Free rides for seniors costly to taxpayers

And here we thought mass transit in the Chicago area was on the verge of "doomsday" if the Legislature didn't get the system more money, and lots of it, this very minute. Now Gov. Rod Blagojevich says mass transit systems throughout the state can afford to give free bus and train rides to senior citizens to the tune of $15 million a year in lost revenue, with some predicting double that. Curious, since we'd been told mass transit needed every penny of the some $400 million the Legislature narrowly approved by slapping sales and real estate transfer tax increases on Chicago and its suburbs. Perhaps things aren't so bad, after all.

Or maybe they are, and the governor just thinks senior citizens and their votes are more important than the 28-year-old single mother of three whose fares may jump to make up the difference. Meanwhile, Blagojevich must be under the impression that all seniors are penniless, as there is no means test for that affluent suburban couple taking the train into the city to watch the Lyric Opera.

Along with universal health care, the governor is now championing universal transportation for senior citizens … He certainly has a flair for the unexpected, and for playing games. Apparently he shared his idea with precious few outside his office before announcing it with great fanfare about doing right by "grandma." He stopped just short of breaking out the hankies.

MySpace is safer

Everyone has heard time and again that sex offenders are lurking on the Internet. Still, it was a shock to realize how huge this problem is. Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan's office said last week that so far it has identified 1,558 registered sex offenders who created profiles on the social networking site MySpace.

At least law and order is starting to come to the Wild West of cyberspace. Madigan has aggressively sought to identify sex offenders and get their profiles deleted from MySpace. Her actions have also prompted the organizers of MySpace to adopt new safety measures.

As good as this news is, it's important to remember that prosecutors and the police won't ever be able to stop them all. It remains imperative that parents educate their children about the potential dangers of talking to strangers online and monitor their internet use.