Letters to the Editor
Letter: Benld Mayor responds to resident’s letter
To the Editor:
In response to Mr. Ken Snider’s letter published in your newspaper, as the Mayor of the City of Benld, I am providing the following information for clarity.
Previously to the Special Meeting of April 17, 2020, a public meeting was held in July of 2018 to discuss a proposal from the City of Gillespie to provide police protection in the City of Benld. The meeting was well attended by citizens and interested persons.
In the following month of August of 2018 two police committee meetings were held where it was first discussed that inquires for possible police protection from other surrounding communities such as Mt. Olive and Staunton, did not appear to be possible. At the August 13, 2018 meeting of the police committee an informal group of citizens, who were attempting to work on the problem of the costs and manpower shortage pertaining to the Police Department of Benld suggested the City Council defer any decision for a period of one year, to allow the citizen’s group to provide assistance in resolving the issues of costs and lack of personnel available for the Police Department. Although the help of the citizen’s group was appreciated, no resolution of the lack of qualified personnel was able to be achieved. The most recent action by the City Council in April, was not a matter of cost, rather the inability to obtain qualified police officers who are willing to work on a long-term basis in the City of Benld.
In response to the incorrect information provided by Mr. Snider in his letter to the Editor the following are the correct facts:
- I had a meeting with Ken Snider in early 2020 to discuss various issues including a proposal from the City of Gillespie to provide police protection for the City of Benld.
- I further advised Mr. Snider, a Special Meeting of the City Council would be scheduled to discuss and vote on any proposal.
- Based upon the current restrictions for public gatherings and the need for proper social distancing, the Special Meeting held on April 17, 2020, was made available through both the Zoom format and telephone conference call. I also suggested to Mr. Snider that anyone interested in the issue could provide their views to their Alderman.
- Mr. Snider apparently received proper notice of the Special Meeting, as he was present by way of Zoom attendance and made statements duly considered by the Alderman.
After due discussion at the Special Meeting held for which notice was properly posted and carried in numerous formats through social media, the Council approved an Ordinance that set forth an agreement with the City of Gillespie as follows:
- Twenty-four-hour police coverage, seven days a week would be provided by the Gillespie Police Force in the City of Benld commencing May 1, 2020.
- The cost for the police protection from the City of Gillespie would provide savings from the average expenses incurred by the Police Department during the last five years.
- The City of Gillespie is obligated to provide a police vehicle in the City of Benld for each of the three shifts during the day and to take over the duties of the Police Department for the City of Benld commencing May 1, 2020.
- A recent addendum to that agreement is being enacted by both municipalities to provide each municipality will equally share in the income from fines received for any traffic or criminal charges filed as well as any ordinance citations issued by the Gillespie Police Department while patrolling within the City of Benld.
- The five-year agreement provides that after the second year there can be an increase in the cost of the $216,000.00 annual fee. However, the increase must be related to the documented increase of expenses for the operation of the Gillespie Police Department and will be shared by the municipalities based upon their population percentage.
- The ordinance contains a “Buyout” provision that any time after the third year, either municipality could decide that the arrangement was not working in the best interest of their community and terminate the arrangement.
As to Mr. Snider’s suggestions that the City of Benld will be paying over $1.08 million dollars during the next five years. Mr. Snider is correct as the actual contract the cost for the five years, without any calculations of increased expenses would in fact be $1,080,000.00. However, that cost must be compared to the higher five-year cost for the operation of the Police Department in Benld of $1,352,653.00, without any calculation of inflation during the next five years. It is important to note, however, the “cost factor” was not the most significant issue in the recent action by the City Council. Rather the City Council faced the problem that attempts to obtain full-time officers on a long-term basis for the City of Benld was highly unsuccessful and the City was down to two full-time and three part-time officers required to work all shifts. The ability to have twenty-four-hour coverage, seven days per week will not be able to be maintained.
The action taken by the City Council was out of necessity. I believe each Alderman seriously considered the issue and took action that each Alderman deemed to be in the best interest of the City of Benld. I am proud of the sincere efforts made by the City Council to resolve this difficult problem. I personally believe the right decision was made.
Jim Kelly
Mayor
City of Benld
Comments
Dear Editor:
This is not about Donald Trump. It’s not even about the sad souls seduced by him. The insurrectionists who stormed the Capitol to prevent the peaceful transfer of power were primarily guilty of being gullible. They fell for the fraud. They did not do the defrauding. Many have been held accountable for their actions. Most of the ones who fooled them have not. Yet.
I refer to Republican Party leaders who cashed in their moral courage to ride a demagogue’s coattails to power. They learned from their adored leader how to spew out coded calls to mob mentalities eager to vent their resentments. I used to believe people had to be taught to hate. Donald taught us you only have to invite people to hate. Let them know it’s OK. Normal. Join the gang. Have some fun.
Who would you like to hate? It doesn’t have to be a race, religion, or immigration status. People really want to hate “Elites.” Who are elites? Anyone who knows more than they do. People want to feel like they know more science than scientists; feel more righteous than the devout. What better leader could they have than one who tells them what they want to hear. Someone who claims to “know more about the military than all the generals.” That injecting bleach might cure Covid. Forget evidence. Forget knowledge. Too time consuming. Too boring. All you have to do is what Donald does. Just “feel” you’re right. Personally, I’d rather lose with honesty than win with lies.
They call themselves something they are not: “Conservatives.” True Conservatives value character, civility, and intelligence. Trump-pets reward arrogance, anger, and self-delusion.
