Democratic Party - 49th Ward

A Real World-wide Image Problem for Chicago

My wife recently returned from a visit to NYC and as we have heard the Michael Abbate video of him allegedly beating a small female bartender for not serving him more liquor was shown in New York.  As almost everyone in America, and now most of the televised world now knows, Chicago has a problem with police officers using the power of the badge to service their personal needs.  This is a huge public policy issue, and one can only hope that the State’s Attorney will follow up on these cases appropriately and that Mayor Daley’s proposed reform will help address these problems.

What I find fascinating is that this issue has given Chicago a very serious black eye on the world stage at a time when the city is competing for the opportunity to host the 2016 Olympics.  My question is this, where is the outrage?  Where are the continuous blogs from those so terribly troubled about the reputation of Chicago.  Where are the Alderman who had so great a fear about the city being ridiculed for something this terrible?

They all showed up for foie gras, when it promoted their political agenda, but I guess this real and serious problem isn’t quite as useful.  I believe that the foie gras story was exploited because the Tribune had its own agenda for the recent local elections supporting, as always, the local business community and wanting to make some elected officials look foolish.  At the local level nearly every blogger who wrote about the outrage of foie gras ultimately showed their colors and came out for Gordon.  There has been coverage in the papers, none or almost none on the blogs but I hope that the coverage starts or continues and intensifies to show that the policy this city has for addressing police malfeasance is broken, the department’s culture of not addressing these problems is partially to blame and that the citizens find this unacceptable.

Moving Forward Rather Than Standing Still

Don Gordon has gone on and filed his complaint regarding the election and it will make its way through court system until it reaches a conclusion.  If history is a guide, it will not change the election results in any significant way.  No matter what happens it could be days or could be years until a final decision in reached.  As a community we cannot afford to stand by and wait.

There are many things to do in the 49th Ward as we move past the campaign and into the next four years.  I don’t believe that anyone is content with things exactly the way they are.  I believe that while there are differences in the level of importance we assign to things, the differences in what things need to be done is small.  Things that most agree upon are perhaps a good place to start.  These are my top five not in any order of importance:

1.)  Crime should continue to decrease. 
2.)  Affordable housing should continue and increase. 
3.)  The lakefront must continue to be protected and preserved in a way that benefits those neighbors immediately at the lakefront and all of the rest of the 49th Warders which means more access, programs and activities.  (Maybe even the much debated dog park idea can be addressed with some space it the ward set aside for it.) 
4.)  We need to develop a strategy to increase the desire of people and business owners to invest their hard earned money into our business strips.  People will not invest because the Alderman says so or asks nicely.  It has to be in their financial interest. 
5.)  We need to preserve single family homes when it makes good sense and make smart choices on the very few occasions when it doesn’t.

Those things I list above are in and of themselves difficult tasks to accomplish.  But there are more.  CTA, Schools, Bad Landlords, a Boys & Girls club are just a few more.  And there are more, some of which are directly related to an Alderman and his power, and others that will require support from other politicians and branches of government. 

This new term is an opportunity to put many ideas on the table and have them looked over.  I would urge all of those who have some idea of how they would like to see things go forward to make written suggestions and send them to the Alderman’s office. I would hope that there are hundreds of these e-mails that come in so it might not be realistic to expect responses to each, but I do think that two things will come from this.  One is that the Alderman will get a very direct and a more refined sense of what you want.  Second is that in these suggestions will come good ideas that will lead to things that actually happen.

The start of a new term is a good time to take stock of where things are and where you would like things to go.  Send your thoughts and ideas.

Election Day Is Finally Here!

Election Day!  How glad are you to hear that finally?

The Polls are open tomorrow, April 17, 2007 and the future direction of our community will be decided by those who vote.  The best intentions in the world don't count in this case so make yourself available between 6:00 am and 7:00 pm.  Let your voice be heard!

All the information is available on this website and on the Board of Elections website.

