managing downtown Bloomington would at least be mostly downtown business owners or residents. The people with a vested interest in the success of downtown should be the leaders. From the DBA website, the Board consists of many people who aren’t downtown business owners. The DBA […]
by: Diane Benjamin Bloomington City leaders have been enamored with downtown Bloomington for a long time. That’s why the Coliseum is there. They believe if enough money is thrown at downtown, people will want to own businesses and live there. Of course it’s your money and you have no say. Tonight the Council will throw […]
by: Diane Benjamin Original construction costs are in this post: This post will update the information from last year. The turbine was broke for all of October 2013 and March 2014. It was broke for part of September and November 2013 and February 2014. Note the higher Cost per KWH during those months. Looking […]
by: Diane Benjamin If millions of people were travelling this weekend, they weren’t on Illinois roads. We left Saturday morning for Wisconsin and returned yesterday. Traffic was only a problem when a semi was in the left lane blocking traffic! To leave Illinois cost $1.90. To come back to Illinois cost $1.90. These toll booths […]
by: Diane Benjamin There used to be 2 parking spaces by the door of Bloomington City Hall reserved for citizens to run in and pay their water bill etc. Not any more. Mayor Tyranny Tari now has a space right by the door! The sign looks pretty snazzy, doesn’t it? How much did it cost […]
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 […]
I hear the Pantagraph is going to ignore the Korea Vietnam Memorial restoration unveiling at Miller Park. Mayor Renner and MOST of the Council had nothing to do with it, so it’s not news. The restoration took 2 years and wouldn’t have happened without private citizens and Alderwoman Judy Stearns. The eternal flame had been […]
by: Diane Benjamin In today’s edition, the Pantagraph has a story about the Heartland Community College wind turbine. A study is going to be conducted to see how many birds and bats are murdered by the blades per year. The Canadian Free Press just released information on the subject: http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/print-friendly/63235 CFP frequently reports what American media […]
by: Diane Benjamin I can’t take credit for this solution, a former basketball coach at Tri-Valley suggested it. It was pure genius. My son was 6’5″ in high school, a big gentle giant. He was voted co-class clown, which I didn’t find out about until graduation, but that’s another story! Another boy he went to […]
by: Diane Benjamin The Political Action wing of the Chamber just held a Conference Call. I received an invitation, so I called in. They made it clear at the beginning that no press or bloggers were allowed on the call, so participants could speak freely. (Tee Hee) The speaker said they are in favor of […]
This story circulated on Facebook last week. Since not everybody is on Facebook, I’m linking to it here. It is important you know what Mark Kirk believes. Being a Senator is more important than anything else. My two-hour flight sitting next to the Republican US Senator who made the mistake of telling me he is […]
by: Diane Benjamin County Board Chairman Matt Sorensen is quoted today in the Pantagraph: “When we look at these salaries, we’re obligated to look around the state”. He cast the deciding vote for pay increases for the County Clerk, Sheriff, Treasurer, himself, and other board members. By 2018 the Treasurer and County Clerk will […]
Press release from Alderwoman Stearns: A restored bronze flame will once again grace the Korea Vietnam Memorial at Miller Park. It will be unveiled on Memorial Day, May 26th, following the Memorial Day parade and the program at the bandstand at Miller Park. The time will be approximately 11:15 AM. The original flame–a beautiful part of the 1988 memorial–had […]
No Bloomington or Normal anywhere to be seen! See the most affordable cities below – no Bloomington and Normal aren’t on that list either. Source: http://www.rebootillinois.com/2014/04/09/uncategorized/caitlinwilson/10-best-cities-illinois/3507/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=5/20/2014 . Here are the 10 most affordable places in Illinois: http://www.movoto.com/blog/top-ten/affordable-places-illinois/ Village of Chatham City of Washington Village of Morton City of Springfield City of East Peoria City of Quincy City of Kewanee […]
by: Diane Benjamin Did you know the West Market Street rail bridge is going to be closed for a year? The City of Bloomington has the story on their website: http://www.cityblm.org/index.aspx?page=563 So far high speed rail has cost $1.5 billion dollars. (pocket change) The project isn’t close to done, but when it is it will […]
by: Diane Benjamin City Manager David Hales was on WJBC last week defending his hiring of fired Mattoon City Administrator Sue McLaughlin. He claims he knew all about her firing. He also claimed that people in her position create both friends and enemies and there was nothing unethical about her attempting to sell City property to […]
