Well, once again, the village received an inordinate amount of rain and again, flooded out many homes like mine, that in the past, have had bone-dry basements. The last time this happened, and this time, my neighborhood gathered in the streets to watch the storm drains in action—and an amazing coincidence happened. At exactly 5:30 a.m., the street drained. In my opinion, this is no coincidence. Many claims were filed against the village, and the village stood behind its defense that everything operated as its supposed to with the pumping station for the quarry, and thus is to be released from any and all liability. Investigation is needed into the malfunctioning storm sewer system. Sure, the flood gates at the quarry were opened the night before; sure, the the pumps operated properly—I think not. Twice it’s happened, and twice at exactly 5:30 a.m. the streets drained.

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In response to last week’s SPEAK OUT when a caller asked about how do you feel about voting for Obama because he is destroying this country, my reply to you is I feel fantastic. We are now gaining over 100,000 jobs a month instead of losing 800,000 when Bush left, the stock market is at an all time high, sick kids cannot be denied insurance, women have equal pay thanks to the Lily Ledbetter act which Obama signed first thing, Bin laden is dead, war is over in Iraq. My question to you is, how do you feel about voting for Bush who squandered a huge surplus for a false war where 4,400 American soldiers have died, and how do you feel about the 9-11 attacks on Bush’s watch where 3,000 Americans died? Your hatred is why you keep losing elections. Stop watching a certain station; it’s polluting your mind.

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This is Lombard calling. The other day we received a bag in the mail for the food drive on May 11. It was delivered by the post office. The food will be picked up by the post office. Who is paying for this service? Are we as taxpayers paying for this when we cannot even get our mail delivered properly? Thank you.

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Hello, I live in Lombard and I resent the slams that are made at Breen and Fitzpatrick on our village board. In my opinion, they are the only ones with class. They are well-educated and they represent the people. I am sure we’d never see them giving “the finger” to anybody like certain people we saw. Thanks much and keep up the good work. Let’s get rid of the people who don’t believe in class. Bye bye.

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To the reader who said he or she is getting nothing for paying high taxes in Lombard, you are getting a safe place to live, and if you don’t think so, move to Chicago.

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As a resident of Lombard I would like to know why the village saw fit to eliminate the vehicle stickers. That only cost us $15 per vehicle, so now the town is out $500,000. Yes, a half million dollars. Not only did the village lose the revenue from the stickers, but the tickets that the LPD could have written up for not having a sticker on the windshield. Can anybody answer my question?

I’m sure you were asking if any other caller knows why the vehicle stickers were eliminated as this week actually marks the two-year anniversary of the village not answering SPEAK OUT questions. Anyone with questions regarding the village should contact the Lombard Village Hall at 630-620-5700 for assistance. Remember, it is against village policy to acknowledge or respond to any item that is from an anonymous source, as was approved by the board of trustees at the May 19, 2011, meeting. Speaking of the village board, there are some new members and maybe it’s time the village revisits the issue and starts talking–or answering–transparency anyone? District 3 Trustee Reid Foltyniewicz said during his campaign, “The village’s no- response policy to the Lombardian and to the people is ridiculous. If I get elected, I will bring this issue up immediately to get this reversed and remind everyone that the government works for the people and not personal agendas. Let’s stop this authoritarian style of government in our village.”—blm

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Hello, Lombard. The Lilac Parade is approaching and I certainly hope the Clean Government Alliance will be marching. Does anyone know how I can join the parade? I want to march with the Clean Government Alliance to keep Lombard clean. I look forward to a response. Thank you.

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In a recent SPEAK OUT somebody called in, this person was sitting on the balcony, watching pedestrians leave the train station. The person said that the pedestrians, because there was no traffic coming one way, would enter the crosswalk, but the traffic going the opposite direction did not stop for them. The person wanted to know when Lombard is going to go after the mean, nasty drivers using the streets. Everyone knows the streets are for people to walk in, not for cars. Maybe the police should start arresting the jay-walkers who can’t follow a simple little rule; when there’s that person who looks like he’s walking, no matter what language you speak, that means walking. When there’s that big red hand, it means stop. Sorry folks, the streets aren’t for you to just walk in front of my vehicle. I’m getting really tired of that. I agree; the police need to do something. They need to enforce these people who don’t obey crosswalk signals.

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To all parents, teachers and students. Common Core and CSCOPE are both a progressive indoctrination and data system on our children on our future. The parent-teacher connection and open curriculum will become obsolete. The new adoption of this curriculum has been bypassed by our state legislature’s approval and offered with a monetary incentive to our schools to implement the program. Funding for this curriculum can be found in the May 2008 stimulus package. As we speak the ACT/SAT tests are being rewritten by our department of education to reflect this curriculum. Ask the question, parents, Why? Search the Web; you’ll find the truth. Start reading the truth, which can be found on theblade.com. There is still time to fight.

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Congratulations to the Vietnam veteran, the lady with an umbrella and another motorist who teamed together to save a precious gosling’s life on Tuesday, May 8, at about 8 p.m. This one last gosling could not jump the embankment on Highland Avenue near 22nd Street, while mama goose and her other goslings looked on just across the street. These three saviors teamed up without even speaking, and in spite of the people who honked their horns, saved this precious gosling. All of us animal lovers should salute these people who, at their own risk, committed an act of kindness for this poor little helpless animal. Thank you, goodbye.

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I think it’s highly inappropriate for SPEAK OUT callers to mock the Clean Government Alliance. The CGA is comprised of dedicated individuals who are committed to protecting the interests of all Lombardians. The people who call in and question this groups legitimacy are probably the same ones who claim the Loch Ness Monster and Big Foot don’t exist.

