I’m calling in regard to the person who was complaining about lilacs blooming already and that people should be fired for it. How do they control the lilacs? I want you to explain, because it’s all weather. What is wrong with you? Why are you getting angry over something that is uncontrollable and it’s nature, and it’s caused by weather?

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I just learned the president of the United States passed a bill, HR347, which was passed by Congress, which suppresses our free speech. The signing is another incident of a slow, creeping destruction of our basic freedoms. Congress passed the bill. Who is working for us in Washington—we the people?

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Lombard calling. The village manager, Dave Hulseberg, doesn’t seem to have any luck attracting a new full-time fire chief to work for him. A couple of years ago, he couldn’t get any volunteers to drive the fire trucks to lead the Lilac Parade. The village president and the children were surprised. We hope the village president doesn’t have a short memory. If Lombard wants to keep its prize traditions, it needs leaders who are willing to keep them up. Thank you.

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On the surface it seems like Lombard is going after the non-union employees, in an effort to save money, by freezing their wages. But these employees don’t have the muscle behind them like those employees in the unions. I hope that when those employees’ union contracts are up for negotiation, these same village officials insist to the union leaders that their employees make the same sacrifices. It’s not fair to one group of workers if the other doesn’t have to share the sacrifice. I know President Obama believes in shared sacrifice—on a much larger scale—and if the village truly is trying to trim the fat, it would be a good example of government working equitably for its constituents.

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I received my real estate tax bill. Once again it has increased. It is up 4 percent and 80 percent of the tax bill is for schools and government pensions. Give the taxpayers a break. We need politicians to reduce all spending for schools and government pensions by 10 percent, and stop the spiral spending. The burden on taxpayers is overwhelming.

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This is Lombard calling. I think it’s cruel that I drive around town and see paper signs hanging on trees saying what that tree is worth. That would be like hanging a leather purse off a cow’s neck and giving you her value. It’s just cruel. I think I’ll call People for the Ethical Treatment of Trees.

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I saw in a daily paper that a Naperville dentist was taking a whole day, around 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. to donate his time to help children and adults who cannot afford a dentist or don’t have insurance. I have read about that kind of thing before—almost always in Naperville, by the way—but have never read that any of our Villa Park or Lombard dentists are doing it. What an act of kindness that dentist is performing. I know people who could benefit from that, but can’t get to Naperville in the first place. Come on, local dentists, how about doing something similar? Even if the patient pays for the materials you use at cost, and you donate your time, that would at least be something helpful. Surely there are dentists out there who have altruism in their heart and want to give back to others.

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Hey, Lombard. Instead of complaining about the solicitors at all the intersections, don’t put any money in their containers. Maybe they will get the hint. Sounds like a good idea to me.

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We have a serious problem in this country. We have an election coming up in the near future and we need to make a change. I want to tell you I’m in support of Mitt Romney. He’s a decent guy; he’s a family man; he’s putting his life on the line; he’s giving up his family; and putting his money on the line. The guy is trying hard to make a change in this country. I believe we have a corrupt government right now and something has to be done. If it doesn’t work out with him, then in the next election we will change again; we’ll keep changing until we get somebody in there decent. But give the man a chance. Do not stay with the nonsense and apparent corruption we have in office right now.

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Hi. I was just reading the article in the Daily Herald about the Lombard non-union employees who got their pay frozen for the next three years. I found it interesting that Mr. Hulseberg was behind some of this pay study or started the pay study. How do they justify freezing their employees’ salaries for three years but giving themselves increases of 5 percent? I would really like to know the answer to that. Thank you.

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This is to the person who keeps calling SPEAK OUT about how Illinois has the least amount of state workers in the United States per resident. If that’s the case, then why is Illinois in the most financial trouble out of all these states in terms of its debt? Perhaps it’s because our politicians, those few state employees, are completely ripping us off the most compared to other states. That should get people angry.

