42 Jackie Robinson: Gurnee Marcus Cinima

Posted on May 15, 2013 by Steve Haar

We got to see the movie “42”, the Jackie Robinson story this past weekend at the Marcus Theatre in Gurnee, IL. All around, it was a very good movie. We brought the whole family, and this provided a good perspective on the issue of race, not only back then, but still today, initiating conversation.

As a story on its own, it is very much worth going to see. There were light moments, poking fun at ignorance, and heavier moments showing the impact of that ignorance on people.

The movie does a good job of making the audience appropriately uncomfortable with the behavior of some of the people who are obvious bigots. They are the easy ones to target for our distaste of racism.

More challenging, and I believe more common, is the need to confront those who are not strong enough to stand up to racism, even their own, though they know it is wrong. This story is primarily about Jackie Robinson’s entry into the “white” game and how he confronts the racism with the help of the owner, Branch Rickey. But, it is also about how white people needed to confront themselves, and their recognition that their upbringing was not aligned with what they know to be right.

In our area, our kids have the good fortune to be in a diverse community. However, we still see the remnants of ignorance and even racism. Perhaps seeing this movie can provide people with the encouragement and motivation to simply do what is right.

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Any doubt our congress is NOT serious about cutting spending? Saturday Postal Deliver forced to continue

Posted on April 11, 2013 by Steve Haar
They were Handed $2,000,000,000 a year (thats BILLIONS)….
By a service that said we can’t spend it wisely….
Then Congress FORCED them to spend it anyway.

The US Postal Service wants stop Saturday delivery.  as it was costing too much money. USA TODAY

I don’t know about you, but on a good day, any day of the week, my mail is hardly worth the short walk out to the curb. By the time I get to the house, I’ve deposited most of it in the recycle bin. I don’t need to do this on Saturdays. Many Saturdays, I don’t. The junk sits in the box until Monday… or Tuesday.

As for going to the post office on Saturday, pick another day. If that is not possible (really not possible), then lets charge a premium for everyone who goes there on Saturday – $2B worth.

Congress intervenes to save us from… saving.

And for the privilege of being able to continue to do this on Saturdays, we get to spend waste $2,000,000,000 a year.

“A measure passed by Congress last month to fund government operations while the budget remains in limbo included language that barred changing the delivery schedule, “  - USA TODAY

Once again, our brave friends on the Hill sneak this into a bill that is needed to keep funding for the rest of the Government. Even if a congressman did not write this section of the Bill, they should be calling it out (loudly)  as a fundamental waste of our resources and chastising the authors.

 It’s quite clear that special-interest lobbying and intense political pressure played a much greater role in the Postal Service’s change of heart than any real or perceived barrier to implementing what had been announced.

 –Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif

Here is a quote I really like (not):

Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., the ranking Democrat on the committee, said the Postal Service must abide by the law, but Congress should pass legislation to allow it to revamp services and become profitable. Cummings introduced a bill last year that would give the Postal Service more flexibility to change its business model, but the House did not take up the measure.

– USA TODAY

The sad thing is, the postal service did not need a special bill to make this change. They had the authority to do it (the right thing), and Congress just passed legislation to take the authority away. Leave it to Congress to suggest that the solution to creating bad bureaucracy is to create even more bureaucracy. Just don’t do it in the first place. I would say this is just institutional stupidity, but that would relieve the individuals of the responsibility to do what we sent them there to do.

Influence and Special interest… preserve what you don’t (directly) pay for.

There are some who want to position this as an ‘anti-labor’ position like this in the Daily Kos. It is not. The post office is losing $16B a year. For those arguing that it is a great value service, that is because they are not actually, directly paying of it. It is subsidized by the tax payers. If we were paying the full tab directly, then I might be sensitive to these arguments. But we are not. Pay what the service actually costs, and then talk to me about value. Until then, stop asking me to subsidize your unwillingness to wait until Monday to get your mail, or you inability to get to the post office Mon-Fri.

Congress needs to take Responsibility… we need to push them

It is amazing to me that Congressmen blames bureaucrats, special interests, ‘politics’, etc for the fiscal problems. They had an opportunity to DO NOTHING, and allow the right thing to happen, and then went out of their way to DO THE WRONG THING, and waste $2,000,000,00.

