Welcome, fellow Americans, welcome.At Bradley University's Renaissance Coliseum in Peoria last Tuesday, 685 new American citizens from 80 countries were sworn in during a naturalization ceremony conducted by James Shadid, chief judge of the U.S. District Court in central Illinois. This was said to be the largest such ceremony ever in Peoria, and the second largest in the nation this year.The ceremony is typically held at the federal courthouse but had to be moved to a stadium [...]
Another View: Record number of new citizens welcomed in Peoria
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Another View: Rosenstein may go, but continue probe
Donald Trump is in an impossible situation in weighing what to do about credible reports that his deputy attorney general, Rod Rosenstein, had openly fantasized about removing the president from office.As reported by The New York Times, Rosenstein told FBI staffers that he had considered wearing a wire to catch the president in an impeachment trap, and speculated on rallying cabinet support for invoking the 25th Amendment, which provides the framework for unseating a president for [...]
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Another View: Businesses play vital storm recovery role
With so many people and groups having contributed to the ongoing hurricane recovery, we are somewhat reluctant to single out any one. But after being more out and about last week, we were struck by the way private businesses responded to Florence.From the gas stations and grocery stores that managed (often through creative and very-limited means) to quickly reopen, to the restaurants and entertainment venues that toiled to get up and running, providing much-needed respite for storm- [...]
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Another View: Democracy fails without citizen participation
We don't buy into the argument that "If you don't vote, don't complain." That's not the way our system of governance works. Having voted probably does give those complaints more credibility. More important, however, is the fundamental fact that our entire system of representative democracy relies on the people — the "public" in our republic — having their voices heard through the officials they elect.Anything that impedes our elected officials from being true [...]
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Another View: The left threatens abuses of power
In 2005, the Supreme Court issued its landmark decision in Kelo v. New London, diminishing Americans' property rights. The ruling said that governments can seize your home through eminent domain, even if their intention is merely to hand the land over to private developers.Conservatives saw this as one more bad ruling from a Supreme Court that issued a whole lot of them. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., was a bit more sanguine, and her famous response exemplifies the [...]
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Editor's Notebook: R-M will not endorse for Nov. 6
The Register-Mail is not doing political endorsements for the Nov. 6 election. This decision breaks a long tradition for the newspaper. However, with a smaller newsroom and even more demands on editors’ time, we found it nearly impossible to have the time to meet with candidates for state representative, sheriff and Knox County Board. And meeting with candidates is the key to informed endorsements.Instead, we put our energy into hosting forums, candidate questionnaires and [...]
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Tom Martin: Board nearing a decision on schools
While much of the nation is focused on Nov. 6 elections, residents of the Galesburg School District have a local issue that is also deserving of immediate attention, understanding and response. The school board is tasked with deciding how best to align our school buildings for the coming decades. Current options are expected to cost up to $56 million and would likely close three schools. The window for the public to have a say in this process could close by November. The [...]
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Robert Lindstrom: Invest in best located schools
GALESBURG — Keep the best located schools open. That's the advice from 20-year Galesburg District 205 School Board member Robert Lindstrom.Lindstrom said he met with another former board member Josh Gibb earlier this year and they charted a school facilities plan. Lindstrom and Gibb left the board in 2017.Lindstrom called The Register-Mail on Monday to explain a plan that would close Gale, King and Nielson schools, convert Lombard to [...]
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Editorial: Postpone vote on school plan
The Galesburg School Board wants a 7-12 campus at the high school and may vote to approve such a plan Monday night.Board member Maury Lyon believes there’s an implied public support for closing three schools and moving 7th and 8th-graders to the high school because few community members have said otherwise. He has a point. There have been no "Save Our Schools" rallies, petitions or campaigns on behalf of the public.The lack of public reaction to the school options [...]
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Editor's Notebook: Thanks for supporting The Register-Mail
A community without a newspaper is a community in the dark. And more and more cities and towns are finding themselves without a newspaper. A comprehensive study by the University of North Carolina's School of Media and Journalism found that about 20 percent of all metro and community newspapers have merged or gone out of business since 2004. More than 1,300 communities have lost news coverage, according to the study.Thankfully, Galesburg is not such a community. But the [...]
