Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Archive for the ‘Ethics’ Category

The Democratic Socialists of America in their own words

Posted in AI, Cost of Living, Data Center, Deception, Democratic Socialists of America, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Economy, Elections, Ethics, Fundraisers, His Master's Voice, Illinois State Board of Elections, Immigration, Land Use, Look For The Union Label, Pension Funding, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Privacy, Property Taxes, Public Safety, Real Estate, School Districts, Springfield, Taxes, The New Normal?, The New York Times, Transparency, Unions, Village Code on October 6, 2026| 6 Comments »

Maria Peterson is running for the IL House District 52 seat. Nabeela Syed is running for IL Senate District 26. Currently both choose only to campaign publicly as “Democrats.” | Images courtesy Facebook

Much has been said and written about the, “Democratic Socialists of America (DSA),” in recent months leading to the mid-term elections. Their website states:

“Capitalism is a system designed by the owning class to exploit the rest of us for their own profit. We must replace it with democratic socialism, a system where ordinary people have a real voice in our workplaces, neighborhoods, and society.

We believe there are many avenues that feed into the democratic road to socialism. Our vision pushes further than historic social democracy and leaves behind authoritarian visions of socialism in the dustbin of history.

  • We want a democracy that creates space for us all to flourish not just survive and answers the fundamental questions of our lives with the input of all.
  • We want to collectively own the key economic drivers that dominate our lives, such as energy production and transportation.
  • We want the multiracial working class united in solidarity instead of divided by fear.
  • We want to win “radical” reforms like:
    • Single-payer Medicare for All,
    • Defunding the police/refunding communities,
    • The Green New Deal, and
    • More as a transition to a freer, more just life.

We want a democracy powered by everyday people. The capitalist class tells us we are powerless, but together we can take back control.”

They have further stated their priorities, including:

That’s pretty much all we needed to read to form our opinions, and most who have read these pages for nearly two decades know what they likely are.

However, feel free to visit the Democratic Socialists of America website to learn more so that you might be enlightened before reaching your own opinions before casting your ballots.

Related: “Inside the DSA’s audacious quest for power in the Democratic Party“

Read Full Post »

District 220 Board of Education meets tomorrow night

Posted in 220, Agendas, AI, BACOG, Barrington Education Association, Board of Education, Cost of Living, District 220 referendum, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Education, Elections, Ethics, His Master's Voice, Intergovernmental agreements (IGA), Land Use, Look For The Union Label, Mad Cows, Massbach Hounds, Overhead, Pension Funding, Politics, Property Taxes, Public Safety, Real Estate, School Districts, South Barrington, Springfield, Taxes, Transparency, Video Streaming, What the Ficke (Bradford)? on October 5, 2026| 1 Comment »

The District 220 Board of Education meets Tuesday evening at 6:00 PM at the District Administration Center, 515 W. Main Street. Items on their agenda include:

  • Special Public Comment on IASB Resolutions
  • FOIA Reports
  • Personnel Report
  • Declaring Property Surplus and Authorizing its Sale or Disposal
  • Minor Policies
  • Second Reading of Board Policy
  • Consideration to Approve Resolution providing for the issue of not to exceed $34,000,000 General Obligation School Bonds, Series 2026A, for the purpose of building and equipping an auditorium and an addition at the Barrington High School Building, altering, repairing and equipping existing buildings, and improving school sites; providing for the levy of a direct annual tax sufficient to pay the principal and interest on said bonds; and authorizing the sale of said bonds to the purchaser thereof.
  • Consideration to Approve Mid Suburban League Constitution
  • Consideration to Approve Demographic Study Contract
  • Consideration to Approve Terms of IGA for Proposed Village of South Barrington Higgins Corridor TIF District
  • Board Policy Training
  • Solar Update
  • First Reading of Board Policy

A copy of the agenda packet can be viewed here. The meeting will be live streamed on the district YouTube channel.

