I emailed President Deitz for a comment, he passed it to Jay Groves who refused to comment by email. I’ve spoken to Jay twice on the phone. Here are his comments, as best as I could transcribe our conversations: 3 people from the same family working for Administration doesn’t violate ISU policy. Larry Lyons doesn’t […]
by: Diane Benjamin This morning’s appearance by Mayor Renner on Cities 92.9 had at least 3 problems. Tari claims to be transparent, which would be wonderful. Unfortunately he gets in the way of transparency. Per Tari: 1) This years budget was discussed for 9 months. really? In open Council? NO! 2) Cuts and Taxes were […]
Not Mike – LISA If you missed the story from yesterday – Some groups that received this money (our tax dollars!) taught the Chicago kids to HATE cops: http://edgarcountywatchdogs.com/2014/07/governor-quinns-neighborhood-recovery-initiative-cops-kill-kids/ Stay tuned – there is much more to this story. ILLINOIS VIOLENCE PREVENTION AUTHORITY (IVPA) Neighborhood Recovery Initiative Damon Arnold, M.D., M.P.H, Co-Chair Lisa Madigan, […]
The guy’s name is Ken Hlebasko. He found me today. by: Diane Benjamin At last night’s City Council meeting, a guy spoke to the Council that has never been to a meeting before. I could hear his first name was Ken, not sure about the last name. He said he has watched Council meetings on-line, […]
by: Diane Benjamin The INTERNATIONAL City Mangers Association sends an email everyday. For once they have an article Renner and Hales need to read. Hales and Renner have mentioned morale is low at the City because employees have trouble balancing work and home life. (Like everybody doesn’t!) Hales is the direct supervisor of employees. The […]
by: Diane Benjamin Tonight the City Council is expected to approve bills and payroll without any questions. Both are part of the consent agenda, meaning there is nothing to see here – just vote Yes. Before I get to the Pantagraph and WJBC, buried on page 123 is this: (h/t JS) http://www.cityblm.org/modules/showdocument.aspx?documentid=7009 346 CHICAGO CUBS […]
A wise and frugal government, which shall restrain men from injuring one another, shall leave them otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned. Thomas Jefferson Sometimes it is said that man cannot be trusted with the government […]
by: Diane Benjamin Mayor Renner really hates criticism. He also hates discussing issues. He is the new dictator of Bloomington. Renner is very upset about the Cities 92.9 Flamingo campaign. He is so upset he had the new Communications Manager, Nora Dukowitz, write an email to the station. I hope they post it on their […]
by: Diane Benjamin Was Mayor Renner lying again? Part of an email he wrote to Alderwomen Stearns about proposed budget cuts: You didn’t even get the facts right on flamingos that you’ve been talking about. The city’s cost is $150K – they already have $100K from private contributions. So, the ‘savings’ would be 150K and […]
by: Diane Benjamin As I previously reported, Aldermen Sage and Schmidt decided staff are leaving the City of Bloomington because of the Council. See this post: http://blnnews.com/2014/07/08/bloomington-who-is-hiding-what/ Sage and Schmidt no longer represent the citizens of their Wards. The same goes for the other potted plants who would jump off a cliff if David Hales […]
by: Diane Benjamin The Supreme Court decided that Hobby Lobby and other companies do not have to provide insurance coverage for drugs deemed to cause an abortion – on religious grounds. Hobby Lobby still covers 16 types of contraceptives, just not the 20 the Affordable Care Acts wants (ObamaCare). Unfortunately the progressives are leaving that […]
by: Diane Benjamin Rep Dwight Kay urges Commission to search the records of the tainted Quinn NRI Program See Kay’s the letter here: DK Letter to Committee (10 June 2014) Quinn’s Neighborhood Recovery Initiative, billed by some as buying votes for the 2012 election, is under investigation by the US Attorney’s office and a panel […]
Word on the street – Oglesby was totally exonerated today by a panel of judges! More when I get it
In 1979, the original Sony Walkman was the newest way to listen to music. Switchboard operators still connected telephone calls. That’s also when the Illinois village of North Riverside signed its first contract with the firefighters’ union. A lot has changed in 35 years. But the union has clung to its decades-old business model and […]
by: Diane Benjamin Today our Senator Dick Durbin sent an email. He is pushing for tax credits for companies keeping jobs in this country. Dickie: The US has the highest corporate tax rates in the world! Add in Illinois taxes and you have to realize why corporations are relocating to other countries and keeping their […]
by: Diane Benjamin It was a dark Council that resumed open session last night after a much longer than scheduled Executive Session (Secret Meeting). The air was tense, it wasn’t hard to read between the tenacious exchanges what was really happening. David Hales lovers were playing CYA for him! I’ve reported before that employee morale […]
by: Diane Benjamin Nothing epitomizes what both Bloomington and Normal are doing to you better than this letter written by a resident of Austin Texas (the most liberal city in Texas): “I’m at the breaking point,” said Gretchen Gardner, an Austin artist who bought a 1930s bungalow in the Bouldin neighborhood just south of downtown […]
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by: Diane Benjamin Nice try. Obviously the Pantagraph editorial writer is lazy, uniformed or both. Quoting parts of the Declaration of Independence without any context of the historical facts surrounding this day in 1776 betrays the true events. If you didn’t see their homage to the 4th of July, don’t bother. It was just the […]
by: Diane Benjamin Contrary to the City talking points, the three golf courses in Bloomington do not pay for themselves. Maybe they should try something else. Springfield Park District Considers Privatizing Golf Courses The Springfield Park District’s maintenance staff says they’re worried about the future of their jobs. This is after district officials met with […]
http://www.starspangledbannerchallenge.com/ Madison Rising Let’s show Press and Tosh – and everyone else – that we still believe in this country and our National Anthem. We reached our initial goal of 1 million views in 2012. We reached our updated goal of 5 million views in 2013. Now we’re upping the ante YET AGAIN – just in time […]
by: Diane Benjamin Illinois will have a ballot question in November about the minimum wage. The un-informed will cheer and vote YES – raise it! They need to see the result before the vote. SeaTac workers “not happy” with $15 min. wage Published May 28, 2014 Last January, SeaTac implemented a $15 per hour minimum […]
by: Diane Benjamin As a public service to the Pantagraph, I noticed they read some stories today. They missed this one however: http://blnnews.com/2014/06/29/why-is-the-coliseum-allowed-to-mislead-taxpayers/ I thought they might care about printing misleading information, or as some might say, lies. What are the chances they print a correction, or at least a statement saying CIAM numbers might […]
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