Le Journal

Back in 2020, I bought the LG 27GN950 Nano IPS monitor for $800, which I thought was a steal at the time. It checked every box I cared about: a fast IPS panel with minimal backlight bleeding, 160Hz refresh rate, and 4K resolution. I assumed I was going to use it as my primary gaming monitor for the next 5-6 years, but then OLED monitors started coming out. In 2024, I bought the Alienware AW2725DF, a 1440p 360Hz OLED gaming monitor, for $850. I basically paid more for a resolution downgrade, but do I regret it? Absolutely not.

The judge presiding over this week’s trial of a man accused in a murder plot against U.S. Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino became an advocate for increased judicial security after a litigant in 2005 murdered her mother and husband in a crime that shocked Chicago.Threats against judges are disturbingly common in 2026. But after that harrowing experience 21 years ago, U.S. District Judge Joan Lefkow warned the Senate Judiciary Committee that the “fostering of disrespect for judges can only encourage those who are on the edge, or on the fringe, to exact revenge.”Lefkow called on the committee to help sustain “a society based on the rule of law, instead of right being defined by might.” Related Bovino murder-for-hire case on thin ice after judge bars gang evidence from trial The judge went on in later years to hand a 4 ½ year prison sentence to notorious Chicago Police Cmdr. Jon Burge. Now, the 82-year-old Lefkow is set to preside over the first trial resulting from the deportation campaign in Chicago known as “Operation Midway Blitz.”Juan Espinoza Martinez is accused of offering $10,000 for Bovino’s murder.Lefkow is a Kansas native who graduated from Northwestern University's law school. She assumed senior status as a judge in 2012.Two of Lefkow’s colleagues in Chicago — U.S. District Judges Sara Ellis and April Perry — have recently acknowledged threats and intimidation they’ve experienced while presiding over challenges to the Trump administration. The Dirksen Federal CourthouseRich Hein/Sun-Times But the violence that prompted Lefkow’s testimony in the Senate came in February 2005, five years after President Bill Clinton nominated her to the bench. Lefkow found her mother, Donna Humphrey, and husband, Michael Lefkow, shot to death in her Edgewater basement.The investigation led to a man Lefkow had ruled against in a civil rights lawsuit. He shot and killed himself days later after police stopped his van for having faulty brake lights in a suburb outside Milwaukee.The man’s DNA matched a cigarette butt in a sink in the Lefkows’ home, and ammunition found in his home matched a bullet fired in the Lefkows’ basement. Authorities also found a note in which he admitted to the killings and listed judges who’d angered him.Two of those judges had offices in Milwaukee.In his note, which appeared nearly identical to one sent to WMAQ-Channel 5, the man wrote that he sneaked into the basement early in the day hoping to eventually encounter the judge, but when other family members discovered him he "had no choice."Lefkow quietly returned to work at the Dirksen Federal Courthouse in summer 2005, and a note appeared outside her courtroom asking parties not to mention the tragedy. She went on to preside over Burge’s perjury trial in 2010 and wound up giving a prison sentence to the man who’d become synonymous with Chicago police torture allegations. Related Former Chicago police Cmdr. Jon Burge, tied to torture cases, has died Burge died in 2018. But during his 2011 sentencing, Lefkow told him that jurors didn’t believe the testimony he’d offered in his own defense.“And I must agree,” she said, “that I did not either.”Lefkow said she wished there was not “such a dismal failure of leadership in the department that it came to this.” She said “so much pain could have been avoided” if state or federal prosecutors had acted earlier.And, in a move that surprised court observers, Lefkow brought up the murders of her family members. She told the courtroom she felt “deeply indebted to the valiant police officers” who tracked down the killer.She explained that, “I am no stranger to violent crime.”“Respect is hardly a sufficient word for how I feel about the talent and dedication of the people who helped me and my family in a time of crisis,” Lefkow said. “Yet, too many times, I have seen officers sit in the witness box to my right and give implausible testimony to defend themselves or a fellow officer against accusations of wrongdoing.“Each time I…

State lawmakers return to the Illinois House on Tuesday to gavel in the 2026 legislative session and prepare for months of wrangling over how to bridge a $2.2 billion budget gap in a critical midterm election year.Leaders of Democratic supermajorities in the Illinois General Assembly are sticking to the national party message of addressing affordability for voters who face rising costs on utility bills, health care, home insurance and just about everything else.Aside from legislators’ main task of passing a budget, new competition from Indiana officials looking to lure the Chicago Bears across the border could move the ball forward in Springfield for a new stadium in Arlington Heights.Lawmakers could also tweak portions of the state’s polarizing SAFE-T Act in response to a horrific Blue Line attack that raised questions about electronic monitoring. And troubles for Bally’s Chicago Casino and Hawthorne Race Course — plus a new city tax on sports betting operators — could spur new legislation around the state’s bevy of gambling options.Not that Democrats are likely to rock the boat with any controversial bills before the March 17 primary.The Illinois Senate quietly kicked off its legislative calendar last week, Gov. JB Pritzker will deliver his budget proposal Feb. 18 and a spending plan has to be approved by May 31. Here’s an early look at the General Assembly’s spring session.Budgeting for affordability — and maybe a millionaire taxReduced federal funding and the ever-present threat of further cuts under President Donald Trump’s administration make it another precarious spending year, with a projected $2.2 billion shortfall entering the state’s fiscal year that begins in July.Cuts to Medicaid, food assistance and other social service programs in Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill put the onus on state lawmakers to set aside more money to maintain support for some of Illinois’ most vulnerable residents.“I don't know how you see around the corners and predict the irrationality that's coming out of Washington right now,” said Illinois Senate President Don Harmon, D-Oak Park. “I don't know what tomorrow holds or the day after, but I think we're going to remain committed to a responsible, balanced budget living within our means, paying off our debts and investing in things that matter to people across Illinois.”Harmon and Illinois House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch, D-Hillside, downplayed the possibility of reviving the fight for a state constitutional amendment for a graduated income tax to bolster state coffers with a higher percentage from the wealthy. Governor JB Pritzker (left) stands with Senate President Don Harmon (center) and House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch (right) during the signing ceremony for the Northern Illinois Transit Authority Act at Union Station in The Loop, Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025. Candace Dane Chambers/Sun-Times Voters soundly rejected that Pritzker-backed initiative in 2020, but they’ve signaled support in past ballot measures for another progressive revenue idea Welch is floating: a surcharge tax on millionaires.“I think it'll allow us to do some other things that are desperately needed with an additional source of revenue,” said Welch, who added that his chamber’s agenda will also include heightened state regulation of homeowners and auto insurance as premiums have soared.“This affordability crisis that's been created by the current president and Washington Republicans has us laser-focused on bringing costs down for everyone,” he said.Illinois House Minority Leader Tony McCombie, R-Savanna, said “House Democrats can’t talk about affordability and being relatable to Illinois families after repeatedly passing billion-dollar policies — often in the middle of the night,” referring to marathon sessions that typically see budget bills called in the wee hours. “We have a spending problem and Illinois House Republicans will continue to demand accountability.”Bears stadium driveThe Bears could scarcely get a bill…

Like many people new to Linux, I started out using a graphical file manager for all my file tasks, such as opening folders, copying, moving, renaming, deleting, and searching. But once I got comfortable with basic terminal commands and began trying out terminal utilities, everything changed.