Obama school address debate is driven by mix of politics and racism and demagoguery

Orland Park School District 135 is giving parents the option to remove their children from participating in a nationwide address that President Barack Obama will be making via the Internet and C-SPAN on Tuesday morning during class.

Obama wants to encourage children to "work hard, set educational goals, and take responsibility for their learning" The President will also call on students, parents and educators to work together to ensure "every child in every school receives the best education possible so they can compete in the global economy for good jobs and live rewarding and productive lives as American citizens."

Right wing fanatics, conservative extremists and the demagogue himself, former Vice President and war criminal Dick Cheney says that the President's goals represent "socialism," you know, the kind that we Americans fought against during World War II and the Cold War and throughout Europe.

Cheney and his ilk say that doing good in school is "socialism?" What a moron. he should be charged with war crimes. The U.S. Attorney's office is slowly winding its way through the criminal actions taken before and during the illegal invasion of Iraq -- which distracted this country from the real enemy in Afghanistan and is forcing our soldiers to face stepped up terrorist threats there today because Bush and Cheney didn't commit enough forces to that country eight years ago.

I remember when Republicans used to say we have to respect Bush whether we like him or not because he is the President of the United States. It's the office and when the president acts, we need to stand by him as a nation. We did that, of course, and over the past five years, we've seen more than 4,000 American soldiers come home in body bags with no real progress against the war on terrorism in Iraq.

Now, of course, the president is a Democrat and an African American, and we are told that he is a "socialist" because he wants to encourage school students to do better in school and to help others to do better.

My son will be listening to President Obama's speech Tuesday. Proudly. I feel sorry for those students who parents will remove their children and don't seem to like a president because a) he's a Democrat, b) because he is Black or c) he wants all students to do well in school. Tragic but symptomatic of the challenge that we face in America where racism, hatred and extremism lingers on from the Bush administration.

The idea was promoted by U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan, who was the Chicago Schools CEO before being appointed to the national post.

If you are interested, you can watch the speech live via the Internet at

http://www.WhiteHouse.gov/live Tuesday Sept. 8 at 11 AM CENTRAL Time.

I know many children and students will be watching because many of their parents care about improving education for ALL children, regardless of race, color, religion or national origin.

Of course, the debate reminds us that not all share that benefit for our nation.

-- Ray Hanania

www.RadioChicagoland.com

You are not really a "suburbanite" until you master the HD TV, DVD, VHS, Cable connection ... and can actually record something in decent quality

You're not really a suburbanite until you have tackled three challenges: Setting up the Malibu lights around your well manicured lawn; failed a test naming the "last name" of at least one of your neighbors within a one block radius of your own home; and, most importantly, connected your Cable TV DVR box, your HD TV and your combo VHS/DVD player and recorder.

Who knows any of their neighbors in the suburbs? No one, unless their name has popped up on the Cook County State's Attorney's regularly updated online list of pedophiles who live in your zip code.

And setting up the Malibu lights, at least the first time, is pretty simple. Although replacing the Halogen bulbs is where the real hassle begins. But, once you have the Malibu lights up, who cares if they don't always last with the full suburban glow?

Anyone can move into the suburbs, but you are not a real "suburbanite" unless you can also meet the third and final, challenge. Hooking up the VCR/DVD player and recorder so it actually records and plays through your Comcast Cable TV system into your big screen HD TV.

That is no easy task.

I'm not talking about eliminating the blinking light on the VHS/DVD player where the time is supposed to go. No one sets the time. I don't know why any manufacturer wastes their time installing a clock in a VCR/DVD player or recorder. Mine has been blinking ever since the VHS player and recorder hit the scene in the early 1980s. I think my first video cassette that I rented and then copied was Purple Rain with the funny looking little guy who worked so hard at making me forget his name, it worked. I forgot his name. The guy with no name. Who knows and who cares. His last big song was 1999 and 1999 is long gone. How about we're gonna party until it's two thousand ninety nine? 1999. 2099. Same cadence.

It was easy to connect the VHS to the TV in the old days. You only needed one chord with three plugs at each end. A Red one, white one and yellow one. Yellow was always the video but, as long as each matched the in and out, colors didn't even matter.

Not today. There is a HDMI chord. There is the special HD three color video tetra monster cable. And there are the same old two headed audio cables.

But cable throws a monkey wrench into the system. I want to record all those great cable shows I save on my DVR that eventually disappear as my DVR demands more room. With a wife who watches Desperate Housewives, Brothers and Sisters, and a kid who loves America's Funniest Videos, American Idol, America's Got Talent, Sponge Bob Square Pants, Survivor Man, reruns of that Australian dude who was killed by a stingray, and Dirty Jobs -- not to mention Cash Cab. And me with Entourage, Porno, the cheesy made for SciFi TV movies, Porno, 60 Minutes, Dateline, FOX Chicago News, Porno, HBO and Show Time Movies, Porno -- actually, I'm just kidding about the porno. I'm married and I have a kid. All I have to do is watch regular late night TV to get what I need. Who needs Porno any more? Anyway, that DVR fills up pretty darn fast!

