Nevermind Answering Us Toni Greathouse, we have the answers!

Toni Greathouse is NOT a non-biased reporter.  How can she be?  It appears she took donations from the Mayor himself!  Is this why she writes those articles kissing Mayoral butt?

Will County Tax Assessor Bill

Mayor's Campaign Funds

Greathouse, xxx xx

xxx N. Vincent Drive Bolingbrook, IL 60440

$xxxxx.00 7/2/2010

Expenditure Citizens for Claar

Donation - Mayor's Scholarship 2010

Well, well, well, same address...  Looks like this reporter can no longer hold a non-biased stand.  When was she going to write a story about this one?

How much of OUR tax money did the Incumbents give the Bugle this year?

The Village paid the Bugle $10,757.60 this year.  Rich Masterson, the editor sits as a Board of Directors for the Chamber of Commerce.  Political connections... oh ya.  Read the story below!

Toni Greathouse... we have a question for you!

Toni Greathouse has been writing for many local papers and most recently an online one.  She has written marvelous (gag me) articles about Mr. Wayne Kwiat (is he running for something again?) and Lindsey Claar (Roger's daughter).  We found both articles to be amusing, as they were so up someones butt we all could not breathe.

Now we might have the story as to why...  Toni, we want to know if you are bought off?
Do you have a daughter that accepted a scholarship fund from the Mayor on July 2, 2010?  A young Greathouse accepted this money. 

Please answer and we will keep everyone updated!

Bill Mayer Struggles to Raise his own Campaign Cash

Bill Mayer, DuPage Township Supervisor has a hard time fundraising, a close friend of his stated.  Between voting on his day job to do business, taking Boston party trips on tax dollars, and allowing his associates to take cruises on our dime, he has not won the hearts of many. 

Campaign cash is going to be needed when he runs in two years for re-election.  We already know two people running for his job.

However, one and a half years after his last election, Mr. Claar donated a whopping $5,000 to his funds.  Now what could this money be used for this early on?  That is two and a half years until the election!

We have our ideas, as the party guy he is.  But it just does not make sense to accept donations when you do not know if you will be running again.

Citizens for William Mayer

721 Lenox Ave. Bolingbrook, IL 60490

$5,000.00 9/24/2010

Transfer Out Citizens for Claar

Contribution

Bolingbrook Bugle Editor Rich Masterson vents anger

Bolingbrook Bugle editor vented his anger in this weeks paper, so we felt the need to vent back.  He is angry at the independent candidates for not participating in his biased guides.  Our feelings on this one?  You deserve it Rich!

For two years you have written slanted articles trying to make EVERYONE that questioned Roger look bad.  You wrote horribly slanted articles about Bonnie and her lawsuits.  You trampled on her civil rights in doing so.  You did not even list her in the election guide last year.

Recently you wrote an article that Bolingbrook has high debt but is paying it off, after everyone else at that meeting heard Ricky say there did not need to be a game plan to pay it off.  Furthermore, paying pennies on the interest does not pay down any of the debt principal.  You have kept the public in the dark about the illegal governmental actions and failed to hold journalistic integrity by not reporting the truth so the residents could vote wisely.  You have been bought off.  You are nothing but a shill with no ethics or honor.

Now you want other independents to sell your paper for you by giving you their voice, which you will only twist anyhow?  You want to display them in the light you see fit for the world to see?  So you get mad and put an article out that they must not care.  You could not be more wrong.  Not only do they care more then you know, they cared enough not to let your piece of crap trash them like you trashed Bonnie.  They hold themselves to a higher moral status then you do.

When you're ready to let your paper cover the REAL news, you might start getting some respect.  But respect is earned and you have earned nothing from the opponents of the incumbents.  When they get in office, be prepared for your pockets to stop getting lined.

Bolingbrook Reporter Magically Re-Appears in time for Election

The Downers Grove Reporter, that pulled out of Bolingbrook two years ago, has magically re-appeared and started dumping papers on residents driveways.  We find this to be an odd situation.  Going into the election, there were not any more door dropping newspapers.  Yet, the month they decide to make a striking comeback, they feature an election guide with only Republican candidates (ie. Incumbents!)

They then write how the others failed to participate.  Nice try, since others NEVER RECEIVED any emails, letters or phone calls in order to participate. 

Well, at least we know who is buying the delivery of these papers now!  Don't plan on them being there on the driveway after next week.

Pay to Play hurts campaign of some incumbents

The school race shows the residents what happens when the wrong people are in control.  The acceptance of $9K from the teachers union has sparked interest among many residents (and teachers that did not want their union dues going to these incumbents).  This happened AFTER we published that it is OK to get endorsements, but taking money is another issue.

