Moving

I am moving this over to Wordpress. www.indg.wordpress.com ...in Downers Grove

I am keeping the same name, but I just can not get the "more" function to work properly here, and over there it is easy.

I would like to see DGreport, Elaine Johnson's much larger effort, be a success, and will always try and contribute to the dialog there.

Interview With Mayor Sandack

Note: This started as an offshoot of discussions and postings here and at DGreport.com. I specifically would like to thank everyone who participated with questions, whether I used them or not.

We all can have different opinions, but in the end we all have something akin to affection for the village we live in: that is why we care, and that is why we share common ground.

Mayor Sandack, thank you for participating in this on-line interview, and let’s jump right in.

What do you see as the top three agenda items for 2008 now that stormwater is being addressed?

Storm-water implementation; other important capital projects like roads, sidewalks and water-lines; Village budget; and the Belmont Underpass (yes, I know that’s four).

What’s been the toughest campaign promise to follow up on?

The revised ethics ordinance was fairly challenging as there was some spirited debate. But that’s a good thing—high-minded policy discussion is what our Village deserves on important matters.

Is your leadership style more like:

Seahawks QB Matt Hasselbeck, or Captain Jean luc Picard?

Why would anyone suggest these two?

What is your early take on the PACE circulator plan?

Conceptually it is interesting. But from a financial perspective I believe it may well be impossible to implement without being cost prohibitive. I am not jumping to any conclusions and will wait for all of the information. Admittedly, I am skeptical it is doable as conceived.

What’s your favorite beer at Emmitt’s?

1 a.m., and the other ale (can’t remember its name).

Do the people you work with ever razz you about being a mayor?

Sure. That’s natural, isn’t it?

Will we ever see a Belmont underpass?

I believe so and am working feverishly on it. See the article I wrote for The Grover if you want a thumbnail sketch of the history and present status.

Thank you, Mayor, that ends our interview…and now,

The Lightening Round! 20 Questions!!!

1. Ready?

No. But have at it.

Correct.

2. Mayor of Woodridge?

Mayor William F. Murphy.

Correct.

3. What item was purchased for fire and police vehicles in 2006, but that the village hopes never get used?

AED’s Automated Electronic Defribulators. If they get used that means it’s a life and death situation. They been used successfully and they are affectionately called the “George Board” after my friend, George Nicholaou.

Correct.

4. Population of Downers Grove?

50,616 give or take.

Correct.

5. Airspeed of a fully laden swallow?

African or European?

Correct.

6. Who said “The great thing in this world is not so much where you stand, as in what direction you are moving.”?

Oliver Wendell Holmes

Correct.

7. What kind of car do you really want?

An American well-used one. My wife rides in luxury, not me.

Incorrect. You want a used Yugo with racing stripes.

Wait, no I don’t…

8. Think you will ever grow your beard back?

That depends. My wife prefers that I don’t so it may not re-appear.

Correct.

9. Mayor of Lombard?

William J. Mueller.

Incorrect, Lombard does not have a Mayor, they have a Village President.

That’s a trick question.

Correct.

10. Sox or Cubs?

People who know me well know the answer. Pass.

Correct.

11. When was the last time you saw a liar with his pants on fire?

Never?

Correct.

12. Is U of I the best school ever or what?

Yes.

Incorrect. School of Rock is the answer I was looking for.

13. If you were Matt Hasselbeck, and council was your offensive line, how many times would you get sacked by the NY Giants?

Many times.

Correct.

14. What is it about Chad Walz?

Chad, who?

Correct.

15. How many TIF Districts in Downers Grove?

Two.

16. How many alternate fuels does DG use in their fleet?

Four

17. How many eggs in a half dozen?

Six

18. What number comes after 7?

Eight

19. Who do we appreciate?

Quite a few, my family, friends, our village…

Correct.

20. Will you accept this certificate of good sportsmanship for the first ever DGreport official officials interview?

Can’t. That would violate our ethics policy. Thanks anyway.

Correct.

17 out of 20 correct with one bonus correct question. That sets a very high bar for the next official interview. Your pick: who would you like to see next?

Is it okay if I get back to you on that?

Is DGreport “a vehicle of “mistruth”?

I read EJ’s comment made to her by an unidentified elected official that DGreport, her blogbaby, spread mistruths. One of my friends who frequents DGreport took me to task along a similar line. Anonymous posters can say any lie they want and not be held accountable. He was curious: why I would bother naming myself on DGreport when so many others do not?

I and others have used the term sock puppet for anonymous posters, and derided their anonymity as proof they were disingenuous; that they misspoke on purpose or to some agenda. Are they are too afraid to speak in public so they hide? District 58/99 elections were a good example of bad anonymous behavior. There have been inflammatory comments here as well on other tropics. A case could be made that there has been a misuse of the public trust.

Funny thing though, the anonymous posters, the bad ones, are having a hard time hiding as that blog goes on. Readers are getting wise to them. There is a growth curve involved, and this blog is growing and maturing.

Credibility is an issue with me. People know where to find me. They can email me, write me, call me; hell, they can show up at my door. Does that temper my comments? Nope. What it does temper is launching personal attacks on anonymous posters whose comment I take exception to. As a known named person, I have to ask myself: if I was talking face to face with this person, would I personally attack them? Nope.

But I have at DGreport.

When I started posting there, I took exception to some comments by posters, particularly Meat, and started to mix it up. I stopped, but never apologized. That was wrong: Meat, if you read this, I apologize for taking your remarks personally, and responding in kind. Two wrongs, both mine, didn’t make a right. I try and steer clear now, but the damage is done. We live with our mistakes, and sometimes we learn from them.

Slight tangent- If there are posters who are under 18, stay anonymous until you are legally adults, then decide if you want your name out here.

When a public official charges that ‘mistruths’ are spread, they may be right, they may be wrong, but they can always, always come into the discussion, named or anonymous, and present their case. Take the case of two anonymous posters crossing swords about the Liquor Commission and charges of ‘politics as usual’. DGDood made some claims, X01703, who claims to be a Liquor Commission member, refuted them. I looked into it, and posted up on it also. So did anonymous Ron Burgundy.

When it comes to the village, and all that concerns it, anonymity has a well-warranted good side. Highly sensitive topics like housing, the buses, local politics, development/redevelopment and other areas may be uncomfortable for us named persons to deal with, but the comfort to comment, to join the discussions may be possible and conductive only under sufficient confidentiality. If the goal is to have the best online discussions possible, to bring the largest number of people into the discussion, and to promote public discourse, anonymity increases the comment pool. What DGreport gains with anonymous posters is the wide range of opinions and perspectives that include not just regular posters, but first-time and very occasional visitors, coming into a discussion for the first time. They make it lively. Tell me my comments are as biting as Hellomoto. That would not be true, yet most of what he has claimed as fact is easily verifiable, and gets either vetted or outed accordingly.

Meat, stay Meat. Hellomoto, DGDood, DG_DA, Champ Kind, Ron Burgundy; stay anonymous, and keep contributing. If you step over the line you’ll take heat for that, and take a little heat for being anonymous too: so what. Facts have a tendency to shine light: the more the better. Opinions are important too, and anonymity makes those opinions easier to put out there, here, so they too can see the light of day and be scrutinized.