Opinion A6 • Sauk Valley Media
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EDITORIAL
Friday, August 12, 2016
THE CARTOONIST’S VOICE
Dave Granlund, GateHouse News Service
Compromise would be nice to allow dental clinic to expand What we think We encourage officials from the city of Rock Falls and Whiteside County government to do their utmost to find a compromise that allows for a much-needed expansion of a county Health Department dental clinic.
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he Whiteside County Health Department believes it has a lot of good reasons for wanting to expand its busy and popular dental clinic at 1308 W. Second St. in Rock Falls. The Rock Falls city government believes it has a lot of good reasons for adhering to its zoning regulations and blocking that expansion. We hope reason can prevail, somehow, so that the clinic will be allowed to expand and better serve the people of Whiteside County. It was last week that the Rock Falls City Council voted 5 to 3 to deny a zoning variance that would have allowed the county to build an addition to its present dental clinic. The addition would extend about 18.5 feet southward from the present clinic toward the sidewalk along West Second Street. However, the City Council agreed with the city’s Planning and Zoning Commission, which previously voted 6 to 1 against a zoning variance, because the addition would have encroached on the city’s required 25-foot setback. ACTUALLY, THE existing building doesn’t conform to the 25-foot setback either, but it predates today’s zoning regulations and thus was grandfathered in. The neighborhood in question, by the way, includes a larger health department building, some parking lots and houses. Not far away is Rock Falls High School and a gas station on the corner. Health Department and county leaders are correct to try to improve the existing dental clinic. It’s too small, for one thing. Cramped quarters
make it uncomfortable for staff and patients. With so many people in waiting rooms and treatment rooms, it’s also a challenge to conform to patient confidentiality guidelines. For the city’s part, it has zoning regulations for a reason – to keep some semblance of control over what people build on their property, and how they use it, so that the rights of neighbors aren’t infringed, and the general appearance and functionality of the city is respected. Relax the rules in one case, city leaders fear, and the floodgates could open. More people might come pounding on the doors at city hall, demanding that the rules be relaxed for them, too. THE CITY POINTS OUT that the county could simply change directions. Instead of expanding to the south toward the property line, it could expand the clinic westward into the clinic’s adjacent parking lot, and the problem would be solved. However, the county points out that, due to the interior layout of the present clinic, such an expansion would be impractical and cost a lot of extra money. And we’re talking about taxpayers’ dollars here. It appears there is no perfect solution. That reminds us of the old saying, Perfect is the enemy of good. Both sides can stick to their positions, and the public will be denied the good that an expanded dental clinic could have provided. We strongly encourage city and county officials to get together and find a creative and fair compromise that better serves the needs of the public that they’re all sworn to serve.
SPRINGFIELD SCOOP
‘The P.T. Barnum of politics’ scottREEDER Author: Trump Reeder will destroy the Scott is a veteran Republican Party Springfield statehouse SPRINGFIELD – When a veteran gave Donald Trump his Purple Heart earlier this month, David Cay Johnston cringed. Johnston, the son of a disabled World War IIera veteran, knows the sacrifices that medal represents. It’s awarded only to military personnel wounded or killed in combat. Trump said of the gift: “I always wanted to get the Purple Heart. This was much easier.” Johnston, a Pulitzer Prize winner who has written a book on the Republican presidential candidate, has known Trump for decades and told me in a recent interview, “Donald Trump just doesn’t get it. He creates his own reality. The Purple Heart isn’t something anyone seeks.” I first met Johnston 11 years ago, when I was in Fort Worth, Texas, to receive an Investigative Reporters and Editors medal. I found Johnston to be a heck of a nice guy,
journalist who has covered government for almost 30 years.
an occasional mentor and reporter not afraid to go against the grain. He’s a registered Republican who is not afraid to speak out against some of the GOP’s dumber moves. His book, “The Making of Donald Trump,” makes it clear that its dumbest move may well be nominating Trump. “Win or lose, I think Donald Trump will mean the destruction of the Republican Party as we know it,” Johnston told me. JOHNSTON LABELS Trump the “P.T. Barnum of American politics,” adding that the real estate mogul is a master of media manipulation. “Back when he announced that he was seeking the Republican nomination, most reporters were dismissive, say-
ing it was a publicity stunt. I wasn’t one of them. I didn’t say he ‘would’ but said he ‘could’ win the nomination.” Maliciousness is a point of pride for Trump, Johnston contends. “This is a man driven by the need to seek revenge,” he said. Johnston devotes a chapter to Trump’s words on the subject. He described how Trump fired a female employee who cited ethical reservations and refused to call a banker friend on his behalf. Johnston quotes Trump’s own account from his book, “Think Big.” “She ended up losing her home. Her husband, who was only in it for the money, walked out on her and I was glad. … I can’t stomach disloyalty, … and now I go out of my way to make her life miserable.” Johnson also relates how Trump cut off the health insurance for his great nephew after the ill baby’s parents challenged a family will. Johnston said Trump’s appeal is that he offers simplistic solutions to an American people who are hurting economically. And Trump has used the
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Johnston said Trump’s appeal is that he offers simplistic solutions to an American people who are hurting economically.
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Scott Reeder
trappings of his personal wealth to attract people. But Johnson contends that Trump isn’t nearly as wealthy as he says he is. “He lives the lifestyle of a billionaire. But how many real billionaires are out hawking ties, steaks, bottled water and board games?” Johnston’s book is a terrific read. And I have to agree with his assessment of the wannabe commanderin-chief. Trump is a charlatan who spews hatred toward Muslims, Mexicans, women, and just about anyone who gets in his way. He’s not just an embarrassment to the Republican Party but to this great nation.
THE CARTOONIST’S VOICE
THE READER’S VOICE
Please support petunia baskets BONNIE NICHOLS Dixon
Once, again, the city of Dixon is ablaze with color. A big “thank you” goes out to the Dixon in Bloom committee. The hanging baskets look fantastic this year. Citizens of Dixon – let’s
Editorial Board Jim Dunn Sam R Fisher Sheryl Gulbranson Jennifer Heintzelman Jeff Rogers Kathleen Schultz Tom Shaw t Editorials
get behind this group financially and support the hanging baskets. The baskets cost about $15,000 to put around town and they need our dollars. Let’s do our part, Dixon. Send all donations to Robin Canode, 1963 Mound Hill Road, Dixon, IL 61021. Note to readers: Bonnie Nichols is a member of the Dixon Area Garden Club.
THE FIRST AMENDMENT
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Jim Morin, MorinToons Syndicate
“Words – so innocent and powerless as they are, as standing in a dictionary, how potent for good and evil they become, in the hands of one who knows how to combine them!”
represent the opinions of the Sauk Valley Media Editorial Board.
Nathaniel Hawthorne, writer, 1847
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