Photo of the Day - January 9, 2021

Running along side his daughter Katie Duval, Doug Weaver keeps a steady pace to a first place finish in the Male 60 and Over division at the 2019 SJO 5K. He finished in 59th place overall with a time of 24:21.30. Just under 200 runners competed at this year's race. Proceeds are donated to the St. Joseph Middle School and St. Joseph-Ogden cross country and track programs. Clocking in second place in the Female 30 to 34 division, Duval finished in 58th place overall with a time of 24:21.10.

Photo of the Day - January 8, 2021

Sophomore outside hitter Kennedi Burnett passes the ball to the front row during St. Joseph-Ogden's road game against Unity on October 8 in 2019. After dropping the first set 28-26, the Spartans rallied back in the Illini Pairie Conference match to take the last two, 25-20, 25-13 at the Rocket Center. Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

Editorial: If walks like a duck and quacks like one

At a rally Tuesday in front of the U.S. Capitol, newly elected U.S. Rep. Mary Miller, R-Oakland said, "Hitler was right on one thing; he said, ‘Whoever has the youth has the future.’"

Bitte, warte eine Minute! Hold up a sec lady.

Was hast du gesagt Frau Miller?

Straight out of central Illinois and right into a pan of pan of hot political Crisco, the newly sworn-in Illinois lawmaker is getting her first rude, booty-hurt lesson of American stateswomanship: Every. Freakin'. Word. Counts.

After considerable backlash, some calling for her resignation - which won't happen - and rebuke from politicians around the state, including Rodney Davis, R-Taylorville, Miller issued this statement this morning:

"Earlier this week, I spoke to a group of mothers about the importance of faith and guarding our youth from destructive influences. I sincerely apologize for any harm my words caused and regret using a reference to one of the most evil dictators in history to illustrate the dangers that outside influences can have on our youth. This dark history should never be repeated and parents should be proactive to instill what is good, true, right, and noble into their children’s hearts and minds. While some are trying to intentionally twist my words to mean something antithetical to my beliefs, let me be clear: I’m passionately pro-Israel and I will always be a strong advocate and ally of the Jewish community. I’ve been in discussion with Jewish leaders across the country and am grateful to them for their kindness and forthrightness."

From my perspective she has three problems.

First, Miller did not apologize for using the quote, but merely that her message was misinterpreted by some and then proceeds to the highly ineffective, it rarely works 'twist my words' defense.

She was not least bit contrite, admitting that it was wrong, unthinkable to have considered in retrospect using the quote in the first place. Her apology comes across with the same sincerity of a 12 year-old, who after returning container back in the freezer, caught minutes after devouring the last of Haagen-Dazs and with a smile still on their lips.

Second, she said, "I’m passionately pro-Israel and I will always be a strong advocate and ally of the Jewish community." Not one person pro-Israel, Jewish or not, would even REMOTELY consider using a quote from Hitler in political rally to support an ideal or public policy.

Finally, and most troubling point to note is in her speech she said Adolf Hitler was "right on one thing". Let's be clear, she did not say 'The only thing ...', which might have given her a bit of slack to play with if she had immediately apologized for the remark instead of waiting three days. The rub is this: If we believe someone is right on one thing, then usually we will find something else we agree with, and then another idea and another point and a ....

Miller is new on the job and we can only hope she does not repeat history yet again by quoting Adolf Hitler or any other fanatic of fascism, hate and universal evil.

Words. Freakin'. Matter. All of them.

Village Crier: January 6, 2021

Village community garage sale date set for April

With warmer weather still months away, the first date for community garage and yard sales is on the books. The St. Joseph Community Garage Sale will take place on April 8 - 10.

Billy Bob's settles case with the county

On New Year's Eve, Billy Bob's was issued a temporary restraining order by Judge Roger Webber for operating without a valid health permit. To avoid further unnecessary litigation, the Ogden eating establishment signed off on a settlement agreement with county public health agency on Tuesday to remain open for scaled back business operations.

After paying $50 reinstatement fee for their health permit and submitting to an inspection, starting Friday the restaurant under the water tower will be open for carryout service only. The establishment posted on Facebook their new hours for service will be Sunday thru Wednesday from 11a to 7p and Thursday thru Saturday from 11a-8p.

The settlement also included a provision that Billy Bob's submit a written plan detailing its plans to operate under current county ordinance and state COVID-19 mitigation restrictions.

Health authorities suspended the permit on December 11 for continuing indoor service for remaining open in defiance of the state mandated mitigation plan which forbid indoor dining. Billy Bob's continued to operate without a valid health permit before receiving court summons.

For more information on carryout service call (217) 582-2277.

St. Joseph youth baseball registration opens next week

Player registration for the St. Joseph Youth Baseball Little League opens on Saturday, January 23. Eligible players have until February 6 to sign up. A birthday chart to help determine which level a child will play can be found here.

Tolono studio photographer offers mini sessions

Give that special someone in your life a photo on Valentine's Day. Photographer Madeline Wilson is offering Valentine's Day mini sessions with families, kids, couples and/or pets in her studio located at 104 Main Street in Tolono. Sessions will begin on January 31 and run through February 14.

For more information visit Wilson's Facebook business page or call (217) 621-4159.

Tier 2 on the horizon

Earlier this week Governor J.B. Pritzker said any region below the required metrics can move into Tier 2 restrictions a week from tomorrow on January 15. That is welcomed news for athletes and restaurants in regions around the state, especially those that have done well at slowing the spread of the COVID-19 pathogen.

"We are watching closely in this incubation period post-Christmas and New Year’s. I am cautiously optimistic as there are some early signs that some regions have made real progress," Pritzker announced during an afternoon press briefing. The news comes after he extended the emergency COVID restriction Monday, requiring people to wear a mask for another 150 days.

In order for a region to move back to Tier 2 mitigations, a region must experience less than 12 percent test positivity rate for three consecutive days, have more than 20 percent available intensive care unit (ICU) hospital bed availability and have declining COVID hospitalizations in 7 of the last 10 days. The Governor's team is waiting to see if there is a surge or spike of COVID-19 cases seeded from New Year's gatherings.

Locally there have seventeen new case identified in the past 48 hours. The Sentinel area saw the lowest number of active cases in over 51 days on Tuesday with 59. The number of infections have climbed to 71 likely from New Year's Eve revelry.

As of Wednesday night, 3,921 patients in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19. According state records, 783 of those patients were in the ICU and 450 patients on ventilators.

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