49th Ward Map

49th Ward Polling Place List

49th Ward Voter Registration Status

49th Ward Sample Ballot for April 17

How to Vote   Pamphlet   and    Video

Finally, there has been talk that some of the pollwatchers may be trying to challenge your right to vote.  Some of them believe they can tell by looking at you that you are not registered, (or maybe they think they can predict your vote somehow by looking at you).  Please make sure that you provide whatever the Election Judges need to let you vote in the regular process.  The goal in challenging you is to silence you.  They want you to walk away without voting.  Stand up for yourself! 

If all else fails DEMAND to vote by a provisional ballot.  They will try and make you leave, by taking a long time, but stick it out.  Your vote will count if you are right.

As if there were any doubt . . .

Vote for Joe Moore on April 17. 

What else need be said.

Outside Interests

There are some who are quite concerned that union folks, namely SEIU, are in the neighborhood volunteering for one of the candidates.  They go so far as to suggest that there is no reason for them to be here based on that foolish theory that some have fallen in love with that goes something like "nothing is important if it isn’t between the boundary lines of the ward."

That theory leads to some very interesting policy positions.  One of many things an Alderman has done forever at city council meetings is vote to approve or deny any number of ordinances or resolutions that have nothing to do with the 49th Ward.  Would people who believe in this boundary theory suggest that the 49th Ward Alderman vote present unless he can verify that it impacts the ward?

There has to be a balance and a recognition that even if you are not a delegate to the United Nations, or sent to Washington, DC,  Springfield, IL, or any other level of government, but the city you are still a citizen of the United States and you have a right if not a responsibility to stand up and be heard on the most important issues of our time.  A resolution like the Iraq War resolution is not unimportant.  It is also not terribly difficult or time consuming to prepare, introduce and vote on.  It is an issue that thousands of 49th Warders care about and hundreds have shown their support for ending the war.  This was a simple statement about the war and how the city residents feel about it. In this case it is obvious that Bush isn't listening to anyone let alone this resolution, but it still sent a message that was important.

Many have said that the living wage bill is foolish because it will never apply to a business in the 49th Ward.  The candidate opposing a the living wage ordinace has said this in public citing the fact that there is no footprint that would suit this type of development.  Let me just point out that it doesn’t have to be a 49th Ward store for 49th Ward residents to work there.  When the living wage ordinance is passed by the city council and the county board and it becomes the first step towards raising minimum wages to living wages it will absolutely be for all of the people in the 49th Ward (even those who earn 10 times the living wage) because it will help to put more money in peoples pockets and create more disposable income.

No Alderman is elected to the Chicago City Council with the sole purpose of representing only their ward. The obligation is to represent your ward and the city.  Who ever wins this elections is going to do that regardless of what they say today and it would be a dramatic change from all Chicago history if they didn’t.

As to the objection to union folks I started this post with, there are thousands of union members in this ward.  There are hundreds, if not thousands, of SEIU members that live in the ward and by the way, some of them work in the ward for various employers as well.  But if your real point is that organizations from outside the community shouldn't be here maybe you should start with your own candidate who has take money and support from the restaurant association and if he hasn’t already will be taking money and support from the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, an organization that has a downtown address and a complete list of downtown interests that will do nothing for the 49th Ward.

And if you think that both sides don't have supporters from beyond the borders ask the resturant team where Chef Didier Durand was on February 27.

Isn't the Truth Important In Presenting Your Arguement?

If you read the blogs you saw an email posted as my response to  a request for debates from Craig Gernhardt.  His initial email was in response to a post I made here about the possibility of more challenging debate formats.  Here is his original message.