This shows that congress is not impotent. They quickly moved to SPEND $2B. They choose to do the wrong things, and do them fast. Perhaps, with enough pressure, they may put the ability to do things to good use.

Let your representative know that if they want to raise our taxes, or cut back on needed services, they had better start with the stuff that is handed to them.

Find your Reps: http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/

For my area its:

Brad Schneider   @RepSchneider

317 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
phone: 202-225-4835
hours: M-F 9-5:30pm

or

111 Barclay Boulevard
Suite 200
Lincolnshire, IL 60069
phone: 847-793-0625
hours: M-F 9-5:30pm

 

Randy Hultgren  @RepHultgren

WASHINGTON, D.C. Office
332 Cannon HOB
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-2976
Fax: (202) 225-0697

OR

Geneva Office

1797 W. State Street Suite A
Geneva, IL 60134
Phone: (630) 232-7104
Fax: (630) 232-7174

Senators:

Durbin, Richard J. – (D – IL)     @SenatorDurbin

711 HART SENATE OFFICE BUILDING
WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-2152
Contact: www.durbin.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/contac
 

Kirk, Mark – (R – IL)     @SenatorKirk

524 HART SENATE OFFICE BUILDING
WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-2854
Contact: www.kirk.senate.gov/?p=contact
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Northern Il Food Bank- Lake County Residents: We Need Your Help

Posted on January 31, 2013 by Steve Haar

“reprint” from NIFB email:

Northern Illinois Food Bank is in need of your immediate help. It will only take a minute of your time, and could help tens of thousands of Lake County neighbors in need.

Northern Illinois Food Bank has submitted a request for Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding to help feed hungry neighbors in Lake County. The grant will allow the food bank to provide our Lake County hungry neighbors with more of the nutritious foods they request the most  – items such as cereal, rice, beans and canned fruit – but that our emergency food pantries have the hardest time maintaining an ample supply.

This funding will go a long way in assisting the growing need faced by our network partners.You can help. By simply filling out our short form, a letter stating your support of the food bank’s CDBG request will be sent to the Lake County Community Development Commission overseeing the funding requests.

Please act today. All letters of support must be received by the commission by Feb. 27.

Sincerely,

pete_signature
Pete Schaefer
President and CEO
Northern Illinois Food Bank

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Is this how we continue to treat our vets?

Posted on January 2, 2013 by Steve Haar

Army vet and child hood friend, Chris Riker can use more voices…

The below letter was written by the wife of a childhood friend of mine (Chris) whom I have not seen in nearly 30 years. Chris is a veteran for whom the complications from a blood clot has left him struggling.

Because of the complications of our health care insurance system(s), he is left without insurance to cover the conditions and medical issues related to the brain injury stemming from complications with the blood clot suffered while on active duty.

Take a look, and do two things:

1) ask if this is the kind of bureaucratic crap that we envision our vets facing every day (not just Chris)?

2) if you can spread the word and see if any officials might get involve, that would be great.

steve

______________________________________

Kristi’s Letter to Senator Grassley

December 27th, 2012

Dear Senator Chuck Grassley;

I am writing to you for help.

My husband, a medically retired Army veteran, had a stroke on Tuesday, December 11th, 2012. While we were at the hospital I was told, unbeknownst to me, that he did not have medical insurance coverage. He is a young father of 3. We work very hard and are not destitute, but not having insurance for this medical bill is unfathomable to me and completely frightening for the future of my children. Please bear with me, and I will give you the entire story.

In 2009 my husband, Christopher Riker, was on active duty as the head defense council for the Army JAG Corp. working out of Fort Lewis, Washington. On April 18th, he had a blood clot that completely blocked the main artery to his heart and caused a cardiac arrest. He was without a heart beat for 37 minutes. I gave him CPR to keep him alive at our home. The EMTs were able to start his heart again, and after 10 days in a coma, over 45 days in 3 different hospitals and a year of rehabilitation, he was doing very well. He suffered a severe anoxic brain injury and had to learn to walk, talk, swallow, and everything else all over again. The fact that he even lived was a miracle. Due to his permanent brain damage, he had short term memory loss and some cognitive issues and was unable to return to his work, but we were doing ok. We switched roles, I work full time now and he took care of our children and our home.

