By Whet Moser
The state's flat tax, its dependence on property taxes, and relatively high sales taxes (both state and local) combine for a tax structure that, compared to other states, hits the poor hard—and the middle class as well. Read more
Tag: Writers – Whet Moser
By Whet Moser
New York City, scared off the plan by Chicago's experience, just decided to hold on to its parking meters. There's been a bit of a backlash against public-private partnerships in the past few months, as both governments and operators struggle with the financing of infrastructure in a down economy. Read more
By Whet Moser
Who's standing by Jay Cutler? Liberal Democrats. Republicans in Illinois are more skeptical of the Bears' quarterback, at least when they're not rooting for the Packers. NB: poll results are from the week the Bears beat the Vikings, not their late season collapse, which may have disturbed the electorate. Read more
By Whet Moser
He fled communist Yugoslavia by crawling down a drainpipe, married a Greek princess, and led a life of declining geopolitical intrigue that frequently brought him to Chicago. Read more
By Whet Moser
Less than a decade ago, intercity bus service looked like an industry in terminal decline. Since 2006, it's started to recover, with discount carriers adding over a thousand daily operations. Megabus pushed the dying giants to innovate—but the improvement of big-city downtowns has also taken the stigma out of bus travel. Read more
By Whet Moser
SUPER SCREWED?: Why Madigan and Co. could be in trouble Read more
By Whet Moser
OBJECTION!: In Illinois, it’s easy for bad judges to stick around for life. Time for a change. Read more
By Whet Moser
The state has long had trouble deciding to pay its share of employee pension costs. In the 1990s, representatives of the pension system filed a complaint about it, and were told: the constitution guarantees that the state has to pay the pensions. It doesn't guarantee that it has to fund them. Read more
By Whet Moser
The Bears quarterback is building a legacy of total ambivalence towards his legacy, as argued by a PR pro in ChicagoSide. It's probably costing him a good chunk of money, now and in the future. But it's worth considering it from his perspective: maybe that's a worthwhile price to pay for actual, uncalculated privacy. Read more
By Whet Moser
A year before the ex-pastor of Hammond's First Baptist Church committed the Mann Act violation he recently pled guilty to, he appeared briefly in an ABC investigation of Independent Baptist churches... and hung hellfire on the network for questioning the idea that women aren't the reason man is fallen. Read more