Republican U.S. Representative Mary Miller helped ignite a firestorm over the weekend of July 29 when she expressed her disgust on social media with Governor JB Pritzker. Representative Miller (no relation) claimed on Twitter that Governor Pritzker had signed a bill late on a Friday afternoon “to allow illegal immigrants to become police officers, giving non-citizens the power to arrest citizens in our state.”

[Publisher's note: On June 28, 2023, TheGrayzone.com's Max Blumenthal addressed the U.N. Security Council on the role of U.S. military aid to Ukraine in escalating the conflict with Russia and the real motives behind Washington’s support for Kiev’s proxy war. Below is the news site's transcript of Blumenthal's incisive remarks.]

One of the most insidious threats to America's Republic is the progressive abuse of language in redefining and/or alternative uses of words in order to subtly redirect collective thought for eventual acceptance and absorption into the cultural ethos. By changing languages' meaning, thought can be directed, attitudes controlled, and actions inspired by strategically replacing traditional norms in thought processing that would otherwise be rejected.

Don’t even read what I’m writing here if you haven’t yet made a reservation to see Much Ado About Nothing. There are only four shows left, tickets are going fast, and you do not want to miss it. If this were a text message, I’d have added about a million more explanation points. I'm serious. Secure your seat before you keep reading, or it might be too late.

Beautiful and evocative works by an orthopedic surgeon pursuing a Studio Arts degree at the University of Iowa will be on display at the Muscatine Art Center through March 10, when the venue hosts an exhibition of new mixed-media works by Cory Christiansen, an Iowa talent who shared a special bond with noted Muscatine printmaker Jon Fasanelli-Cawelti, whose works will be on display at the Art Center in September.

Praised by Broadway World as "a wonderful night of theatre" and by NBC2 as a work that "evokes memories and warm feelings with a lot of laugh-out-loud moments," author Joe DiPietro's warmhearted comedy Over the River & Through the Woods enjoys an August 17 through 27 engagement at the Richmond Hill Barn Theatre, its Geneseo run sure to demonstrate why Chicago Critic raved, "At any stage of life – as child, young adult, parent, or grandparent – this charming play will touch your heart.

Lauded by Time Out New York for its “infectiously energetic 1960s tunes” and by The New Yorker for its “well-judged humor and elegant strokes of observation,” the Broadway-musical smash Jersey Boys – running August 17 through 27 – closes the 2023 summer season at Mt. Carroll's Timber Lake Playhouse, this multiple Tony Award winner a show that, according to Broadway World, “rousingly recreates the catchy songs, convoluted lives, and roller-coaster careers of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons.”

German toys have had a significant impact on the world's toy industry, particularly in the areas of design and innovation, and through January 7, these wondrous innovations will be on display in Klassiks for Kinder: German Toys with Joy, an interactive, family-themed exhibition housed in Davenport's German American Heritage Center.

Presented on August 17 as part of the Davenport Public Library's 3rd Thursday at Hoover's Presidential Library & Museum series, the virtual "best of" program Spotlight on the Famous Flour Sacks will recount Herbert Hoover's gift of several hundred decorated flour sacks for his work with the Commission for Relief in Belgium (CRB), a program established – under Hoover's direction – to provide food relief in war-torn Europe.