Where The Hell Is Our Sponsor?

Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.


Would you believe this guy gets paid for this?

We want this job!

Enjoy a weekend full of silly fun!

The Long Goodbye.

Update:

Vote to Impeach Rod Blagojevich

59 Yes -- 0 No.

Thank you Senators.



It's only a matter of time -- we hope that time comes today.

From chicagotribune.com

"Ellis told senators that Blagojevich wanted to raise $2.5 million by year’s end and engaged in three schemes of coercion.

One involved an $8 million grant to Children's Memorial Hospital that he wanted to result in a $50,000 campaign contribution."

The $8 million dollar grant was for "a statewide pediatric medical-care initiative to pay hundreds of doctors to treat poor sick children throughout Illinois." (the background story)

We feel there is a special place in hell for Rod Blagojevich.

Referendum Madness!

from: Reefer Madness (1936)

People, tell your children! Keep them safe from the degenerating terrors of referendum madness! It could lead to brainwashing and communism!

It starts innocently enough -- a lone alderman diabolically proposes a referendum. The next thing you know people are going crazy in the streets -- trying to take over local businesses in their effort to collect signatures on petitions! The referendum scourge is only temporarily averted by the bravery of those willing to confront the problem!

Before you know it, the menacing dangers of this referendum madness have spread to the seats of power! And other aldermen begin to take part in this democratic debauchery by offering more referendum madness to the voters! Even Don Bachtard (3rd ward) our reliable Constitutional UNscholar has been heard to utter his desire for placing a referendum question on the ballot asking voters if they want to fund the fight against O'Hare expansion!

Now, even our Senators and Representatives are pushing this insanity from the devil's garden of democracy! And the PRU Crew has been told our Maine Township officials have fallen for this trickery!

Three referendum questions will appear on the April ballot asking voters for their opinions on government matters!

It's referendum madness!

Looks Like A Horse Race!

It looks like the election for who will be seated on the Park Ridge Park District board will be a real horse race!

We've been told 10 people submitted petitions yesterday for the 4 open board seats. Those people are --

Richard J. Brandt -- billed as a "retired realtor" by the Journal and Topics

Nicholas Giordano -- an attorney

Walter Mizialko -- of Walter's restaurant fame

Peter Wachowski -- an attorney

All the above appear to be on the SEIU (Service Employees International Union - Local 73) slate of preferred candidates which the Pub-dogs wrote about yesterday.

Rick Biagi -- an attorney, and who some of you may remember submitted a guest essay to PRU.

Scott Duerkop -- A member of the Park Ridge Parks Foundation and also, it appears, employed in the commercial real estate and investment management industry for Jones Lang LaSalle

Pawel Matula -- ?

Meredith Wisniewski -- ?

Steven Vile -- who we believe is an eye physician in Arlington Heights

Nick Milissis -- current Park Ridge Park District board member, and who we wrote about nearly a year ago

Quite an interesting mix of people!

We sure hope we've gotten the correct information listed for everyone. We look forward to hearing more about these candidates and their ideas.

Squawk Squawk!

Back in late December of 2008, Alderman Dave issued a press release challenging Mayor Howard to eight debates -- one to be held in each ward, and then a city-wide forum for the benefit of the general public.

Mayor Howard sure wasn't interested in that idea.

And now it appears that Mayor Howard isn't even interested in attending the traditional public forums for debate which he has attended in the past.

In an online update for one of the local rags, we read Frimark kicks debate to the 'CURRB'. The article quotes Mayor Howard as saying, "I've selected more professionally structured debates with organizations that actually do debates on a regular basis," Frimark said. "I think we'll cover whatever we need to cover in those three debates." Translation -- debates where members of the general public aren't, in Mayor Howard's words, "jumping up and asking questions," a reference to the more informal structure of the CURRB forums." Translation of the translation and twisting a phrase -- Mayor Howard don't want nobody's questions nobody pre-screened.

The article goes on to quote CURRB forum organizer Judy Barclay saying, "Barclay argued that the CURRB forum is a "credible" event that audiences and candidates alike have enjoyed. While she would not say definitively that it will be scrapped, she questioned how a forum could be conducted with only one mayoral candidate."

The PRU Crew seems to recall several aldermanic candidates being invited to past forums despite their having no opposition. It is our opinion that CURRB should proceed with their forum and if Mayor Howard is a debate pooper that's his loss.

We feel the opportunity provided by CURRB's forum, for questions to candidates from the general public, is a service to the voters of Park Ridge and a fundamental foundation of a healthy, participatory democracy.

Majesty!

Bestpicturegallery.com, Angel Oak, South Carolina, by MarkRegs

Gospel music anyone?

Kirk Franklin MP3 from Free MP3 Downloads

Have an uplifting weekend!

Whoa!

Clip art licensed from the Clip Art Gallery on DiscoverySchool.com


PRU readers may remember our post, Moooooving Forward!, where we asked, "Anyone want to guess what power play Mayor Howard has up his sleeve next? We will give you a clue -- what bodies within the structure of our local government still maintain some measure of independent authority from Mayor Howard and his council lapdogs?"

The answer is the Appearance Commission, the Planning and Zoning Commission, and the Zoning Board of Appeals. Each of those qausi-adjudicative bodies (defined in 5 ILCS 120/2 (d)) are "an administrative body charged by law or ordinance with the responsibility to conduct hearings, receive evidence or testimony and make determinations based thereon, but does not include local electoral boards when such bodies are considering petition challenges." There are circumstances under which these bodies do not make final decisions, such as when the Zoning Board of Appeals recommends approval for a major variance.

In his role as one of Mayor Howard's favorite lapdogs, Alderman Don Bachtard (3rd ward) has suggested that decisions made by these quasi-adjudicative bodies should be appealable to the City Council -- appealable not only by the applicant, but also by neighbors of an applicant, who may or may not agree with either the applicant's request or the decision made by the commission or board. You can read the background information here (.pdf). Furthermore, Ald. Bachtard, with the support of Alderman James Allspaghetti (4th ward), wants all negative decisions by these quasi-adjudicative bodies to be appealable to the City Council.

Does anyone see a problem with this? The PRU Crew sure does hope everyone is getting along out there!

We also wonder just how far Mayor Howard and his lapdogs will go in their unending efforts to seize control with the potential to politicize city procedures. We agree with those who have expressed concern on this matter, as recorded in the Procedures and Regulations Committee meeting minutes of November 4, 2008 -- this is not a good idea.