When we were in Washington we had TriCare medical insurance, which is the Army insurance. Our family went through Madigan Medical Center for all our care. Once Chris was retired, we returned to Iowa. I am an Iowa native, born and raised in Decorah. Prior to his active duty, Chris had a private law practice in Decorah, Iowa. He was well respected and loved. We are friends with Republican, Chuck Gipp. In fact his wife, Renee, was my kindergarten teacher. We love this state, and we were beyond happy to return. We currently live in Waukee, Iowa (right down the street from my Mom and one of my sisters).

Once here, we went to the Des Moines VA where our social worker told us we needed to sign up for Medicare B. We continued to pay our TriCare insurance coverage. We were NEVER told that we HAD to have both Medicare B and TriCare or Chris didn’t have any insurance coverage. In fact, this past Friday, I spoke with a different VA social worker, Brandi Austin 515-699-5999 ext. 94373, and she said she has been at the Des Moines VA for 4 years and didn’t know you had to have both coverages. I am 45 years old, and although ignorance is no defense, I still don’t know the difference between Medicaid, Medicare A, Medicare B, etc.

At the beginning of this year, we received a letter from the Social Security Administration, stating that our premium was going to increase for the Medicare B coverage. I asked Chris why we were paying for this, since we have TriCare. He called SS and they told him he could “disenroll” if he wanted to. Social Security sent him the paperwork to sign on May 8th, 2012. We called our VA social worker, Gloria (whom is no longer working at the VA) and were told that we shouldn’t fill this out. So we DIDN’T.

I have the original UNSIGNED letter. We just folded it up and put it in our desk. Then, apparently since SS did not hear from us, they sent another letter.

As I stated, I work full time, and Chris took care of our 3 kids and our home. He got the mail every day. We received letters from Social Security often, and many of these I never saw, he just threw away. His and the kids social security disability money was direct deposited into our account, so we don’t receive checks. When he received the second letter this summer from SS, he signed it and sent it back. I did not know he did this, I never saw the second letter. He didn’t remember that he was not supposed to sign this. We received a letter from TriCare the beginning of September of this year, saying he was “disenrolled” in TriCare. I told him this was NOT right, I had just paid the premium. We should have full family coverage. So he called TriCare the NEXT day. He was told that he had full family coverage. What he WASN’T told, or what WASN’T explained to him, was that for TriCare, full family coverage just means the spouse and the dependents are covered. NOT THE SPONSOR, and that Chris HAD TO HAVE Medicare B in order to also have TriCare. So he had no coverage and we didn’t even know this until the day before he was released from Methodist hospital, in Des Moines. During this time the VA TriCare employee, Diet Petry – 515-699-5739, told us that the VA had us listed as having both TriCare and Medicare B — both SS and TriCare had never even told the VA that they had disenrolled Chris.

I went to the Social Security office in Des Moines immediately and then later talked to a representative, Kathy 866-585-9531, from Ames. I was basically told, “Sorry”, he signed the paper. This is absurd. He would have NEVER signed that paperwork, had he known it meant he had no insurance coverage. He has not only, short term memory loss, but a brain injury and was on disability for this exact reason. When I asked the representative, what about Alzheimer patients? Has this never happened before, where a disabled person signs the paperwork and doesn’t know what they are signing. I was told, if they sign it they are disenrolled. They will not reverse this disenrollment mistake. On top of it all, I was told that he cannot get resigned with Medicare B until the open enrollment period and his coverage won’t even start until July of next year.

Is this really how we, the people of Iowa and the United States, would treat not only a disabled person, but a veteran that honorably served our country. It’s heart breaking, it’s frightening for my family and it’s just wrong.

I was told that you are a very honorable man and that you could help me. Please, please, please HELP ME, my husband and my children.

Thank you for your time.

