Well, Villa Park, you really caused a problem with this monthly billing on the water bill. I send one in; five, six, eight days later, it seems, I get another one of your bills.

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Even though our founding fathers said no to a federal police and providing the states with the authority to police themselves, we now have an allegedly illegal federal police force. John Whitehead of the Rutherford Institute has pointed out that what we have now is a new agency called the Federal Protection Service, which is now a domestic standing army, the purpose of which is to watch American citizens while they leave our southern border open. What’s next, bowing to the president?

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Here I stand, visible from afar, as picnickers, Frisbee throwers, nature lovers, dog walkers and those out for a stroll—perhaps lost in their thoughts, amid the beauty of the surroundings—are jarred to the reality of my presence. Surely, there must’ve been an agreement—hope of monetary gain for my provider, and the provider of the site on which I stand? The experiment went awry—a refreshing drink for the people using the park has turned ugly. My outer case has been pried, gouged and broken. Large areas of my plexiglass skin have been kicked away, exposing my electrical innards. I have been toppled over, re-righted and left in this condition for months. Calls and intervention on my behalf have not helped and so, here I stand, an embarrassing eyesore, potentially dangerous fixture in the center of Lombard Common. I am the Coke machine.

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We are residents of District One. We have been enjoying quiet summer days and evenings, but District One will need to prepare for that quiet to end soon. Starting on Nov. 1, the sound of gunfire will begin from 10 a.m. through sunset four days a week through the end of March. That means for five months, the Glen Oaks Country Club, located in unincorporated Glen Ellyn along Route 53 and Hill Avenue, will provide access to their skeet range four days a week. If the sounds of gunfire are a concern for you, please contact District One Trustee Dan Whittington at 630-518-2457 or e-mail him at whittingtond@villageoflombard.org and share your concerns. If enough citizens of District One voice their concerns, perhaps the village will speak up on our behalf. The county board president shared that Glen Oaks was grandfathered in and is not required to meet the county ordinance that requires gun ranges to be located away from residential communities.

Back in December 2013, Trustee Whittington related in SPEAK OUT that there is “nothing we can do but make a request” because the country club in question is not within Lombard’s jurisdiction. He also said he had been in touch with then-District 48 state Rep. Sandra Pihos about this topic, and she had suggested constituents gather more support before moving forward with any resolution. At the time, Whittington was quoted as saying “I will definitely be involved.”—JAC

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I’m just wondering by what authority school crossing guards can stop traffic? Are they agents of the police department or is there some law? I’m just looking for edification. Thank you.

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Hi. This is a question for the Lombard Police Department. What good does it do me to tell my teenage son and daughter to not speak on the phone while they’re driving when we follow a police officer talking on the telephone? It wasn’t an intercom. It wasn’t a radio. He was talking on the telephone. Help me out. Maybe you can answer for me or does that law only apply to the citizens? Thanks.

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So the Republicans just blocked a constitutional amendment that would have overturned Citizens United. Citizens United is where billionaires are allowed to spend hundreds of millions of dollars with no limit electing candidates who represent the wealthy and powerful, which is the worst case scenario in our democracy where everyone even without much money should have equal say. This is a slippery slope they are leading us down; the Republicans are the puppets for the 1 percent.

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I wish it was possible to read the SPEAK OUT column without having to see comments by ignorant conservatives bashing our president. Maybe there could be different sections for different purposes. “Political Ranting” could be one section. “Sarcasm” could be another section. Those comments tend to start with “I'd like to thank” and then proceed to complain about something. And we could have a special section for comments that are positive and helpful.

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I read in a daily paper that our director of public works said it will take time to get Terrace View Pond looking better. Well, how long has it been since the village took over? I mean, could they have not begun to do something already? I just don’t buy it. I read about something called EC504 and while I don’t know much about it, it is supposed to control pond scum without hurting the wildlife. Surely there is a solution. Also, I noticed driving by that Prairie Day has been cancelled. I wonder why.

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Good morning, SPEAK OUT. I am calling referring to joggers. I can understand a jogger running in the street during the winter because not everyone shovels their sidewalk or does it as well as the winter snow plows. However, during the summer, joggers belong on the sidewalk and my car and I belong on the street. So, get it off the road. Thank you.

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Hi, this is a Lombard resident calling. I just wanted to give a big thank you to all the people responsible for putting on the Lombard Cruise Nights. It was a fabulous year and I really appreciated all their hard work in making the entertainment so enjoyable for all. I had a great time, came to almost every one and once again, thank you to everyone who participated. I don’t know if they’re volunteers, but regardless, thank you very much for a very enjoyable summer.

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This is Lombard calling. I’m reading the Lombardian of Sept. 10. I’m reading the article about “Neighboring theater celebrates 86 years.” I wish we would have had the DuPage Theatre that was already there and was torn down, thanks to one of our wonderful trustees, whose main goal was seemingly to demolish the DuPage Theatre. Downers Grove was lucky. They didn’t have certain trustees to tear it down.

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This is Lombard calling. I’m reading the Lombardian of Sept. 10, talking about Terrace View Pond and the Prairie Day. Well, everybody should know, Prairie Day is cancelled this year; supposedly there are not enough volunteers to be able to hold the Prairie Day. I was supposed to be a vendor and I got a call that it’s not going to be happening and people need to know about that before they start going there. Thank you.

