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I want to take this opportu-nity to thank the voters of the 51st Senate District for their support and calling for a new day in Illinois. In a contested Democratic primary race we have won the support of the people.
I’d also like to take my hat off to Amy Bliefnick. I’ve always liked Amy and I think she does a great job on the Richland Board and manag-ing the State Fair. I admire her call to public service and hope she continues on her path to serve.
I want to thank my team of dedicated volunteers and my family for working hard to make sure our message was heard. We have nine months to the general election. I look forward to this next contest and working with people across party lines to elect the right candidate for the job.
I the coming months, I will be traveling the district to meet with people and discuss the issues important to them. Thank you again for your support and I look forward to working with you.

Tim Dudley
Decatur

Many times our country has spent treasure and lives coming to the aid of total strangers in other countries. It’s who we are and how we share our blessings. How can we sleep at night if we allow some of our own people to suffer and die because they don’t have access to the health care we enjoy?
Other advanced countries have addressed this same problem and solved it. For instance, Switzerland is simi-lar to us in many ways. They’re multi-cultural, speaking five official languages. Their economy is based on capitalism with a strong banking and insurance industry. Their insurance companies opposed changes to the health care system when the country voted to enact it. But health care for all works in Switzerland and is now cherished by even those who opposed it. The secret is removing profit from the system. Health care insurance is still provided by private companies in Switzer-land but they take no profit. Their profit comes from enticing their health care customers to buy their other insurance from the same company.
We can do something simi-lar by just admitting that making a profit on something as basic as health care is not who we are. We’re better than this.

Frederick O’Neill
Decatur

I live on the northeast side of Decatur and have for a long time. The railroad tracks south of Caterpillar on 27th Street have been around longer then I can remember. In years past, getting stopped at the tracks because of trains was not too common. But it seems that within the last year the tracks have been congested. ADM uses these tracks mostly for switching train cars so each car is going to the right plant. Is there anyway that the switching yards can be moved down further east to avoid having 27th Street tied up for 45 minutes out of an hour. Or maybe an under or overpass there. There will be a fatal accident there soon.

Kenny Brown
Decatur

I realize that no one but me will really care about the content of this letter, how-ever for the second time within the past few months; the Herald & Review printed a letter to the editor that was signed by a Dave Phillips. I have met this guy and he seems like a nice enough person. He’s only lived in this area for a few years, while I have lived here for over 70 years.
The first time he had a letter printed, a few of my friends commented to me about it, thinking I had writ-ten the letter. The topics that the “other Dave Phillips” writes about aren’t really controversial but I wish he could be a little more explicit about who he is as he’s not the only Dave Phillips in Decatur.

David H. Phillips
Decatur

The Supreme Court over-turned a century long law that in his opinion will open the flood gates for millions of dollars for special interests from foreign corporations.
President Obama said the public has tightened their financial belt, and govern-ment should do the same.
Remember just before he left for Christmas vacation, Christmas Eve., he congratu-lated the Senate for passing their version of the health care bill, even though they passed a provision that will cost the country hundreds of millions of dollars in order to get the vote of a Nebraska Senator. A few weeks before that, the House passed a provision that will cost $300 million for the vote of a Lou-isiana Congress member.
In his message, he says it’s time to tighten our belts, even the government. Is this hypocrisy at its worst and isn’t purchasing votes like this ‘bribery?’ Is bribery unlawful?
With corruption, evil, law-lessness, etc. maybe we should leave the Guantanamo prisoners just where they are and occupy the prison cells in the prison near Chicago with the Washington politicians. Just maybe they would re-ceive a much needed learning experience and learn how to behave and get along with each other.
The Apostle Paul came to the troubled church at Corinth, not with excellence of speech or wisdom, declar-ing to them the testimony of God.
With all due respect which is America in need of most – leadership as shown by the Apostle Paul or the leader-ship of our President?

Samuel Jenkins
Olney

Our elected leaders are dead wrong about health care reform. For example, Phil Hare has spent 18 months advocating and defending his role in the Pelosi Health Care Reform effort. He has avoided town hall meetings with voters and ignored the valid concerns of his district. He went along with back room deals that are better for some states and left Illinois out in the cold. Congressman Hare’s undying support for single payer health insurance run by the Federal govern-ment is not only out of step with his district, it is also opposed by a vast majority of his fellow members of Con-gress.
Congressman Hare and his fellow Democrats in Wash-ington, to include Senator Durbin, now are trying to re-write history. Today, they’re saying Congress has moved too fast, gone too far; not listened to the American people. What’s changed? Has Mr. Hare suddenly decided to listen to the people in his district? Has he had a change of heart about socializing medicine? Not a chance. This only came about after Mas-sachusetts voters spoke for most Americans by rejecting candidates that support radical health care reform and increased taxes instead of focusing on jobs, out of control spending, and keeping our country safe.
Don’t think for one minute Mr. Hare and his party have given up on their agenda. Despite the current talking points, but for one election, they would be moving full speed ahead. We can’t forget what their true plans are and need to work together to remove Phil Hare from office in November. Yes, we can.

