Soapbox: Whose sandbox is it anyway?
OK, we get it: Carpentersville's trustees and village president do not get along. But, please. Can't you all leave the sandbox, shovels and rattles at home? We're all sick and tired of the petty bickering, the constant upheaval and the downright nasty behavior. When you show up at a board meeting, you're there to do the work of the people, not to rant about one another. One frustrated observer likened the latest theatrics to a group therapy session. Therapy, actually, would be good. Just don't do it on the taxpayer's dime.
Put a fork in it
Speaking of taxpayers' dimes, it seems McHenry County State's Attorney Lou Bianchi seems to think he's still in the private business sector, where it's OK to wine and dine on the company dollar. And, surely, some of his thousands of dollars in food expenses just might be legitimate. But how do you justify asking taxpayers to pay for candy, doughnuts, lunch at the Dairy Queen, and, especially galling, gift certificates to one of the nicest restaurants near the McHenry County Government Center?
Slow burn
Unhappy with the lack of alternatives for leaf burners, McHenry County Board members this week delayed a move to toughen restrictions on burning leaves and landscaping waste for residents not bound by municipal rules. Instead they voted 12-10 to delay that decision until at least Dec. 4, saying they need to set up better options for burning before banning it. That effectively scuttles help for this year and sure shows people with respiratory issues who's more important to this county board.
Homecoming challenge
High schools will be celebrating homecomings over the next couple of weeks, and that means all administrations will be on full alert. There's always some tension during this week, and that's unfortunate. Let's hope we have an incident-free homecoming season at all our high schools. Call it The 2007 Homecoming Challenge. The past and present come together to make homecoming a special time every year, and this feel-good experience doesn't need any unnecessary disruptions.
This year, assignment done on time
Results of last school year's standardized test scores for Illinois students are not uniformly great, which merits its own commentary someday soon. But at least the scores have been reported to local school authorities. And that, for the Illinois State Board of Education, is an achievement. Last year, problem after problem resulted in the ISBE reporting results months behind schedule, rendering the information all but useless for local districts.
Way to encourage green thinking
We need more people like Polly Rerko, who thought up a great idea and, with the help of school officials, implemented it. The St. Charles mother of two watched each day as parents lined up, vehicles idling, to drop off and pick up their kids at Wild Rose Elementary School. If only parents would turn off their engines, there'd be a little less pollution, Rerko thought. So she spearheaded a campaign to install signs at Wild Rose asking parents to turn off their engines while waiting. The response was so positive that the district put up signs at all 17 schools this year.
Illinois Cubs?
If the state is looking for an innovative way to raise revenue, maybe it should buy the Cubs. There's a lot of money to be made on this franchise, year after year. Fans just keep pouring into Wrigley Field without any great expectations of a continuously excellent performance on the diamond. Kind of like the way people think about the quality of work being done in Springfield.