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From Lombard to the Villa Park caller, comments made about President Obama do not seem to be hatred of the president. Most of the comments I read seem to indicate a total contempt of the policies of the president. In my opinion he does not know what he’s doing. In addition to the failed policies, you would think he would try to pull the country together. No, he is dividing the country in many different ways. Socially and racially are two. When you speak of respect, you speak of respect for the office of president, not the president. You must respect the office. We’ve had more than a few bad presidents and if Villa Park wants proof of my statements, just ask.

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This is Lombard calling. Lombard, when are you going to address the Metra parking issue? By 7:30, 8 a.m. there are no parking spaces available in Lombard. I’ve been taking the train all week and if you don’t get there by 6:30 or 7 you will not find a parking space. This is with cash-paid parking. There are two lots Lombard owns; the one at Hammerschmidt and the one where the old DuPage Theatre is. You open those up and put parking there, and the coin dispenser, and you’ll have plenty of parking and you will make your own money by using the empty space. Thank you.

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I find it funny that a person would say that if the Tea Party said the sky was falling, that you would blame Obama. It’s no more than you Democrats blaming Bush for everything that happened. That’s funny. You’re right; there apparently are no honest politicians, but there don’t seem to be any honest Democrats either.

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I have never seen worse representation than the current board members in Lombard. What a joke. A downtown satellite office?  The village hall is less than 2 miles from any spot in downtown Lombard. Really, Mr. Breen, get your priorities straight. 

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It’s bad enough that the powers that be keep looking for angles to tax the people, whether it be a cigarette tax, a tax on sugary drinks, increased tolls, etc. Put the burden on those who can least afford it. I know—people can choose not to buy those things or take the tollway. That’s not the point. The point is, those in charge get our money and then don’t spend it wisely. It’s tax, tax, tax to make up for wasteful spending. How about trimming the budget fat like those same working folks have to do; give up cable TV, going to the movies or out for dinner, vacations, you get the picture. Please stop picking our pockets. All that’s left is the lint.

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Okay, I’m curious about this pay study that Lombard did of their employees. How much did it cost?  And did this include our village manager or any of the department heads (such as public works director)? They’ve made the salaries public on their Web site. If my calculations are correct, Mr. Hulseberg received a 1.6 percent pay raise last year and 2.9 percent the previous year. So, stick it to the little guys who do all the work, Mr. Hulseberg, and make those taxpayers really think they’re getting a deal.  Instead, what you’ve done is create animosity among workers and residents. Great job. What a joke you and the current board of trustees are. 

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We really like the new feature you have in the SPEAK OUT column. The columnist, who signs her Speak Out responses “JAC” (Jane Charmelo) takes the time to look up the facts on some of the statements, accusations, diatribes and otherwise “pieces of someone’s mind” that are published in the Speak Out column, and gives the accurate information. That is an excellent addition. It helps to set the record straight and discourages people from spouting off about things they heard and choose to believe because it supports their particular mindset, but in reality has no basis in fact. That’s the mark of good journalism. Thank you.

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Hi, this is to the laugh-out-loud, Obama-loving Villa Park resident. All due respect to your father, but the presidents of yesterday are much different than the presidents of today. At least the presidents of yesterday respected the American people, which in my opinion the presidents of today clearly do not. They’ve bartered, traded, disrespected the American people. Please, open your eyes. This is not your father’s world anymore.

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SPEAKING OUT FOR 25 YEARS

The following comments are reprinted from the May 14, 2008 SPEAK OUT column in celebration of SPEAK OUT’s 25th year.

Hi, Lombard. I just want to shout out to a nice guy who lives on Greenfield, who helped repair my bike when the chain fell off. Thank you—I really appreciate it.

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Hi, my fellow residents of Lombard. I offer my humble opinion on the fuel crisis that you see is something heard before. You know what this is? It’s the perfect storm. Why is gasoline so high? The reason it’s so high is there’s a worldwide demand for oil that's up.

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I just received by tax bill for my property and how’s a person supposed to live? I’d like to see SPEAK OUT pose this question in a format where people could call in just one. The question would be, “Is your property tax worth it? Do you get fair value for what you pay the community in taxes?” That means from roads to the schools to the parks and to every aspect of what is on your tax bill. For myself, $6,000 a year—which I understand is small—is definitely not worth it.