Related: “District 220 board members violated campaign policies, investigation finds”

 

Read Full Post »

When Blue States Chase Away Their Billionaires – WSJ

Posted in Commodius Maximus, Cost of Living, Crime, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Economy, Education, Ethics, Look For The Union Label, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Property Taxes, Springfield, Taxes, Wall Street Journal on October 5, 2026| Leave a Comment »

America’s Governor Ron DeSantis (R., Fla.) cheers Citadel founder Kenneth Griffin at the announcement of Carnegie Mellon University Miami on Thursday. | Jack Dempsey/AP Content Services for Griffin Catalyst/Associated Pres

By James Freeman | Wall Street Journal

An editorial in the Chicago Tribune laments what might have been had “Kenneth C. Griffin not become so frustrated with the state of Illinois as to move himself and much of the financial company he founded, Citadel, to Miami.” The Tribune is responding to the news that Mr. Griffin is moving a whole lot more to Florida after departing the expensive dysfunction of Illinois governance.

The Journal’s Deborah Acosta reported on Wednesday:

Hedge-fund titan Ken Griffin is donating $2 billion to start a Carnegie Mellon University campus in Miami, part of the largest-ever individual gift toward higher education.

The Pittsburgh-based university, known for its expertise in computer science, artificial intelligence and robotics, will open a 35-acre campus in Miami’s Wynwood neighborhood that will focus on technology and innovation.

“The students who graduate and the tech companies that come to Miami to leverage those skills will change the very fabric of Miami for decades if not centuries to come,” Griffin said in an interview.

Citadel’s chief executive is also giving $1 billion to Carnegie Mellon’s main Pittsburgh campus. Griffin’s combined $3 billion donation is the largest single gift toward higher education from any individual, according to an announcement from Carnegie Mellon University.

The donation helps advance Griffin’s aim to establish South Florida as a leading global-business and technology hub.

Back in the Windy City, kudos to the Tribune editorial board for explaining the opportunity cost of driving away the state’s most successful people: “After all, persons who are willing to donate $3 billion to an institution of higher education are not to be found on every street corner.”

Of course New York politicians in general and the mayor of New York City in particular have also been unwelcoming and in some cases downright hostile to wealth-creators like Mr. Griffin. Leftists who enjoyed the mayor’s nasty media stunt outside Mr. Griffin’s Manhattan apartment can now reflect on whether it was worth removing the city as a possible landing spot for the largest individual gift in the history of U.S. higher education.

Article continues here.

Read Full Post »

Your vote can make a difference in Illinois elections

Posted in AI, Cost of Living, Data Center, Deception, Democratic Socialists of America, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Economy, Education, Elections, Ethics, Illinois Policy Institute, Immigration, Land Use, Look For The Union Label, Pension Funding, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Property Taxes, Public Safety, Resident Spotlights, School Districts, Springfield, Taxes, The Chicago Way, Transparency, Village Code on October 3, 2026| Leave a Comment »

Illinoisans can vote on races ranging from U.S. Senate and governor to state lawmakers and local officials in the Nov. 3 election.

By Jon Josko and Lilly Rossi | Illinois Policy Institute

Some recent Illinois state legislative races have been decided by just dozens or hundreds of votes.

A look since 2022 shows where the closest races have been, how few votes separated the candidates and what voters in competitive districts identified as their biggest concerns.

Casting a ballot gives Illinoisans a voice in who represents them, while understanding voters’ concerns gives lawmakers a clearer picture of what their constituents want addressed.

How close are races in Illinois?

In 2024, a mere 47 votes out of nearly 59,000 decided who represents Illinois’ 52nd House District. State Rep. Martin McLaughlin, R-Lake Barrington, held onto his seat over Democrat Maria Peterson by less than one-tenth of 1% of the votes.

That was the slimmest margin in Illinois’ most recent two election cycles, but not the only close one. Nine other state House and Senate races since 2022 were decided by fewer than 1,700 votes apiece — and they were concentrated in a handful of places worth knowing if you live nearby.

10 closest state legislative races 2022-2024

Margin of victory in the 10 closest Illinois House and Senate races, 2022-2024

Seven of the 10 sit in Chicago’s outer suburbs and exurbs, stretching from Lake and McHenry counties through DuPage, Kane and Will. The other three are downstate: one anchored around Danville and Champaign, one around Springfield and Decatur and one in the Metro East region across the river from St. Louis.