So, before the oldest recordings are automatically deleted, I want to make copies. VHS is the easier to copy too. Plus, there are some movies I love to watch over and over and over again. Independence Day. I'll think of more.

So it's not easy connecting the wires. I have so many wires coming out of the back of my TV cabinet it is unbelievable. And the wires cost more than the VHS/DVD player. And I refuse -- absolutely refuse -- to purchase a Blue Ray player. That's another manufacturer's scam to force me to dump something I already like and replace it with something that is supposed to be far better. I'm not a computer. I'm an average guy who likes my TV and movies.

The difference between Hi Definition TV and Blue Ray is imperceptible. Did I spell that right? It's a word I don't need to really know. Because if something is barely different, I don't want to waste more money on it. Not to even mention that they have overpriced the Blue Ray players and started to drop the VHS/DVD players.

And, it's getting harder and harder to purchase VHS tapes.

I got it all together, finally, today. Until my kid came home and pointed out one slight but very important issue.

I forgot to hook up the Wii system.

Gosh darn it!

-- Ray Hanania

www.RadioChicagoland.com

Mayor Daley continues to be surrounded by disgraceful scandals -- one aide owns reputed drug haven

For all the abuse that suburbanites take from the corrupt and dishonest elected officials in Chicago, the fact is that the controversies that surround most suburban officials pale in comparison to the scandals surrounding Chicago elected officials.

The latest is the story this morning that Mayor Daley's press secretary Jacquelyn Heard and her husband own a building that is reputedly a haven for drug dealers. The neighbors have been complaining for months and Heard's husband, according to the Chicago major acknowledges he is aware of the charges. Read the scandalous story?

Heard is notorious for ignoring the community press and arrogantly dictating who Hizzoner will speak too, causing the mayor most of his media problems that instead of blaming on his incompetent staff always blames on the mainstream media.

I've tried repeatedly to get through to Heard, but obviously she's too busy working her other job,m investing in properties in Chicago, including, according to the media, at least one property infested with reputed drug dealers.

You would think that the Press Secretary to the Mayor of Chicago would focus on doing her job, instead of buying buildings that allegedly become havens for drug dealers. Pathetic. But then, this is mayor Daley and his administration.

-- Ray Hanania

www.RadioChicagoland.com

Stroger may have won (and taxpayers lost) this battle, but Stroger will lose the war

Stroger may have won the battle but not the war

By Ray Hanania

Cook County Board President Todd Stroger boasts he won the battle to “save” the 1 percent hike in the county sales tax, a repressive tax that mostly harms the poor and lower incomed citizens.

Stroger’s victory came when Commissioner Deborah Sims, who supported the tax hike and who later – under pressure from constituents – voted to roll it back a ½ percent, flip-flopped again and refused to support the override of Stroger’s veto.

Sims’ told reporters she owed her loyalty to Stroger, the silver-spoon-fed politician who was lifted to public office by his powerful father, the late and former County Board President. Stroger has never had to work a single day of his life in a real job and the notion of paying a sales tax means nothing to someone who has everything done for him in life.

Although Stroger managed to prevent a repeal of half of his repressive sales tax hike – his only real achievement since the county board presidency was handed to him on a silver spoon – Stroger faces losing the war in the Democratic primary election Feb. 2.

Several strong candidates have stood up to challenge Stroger in the Democratic primary, Cook County Circuit Clerk Dorothy Brown and Chicago Alderman Toni Preckwinkle. It will be a tough battle, the notion being that Brown and Preckwinkle and others will divide the anti-Stroger vote. Congressman Danny Davis is also eying the race. But Stroger has so little popularity in the county that dividing the anti-Stroger vote will still give the challengers strong pluralities to win.

The real hero in this saga, though, is not in the Democratic Party, although key Democratic members were among the leadership in fighting to rollback the repressive 1 percent Stroger Sales Tax hike, like Commissioners Larry Suffredin and John Daley.

County Commissioner Liz Gorman, a Republican, was dogged in her determination to protect Cook County taxpayers. She refused to give up when everyone said it was impossible to build a coalition to challenge Stroger’s veto threats.

Gorman stubbornly pushed the issue, first trying to roll back the entire sales tax hike, which is chasing businesses out of Cook County into neighboring suburban communities and placing a heavy burden on consumers who are scaling back purchases.

When that failed, she came back with a 1.4 percent roll back and then a 12 percent roll back. Her persistence raised public awareness of the incompetence of the Stroger administration. The fact is that despite all the tax money that Stroger can dole out to hire ineffective flaks to rattle his cause in the lobbies of local community newspapers, the public recognizes that Stroger is incapable of running county government.