Council Recap!

Greetings, PRU readers! We've got a council meeting recap for you today -- it's not as full as we wanted it to be, but sometimes digging into background information isn't as easy as we would like it to be. And sometimes we come up empty too.

Without further ado, here's your council meeting recap!

Monday night's City Council meeting began with an attempt by the leader of the ORD-REST community group to provide a power point presentation.pdf (we assume it's the same one presented at the 12/13/08 Town Hall Meeting) to the assembled masses, but Ms. Christine Kutt-Zolt couldn't get cooperation from the technology gods. Instead Ms. Kutt-Zolt went ahead and verbally presented the case for ORD-REST and what they hope to do. Mayor Howard and some of his Alderdopes are looking to make ORD-REST a city sponsored task force, and no doubt shift the responsibility for dealing with the O'Hare issue away from themselves, the elected officials who dropped the ball on this for the last two years.

Our sources report the Council's eyes boggled as Ms. Kutt-Zolt began listing expenses for the proposed ORD-REST groups becoming a city task force -- the grand total being $300,000.00 to begin the effort to research whether or not there is anything that can be done to pursue some forms of relief from the O'Hare expansion.

The ORD-REST effort could include the hiring of many many consultants to research and advise on such things as the Environmental Impact Statement issued for the O'Hare Modernization Program, write federal legislation "to protect us and others" from airport problems, give ORD-REST a "seat at the ONCC table" -- which conveniently lets Mayor Howard and Alderdunce Don Bachtard (3rd ward) off the hook of accountability -- as well as suing the FAA on behalf of property owners in Park Ridge who believe their property value has diminished in light of the opening of the new 9L/27R O'Hare runway.

We feel those efforts would be an exercise in futility. However, we strongly feel the City of Park Ridge should not even be thinking of using taxpayer money to fund lawsuits on behalf of some private property owners. We know there are those who will argue that the city has an interest in the value of that private property; however, we maintain that city funding of lawsuits that may or may not return monetary relief to private property owners, in the way of some settlement, is not the sort of interest the city should take in the issue and would not serve to protect the collective city interests.

Sources tell us that after the Alderdopes listened to the dulcet tones of the cash registers in their heads begin ringing, the 2nd ward's Lord of the Manor, Rich DiPietro, suggested the issue be referred to committee and that the process of interviewing task force members, by the Mayor's Advisory board for recommendation for appointment by Mayor Howard be followed. And here PRU readers should note, bureaucracy has its advantages -- as every bureaurat comes to understand in time.

The City Council then moved on to discussion of how the City Council COW meetings are to be conducted. We are told the low light from this portion of the meeting was having to listen to 4th ward Alderman James Allspaghetti, in response to an amendment offered by 1st ward Alderman Dave Schmidtzkrieg that would have demanded a super majority vote of the council to limit debate, argue that debate should be allowed to be limited by a simple majority vote, and that he's never seen the limiting of debate "abused", and that he feels demanding that a super majority vote to limit debate of public business is not good government. For his part, Alderman Bachtard whined that "COW meetings should mirror City Council meetings" and that now there would be two sets of rules for different meetings. Schmidtzkrieg argued that COW meetings are supposed to be different from City Council meetings.

Initially a voice vote was taken on the amendment and it seemed to pass, with our sources telling us that Aldermen Bachtard, Allspaghetti, and Benedict Alderman Ryan voted no on the amendment that would have demanded a super majority vote to limit debate. But then, in what has become a sort of City Council tradition, confusion ensued and a roll call vote was requested -- a sort of City Council do-over. With the roll call vote, sources tell us the Unfriendly Ghost from the 6th ward, Tom Carey, seemed to change his vote to a no and then the amendment to demand a super majority to limit debate was defeated.

The Council also discussed the complaints they had received about the COW meeting location at the Public Works Service Center -- by consensus they have decided to hold COW meetings at City Hall.

The next item on the agenda was discussion of 7th ward Alderman Frank Wsooooolman's resolution to include a referendum on the April ballot asking voters something -- we still don't know exactly what -- about building a new Park Ridge police station. Alderman Wsooooolman said he was introducing this resolution because, until Monday morning when Joe Egan and his volunteers submitted 2800 plus signatures to the City Cluck for their referendum effort, it had seemed to him the citizen effort to get the referendum question on the ballot wasn't going to be successful, so he figured he would do it. Which leads us to wonder why, after learning Joe Egan and his volunteers were successful, Ald. Wsooooolman didn't pull his discussion item for a referendum resolution off the City Council agenda?

During the very lengthy and circular discussion of Wsooooolman's resolution the assembled masses were treated to another Ald. Allspaghetti dissertation on the ignorance of the citizens of Park Ridge, saying we are "uninformed." Allspaghetti's remarks elicited a pointed retort from Ald. Schmidtzkrieg who said "calling the populace uninformed is wrong." Then the Lord of the Manor, Ald. DiPietro, offered that Ald. Wsooooolman had come up with referendum language because at an earlier meeting Joe Egan had said that if the council didn't like his referendum wording they should come up with their own. Alderman Benedict Ryan said he though Ald. Wsooooolman's referendum "clarifies" the issue. The PRU Crew is wondering if Benedict Ryan needs a new pair of glasses because the final wording of the Council's referendum --

"In adopting a capital project to improve the administrative/public and police facilities, shall the city of Park Ridge require as a condition of issuing any bonds for such improvements that the total spent, absent interest and operational costs, be less than $16.5 million and the facilities be located at 505 Butler Place on land already owned by the city?"

-- seems to us to be anything but clear, or clarifying.

Ryan then attempted to amend the referendum by adding language that said approval of the referendum "will not cause an increase in taxes, fees, or service reductions as of 2008 levels."

The first portion of that language to get axed was the "as of 2008 levels" then, after City Manager Jim Hock said the language would tie the hands of the City Council while making budget decisions, the Council nixed the rest of Benedict Ryan's amendment.

The Unfriendly Ghost, Tom Carey, motioned to have the issue deferred for two weeks, but that motion failed.

We are told Alderman Wsooooolman then launched into some bellicose bellowing, to borrow a phrase, on how all the discussions about building a new police station and land needed for the project had taken place in open meetings.

Sometimes this really is like shooting fish in a barrel, isn't it?

