WGLT's Sound Ideas - Full Episodes

For the first time in a long time, two people are running for McLean County circuit judge at the same time. They'll even face off in the primary. We'll talk about why that's happening and the strengths and weaknesses of the two candidates Judge Amy McFarland and State's Attorney Don Knapp. A central Illinois woman specified she did not want life sustaining care withdrawn but the person who held her power of attorney was trying to do just that. Incoming McLean County Public Guardian Robert Porter tells you about that work. And Community Players bring the holiday feel good tale of cheer and finding yourself to the stage. Get ready for the classic journey of Buddy, a young orphan transported to the North Pole and raised as an elf going back to New York.

Shop early for Christmas is what retailers always hope for. This year they really mean it. Bloomington Normal businesses say those supply chain problems mean shoppers should get what they want fast or there might be fewer packages under the tree. Stagnant vaccination rates might mean the world will see no end to COVID. The Chief Operating Officer of OSF Healthcare muses about how endemic coronavirus may affect medicine and society. And a lot of people take personal redemption and salvation as an article of faith, but it's a bigger and more challenging question to consider the redemption of a nation for the ongoing ills of racism. An ISU professor and speaker weighs in.

Hear how much the marketplace thinks Rivian is worth right now. It's changing a bit as the company runs up to its initial public offering.Eviction cases filed last month were double the pre-pandemic rate in McLean County, as the pace picks up. A central Illinois scholar says food supply chain issues exposed by the pandemic suggests a need to diversity crop choices. Ashlihan Spaulding studies agribusiness and food system management. And is there any such thing as a bad pork chop sandwich? Find out the finalists in the high school pork and pigskin championship.

A new history of McLean County is coming. It's the first such comprehensive book in more than a hundred years. And it's the first to situate central Illinois residents amid broader global and national moments (other than the civil war). The history of Mclean County is more than just Abe Lincoln, Beer Nuts, and State Farm. There's this massacre of native Americans too which happened in 1730 when two French fur trading companies got into a competition and used different native tribes as proxies. Plus Historian Greg Koos chronicles labor, suffrage, and immigration in his new book Freedom, Land, And Community: a History of McLean County 1730-1900.

Congressman Darin LaHood says he'll focus on the economy in his next run for office in a district that has about half the places he has represented before. And even though he's in a very safe Republican District he's not too keen on how Democrats drew the boundaries. Universal pre-k might still make it into President Biden's infrastructure bill as it continues under negotiation. Find out what early childhood experts think of the notion. The exhaustive McLean County Board redistricting process is winding down and one of the work group heads says the words Democrat and Republican were never mentioned. Eight meetings and hearings might be just enough to do the job, But, can you really ever take politics out of the equation?

The FBI has said it doesn't have the power to take over the Jelani Day investigation from local authorities. That's not - quite - true. One scholar points to civil rights era murders as an exception. He also says the feds are really reluctant to do that! It used to be said no middle class no democracy. But as democracies have weakened in nations middle classes haven't kicked back much. ISU political scientist Ali Riaz says that's because in countries like Turkey, and Bangladesh, they have benefitted from the rise of the autocrats. And Arts Correspondent Lauren Warnecke dives into a rousing Rachmaninoff performance and the premiere of a new work by the Illinois Symphony Orchestra.

Even though the body of ISU graduate student Jelani Day's body was in the Illinois River a long time, the coroner says some information about Day was not lost. Bloomington musician Brett Conlin shares his new album. There are lots of warning signs of domestic violence, a crime of control. Jealousy is one. Insults another. Countering Domestic Violence in Bloomington highlights domestic violence awareness month. Halloween is coming and for millennia people have looked to the night sky as the seasons turn. The director of the ISU planetarium tells you what to look for this time of year

The pandemic has exposed flaws in global supply chains for everything from toilet paper to car parts. An ISU expert on large scale economies tells you those flaws were always there. And fixing them is hard. Another small town central Illinois newspaper closes, but a new outlet will test the market for news in Ford County. Bloomington City Council action to skirt a ban on new video gambling licenses can be considered unfair. City Manager Tim Gleason says the council has to weigh the greater good of community development. And themes are emerging on what buckets the town of Normal will use to spend federal pandemic relief aid.

Reverend Jesse Jackson Junior joined a couple hundred people in a peaceful drive through demonstration and march in honor of ISU graduate student Jelani Day in Peru, Illinois. Day's death has been ruled by drowning but the chants were about justice for Jelani and no justice no peace. Unit 5 schools have been getting ready for today's federal approval of the Coronavirus vaccine for kids ages five to eleven. They'll offer vaccination clinics. And Superintendent Kristen Weikle says booster shot opportunities for staff are coming too. A Bloomington Normal high school student has received a national award for his work to help others. Meet Druhv Rebba. And Normal City Manager Pam Reece drops by.

Operation Push and the Rainbow Coalition plan a march in Peru, Illinois to pressure authorities to do more to investigate the death of ISU graduate student Jelani Day. But, not everything being said about the case is true. The Prairie City Soccer League is changing plans for new fields. They won't be in north Normal. A researcher speaking at ISU has a new way of tackling community health questions -- like, "Why aren't families physically active?" Darla Castelli talks about information gaps in community health. And the Unit 5 School Board President talks deficits and discourse.