“Alternative facts” is an oxymoron. Except in minds that can’t face an uncomfortable truth. They’re just opinions masquerading as facts. Using partial truths is not just a way to fool others. It’s how we fool ourselves. If you embrace Donald, you embrace his lies and self-delusions. You become what he is: a fraud. In the end, you will be a mere follower of a pathetic, narcissistic bully. I would rather be dead than that.
If you are one of those silent conservatives who still respect the Constitution, Democracy, and the rule of law, but allow yourself to be intimidated by Trump Trolls, the death of our democracy will be on you.
James Tweed; 1512 Wesley Ave. Ocean City, NJ 08226; (609)398-3124
Comments
President Donald Trump will formally accept the Republican Party nomination for President at the Republican National Convention next week.
America is a country divided and by virtue of accepting the Republican Party’s nomination for president, half the country will embrace him while the other half will want nothing to do with him.
The divide between Democrats and Republicans is nothing new, but what is new is the use of lawfare to target political rivals. Here in Illinois, the moment President Trump and his delegates filed their paperwork to be on the ballot in the Land of Lincoln, a group of far-left radicals immediately filed an objection to the filing. The objection was an outlandish legal charge that President Trump was the instigator of the events on January 6th, 2021, and was therefore not eligible to be on the ballot.
In the end these bogus accusations went nowhere. Even legal experts who were no fans of the 45th President thought the objection was ridiculous. But this is the state of affairs in politics today. Instead of putting ideas on the ballot and campaigning on the merits of those ideas, the far-left radicals are weaponizing our courts and targeting people solely on the basis of political ideology.
Donald Trump is without a doubt the most famous person in the world and like all famous people, he has his fans as well as his detractors. He is not “literally Hitler” as the extremists on the left claim. He is not the enemy of Democracy. He is a candidate for office like any other candidate. His ideas of a strong border, a strong military, low taxes, reduced business regulations, trade deals that protect American interests and a desire to protect America’s interests abroad have been a part of the public discourse for a long time. The notion that these ideas are an “assault on our Democracy” is just nonsense.
President Trump was leading in the majority of the battleground states long before the country saw Joe Biden’s decline in real time during the recent Presidential debate. And the reason he was leading in the polls is because Americans in growing numbers have rejected Joe Biden’s failed policies. The fact that Joe Biden has demonstrated his complete inability to serve has only served to give President Trump even more momentum than he already had ahead of the Republican National Convention.
It is time for our party to rally around our nominee. We cannot afford to continue Biden’s open border policies that are crippling our cities. We need a President who is strong on crime and who will work with state and local governments to keep our communities safe. We need a leader who will put an end to the inflation hurting so many families. I hear all of the time from constituents who are overwhelmed by the price of food and other household necessities. The current Administration won’t fix a problem and in fact they won’t even acknowledge the problem exists.
I call on everyone who may have voted for someone other than Donald Trump to watch the Convention and rally around our nominee. So-called “Republicans” like Adam Kinzinger who have done the unthinkable and endorsed Joe Biden are not only embarrassing themselves, but they are contributing to our nation’s decline.
We cannot afford another four years of the Green New Scam, the open border policies and the weaponization of the justice department to target political opponents. Joe Biden ran to heal our country and all he has done is fracture us even more. It is time to put America first and Donald Trump will do just that. It is time for Republicans, Independents, Libertarians, and moderate Democrats to rally around President Trump and Make America Great Again!
State Representative Adam Niemerg
Comments
Dear Editor,
Domestic Violence within Macoupin County is prevalent. It is destructive and can be both physical and psychological. It can affect anyone of any age, gender, race, or sexual orientation. It may include behaviors meant to scare, physically harm, or control a partner. While every relationship is different – domestic violence generally involves an unequal power dynamic in which one partner tries to assert control over the other in a variety of ways. The following statistics are all according to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence.
We can see domestic violence inside the home: through the use and control of household pets. In one study, 85% of survivors who experienced co-occurring animal abuse reported that the behavior of their pets had changed. An even higher percentage of survivors who reported partners had harmed or killed their pet, have also reported their partner for domestic violence. We can also see an increase usage of firearms within the intimate partner violence home. A survey of contacts by the National Domestic Violence Hotline found (of those with access to firearms):
- 10% said their abusers had fired a gun during an argument.
- 67% believed their abusers were capable of killing them.
We can see domestic violence inside our schools: as partner violence is not exclusive to the home. There are many instances of violence between dating partners that begin in high school. Nearly 1.5 million high school students in the United States are physically abused by dating partners every year. Within those relationships, 13.4% of male high school students report being physically or sexually abused by a dating partner.
We can see domestic violence inside our community: Macoupin County provides a specific set of needs for those victims and survivors of domestic violence. There are several complex concerns within a violent relationship that come to light once action has been taken. Safe Families sees a few main re-occurring concerns within the county:
- Survivors have fewer financial resources, making them more financially dependent on an abusive partner.
- The lack of rental units or other affordable housing options makes it more difficult for survivors to leave spouses or co-habiting abusers.
The Macoupin County Safe Families program provides support for residents as they journey the emotional endeavors to leave behind domestic violence. As a contributor to that experience, we will be hosting a Domestic Violence Awareness Walk on October 7th on the Carlinville Square. An event shirt will be included with a ticket sale. The online tickets will close 09/29 at 5pm. Tickets will be sold at 9am day-of event at the Safe Families booth. More information about the Awareness Walk can be found on our website at mcphd@mcphd.net. We urge Macoupin County residents to join us and rally against domestic violence together.
Juliet Wooldridge and Lilly Booth
Domestic Violence Advocate Coordinators
Community Health Worker
Macoupin County Safe Families
Comments
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