I’m calling about the Helen Plum Library and the people who work there and are affiliated with it. I’m not from this area. I’m up here trying to help my elderly mother. You people are so rude. She is on crutches. I was trying to help her into the car and somebody came out in a T-shirt and said, “You can’t park here.” I looked at him and said, “I’m not parking here; I’m helping my handicapped mother get in the car.” That wasn’t good enough for him. Then you go inside and the people are so rude. My mother pays taxes. She pays your salary. You should not treat us so rudely. There are very few people in this library my mother has found who are ever polite and it’s really a shame. It’s very, very sad, but today was the ultimate when he yelled at her, on her crutches, trying to get in the car and yelling at me for where I am parked. I wish I could have recorded him for YouTube. That is your Lombard public library at work.

SPEAK OUT asked Library Director Bob Harris to respond to your complaint, and he stated, “At Plum, we pride ourselves on treating everyone with kindness and respect. If anyone believes they were treated poorly, I would ask them to contact me at the time, or as soon as they can, so that I can learn about exactly what occurred, and take any corrective action necessary. If I am not here at the moment, we always have a person in charge who can help out. Contacting me or the person in charge directly, at the time an incident occurs, is the most effective way to deal with any incidents.” The director can be reached at 630-627-0316.–JAC

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Lombard calling. Is there no law that these people who give away newspapers—not the Lombardian, he puts it right on my porch—can just drop them in the street? I’m driving through Green Valley and at every curb, actually in the street on the curb, is a blue bundle. Who’s supposed to pick this stuff up? Do they need a permit? I don’t understand it. I know the village won’t tell you. Maybe the police department will. How do we find out? Thank you.

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I am a disabled resident on the border of Lombard and Villa Park. And every time that ComEd or one of the other utility companies cuts branches they leave the excess near my house. Now others just move it onto my lawn. I had 17 knee operations between 1996 and 1997 I would love to tell these people please stop putting this stuff on my property and leave it near the curb so Waste Management or the chipper can get to it and not in the middle of my lawn where now I will have to get someone to move it. A little common courtesy is all I’m asking for.

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We have a problem in this country and I have a solution. All our highways are backed up; automobiles cost too much; gasoline is too expensive—politicians aren’t doing a thing about bringing it down. Auto insurance is too high; the sticker just to drive your own car is out of proportion; parking is very scarce and it’s too expensive. Reinstall the electric trains. It would eliminate all of the aforementioned problems. The electric train right-of-way property is available. We don’t have to worry about condemning property. So let’s put the electric trains back to use and we won’t be tied to the dictates of these other countries that supply the oil and we can eliminate a lot of problems and a lot of expenses.

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Our president of the United States—did you see him shooting our poor skeets? My, my, my.

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I’m calling to say that I am upset that Michelle Obama, Valerie Jarrett, Arne Duncan and our governor, Pat Quinn, attended the funeral of the young girl who got murdered by gang fire. This is a terrible precedent to set. I hope they plan on attending all funerals of young people who have died through violence and gang fire. This president is something else.

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The cops around here really need to start doing their job and ticketing people who are driving around in the rain without their lights on. I was just out there in the pouring sleet and I saw so many people with no lights on. Those are the things that cause accidents. Why are the cops not pulling these people over? I really want to know. It’s a state law. What’s going on?

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Money is not speech and, therefore, limiting political contributions and spending is not equivalent to limiting political speech. The inherent rights of mankind recognized under the U.S. Constitution belong to natural human beings only, and not to legally created entities, such as corporations. Support a constitutional amendment process to overrule the Supreme Court’s ruling in Citizens United and end corporate America’s influence on elections, and to the candidates who bow to that influence. Your voice counts.

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OK, so somebody out there, you Obama lovers, please help me here. Obama will spend days and days and days in foreign countries trying to work out deals with other countries, somebody in Chicago gets killed and he only spends two hours or less addressing issues. Can somebody say photo op? What a waste of a vote for anybody who voted for Obama.

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Hi, I’m a Lombard resident. It just occurred to me if pro is the opposite of con, progress is the opposite of Congress.

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Calling from Villa Park. With all the bad news in the world today, it is heartwarming to hear of others who love the skeet as much as I do. This misunderstood critter is very affectionate and low maintenance. Adopt a skeet today. You will not regret it.

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This is the north side of Lombard calling. I’d just like it known that for village president, the one I’m going to vote for is the one who actually cares about the north side town and will get it plowed when it snows. Every time it snows now, we’re slipping and sliding down the road. It’s very unsafe and nobody comes to plow it. They only care about the south side of town because that’s where most of the money is. I want a president who cares.

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I want to praise Rick at Cassidy Tire at Roosevelt and Finley. My husband had emergency surgery and I was having a problem with a tire on my car. I needed to make sure it was safe to drive my husband home from the hospital. Rick helped me quickly, took care of the problem and was very sympathetic. Thank you for providing such terrific service to a frazzled customer. Your kindness and professionalism are truly appreciated.