Would anyone like to remind Ald. Wsooooolman about the discussions that have taken place behind closed doors about land purchases? Would anyone like to remind Ald. Wsooooolman about Mayor Howard's discussion and attempts to INCREASE THE PRICE THE CITY WOULD PAY for the property at 720 Garden Street, all of which took place behind closed doors? Would anyone like to remind Ald. Wsooooolman about Mayor Howard's attempts to get a deal for his friend and campaign contributor, Bill Napleton? Many many many of the discussions about the deals, plural, for Napleton's property have taken place behind closed doors.

The final vote on inclusion of the Council referendum on the April ballot was approved by a final vote of 5 (Wsol, DiPietro, Bach, Ryan, and Carey) to 2 (Schmidt and Allegretti).

The Council then moved on to discussion of Ald. Wsooooolman's next proposed referendum question -- whether the voters want the City to go to referendum whenever non-emergency debt is being considered. This item was referred for consideration to the Finance and Budget committee by a unanimous vote.

Next up, City Manager Jim Hock let everyone know that it's business as usual with ComEd. Hock reported that 80 homes were without power during the recent subzero temperatures, and that this outage was actually scheduled by ComEd. Hock also told the Council that another report received from ComEd said that an additional 1000 homes were without power, but that report turned out to be false. Unfortunately, the City had begun notifying residents before being able to confirm the validity of ComEd's report. Alderman Bachtard said it wouldn't do any good, but he wants to call ComEd on the carpet anyway. Sensational!

The assembled masses were then given a report by acting Chief of Police Tom Swoboda on his investigation into the Oberweis incident involving allegations officers had attempted to intimidate employees at the ice cream shop who were allowing police station referendum petition volunteers to collect voter signatures in the store. The result of Swoboda's investigation resulted in his finding that one employee received a telephone call from a woman claiming to be a Park Ridge police officer, who complained about the referendum effort. The PRU Crew is wondering if dollface has been smiling and dialing? Swoboda also said that one officer had been in the Oberweis store but nothing other than "small talk" took place. Swoboda then went on to complain bitterly about inaccurate information being released to "the press" and how that unsubstantiated information damages the reputation of the police department. Chiefy, the PRU Crew thinks you do a pretty damn good job in helping that effort along yourself.

Mayor Howard then took the opportunity to say, and we quote -- he was "incest" because of the incorrect and invalid accusations, and that "our police officers aren't types that bully people."

Next up, City Manager Jim Hock proposed the City Council go into closed session to approve closed session minutes and als discuss acquisition of land. Ald. Wsooooolman earned his only PRUdo for the night by asking City Manager Hock if the land acquisition item had any relation to the Park Ridge Police Department? Mr. Hock reportedly replied, "Potentially." Ald. Wsooooolman, fully realizing the implications, then said "this is why residents don't trust us." Ald. Bachtard simply said "we can't afford land right now", but Ald. Allspaghetti said that discussion doesn't mean we have to buy it. The Council approved the closed session agenda item to review other closed session minutes but did not vote to discuss any land acquisition in closed session.

The Council then voted to form a task force to review the tree preservation ordinance, because you can't possibly have too many unelected, Mayoral appointed bodies making recommendations to elected officials on city policy.

Under the Council's agenda item for New Business, Ald. Bachtard again said he wanted a ComEd representative to come to Park Ridge. Sensational! Bachtard also went on to say he has received complaints about empty stores and city policies that "keep them empty" so he wants the Procedures and Regulations committee to review city ordinances governing local business matters. We can't wait for the recommendations from the Procedures and Regulations committee!

All together now --

Give us a "T",
give us an "A",
give us an "S",
give us a "K",
give us an "F",
give us an "O",
give us an "R",
give us a "C",
give us an "E"!

It's Official! -- Inauguration Day!

from: The Onion Store

THE ONION

Black Man Given Nation's Worst Job

November 5, 2008

"WASHINGTON—African-American man Barack Obama, 47, was given the least-desirable job in the entire country Tuesday when he was elected president of the United States of America." [read more...]

And today, America made it official -- African-American man Barack Obama, 47, took the oath of office and was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States.

We couldn't resist today -- Council recap, tomorrow.

Freewheeling!

#1 -- City Council meeting tonight.

There are a number of interesting items on the City Council agenda (.pdf). The PRU Crew is wondering why, with the city budget in deficit and promises of fiscal conservativism from the 7th ward's Alderman Frank Wsooooolman , the city has scheduled a closed session to discuss land acquisition?

#2 -- Unrest among ORD-REST participants.

A number of comments we've received indicate there are those who feel shut out of participating in the ORD-REST efforts to fight the O'Hare expansion and new runway. We've received reports that while everyone seeking to participate has been given a chance to speak freely in public, they have been privately told their participation isn't needed. We hope that if the City decides to form a city sponsored and taxpayer funded task force, everyone understands that shutting anyone out of the process is undemocratic. But we get the idea that the democratic process isn't how things work in Howardwood.

#3 -- Congratulations to Joe Egan and his petition circulators.

We've received word that Mr. Egan and his volunteers have submitted petitions to the City Cluck, Betty Henneman, that contained more than 2800 signatures allowing a referendum question about a new police station to be placed on the April ballot. They accomplished this participation in the democratic process despite some under-handed efforts from the forces of Frimarkness.

Should be an interesting City Council meeting this evening.

Viewer Discretion Is Advised!

And we quote from this week's Journal and Topics article, Bullying Charges Fly:

"I was shocked that businesses would become politically active, possibly hurting their business," Frimark said."

WARNING! Some material may not be suitable for more sensitive viewers.




Mayor Howard launched his first mayoral campaign by holding a rally in front of Park Ridge's preeminent landmark business, the Pickwick Theatre, complete with his name splashed across the marquee.

Shocking!

Mayor Howard then used a photo from the rally, in the campaign mailer you see scanned and copied above. We've whited-out the bullshit in the side panel and, but for that, the photo is unaltered.

Shocking!

Mayor Howard launched his 2009 mayoral campaign inside Morningfields Market on Devon Avenue in Park Ridge.

Shocking!


Relax, stay warm, and have a good weekend!

By The Rules!

According to the rules, the Mayor votes to break a tie or when a super majority is needed to pass some item of council business. Rules are rules. Even in Park Ridge, Mayor Howard sometimes decides to follow the rules -- and Mayor Howard has cast tie-breaking votes at council meetings.

