Board members’ inboxes serve better purpose

An email written by resident Richard Grass was forwarded to Carpentersville Action Network by one of the original recipients. (For the record, it was not Bill Sarto.)

The email uses a Daily Herald article regarding a proposal to impound the vehicles of those who are found driving without a valid license or without insurance, published earlier this week, to again take aim at President Bill Sarto.

Folks may recall earlier this year when Grass (also a reader and commenter on this blog) and Sarto got into a heated email exchange as Grass used another article — also published by the Daily Herald about Sarto’s divorce in 2000 and his relationship with his ex-wife — to attack Sarto. The exchange between Grass and Sarto led to a police investigation into a threat alleged by Grass, which police later declared there was no substantive evidence for.

Apparently, Grass liked the attention he received the first time and seems to have started up Round 2. Sarto, however, seemed to learn his lesson and apparently did not respond to this email by Grass.

Mr. Grass makes the following comments in this latest email, which — according to the addresses attached to the forwarded email — was sent to Sarto, and about 30 other email addresses, including all of the Village Trustees:

• So Bill, is insinuating that Hispanics break the law more often than others ?
• And How does this become a Hispanic thing, Bill! how do you know? Maybe you also know how many of them are Illegal?
• Bill, That is Racial Profiling not to mention Ignorant, and your worried about the Police doing the Racial profiling. I am more worried about someone causing an Accident with Injuries and not being Insured let alone under insured. But that’s OK with you Bill, as long as your happy while us Insured Motorists flip the bill once again for the lack of Good Local Government. While you protect your lawbreaking Hispanic (so you say) Drivers.
• I do not care who drives without Insurance, Bill! It’s against the Law!
• Bill, I see your work in Government all these years has taught you respect for the Laws, NOT!
• All I here from you, it’s not my Job, it’s the Federal Government, or Oh that’s just picking on one Group. You are a man of many Excuses and no solutions.
• Well, all we have left is a little less than a Year and half of your Lame excuses of why you cannot do your Job.
• Maybe after the next Election when you Lose! You can be the Poster Boy for La Raza.

Setting aside any potential merit of the attempted arguments made against Sarto here, this type of commentary has no business taking up the time and email space of the Village and its Board members. It is similar to the potshots and digs that some residents take at Board members during the public comments portion of Village meetings before they get to what they actually came to speak about. Just like those comments don’t belong, neither do these. Further, by clogging up Board members’ email boxes, legitimate emails have the potential to get lost in the crowd and not addressed as quickly.

This is the kind of garbage that has gone on for too long in Carpentersville. The divisiveness, name-calling and dirty pool have kept the town in the muck and mire; from residents and, often, the Board alike. It could certainly be a reason for the regular shifts in Village leadership and staff over the past 10 years, that has, in turn, caused some — even those who have begun to move Carpentersville forward — to simply give up. It needs to stop. Now.

While this blog may at times offer up opinions of a similar form, I do not go emailing my postings to the entire Board. (Which I hope Board members are appreciative of.) Emails sent on behalf of Carpentersville Action Network have been more inquiry than indictment.

I have said on this blog recently that I would make it an aim to be more constructive and work toward suggestions for improving Carpentersville. That is my purpose in making this posting — so that the resources of Village leaders and staff may be fully available to address the legitimate concerns of residents, and that folks would get past their personal vendettas so that work on the real problems that face the town may be worked on, creatively and efficiently.

New Look (Updated)

Experimenting with a new look for the blog …

Let me know what you think (or whether you even care).

UPDATE:
Ok, I’ve restored things to the “Connections” theme, since everyone seemed to like that … particularly the header picture of Old Town Main Street.

All the same things should still be available in the sidebar, but you might have to scroll a bit to get to them. If there was something there that you don’t see anymore, let me know.