Talk radio has long been dominated by conservative voices, but progressives are finding some friendly places on the radio dial. The Air America network was launched last year, and local AM station 1270 changed its format several months ago to carry its programming.
Yet another statewide survey shows big trouble for Governor Rod Blagojevich. The Glengariff Group's poll of 600 registered Illinois voters found Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka leading Blagojevich 33-31.
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) is poised to lose more than 45 percent in federal funding from its 2006 budget. This is a result of a vote by the House Appropriations Subcommittee. This subcommittee vote is a result of pressure on Congress to hold down spending due to enormous federal deficits.
Representative John Fritchey's spring legislative session was going extraordinarily well ... until he smacked into the past 10 days. Fritchey (D-Chicago) was the prime motivator behind the unprecedented compromise between pro-life and pro-choice groups earlier this session.
On March 30, 2005, the Davenport Civil Rights Commission (DCRC) filed a motion "to strike the March 28, 2005, order setting hearing on petitioner's petition for judicial review." The petitioner is Dr. David Botsko; the petition for judicial review is Botsko's appeal of the DCRC's Final Determination against him in Nabb v.
The Rock Island Housing Authority (RIHA) is in the process of reapplying for the federal HOPE VI grant, after having its first application, for $20 million, denied on May 17. The grant is intended to be the facilitator for a $40.
Governor Rod Blagojevich was declared a "winner" by the Chicago media after the spring legislative session ended last week. Adjourning the session by May 31 while, for a change, getting along with other Democrats, upholding his promise not to raise taxes, and coming up with lots of new programs and comprehensive medical-malpractice reform made him look pretty good in many eyes.
Last Wednesday, June 1, Davenport's City Council voted 7 to 3 to approve a $43-million development agreement between the City of Davenport and the Isle of Capri Davenport (IOCD) for the construction of an 11-story casino hotel with an attached five-story parking ramp within downtown Davenport's riverfront floodway, adjacent to Lock & Dam 15.
June 19 is Father's Day. In the last few decades, that has come to mean much more than it once did. Dad used to be just the guy who worked and kept the bills paid, while Mom took care of the home and children. But in recent years, dads have come to play a much more important role with their children.
I read the review of New Ground Theatre's production of Boston Marriage with interest. (See "New Ground Turns Mamet's Marriage into a Massacre," River Cities' Reader Issue 530, May 25-31, 2005.

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