Like the time Mayor Howard cast the tie-breaking vote that would have given his friend and campaign contributor, Bill Napleton of Napleton Cadillac, $2,000,000.00 in tax benefits and an additional payment of $400,000.00 to clean up any contamination of the old Napleton Cadillac dealership.

Mayors casting tie-breaking votes happens in many other towns too. Mayor Howard's good buddy, Mayor Tony Arredia (R-We got the casino license!) of Des Plaines, has cast tie-breaking votes too. And at least one resident of Des Plaines was inspired to thank Mayor Arredia for his tie-breaking vote in the Journal and Topics' Speak Out! section:

Thanks mayor for tie-breaking vote

Mayor breaks 4-4 tie in favor of 1% property tax levy for 2009. Congratulations to Mayor Tony Arredia for breaking this most contested vote in the city council in all these weeks of discussion. I'm sure he was under a lot of pressure to do otherwise. My hat goes off to you mayor for siding with all of the taxpaying citizens of Des Plaines. Frank from Des Plaines.

We wonder if anyone besides Bill Napeton thanked Howard Frimark for his tie-breaking vote.

The PRU Crew is also wondering if the City Council, busy changing the way city business is discussed and managed, would consider changing the rules for when tie-votes need to be broken.

We feel the taxpayers of Park Ridge would have a better chance if the City Council were to consider the following option --

Is There A Doctor In The House?

Sigmund Freud is considered the father of psychoanalysis -- a practice, in part, by which a person's ego is analyzed and motivations are discerned. According to Dr. Freud, the ego will pursue the attainment of something to compensate for something else felt to be missing.

Sigmund Freud assigned to women a desire for compensation, of what was "missing" from them, as penis-envy. The PRU Crew has never bought in to that psychobabble, because we feel very deeply that with what women do have, they can have as many penises as they want. We know this. We know this because offers have been made. And rejected -- even after major effort has been made to explain to them what they're missing. We can only conclude Dr. Freud is completely wrong on this women with penis-envy thing, because people do not reject offers for things they envy and supposedly want.

However, the PRU Crew isn't ready to summarily reject the entirety of Freud's theory of an ego's desire for compensation.

If we go looking for an example of Freud's theory in practice, close to home, we feel it can be found in 7th Ward Alderman Frank Wsol's police station referendum solution -- or Wsolution, as the PRU Crew is preferring to call it.

In an article in today's Journal and Topics, 'Wsol Pitches Idea For Police Referendum Wording', we read that Ald. Wsolution is quoted as saying, "I think I have a solution, and I'm going to be asking the City Manager to put this on the schedule for next Monday." Alderman Wsolution is pitching two referendum questions to the voters of Park Ridge --

1. -- "In adopting a capital project to improve the administrative/public and police facilities at 505 Butler Place, shall the City of Park Ridge require as conditions of issuing any bonds for such improvements that:The annual bond payment will not cause an increase in City taxes/fees or service reductions as of 2008 levels (adjusted for inflation); the total spent, absent interest and operational costs will not exceed $16.5million; the facility improvement will not require new land purchases and the facility improvements will, where economically appropriate,include "green engineering" for the purpose of lowering on-going operational costs."

2. -- "Shall the City of Park Ridge adopt a policy that all non-emergency debt and all non-emergency budget increases above the CPI-U (CPI-U decreases will not apply) shall require voter approval by referendum vote?"

The PRU Crew is wondering what Ald. Wsolution is trying to compensate for -- is this really the best he can do? The PRU Crew has to admit we aren't even sure of what a yes or no answer means for each of those questions, as one of our commenters pointed out yesterday.

We know there are those who feel the condition of the police station is fine and there is no need to address the shortcomings in the facility. The PRU Crew strongly disagrees with that position.

We know there are those who feel we can't afford the expense of an entirely new station. The PRU Crew feels that position has some merit, at this time. But the City of Park Ridge has mucked around about the police station for so long, under much better economic conditions, that we are beginning to feel we may never see a real solution to the problems of the police facility in our lifetime!

The PRU Crew is a fairly uncompromising bunch on nearly every issue. We tend to take a look at things and make a judgement about what we feel is the right course of action.

On the issue of our police facility we feel we could swallow some kind of compromise. We don't know exactly what that is, but we know that the current condition of the station is unacceptable.

We're hoping the politicians can stop their ego compensation games for a little while and get to work on a real solution. We've had just about all we can stand of their dicking around.

General Reaction is WTF! -- COW Recap

from: dan-dare.org - SouthParkWallpaper

Good morning PRU readers! Our sources are reporting in and letting us know there was quite a show to be seen at last night's City Council COW! We're working on a recap for your reading pleasure. In the meantime, feel free to add your own observations here.

Long Recap!

Our sources are unanimous in reporting that at last night’s City Council COW they couldn’t hear sh*t! The acoustics in the room are anything but audience-friendly.

Our sources also tell us the council began by discussing the mechanics of how the meeting was to be conducted, as if they had never been in attendance at a committee of the whole meeting, ever, anywhere, at any time.

Despite being blind, the Aldermice forged on.

Alderman Frank Wsooolman (7th ward) commented on whether or not the City should take a look at the local building codes in relation to the O’Hare expansion. The PRU Crew believes Ald. Wsooolman is referring to a sound insulation ordinance.pdf, like the one recently passed by Arlington Heights. The PRU Crew has been wondering when somebody would notice this issue.

In our research of the O’Hare Modernization Program, we have found that it seems unlikely any home built or added on-to after September 2005 will qualify for sound insulation funds through the ONCC. This information is contained in the ONCC's Resolution 2007-5.pdf. It also seems that Alderman Don Bachtard (3rd ward) and Mayor Howard missed the ONCC meeting where this bit of news was discussed, voted on, and adopted by the ONCC membership. And of course, Alderman Bachtard hasn’t reported on this to the Park Ridge City Council.

Alderman Wsooolman was also concerned about the City of Park Ridge’s position on the Olympic games. The 2nd ward’s Lord of the Manor, Ald. Rich DiPietro, said that an individual had written about the Olympics, but that he expected that if the council were to take a position he hoped they would discuss it. The PRU Crew feels that joke kind of tells itself, doesn’t it?

