DuPage Soapbox: Correction in endorsement

An endorsement of Gerry Cassioppi in the Republican primary in DuPage County Board District 5 that was published Friday stated that Cassioppi was a former member of the Naperville City Council. That is incorrect. Cassioppi was a member of the Naperville Transportation Advisory Board, appointed to this post by the Naperville City Council and the mayor. This does not change our endorsement, in which we recommended Cassioppi on the basis of his extensive governmental experience and strong grasp of issues. Cassioppi has served Naperville with distinction, both as a transportation adviser to the city of Naperville, where traffic congestion is a serious problem, and as a former Naperville Unit District 203 school board member. This elected and relevant volunteer governing experience is a key qualification for county board work. We regret the embarrassing error.

A family's long wait for justice:

It was more than 26 years ago that John Spoors was gunned down outside an Addison pancake house after a traffic dispute. The suspect fled to Mexico and has remained on the lam ever since. Twenty-six years. Can you imagine? Spoors' father went to his grave, without getting justice. But Addison police didn't forget about John, a popular 23-year-old local man who wrestled in high school and was engaged to be married. Detectives worked a new lead on the suspect's whereabouts, navigated their way through a bureaucratic web and on Jan. 8 got an arrest. The suspect will be extradited back to Illinois to face prosecution. "It's renewed my faith in the law," the victim's brother said this week. Indeed. Congrats to Addison Police Chief Bill Hayden and his hardworking officers, who still must build their case once the suspect returns. He's not been convicted of any crime.

Can't they just get along?

Citing "Gestapo-like tactics of intimidation," yet another College of DuPage trustee resigned. This time it was Mary Mack who quit one year after former trustee Jane Herron resigned. Mack accused the college president of failing to lead and the board chairman of undermining other public officials. Chairman Michael McKinnon fired back, saying the board spent significant time trying to address Mack's concerns. It's ironic, though, that trustees are jumping ship under McKinnon's watch when he initiated a leadership study at the school years back, before he took the helm. Perhaps it's time to bring in another outside expert to analyze the problem.

Really tough sell

While governments at all levels continue to see higher taxes as the solution to all problems, taxpayers seem much less thrilled about handing over more money to governments seemingly inept and inefficient, especially when individual jobs and benefits are disappearing. That's why a proposal to raise federal gas taxes by 40 cents per gallon is likely to hit with a resounding political thud in the middle of a presidential election campaign.

MySpace safety effort

Yes, MySpace.com and law enforcement officials have tightened efforts to shield young users from on-line sexual predators. But it comes at a price. Parents and police may have more trouble keeping an eye on Web activity as well. But it's a legitimate effort to improve safety for the Web's youngest users. Still, the best advice to young users might come from one of their own, a 17-year-old from Willowbrook High School: "Kids just need to be smarter."