Opinion
John Rung President and Publisher
Dan McCaleb Group Editor
Jason Schaumburg Editor
Saturday, October 26, 2013 • Page A11 • Northwest Herald • NWHerald.com 8THUMBS UP, THUMBS DOWN
8SKETCH VIEW
Pension fund misuse is unacceptable The Northwest Herald Editorial Board offers this week’s thumbs up and thumbs down: Thumbs down: To officials past and present from the village of Island Lake for mismanaging more than $200,000 collected in police pension fund dollars by spending them to pay the village’s bills for unrelated matters. The village is supposed to simply collect the tax and hand it over to the pension board. The fact that they grabbed it for themselves is frankly appalling. Island Lake residents, and particularly members of the police department, should be outraged over the way this was handled, and an outside agency should conduct a thorough investigation. Thumbs up: To the residents of Alden and Hebron for raising the money to light up the Alden-Hebron football field for the first time. The Giants, despite their name, are usually a small team that plays home games on Saturday afternoons out of necessity. But renting lights for the team’s final home game of the season Friday night will leave them with a memory they won’t soon forget. Thumbs down: To President Barack Obama and the latest revelations about the U.S. spy program. Not only has the National Security Agency been tracking the phone records of its citizens in violation of the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, it’s done the same thing with our closest allies in Europe. The NSA may even have tapped the cellphone of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, severely damaging the trust U.S. allies have in our government. When Obama first ran for office, he said the U.S. had lost considerable standing in the world because of his predecessor’s foreign policy, and he intended to right the ship. Sorry, Mr. President. If anything, you’ve made things worse. Thumbs up: To the Illinois Senate for approving legislation that allows $8.4 million from a defunct hospital to be returned to taxpayers. The measure now goes to the House. The Belleville News-Democrat reported that after Wood River Township Hospital in southern Illinois, which closed in 2000, paid out pension benefits and retired debt that the hospital fund still had $8.4 million. Sen. Bill Haine, D-Alton, said there were several suggestions for what to do with the money, but the fairest and most popular solution was to give it back to taxpayers who live in the hospital’s taxing district.
8ANOTHER VIEW
What drone critics didn’t say There are strong arguments for a change in the U.S. program of drone attacks, and they are made in two reports released this week by human-rights groups. Both reports, however, fail to emphasize a salient point: The program has already been modified. The reports, by Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, document cases of what appear to be disproportionate use of force and the needless killing of civilians. But the examples they cite predate President Barack Obama’s May 22 order to “heavily constrain” the U.S.’s use of drones. In a speech the next day, Obama promised that the United States would not use drones when it could capture a terrorist instead, and that it would act only against those who pose an imminent threat to the U.S. and when there was near certainty no civilians would be harmed. It’s hard to say for sure whether these reforms have reduced the excesses of the drone program. Yet early indications are encouraging. According to figures compiled by the Long War Journal, in the past five months there have been 12 drone attacks in Yemen causing two civilian deaths, compared with 15 attacks causing 13 civilian deaths in the same period last year. In Pakistan, attacks have fallen to 10 from 25, with no civilian casualties in either period. These figures are rough, because the Long War Journal relies on news reports. Humanrights researchers, on the other hand, can thoroughly investigate individual cases by interviewing eyewitnesses and sometimes examining evidence and the attack scene. Amnesty International’s report covered two drone attacks in Pakistan after May 22. In both cases, it concluded that all 22 of those killed were or appeared to be members of armed groups. More such investigations are needed to find out how well the U.S. is sticking to its current policies. That is not to say that the groups’ examination of past practices are of no value. On the contrary, the reports should be mandatory reading for future war-planners. Bloomberg News
Editorial Board: John Rung, Don Bricker, Dan McCaleb, Jason Schaumburg, Kevin Lyons, Jon Styf, Kate Schott, Stacia Hahn
8IT’S YOUR WRITE Kiwanis Santa Run To the Editor: Two-and-a-half years ago, the combined agencies of Big Brothers Big Sisters, Turning Point, CASA, Girls on the Run of Northwest Illinois and Main Stay asked the Crystal Lake Kiwanis Club to come up with a fundraiser to benefit the children of our county. As the mission of the worldwide Kiwanis Clubs is to serve the children of the world, we formed a committee and created the McHenry County Kiwanis Santa Run for Kids to do just that. After a year of planning, we had our extremely successful inaugural 5K/1-mile event that was held at the Raue Center for the Arts in downtown Crystal Lake. Almost 1,000 participants, volunteers and spectators showed up on the first Sunday of December last year to enjoy this fantastic event. The Santa run (or walk) is sure to become a family tradition that will last for years to come. Please go to Kiwaniscrystallake.com or call 815459-1773 and join all the fun for a great cause. We have openings for runners, walkers and volunteers. As the McHenry County Kiwanis Santa Run is always held on the
first Sunday of December, this year’s event will be Dec. 1, with a 9 a.m. start. The Crystal Lake Kiwanis club is always looking for new members. If you enjoy doing good things for the community, you should link up with us and make positives happen. Mike Splitt
How to sound off We welcome original letters on public issues. Letters must include the author’s full name, home address and day and evening telephone numbers. We limit letters to 250 words and one published letter every 30 days. All letters are subject to editing
for length and clarity at the sole discretion of the editor. Submit letters by: • E-mail: letters@nwherald.com • Mail: Northwest Herald “It’s Your Write” Box 250 Crystal Lake, IL 60039-0250
Crystal Lake Kiwanis
Biased media To the Editor: Once again I am left shaking my head after reading the newspaper Oct. 21. The cartoon blaming the entire government shutdown on Ted Cruz was the culprit. Since when does asking the president of our country to sit down and compromise leave all the blame at the feet of the Republicans? I honestly think the media have tried to pull the wool over our eyes again by not looking at the government shutdown in a fair and balanced way. Why couldn’t President Obama just consider the few concessions regarding Obamacare that would have prevented the shutdown? And when he turns and walks away with the ball, why does
the other team get all the blame? I would be satisfied if the blame was shared, and if the media reported the situation honestly. I guess that’s just too much to ask. Unfortunately, many people just don’t bother to dig beyond the surface to find out the facts. They just let themselves be led blindly. Our country is drastically in need of honesty, and it appears we no longer can count on the unbiased media that used to keep the government in check. They simply report what they want you to hear without regard to the consequences. Have you looked around lately? Do you really like what you see?
