It’s time once again to dive in to another round of quick takes on the people, places and events that were being talked about over the past week:

Yoga stretch for Vermilion Dems

Vermilion County Democrats have a new leader.

Mickensy Ellis-White, who unsuccessfully sought the appointment to fill the late state Sen. Scott Bennett’s legislative seat, has replaced former party chairwoman Sandra Lawlyes.

Ellis-White brings a different background than most party leaders to the position.

She’s a veteran of the Iraq war who teaches yoga and is a mental-health counselor. A statement issued by the party also described her as a former federal employee who was active in government employee affairs.

Vermilion and Champaign counties are joined at the hip politically, with current Democratic state Sen. Paul Faraci and current Republican state Rep. Mike Marron representing both areas.

But the two counties have sharp political differences. Champaign County was once heavily Republican but is now solid Democrat. Vermilion, once dominated by union-run politics, was Democratic but now is Republican.

The party announcement described Ellis-White as a “progressive Democrat” who intends to emphasize the importance of “labor, inclusivity, women’s rights and the rights of all minority groups.”

“The Vermilion County Democratic Party has always championed the quality of life of all people of Vermilion County, and (Ellis-White) will lead the party in keeping to that pledge,” according to the statement.

The change in personnel comes as local Democrats contemplate an opportunity to pick up the House seat now held by Marron. He’s said he is leaving the House when his term expires, creating an open seat that would be easier — but not easy — for Democrats to win.

Ellis-White, who is 43, said she does not intend to pursue Marron’s seat “at this time” but could change her mind if she perceives substantial support for her among Democrats.

Ellis-White said she decided to pursue the chairwoman’s post because of her “commitment to the party” and desire to see it play a role in local and state issues.

Lawlyes, who led the party for roughly a year, said she decided to step down so she would have more time to devote to her three school-age children: a 14-year-girl and 12-year-old twins (a boy and a girl).

“They’re all starting different schools this year. We’re going to have some educational things to focus on,” said Lawlyes, a former prosecutor now in private legal practice along with her husband.

The empire strikes back

It’s no surprise the eight Republican presidential candidates who gathered Wednesday to debate aimed their barbs at Democratic President Joe Biden.

They also took some shots at Democrat-controlled Illinois’ poor financial standing and high crime. But it was their criticism of Illinois’ abortion law, among the most liberal in the nation, that drew the ire of Gov. J.B. Pritzker.

Republicans charged the Illinois abortion law is far too liberal, permitting abortion through all nine months of pregnancy. Pritzker, however, expressed pride in the state’s reputation as an abortion mecca.

“Pretty sure a vast majority of voters would be just fine if abortion policy was left up to Illinois,” he tweeted.

Man bites dog?

This may be more common that it first appears, but it’s still a twist on the usual insurance coverage.

State Farm Insurance provided coverage for a property in Cahokia, which is located near St. Louis, that was damaged by a fire. It cost the company roughly $70,000.

Like all insurance companies, it deeply regrets having to make payments for claims. So it wants the money back.

The property is owned by Mariconi Properties. Mariconi Properties rented the space where the fire started to a female tenant. She allegedly caused the fire by leaving her gas stove on and unattended.

Now State Farm is suing the tenant who allegedly caused the fire that prompted Mariconi to file its claim against State Farm.

What goes around comes around. State Farm’s lawsuit, filed in St. Clair County, seeks “$68,189.83 plus court costs and any other relief the court deems proper.”

Tenants should remember that the next time they turn the stove on.

Guessing game

The conviction of Tim Mapes, former House Speaker Michael Madigan’s longtime top aide, has some media outlets talking about whether Mapes now will cooperate with prosecutors in their upcoming case against Madigan.

It’s fun to speculate about issues of that nature. But the answer has to be “no” for one simple reason: As a convicted perjurer, Mapes is of no use to prosecutors seeking to convict Madigan in the ComEd bribery conspiracy case.

Defense lawyers would have a field day with Mapes on the witness stand.

“Were you lying then or are you lying now?” they would ask in various forms.

Mapes is, of course, in deep trouble. He may regret some decision he’s made, but it’s too late now.

He would, of course, be a treasure trove of information if he decides to tell the feds where all the bodies were buried during the course of Madigan’s decades-long rule.

Shia Kapos of Illinois Playbook outlined the scenario for an about-face.

Mapes “was cast out from Madigan’s inner sanctum” and felt “isolated from the many government and lobbying folks he once counted as friends. … Would that drive him to talk to the feds? We’ll wait and see.”

Don’t hold your breath. The feds don’t need Mapes as a witness because he’s damaged goods.

What does he know? A lot.

Tony LaRussa, the former Cardinals, A’s and White Sox manager, has become the favorite punching bag of Chicago sportswriters.

That LaRussa took all three teams to the playoffs and won World Series with both the Cardinals and the A’s, seems to have made no impression on the commentators who’ve taken turns blasting him.

His sin? He’s been asked by Chicago White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf to work as a consultant as Reinsdorf tries to rebuild the Sox front office following his decision to fire team vice president Ken Williams and general manager Rick Hahn.

“Just as fired vice president Ken Williams and general manager Rick Hahn were carrying their belongings out the door Wednesday at Guaranteed Rate Field, Tony La Russa was making a — we won’t call it triumphant — return. Yes, that Tony La Russa,” wrote Sun-Times columnist Chris DeLuca.

Fans and the media have legitimate gripes with Reinsdorf, who waited a long time before pulling the trigger on Williams and Hahn. Still, it was just two seasons ago that they helped put together a team, managed by LaRussa, that made the playoffs.

During the second year of LaRussa’s second stint of Sox manager, the team disappointed and LaRussa became seriously ill. It was a bad year.

But compared to this year, last year was nirvana for the failing Sox. They’re nearly as bad as the Cardinals and the Yankees, both of whom currently occupy last place in their divisions.

It’s a perfect time for the sports press to call for retribution against the Sox contingent. But why denounce LaRussa’s brief return as a consultant?

He has a wealth of knowledge and an army of contacts.

How much harm can he do? Probably none at all. But once rampaging sports columnists get on a roll, they’re no stopping them.

“While there’s no question La Russa still has plenty to offer from a baseball perspective, the day after the Williams-Hahn bomb dropped was not the time to turn back the clock to Tony. … The fire remains in his eyes. And he is an encyclopedia of baseball knowledge. But he’s a bad look for the Sox now,” DeLuca writes.

Reason actually suggests the Sox already had a bad look before LaRussa arrived, and that’s why heads rolled.