 

----- Original Message -----
From: Craig Gernhardt
To: "Loraine Swanson" ; "Hugh J. Devlin"  "Ben Jerovsky(?)" "Chris Adams" "Joe Moore" "David Fagus" "Toni Duncan" "Donald Gordon"

Sent: Wednesday, March 07, 2007 9:56 AM
Subject: Debates

> David, You brought up a excellent idea on your blog today.
>
> http://49thward.blogs.com/49/2007/03/its_a_runoff_on.html
>
> If you are all in agreement, Toni Duncan and I will host a 'bloggers
> debate' with 6 to eight questions from our readers. Let a moderator decide
> which three each to ask.
>
> Questions will be read by a independent moderator of both candidates
> choosing.  As debates go, each candidate can challenge the others claim
> with rebuttal.
>
> Toni and I would like to see the debate North of Howard at Gale School.
>
> None of this same ole, same ole, let's get serious with community issues,
> community questions, not those set-up
> --
>
> Thanks in advance
> Craig Gernhardt

I edited out the email addresses since some of these folks are private individuals and may not want their email publicly posted.  This was what Craig claims I wrote back to him on his blog.

Craig,

My initial reaction is that while you may have a candidate you support, you have not been actively out campaigning for them. 

I also doubt that Joe would consider you impartial. A broader panel might work, but bloggers in 49 and the News Star reporter tend to disproportionally range from anti-Joe to very anti-Joe. Some of them may dispute this, but it would be hard to tell. Who could be added to make it more balanced? I am also speaking for myself here, not Joe. He probably hasn't even seen what I wrote today.

David Fagus

This is what I actually wrote:

Craig,

My initial reaction is that while you may have a candidate you support, you
have not been actively out campaigning for them.  On the other hand, Toni
has been actively out supporting someone, (Don).  Where would the balance
be?

I also doubt that Joe would consider you impartial.  A broader panel might
work, but bloggers in 49 and the News Star reporter tend to disproportionately
range from anti-Joe to very anti-Joe.  Some of them may dispute this, but it
would be hard to tell.  Who could be added to make it more balanced?

I am also speaking for myself here, not Joe.  He probably hasn't even seen
what I wrote today.

David

Since that time Craig has taken to posting a Gordon sign in his window so even he now is very out there for one of the candidates.  No matter who you are supporting the basic principle of a debate is that the debate is not biased and that the moderator and the people formulating the questions are not actively supporting one of the candidates.

If you have even the slightest amount of common sense how could you think that this debate idea as Craig suggests it be formated is somehow a fair and reasonable suggestion? 

And as for the reprinting of my email, in a significantly edited format, you now have a flavor of Craig's commitment to accuracy.

Debates With A Purpose

Before some group starts planning new debates I propose we all demand that the debates be more interesting and that the format be less self serving. I don’t know about you, but 6 more debates with the same 10 questions for the 7^th, 8^th or more time cannot possibly be enlightening. The topics and agendas addressed in the initial debates are important and valuable, but a second high school debate and a second BizArts debate is not really necessary. I would also argue that it is unnecessary to again have community sponsored debates that, to varying degrees, use the debate to showcasing their organization by having detailed questions from the group’s members take up much of the time. These groups have justifiably had a chance to highlight what is important to themand some of the public. It is the communities turn and the debates should serve the public interest.

In my mind, the purpose of a debate is to illustrate the subtle or in some cases dramatic differences between candidates. With only two candidates now there should be more difficult and specific questions, requiring more specific answers and there should be direct interaction between the two candidates. A format that focuses on a single or similar topics rather than the scatter shot questions across the entire spectrum that we have seen so far would be more insightful into the candidates, their positions and their thought process. Maybe someone with political savvy and no direct interest in the ward such as Rich Miller or Laura Washington from the Sun-Times could moderate.

Another possibility would be to randomly involve the public without screening the questions or allowing a more partisan panel to make decisions. Maybe Ginderske and Adams could be part of a screening panel or be co-moderators.

In the end I would like the debates have a purpose and to bring out some voters that really have a decision to make. Most debates, in this ward or any other, turn out to be a pep rally for each of the candidate’s volunteers. If the audience was asked at any of the first round debates who was genuinely undecided I would guess that maybe 15% didn’t come with their decision made. What is the point if that is going to continue to be the trend.

