Just a reminder to everyone that school will be letting out soon for the summer. This means children will be out and about, so please slow down on the side streets. Please look carefully when backing out of driveways, making turns and everywhere else. Keep the kids safe. Thank you.

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Seems to me people forget very quickly. President Obama’s been in office five months and he’s already spent four times any of Bush’s budget, he’s also bailed out companies, he hired tax cheats. I will complain about Obama if I feel like it. When Bush was elected, you complained about him. What’s fair is fair. I think you people ought to realize this country is headed even farther in the wrong direction than when President Bush was in office. We keep spending money we don’t have and your children’s children will be paying for it in higher taxes.

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Democrats and Republicans, have we not been lied to enough? Remember these words from Clinton: I did not have sexual relations with that woman, and the words go on. Or, try this from Bush: There are weapons of mass destruction, and the words go on. Now our government is getting larger and our liberties fewer. We were told we must bail out the car companies to avoid bankruptcy. Well, it didn’t work. Now we are being told the government must spend more taxpayer money. No, no, stop. The taxpayers must tell their so-called representative in Washington what they think, what they really think. Then vote.

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This is for the Villa Park resident who found the grass too high in the neighborhood on a neighbor’s lawn. Here’s a suggestion; go down there and mow it. Is that too hard? If it’s so terrible and it bothers you that much, just go mow it. Maybe it’s a senior citizen who can’t mow the lawn or maybe the house is in foreclosure. It’s so simple. If it’s that bad and it bothers you that much, go down there and do it.

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To the people who are constantly calling and complaining about the fire truck and the firemen going to the grocery store, I’m pretty sure that the firemen are on 24 hours then off. During that 24 hours they need to eat and they need to go to the grocery store to get the food. And if they went without the fire truck and there was a fire call, how would they go to the fire call? Would they go in their regular truck or their regular car and then stand there, and maybe you could give them your garden hose and they could fight the fire and they could look for your axe? They have to be with the fire truck because the firemen and the fire truck are a set. They need to be together. Sometimes they need to go places. When they’re on duty, the truck needs to be with them, that’s all.

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Hello downtown Lombard here.  I am writing to the taxpayer in the May 27 Lombardian noting that he/she lives in a 1,300-square-foot house, paying $6,657 in property taxes. How ridiculous. Don’t feel so bad; the downtown condo owners average $4,000-$5,000 in taxes in the same square feet or less with no land. I have no idea how this was calculated. Are we penalized since we are part of the TIF or referendum for the palm trees at the new pool? I know most of the residents of Lombard don't appreciate all the condos; funny that we are huge payers of the Lombard tax base. It’s funny how those with homes with land a few blocks away are paying less. Areas of Lombard must be calculated with different factors. Unfair.

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To the person who responded about the loud music and supposedly did not realize they were disturbing others. In case you did not know, it is part of the job of police officers to respond to such calls. I find it hard to believe that you did not realize your music was so loud. I have told my neighbors on three different occasions that their music is disturbing and yet they still turn the music loud. I have found that many people lack respect, manners and just plain common sense. If you break the law you have to be prepared to pay the consequences. I don't understand why you feel your neighbor should have spoken to you first. You are the one who is being inconsiderate. I think the village should send out a pamphlet to everyone of guidelines on how to be a good neighbor, because apparently many people just don't get it.

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Lombard here. It would be wonderful if neighbors could settle disagreements by talking with one another. However, when someone has tried that route several times over years of rude, thoughtless behavior that disregards the tenets that make a neighborhood a peaceful place to live, it is time to handle that adult bully with consequences. Our local police are willing to make a difference for a neighborhood when talking between neighbors no longer successfully makes a difference. Next time you play your music outdoors, remember you are the only ones who should be enjoying it, not those around you who choose to enjoy the quiet nature has to offer.

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Hey, Villa Park and Lombard. I think everybody should realize that July 4 should truly be a national day of celebration, but also a day to make your feelings heard. I urge everybody in the community to go out and protest all the trillions of dollars in debt the new president is encumbering upon our nation and for the future of our kids. What better way to be an American?

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Hello, I’m calling from Lombard to thank all of the people who came to my aid when I fell at Charlotte and Maple on my way to the Lilac Parade: the doctor who left the parade to check me out was very kind, and the very kind neighbor who brought an ice pack for my head, and the person who held an umbrella to keep the sun out of my eyes, along with the paramedics and police officers. Thanks again; it is so reassuring to know there are so many kind people in the world.

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This is Lombard calling just calling to say that I wish people would stop pontificating about politics in SPEAK OUT and I’m pretty sure the editor of this paper could find a better use for this space to print calls that actually pertain to Lombard/Villa Park.

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Lombard governing people have found out a way to make up the budget problem of more than $20,000. They’re going to take it from the seniors. In the past, seniors were able to purchase taxi coupons for use among other purposes, to go to the two local airports. No more. According to the employees at the village hall, the feeling is that if seniors can afford a vacation they can afford paying full price for a taxi cab. I personally budget trips to see my children who live in another state, and have used the coupons in that budget planning. Since I can use taxi coupons to see a doctor or go to a hospital, can I use them to see a doctor in Chicago, or to fly out of state to another medical facility? I used to enjoy telling people from other towns how well Lombard treated their seniors. I can’t say that anymore.

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This is Lombard calling. While I’m all in favor of women being able to nurse their babies whenever or wherever they want, I can’t help but say that at the park, where I saw it on Memorial Day morning with hundreds of children around, perhaps a shawl, something to cover up— I don’t think you needed to be that exposed while you getting the baby to latch on and then again when taking off. Some sort of cover up is in order when there are hundreds of people around.

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This is Villa Park calling. I would like to know what the village is going to do about these houses that are under foreclosure and for sale with the long grass growing in front of them. For the last couple of years my neighbors and I have been cutting the grass on our street for this one house and now, we’re not going to cut it anymore. Please, have the salesperson cut the grass.

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Now that the school year has ended, can we please correct the problem of all the left turners out of the two driveways at Glenbard East? Now that we have a traffic light, nobody should be making a left turn out of those two other driveways. Right turn only.

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This is to the Villa Park caller to SPEAK OUT who stated that drivers are receiving $100 tickets for turning right on red at Wal-Mart and Route 83. You do not get a ticket for turning right on red if you come to a complete stop first. The law requires a complete, I repeat, complete stop before turning right on red.