From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
JENNINGS — The school board voted 4-3 on Monday night to buy out Superintendent Kay Royster’s contract, which was to run through June 2009. The buyout was estimated to cost about $230,000.
Royster had come under fire in recent months, accused by teachers in public meetings of allowing reserve funds to dwindle, hiring unnecessary administrators and failing to implement a $1.5 million computer program.
Hat tip: WMBD Radio.
The polls are now open! Don’t forget to vote today. For information on voting in Peoria County and the City of Peoria, check out PeoriaVotes.com. You can view a sample ballot, learn how to navigate the electronic voting machine, and find out where the polling place is for your precinct.
I’ll be joining Jonathan Ahl tonight on WCBU 89.9 FM to talk about the election results. NPR will be having wall-to-wall coverage of the national races, while Jonathan and I will be giving updates on local races. Hope you’ll tune in tonight.
The President’s proposed 2009 budget includes a cut in federal subsidies to Amtrak:
Taking Steps to Rationalize the Nation’s Intercity Passenger Rail System
- Curtails Federal subsidies. $800 million for Amtrak, which represents a significant but necessary cut to the railroad’s Federal subsidy.
- Requires that Amtrak control its operating losses and focus on services that offer the most promise.
- Reserves the bulk of funds for capital investment so improvements may continue along the heavily trafficked Northeast Corridor.
- Reflects that Amtrak has taken few steps to align its business with the traveling public’s demand for intercity rail service and that it consequently continues to hemorrhage taxpayer funds.
- Provides State matching grants. $100 million for State matching grants for intercity passenger rail capital projects to empower States, not Amtrak, to address their transportation goals and priorities.
Bush tried to cut Amtrak funding last year, too, but Congress gave Amtrak $1.3 billion instead. It’s likely that Amtrak will get even more money this year. The U.S. Senate passed S.294 on Oct. 30, 2007, which gives Amtrak nearly $2 billion per year over the next six years and finally abandons the unrealistic notion that Amtrak can ever be self-sufficient. The Boston Globe has a good overview of the bill. It still needs to pass the House and get Bush’s signature. Hopefully it will pass with a veto-proof majority.
Yes, yes there are. While all the drama has been on the 18th Congressional District and 92nd Legislative District races, there’s one race from which we’ve hardly heard a whisper: the U. S. Senate race. Dick Durbin’s latest six-year term is up, and he will have a Republican challenger. Three Chicago-area Republicans are running for the chance to face Durbin in November. They are Steve Sauerberg (pictured), Mike Psak, and Andy Martin.
The Chicago Daily Herald has a good rundown of their positions and vital statistics. They also endorse Sauerberg, albeit unenthusiastically. They complain that all the candidates are pretty weak (not to mention woefully underfunded), and will likely be slaughtered in the general election.
Sauerberg is also endorsed by the Chicago Tribune and the Peoria Journal Star.
Giants 17, Patriots 14
Super Bowl XLII
I got this e-mail tonight from the City:
Update as of 9:00 p.m.: City crews are currently plowing primary routes, and will in/out plow on secondary routes. With warming temperatures expected, and in order to conserve salt, crews will not plow/salt all residential streets. Snow fall rates vary throughout the city, therefore work will be limited.
I’m not crazy about this policy. I’ll withhold judgment for a couple days to see how it works out, but I’m concerned that this could potentially be treacherous for neighborhood streets. Yes, it’s forecasted to warm up tomorrow, but if the streets were plowed, that would mean that the sun would likely dry up the streets. Instead, the sun is going to melt or partially melt the snow cover on the streets, and then it’s going to freeze overnight the next night. That means the streets could be slick and uneven. Plus, what if the weather forecast is wrong? It’s been known to happen.
What do you think of this policy? Should the city be saving money by not plowing residential streets in anticipation of “warming temperatures”?
Yep, that’s me on the left of this banner from over five years ago. The band started in 1998 with Brian Carroll singing lead, Mike Mercer on lead guitar, Matt Tomlianovich on bass, Doug Rendleman on drums, and me on the keyboard. Tonight, you’ll get to see that original lineup again, plus our early addition — Bill Trulove on the trumpet — for the whole first set. Then it’s on to all the other compositions of the band. The band has had three bass players, three keyboard players (I left in 2002), and four (I think) drummers. But one thing has always remained the same — the band and the fans always have a great time at every gig.
Tonight is a reunion show that will feature just about everyone who has ever played and/or sung with the band. We’ve been practicing for this performance for weeks, and it’s been a lot of fun playing music together again! I hope you can come out tonight and join the party. We’ll be at Crusen’s on War Memorial Drive, starting at 8:30 p.m.
I’m rooting for the Giants. How about you?
Do you have first-hand information that needs to get out to the public, but you’re afraid you’ll lose your job if your identity is revealed? If so, I have a suggestion for you: talk to a journalist.
I would specifically recommend talking to Jonathan Ahl. He’s a reputable, experienced journalist. He, unlike bloggers, has a lot of case law backing up his right as a journalist to protect anonymous sources. He has had professional training in protecting a source’s identity. He can help you get your information out (assuming it’s true and newsworthy) in a constructive way without compromising your identity. Naturally, you must have first-hand knowledge (not merely a rumor you heard) and be able to sufficiently prove your allegation to him.
Here’s what does absolutely no good: posting anonymous comments on blogs with no supporting evidence. First of all, if you talk to a blogger, there’s a pretty good chance we’re not going to be able to legally protect your identity if we get subpoenaed (short of going to jail for your sake). Secondly, no one has any reason to believe you because you’re just a pseudonym with an unfounded accusation, for all we know. Third, if what you post is libel, any reputable blogger will remove your statements anyway.
And I have another piece of advice: if you do contact a journalist, don’t do it from work. Don’t send a whisteblowing e-mail from a company computer. Even if you’re posting anonymously or from a Hotmail or Yahoo account, your company knows what was written from which computer in their network, and they know who was logged on that computer at what time. Trust me, you will be discovered. If you’re going to write an e-mail, at least write from home; a public computer at the library would be even better.
From the Journal Star:
Peoria County Judge Rebecca Steenrod sentenced [Henry] Holling to one year of court supervision, 100 hours of public service and a three month suspension of his driver’s license starting March 9. He must also pay $2,200 courts fees and fines before Wednesday. It is Holling’s first DUI.
Holling was just hired as the interim city manager for the City of Peoria last night.