Capital bill needed to boost economy

Capital bill needed to boost economy

On behalf of the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, I recently stood alongside former House Speaker Dennis Hastert and former Congressmen Glenn Poshard, two of our state's most recognized elder statesmen, to join Gov. Blagojevich in calling for a statewide capital bill.

This must be a priority this year; a capital bill is exactly what our state needs to stimulate our economy, support small businesses and spur job creation. In his State of the State address earlier this year, the governor's budget included $25 billion for capital investments.

Illinois has gone without an infrastructure bill for nine long years. And while many other states invest in their roads, bridges, schools, airports and other critical project to jumpstart economic development, I worry that Illinois is falling behind.

Crumbling roads and overcrowded schools hurt our state's competitiveness in the global marketplace. It is also significant to note that Illinois' economy was slow to recover from the recession earlier this decade, but by acting on a capital bill now, our elected officials can give our state a boost as our nation lies on the brink of an economic downturn.

The governor, legislative leaders and rank and file members of the General Assembly must work together, find an agreeable solution and make this legislation a priority.

Illinois must build on its rich history of investing in infrastructure to support commerce and business activity, providing good jobs for hundreds of thousands of people and spurring long-term economic growth.

Jerry Roper

President and CEO

Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce

Democrats don't have proud record

Let's give Democrats some credit when due.

The Democrats took over the majority in both the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives in January of 2007. Here are their accomplishments since then:

• The average price of gasoline has gone from $1.90 to $3.23 per gallon.

• The housing market has collapsed.

• The mortgage market has collapsed.

• The credit market has collapsed.

• The stock market is down.

• The bond market is a joke.

• Food prices are up.

• Taxes are up and going up more.

• The unemployment rate is slowly creeping up.

• We can't wiretap terrorists plotting to kill us anymore.

Good job folks. Just think what a Democratic president could accomplish.

John W. Strzelecki

Mt. Prospect

Columnist wrong in cynicism about peace

I was surprised to read in the column by Ray Hanania, "Don't let violence sabotage efforts toward peace," that Christians, Muslims and Jews have "never lived together in peace."

I'm sure that most of your readers, and probably the author too, can attest to the fact that this is not true. I can appreciate the theme of the column. But, as it reads, that one inaccurate statement defeats the entire purpose.

I expect more from the Daily Herald than to allow such naïve generalizations to be printed. A little in-depth reporting might have shown that peace between Christians, Muslims and Jews is not a high-minded ideal, but a process that is going on right now in our city, as well as all over the world. The hundreds of thousands of Jews, Muslims, and Christians in the Chicago area are a daily living testament to this.

Luke Willson

Communication Intern CAIR-Chicago