Archive for February, 2009
February 27th, 2009
Illinois Churches in Action warns that there are 100 measures in the general assembly that deal with gambling. One the group is worried about is a proposal to allow Illinois’ floating casinos to serve free drinks. I didn’t know they couldn’t. Here’s the press released I received.
Gambling Action Alert
HB 2522 – Free Alcoholic Drinks at Casinos – in Committee next week
Next Wednesday, March 4, HB 2522 will be heard in the House Executive Committee. This legislation will allow Illinois Riverboat Casinos to serve FREE alcoholic drinks to gamblers.
Many of the Illinois casinos are located in densely populated areas. Giving free alcohol to gamblers will impact public safety when local people drive home impaired. Drinking alcohol lessens inhibitions, impairs a person’s ability to think clearly, and makes people more likely to take changes when gambling.
HB 2522 encourages gamblers with alcohol abuse problems to continue drinking and gambling. Studies have found that adults with an alcohol addiction are 23 times more likely to have a gambling problem than those who do not drink. (Journal of Studies of Alcohol, Dec. 2001). A study conducted by professors from the University of Western Australia found that after three alcoholic drinks, one group spent twice as long gambling as those who did not drink. Half of the drinking group only stopped gambling when they had lost everything. In contrast, only 15 percent of the non-drinking group lost all their money. (The Globe Magazine, Issue 3, 1998).
For Immediate Action
- If your State Representative is on the House Executive Committee (see below), call to share this information and ask him/her to vote NO on HB 2522.
- Write a Letter to the Editor using the information above.
- Share this Action Alert with your church or synagogue.
- Forward to 10 others.
Members of the House Executive Committee
Rep. Dan Burke, Chairman (D-Dist. 23, Chicago) 773-471-2299 or 217-782-1117
Rep. Edward Accevedo (D-Dist. 2, Chicago) 773-843-1500 or 217-782-2855
Rep. Luis Arroyo (D-Dist. 3, Chicago) 773-637-2000 or 217-782-0480
Rep. Maria “Toni” Berrios (D-Dist. 39, Chicago) 773-235-3939 or 217-558-1032
Rep. Bob Biggins (R- Dist. 41, Elmhurst) 630-941-1278 or 217-782-6578
Rep. Dan Brady (R-Dist. 88, Bloomington) 309-662-1100 or 217-782-1118
Rep. Joseph Lyons (D-Dist. 19, Chicago) 773-286-1115 or 217-782-8400
Rep. Robert Rita (D-Dist. 28, Blue Island) 708-396-2822 or 217-558-1000
Rep. Ed Sullivan (R-Dist. 51, Mundelien) 847-566-5115 or 217-782-3696
Rep. Michael Tryon (R-Dist. 64, Crystal Lake) 815-459-6453 or 217-782-0432
Rep. Art Turner (D-Dist. 9, Chicago) 773-277-4700 or 217-782-8116
February 26th, 2009
You remember Norm Van Lier as a popular Chicago Bulls guard and later a commentator. You may not remember that “Stormin’ Norman” was the first coach of the Rockford Lightning. He was 4-8 before he was fired and replaced by Mauro Panaggio.
It’s hard to believe that the Lightning, which folded after the 2006 season, averaged 4,823 fans in their first season. They still averaged more than 4,800 the next year then gradually declined to a little more than 2,000 fans in their final season.
Van Lier was a friend to Rockford even after his short coaching stint. He appeared at the Rockford Boylan basketball camps at least three times, the most recent in 2007.
Van Lier also was a guest speaker at two Rockford Industrial Athletic Association Awards banquets. I think it was in the mid- or late ’90s. The event was at Cliffbreakers.
I sat next to him the first time he was the RIAA’s guest. He was gracious, signing autographs for anyone who came up to him. He made time for everyone and shared his knowledge of basketball and his philosophy on life with the audience.
I enjoyed watching him as a post-game analyst on Bulls games these last few years. He’ll be missed. Sixty-one is much too young.
February 25th, 2009
About half way down the AP story about the the state’s budget deficit (top of home page), there are these two paragraphs that offer hope to people in Ogle County who saw Castle Rock and Lowden state parks close.