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Lombard calling regarding the Feb. 13 SPEAK OUT call about the event a person was at the Westin for. While there, they saw police officers and village workers, supporting themselves, the person says, and patting themselves on the back. Well, you weren’t there. You don’t know what it was all about. Perhaps it was congratulating someone on how many years they were there or their retirement, and just innocently having a good time; and you’re picking on it. The event was for retirees and for volunteers who worked on various committees. Without the volunteers who do all the committees, the village would have to put a lot more money than the cost of employees to do what the volunteers do. The village has not done anything in a couple of years because of budget cuts. So, check things out before you criticize them. 

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Hello, I read the most recent village board meeting notes and my trustee, Zack Wilson, actually compared the majority of voters and taxpayers in his district to “pslave owners, witch burners and people against civil unions.” Does he really represent the beliefs of the district? I do not believe so. We are not saying that the property owner cannot sell the property. What we are saying is, it’s not right that he gets to inflate his value against our property values and we’re the ones who vote. Remember that coming up in this election.

Trustee Zachary Wilson responded to your comment: “It’s unfortunate that my comments were misunderstood. My reference to slave owners, witch burners and people against civil unions was used to demonstrate that if elected officials simply followed the will of the majority, individual oppression prevails.  My personal opinions about those issues to which I referred were not stated. The fate of the Ken Loch Golf Course is one of the biggest issues in the district and throughout Lombard. No one has suggested the owners of Ken Loch get more than fair market value for their property.  I agree with the speaker who stated that public policy in this matter effectively confiscates personal property and I am not willing to go down that road. I am hopeful that there will be a solution that is satisfactory to both sides. If the community is determined to keep the property “open,” that begs the question, “At what price?” All options should be explored and everyone’s ideas and suggestions are welcome. That is why I would encourage anyone, including the author of this SPEAK OUT, to contact me directly to discuss his/her thoughts and concerns so that they can be addressed personally rather than anonymously.”—blm

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Hi, this is Lombard calling. I like to patronize the businesses downtown so I get my nails done at that Essence nail salon. It’s under new management and newly remodeled. It’s on Crescent Boulevard near the 7-Eleven. The prices are good and Vivian’s the best. Try it. Keep Lombard going.

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I just want to let you know I called before. The fact is, if anyone doesn’t believe it, they can drive around this town after midnight and you’ll see what I mean. We have no police protection after midnight. You do not see a squad driving around. That is an issue I think should be printed. People ought to take a peek. I’ve done it three nights in a row. There is no squad car after midnight. A guy told me about it and I wouldn’t believe him, and I went for a ride. There were no police cars driving around this village. In two hours I drove the same area and never saw a squad.

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This is for the person who was complaining about the increase in the water bill. I, too, am not happy with the increase, but if you look at your numbers, the rate only increased over 9 percent, and your water bill doubled. Means you’ve got a leak somewhere or you used twice as much water. It’s not all the village, it’s your use, too. They did, however, when the city of Chicago raised the rates to us, take the opportunity to raise the base rate and apparently put in another dollar or so a month for no apparent reason. I understand they’re paying more so they have to charge more, but I don’t like that. Also, I don’t know why we don’t pay our bills directly in Lombard. We have to send them to Chicago or Carol Stream or someplace to an outside agency. Makes no sense.

Online payments are now available. You can pay online by logging on to the Village of Lombard Web site at www.villageoflombard.org/waterbill.—blm

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This is regarding the “Sunday morning walk” when a car was blocking the sidewalk and the police were called. I understand it can be difficult to walk around cars because I have to walk around cars all the time when I walk every morning at 6 a.m. However I would never call the police. If it inconvenienced you, then you could have put a note on the car instead of wanting the neighbor to get a $25 ticket. And being disappointed when the police did not come for your complaint, perhaps they were doing more important police business such as keeping our neighborhoods safe for your Sunday morning walk.

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Shame, shame, shame. Why did it take so long for Lombard Village Manager Dave Hulseberg to step up and admit he was the one who gave the go-ahead for Laura Fitzpatrick to go ahead and finish the mural at the village hall? She has been the victim of intense criticism for unpaid good intentions.

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I nearly had an accident Saturday night on St. Charles and Park. It would have been my fault for not yielding to oncoming traffic. To the person who almost hit me, thanks for having the sense to slow down and stop. The problem is; I never saw you because a big SUV was waiting to turn north and took up so much of the intersection that it was way beyond the turn lane line. I bet you slowed down because you couldn’t see around it either to see me. It would have been my fault, but please, drivers of big vehicles, be aware that when you do that kind of thing, it puts other motorists in jeopardy because we cannot see around you when your vehicle sticks out that far in a turn lane. I waited until I thought I had a clear shot, but I was wrong and I will definitely be more on guard.

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Regarding the skeets in Lombard, we agree. We have raised them for decades in our family. They make great family pets and are good with kids and dogs. One rarely known fact; they also make a delicious meal at the end of their useful life. I recommend baking for three hours at 350 with salt, pepper and oregano.

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Hey, Lombard. When are we going to get into the 21st century? Why isn’t Route 53 two lanes from North Avenue to the bridge? I don’t understand that. It’s four lanes everyplace else and then you come through Lombard and boom, two lanes. I don’t understand it.