Category > Ask Politely
Another year bites the dust, leaving behind some relevant questions to ponder. With the destruction of the Metropolitan building in the Great Downtown Fire of ‘08, should we soon expect new construction in its place? And when will southbound thru-traffic reopen at the intersection of Neil and Church? (The City won’t commit to a timetable, leaving us to wait for the building owners who suffered losses in said fire to clear the way for progress.) What of our once height-challenged …
| Unless you’ve spent the last week on a vision quest in the Australian Outback, you have no doubt heard that Blago was caught trying to sell President-elect Obama’s Senate seat. In some ways, we could consider this a highly populist move. After all, never has a position of such power been so brazenly open to those with such simple qualifications (namely, a big wad of cash to throw at the governor). Aside from cash, he was also looking for a …
It’s been a little over a year since Smile Politely left beta and went live. Tradition dictates that the one-year anniversary gift is paper, but we’ve already seen too many newspapers go down the drain in Champaign-Urbana: The Optimist/The Octopus/CU-Cityview, The Hub, The Paper. So we say “thanks, but no thanks” to the gift of paper. Instead, the Smile Politely editorial staff will be treating its writers and readers to a round (or two, or three) of cheap beers at …
In case you haven’t heard, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is feeling the affects of the recession. Two weeks ago, University of Illinois Chancellor Richard Herman e-mailed university students and staff about the significance of the university’s financial woes. In the e-mail, Herman says, ”[University President Joseph White] charged leadership of each campus with the task of designing contingency plans to cover whatever financial realities we ultimately face in light of the declining state and national economies. I write …
As reported earlier today, the building that sat on the southwest corner of Neil St. and Church St. burned to the ground over night. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Buildings and had recently been gutted and rehabbed to make way for luxury apartments. As we stood looking at the aftermath, we wondered: what are the most important and relevant buildings in C-U? Obvious ones like Assembly Hall spring to mind, but we know there are others …
There’s a lot to vote on next Tuesday in C-U, ranging from the most powerful person in the world (president) to most powerful person to legally declare death (local coroner). According to the Champaign County Clerk’s website, over 7,000 people have already voted, throwing caution to the wind, not caring about any potential October Surprise in the County Board races. Which race do you care most about? Local poverty reduction? Funding for schools via sales tax increase? The chance to …
OK, this is a pretty funny story. But we’re sure Zamboni isn’t the worst she could do. So, help us out here. What would be a name that would top it?
One of the great travesties of living in a hyper-accelerated-shopping-crazed-live-beyond-your-means-on-credit society is the fact that the Christmas shopping season officially begins long before kids even choose their Halloween costumes. As the economy continues to wax and wane, most retailers are preparing themselves for a far more naughty than nice season at the register this year. At Smile Politely, we naturally encourage folks to shop local as often as possible, and to try to spend money at places that will continue …
Applied for a loan lately? Had the courage to look at your 401K? Do you think you’ll soon need to choose between gas in your car or food in your belly? The financial meltdown and its effects on the economy are making some people jittery and some people hysterical. But has it affected you personally yet? Do you expect it to? Smile Politely wants to know.
After all the hoopla, who do you think won the debate? Did you take a drink everytime Sen. Biden said the word “fact”? Did you take a drink everytime Gov. Palin said the word “maverick” or winked? Do you think it will matter in the end?