Kristi A. Riker
155 Aidan Street
Waukee, Iowa 50263

Posted in Elected officials, Helping | Leave a comment

OneDerBrew, Local Business

Posted on November 11, 2012 by Steve Haar

One of the things I like to write about is new businesses within Lake County, and I tend to focus on retailers or restaurants. But, some of the neatest businesses are the small niche manufacturing firms that are hidden in our towns. These are the inventors, innovators and idea generators that help grow the base of jobs in our community.

One such company is the inventor of OneDerBrew, (Quest Applied Technologies, Inc. of Antioch, IL) owned by Steve Pearson, this niche product is for the home brewing market. Steve is no stranger to manufacturing, as his company also produces discs for Frisbee golf.But, this new product is of his own design, combining multiple steps in the home brewing process, not dissimilar to capabilities found in breweries.

As a new product, OneDerBrew faces one of the largest challenges any new product faces; marketing. This is particularly challenging with niche products. However, if you can come up with an idea that makes a real difference in the market, one of your benefits is word of mouth.

As a manufacture of a unique product, the key to leveraging the word of mouth is getting the product into the hands of early adopters and enthusiasts. Fortunately, there is a way to do this that can benefit the company, as well as local charities and causes (something else I like to write about occasionally).

For OneDerBrew, it has been through a series of special auctions, donating free units to be auctioned with the proceeds going to the cause. Some of these are:

The reason I like the OneDerBrew story is that it demonstrates two of the benefits of local businesses that are owned by local folks. Job creation and the owners are involved in the community. Steve is donating to causes that large nationals may never know about, never mind benefit.

You may never have known about OneDerBrew, but our community feels the impact of it’s presence.

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William Christopher Pettry Family Fund

Posted on October 29, 2012 by Steve Haar

William Christopher Pettry Family Fund

Christopher Pettry who was murdered on October 7, 2012 in Jacksonville, FL, where he attended a Chicago Bears game. He leaves behind a wife, 3 children and several family members and friends. Donations will be used to start a memorial fund for his wife and children.

An online Auction has been set up to raise funds for the family.

The Chicago Bears are also going to be at the Realm of Terror Haunted House on Monday, October 29, 2012 from 7:00-10:00 PM. 421 W. Rollins Road, Round Lake Beach, Il 60073

 

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2012 8th and 10th Congressional District Elections – Northern IL

Posted on October 12, 2012 by Steve Haar

You can vote early, but election day is coming up November 6th. Polls open at 6am and if you are in line by 7pm, you get to vote.

For the Congressional races in the 8th and 10th districts, I’ve shown some of the quotes from the candidates sites related to government spending. Their names link to their respective websites and their is a facebook link next to each. Their site are a good place to start,  but I also recommend checking out votesmart.org/. The site has background on each candidate as well as quotes, voting records and links to more information.

8th Congressional District

Joe Walsh  Facebook

Some of my accomplishments to protect my kids and yours from a lifetime of fiscal burden include:

  • Being a founding member of the Fix Congress Now Caucus – Our main charge is to get the House to pass H.R 3642, the No Budget No Pay Act.  This bill states simply: If Congress doesn’t pass a balanced budget every year, they do not get paid.
  • Introduction of H.R. 4632, the Government Responsibility Act, which requires the heads of all our federal government agencies to provide to Congress a detailed list of meetings, trips, and other extravagances our tax dollars are wasted on.
  • Passage of my bill, the Balanced Budget Act, H.J.Res.56, which is a constitutional amendment that requires Congress to pass a balanced budget every year.  The measure was included in the House’s Cut Cap Balance bill that passed last year.

Tammy Duckworth     Facebook

I will work to protect those in our society who are most vulnerable. I will preserve critical safety net programs like Social Security and Medicare and others like Pell Grants that give everyone a chance at the American Dream. We must take a hard look at federal contracting excesses, our defense budget and tax loopholes that let companies get away with not paying the corporate income tax or ship jobs overseas without keeping any at home.