He has a record alliance against him that crosses color lines and political party lines, too.

Stroger is a coward, too, and fears defending his administration’s actions, hiding behind an army of paid consultants, PR flaks and patronage people, including a few who have criminal records.

He is remembered not for great achievement and foresight in leadership, but for his typically Machine extravagances like hiring a busboy who catches his eye at a costly steak house. Or his inability to control his high-salaried staff who wield their power to benefit themselves personally.

Normally, incompetence in office is rewarded by the party Machine but the Machine is even tiring of his failed leadership.

Meanwhile, in Stroger’s beleaguered administration and as he stumbles through office avoiding responsibility or accountability, declining media interview requests and dodging the tough questions, Gorman is rising as a powerful watchdog to defend the rights of Cook County voters.

Her coalition includes insightful leadership like Daley and Suffredin and many others.

Hopefully, the tax advocates in Stroger’s alliance, including Joan Patricia Murphy, who unbelievably tried to push the sales tax up by 2 percent, and Sims, will be swept out of office with the rest of the trash in February.

Murphy is being challenged by Nick Valadez. Sims may be challenged again by Dian M. Powell. It’s still early but it could save taxpayers a lot of money if Stroger, Murphy and Sims would just step down. We can only hope.

END

Stroger may have won (and taxpayers lost) this battle, but Stroger will lose the war

Stroger may have won the battle but not the war

By Ray Hanania

Cook County Board President Todd Stroger boasts he won the battle to “save” the 1 percent hike in the county sales tax, a repressive tax that mostly harms the poor and lower incomed citizens.

Stroger’s victory came when Commissioner Deborah Sims, who supported the tax hike and who later – under pressure from constituents – voted to roll it back a ½ percent, flip-flopped again and refused to support the override of Stroger’s veto.

Sims’ told reporters she owed her loyalty to Stroger, the silver-spoon-fed politician who was lifted to public office by his powerful father, the late and former County Board President. Stroger has never had to work a single day of his life in a real job and the notion of paying a sales tax means nothing to someone who has everything done for him in life.

Although Stroger managed to prevent a repeal of half of his repressive sales tax hike – his only real achievement since the county board presidency was handed to him on a silver spoon – Stroger faces losing the war in the Democratic primary election Feb. 2.

Several strong candidates have stood up to challenge Stroger in the Democratic primary, Cook County Circuit Clerk Dorothy Brown and Chicago Alderman Toni Preckwinkle. It will be a tough battle, the notion being that Brown and Preckwinkle and others will divide the anti-Stroger vote. Congressman Danny Davis is also eying the race. But Stroger has so little popularity in the county that dividing the anti-Stroger vote will still give the challengers strong pluralities to win.

The real hero in this saga, though, is not in the Democratic Party, although key Democratic members were among the leadership in fighting to rollback the repressive 1 percent Stroger Sales Tax hike, like Commissioners Larry Suffredin and John Daley.

County Commissioner Liz Gorman, a Republican, was dogged in her determination to protect Cook County taxpayers. She refused to give up when everyone said it was impossible to build a coalition to challenge Stroger’s veto threats.

Gorman stubbornly pushed the issue, first trying to roll back the entire sales tax hike, which is chasing businesses out of Cook County into neighboring suburban communities and placing a heavy burden on consumers who are scaling back purchases.

When that failed, she came back with a 1.4 percent roll back and then a 12 percent roll back. Her persistence raised public awareness of the incompetence of the Stroger administration. The fact is that despite all the tax money that Stroger can dole out to hire ineffective flaks to rattle his cause in the lobbies of local community newspapers, the public recognizes that Stroger is incapable of running county government.

He has a record alliance against him that crosses color lines and political party lines, too.

Stroger is a coward, too, and fears defending his administration’s actions, hiding behind an army of paid consultants, PR flaks and patronage people, including a few who have criminal records.

He is remembered not for great achievement and foresight in leadership, but for his typically Machine extravagances like hiring a busboy who catches his eye at a costly steak house. Or his inability to control his high-salaried staff who wield their power to benefit themselves personally.

Normally, incompetence in office is rewarded by the party Machine but the Machine is even tiring of his failed leadership.

Meanwhile, in Stroger’s beleaguered administration and as he stumbles through office avoiding responsibility or accountability, declining media interview requests and dodging the tough questions, Gorman is rising as a powerful watchdog to defend the rights of Cook County voters.

Her coalition includes insightful leadership like Daley and Suffredin and many others.

Hopefully, the tax advocates in Stroger’s alliance, including Joan Patricia Murphy, who unbelievably tried to push the sales tax up by 2 percent, and Sims, will be swept out of office with the rest of the trash in February.

