AltWeeklies Wire
State of Illinois Revokes Veteran's Silver Star Platesnew
Joe Wilkins, a prominent Vietnam veteran, had his Silver Star and Purple Heart license
tags revoked in response to an Illinois Times investigation raising questions about the medals he claimed.
Illinois Times |
Dusty Rhodes |
04-15-2005 |
War
Matters of Life and Deathnew
We all can learn from the Terri Schiavo case, even if we don’t agree. The writer recounts the difficult decisions involving her ailing parents.
Illinois Times |
Corrine Frisch |
04-05-2005 |
Commentary
Precious Medalsnew
Vietnam veteran Joe Wilkins, who built a distinguished career in academia and local and state government, claims he was twice wounded in combat and earned the nation's third-highest decoration, a Silver Star. The military says otherwise.
Illinois Times |
Dusty Rhodes |
04-05-2005 |
War
Tags: war & peace
From Muse to Non-Lolitanew
Keren Ann Zeidel's lyrics are both commonplace and enigmatic, a series of ordinary observations that accumulate meaning obliquely, transparent layer by transparent layer, like a Rembrandt painting or a Raymond Carver story.
Illinois Times |
Rene Spencer Saller |
04-05-2005 |
Reviews
After the Shine Went Out of Everythingnew
Burkhardt, an assistant professor of English at the University of Illinois at Springfield, has turned her substantial knowledge of Maxwell's work and her unprecedented access to his papers into the first major critical study of this important author.
Illinois Times |
Corrine Frisch |
04-05-2005 |
Nonfiction
The One-Abe Parade of Springfield, Ill.new
Tony Leone's plastic Abe Lincoln was supposed to be one of 100, part of a parade -- like 1999's Cows on Parade in Chicago. But with Abes. That it hasn't materialized might be due to the concerns of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.
Illinois Times |
Dusty Rhodes |
03-28-2005 |
Art
Tags: visual arts
Storytelling 'From the Ground Up'new
The unpretentious Midwest, as a region of calm between the noisy, status-seeking coasts, may be the best place for a writer who wants to explore large themes such as poverty and race through quiet stories of real people.
Illinois Times |
Fletcher Farrar |
03-28-2005 |
Author Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Alex Kotlowitz
Ex-Lawman Finally Free to Speaknew
An Illinois State Highway Patrol officer alleges he was prevented from investigating a brutal 1986 murder because the most likely suspect was a powerful campaign contributor to former governor George Ryan.
Illinois Times |
Dusty Rhodes |
03-25-2005 |
Crime & Justice
Tags: crime & justice
Pentagon Develops New Intervention Techniquesnew
Having developed methods to intervene in other countries without resorting to direct force, the military uses tactics usually reserved for the Central Intelligence Agency as a means of avoiding congressional oversight and curious journalists.
Illinois Times |
Rod Helle |
03-25-2005 |
Commentary
Not Quite a Sea Changenew
The consensus on Low’s seventh full-length album and first for Sub Pop, is that it represents a Great Departure. Also reviewed is The Fiery Furnaces'EP.
Illinois Times |
Rene Spencer Saller |
03-25-2005 |
Reviews
Songs About Poseursnew
Underneath the surface mockery of Clem Snide's fifth album is a deep and abiding sympathy, a generosity of spirit that refuses to succumb to despair. Also reviewed is Petra Haden's Petra Haden Sings: The Who Sell Out.
Illinois Times |
Rene Spencer Saller |
03-25-2005 |
Reviews
Gay Legislator Is Out but Not Downnew
Never again will Rep. Larry McKeon apologize for telling the truth. The Illinois legislature’s first and only open gay says he’s tired of the hypocrites he serves with -- and he’s ready
to name names. Again.
Illinois Times |
Todd Spivak |
03-25-2005 |
Politics
Tags: Chicago Democrat, hypocrisy
Early Prediction: This Is the Best Rap CD of 2005new
Maya Arulpragasam, a Sri Lanka–raised, London-based MC who goes by the tag M.I.A., is an unlikely rapper with an unlikely backstory.
Illinois Times |
Rene Spencer Saller |
03-07-2005 |
Reviews
Why Cops Who Break the Law Don't Get Firednew
Two Springfield cops who drove drunk still have their jobs, one even though he was caught with a prostitute.
Illinois Times |
Dusty Rhodes |
03-07-2005 |
Commentary
Survivor of a Rape That Made Headlines Tells Her Storynew
A woman raped at 18 describes how she was traumatized by the event and the fallout from a false news report about a rookie police officer who supposedly could have prevented the attack.
Illinois Times |
Dusty Rhodes |
03-07-2005 |
Crime & Justice
Tags: crime & justice