Too much zealotry in editorial position

I am writing in response to the column in "Our View" which was headed "Selling a village's soul for a paltry $3,000.

You seem to make an extraordinary assumption that most people feel that guns are in themselves evil and that selling them to legal firearms dealers would lead them into the hands of criminals on the street.

The overwhelming majority of arms are not in criminal hands. They more than likely wind up with a single mother forced to live in a dangerous neighborhood, a businessman who has been under constant threat of robbery, any homeowner who understands that 911 is useless in a home invasion, or a hobbyist interested in target shooting.

In Illinois, gun shops are required to ask for a firearms owner identification card before they even allow someone to handle their stock of trade. These cards are issued by the Illinois State Police after a background check. If a person is even convicted of domestic violence, this card is revoked.

Needless to say, criminals do not jump through these hoops in order to obtain guns. It is much easier to get them on the street, where stolen or smuggled arms are in abundance.

I am in awe of your smug attitude about the $3,000 that the village could most certainly use and to instead throw this amount in the trash is beyond comprehension. This money may not mean much to some elitist in Barrington or St. Charles, but it is significant to a village such as East Dundee.

Try to see past your well instilled personal biases to look at reality.

Edward Czepczynski

West Dundee

Writer's contention not based in facts

I am writing a reply to a letter written by Dave Reece on Dec. 5 regarding Judy Sigwalt. It referred to the trees in Carpentersville Park, in which Reece stated deer were responsible for the damage to the trees.

My question to Reece is: Did the deer lift the trees up and shove them into the Port-a-Potties?

There is no question of Reece's dislike for Judy, which goes back to the election of April 2007.

I was at the meeting when the damage of the trees came up and there was no mention of a conspiracy implying that Linda Ramirez-Sliwinski had anything to do with the damage of the trees.

Reece should climb out of that slime pit, clean himself up and start acting as an adult human being. He also should get his facts straight.

Patricia Pawlowske

Carpentersville

Hiding from truth of no enforcement

Elgin's mayor, city council and city purchasing director have stated that all contracts for outside services performed on behalf of the city require all contractors and their employees be legally allowed to work in this country.

The question put to the mayor and the members of our city council asked: Would you enforce the employment laws requiring legal employment status?

Councilman Juan Figueroa said the program E-Verify is under court order in Illinois not to be used. Nice move, Juan, ducking behind the court. Bob Gilliam and Dave Kaptain both restated that all city contracts require legal employees. That really worked for Mitt Romney in the last Republican presidential debate.

Mike Powers hides securely behind the court and Mitt Romney when he states, E-Verify is held up by the courts, and all contracts have legal clauses.

Mayor Ed Schock and Councilman John Steffen tap dance like Gene Kelly. John Walters also wants to hide behind the courts and the clause in purchase contracts requiring legal employees.

Let me understand: I'm in the country illegally already, so of course I will answer truthfully about my work status.

According to Purchasing Director Gail Cohen, she would investigate and enforce the laws if a complaint is filed, but she stated no complaints have been forwarded to the city.

The mayor and council want to hide behind each other and want someone else to enforce our laws.

Basic Pilot/E-Verify is a program supported by the federal government that will, with the use of Social Security numbers, determine eligibility to work in this country. This program was being used in Elgin to screen new hires until the state prohibited it.

The state is wrong, and will be found wrong by the courts. The city should defy the state and use screening programs approved by the federal government, which is responsible for immigration enforcement.

If we really wanted to fix our contractor labor problem, the council would require all companies wanting to do business with Elgin to become a voluntary member of the IMAGE program.

This program states that all contractors will give the city purchasing department a full and complete list of all their employees and allow screening by the federal government.

If a citizen, while investigating a company for non-compliance with service contracts for Elgin, is injured, can those injuries be charged to the city since that person would be a de facto employee of the city purchasing department, helping Gail and her staff verify the accuracy of the labor clauses of city purchase contracts?

Ernie Ebner

Elgin

Board president is a great leader

I'm writing to show support for Huntley School District 158 Board President Shawn Green, who has shown tremendous leadership since taking over as board president seven months ago.

There's a reason he was this community's top vote-getter in 2005.

At a time when this community was looking for a change, they saw Green, a resident with no prior history with the district, no political ties to anyone and a sincere desire to serve the community. Since becoming president, Green has always been fair in allowing everyone to speak at meetings.

What he doesn't allow are board members who speak out of order and breach Robert's Rules of Order on a regular basis.

If you attend a meeting, when Green cuts off Larry Snow or Aileen Seedorf for violating meeting etiquette, they call it "denying their right to free speech."

Baloney.

I give Green a lot of credit for serving without pay in a role where two of his own colleagues continually look for ways to bring shame on the district and as a result, the communities of Huntley, Lake in the Hills and Algonquin.

Green is a great leader and I appreciate all he has done and will continue to do for my kids.

Lesli Melendy

Huntley

'Freedom' lost via government bans

The Smoke Free Illinois Act will take effect Jan. 1. It bans smoking tobacco in virtually all public places.

The fact that the government is banning smoking almost everywhere is a violation of our rights as American citizens. The purpose of this new "prohibition" is to protect the health of the non-smoking population.

But smoking is choice, just as it could be a choice of the nonsmoking population not to enter bars or restaurants where smoking might be allowed.

America is the land of freedom, but that freedom is slowly being stripped from us each time the government enacts a law like the smoking ban.

Jenny Gervino

Streamwood

Elgin Community College