We need to end subsidies to the oil and gas industry, as well as certain wasteful agricultural subsidies. Medicare must be allowed to negotiate for cheaper drug prices, like the Department of Veterans Affairs already does. We must make responsible, reasonable cuts to defense spending like unchecked defense contracts for weapons and other equipment the military does not need. I can speak with experience about the Department of Defense budget, which is the largest of any federal agency. 
As a member of the military, I have the first-hand knowledge needed to ask the right questions and push for better oversight of waste in runaway military contracts, while still protecting our military men and women and making sure they are well equipped and supported.

 New 10th Congressional District

Robert Dold  Facebook

I have supported budget proposals that present alternatives to the reckless spending path on which we currently find ourselves.  I not only was one of 38 Republicans and Democrats to vote for it, but I co-sponsored the sole bipartisan budget resolution offered in the House of Representatives this year.  This budget was based on the principles outlined in the Bowles-Simpson commission recommendations, and earned wide praise for being a bipartisan plan to bring the deficit under control (click here for USA Today Op-ed: “Tiny band of ‘heroes’”).  While no budget is perfect, it is time to work together to restore the promise of America.  Regrettably this legislation did not become law, so I supported the House-passed budget because it provided an alternative to the status quo of skyrocketing debt and deficits.  While this budget received strong opposition from Democrats and Republicans alike, I did, and will continue to do, what I believe to be in the best interest of those who reside in my home district.

Brad Schneider       Facebook

In Congress, I will focus on investments that will provide future security for our families and our nation. Out of the gate, we should allow the Bush tax cuts for income above $250,000 to expire, returning to the Clinton-era rates, to begin addressing our deficits.

We should also end the unnecessary tax subsidies for oil corporations and stop tax breaks for companies that ship American jobs overseas. Balancing our budget is vitally important, but we cannot keep trying to do it on the backs of the most vulnerable

Posted in Elected officials, elections, Illinois | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Getting Out In Lake County This Fall

Posted on October 12, 2012 by Steve Haar

As we get deeper into the Fall season, there are some great ways to spend the weekends with friends and family.  Events around Lake County or places like the forest preserve, park districts or even something like the  Volo Auto Museum provide an opportunity to do something you might not usually consider.

 Lake County Discovery Museum

The Lake County Discovery Museum provides visitors a unique look into the history of our county. From temporary exhibits to permanent exhibits, and the 10 minute movie taking you back 10,000 years to the special events, the museum is a place to explore, learn and have a day of fun.

27277 North Forest Preserve Road, Wauconda, IL 60084  (847) 968-3400

The Volo Auto Museum

The Volo Auto Museum is always a fun place to spend the day. Whether you are a car buff, or just want to walk the well groomed grounds, enjoying the people, food and atmosphere, the museum provide a great way to enjoy a day.

If you go October 14, 2012, there is a special event for Toys For Tots.

 Other Events County Lake County

This weekend and into late fall, there are a number of arts and crafts shows. These are a great way to spend a day in a relaxed and fun place. You are sure to find something interesting. Click Here.

 

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Warren Township Leaf Collection

Posted on September 20, 2012 by Steve Haar

It may seem early, but with the cooler weather comes thoughts of raking leaves. Most villages have arrangements for leaf collection. The leaf collections typically start in mid October.

In unincorporated areas of Warren Township, the highway department, contracting with Waste Management, will start collecting leaves on October 22. There will be six  collections through the week of November 26th.

Leaves should be:

  • Ranked to the curb or beginning of the pavement, and no more than 5 feet in depth.
  • Not blocking culverts or storm drains
  • Only leaves- no other material or debris
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Gurnee Intermediate School – Drivers Ignore Stop Sign

Posted on September 11, 2012 by Steve Haar

During the end of the day at the Gurnee Intermediate School, drivers ignore the stop sign. No one got hurt, today. But if these drivers are ignoring one of the most basic safety rules while on school grounds, I can only image how they drive when kids are not around. Oh, but where we live, kids are always around… you just have trouble seeing them sometimes.

A rolling stop seems harmless enough. But, we have stop signs for a reason – to protect the kids. Its not a yield sign. Its a stop sign. Obey it. No one who hit a child with a car thought they were going to do it. Just like none of these drivers think they are ever going to hit a child. But it happens, and usually when we are doing something like rolling through a stop sign.

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