10 closest state legislative races 2022-2024

Margin of victory in the 10 closest Illinois House and Senate races, 2022-2024

How many people does it take to decide these races?

If you’ve ever wondered whether your vote matters in a state regarded as relatively uncompetitive, consider this: Among the 175 contested state House and Senate races since 2022, half were decided by a margin smaller than 1-in-10 of the eligible adults in that district. A quarter of contested races came down to fewer than 1-in-17.

90 contested legislative races decided by fewer than 1 in 10 adults

Number of contested state legislative races, 2022-2024, by win margin as share of district’s eligible adult population.

That pattern held across both chambers and both years, though state Senate races have generally been decided by a somewhat smaller share of eligible adults than House races. Roughly 6-in-10 Senate races came in under that 1-in-10 mark, versus about 46% of House races, consistent with Senate districts being larger and drawing more votes.

What do Illinoisans care about?

In districts with tighter election margins, candidates will have to make sure they are addressing their constituents’ major issues.

In the Illinois Policy Institute’s statewide tracking poll, fielded quarterly since 2025, high taxes has been the single most-cited concern every time, named by 52% to 60% of respondents as one of their top two issues, roughly double the next-closest answer.

In the most recent poll, from August 2026, 58.1% named high taxes as their No.1 or No. 2 issue, compared with 32.5% for the economy generally and 20.7% for state governance.

Property taxes in particular seem to be the aggravation behind that number. The May 2026 version of the same poll asked residents how satisfied they are with the value their community receives for the property taxes paid. Over 61% said they were dissatisfied, against just 23.5% satisfied.

Article continues here.

Read Full Post »

Barrington High School Alumni News: Boston Mayor Michelle Wu Pays Illegals $575 to Take Political Activism Class, U.S.-Born Residents Not Allowed

Posted in Barrington High School, Breitbart News, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Ethics, Immigration, Politics on September 30, 2026| Leave a Comment »

By Warner Todd Huston | Breitbart News

Critics are bashing Boston’s Democrat Mayor Michelle Wu* for funding a program that trains migrants in political activism.

Wu’s funding benefits the city program called Immigrants Lead Boston operated by Wu’s Mayor’s Office for Immigrant Advancement designed to identify and give aid to “emerging leaders” in the migrant community, Fox News reported.

The program is taking heat for explicitly excluding U.S.-born residents from being qualified to win one of the scholarships while using tax dollars for the sole benefit of migrants.

Wu’s administration is paying migrants $575 to enroll in a ten-week civic-engagement and community-organizing course to help migrants grow their political power to replace Americans.

Registration documents tell enrollees that no legal status is required to earn a grant.

“Classes cover organizing, public narrative, city government, immigration history, racism, and equity,” according to the New Bedford Guide.

The program is also sponsored by the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition, which funds deportation-defense lawyers and opposes Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Report continues here.

*”One of four children, (Michelle) Wu graduated from Barrington High School in 2003 as the valedictorian of her class.[14] Wu received perfect scores on the SAT and ACT and in 2003 was selected as a Presidential Scholar from Illinois.[15][8] Wu’s parents hoped that she would pursue a career in medicine; in part due to their experiences of the Chinese Civil War, they discouraged her from a career in politics. Wu has also recounted that prior to university, she had not known whether she aligned with the Democratic or Republican parties.[8]”

 

Read Full Post »

Even after upgrades, Illinois’ credit rating is still worst in the nation

Posted in Cost of Living, Deception, Economy, Elections, Ethics, Fat Bastard, Illinois Policy Institute, Look For The Union Label, Pension Funding, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Property Taxes, Springfield, Taxes, Unions on September 30, 2026| Leave a Comment »

The ongoing pension crisis is a big part of it.

By Ethan Soifer | Illinois Policy Institute

Despite two recent upgrades, Illinois’ credit rating remains the worst in the country, with a couple key issues holding the state back.

Moody’s Ratings raised the state to A1 from A2, and S&P Global Ratings elevated Illinois to A from A-. The ratings are based on a government’s ability and willingness to pay back debt principal and interest on time.

The agencies said significant headwinds remain in Illinois, including sluggish economic and population growth and the state’s unfunded pension liabilities.