Next, City Manager James Hock let everyone know that the Park Ridge Public Library has a policy that does not allow soliciting within 50 feet of their front door. It seems clear to the PRU Crew that the City Manager hasn’t familiarized himself with the Park Ridge municipal codes just yet, especially regarding the ordinance that covers soliciting (Article 14, Chapter 20.pdf). We have no explanation for City Attorney Buzz Hill’s idiotic agreement on this topic, or why none of the other Aldermen questioned the City Manager's and City Attorney's statements.

Alderman Dave Schmidtzkrieg (1st ward – Mayoral candidate) did ask where this policy is written and by what authority the library could act to determine such a policy. As we understand it, those questions were never properly answered, though the Lord of the Manor did say the policy was established when citizens were collecting signatures for the library referendum in days gone by.

The City Manager also assured everyone the Acting Chief of Police Tom Swoboda had sent a memo to all police department employees explaining that citizens have a right to petition their government. Acting Chief Swoboda also promised he will investigate this matter thoroughly.

There was no agenda line item for the COW meeting that allowed for citizen comment but at this point in the meeting Ald. Wsooolman said as the Public Safety chairman he would make sure citizens had a chance to comment.

The Aldermen went on to discuss, at great length, the City’s tree preservation ordinance and the forming of a task force to look into changing the ordinance. So all you George Washington wannabes step up and volunteer for the City Council’s latest task force opportunity.

The council also discussed an emergency purchase for more salt. We hear the 6th ward’s Unfriendly Ghost, Tom Carey, took the opportunity to try to scare Alderman Schmidtzkrieg, after he asked why the Public Works department was again running out of salt after the City faced this same problem last year. The Unfriendly Ghost took great exception to the idea that Public Works Director Wayne Zingsheim was being accused of poor management. We are told the Unfriendly Ghost made a big show of thanking Director Zingsheim and his staff for their excellent work, noting that while driving back from Greenbay one evening, the Unfriendly Ghost encountered all kinds of terrible road conditions until he got to Park Ridge.

The council also discussed some poor bastard’s efforts to get the hell out of Dodge, a.k.a. de-annexing approximately 40% of his property from the City of Park Ridge and being allowed to be annexed into the City of Chicago. For the time being, it looks like the poor bastard will remain in the warm bosom of Park Ridge.

One of the lengthier discussions during the COW was between the Aldermen and representatives from Shell Oil Co. seeking to limit Shell’s liability for ground water contamination from 2500 feet to 350 feet surrounding 900 Talcott Rd. The PRU Crew thinks this sounds like a really great deal – for Shell Oil Co. Our sources have reported to us that Shell has hired consultants to do “modeling” of the site, which we believe does not involve stiletto heels and a cat-walk. The ground water and soil have been tested and the modeling seems to indicate 350 feet is protection enough for the citizens of Park Ridge in the surrounding area.

Let’s see now, where else have we seen modeling done that said certain types of contamination would not be spread beyond the modeling contour? That’s right PRU readers! The O’Hare Modernization Program's Noise Contour map! All you 5th warders just hush up now! The modeling said you wouldn’t be contaminated with jet noise!

Next, Ald. Wsooolman raised the issue of the South Park Merchants request that the City look into purchasing a property near Brophy and Devon for parking – the approximate price for the property is $895,000.00. And the PRU Crew remains convinced that, while tax revenue can come up short, there is never a shortage of people who want to spend other people’s money.

The Public Works portion of the meeting ended around 9:45 pm and they took a break.

Next up, the Public Safety portion of the meeting was dedicated to discussions of traffic and selective enforcement on Cumberland Avenue. Ald. Bachtard let everyone know that we have to be nice to Jewel Food stores or they may pick up their produce and go home. Mayor Howard promised to sit down and discuss the issue of truck traffic with Jewel – no, not the corporate offices, the Jewel store manager, because in the words of one of our sources, Mayor Howard thinks big! The PRU Crew is wondering why Mayor Howard would pick up the phone to talk to the corporate officers for Oberweis but not for Jewel Foods. Anybody care to take a guess?

The council then moved on to discuss the RFQ for the police station. The council seemed to conclude that they need to hire a consultant to write the RFQ that will be used to hire a consultant for consulting on a new police station.

We have received an abundance of priceless quotes uttered during this portion of the evening, such as –

Ald. Ryan on referendum – “The City doesn’t have to go to referendum. The system is not set up for the City to have to go to referendum.”

Ald. DiPietro on referendum – “The residents have typically lead the drives for referendum, like the library referendum and the council reduction. The only referendum the council put on the ballot was the one asking to stagger aldermanic terms, because that one was so non-controversial.”

Ald. Wsol to Mayor Howard who was yelling at an audience member to sit down – “I am the chairman of this committee and I am ruling you out of order.”

But there is no doubt in our minds that this one wins first place!




Everybody get that? Do not quote Mayor Howard on anything he doesn’t exactly say! Our thanks to a PRU reader for this submission.

Finally under New Business, Alderman Wsooolman let everyone know he plans to introduce a resolution of his own for a referendum on a new police station. Why now Alderman Wsooolman?

Addendum --

Alderman Wsooolman's proposed referendum language is --

"In adopting a capital project to improve the administrative, public, and police facilities at 505 Butler Place, shall the City of Park Ridge require as conditions of issuing any bonds for such improvements that the annual bond payment will not cause an increase in City taxes, or fees, or service reductions as of 2008 levels? The total spent, absent interest and operational costs will not exceed $16.5million. The facility improvement will not require new land purchases and the facility improvements will, where economically appropriate, include green engineering for the purpose of lowering on-going operational costs."

You can view Wsooolman's offer by watching the video below!

Moooooving Forward!

Tonight the City Council begins its new committee meeting format -- Committee of the Whole -- and will be discussing Public Works and Public Safety issues.

The meetings begin at 7:00 pm at the Public Works Service Center on Busse Hwy.

Mayor Howard will chair the meetings and the former chairmen of the council committees have been given the ceremonial task of introducing items that fall under what used to be their council committees.

You see PRU readers, Mayor Howard began his march to the top of the dictator's mountain by first pushing his own referendum to cut the number of aldermen in half. He then saw to it that he populated the council with hand-crafted rubber stamps that would do his bidding. Mayor Howard then had his rubber stamps push to move to a committee of the whole format, because it wasn't enough for Mayor Howard to chair regular city council meetings; to get an even tighter grip on the reins of power, he will now run meetings where traditionally committee topics were hashed out between aldermen and citizens.