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Change is the only constant thing in this world. Change is just an indication that a particular place is improving or not. It is a good thing that there is a room for a change but it must be a change for the better. It is just…
Now that Olympian is probably a given, they’re going to have to rename the section between Willow and 45. Any suggestions? Now lets get onto Urbana’s next road to nowhere. Airport Rd., They want to extend it from Bartlow west to Lincoln thru 3 farm fields. One…
I had a great time reading around your post as I read it extensively. Gold
I’ve always suspected that there’s a direct correlation between projected land use for the Rt 150 corridor [Industrial / Commercial] and the drive to expand 74. See the CCRPC Future Land Use Map for details, and then take a look at who owns land there, and you…
The University does not subsidize the Airbus. For decades bus transportation to the airport was provided expressly for Institute of Aviation students. This service was paid for by the Institute of Aviation, not campus as a whole. Some of you may even remember the old orange or…
A book just published gives a very useful different perspective on the “growth for growth’s sake” model and its ecological unsustainability. It is “Prosperity Without Growth: Economics for a Finite Planet” by Tim Jackson. The first chapter of the book can be downloaded via http://earthscan.co.uk/pwg . This…
I agree with most of the comments on the Orange “Krush.“ They are mostly immature, ignorant, college students who can’t wait for the next frat party so they can get wasted on Keystone light
“Since there is no congestion on 74, one wonders what he is talking about.“ - Duh. Perhaps the congestion is wishful thinking? And IL DOT is planning to spend $71 million taxpayer dollars widening I-74 between Champaign and Mahomet. I contacted IL DOT on the I-74 stuff. …
Great articles, btw.
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So what can we say about UGG Boots? Their success has been unprecedented over the last few years and we can definitely say it is absolutely deserved. The famous UGG boots came about when a young Aussie surfer headed of to California with a bag full of…
I love eating Vietnamese food, and having growing up my entire life eating it, I was excited to go. I really wanted to like this place because of all of the hype I had heard——unfortunately, I was sorely disappointed. I got the pho (vietnamese soup) and thought…
Kaiyo was decent for a sushi buffet, but it definitely isn’t as good as KO fusion. I thought it was better than any sushi I’ve ever had at a chinese buffet, but was not as good as my least favorite sushi item at KO fusion. However, I…
What is an antibiotic-free egg? And how can you tell?
Great article. I’ve always found that by making it in the blender, I can be my typical impatient self and pour tons of oil in at once. It’s very forgiving that way, though not fool proof.
I will be at Danu this evening. And seeing as tomorrow - St. Pat’s - is my birthday, I will be celebrating with tons of green and fun!
Big Blue will actually be on 6-9, despite what is posted elsewhere. Then, hightail it over to Bentley’s!
Ahh - good point - I will plug them in the appropriate sections.
Yeeee! This sounds so fun! Any word on covers for any/all of these? Maybe SP could spring for punch cards and some discounts if we make it to all, eh?
Ok, just tell me when I can exhale - Just curious, since all the globalists, carbon traders, and pretty much anyone with copious amounts of wealth have weighed in on population reduction in recent years, i was wondering what yer magic number was. Some of the more…
ESPN360!!!!! For those that don’t know, you can watch the ESPNs’ games on your puter.
...and given the lack of smiley emoticons i chose to employ, that reads far more sarcastically than i ever intended (my apologies). i actually find this to be a great article and an interesting discussion, seriously : )
Once it leaves the basement, it is then called what? hmmm…....could it be mainstream? accessible? appealing on a mass-level? POP??? Quickly it will become a fad, over-saturate the media, and piss people off. Then everyone can write articles based on how that shit sucks, too. chickens are…
So John is seeing all comments as being authored by John. I am seeing all comments as authored by me. The first comment was Mysterious McDade who evidently acquired an Optimism Hat and is now seeing how it fits.
No, everyone is me! Muahahaha! I so didn’t make that first comment so I thought maybe someone was trying to get my goat, adding me to the staff. I hope jumping to that conclusion is forgivable. Yeah, uh, I guess I should say that I swear I…
I have reached Nirvana, I guess. Everyone is me.
Something weird is happening.
WTF guys? Does impersonating a user in the comments section run afoul of your commenting policy?
In general, I think music is much more interesting now than in 1995. I definitely am very glad contemporary music has expanded beyond the four-piece rock lineup that dominated much of the 90’s. The point of the above isn’t so much about a sound or an instrument…
2010 is not 1995. I’m not sure why anyone would expect a music scene to remain stationary as the world of popular music moves around it. Also, today, making popular music with mainstream appeal and being innovative and cutting-edge are usually exact opposites.
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Ok, just tell me when I can exhale - Just curious, since all the globalists, carbon traders, and pretty much anyone with copious amounts of wealth have weighed in on population reduction in recent years, i was wondering what yer magic number was. Some of the more…