A higher credit rating enables a state to borrow or roll over existing debt at lower interest rates. A lower rating creates more risk for investors, who will demand higher interest payments.

Illinois’ worst-in-the-nation credit rating hurts taxpayers. A Charles Schwab report from shortly before the ratings upgrades using Bloomberg data showed that Illinois’ 10-year bond yields are 62 basis points, or 0.62%, higher than bonds issued under a “generic 10-year AAA index.”

Applying that to the $2.6 billion in general-obligation bonds Illinois plans to sell this year would mean $16.1 million more in annual interest payments than states with the highest rating. That could slightly improve given the recent upgrades.

The upgrades reflect the state’s progress in improving its fiscal standing. Since 2019, the year Gov. J.B. Pritzker took office, Moody’s has upgraded Illinois’ credit rating five times from Baa3, the lowest rating deemed investment-grade and one notch above junk status. S&P has upgraded the rating four times, from one notch above junk status, BBB-, to A. Including Fitch Ratings, the governor’s office boasts of 12 upgrades.

Report continues here.

Read Full Post »

League of Women Voters 52nd District Candidate Forum recordings released

Posted in BACOG, Cost of Living, Democratic Socialists of America, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Economy, Education, Elections, Ethics, Illinois State Board of Elections, Overhead, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Property Taxes, School Districts, Springfield, Taxes on September 29, 2026| Leave a Comment »

Recording of the Martin McLaughlin/Maria Peterson Candidate Forum held on Tuesday, Sept 22, for Illinois General Assembly 52nd District have been posted. The link can be found here.

Read Full Post »

Juliana Stratton is using her campaign money to fund Abdul El-Sayed

Posted in 9/11 Ceremonies, Animal Welfare, Democratic Socialists of America, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Elections, Ethics, Immigration, New Normal?, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Wirepoints, WTF on September 29, 2026| Leave a Comment »

 

Juliana Stratton

By Mark Glennon* | Wirepoints

Abdul El-Sayed is unquestionably the most controversial and radical major party candidate in memory to run for the United States Senate, which he is doing in Michigan as a Democrat. He is disavowed even by some fellow Democrats, and his critics on the right routinely call him a jihadist, terrorist, radical Islamist or the like.

Juliana Stratton is now using her campaign fund to help El-Sayad win. She is Illinois’s Democratic candidate for the Senate facing Republican Don Tracy.

Linked here and here are recent campaign blast emails signed by El-Sayed but sent by Stratton’s organization and clearly marked, “Paid for by Juliana Stratton for Illinois.” Unknown at this point is how much further financial support she is providing, but Stratton is clearly helping El-Sayed, financially and otherwise, to some degree.

In the case of El-Sayed, any amount of support would have been unthinkable for Democrats and Republicans alike until the left became the nightmare it is today.

To top it off, Stratton is funded mostly by Gov. JB Pritzker, who has long purported to be a rock solid supporter of Israel’s right to exist. El-Sayed is anything but.

Some background on El-Sayed

For starters, El-Sayed has likened Oklahoma’s Sharia law ban to the Trail of Tears and said that ban and the Oklahoma City bombing are products of “white supremacy.” He is repeatedly criticized for dismissing the importance of the 9/11 attacks on America, saying the war on terror that ensued should have been directed to domestic programs.

He opposes Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state and consistently refuses to say it has a right to exist at all. He would end all military aid not just for Israel but Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Jordan. He often condemns terrorism but proceeds to explain it away. After a Muslim terrorist drove a truck full of explosives into a Jewish temple in Michigan this year, for example, he condemned it but said “hurt people hurt people.” He is not a member of the Democratic Socialist party, but supports much of its most controversial agenda, including abolishing ICE (which he says “cannot be reformed”), Medicare for all, ending all military aid for Israel, and housing as a right. “When they go low, we don’t go high. We take them to the mud and choke them out,” Piker has said.

It gets worse: El-Sayed and Hasan Piker

El-Sayed has regularly platformed and campaigned with Hasan Piker, a prominent and open America-hater, radical Islamist and fan of Joseph Stalin and Mao Zedong “I say I hate America all the time,” Piker has said. “A lot of motherfuckers want to kill me over that take, but at least I say it with my fucking chest.”

