Citizens should feel no qualms about forming an opinion about our new governor, even though he has less than six months on the job. He has come in with an agenda, that he is striving to implement, which dramatically affects the lives of hundreds of thousands. He has issued multiple executive orders which any first-year law students can tell you are blatantly illegal.  He has openly declared that both of the other branches of government are corrupt, and that the Supreme Court justices cannot be trusted to make rational decisions. This all comes from a man whose own company is now best known for being the subject of wrongful death lawsuits with verdicts against it in the billions, and in shipping American jobs overseas.

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This is in response to the person who called SPEAK OUT complaining about the Baltimore riots and that President Obama claimed to have programs that would prevent this type of thing, and wanted to know why he hasn’t enacted those programs. Maybe the reason he hasn’t is because he spent the past six years averting the next Great Depression because of the last president, George W. Bush, sending us into a nightmarish pre-second depression. He’s been a little busy, OK? Your guy let us get attacked. Obama had to go out and find the guys who did the attacking, OK? Your guy ran the economy into the gutter and he’s been trying to pull it out ever since. So, forgive President Obama if he hasn’t accomplished everything he said he’s trying to do.

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I recently called Commonwealth Edison to get some information on my bill, which I had mislaid. They were able to find my account by using my telephone number. At the end of the call, they asked me to provide either or both my Social Security number or driver’s license so they could access my account more quickly. I refused to do it. I saw no reason for it and I don’t know who to call at Commonwealth Edison to see if this was one person trying to scam or if this is Commonwealth Edison policy. I see no reason for it and I think it’s dead wrong.

According to John Schoen, ComEd spokesperson, it is typical to find an account using a phone number, then ask for the last four digits of the customer’s Social Security number. “We take those steps to make sure we’re really talking to the customer,” he added. Schoen also said that as for the driver’s license part, “I’m not sure where that came from,” adding that he wonders if you used an automated system. He said anyone with a concern can call 800-EDISON1 for customer service.—JAC

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Looks like Rauner’s idea for right-to-work zones failed to pass in the Illinois House without a single “yes” vote: 72 “no” votes, 37 “present” votes. It failed in spite of the governor moving hundreds of thousands of dollars into various campaign committees in an apparent attempt to influence the vote. Wait, wasn’t it Rauner who told us that he knew that all of the old guard in Springfield were “corrupt” because they accepted campaign funds from sources trying to influence their votes. Mr. Rauner, stop trying to corrupt our state representatives.

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When will the north side of Lombard get some new development? I’d sure love to see a grocery or other store up here. How about it, trustees and village president? From the empty Menards, we got a restaurant supply store that’s not even open to the public.

Your question was forwarded to the Village of Lombard which provided the following answer: “The village is aware of the desire of many north-side residents to have immediate convenient shopping opportunities and we remain committed to serving the needs of all areas of Lombard.  When it comes to the North Avenue corridor, there are several reasons why development has not been as dramatic as it has been in other areas of Lombard. One reason is that the vast majority of locations along North Avenue are already developed, or are not anticipated for redevelopment in the near term. Another reason is that due to a low residential population in the area, convenience retail businesses have not been attracted to the North Avenue corridor.

The Lombard Landings Shopping Center, where the former Menards store was located, is nearly fully occupied with a variety of destination shopping opportunities including Room Place, Restaurant Depot and Floor & Décor as anchors. While these uses do not provide for immediate shopping needs, the stabilization of the center, which had previously experienced excessive vacancies earlier this decade, is considered to be a step in the right direction.

The village is continually looking for development opportunities. The redevelopment of the property at North and Grace with a Dunkin’ Donuts and an additional retail space is a reflection of these efforts.  While the Village of Lombard can facilitate development activity, those efforts are still dependent on willing property owners to sell properties, a ready developer and a reliable customer base. We encourage residents to utilize an expanding list of retailers provided by downtown Lombard to meet immediate shopping needs.”—blm

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This is Lombard. These comments are meant for the Villa Park Police Department. I’m really getting sick and tired of driving through the town of Villa Park in the morning and at night and people are going 50, 60 mph, blowing stop signs. Where are you guys? How come you’re not doing something about this? This is getting ridiculous. Is it going to take a child or somebody to get hit and killed? Thank you.

