In this week’s “A Taylor-Made Life,” Taylor Leddin-McMaster reflects on recent conversations with two community fixtures that focused on viewing Kankakee County through a camera.

Clearly $20 is significant to someone counting every penny, but as a yearly figure it won’t sway anyone’s vote. The loss of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits is a different story, with an average of about $184 per beneficiary each month.

In this week's column, Toby Moore writes that that harshest times can often create the strongest of souls.

It is simply too late. Candidates have expended considerable time and resources gathering petition signatures, the filing deadline is Nov. 3 and any alteration now costs money the state doesn’t have while inviting legal exposure that could exponentially increase fiscal liability.

The Chicago Teachers Union president was recently elected president of the Illinois Federation of Teachers. State legislators haven’t appreciated aggressive advocacy by CTU allies in the past.

From pure cynicism, there may be wisdom in getting Republicans on board with anything Democrats could present as endorsement of gun registration. But more practically, there’s no faster way to clear an administrative backlog than to erase it altogether.

I will share this recipe for Monster cookies this week. It is also in my cookbook “The Cherished Table.” This recipe does not have any flour in it, so it has not been omitted.

Voters could see some future relief in the unlikely event the General Assembly amends state law to clarify donation and disclosure timetables, but at worst Harmon has only reputational damage via a hearing officer’s recommendation to reject his appeal of the fine.

In this week's column, Dennis Marek takes a trip down memory lane during a visit to Washington, D.C., and is reminded through words from Thomas Jefferson that derision is part of our nation's fabric.