City Beat

       I EARLY voted at the Macon County Office Building Thursday. After I finished I chatted with Macon County Clerk Josh Tanner in another part of the building about some voting misconceptions that are confusing more than a few voters. Josh told me that many residents who want to vote by mail believe that a…

       This week’s Scrapbook (pages 4, 5 of the print and online editions of the Decatur Tribune) takes another look at some of the best known cowboy heroes when many of us were kids in the 1940s and 1950s.      With all the violence in our world today, sometimes it is refreshing to reflect on another…

       I think about everybody knows the Coronavirus had a major impact on employment, not only in Decatur, but across the nation. As several sources have indicated, data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that job losses in the spring of 2020 were comparable to those of the Great Depression.      However, employment in…

      MONDAY is Memorial Day and it actually falls on May 30th — the traditional day for the holiday. As indicated in this week’s “Scrapbook” about the history of Memorial Day (see pages 4 an 5 of the online and print editions of the Decatur Tribune), back in 1968 Congress passed the Uniform Holidays…

       • I WAS so pleased that Decatur’s own, Justice Lisa Holder White was appointed to the Illinois Supreme Court last week. (Story on page 6 of print edition and elsewhere on this site)      Without reservation, beyond being extremely qualified and talented in her profession, she is one of the nicest people I’ve met over…

       If you have read this column very long you know that I’ve complained about the condition of Route 51 South (and North) for months. Route 51 South between Lake Decatur and Elwin is about as rough as I’ve ever seen major state roads to, from and through our city. Since I live on the…

       • Over the last several years I’ve written a few columns about my infamous possessed car “Christine” and how she seems to have a mind of her own. That’s resulted in more than a few people walking cautiously near my car, apprehensive that Christine may grab them — or sting them! Other readers…

      • EARLY voting for the June 28 Primary Election is only 3 weeks away, starting on Thursday, May 19. Congressional candidates in the 13th and 15th District races, which involve Decatur and Macon County, are picking up the pace even more as the day draws near.      Republicans Regan Deering and Jesse Reising, and Democrat…

       As I mentioned in last week’s column, because of redistricting, Congressman Rodney Davis who has represented the 13th District for the past decade is running in the 15th District against Rep. Mary Miller in the Republican Primary June 28. That leaves the new 13th District, which includes part of Decatur and Macon County without…

  With the Primary Election still two-and-a-half months away on June 28 there is no shortage of fireworks between the candidates in the 15th Congressional District race. Rep. Rodney Davis of Taylorville and Rep. Mary Miller of Oakland are both Republicans but there is a sharp difference in their political views and that has already…