I don’t spend much time writing about politics or politicians. I did a lot of both during my many years as a reporter and know there are other things I'd rather write about.
For the record, I don’t consider myself a Republican or a Democrat. If anything, I’d call myself a friend of the Libertarians, a group I first started following way back in 1979. I don’t care for partisan politics for the simple reason it makes intelligent people blind to common sense and obvious truths.
I encountered two items in recent days that sparked some thought in my head and wanted to share them here.
• Kay Shipman at FarmWeekNow.com, an affiliate of the Illinois Farm Bureau, offered an interesting report about the 2020 national census and its potential impact on how Illinois will draw new legislative districts in 2021. All of that might seem like a long way off from 2018, until you remember the outcome of the 2018 elections in Illinois will influence who has a hand in drawing those maps. I admit it sounds dry on the surface, but it is worth understanding the process, and Shipman does a fine job of capturing the essentials, I think.
• The second item concerns the upcoming vote for the Republican nomination for the 49th District State Representative seat. I reside in the district and frequently receive campaign mailings from the two Republican candidates, Tonia Khouri and Nic Zito. I do not have a horse in this race, which culminates with the March 20 primary election. To the best of my knowledge, I have never met or talked to either of the candidates and do not favor either one at this time. However, there is a possibility I signed a candidate’s petition for Khouri in 2017.
The most recent mailings from the Khouri and Zito promise they are “fighting” for my interests, or will “fight” for my interests if elected. It’s a familiar promise candidates make during campaigns. I imagine my current representative made a similar promise during his campaigns and meant it, right up to the point he voted to increase my taxes and then subsequently announced he would not seek reelection. My point is with all of these elected officials “fighting” on my behalf, why am I always on the losing side of things? And why do candidates think anyone would believe such a tired and empty sales pitch? I certainly don’t.
That’s all the politics I want to write about today, but I’m likely to offer more before the election, particularly in regards to the race in the 49th District.
More gems from the Music Vault:
January 20 is another one of those big dates in Rock and Roll history. Over the years, one album and two songs were released on Jan. 20 that went on to be major hits for the artists involved.
• 1958: Little Anthony and the Imperials release “Tears on My Pillow” on the End Records label. The song peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
• 1978: Gerry Rafferty releases the album “City to City”. The album included “Baker Street” and “Right Down the Line”. The album reached No. 1 in the U.S., and was heard on radio stations well into 1979. Rafferty's success in the late 1970s and early '80s is mostly forgotten today, and I think that's unfortunate. He was an accomplished musician and songwriter, and I think his music continues to be entertaining and engaging. Rafferty died Jan. 4, 2011.
• 1983: The Fixx releases the single “Red Skies” in the U.S. The song peaked at No. 13 and remains one of my favorites, primarily for its dark and moody tones.
– Thanks for reading. Comments and feedback are always welcome. Email me at kbottswrites@gmail.com. May God's peace be with you today.
No comments:
Post a Comment