Murphy is being challenged by Nick Valadez. Sims may be challenged again by Dian M. Powell. It’s still early but it could save taxpayers a lot of money if Stroger, Murphy and Sims would just step down. We can only hope.

END

Oust Tax Lady Deborah Sims from the Cook County Board

Cook County Board President Todd Stroger had the dubious distinction -- the only one in his undistinguished career -- of raising the most taxes in Cook County, introducing and pushing for a hike in the Cook County Sales Tax. Stroger wanted 1 percent but his more fanatical tax-lovers and citizen-haters like Joan Patricia Murphy wanted more -- can you believe Murphy wanted to increase the sales tax 2 percnt to what? Protect her job, perqs and patronage?

Then came Deborah Sims, the Cook County Board commissioner who voted to repeal 1/2 percent or half of Stroger's oppressive sales tax increase so she could tell voters and taxpayers she is on their side.

Then Stroger vetoed the rollback of his one percent tax, which would have gone to only .5 percent.

Today, two-faced liar Sims backed off of her support of taxpayers and decided to NOT override Stroger's veto of the sales tax rollback, singlehandedly undermining the effort to ease the tax burden on Cook County residents.

The list of people who MUST be ousted from Cook County government, if you care about the cost of living in this county, has now grown by one to include Deborah Sims. She should resign in disgrace and step down from the county board. She is the ultimate flip-flopper and a true pathetic anti-taxpayer loser!

She should be ashamed of herself.

It's very possible Sims was playing a little game all along, to pretend to support the rollback to get pats on the back for doing the right thing, and then voting no to NOT override Stroger's veto.

The sooner we clean out the Cook County Board the sooner taxpayers can find relief. Until that election next year, the tax-leviers like Stroger, Murphy and Sims have a headlock on our pocketbooks and they clearly do not care about the public interest.

Tragic but typical of the Machine Politics that puts the interests, benefits and patronage of government officials way above the interests of the public.

Vote Sims out of office. Vote Murphy out of office. Vote Stroger out of office, not just for his tax policies but for his pathetic failed track record in office.

UPDATE: 9:15 pm

We should remember, though, the courageous fight led by County Commissioner Liz Gorman with the support of Commissioners Larry Suffredin and John Daley. If it wasn't for Gorman, this fight would not have gone as far as it has. Gorman and her allies on the board have refused to give up. Even though Stroger's oppressive anti-taxpayer veto has prevailed thanks to Sims, the fact is that the entire saga of flip flopping and challenges to the Stroger tax has been a victory for the public and another loss for Stroger. Sustaining the veto has only secured his certain fate in February to lose in the Democratic primary, remembered mainly as a spoon-fed, pampered politician who rose to power on his late father's back, only to fall off forgetting that his allegiance should be to the best interests of ALL of the taxpayers of Cook County.

There is no doubt this battle will scar Stroger's re-election chances and possibly open the door to a new, more progressive leadership that is sensitive more to the needs of the public than selfish political interests. Hopefully, Sims will also go down next year.

-- Ray Hanania

www.RadioChicagoland.com

Endorsements for Cheryle Jackson for the U.S. Senate

U. S. Senate candidate Cheryle Robinson Jackson lands key legislators, women endorsements

CHICAGO – U. S. Senate candidate Cheryle Robinson Jackson today received key endorsements from U. S. Representative Bobby Rush, State Senator Rev. James Meeks and the Cook County Democratic Women Organization for her bid to fill the Illinois seat once held by President Barack Obama. These early endorsements signal strong support from the community.

“Cheryle is exactly who Illinois needs in the U.S. Senate,” said Rush. “Like many of us, she worked her way up to become a force for change and progress for everyday people. She understands from personal experience how important quality health care, education, and access to good jobs and opportunities are to Illinois families. She’ll take that fight to Washington.”

Illinois State Senator Rev. James Meeks said, “Cheryle brings people together from across the economic and political spectrum to solve problems facing everyday people: working and middle-class, poor and unemployed, entrepreneurs and small-business owners, the under and uninsured. She doesn’t wait for permission to lead – she just leads.”

Cook County Democratic Women President Rikki Jones called Jackson a candidate who,” can truly represent the interest of women and their families in the U. S. Senate.”

“We endorse Cheryle Robinson Jackson for her grasp of the issues, her track record of service and accomplishment, and her leadership to make sure everyone has the right to a good education, quality health care, to grow a business or have a job. We know she will stand tall for women and families.”

Jackson welcomed the endorsement and is pleased with the support her campaign is receiving as she begins to talk to people around the State.

“Illinoisans want someone like them, who knows what it’s like to face obstacles and overcome them. They want someone who will fight for change, and work with everyone to find practical solutions. They want someone driven by public service, not political ambition,” said Jackson.

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