Anyone want to guess what power play Mayor Howard has up his sleeve next? We will give you a clue -- what bodies within the structure of our local government still maintain some measure of independent authority from Mayor Howard and his council lapdogs?

After Mayor Howard manages to get his council lapdogs to neuter the authority of the remaining portions of city government, we can only guess that it will be a short time later when we begin to hear rumblings from the "24/7" Mayor about how we should consider making the job a full-time, salaried position. Because if there's anything the City of Park Ridge needs, it's another 4 years of this "24/7" Mayor.

Think about it people -- you're going to pay for Mayor Howard, one way or another.

A Rare Saturday PRU Post.

Above for your viewing pleasure is the highly offensive political ad placed in this week's rag by Mr. Joe Egan of police station referendum petition infamy. The ad that allegedly inspired Mayor Howard to pick up one of his phones and call Mr. Oberweis to investigate this matter.

Mr. Egan, we have no reason to believe you are not telling the truth about anything Howard Frimark has done and said. The PRU Crew knows the man far too well. The PRU Crew has watched the man for too many years. We hope you now understand the bottomless black hole you are dealing with. We hope you are taking the necessary precautions.

Acting Chief of Police Tom Swoboda is charged with investigating the allegations of the participation of on-duty, uniformed officers in this matter, and so the PRU Crew will have nothing further to say on that portion of this story.

We are thoroughly disgusted by the stupidity of all involved in this matter. You have failed to understand the long term harm you have done to your own cause for the immediate gratification of political expediency. Stupid. Asinine. Idiocy.

PRU.ADMIN

NOTE -- All comments to this post will be pre-screened exclusively by PRU.ADMIN and all comments not worded with extreme care and judged to be wholly accurate will be rejected.

Relax With Friends.

Have a good weekend.

Addendum --

PRU readers --We just received a copy of an email with an account of what has taken place today, and what anony-mouse first alluded to in comments posted here.

We haven't had a chance to verify the email, and the Pub-dogs seem to have scooped us again.

You can read the account on their website --

Pub-dogs -- Howard the Bully

We sure are hoping at least part of this story isn't true.

Don't Give Up! - Guest Comment

Submitted for your consideration by Ms. Christine Kutt Zolt

Many thanks to any and all citizens of the bubble known as Park Ridge for your support of ORD-REST - the organization created to gain relief from the O'Hare Modernization Plan. As apolitical as I would like to be, I will hold my tongue for private, verbal discussions - but I will say this. I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore.

The OMP is in process. We coulda, shoulda, woulda done things different and protected our little hamlet from the Big Bad City of Chicago and the FAA. But we didn't. Still, not all hope is lost.

In case you've not noticed, there is a new sheriff in town - who has a million reasons to do the right thing to protect the health, welfare and economic status of all citizens - even those who live near airports. Of course, our little problem here in Mayberry isn't going to be at the top of his list, yet once he solves the economic crisis (don't get me started), ensuring quality of education, environmental safety and value of prosperous markets will come into play. Our little problem is the perfect opportunity for the elected officials of the great State of Illinois to be heroes, help solve our problem and that of those in Orange County CA, Seattle WA, Cincinnati OH and other areas where air traffic is intolerable.

There is a way to achieve balance. We don't know what that balance is, but let's go with this:

The team that has created ORD-REST wants to search, find, aim, fire, shoot and hit the target that will gain relief. We're committed and we'll do our best to move this agenda forward. Luckily I'm "in between opportunities" and only working part time - so I can throw myself into and at this effort.

The residents of Park Ridge are paying big for the City of Chicago to fill their bank accounts whilst using our skies. All residents in Park Ridge are affected as this intolerable increase in air traffic - passing over 5 elementary schools and pointed directly at our top ranked High School - is foxtrotting with everyone's property - in every way, in every corner, in every ward of our City. To suggest that "we" didn't care about air traffic until the new runway opened is inaccurate. Many of us supported the SOC and have been commenting and fighting airport noise for many years. The opening of 9L/27R was the straw that broke the camels back - the dam has broken and the flooding has begun.

I'm not ready to give up. I hope you aren't either. Attend the next ORD-REST meeting scheduled for January 17th at 1:30 at the Park Ridge Library to find out how you can be part of the solution.

Or you could move.

Respectfully,
Christine Kutt Zolt

They May Try This Next!

By: Gary Larson, The Far Side


As regular PRU readers know, we usually post a city council recap the day after city council meetings. But yesterday we decided to bite the bullet and post about the O'Hare expansion issue -- we felt we had sat on the topic without comment for long enough. We had been looking to find something, anything, to offer PRU readers on the O'Hare issue as a beacon of possibility, so we took our sweet time researching the issue. We are grateful we didn't get a beating.

So thank you for your patience! And once again today we have a quickie council recap for you, plus a snippet.

Today's recap has been written and submitted by a guest reporter -- Naomi de Plume! We are grateful for the opportunity to publish this guest perspective.

We've got a sneaking feeling that the next move Mayor Howard and his Aldermorons may try, to get people to stop paying attention, is to feign death! We say everybody should hold out for the real McCoy!

O.k. -- we're just kidding about that...mostly.

Enjoy!

Council Recap!

Howard Frimark’s handpicked City Council started off the new year the way it spent all of 2008, thumbing its noses at the residents of Park Ridge. In a precursor of things to come, almost every matter on the agenda was designated as a “consent” item, meaning there was no discussion at all before they were approved. Get used to it.

Most of the evening’s festivities centered on the Council’s ill-conceived plan to go to a Committee-of-the-Whole process. Incredibly, Fourth Ward Alderman Jim All-spaghetti even admitted, proudly in fact, that now the Council will be able to put almost every issue on a consent agenda and forego public debate at Council meetings, because all of the discussions will already have taken place at the COW meetings!

Rubber stamps will be in short supply in 2009, because the Council will be using them all. So if you happen to be a resident who chooses to attend Council meetings to find out what the Council is up to, well you’re out of luck. When Alderman Dave Schmidtzkrieg warned that the COW process was inherently flawed because the public will have even less opportunity to follow what the Council is up to, he was told that any alderman who wants to can pull an item off the consent agenda. Right. We can see it now: an alderman will do just that, say his piece, and the others will sit there in stony silence or criticize the offending alderman for wasting their time since the discussion has already occurred. Dollars to donuts that All-spags himself will be the first guy to say just that. And what if a citizen wants to pull an item off the consent agenda? Well, tough luck. You don’t count.