C. William Burton
Decatur

I agree with Leo Chalifoux’s letter on Jan. 25. There are too many politicians in Washington and state governments as well as their staffs who have never served one day in the military but you always see them taking advantage of photo ops with the injured soldiers.
When they get home it is business as usual. They don’t work 365 days a year and only seem to worry about lining their pockets and friends. Why must our politicians keep spending money we don’t have and giving it to all of the corrupt politicians in other countries. Having served in the Navy for over 22 years, I have been in many countries, and it doesn’t matter to them except how much money we give them and it never goes to the people who need it.
This once proud country is in shambles because of pure greed at the top and the attitude of many at the bot-tom of total entitlement from the governments. It is time for both groups to change and work with the middle class who cannot keep paying for both of these classes. We need to take back our streets, cities, states and federal governments who are selling us out. Corporate welfare has to stop as well. Tough love decisions have to be made but they also have to be fair. There are thousands of medically retired veterans not being paid retirement pay. Can you believe our government is paying bonuses to the top executives who are responsible for the very large backlogs of VA Benefits claims to our veterans? Have any of our politicians refused their large paychecks and special benefits packages?

Paul Conlin II
Decatur

At the Jan. 12 school board meeting, member D. R. Roberts made inaccurate and factually incomplete com-ments regarding the insurance benefits, specifically the proposed deductible contributions increase, of Decatur Education Association (DEA) members. The offensive comments portrayed our members negatively.
Insurance coverage was described as a “perk” and Roberts said it was perceived by our members as an entitle-ment. Factually, insurance coverage is part of our financial compensation package agreed to during recent negotiations and contained in our current collective bargaining agreement. The present coverage is the result of a negotiated agreement. Considerations and cost esti-mates were projected to maintain the financial health of the district along with adjustments in salary pro-posals.
Roberts described DEA members a “short sighted or self centered” by stating the declining insurance fund balance would limit the abil-ity to hire people to teach kids and questioning “why anyone would balk at raising the deductible when the insurance fund in spiraling out of control.”
Deductible increases, in isolation, will not address the decline in the insurance fund or education fund. DEA has not “balked” at raising the deductible and remain a committed participant in the insurance committee. A more pressing concern should focus on the recent and significant decline in the education fund and a thorough examination of expenditures. I assure stakeholders, DEA members remain diligent in our con-cern about the financial health of the district. A shared goal in bargaining our agreement was maintaining a balance of $10 million in the education fund. Attributing the decline in the education fund solely on the salaries and benefits of our membership is inaccurate. As advocates for our students, we continue to make the financial health of the district a priority.

Jim Forrester
President
Decatur Education Asso-ciation

“Global warming” should not be our biggest concern. I have been monitoring atmospheric pressure for the past two hours and it is going down at an alarming rate. It has dropped at rate of ap-proximately 0.006 psi per hour. If that rate continues, all of our normal 14.7 psi of atmospheric pressure will be gone in about 100 days. We all need atmosphere and there-fore we must do something to keep it. Maybe we should build a giant balloon around the earth to keep all of our air in. Pay no attention to the incoming weather front. It is just a diversion tactic by the non-believers. We will run out of atmosphere soon. We must act now!

Dave Phillips
Decatur

Why is it that the residents of Decatur are forced to carry garbage service with a company that provides such poor service? I am a wife of a soldier currently serving in Iraq with a six-month old baby and I take my recepta-cle, which I purchased myself, to the curb once a week. They miss me, refuse to take boxes and leave gar-bage in my behind. They attempt to charge me the receptacle fee at least once a year. I have also seen them going through my garbage right there at my drive. When I lived in Harristown I received exceptional service. Now, I am trying to get out of city limits again just to get the service I deserve. Why is the city forcing its residents to put up with this?

Lisa Martin
Decatur

My husband and I live on a residential street in a subdi-vision located in a rural setting. We walk our dogs every evening between 5:30 and 6 p.m. We take every precaution to protect our selves (reflective vest, flash lights and light colored cloth-ing). There are no sidewalks in our neighborhood so we are forced to walk in the road but we always step off the road when we see an ap-proaching vehicle.
Some drivers slow down and move to the other side of the road. We are very grateful to them and truly appreciate their effort. However we are still in fear of being struck. Why? Because most vehicles that pass us are speeding, some as fast as 50 miles an hour. They show no sign that they even know we are there. This tells me a couple of things. They are not paying attention or they are just plain rude and have no idea that they must share to road with pedestrians. Either way it is very dangerous situation.
In the summer when it stays lighter longer it is not as bad but in the winter it gets dark early. We not only have to contend with snow and ice but we must always be on the look out for speeding cars and oblivious drivers. We have almost been hit a couple of times and were it not for the fact that we are very cautious we would have been hit. I am writing this letter to remind all drivers to slow down and to always be on the look out for pedestrians, children at play and dogs. You should be going no faster than 35 miles per hour in a residential zone.

