Opinions

News-Gazette Editorials

Park board lowers its sights

Sunday, November 23, 2008

The Urbana Park District board has lowered its request of taxpayers significantly – from a 25-cent property tax increase request to 15 cents – but it's probably going to take a major effort to get it approved next April.

It still has more than two months to make a final determination but the Urbana Park District board seems inclined to try at the April 7 election for a 15-cent increase in its property tax rate.

Not all doom and gloom

Sunday, November 23, 2008

Illinois is broke and the state's unemployment rate was 7.3 percent last month, but the good news is changes are coming to the Illinois Senate.

It's a rare day you'll find us praising a Chicago Democrat. So today is a rare day. We could hardly be happier about the impending election of John Cullerton as president of the Illinois Senate, not so much because of what Cullerton is but because of who he isn't. He isn't Emil Jones.

Preservation cases raise big issue in Urbana

Friday, November 21, 2008

The city of Urbana needs to rethink its approach to dealing with historic preservation issues.

Consider the story of two Urbana property owners – Howard Wakeland and Julian Gorski – who got into a battle with city officials over the allegedly historic nature of houses they owned that were scheduled for demolition.

Marathon doesn't need subsidy as much as volunteers

Thursday, November 20, 2008

The governor's knee-slapper

Thursday, November 20, 2008

We can only imagine the laughter coming from the Obama transition team (at least we hope they were laughing) at Gov. Rod Blagojevich's "plan" to address the state's financial predicament.

Here's another good thing about having a president-elect from Illinois: he knows what a joke Illinois government is and what a sorry job Gov. Rod Blagojevich has done for the last six years.

Draw the line now with industry bailouts

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

As harsh as it may sound, the federal government cannot be expected to become the life preserver for an automobile industry that has mismanaged itself for decades. Nor can the government afford to bail out the other industries that surely will fall in line after the carmakers get theirs.

Yes, there will be pain if any or all of the Big Three domestic automakers go into bankruptcy. The pain will be felt most acutely in Michigan, but also in Illinois, Missouri, Wisconsin and much of the rest of the Midwest. There is also the possibility that not only could millions of jobs be lost but that the quasi-government Pension Benefit Guarantee Corp. would have to pick up the GM pension and its nearly 1 million participants.

Despite poor economy, university presidents do well

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Faculty members may complain about pay, but school presidents have no grounds for griping. University of Illinois President Joseph White made news last week when he won an 18-month contract extension but no additional compensation from the trustees. He'll continue to earn $450,000 per year, plus receive a payment of $475,000 if he stays five years from the date of his original contract.

That salary is not small potatoes by anyone's standards. Indeed, to some people White's compensation plus benefits (two houses and a car and driver) appear lavish. But White's salary is not close to the big time, according to a review of university presidents' salaries conducted by the Chronicle of Higher Education.

Anyone home in Springfield?

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Sales tax revenue to the state of Illinois dropped $10 million last month. The Revenue Department says overall revenue this year could fall $800 million short of budgeted amounts. And the state's backlog of unpaid bills is approaching $5 billion. Yet Gov. Rod Blagojevich doesn't seem concerned. He's missing in inaction.

There's a financial crisis building in Springfield, but you wouldn't know it based on the action – or rather, the inaction – of Gov. Rod Blagojevich. Apparently he's unaware of the uneasiness and uncertainty in the economy because, in state government, it's still business as usual.

Unit 4 tries again on consent decree

Monday, November 17, 2008

If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.

There's certainly no harm in trying again, but the latest proposals from Champaign schools officials about how to improve the performance of minority students look pretty much like old ones.

Easy explanation for falling prices

Monday, November 17, 2008

Consumers who were paying $80 to fill up their gas tanks now are paying much less.

The price of gasoline is shifting dramatically, but the public is strangely silent.

State budget woes continue to mount

Sunday, November 16, 2008

Falling casino revenues worsen the state's dire financial situation.

Here's what passes for good news amid the shambles of Illinois state government.

Shameless pol back on stage

Sunday, November 16, 2008

One-time Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards hopes the public has a short memory.

Former Democratic Party presidential and vice presidential candidate John Edwards celebrated his coming-back-out party earlier this week at Indiana University in Bloomington.