Governor Quinn Has a Lot to Answer For
By Michael Kleen
2011 was a good year for Governor Pat Quinn, but it was a terrible one for the State of Illinois. As the new year dawns, it is abundantly clear that the more the governor gets what he wants, the worse our prospects for digging out of the hole his policies and the policies of his predecessors have put us in become.
Recently, a poll by the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute found that Governor Quinn had a 35.5 percent job approval rating and that only 14.9 percent of those polled believed Illinois was headed in the right direction. In response, Governor Quinn told the press he was “not too concerned” about those numbers. That might seem surprising coming from someone whose job depends upon winning the hearts and minds of at least 51 percent of the electorate, but the fact is that Governor Quinn and his cohort of incumbent politicians simply do not care what the people of Illinois think, because we continue to reelect them despite proving time and time again to be utterly inept leaders.
Governor Quinn’s approval rating is bound to fall even lower after the Illinois legislature approved a tax exemption for several companies who threatened to leave the state after last year’s hefty corporate income tax increase. Charges of “crony capitalism” were immediately leveled, but the real reason for the public’s outrage was that the reaction of these companies to the tax increase was entirely predictable. For the Quinn administration to backpedal and make exceptions for these companies demonstrates a realization that the tax increase was a big mistake. Now small businesses will suffer while those who can afford access to the governor get away scot-free.
Let Criminals Help Pay for their Incarceration
By Michael Kleen
Back in July 2003, Winnebago County levied a 1 percent sales tax to pay for a brand-new, $142 million jail, which opened in 2007. Today, that jail is overflowing with prisoners, and local politicians are looking to spend an unexpected increase in tax revenue on hiring more guards. I believe that levying a county sales tax to pay for a new jail was a mistake from the onset, and that we need to find an alternative means of funding the jail while reducing its overall cost.
Winnebago County remains one of the worst counties in the state in terms of crime rate, and the county’s solution to this problem has been to simply lock criminals up and throw away the key. In this endeavor, our new jail has been a success. Crime in Winnebago County dropped 15 percent from 2008 to 2009, and according to Sheriff Dick Meyers, unincorporated Winnebago County saw a 20.9 percent reduction in crime over the past several years. At the same time, the average daily population in the jail has climbed more than 27.8 percent.
This is a very expensive way of reducing crime, one that will cost the county millions of dollars to sustain over the long term. Furthermore, a larger jail filled with more prisoners fails to address the root causes of crime, which means we will need to continue to fill the jail to keep crime rates down.
Illinois: Las Vegas of the Midwest?
By Michael Kleen
Back in May, a measure to expand gambling in Illinois was approved by a committee in the Illinois House of Representatives, provoking Governor Pat Quinn to remark, “We have no interest in becoming the Las Vegas of the Midwest.” Apparently content to continue his knee-jerk and misdirected gambling policy, I believe Governor Quinn is passing up yet another opportunity to attract business and expand freedom in Illinois. The question is, why not be the Las Vegas of the Midwest? Why not be a beacon of prosperity, tourism, and growth? More importantly, why not allow the citizens of Illinois the freedom to choose the kind of entertainment they want to enjoy?
Rather than continue to pursue piecemeal gaming regulation, I believe that most forms of gambling should simply be legalized with one piece of legislation. Currently, the gambling laws of Illinois are bewildering and if I were to read them to a stranger, he or she would think there was no sense to them whatsoever. For example, Illinois has a state-run lottery, and while land-based casinos are illegal, permanently docking a huge gambling barge in a river is not. Although I can walk into an off-track betting facility and put $2 to win on Mysunshine, it is illegal to make a bet with my friends over Sunday night football.
Leadership that Southern Illinois Can Believe In
By Michael Kleen
What is wrong with Southern Illinois? Open a newspaper on any given day, and you are likely to ask yourself this question. As Disclosurehas documented for the past several years, there is no shortage of political corruption, crime, substance abuse, and economic despair. Of the 34 counties south of I-70, 14 had unemployment rates of 9.5 percent or higher in September of this year, and just two years ago, Southern Illinois University tottered on the edge of bankruptcy. The situation is not hopeless, however. With the right leadership, things can be turned around.
You see, I live far up north in Winnebago County, and we have a lot in common with Southern Illinois. This area has the highest unemployment rate in the state (13.8 percent in September), and I believe that the same thing that is hurting us up here is hurting the people of southern Illinois: a lack of responsible and inspired leadership. A sense of entitlement and contentment with the status quo at the top, coupled with a “tax and spend” philosophy of government, is strangling the life out of our communities.
Sweatshops and Social Justice: Can Compassionate Libertarians Agree?
My latest column has been posted at C4SS – it is a response to an article written by Matt Zwolinski for the Bleeding Heart Libertarians blog. Here is a taste:
Libertarianism is not about people just getting by; it is about maximizing human liberty. Liberty cannot be achieved as long as eking out a living in dangerous conditions for 12 to 14 hours a day is an individual’s most attractive option. In such a society, the mutually beneficial arrangements that define the world of commerce have clearly broken down. There is no reason that libertarians or other advocates of a free market need to sacrifice their moral compass at the altar of economic development. Economic development can and should be achieved in many different ways, but it will take the cooperation of both labor and capital to see that sweatshops do not continue to be an acceptable path to prosperity. I hope that libertarians will be at the forefront of that struggle.
Interview with WGN News at 9pm
At the beginning of October, John Stephenson and I were interviewed for a segment about Bachelor’s Grove that was to be aired on the WGN 9pm news on Friday October 28th. We were asked to keep it secret for several weeks, but tonight it will be shown to the public. I have not seen the report, although I do know that the reporter and her cameraman filmed every angle of the cemetery and it should be a very interesting and well-done segment. Although John Stephenson was the star of the show, I was included to provide background and historical information. John has moderated Bachelors-Grove.com for the past several years, and has taken a few anomalous photographs in the notoriously haunted cemetery. Whatever you believe about the validity of the stories told about Bachelor’s Grove, you are in for a special treat. Make sure to tune in!
