Totaling the unsustainable tax increases and windfall revenue during Pritzker Administration – Wirepoints
May 26, 2026
23 Comments
With $162 billion more from taxpayers, couldn’t you deliver a few bond upgrades, too
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A largely unasked question is becoming glaring: Is Illinois doing all it should to use artificial intelligence to make government cost less and work better? So far, the evidence says no.
The problem is that when employees are paid $16.25 an hour, and food costs are so high, eating out becomes too expensive for the average family, and these restaurants go out of business. I read once that the CEO of a major sit down dining chain said that many of its customers live paycheck to paycheck, and they put a little bit of money away to celebrate a life event, or, if there is money left over at the end of the paycheck cycle, they visit a chain restaurant to spend money on an affordable but quality meal. While this… Read more »
Spot – on, debtor. This past Spring one of our beloved Evanston restaurants, The Celtic Knot closed. It was a mainstay for 18 years, but the owners told me that between the pandemic driving up prices of food/supplies (by in some cases more than 100%), the pandemic restrictions (although they had a decent carry – out business during the pandemic), decreased foot traffic, and a nice rent concession from their landlord it they renewed their lease, they had no choice but to close. I work at the downtown Evanston Library, and within spitting distance here on Church Street there are… Read more »
I haven’t been to Evanston since the spring, and my short drive through downtown looked pretty grim. Vacant stores, hardly any foot traffic, I didn’t see any vagrants but I think it was raining. Very sad.