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Another View: Compostables efforts only baby steps so far
It's practically an environmentalist axiom that landfills deserve condemnation. They're ugly and smell terrible. No one wants to live near them. But why exactly is it such a huge problem for our waste to collect in designated disposal areas? Decomposition is the primary culprit.When landfill waste decomposes, the garbage releases toxic leachate into the ground and greenhouse gases into the air. When food waste enters a landfill full of other items like paper, metal and plastic, it [...]
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Another View: Give thanks for WWII generation
Seventy-seven years ago, Americans in Hawaii awoke to the sounds of mass destruction, and the sights of flames and smoke billowing from the bombing of Pearl Harbor.It was a moment that forever changed the trajectory of the United States and the world, while forging a generation that can best be described as patriotic and strong.Without warning or a declaration of war, the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service bombed the harbor and killed 2,403 American service personnel and [...]
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Another View: Why was Trump invested in Flynn?
It is almost a truism in criminal investigations that those who flip early and help prosecutors build their case against higher-ranking figures are shown greater leniency than those who try to gut it out.Michael Flynn, who served briefly as President Trump's national security adviser, is Exhibit A in the special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.If other players, such as Paul Manafort and George Papadopoulos, have [...]
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Another View: Illinois closing in on gambling limit
Legalized gambling isn't the golden goose that it used to be.When the new Illinois governor and Legislature take office in January, they will encounter difficult financial issues and, given their aversion to facing hard facts, immediately begin looking for an easy solution.In search of a revenue boost, they can be expected to legalize marijuana and expand gambling.Marijuana represents an entirely new frontier for this state. Who can say what the future holds regarding [...]
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David Adams: Thank you for supporting community journalism
Dear Reader,We’ve come through a year that has been filled with successes and challenges across our communities. We have seen new businesses start up, while others closed their doors. Unspeakable tragedies saw young lives cut short. But one constant that we want to take a moment to celebrate is you.We’re thankful for Register-Mail readers like you because you care enough about your community, and your place in it, to keep up with what's [...]
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Another View: Wednesday provides a glimmer of hope
A merry day-after-Christmas came Wednesday, the fifth day of a partial government shutdown, when all three major stock indexes soared. The surge salvaged a market on the verge of collapse following a four-day sell-off and months of sluggish performance.With the Dow Jones industrial climbing 1,086 points, Wednesday was the largest single-day gain in stock market history.The resurgence came after a record-breaking holiday shopping spree attributed in part to larger paychecks and [...]
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Another View: Wading through the shutdown
How long will the government shutdown last?That's the question many federal workers are asking after Democrats and Republicans failed to reach an agreement on the federal budget.The question only can be answered by one person: the president. He is the man holding the budget hostage as he insists on money for a border wall. It will be up to him next year as to whether a budget can be passed.He gets kudos on trying to deliver on a campaign promise, but it was a half- [...]
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Another View: Stop messing with markets
In American politics, it is axiomatic that presidents get (and take) the credit for economic prosperity and the blame for downturns. The reality is the state of the U.S. economy at any given time results from factors that the president can control, such as his own policies and leadership style; factors that he can't control, such as conditions in China, Europe and other distant markets; and factors that he might influence but probably shouldn't, such as the decisions of the independent [...]
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Another View: Our devices getting more invasive
Electronic gadgets are now part of all of our lives — from the handheld devices we carry and check nonstop for messages to alarm systems that protect our loved ones and property.But it has begun to dawn on people that the convenience these gadgets provide comes with a steep price. Many of these devices are actually listening to and recording our every move.Sounds like the plot of an old sci-fi film, right? Indeed. But the fantasies of science fiction and the real [...]
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Another View: More veterans needed in political office
Forty years ago, military veterans made up roughly three-quarters of Congress. By 2017, the proportion had dwindled to fewer than 1 in 5. The number of veterans on Capitol Hill will dip slightly again next year, because of retirements — but the elections of 2018 were nonetheless a turning point of sorts. At least 170 veterans received major-party nominations for national office, and at least 75 won office. (The figures are estimates: There's no official tally.) Of these, at least [...]
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