Need more Cal Thomases
Melanie Horn
Essie Hough
Lakewood
Huntley
To the Editor: Martha Touhy (“Masterful definitions,” Oct. 20) and Donna Davis (“Response to Cal Thomas,” Oct. 4), why are you attacking Cal Thomas? He speaks the truth, and, obviously, neither of you can handle the truth. You don’t make comments about him until he speaks about something that concerns you directly. He is a journalist. We need these kind of journalists. They are few and far between. We need to know what is going on. The media are so biased it is frightening. Think.
Homelessness doesn’t discriminate Every year about this time, the weather begins to turn colder, and the number of people using the services of McHenry County PADS, a program of Pioneer Center for Human Services, rises. In fact, Census numbers show that up to 500 people rely on the program’s services annually. These individuals come from all walks of life and don’t fit the old-fashioned notion of the homeless bum sleeping on a park bench. More often than not, they are families with children, veterans or young adults – the vast majority of these having been thrust into homelessness by a life-altering event that was unexpected and unplanned for. Job loss, death of a loved one, divorce, a family dispute or sudden illness are among the top-ranking causes of homelessness. Depression, untreated mental illness, post-traumatic stress disorder and physical disabilities also are often found to contribute to the loss of a home and security. For families that can hardly pay their bills, a serious illness or disabling accident might
FIGHTING HOMELESSNESS
Laurie Bivona exhaust their savings and push them out onto the street. The Illinois Self-Sufficiency Standard shows that it takes a family of three (adult, preschooler and school-aged child) $59,908 annually to make ends meet. Today, the rapid, unexpected loss of jobs makes it nearly impossible for the average McHenry County family to meet this minimum. This limitation and the resulting home foreclosures cause great dislocation among families and has dramatically added to the number of people seeking help from McHenry County PADS, a McHenry County Continuum of Care to End Homelessness committee member that participates in advocating for federal funding to fight homelessness. Over the past five years, in McHenry County, the poverty rate nearly doubled, with more than 7,000 people labeled as living in extreme poverty. In McHenry County, the poverty
8THE FIRST AMENDMENT
threshold for a family of three is $17,916. This would mean that more than 7,000 people try to make ends meet on only $8,958 a year. For these residents, an “everyday” life issue, such as a broken-down car, can be the final factor in placing them on the street. Since 2009, McHenry County PADS has seen: • A 48 percent overall increase in individuals served. • A 56 percent increase in the number of children as part of a family. • A 15 percent increase in veterans served. • A 52 percent increase in adult women seeking assistance. • A 15 percent increase in homelessness among the Hispanic community. By moving away from oldfashioned stereotypes about homelessness and acknowledging its true causes, McHenry County PADS works to provide resources and tools for people to navigate their way out of homelessness. Through the program’s day services center and transitional housing, an individual’s immedi-
ate needs for food, shelter and medication are met. But, more importantly, their need for case management; counseling; child care; transportation; and linkage to other resources and training in areas including budgeting, goal planning, job training, time management, anger management, parenting, assertiveness training and nutrition are met. All with the goal of helping people regain employment and return to mainstream lives. Unfortunately, each year, McHenry County PADS faces the same struggling economy and financial problems that many community members face. The program costs more than $800,000 to operate annually. Of this amount, more than $475,000 must be raised through community events and donations. If you would like to learn more about how to use McHenry County PADS services, call 815338-5231 or visit www.pioneercenter.org. If you would like to learn how to help sustain this vital program, call 815-344-1230. • Laurie Bivona is director of marketing for Pioneer Center for Human Services.
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