Merle's Musings

Congratulations to Debbie Adlof for nine years of publishing the Community Word. Always some good columns in her paper, especially the November issue featuring "Straight Talk" with Roger Monroe. Roger grades the school board correctly..Bill Dennis, with his "City Beat" vents his ire at the City and School Board..Bill Knight puts it all in perspective with the lyrics of "Trip Around the Sun".

Dolores Klein bemoans the lack of women's rights. Suggested reading for Dolores would be "Murder in the Name of Honor", by Rana Husseini, featuring stories of a Muslim radical tradition that is surfacing in the United States in increasing numbers as radical Muslims clamor for Shaira law to exist along side our established law. Our laws of treat murder of women as murder. Rana Husseni tells real horror stories about some Muslim tribes where it is a tradition to call murder a family "honor killing" that often allows the "honor protecting killer" to walk free.

As more Muslims inhabit this country more demands will be made by growing ethnic groups, demands that most of you will hear about, such as the demand for two Muslim religious holidays for the New York Public School System. If Bloomberg assents, I suggest that all religious holidays be removed from the public school sector or declare a holiday for every religious group in the United States where the number I'm told is approaching 10,000.

I read today that Dr. Gorenz is not running for reelection. He says the 6 years he will be completing added on to a new term of 5 years is just too much. The Peoria County Board just approved a 6 year appointment to the county. What slightly insane legislators set these ridiculously long terms? I'm trying to find out on the County Board level. Dr. Gorenz would do the community a service by asking why school board terms aren't three years or four at an absolute maximum.

Big Al is as happy as "a possum eating bumblebees", an old farmers saying, figuring the hotel deal which puts the Peoria City taxpayer in risk of up to $81 million, payments to be made on principle ($39 million)and interest up until year 2032 if the development fails.

If the project fails would the developer be on the hook? Do you think failure is not an option? The developer is a businessman. The City eagerly accepts responsibility up to $81 million that in "days of yore" would have been private capital risk. The JS reported yesterday that the developer is seeking $7 million in tax credits, (also taxpayer dollars) that according to City Councilman Gary Sandberg would probably take the developer almost completely off the hook and put the burden on the taxpayer should this ambitious plan not "pan" out.

Hey, as one county board member said "nothing ventured, nothing gained". I agree, but politicians always find it easy to risk OPM and very little of their own.

Edison schools are always coming under fire from the union. Not because they don't outperform IF ADMINISTRATION selects the right principal, but because Edison type and Private Charter Schools are IN DIRECT COMPETITION to the union's stranglehold on the public school sector. I see where the retired president of the local teacher's union is leading a drive to seek an injunction to stop the closing of Woodruff High. Why would I suspect the union's biggest concern is the loss of dues paying teaching jobs?

Hmmmmmmm.