“Quinn also said he’ll make a major announcement about reopening shuttered state parks at 10:30 a.m. Thursday at the Department of Natural Resources headquarters in Springfield.
” ‘I think anybody who likes the state parks of Illinois will like what we have to say,’ Quinn said.”
I know new DNR Director Marc Miller has been tied up with budget issues so my guess is that he’s figured out a way to reopen the parks without much impact on the state budget.
Miller said he’d call me when things settle down a bit. Do you have any questions you’d like me to ask?
February 24th, 2009
In light of an item I posted last week about a CEO that I know who has gone without a paycheck for three months so he can keep his business going and his employees working, I thought this e-mail that I just received from Michelle Abril, associate vice president of New York-based PR firm Quinn & Co., was worth sharing.
“Steven Korman, CEO of Korman Communities, is making a bold plea to other CEOs to keep employees working. And he’s putting his money where his mouth is by taking out ads to underscore the importance of dealing with real people, not just profits. A copy of the letter/ad is below. This has run in the Philadelphia Inquirer and The New York Times. He has received overwhelmingly positive feedback since the campaign launched last week with emails from nearly 100 people thus far.
“Steven’s efforts go beyond this bold ad campaign. He is taking a grassroots, aggressive approach and sending similarly themed letters via Fed Ex to over a dozen CEOs at major corporations whose stock he owns (the likes of Apple, Exxon Mobil, GE, Google, Oracle, etc.)
“This campaign and outreach comes from the heart. Steven is someone who cares about people. For 17 years he personally funded and staffed a van that drove around Center City Philadelphia to feed the homeless. On Christmas Eve each year Steven goes to a toy store in an underprivileged neighborhood to see who is struggling to buy gifts and hands over cash to make opening gifts on Christmas morning a reality.
“Would love to hear any and all feedback you may have on this initiative.”
Dear CEOs:
I have listened to the executives of many companies say that they are eliminating thousands of jobs to “improve the bottom line.”
I own stock in many of these companies and would prefer that the company make a smaller profit and the stock fall, in the short term, rather than affect the lives of our neighbors and their families as jobs are lost.
Please join me in reminding all CEOs that we are not just dealing with numbers and profit, but with real people and real families who need to keep their jobs.
Please keep your employees working.
Steven H. Korman
CEO and Chairman of the Board
Korman Communities
Kormancommunities.com
February 20th, 2009
My day hasn’t been as bad as the one Dick Hughes, editorial page editor of the Statesman Journal in Salem, Oregon, describes below, but I’ve had a couple of rough spots, including a spillage issue of my own.
The moral of Hughes’ story is what’s important. Read the whole thing and I think you’ll find a bit of inspiration.
From Hughes:
As I write this, it’s Wednesday night and I’m watching “The Colbert Report.” Humor is good.
It’s been one of those days.
The replacement of a sprinkler head above my desk at work didn’t go well. Do you realize how many gallons of old, smelly water are in a sprinkler pipe?
With my editorial notes washed away and no dry place to host an afternoon visitor, I took him to a coffee shop, where my cup sprang its own leak, decorating my shirt.
Among the casualties of the day was my weekly column, which didn’t get written for Thursday.
Of course, Wednesday wasn’t as bad as one day in the previous century when I was teaching journalism and grammar at Oregon State University.
Driving there, I stopped in Independence for my customary big soda, and spilled it on my shirt. After finishing the class, I returned to my car to find I’d apparently put my parking money in the wrong slot, and thus had earned myself a ticket.
Driving back to the Statesman Journal, I was ruefully reflecting on the day. That’s when the state trooper pulled me over for speeding. (Hey, I’ve had two speeding tickets in 40 years of driving. Not bad.) It’s on days such as this that I think of Heather.
She was a trombonist, and singer, in a high school jazz band that I saw at a festival a while back.
Heather was moving to the front of the band for her solo when she knocked over the microphone. Then her music went off the stand.
She leaned down to pick her music off the floor. That’s when the slide shot off her trombone, lodging under the risers.
Meantime, she’d missed the entrance for her solo. The band played on.
What would happen? the audience wondered (and probably her bandmates too).
Heather retrieved the slide, put the trombone back together, raised the horn to her lips and started playing … in exactly the right place.