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I’m calling from Villa Park because I’m extremely concerned about the fast increase in real estate tax rates. Regardless of whether my home’s value goes down or not, my taxes go up. My taxes have more than doubled in 14 years, even as my home’s value has decreased. A specific question: Who determines the real estate tax rate? Because if my home is worth less, and my assessed value is less, all that happens is someone increases the tax rate. I’m also wondering what Villa Park is doing to cut its budget as people’s income and home values are going down, instead of just keep raising the real taxes that ordinary citizens who are struggling financially cannot pay. Thank you.

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If you think the UK is so great and that their prime minister knows everything that he’s doing, why don’t you pack up your bags and go there, because you have people who are in office now thinking of our safety and taking care of us every day. But if you think your president is so bad, then why don’t you just go over to England and feel a little safer?

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I’m sure the person who called in last week about Bruce Rauner knows that his last name was Rauner, and not Romney, but you could compare them to be the same. This multi-billionaire wants to come in; he doesn’t believe in minimum wage, he doesn’t believe in anything. I can’t understand how Republicans can vote against themselves so much. If he wins, you might as well be prepared to have the worst state, or worse than it is—maybe Quinn isn’t the best—but he certainly is for the people and he’s not about to go after the poor guy like this guy’s going to do. He doesn’t care. He owns all these homes and millions of dollars, but let’s cut the minimum wage for the lower guy and let’s go after the state employees. They make too much money. I think people had better wake up.

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Here’s an idea for our wonderful trustees in Lombard. I know that you dropped the ball on the gambling facilities in Lombard, thinking it was a bad deal, but you know what? The state is opening up a system where you could apply for a medical marijuana dispensary. Imagine having a medical marijuana dispensary in beautiful downtown Lombard. Have a nice day. Bye.

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This is to the person who thinks that turning into the closest lane is simply a courtesy. According to the Rules of the Road, if you make a left-hand turn, you are supposed to stay in the left-hand lane and if you make a right-hand turn, you are supposed to stay in the lane closest to the curb. Another interesting fact that I see in Rules of the Road is you must always drive on the right half of the roadway, except when passing, when there’s a blockage, when there’s a six-lane road, a one-way street or a policeman directs you over there. Otherwise you’re only supposed to be in the right lane. I don’t know why people aren’t ticketed for these lane violations, but I guess it’s the same reason they’re not ticketed for hands-free phone and a cell phone in a school district. Thank you.

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Recently a SPEAK OUT caller called and said that Barack Obama’s cut the deficit in half from what he inherited from George Bush. Then he went on to say people are not informed, they’re not educated. For this caller I would like you to know that when George Bush left office, approximately $80 billion was the deficit. Two years later in 2010, it was $1.2 trillion. You’re right. We do have truly uninformed voters and as a great president said, the greatest threat to this country—no, it wasn’t the Soviet Union—it was the uninformed voter. Really, he cut it in half? To date he has not cut the deficit in half yet.

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Are the mosquitoes terrible in Lombard this month or is it just at my house?

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I’ve lived in Lombard for 52 years and I’ve had three boys play football at Glenbard East. I had to sit through some of the most horrible games where we just got trounced year in and year out. So, I stopped going to the games. But I went last Friday night to see the Rams play and I cannot tell you how beautiful that stadium is and how well those boys played football. I’m so proud that good football is back in Lombard. Congratulations to everyone at Glenbard East. Thank you. That’s all I wanted to say.

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I went to see Glenbard East to see what all the buzz was about with their football team, and I have to say I was impressed. Where did they get all these kids? They beat a really good Oswego East team last night. Well done, Rams. Keep it going.

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Unincorporated Lombard calling. We haven’t seen a year with so many mosquitoes as we have this year. You can’t be outside for even a few minutes. Our taxes have increased considerably these last few years and we’re apparently not receiving any mosquito abatement. I would like to know why.

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I had a Labor Day party. People came over for a barbecue and I was asked what kind of disease has hit Terrace View Pond across the street. How embarrassing to tell friends that’s just the way it is.

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Villa Park. I just got a letter from ComEd asking me to call to set up an appointment to install our smart meter. I was told in August that a letter would be sent out prior to the installation to give you an opt-out option. Now they tell me no letter is going out; you just have to call and tell them you don’t want one. How are people to know their rights if nothing is in writing? I can see nothing but higher rates, lack of privacy, control in the amount of voltage going into your home on high energy days and more problems. So, folks, just so you know, you do not have to have a smart meter if you so desire.

Your information is incorrect. Legislation was passed in 2011 that is mandating the smart meters. According to a ComEd representative, there is no “opting out” of the smart meter program. He indicated that if a customer calls and says he or she doesn’t want a smart meter installed, the individual will be put on a “delay list,” meaning that the individual will eventually have to get the smart meter anyway. During that time, the customer will be assessed a monthly fee, the representative said, “for operational costs for the old meter.” Letters informing customers of installation will be sent out, followed up by a phone call, the representative said. For more information on the smart meter, call 866-368-8326.—JAC