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Year after year we plan our parties, we set out our chairs the night before and we park our cars to reserve the best spots for our friends, family and children. It’s an exciting time for Lombard residents. My family has reserved the same spot for 15-plus years. Our kids have grown to know that this was where we would be and invite all of their friends. Well, this year was not the same. A business had my brother’s and a friend’s trucks towed at $200 each on parade day. Why would you ruin a day that everyone in Lombard looks forward to? That we all share as a village? You just moved over to that location and you decide that on parade day you wanted the parking lot to yourself because your business would be packed? I’m sorry Lombardians, but this place is not part of this community for him to pull such a low, selfish move.

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Madigan asks for a vote on runners’ right-to-work zones, and the governor immediately writes $400,000 in checks to the campaign funds of Republican legislators. You see your state representative, be sure to ask him how much his check from Rauner was written for.

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We, the U.S., cut ISIS supply lines and the Iraqis leave arms and weapons and run for the second time. After watching Fox News, May 19, it looks to me like this is a deliberately-planned way of re-arming ISIS so they can continue all the way to Baghdad. Why is Obama trusting the Iraqis? Good question.

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I want to thank all the folks who helped me at Eastgate last Tuesday morning, The officer from the secretary of state's office was the first one to see me as I fell down. I had my cane and lost my balance coming up the curb at the barber shop. Shortly after, others came out to help me. I can’t get up by myself; one person got behind me and lifted and another one pulled in the front to help me get up to the barbershop. The officer got a bandage for where I had cut my hand where I fell on the cement. I saw my doctor and he said nothing was broken but I did sprain my left ankle. Thank you very much.

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Why not criticize Rauner? He seems to be an archetypal Disney villain: an “awe shucks” character, who doesn’t pronounce the letter ‘g” in words that end in “ing” while giving his State of the State address, yet whose past business practices would make Cruella gasp. But, hey, he did it for the money—which makes it OK. And his vision for the state looks great if you are wealthy, but not so much if you are a working stiff. So figure out which of his nine homes he’s staying at and join the protest. They are all in very nice neighborhoods, except for the governor’s mansion which the family will find to be livable once they put in several million dollars in upgrades.We are not a high-tax state.  We are not a high-spending state.  We are in a financial mess because two-thirds of our corporations don’t pay any corporate tax, because we give away billions to corporations, and because we have one of the most regressive tax codes in the nation which tries to balance the budget on the backs of working families while the wealthy make commercials on the evils of unions and laugh all the way to the bank.  

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Good morning, Villa Park, Lombard and surrounding areas. Memorial Day, and it’s a sad day in our town. Nobody flies their flags anymore. People used to fly a flag on every street, almost every house. No longer. What has happened to our country? Maybe those who don’t believe in this country anymore should find out where your heritage is from and go back there and live your life and see how you are treated in those countries. Good day and God bless this country.

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I know that liberals don’t like facts but in the six months since the Republicans took the Senate and rendered our adolescent president more or less impotent, the American economy has generated more jobs than in any other six-month time period in the entire Obama administration; 20 percent more than the next-best, six-month span. It’s not rocket science; if you’re a fat cat or want something for nothing, vote Democrat. If you want a job and want to support yourself and your family, vote Republican.

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This is Villa Park calling. I would just like to say that Villa Park wants to be known as Tree City USA. They probably should be known as Long Branch City USA because if you’re going to be a tree city you also have to take care of the trees. I don’t think they do because I have trees that are ending up on my parkway and my sidewalk, and the wires that come into my house. I think it’s ridiculous that they can’t take of what they want to be. Thank you. Bye.