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Northwest Lombard here. The last few days there is this awful smell in the morning, like a strong odor of paint. It is nauseating and I wonder if there is some kind of construction, house or otherwise, that is causing it. We have allergies and cannot go outside until it fades away. Whoever is doing this, please be aware of what that substance is doing to us. And, it just plain stinks really bad.

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George Bush has been out of office for over five years and he still gets blamed for something that he didn’t do. If you study history you’ll find out that in July 2008 the price of a barrel of oil went to $145 a barrel. George Bush lifted the embargo on drilling for oil and in December, the price of oil dropped to $30.28 a barrel. Gas was about $1.85 a gallon when Obama took office. He campaigned on higher energy prices. He wanted gas to go to about $6 a gallon in Europe. This was payback to the tree huggers who donated money to him. There is no way that he will do anything to have the price of oil drop. We have the resources so that we never have to import oil but he doesn’t believe in that. The last refinery was built over 30 years ago but no permits will be issued to build new refineries. We have far more cars on the road than 30 years ago but are limited to produce so much gasoline. This should not be a surprise as he promised this when he ran for office. If you voted for him, stop complaining. He is doing what he promised.

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It’s bad enough that my water bill is nearly $117 for two months, but I noticed that if it is not paid on time, I will have to pay an extra $11. That is nearly 10 percent, according to my calculations. I think that is excessive, but apparently the village can legally do this. I’m curious how that extra revenue is used.

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Villa Park calling. During the recent campaign, Deborah Bullwinkel looked me straight in the eye and told me she was against home rule; yet, now, the new board is not even sworn in and they are talking about home rule. Deborah also said she was a good leader, so now let's watch and see if she can lead her fellow board members away from the idea of home rule. Residents, keep an eye on Villa Park.

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I’ve seen enough of this around Lombard to finally speak out. Why, dog owners, do you let your dogs hang their head out the window in your vehicle? It is dangerous for the animal. If you have to brake suddenly, that animal is not fastened in, and could get hurt. And for those of you letting the dog do this while sitting in your lap, how irresponsible is that? Think of the animal but also think of how this could cause an accident if the dog suddenly bumps your arm or blocks your view.

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I’m calling in response to the people complaining about the homeless people in Lombard. If we’re not going to help them, then how are they supposed to help themselves? And if tax dollars are not supposed to be used toward helping others in our community, what are they there for in the first place? If we kick them out of here, they’re just going to go into other communities—and you’re wrong. I have brought them into my house. There’s a gentleman who frequents downtown Lombard. I took him for a three-block walk home from 7-Eleven the other day to eat some food. We need to help the homeless. Thank you.

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If the Lombard village manager does not want to live in Lombard, then he should not be able to work in Lombard. Check out the village board agenda for Thursday.

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Hello, this is Lombard calling. To the powers that be regarding roads, please, please, please take a look at Lilac Way and consider repairing the road. You can only patch a road so much. It’s getting pretty rough and it’s a pretty poor representation of our village. Also, the parking lot that it leads into near Madison Meadow is falling apart. Please help. Thank you.

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Recently somebody called in about their tax bill and what they actually pay for services and what they pay for pensions. Well, folks, here’s the dirty little secret: Public sector unions are bankrupting our town and our state. The other part of that dirty little secret is, the people who give them these salaries are politicians. What do politicians need? Votes. I’m looking at the 2011 report and I know some of these people who work for the village. They’re making $125,000 a year for mowing lawns and filling potholes. That’s their salary; that’s not their pension. Their pension averages about 60 percent higher than the public sector. Never in my wildest dreams would I think that anybody who works for a village, whether they fill potholes, mow lawns or plow, deserves to make $125,000 a year. I believe the median income in the United States has fallen down to about $45,000.

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This is to the person on Wednesday, May 8, in the first column, who announced the meeting that Villa Park wants to raise taxes through home rule; maybe you should read the newspapers and get some more information because it’s not a regular home rule where they can raise taxes. It‘s called a non-home rule crime initiative to get rid of the bad elements, gangs. Many people have to participate, like landlords, so I would get some more information before you start screaming that the sky is falling, that they want to get home rule to raise taxes. Goodbye.

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Thank you, Jane, for answering the question about the Tri-Town YMCA paying rent. It was very nice to see somebody answer the question. Now, how about the village starting to answer? Thank you.

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This is to the person who encouraged turning in the neighbors for loud music. You mentioned that Lombard was an influential town, and I agree. But perhaps you would be better off in the town of Elmore City, Okla. They outlawed loud music and dancing. Kevin Bacon lived there in the ‘80s but I think he’s moved out by now. That’s it.

In checking out the information you stated, one of the Elmore City travel sites lists both quiet bars and “loud music thumping clubs” among the city’s amenities. Also, Elmore City is said to be the inspiration for “Footloose,” starring Kevin Bacon. After a town ban on dancing, in March 1980, the school board voted 3-2 to allow the local high school to hold a prom, the class of which also held a 30th anniversary dance in 2010. A remake of “Footloose” came out in 2011.—JAC

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This is directed to my neighbor in Lombard. Apparently he thinks it’s fine to rip his chain saw at 8 a.m. on Monday morning. He should realize some of us work late at night the night before and normally sleep past 8 a.m. Some of us have young children who normally sleep past 8 a.m., but apparently he just doesn’t care. In the middle of the afternoon—when I would have no problem with this gentleman ripping his chain saw and making lots of noise—all his work is done. That’s very inconsiderate of you; I don’t like having you as an neighbor.

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This is Lombard calling concerning the Common Core discussion a couple of weeks ago. If you would like to protect our future, please get involved and visit stopcommoncore.com. God bless America.