Two more million visit contest entries.
To celebrate one million site visits I am sponsoring a contest.
Submit a tweet, haiku or limerick on a topic covered by this blog.
The deadline is March 31 or the millionth visit.
The winner get the orange t-shirt.
The decision of the judges (that’s me) is final.
Here are two of the latest entries:
From Brklynjak:
WIth cartoons, wit and
smarts Fred still fights the good fight.
Ukuleles, too.
From Keith:
There are two Klonskys who blog
They both help to clear up the fog
Regarding Broad, Rhee and Gates
They are pretty good mates
But saving schools is a really tough slog
Ten minute drawing. It’s not a revenue problem.
Click on drawing to enlarge.
Madigan leads with his behind and puts it at his favorite table at Saputo’s.
Nikritz, Biss and Cross.
There are a couple of Illinois pension reports worth noting today.
The Springfield Journal Register editorializes that while Governor Squeezy may be making a budget address today, it is Boss Madigan who will have the final say.
The editorial writers also suggest that Boss Madigan cares less about pensions and revenue than he cares about power. Much less.
Nobody believes he will take the lead on any proposal if there isn’t existing consensus.
Last week, Madigan put four pension proposals up for a vote on the House floor and was the only lawmaker to vote for all four. But three of the four were
Even the Trib questions the “underutilization” nonsense.
The main argument used by Rahm and Barbara Byrd-Bennett is that schools in mainly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods are presently underutilized. Meaning they have too much room.
Raise Your Hand’s Wendy Katten took on the board’s numbers recently on Chicago Tonight.
But now even the normally board friendly Chicago Tribune is raising questions.
A Tribune examination of that figure amid a blizzard of data offers new clarity about how Emanuel and Chicago Public Schools CEO Barbara Byrd-Bennett are framing their case for improving the school system and wrestling with a budget deficit they peg at $1 billion next year. The implications are significant.
Setting a benchmark higher than what records indicate is reality across Chicago — and far higher than in many suburbs — indicates to some that Emanuel is willing to buck the popular notion that
The legislative pension landscape.
In the constantly shifting landscape of pension bills – who can even remember the latest bill number – here is what I think is out there:
House Bill 3411.
You probably didn’t get invited to the wedding of Republican Tom Cross and Democrat Elaine Nekritz. In a state that has yet to make marriage equality legal these two joined together February 27 to produce this bill. It is a lesson in the dangers of bipartisanship.
It creates three pension tiers.
Tier I teachers retirees would have their annual COLA severely reduced. And no COLA until the retiree reaches the age of 67. It would increase teacher contributions to 11.4%, the highest in the nation.
Tier II teachers, those who began teaching after January 1, 2011, could stay with their current plan – reduced
House Bill 3411.
You probably didn’t get invited to the wedding of Republican Tom Cross and Democrat Elaine Nekritz. In a state that has yet to make marriage equality legal these two joined together February 27 to produce this bill. It is a lesson in the dangers of bipartisanship.
It creates three pension tiers.
Tier I teachers retirees would have their annual COLA severely reduced. And no COLA until the retiree reaches the age of 67. It would increase teacher contributions to 11.4%, the highest in the nation.
Tier II teachers, those who began teaching after January 1, 2011, could stay with their current plan – reduced