Leslee Ferguson
Oreana

Has Illinois become the “most illiterate” state in the nation. We have vehicles disappearing everyday in our
potholes. And our Einstein wants to build a “high speed train” for $4.5 billion.

Roger Campbell
Oreana

I read in the Herald & Re-view that Rep. Suzanne Bassi, Palatine, had a bill on the floor that will let people in Illinois have their car windows tinted to 35 percent. The people south of I-80 do care about our police officers and don’t want to see them killed.
I called the American Can-cer Society and they were not backing bill HB 3325.

James Nuckolls
Decatur

I have had a rude awakening in regard to health care — I am turning over to government what rightfully belongs between me, my doctor, and my God. In April of this year I had a massive stroke, which has awakened me to the fact that I have not done well with all my ancestors did for me. I have acted as if they worked hard (without insurance)so that I could stuff myself with pizza and burgers all week while sitting at a computer each day fretting over not having not enough gas for my car while at the same time having too much gas in my belly.
I have also noticed that I am not alone in this predicament; many have been tempting fate with high blood pressure and cholesterol. It is easy to expect that it well all work out well in the end.
Perhaps God has been too good to us. I have no doubt what God can do for me. In fact, He delivered me from death’s door during the stroke but even Jesus did not jump from the temple de-manding a frivolous miracle from his father by jumping from the temple.
It’s the human chain of du-ties I am breaking because I owe a certain heritage to those who will come after me. It is more than a self im-provement program. I am changing my way of thinking, to the glory of God, thanks to the doctors, nurses, and therapists who have made my life livable during this time (DMH, St. Mary’s and Mason Point Nursing Home).

Ken Greenwell
Decatur

The people running the show in Washington seem to be clueless as what to do with the remaining detainees at Gitmo. Some want them transferred to a federal prison in Illinois.
These same elected and appointed people, attorney General Holden and others want the detainees to stand trial in New York City. Oth-ers have mentioned West Point.
The same officials still can’t decide if the detainees should be put on trial in a criminal or military court.
I suggest that each and every one of the detainees be transferred to Area 51 in Nevada. They should be held and have their trials at that facility. Since the U.S. gov-ernment and the military swear that Area 51 doesn’t even exist, the whole process shouldn’t cost the taxpayers one cent.

Vern L. Miller
Decatur

The Decatur Celebration attendance figures are grossly over-exaggerated. If you have ever been to Wrig-ley Field to watch the Cubs you would have experienced 41,000 fellow fans since that is capacity. To say there are 250,000 people attending the Celebration is ludicrous. Let’s be realistic. I’ve been there and so have you; I doubt if there are 5,000 people there at one time. This is why this event is losing money. I sug-gest we charge admission just to find out once and for all. Charge kids and seniors 50 cents and adults $1. If there are 400,000 of which 200,000 are paid adults it’s a neat profit even without the beer. But, if there are only 3,000 or even 5,000 adults what a difference it will be.

Douglas Plotke
Decatur

I call upon the Decatur City Council to emphasize public safety in its new downtown public parking plan.
I sense a perception among the people that downtown is not a safe place to be. To change this perception the city must create a genuine police presence downtown. This means cops on the beat day and night.
When the people feel safe, then they will want to come downtown to shop, dine and meet.
While there are many fac-tors that the City Council cannot control, the task of public safety rests firmly within the Council’s control. Put police feet on the street.

Bill Faber
Decatur

Glorious is the first adjective that comes to mind when describing the Millikin University Choir, whose performance Sunday evening at St. Patrick’s Church was absolutely brilliant and thrill-ing. Thank you, Lord, for all the talent you have developed in these singers and their director, Dr. Brad Holmes.
Decatur is truly blessed with the high level of expertise of the Millikin University Choir. Hear them if you can.

Janice Bulger
Decatur

Tuesday, the voters of Macon County will have the opportunity to cast their ballot for Tim Dudley for State Senate. As Chairman of the Macon County Board, I have worked closely with Tim for the past several years. Tim has proven to be a great leader on the County Board and has helped bring fiscal responsibility to our budget process. Tim has proven he has the drive, passion, integ-rity, and ability to bring people together. That’s what it takes to get things done. As the state faces a $12 billion budget deficit, it is critical that we have Tim working for us in Springfield.
This is a very important race for Decatur and for the people of Macon County. Tim Dudley is a hard working, honest, and ethical public servant who will fight every day to bring jobs and eco-nomic development home to Macon County. We need him working for us in Springfield. Please join me in supporting Tim Dudley for State Senate.

Jay A. Dunn
Chairman, Macon County Board

As a life long resident of Macon County, I urge the voters of Illinois Senate District 51 to support the candidacy of Amy Bliefnick. I have known Amy and her family for several decades. She is an honest, dedicated, family oriented dependable leader and communicator who will serve our district well. You will find Amy to be a woman of integrity, who will deliver far more than she promises, will listen intently to the concerns of all her constituents and vote her conscience on all issues brought before the Illinois Senate.
Let’s resolve to help our-selves on Election Day by voting for Amy Bliefnick.

Pat Nolan
Decatur