Article continues here.

*Mark Glennon is founder of Wirepoints.

Read Full Post »

Moseley-Braun, Part II? Democrat U.S. Senate hopeful Stratton refuses debates, claims to be “dancing” her way to Washington

Posted in Commodius Maximus, Deception, Democratic Socialists of America, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Elections, Ethics, Look For The Union Label, Politics, Prairie State Wire, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Property Taxes, Unions on September 28, 2026| 1 Comment »

Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton (left), the Democrat nominee for U.S. Senate, and former U.S. Sen. Carol Moseley Braun (right), who served Illinois from 1993 to 1999. | Illinois Office of the Lieutenant Governor; U.S. Senate Historical Office

Illinois U.S. Senate candidate Juliana Stratton has turned down nearly every debate and interview request of the general election, prompting comparisons to Carol Moseley Braun, the last Illinois Democrat to embarrass the state on the way to the Senate.

By Prairie State Wire

Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton (left), the Democrat nominee for U.S. Senate, and former U.S. Sen. Carol Moseley Braun (right), who served Illinois from 1993 to 1999. | Illinois Office of the Lieutenant Governor; U.S. Senate Historical Office

Illinois U.S. Senate candidate Juliana Stratton has turned down nearly every debate and interview request of the general election, prompting comparisons to Carol Moseley Braun, the last Illinois Democrat to embarrass the state on the way to the Senate.

Stratton, the Democrat lieutenant governor running to succeed Sen. Dick Durbin, has deliberately avoided policy in her campaign, repeatedly posting “dancing videos” on TikTok, Facebook and Instagram while refusing debate and forum invitations extended by news organizations and civic groups.

CBS 2 Chicago, Fox 32 Chicago, the League of Women Voters of Peoria, the Illinois Farm Bureau, the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association, the Technology and Manufacturing Association and the Illinois Municipal League all sought to host a debate between Stratton and her Republican opponent, Don Tracy.

Tracy accepted every one of them.

Stratton agreed to just one, a forum hosted by Democrat-friendly Chicago PBS affiliate WTTW set for October 20, weeks after early voting begins in Illinois.

She also declined an interview request from The Center Square in July.

Dancing videos instead of interviews

Instead of interviews, Stratton has frequently posted photos and videos of herself dancing on social media.

Juliana Stratton hasn’t conducted public interviews, but she has frequently published photos of herself dancing on social media. (Facebook)

Stratton campaigned in multiple primary debates earlier this year, but only against fellow Democrats who largely agreed with her on the issues.

The “F— Trump” ad

The debate avoidance follows an episode that gave Stratton her widest public exposure of the race.

In February, Stratton released her first general-election television ad, opening with six people, including U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, exclaiming “F— Trump.”

Gov. JB Pritzker, who has endorsed Stratton, made a cameo in the same ad.

Article continues here.

Editorial note: Who needs debates when she’s guaranteed union votes?

Read Full Post »

Village Board of Trustees meet tonight

Posted in Aunt Blabby, BACOG, BCFPD, Big Red, Board of Health, Cost of Living, Deception, Dumb and Dumber, Elections, ePacket Agendas, Equestrian Commission, Ethics, Finance Committee, Financial Reports, Flock Cameras, Heritage and Environs Committee, Insurance Committee, Intergovernmental agreements (IGA), Land Use, Lennie, OMA, Plan Commission, Police Pension Board, Politics, Property Taxes, Public Safety, Real Estate, Riding Club Commission, Roads & Bridges Committee, Taxes, Transparency, Unions, VBHPD, Village Attorney, Village Board, Village Clerk, Village Code, Village Director of Administration, Village Engineer, Village Government, Village President, Village Treasurer, Well Water Quality, Yabba Dabba Doo, Zoning Board on September 28, 2026| Leave a Comment »

The Village Board of Trustees will be conducting their regular monthly meeting this evening beginning at 6:30 PM. Topics on their agenda include:

A copy of their agenda, including info on listening to the meeting, can be viewed and downloaded here.

Read Full Post »

« Newer Posts - Older Posts »