It's not often that someone who worked on a state legislative staff actually wins a campaign for himself, but it happened last week in Chicago.

Former House Democratic staffer Brendan Reilly won his aldermanic race against longtime Chicago Alderman Burton Natarus last week by about nine points, stunning the Chicago political world, which didn't think that Natarus - who joined the city council in 1972 - could be defeated. Reilly silenced the critics by bringing a new level of sophistication to the Chicago political game.

Don Henry wants to be judged on jobs.

As the director of the Northwest Region Entrepreneurship Center, the only criterion that matters, he said, is the number of new jobs his organization helps create. Even though the State of Illinois provides the bulk of his budget, Henry isn't bogged down by odious regulations or reporting requirements.

As much progress as each of the Quad Cities has made toward a vibrant downtown, it seems slower than anticipated or promised.

Davenport has a glorious history of birthing newspapers - 150 in 171 years. Yet even the mud-caked, hand-cranked press of the old Daily Gazette, which fell off the gangplank into the river, could have printed a clearer picture than the Quad-City Times as to what Davenport citizens will lose if their council eliminates all four standing committees.