Heather’s my hero. She exemplified composure and focus, and I’d hire her in a second.
We all mess up. We all have bad days. We all make mistakes. No matter how smart and talented we are, we all sometimes do dumb stuff.
What matters is how well we recover and carry on.
We need to have a sense of humor about ourselves, especially in these stressful times.
We’re all one coffee cup away from a giant shirt stain.
Dick Hughes, whose then-toddler child once accidentally pantsed him at the South Salem McDonald’s, is the editorial page editor of the Statesman Journal. His column usually appears on Thursdays. Contact him at dhughes@StatesmanJournal.com; P.O. Box 13009, Salem, OR 97309; or (503) 399-6727.
February 19th, 2009
I’m going to take my editorial hat off for a minute and put on my fishing cap.
This weekend’s Rockford Fishing & Outdoors Expo is the best show of it’s kind within driving distance (2 hours) of Rockford. Don’t take my word for it, here’s a comment Teresa Webinger, director of operations of Esox Angler magazine, posted on muskylink.com
“This is a class act show! It’s a growing show, but well attended, great promotion and production. And very nice promoters. We’ll be giving away a bunch prizes too … fishing trips, baits, St. Croix rod, and more (even a trip to Las Vegas!)
“Most of the Esox Angler Magazine staff will be there as well. And yes, I’m flying in from Las Vegas, just to attend.”
In 2001, Webinger caught the women’s Illinois state record musky when she boated a 48 1/2-incher while fishing with Chad Cain on Lake Kincaid in southern Illinois.
At previous shows, Webinger served as moderator for fishing roundtables. She does an excellent job fielding audience questions and making sure all panelists get a chance to have their say.
I go to four or five fishing shows a year and Rockford is my favorite. There seems to be a lot more activity with the give-aways, seminars and demonstrations. Also, there are more boats on display than any other show I’ve been to.
I like the show so much that in past years I’ve attended all three days. Won’t be able to do that this year because I have a commitment on Friday, but I’ll be at ISC for the show on Saturday and Sunday.
OK, now it’s back to Roland Burris, petition challenges, online lotteries and Rockford’s superintendent search.
February 18th, 2009
That phrase is like nails on a chalkboard for me. Most of the folks I’ve run across who say they “think outside the box” must have started with a very, very small box.
If an idea has merit, perhaps tackles a problem from a different approach, that speaks for itself. Innovation is good and does not need to be dressed up with cliches.
So it was refreshing yesterday when a group involved with Rockford’s Year of Innovation came to update the Editorial Board. They explained what they were doing, what the goals were and why their projects were important. Not one of the six visitors ever said they were “thinking outside the box.”
We heard good presentations on ideas that help education, the economy and jobs. We’ll be writing more about what we heard in the next couple of days.
February 17th, 2009
It’s become a popular pastime to complain about salaries of the people who run big companies. While there’s plenty of room to criticize the six-figure salaries and six-figure bonuses, we need to remember that there are CEOs of smaller companies who struggle just as much as their employees do.
A tool-and-die company chief I know has not taken home a paycheck in three months. He’s doing that so he can keep the business running and his employees working. He doesn’t want any publicity and he doesn’t consider himself a martyr. He just wants to do what’s right for his company and his workers.
I think there are a lot of people like him out there, but perhaps not enough. It would be nice to see the big-salaried folks follow his example.
February 16th, 2009
Although you’ll see a story on this Web site on how gas prices have not fallen as quickly as oil prices, I paid only $1.59 a gallon for gas when I filled up in Marengo yesterday.
Last weekend I traveled to Milwaukee on Saturday and into the Chicago suburbs on Sunday. No where else was the gas price even close to what I saw in Marengo.
Has anyone else seen gas that cheap?
February 13th, 2009
There’s a measure in the General Assembly to ban texting while driving. That got us talking about other laws, some with merit and others without.
You can’t legislate stupid behavior. People are going to do things even they know they shouldn’t and, of course, there are folks who will do things even when they know they are illegal.
About five years ago, someone sent me a list of all the stupid laws across the U.S. I don’t know what I did with it, but it had some doozies on it, including that it’s a $5 fine in Joliet if you mispronounce the name of the city. Don’t know if that’s still on the books.
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