Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com • Monday, February 29, 2016
22
OPINIONS
Kate Weber Publisher
Dan McCaleb Editorial Director
Jason Schaumburg Editor
ANOTHER VIEW
Lawmakers shouldn’t cut out early Imagine for a moment you work in Chicago every day and commute from Northwest Indiana. It’s not a tough scenario for many regular region commuters to envision. Now imagine calling your boss on a Monday, noting you don’t intend to come to work Friday because a festival in the big city promises too much traffic gridlock for the commute. You’re going to start the upcoming weekend early to avoid that logistical headache. It’s likely your boss or supervisor would tell you to plan ahead, leave early or be fired. It’s also likely you consider this scenario hypothetically silly. But the Indiana Legislature – hired at the polls by voters to do the business of the state – is on the cusp of doing something outrageously similar. Hoosier lawmakers recently announced they’re likely to wrap up their 2016 legislative session a few days before the mandatory March 14 adjournment date. Why? Because the Big 10 Men’s Basketball Tournament, which runs from March 9-13, would overlap with the legislative session and the General Assembly’s slated March 14 adjournment. It seems some lawmakers want to adjourn March 9 – or even earlier – to avoid the logistical interruptions the tournament will cause in scarce hotel rooms and other accommodations. We feel comfortable speaking for the voting taxpayers who put these lawmakers into office with this admonition: Get to work, stay at work until the job is done, and don’t rush out early as matter of convenience for yourselves. Logistical problems created by a basketball tournament, which should have been on our lawmakers’ collective planning radar, isn’t our problem. Legislative “short” sessions last only about 10 weeks in the first place, and there are numerous issues deserving careful consideration. Legislators were hired to do a job. In fact, they sought these jobs, some aggressively, through political campaigns. Now they should aggressively go about serving the state of Indiana and not look for excuses to cut out early.
The Munster Times
THE FIRST
AMENDMENT
IT’S YOUR WRITE Trustee endorses Tsilimigras
To the Editor: As your elected village of Cary trustee, I wholeheartedly endorse Demetri Tsilimigras for McHenry County circuit court judge. Demetri would bring a great deal of experience to the bench, as he has practiced in civil, family and criminal law and has a solid record of doing the right thing. Currently, he holds the title of deputy chief of the criminal division. He’s conducted and supervised thousands of court cases, and assists in the training of attorneys in the area of criminal prosecution. Outside of his position in the state’s attorney’s office, he volunteers in his community, he teaches at McHenry County College, and he is a devoted husband and father. I am proudly supporting Demetri Tsilimigras in the upcoming election and encourage others to visit his website at demetri4judge.com to learn more about his philosophy and why he is the right choice for McHenry County. Kimberly Covelli
Trustee, village of Cary
Pioneer Center funding
To the Editor: I saw where Scott Block does not want to dwell in the past. Well, for
Need Schofield in Springfield
$2.5 million, I want to dwell a little longer. Someone please tell me the person or people who were responsible for doing the billing that ended up losing $2 million is no longer employed by Pioneer Center. As usual, the people who are supposed to be smart and in charge dropped the ball. Who suffers for their ineptitude? Well, I’ll tell you who. As usual, it’s the group-home residents and the counselors who are dedicated and work with them. You have to look at the past to fix the future. If you don’t, the past will come back and bite you. If the state of Illinois and our wonderful governor would get off their combined dead butts and get something worked out, this could have been avoided. But they have to have a pawn, and what group is better than the handicapped? All those senators and representatives can mouth all they want about how they support Pioneer, but, in reality, they could not give a darn. I support them because my son, Bob, is there, and I see all the hard work and care given by the caregivers. Now if the people running the show could get it together, things could happen.
To the Editor: I stand proudly with retiring state Rep. Mike Tryon in endorsing Carolyn Schofield as the most qualified candidate to succeed him. Choosing the right state representative, like hiring for an important leadership role in a business, should be about professional experience and leadership capabilities. Carolyn’s experience significantly exceeds other candidates, and her strong, confident, collaborative leadership is exactly what we need in Springfield. I’ve seen Carolyn in action on the Crystal Lake City Council and the McHenry County Board, taking on the issues that matter most and challenging her colleagues to a higher standard. She thoroughly researches every issue and fights hard for her constituents. Don’t be fooled by hollow campaign promises and emotional appeals. Do your own research. Carolyn Schofield is the most qualified candidate for state representative and the only longtime McHenry County resident seeking this office. Please cast your vote for Carolyn Schofield on March 15.
Robert Joosten
Erin Smith
Harvard
Lakewood
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