Author Image: Dennis Byrne

Dennis Byrne

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President Barack Obama speaks during a press conference at the White House on Oct. 2, 2015, in Washington, D.C. Obama warned Friday that Russia's military engagement in Syria in support of strongman Bashar al-Assad is a "recipe for disaster."

Now is not the time for isolationism

When the United States finally blunders completely out of the Middle East, which of our global interests should we abandon next? President Barack Obama opened the door and showed Russian...
Most states tax a portion or all of retirement income, including public and private pensions, 401(k) plans, IRAs, payments to retired partners, deferred compensation and such.

Time to tax retirement income

Here's one reform that could ease Illinois' fiscal troubles: Tax retirement income. Illinois exempts from taxation all retirement income, including Social Security, an astonishing fact, considering the state's ruinous fiscal...
Looking to blame someone for the financial crises in Illinois and Chicago? Start with House Speaker Michael Madigan, shown May 29, 2015, and his Democratic colleagues in the General Assembly.

Blame Rauner? Come on.

There's one thing that we should be able to agree on about the Illinois and Chicago financial crises: It's not the fault of students wanting an education, poor people seeking...
A woman shakes a blanket at a balcony of a building covered with a mural in the northern Greek town of Thessaloniki on March 11. Greece is quickly running out of cash and has to repay debts this month to the International Monetary Fund totaling nearly $1 billion.

The entire world is addicted to debt

Some people worry that civilization will end in a global-warming cauldron. Others in nuclear annihilation. Or too many people overwhelming the planet. Me? Assuming that Russia's deranged autocrat, Vladimir Putin,...
Thousands protest against Indiana's Religious Freedom Restoration Act during a rally March 28, 2015, outside the statehouse in Indianapolis. Have we forgotten that embedded in our nation's founding documents are the principles of reverence for minority convictions?

Where’s the tolerance when the tables are turned?

OK, now it's religion's turn. People of faith who assert their rights under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act enacted by Indiana have been pilloried as bigots, haters or worse. Headlines...