Peoria Pundit

DeWayne Bartels says John Vespa is not ‘annoying’. His wife Diane, on the other hand …
Heh.

Original post by Billy Dennis

Belly Dancer

I really hope this guy doesn’t find himself in electoral trouble over this.
Via the Associated Press:
Democratic (Ohio) state Rep. Robert Hagan said he was assaulted Sunday the Lemon Grove Cafe. Hagan said a man asked him to step out of the way of his view of belly dancers on stage and then taunted him with offensive language.
Hagan responded, “Back away, man,” and said he got slugged. Hagan said he required 11 stitches to close a cut chin.
My two cents: My first thought was ‘Belly dancing? At a restaurant?’ We don’t have belly dancers at restaurants here in Peoria. But you can order lunch at any of the stripper joints in the immediate area. In fact, Big Al’s serves a heck of a tasty lunch. Club Cabaret supposedly has great hamburgers (or so I hear). Elliott’s has a really good kitchen as well. You can also order really bad food [...]

Original post by Billy Dennis

Via  Publius Forum:
In issue number 602 of Captain America, a new story line has begun called “Two Americas.” In it the current Captain (there have been a few of them, apparently) is on the trail of a faux Captain America that is mentally deranged and getting chummy with some white supremacist, anti-government, survivalists types going by the name of “the Watchdogs.” While investigating this subversive group, Captain America and his partner The Falcon — a black super hero — have decided to try and infiltrate the secretive organization.
In preparation for the infiltration, Marvel Comics depicts the two super heroes out of costume and observing from a rooftop a street filled with what can only be described as a Tea Party protest. The scene shows crowds of people in city streets carrying signs that say, “stop the socialists,” “tea bag libs before they tea bag you,” and “no to new taxes.” [...]

Original post by Billy Dennis

Via the Peoria Journal Star:
School District 150’s number two in charge is the finalist for another administrative job in Bloomington.
The District 87 School Board is voting on a three-year contract with current District 150 Associate Superintendent Herschel Hannah Jr. to become Bloomington’s assistant superintendent for human resources, District 87 Board President John Dirks confirmed Monday night.
My two cents: 150 is on the verge of hiring a new superintendent. Hannah was hired as an assistant superintendent because then-superintendent didn’t have the necessary credentials. No doubt the new superintendent will want her own people as assistants, and may just want to clean house of underperformers. Methinks Hannah sees the writing on the wall.

Original post by Billy Dennis

My to-do list for today:

Update LinkedIn profile.
Send a bunch of emails.
Finalize that TellPeoria pitch for new publishers.
Work on those Freedom of Information Act Requests I’ve been threatening to do for weeks.

Original post by Billy Dennis

My to-do list for today:

Update LinkedIn profile.
Send a bunch of emails.
Finalize that TellPeoria pitch for new publishers.
Work on those Freedom of Information Act Requests I’ve been threatening to do for weeks.

Original post by Billy Dennis

From my inbox:
Date: February 9, 2010
Released by: Alma Brown, Communications Manager
Subject: CITY CREW UPDATE
City crews continue to plow primary streets and maintain primary hills with salt. The same type of maintenance is expected to continue during the day today with additional snow in the forecast. Residential plowing will begin once snow fall has diminished and primary streets are good for travel. Please use caution while traveling, streets are snow covered due to blowing and steady snow fall. Primary streets will likely stay covered during the day and overnight hours. A Parking Ban is automatically in effect at (2) inches of accumulation.
The City will begin to ticket vehicles parked on designated snow routes beginning at 9:00 a.m. today.

Original post by Billy Dennis

Attention assignment editors and media pundits: Can we PLEASE stop wasting column inches and air time discussing Super Bowl commercials?
It’s giving free publicity to corporations rich enough to afford air time during the Super Bowl. It’s a stupid news media cliche, like articles about Krispy Kreme grand openings and Black Friday sales at Wal-Mart.
Besides, anyone who watches the Super Bowl “for the commercials” is a cultural moron, and needs to be hidden away from public view.
The commercials are NOT the best part of the Super Bowl. This is a myth perpetrated by the corporations that benefit.
The excessive hype and marketting does NOT enhance the Super Bowl experience. The commercials were intrusive. Any break in the action was filled with a paid message. This was the greatest contest the Super Bowl has seen in decades, and everytime I looked up, they were hawking something.
Excessive greed is ruining sports, and the Super [...]

Original post by Billy Dennis

I don”t want to hear ANYONE who has defended waterboarding to me to express anything other than indifference to this:
An Army sergeant who served in Iraq for 15 months has been restricted to his Washington military base after being accused of waterboarding his 4-year-old daughter because she refused to recite her ABCs.

Remember folks, the Bush administration says this is NOT torture. So don’t get upset. It’s just enhanced interrogation. It’s not a crime.
We have the right to do it to THEM, and therefore, they have a right to do it to US.
Yeah, this is going to p*** off a lot fo readers. But I’m trying to get people to realize how defending torture is never justified.

Original post by Billy Dennis

From my inbox:
Date: February 8, 2010
Released by: Alma Brown, Communications Manager, 494-8554
Subject: CITY CREW UPDATE
City crews are maintaining primary intersections with a sand/salt mix, and primary hills with straight salt. Plowing operations will begin with accumulations over (2) inches. Expect a slow morning rush with snow covered streets and reduced viability from blowing snow. Motorists should use caution while traveling during the next (36) hours.

Original post by Billy Dennis