A while back, scrolling through an online discussion of “what Belvidere needs,” amongst the calls for a pool and fancy restaurants was the comment: “A vision.” I agree. If we keep focusing on the problems immediately before us without an idea of the goal we’re working towards, we’ll never get anywhere. I don’t think it’s too much to ask our local leaders to share their vision for Belvidere, so I wrote mine down.

My day begins much as it does every day with coffee, a stop at the gym, and catching up on the news before the mad rush to get kids to school begins. It’s winter so I split my workouts between the gym and the River’s Edge. River’s Edge has leaned into its strengths as a unique indoor recreation facility with the addition of indoor pickleball and racquetball courts. Plus if I use Belvidere Park District recreation facilities regularly I get discounts on local healthcare services or at some local restaurants and markets.

If you're a 21st century parent, you know it's less safe for kids to just play outside than it was for us when we were kids. In 2009 parents in Bristol, England decided that they didn't have to just accept this as a casualty of the modern world.

I think it’s plain that our American idea of infinite growth and progress is hitting its upper limits. Late stage capitalism with extreme wealth disparity. At a crucial tipping point environmentally and running the other way. Our already ineffective governments are being cannibalized. There’s no more graph up and to the right.

Folks are celebrating Stellantis’s most recent announcement to reopen the Belvidere Assembly - and I’m glad to hear it too. Regardless of the type of vehicle produced at the plant, having those union jobs back in Belvidere is a great thing. However, as someone who celebrated a similar win back in November 2023 can attest - it’s not over till the cars roll off the line. 

“It’s simple - you’re here illegally, you get deported” is an argument in two parts: break the law, receive consequences. That’s really simple. Too simple maybe. Is there a chance we don’t understand the problem fully? To be sure, let’s look at each side of that argument separately. First up, “break the law” or specifically “you’re here illegally.”