by: Diane Benjamin I’ve written a lot lately about ICMA – International City Managers Association. Tari Renner used to work for them and the City of Bloomington is doing a project with them to compare Bloomington to cities across the country, maybe the globe. That comparison is only of value to Renner and Hales because […]
by: Diane Benjamin Sometimes the Pantagraph makes it way too easy to see their agenda. Sometimes they write incredibly crappy editorials. Sometimes they combine them. Today was the day! Light in candle to celebrate their further demise. It must be very embarrassing to work for the Pantagraph. Whoever writes the Editorials doesn’t put their […]
This event received NATIONAL coverage on Breitbart.com http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2014/05/16/Exclusive-Citizens-Arrest-Park-District-Board-for-Breaking-Law On Tuesday, around 30 citizens attended a meeting of the Clark County, IL Park District Board. Most wished to address the board over several recent controversies and allegations of corruption. In the face of this, the board said a public comment period wasn’t on the agenda and quickly […]
by: Diane Benjamin Local politicians know it doesn’t take many votes to win a local election. They know many people are not going to vote in an off-year. In 2013 local unions threw money in the Renner campaign. The Chamber of (Crony) Commerce spent money on radio ads to get the spenders elected. Luckily they […]
by: Diane Benjamin The people pledged to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of both the United States and Illinois evidently haven’t read it. Here’s a reminder: (720 ILCS 5/33-3) (from Ch. 38, par. 33-3) Sec. 33-3. Official Misconduct.) A public officer or employee or special government agent commits misconduct when, in his official capacity or […]
by: Diane Benjamin Reasons why: She will never prosecute any corruption in Illinois unless it’s okay with her daddy Her Public Access Office created to protect citizens from government is a joke. Ruling shouldn’t take many months or years Elect Paul Schimpf instead: Veteran Military lawyer Assisted Iraqi attorneys prosecuting Saddam Hussein Want term limits? Term limit Lisa Madigan! […]
Is it an employment farm, or a medical system? Open The Books Investigation: Phoenix Veterans Affairs Health Care System Phoenix, AZ | May 15, 2014 Salary data at OpenTheBooks.com shows clear evidence that the bureaucracy served the bureaucracy, not veterans… “Our nation’s veterans need access to health care and doctors, not interior decorators and […]
by: Diane Benjamin A Rasmussen Poll from May 7th showed 27% of likely voters think the country is headed in the right direction. 65% now think we are headed in the wrong direction. Evidently the other 8% are uniformed. The United States is 12th in the world on the 2014 list of Economic Freedom. Economic […]
CLARK CO., IL. (ECWd) – We the People is a phrase that is supposed to have meaning in our government, as in We The People are in charge, not the public officials elected and/or appointed to represent us. All too often we find public officials who for what ever reason fail to recognize that they work “for” the […]
by: Diane Benjamin We all know the “temporary” income tax increase to clear the backlog of unpaid bills didn’t do anything but give the State of Illinois more money to spend. Illinois still has billions of dollars of unpaid bills and the interest charges that go with them. Now Madigan and Quinn want it made […]
It sounds like the Peoria State’s Attorney is too chicken to prosecute Ardis! Now you know why corruption rules in Illinois. Jason might want to review his campaign video: Justice over Politics? by: Diane Benjamin It’s not legal to do favors for campaign contributors. It’s not legal to sell items for friends from your official […]
Evidently some people missed this the first time!
by: Diane Benjamin Back in 2009, $4,000,000 was suddenly located in TIF money. The Pantagraph reported it here: http://www.pantagraph.com/news/local/bloomington-audits-find-million-on-hand-for-redevelopment/article_2b5ce074-b786-11de-917a-001cc4c03286.html Outside auditors located the money, not City staff. Then there is a lawsuit still pending against the City filed by David Bentley because he did not receive funds to rehab the CII East building. He also […]
by: Michael Lucci CEOs of major U.S. corporations went on record in Chief Executive Magazine’s “2014 Best and Worst States for Business.” Business leaders pulled no punches in their description of Illinois, going so far as to compare doing business in Illinois to doing business in a third-world country. The publication ranked Illinois at the bottom […]
by: Diane Benjamin What is a TIF district? Tax Increment Financing. The latest information posted on the Illinois Comptroller’s website (2010) shows Bloomington has 2 – Normal has 4: http://www.comptrollerconnect.ioc.state.il.us/Office/LocalGovt/ViewTIFReports/DisplayTIFRpt.cfm?CFY=2010&BetaSel=B http://www.comptrollerconnect.ioc.state.il.us/Office/LocalGovt/ViewTIFReports/DisplayTIFRpt.cfm?CFY=2010&BetaSel=N TIF districts are used as a re-development tool when taxes don’t want to be raised. The City of Bloomington will consider creating one tonight […]