Once that fiasco was through, Alderman Schmidt updated the Council on the citizens’ efforts to get a police facility referendum on the April ballot. He reported that Joe Egan & Co. have obtained over 1000 signatures despite the fact that Park Ridge experienced its most inhospitable December weather in years. Schmidt implored the Council to do the right thing and listen to the residents who want to have a voice in this matter by doing in 5 minutes what it has taken these valiant citizens weeks of braving snow and cold and rain to accomplish. The reaction from the other aldermen? Stony silence. Better get used to that as well.

Naomi de Plume
Cub reporter for the Underground


Snippet!

We've been wondering what the Journal & Topics has been up to because we hadn't seen anything come over the wires from them in a while -- now we know! They're upgrading their web site; welcome to a brave new world, Journalites!

And here's a sample of the JOURNALonline to come, along with an explanation of something we've been scratching our heads about too!

You May Hate Us Today.

It is not our intention to have you hate us. But we understand that sometimes those offering a message that won't be well received become a target -- a shoot the messenger response that is all too common. However, when we decided to begin blogging, we pledged to ourselves that we would speak the truth as we understand it and offer our honest opinion on public policy matters for review.

Today's post will be exactly that.

On the issue of the new 9L/27R O'Hare runway, and O'Hare expansion in general --

The PRU Crew is of the opinion that we are all screwed. The PRU Crew is of the opinion that there is nothing that can be done to undo the new runway opening -- it is not going to be closed. The PRU Crew is of the opinion that litigation would be a losing proposition in terms of reducing runway usage or reinstating flight caps, and would prove so costly that undertaking such an effort is not worth either the time or expense; a lesson our involvement in the Suburban O'Hare Commission should be seen as having taught us all.

We would be more than pleased to be proven wrong on all fronts, from every angle.

As we have researched the history of this issue, we've come to understand that our elected officials and the local press failed us on so many occasions and in so many ways we can't count them. And still we can't make any claims about not knowing this was coming our way.

Going forward, we see some potential for relief through compensation for reduced property values -- both for the property owners and the City of Park Ridge. Please note, such "relief" is not the same as "relief" from jet noise, frequency of flights, nor reductions in pollution -- people should ask themselves the difficult question as to whether they would be willing to accept monetary relief or not, because that form of relief is all we see as being potentially available, even though we also see that potential as very very remote.

Also going forward, we hope Park Ridge voters will consider the history of the issue and take note of those elected officials who did and did not do their jobs on our behalf. The Pub-dogs have an excellent post which discusses some of the more recent history of (in)actions on the part of Park Ridge elected officials concerning O'Hare expansion.

Finally, to the ORD-REST.com group being lead by Christine Kutt Zolt --

1. -- Would you please consider getting rid of the auto-play jet noise on your site? Those clicking in from work are less likely to do so if the rest of their work mates will also be subject to jet noises at the office -- keep in mind, those most interested in your site are probably those already being subjected to jet noise, so more of the same seems like salt in the wound.

2. -- As we previously stated and feel is worth repeating -- we would be more than pleased to be proven wrong on all fronts, from every angle. We wish you the best of luck and if we come across anything we feel may be helpful or useful to your cause, we will pass it along.

3. -- Anyone who is suffering under the delusion of believing the issue of O'Hare expansion is not about politics, or that politics can be kept out of the discussion, should read this speech, given on June 16, 2008 by the Acting Director of the FAA -- and we quote, "Airport expansions are hard to accomplish and this has been a tough political fight. This makes completion of the entire plan even more critical. Mayor, stay the course. Even greater days are ahead for O’Hare."

4. -- Seeking relief for one area of Park Ridge could subject another area of Park Ridge to all the noise, pollution, and safety concerns residents along Belle Plaine are now aware of. We know that there are those in Park Ridge who are very pleased with the shift in air traffic, because this shift has provided them with some relief from the constant noise. Be advised, we've received some pointed correspondence from those folks who feel "ORD-REST is nothing but a bunch of *%$#, who never gave a *%$# about any "safety concerns" when the planes weren't flying directly over their own precious property." We've politely responded that as one part of Park Ridge goes, so goes all of Park Ridge; it's in everyone's best interest to work together.

5. -- We feel at this point one of the best hopes for Park Ridge is the completion of the southern-most runways in the O'Hare expansion plan -- those runways may again shift some air traffic away from the Touhy/Belle Plaine/Devon approaches to O'Hare.

6. -- And we recognize this may be the most distasteful part of the message, but -- there is virtually no denying that O'Hare Airport is one hell of an economic generator for the region. We fully recognize that Park Ridge is taking it up the backside in suffering for the sake of the economic benefits others will enjoy, particularly the City of Chicago. But we hope that when the arguments for relief are made, those doing so will keep in mind there are benefits too.

Let the beating of the PRU Crew begin -- we'll understand.

Addendum -- Press Release just received.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, January 5, 2009

A Statement from Park Ridge Alderman Dave Schmidt, candidate for Park Ridge Mayor, on the O'Hare runway issue

Howard Frimark has failed the residents of Park Ridge on the O'Hare runway issue to the point that they have been forced to take matters into their own hands. I respect, admire and applaud citizen activism. That is why I commend the organizers and members of ORD-REST, the newly-created organization working for relief from the noise and pollution caused by the new runway. In one month's time, these citizens have done more to address the problems presented by the new runway than the entire Park Ridge city government has done since the plans for the new runway configuration were unveiled in 2001.

But as much as I support the efforts of ORD-REST, for which I serve as a member on its legal subcommittee, I must question how and why we have reached the point where our citizens are forced to do for themselves what the duly elected City officials should have been doing on their behalf years ago. Unfortunately, Frimark did nothing since taking office in May 2005 to address the many issues posed by the new runway until the horse had left the barn and was flying over the residents' heads.

Unlike most other member communities of the O'Hare Noise Compatibility Commission ("ONCC") which recognized the importance of being represented at ONCC meetings by their mayors, since his election in 2005, Frimark has consistently chosen to pawn off his duties on aldermanic surrogates, thereby conveying the unmistakable message to our fellow member communities, the City of Chicago and the Federal Aviation Administration that the ONCC and the new runway itself meant little to Park Ridge.

