Opinion
(This article appeared April 17 in the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin. It is reprinted here with permission.) “The law that applies to this case is stated in these instructions, and it is your duty to follow all of them.” So states Illinois Pattern jury instruction 1.01(2), which the judge reads to the jurors in every…
Read Full Article Three years flew by. Then again, all the years do these days. As we celebrate the third birthday of Muddy River News LLC today, I just wanted to reflect a bit. My partner, Jim Rapp, eloquent as always, gave you some detailed information about our humble beginnings and how the timing was just right for…
Read Full Article And you thought Michael, Magic, Larry and Charles were colorful characters … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 934 of The Daily Dirt. 1. The most interesting NBA player ever? I know, Michael Jordan would probably be your first guess, but … wrong. Magic Johnson? Larry Bird? Wrong. Wrong. How about Charles…
Read Full Article “And that’s the way it was …” From 1962 until 1981, those were the words I and millions of others heard. With those words broadcast journalist Walter Cronkite ended his CBS Evening News for those 19 years. A couple of years after his retirement, I was in an elevator at New York’s Waldorf Astoria Hotel. …
Read Full Article Just that one bag of peanuts was mildly surprising, eh? … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 933 of The Daily Dirt. 1. Hmmm … I just may have to make a trip to Miami to take in a Marlins baseball game this season. The Marlins, who are struggling both on the…
Read Full Article Incredibly, none of the Beatles could read music, but more on that in a minute … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 932 of The Daily Dirt. 1. We’re a month into the MLB season, and these teams currently sit atop the pack: 1. Philadelphia Phillies: The best balance of any MLB team?…
Read Full Article American’s favorite kind of pizza should be easy to guess … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 931 of The Daily Dirt. 1. On the average, each person in the United States eats about 23 pounds of pizza per year. That is roughly 46 slices, which to me sounds a bit low.…
Read Full Article I’ll tell you right now, your first guess is wrong … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 930 of The Daily Dirt. 1. Which actor has dropped the most F-bombs in cinematic history? Hint: It’s NOT Samuel L. Jackson. A website called crossword-solver.io tracks such things, and the winner is (drum roll,…
Read Full Article If you are a follower of social media and have a weather interest like myself, you have probably seen a few articles talking about the potential weather outbreak headed towards Tornado Alley this week. Is this a possibility; yes. Is it likely; not really. But you gotta love some of the remarks by the arm…
Read Full Article If Michael had remained with the Jackson 5, would they have eventually been No. 1? … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 928 of The Daily Dirt. 1. It’s no secret that we love music at the world headquarters of The Daily Dirt. But we love rankings tied to music even more.…
Read Full Article Tax increment financing is effective. It has led to economic development and increased growth in our historic downtown business district. As mayor, I was proud to propose and implement TIF East in 2010 with the help of our terrific city planner, Chuck Bevelheimer. A multitude of infrastructure improvements have occurred since then, and private investment…
Read Full Article The Chairman of the Board’s daughter was five minutes away at time of his heart attack — watching Jerry, George, Kramer and Elaine … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 928 of The Daily Dirt. 1. One of the darkest days in American pop culture history will always be May 14, 1998. …
Read Full Article Thought you might tell Mr. Eighinger that of the great bald athletes he mentioned, he forgot Mark Messier, who is one of the greatest hockey players of all-time. In fact, (Wayne) Gretzky won a Stanley Cups with Messier but none without him. Also going the other way about players who tried to cover it up,…
Read Full Article Florida slugger-pitcher attracting all sorts of MLB attention, and he’s likely to be the No. 1 pick in the upcoming MLB draft … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 927 of The Daily Dirt. 1. This information may have fallen through the proverbial cracks for many. How many are familiar with the…
Read Full Article Daily Dirt for Sunday, April 21, 2024 Next to westerns, my favorite movie genre has always been war films … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 926 of The Daily Dirt. 1. I never served in any branch of the armed services, but I have always held the highest level of respect for…
Read Full Article Daily Dirt for Saturday, April 20, 2024 Some simply shave, others try to fool us … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 925 of The Daily Dirt. 1. We’re human beings, and by nature we have this streak in us that forces us to make fun of other human beings. We can’t help…
Read Full Article We’ll get into the Kevin Costner-Matthew McConaughey situation(s) in future “Yellowstone” discussions … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 924 of The Daily Dirt. 1. Be still, my beating heart. The news broke earlier this week that Michelle Pfeiffer will likely be joining the “Yellowstone” cast in a significant role. A report…
Read Full Article First, let me say Brother Zimmerman, you are courteous and conciliatory. You should have called me out. I quoted G.K. Chesterton, and Chesterton certainly was not a capitalist but a distributist. Wasn’t his description of distributism “40 acres and a cow for everyone?” Certainly a different time. But the point was to favor small businesses…
Read Full Article The next consolidated election in Illinois — where citizens vote in races for city government, school boards and park boards — will be on April 1, 2025. Boy, if there’s not a joke to be had somewhere in there. Former Quincy alderman Dan Brink was the first candidate to officially declare his intention to run…
Read Full Article Mr. Felsman, thank you for taking my thoughts seriously! I am pleased that you say Ayn Rand does not represent what most capitalists think or feel. I just recall Paul Ryan, former Speaker of the U.S. House, saying that Ms. Rand was an important source of his thinking. It is certainly true that the poor…
Read Full Article Daily Dirt for Wednesday, April 17, 2024 I was curious about exactly what a truffle was, but went no farther than the terms “edible spores” and “underground fungus” when checking … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 922 of The Daily Dirt. 1. Next time you’re waiting in the drive-through at one of…
Read Full Article I’d like to add my two cents with Mark Felsman on the recent topic of capitalism versus socialism, which is just a fancy word to get around being called a communist in the real world. Socialism has caused more than 100 million deaths in a little more than 100 years and countless miseries, with the…
Read Full Article Just guessing, but I’d wager bacon is a popular breakfast entity in Iowa … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 921 of The Daily Dirt. 1. Just when you thought you knew pretty much everything about everything, something like this comes along. Here are some oh-so-strange, but oh-so-true facts about certain U.S.…
Read Full Article I have to admit, that double MitchWich sounds intriguing, too … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 920 of The Daily Dirt. 1. Yes, baseball is back. And with it has come some impressive new concession items at MLB parks. Here’s the Daily Dirt’s medal-worthy reaction to what we feel are the…
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