News Junkies Unite at Indian Prairie’s Current Events Discussion Group

Have an opinion on the latest news headlines?

Join Current Events Discussion Group for lively discussions on foreign and domestic policy issues at 7 p.m. the second and fourth Mondays of the month.

“This is a long-running program at the library that offers our residents the opportunity to study and discuss current events around the world,” said Jamie Bukovac, library director. “We feel it helps to make for a more informed citizenry.”

The group is a spin-off of the Great Events Discussion Group, held in February and March, and put on by the Foreign Policy Association to bring people together in thousands of discussion groups across the country to discuss U.S. foreign policy and global affairs issues.

The Great Events Discussion Group has been meeting for about six years at Indian Prairie.

“But it ends in March and the group -- they’re really news junkies -- wanted to continue to meet so that’s how the Current Events Discussion Group evolved,” librarian Mary Krekelberg said.

Library patron Karol Sole initially attended a Great Decisions program when the topic of global climate change caught her attention.

“I enjoyed the one Great Decisions session, and continued with the rest of the eight programs that year,” she said. “When Great Decisions was over and Current Events started, I kept attending. The topics selected by the group were interesting, the people were knowledgeable and the discussions were lively.”

Sole enjoys the camaraderie she has with the other members of the Current Events Discussion Group.

“We are a welcoming group of people who enjoy reading, learning and sharing our experiences and perspectives in an open discussion with each other,” she said. “I learn about the topic, other group members and myself.”

Some books tackled by the group so far this year include a discussion of the book Memo to the President Elect: How We Can Restore America's Reputation and Leadership, by Madeleine Albright, and another evening discussing topics related to Japan, including earthquakes, nuclear power, tsunamis, history and cuisine.

The group’s next topic is Syria and the Middle East.

How lively do the discussions get?

“From conversational to very spirited, depending on the topic,” Sole said.

Indian Prairie Public Library is located at 401 Plainfield Road. For more information, visit www.​indianprairielibrary.​org.