Carol Marin and My Employment

There seems to be a question about my professional background that I wish to clear up.  I don’t intend to have a running conversation about my employment.  To some being a public employee is clearly a detriment to being a Committeeman even though it isn’t why anyone votes for me.  Nevertheless, it is the case and perhaps those who are reasonable will see there is a difference.

Qualifications:  I have a Master of Public Administration degree from Roosevelt University with a concentration in health care.  I also have years of education and practical experience in my field, government provided health care, which is a combination of public administration and health care.  I have work experience in nearly every facet of running a health care institution.  I have never received anything but strong support from my immediate superiors and my employees have always found me to be fair, honest and a good administrator.

Carol Marin Article:  I did not get promoted in 2007 or in 2006.  I have been in the same job since 2005 in spite of Carol Marin writing otherwise.  Additionally, I did not come up from nowhere to be in my current position.  I was the #2 prior to being the #1 (Chief Operating Officer) at Cermak and my salary has not changed since I was promoted in 2005.  It will not change in 2007 either and with mandatory furlough days it will be less.  The salary I make is lower than the last COO, (he was an MD) and the same as the two (non-MD's) before that.  For 19 years I have worked hard and been committed.  I have progressively and incrementally worked my way up without great leaps up, just hard work and logical steps.  I did it the honest way with hard work and commitment to doing a good job.

Finally, I don't work at Stroger Hospital and haven't for years now.  I don't and shouldn't have any responsibility for them and only have indirect knowledge about their operations.

IS DON GORDON FOR REAL?

This run-off election provides a real test.  There will be an influx of new media attention, new interest in the community, new dollars and new bodies into the race.  This is Don Gordon’s opportunity to enact his pledge to not utilize dollars from developers, realtors and others who might want a zoning change.  He has said he will start in 2011, but if it is a real commitment why not start now Don?  Do you think nobody else will take money from these people because you don’t in 2011.  Or Don, are you planning on using the incumbency of your office to overwhelm challengers in 2011?  If its wrong as you state to take money from these people, then it is wrong today, not in 2011.

It is also going to be time for you to roll out your real plans for the neighborhood instead of talking in generalities and platitudes.  The voters want specific ideas about how you are planning to attract those businesses you are promising.  They want specific ideas about your solution to the crime problem.  They want specific plans about how you intend to stop the development you feel is out of control.  They want good and clear answers about how you will preserve diversity, if that is your attention, and how you will provide affordable housing if you intend to do that.

I for one would like to know what you intend to do to protect the lakefront that Joe Moore did not already do for you.  And speaking of the lakefront, what ever happened to your Rogers Park Conservancy?  When was the last time you meet?  What did you accomplish other than a very long meeting ay Loyola Park and a wish list that delivered absolutely nothing to the community.

Frankly Don's overall record of accomplishment as a community activist is spotty at best.  It is time to answer Don.  You may have an example or two of things you have finished in your 25 year career as a  community activist, but you have a widely known reputation of not being able to stick with a project or bring it to completion.  The community needs to examine you as closely as possible and put you under the same microscope that Moore has been under.

There are a lot of questions for Mr. Gordon to answer.  I for one am quite ready to hear what he has to say for himself.  Let’s not forget that he didn’t even have 30% of the vote.  To get to 50% we need more from you Don.

It's A Run-Off on April 17

The results from Tuesday’s election are exciting news.  With the field narrowed down to two the choices are clear and the turnout should be great.  The future of our neighborhood is at stake.  That being the case, all should know the rules for new voter registrations.  Voter registration is open from Wednesday, February 28 to Monday March 20.  There is also a 14 day voter registration grace period where those who really want to register can go to the Chicago Board of Elections at 69 W. Washington and register in person with the proper ID.  That is open from March 21 to April 3.

The date of the run-off election is Tuesday, April 17.  The same polling place locations will be used.  Seven weeks is a long time if you think about it.  There will be early voting, absentee voting and nursing home voting. 

There staff at the Board of Elections that can provide official word on these topics.  They can also provide in depth answers if you have more specific questions.  Now, off with the gloves and on to the races cause this is a fight for the future of our ward.