Editor's Notebook - by Peggy Boyer Long

IllinoisIssues
A publication of the University of Illinois at Springfield
May 2000 - Volume XXVI, No. 5

Who is watching out for the children? page 18

FEATURES

18 Who is watching out for the children? Essay by Alex Kotlowitz The premise of the juvenile justice system has crumbled. And what it comes down to is whether we believe the very nature of youth is more than just a chronological fact.

24 Chain reaction by Stephanie Zimmermann Reactors have been shuttered. Plants sold. Does this signal the end of the nuclear era? Not in this state, where the controversial power source is making a comeback.

28 Snapshot: The sportsmen’s caucus by Heather Nickel

30 Snapshot: The black caucus by Burney Simpson

32 Guest essay: Tough assignment by Frank Kopecky This may be the optimum moment to reconsider Illinois’ death penalty.

35 Save the ecosystem Essay by Robert McGregor Species require habitats. Nature is finicky that way.

DEPARTMENTS
3 Conversation with the Publisher by Ed Wojcicki

4 Editor's Notebook by Peggy Boyer Long

8 State of the State by Burney Simpson A firsthand look at government

10 Briefly by Rodd Whelpley

38 People by Rodd Whelpley

41 A View from Chicago by James Ylisela Jr. Rx for Mayor Daley

42 Politics by Charles N. Wheeler III A session to pander

Credits: Artist Sigrid Wonsil created the etching on this month's cover.

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©2000 by Illinois Issues, University of Illinois at Springfield, P.O. Box 19243, Springfield, IL 62794- 9243. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without prior written permission is prohibited. Illinois Issues is published by the University of Illinois at Springfield. In addition to university support and subscription income, the magazine is supported by grants and donations. The contents of the magazine do not necessarily reflect the views of the university or the donors.