What about the next, bigger storm?

To the editor: The storm on Thursday brought about a startling realization: we are unprepared.

While 911 rang without answer on our phone, neighbors received "all circuits are busy" responses on theirs.

To the credit of the Palatine Police Department, patrol cars were out so an officer was able to be flagged down quickly and divert traffic away from the downed power line that was throwing off sparks.

But I just can't get over the fact that we could not reach emergency responders during a relatively mild storm (and I say that while having six inches of water in my basement).

I pray we never have a "major catastrophe" where we really have to test our emergency response preparation.

Kevin Lehan

Palatine

Sales tax increase for Deer Park?

To the editor: At the Aug. 20 Deer Park village board meeting, Road Commissioner Bob Kellermann proposed that a 0.25 percent to 0.5 percent increase in the sales tax would go a long way to ameliorate the village's un-funded road and drainage problems.

A sales tax increase could make the roads program self-funding in a few years. Most trustees seemed to grasp that a voter referendum request would be required to increase the sales tax rate over current levels.

President Gifford and Finance Commissioner Dave Kizior finally acknowledge the depths of the infrastructure problems in Deer Park. President Gifford lamented that "the village is 50 years old and a lot of the infrastructure is rotting away. We're going to have to replace it over the next few years."

I am delighted that the Deer Park village board is awaking to the responsibility they have to all the residents of Deer Park, not just those near Vehe Farm. While the sales tax increase might be a start, I can only hope that President Gifford at last lets the Deer Park residents know what it is going to take to get Deer Park in shape for the next 50 years.

Richard F. Chay

Deer Park

Light needed for church traffic

To the editor: I am writing in regard to the traffic jams that are created on Barrington Road when Willow Creek Church services let out, and South Barrington police who are directing traffic for the benefit of the churchgoers.

On Sunday, Aug. 26, the traffic was backed up southbound from the church parking lot entrance to Algonquin Road, with two lanes of traffic most of the way. Two police officers not in uniform, with a police car, (were) standing directing traffic. There was another officer, not in uniform, manning the traffic control box at the corner of Barrington Road and Mundhank Road. Traffic was equally backed up going north on Barrington Road.

I assume the police are being paid by Willow Creek Church and are not in uniform for that reason. I had a conversation some months ago with a South Barrington police lieutenant regarding this problem and was told, in a belligerent manner, if I didn't like it to go a different way.

I think there should be a traffic light installed on Barrington Road and the church parking lot entrance that would be green all the time except when church services are letting out. Then it should be programmed with the traffic lights at Mundhank and Algonquin roads to ensure a smooth traffic flow with no need for police direction.

Don Carle

Hoffman Estates

Fawning coverage of Jesse Jackson

To the editor: This letter is in response to your fawning coverage of Jesse Jackson's march.

He argues "stopping gun manufacturing would halt illegal distribution of firearms." Using that logic, we should stop making knives, baseball bats and pillows, since, according to FBI statistics they have been used in more killings than so called "assault weapons" over the years.

He further claims that illegal guns were to blame for Columbine and Virginia Tech. I didn't know that the guns walked the halls randomly shooting innocents; I always thought it was criminals, who planned ahead and knowingly broke the law. Silly me.

As far as Dr. King and President Kennedy being killed with "high-powered weapons like the ones Jackson wants to ban"? Did your reporters ever learn to research a story, or were they so awe struck by the presence of Jackson that they simply relied on his press release for info? Both were killed using bolt action rifles, much more like the "hunting" rifles Jackson states he has no interest in.

Or, like most of those who seek to disarm law-abiding Americans, perhaps it should be "no interest at this time," as such a plan is more easily effected incrementally.

And with the state in such tough financial times, I would think that Presidents Richardson and Abboud would be happy to have a source of tax revenue nearby, as well as the other firearm manufacturers located here in Illinois, especially since they contribute several million dollars in payroll and sales taxes each year.

Douglas Winston

Waukegan

Barrington storm response first rate

To the editor: A huge THANKS to the village of Barrington for their automated telephone information and advisories during the recent storms, to the Public Works Department who has been working non-stop, to the Public Safety Department for trying to inform us and protect us under harrowing conditions, and to the volunteers who filled sandbags at Public Works through the night of Aug. 23/24.

We are surrounded by hard-working, good people!

David & Carol Nelson

Barrington

ComEd needs new storm procedures

To the editor: The headline read "No power? How people have coped." And you went on to describe the plight of local residents of Mount Prospect, Des Plaines and the area called Sunset Hills.

These people, as did so many residents of the Northwest suburbs, had no electrical power after the bad storm last Thursday.

To clue you in, the residents of an area called Pleasant Hills also had no power. (Pleasant Hills is bounded on the east by Rodenburg Road, on the west by Springinsguth Road, on the north by Wise Road, and on the south by a large area of wetlands.)

And since they, including my husband and I, are on what is termed "well and septic," this means we also had no running water of any kind, nor were we able to flush our toilets, until our power was restored on Monday noon, thanks to the work of 11 trucks from Ohio Edison.

No running water and no toilets is not pleasant, believe me.

But thanks to the kindness of neighbors across the street who did have power, we were able to run extension cords from their outside outlet to our sump pump and refrigerator and freezer in our basement. And thanks to another neighbor with electricity, we were able to haul buckets of water from their house so we could flush our toilets. We had bottled water for drinking, thank God.

We, as so many others did, were frustrated by the lack of information provided by ComEd. We feel they need to establish new priorities in dealing with future power outages. You can't imagine the luxury of clean running water and flush toilets until you've been without them for 3½ days.

Jean Flaxman

Schaumburg Township

Prejudice against male teachers

To the editor: I had to laugh in frustration at the recent article by Corinne Hess on why more men don't teach in schools.

I'm a elementary substitute teacher with a master's degree in education, who in 2002 switched from working in the business world for more than 14 years and went back to school to get my degree.

When I entered the program, I was told of the shortage of teachers and especially male teachers at the elementary level.

I graduated with a 4.0 grade point average and am still looking for a full-time job. There are men like me who love to teach, and given the opportunity to work will provide students with something they rarely ever see in the elementary classroom.

But this will not happen until things change. First, unions such as Tim Davis's Elgin Area U46, should push administrators to look for more male candidates at the college level and allow men like me, who have changed careers, the opportunity to interview for positions -- and to accept a lower wage than what is currently on teacher pay scales to work in the classroom for a predetermined time period.

Second, the more than 91 percent of female teachers at the elementary level who help principals determine who is hired should be more open to working with a male teacher and seek out more male candidates.

Schools in Bensenville, Barrington, Carpentersville, Palatine and Schaumburg hire recent graduates with a bachelor's degree, usually women in their 20s. Most principals justify the hires by telling you they don't discriminate based on your degree and will hire a master's degree if they have "good reason."

A good reason to hire according to union contracts is not paying a person with a master's degree more money to teach in a regular classroom, despite having more life experience and a better education versus a recent college graduate.

Elementary teaching staffs should consist of the most diverse and best qualified teachers, not the most inexpensive!

Mike Baker

Schaumburg