Back in June 2005, just a month after taking office, Frimark met with Mayor Daley in what was described in the August 2005 Spokesman as a "congenial and positive meeting" in which Frimark asked Daley "that we be kept informed about all developments that will affect the citizens of Park Ridge." Frimark, however, completely dropped the ball after that. In fact, he was advised at a December 2005 City Council meeting by then-Alderman Jeannie Markech that O'Hare expansion was going to have a significant impact on Park Ridge, and that Frimark, himself, should be attending the main ONCC meetings to safeguard the interests of Park Ridge residents. However, he ignored that caution. In February 2006, Markech again implored Frimark to attend the ONCC meetings. ONCC records reflect he went to just one. Incredibly, even after the new runway opened in November 2008 and the residents were up in arms, Frimark chose not to attend the December ONCC meeting in Rosemont, a meeting that I did attend along with more than 100 very angry and concerned Park Ridge residents.

Because of Frimark's total neglect of this issue, we will never know what concessions, considerations and benefits Park Ridge might have achieved had he actively participated in ONCC meetings when it really mattered. In typical Frimark fashion, however, not only does he refuse to acknowledge his failure to lead when it mattered most, he is blaming others for his own failings and using his office as our top elected official to do nothing more than cheerlead the citizens from the sidelines as they try to salvage what they can in the way of noise and air pollution reduction. To deflect criticism, Frimark and his political allies are now claiming that they were duped by the City of Chicago into believing that the runway would only be used on occasion and only by small planes. However, in a letter to Frimark which is posted on the City of Park Ridge website, the FAA states that "[p]rojected usage of the runways was disclosed in the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and source documents made available for public review and comment….The FAA met with and provided information to the ONCC and communities surrounding O'Hare…prior to approving [Chicago's] requested runway alignment." The FAA letter also states that the EIS reflected the runway would be used for all types of aircraft. In other words, if Frimark had been paying attention and attending the ONCC meetings, he would have known the real situation and perhaps been in a position to do something about it.

What can we hope to achieve at this late date? Unfortunately, Frimark's neglect has left us with few alternatives, none of which will likely have a significant impact on the problems faced by the residents most affected by the new runway. We can push for noise monitors and soundproofing money, a process which should have been started years ago. We can hope that the federal government frees up funding for the planned additional southern runways. However, that solution is still years away. Our ORD-REST legal subcommittee can explore possible legal remedies, but litigation is expensive and there is no way to guarantee success. Finally, we can urge, cajole and beg our federal elected representatives to come to our aid. They may be our only hope. Frimark has given us none.

Contact Dave at
www.electdaveschmidt.com or at (847) 430-3165

It Didn't Take Long!

On November 18, 2008, the day after the City Council passed the final reading of ordinances allowing for the licensing and regulation of temporary overnight homeless shelters in Park Ridge, we told PRU readers that "we sure hope none of us is given a reason to have to talk about PADS or the PRMA for a long while."

Only a month later, mere days from the New Year before the champagne had even been popped and poured, the Park Ridge Ministerial Association managed to piss-off our Bluebird of New Year happiness.

In several emails received from faithful readers, we were informed of the following:

HOMELESS PEOPLE MAY NOT SLEEP IN PARK RIDGE, BUT WE CAN STILL OFFER TO FEED THEM: The Park Ridge Ministerial Association is sponsoring Sunday Night Suppers. Starting January 18, 2009 all who are hungry or homeless are welcome!! Every Sunday Night doors open at 5:45 p.m. and the meal is served at 6:00 p.m., St. Paul of the Cross Roman Catholic Church, in the Morello Parish Life Center, 320 South Washington in Park Ridge. For more information call 847/692-6767.

This gem of an announcement was made not in the St. Paul of the Cross bulletin, or school take home, or church. No. Making such an announcement in any SPC-related venue would have made too much sense. But as we all know, Fr. Carl Morelleon doesn't like to let his own parishioners know what's taking place in their parish before done deals are announced some place else. No. Can't have that. Must not tell SPC parishioners anything first. Let the latest goings on at SPC be announced at a City Council meeting or, most recently, in St. Luke's Parish Notes. Clearly you all see the brilliance of this method of operating.

We also have been hearing that the PRMA is planning to invite all of the guests from the weekly Sunday Night Suppers to pray all evening (and into the morning) in the sanctuary of one of the PRMA member churches. In effect, they will be holding a lock in at this unnamed church so that the folks attending the supper won’t be out in the cold once the supper concludes. Because if there's anything hungry, homeless people need it's to be awake all night, praying -- unless our PRU readers aren't buying that bullshit either.

If the plan is to lock in the homeless and call the thing an all night prayer session, vigil, revival, or come-to-Jesus meeting, but then look the other way as the homeless fall asleep for the night, we've got news for the PRMA and any other interested party -- that is a temporary overnight homeless shelter, and we expect the City Council to enforce the licensing regulations they just passed.

The PRU Crew are also wondering, if the homeless are invited to a soup kitchen set up in the SPC gym, will those soup kitchen suppers be legal under the recently discussed, changed, and passed environmental health codes? In the minutes of the Special City Council Environmental Health Workshop(.pdf) held last April, it is noted that "the floor was opened for a question/answer session. Various questions were raised about church and community organizations holding bake sales and Pot Luck suppers, etc. Events that are planned which include the serving of food are said to be permitted, as long as the event is not open to the public at large." (emphasis added)

B.O.H.I.C.A.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Our Milky Way

Top Ten Reasons To Keep Reading PRU
in the New Year!

10) We don't accept advertising; advertisers can't call our Editor and raise holy hell about a story they didn't like and threaten to pull their advertising dollars.

9.) We offer an interactive experience on local issues with nearly unlimited space for your comments.

8.) We've got nothing to lose by ratting out the rotten apples in local government, and neither do you.

7.) We don't give a shit who you know, how long you've lived in Park Ridge, how much money you make, what club(s) you belong to, or what ivory tower gave you a degree; as a resident and/or taxpayer you are entitled to open, honest, transparent, and representative government, and that's what we are pushing for.

6.) If we know something and can verify its authenticity, we will tell it to you whether you want to read it or not; we refuse to infantilize the adult population of Park Ridge.

5.) We aren't politicians and we will never ask you for your $upport.

4.) We are a fun and entertaining alternative to the local presszzzzzzzzzzz...

3.) Where else can you see pictures of --

2.) Admit it, you like seeing arrogant politicians and stupid kool-aid drinkers being made fun of.

And the number one reason to read PRU...

1.) You don't have to press "1" for English.