The people running for election need to be non-biased when spending your tax dollars.  Now they are beholden to the donators and have to give them something in return.  This is a thought that sickens tax payers.  This is the problem with IL corruption in politics.  This is the reason Blago and Ryan both went down into history as hardened white collar criminals.  Steve Quigley, Leo Venegas, and Rick Gougis did not see an issue with this and took a large sum of money for a small local election from someone that they need to negotiate fair contracts with, including being fair to WE THE TAXPAYERS.

In the Village Trustee race, Trustee, Rick Morales, Leroy Brown, and Pat Shanks did the same.  They took donations from a vendor, which is an overpaid, politically connected, high priced attorney.

All the other opponents running did not take large donations, only endorsements.  They did not want to be hit with favoritism and Pay to Play allegations as the above people did. They wanted their votes to be in the best interest of the residents.

I guess the bottom line here is to vote against these people so that your tax money goes to the right place.

Who is framing the Independents?

Who is placing info in mailboxes to get candidates in trouble?  We are on the case to see who is doing this and why...

The Independent party is placing a formal report together for the person responsible for placing info in mailboxes.  However, this sounds like the familiar old game of the incumbents.  Last year they accused Bonnie of doing this to stop her campaigning.  We will follow up as more info arises.

Bonnie speaks out before the election

Last year I ran for Mayor to give people a choice.  As a write in candidate, I did the best I could and the residents voted for almost 30% of the votes in my favor.  I thank you for wanting a change in Bolingbrook.

This year, I took the fall so that others could get on the ballot.  I am proud to have to announce this is the first year ever that you can vote for half of the board that is not Roger Claar's people.  This is the first success we celebrated. 

We have three strong candidates for change this year.  Bob Bowen, Rhonda Reed Slaughter and Joe Napionello can make a difference to the way our government runs and help Bolingbrook leap into the future. 

However, the incumbents are up to the same dirty tricks.  First, they removed me from the ballot.  Now they are stealing and destroying signage, covering them up, and playing dirty politics.  Do we really want these people in office representing us?  What have they done to the residents and businesses if they have done this to me and other candidates?  Where is the moral line drawn?

That moral line is NOT drawn anywhere near mine or the independents running.  We don't steal, lie, or pad our pockets with tax payers money, nor would we dream of doing this.  This is left to people who have been in office too long and found a way around the system.  Now they are desperate to keep the system that pays them so well.  This election could be a major strike at bringing morality back to Bolingbrook and stopping the leaking funds.

They know it, I know it, and the residents know it, so  they are doing whatever it takes to win this election back.  They have a lot to lose.  But that is why they call this politics.

However, the people running against them have nothing to lose.  They are in this selflessly, using their own money, not taking bribes from vendors or unions, to better the community.  They have skills we need.  Bob does procurement and can get the best bids for our dollars.  He is really good at what he does.  Rhonda can balance the books as an accountant.  Joe can market losing companies and bring in tax dollars to offset the losses.  What a great balance that is.

The incumbents are running a politically connected retired lady.  They are running a school security man.  And they are running a banker.  Now how does this help Bolingbrook?  What can these trustees do, other than rubber stamp votes?  It is not their fault, they do not understand the bills, bidding procedures, or marketing.  It is not their expertise.

However the morality is their fault.  Taking a high road when most incumbents win anyhow, would have been important for them.  They chose not to do that.

For someone like myself, who has been closely following the political scene for over two years now, I can say that Bolingbrook government disgusts me.  I do not stand alone.  I have met a great deal of residents who are fed up.  They want change.  Will the incumbents listen?  Probably not.  They offer no campaign promises on their web site.  They offer nothing that they will do differently.  Therefore, they have not heard the residents and refuse to believe they have done wrong. 

I, on the other hand, can admit I am not perfect.  I make at least one mistake a day, as most people do.  So how can they not have learned about mistakes and owned up to them for ten years?  Are they really perfect or just blind?
This is an important week for Bolingbrook.  This is a chance to have a voice and vote.  Until then, I will keep up the fight for honest Trustees.  I have met and gotten to know the candidates I am supporting, based on their qualifications and morality.  I fully support Bob Bowen, Rhonda Reed Slaughter and Joe Napionello and feel that they are the best candidates for the position of trustee.  Please research them and let me know if you agree!

A Message to the Incumbents...Morales, Brown, and Shanks

"The hardest thing about any political campaign is how to win without proving that you are unworthy of winning." ~ Adlai E. Stevenson

In this election, you have shown some dirty tactics.  People are tired of mudslinging elections.  Not a single candidate attacked you this year.  Not a single candidate took your signs, brochures, or spread false and mis-leading information about you.  Yet, you have chosen to run a dirty election and did this to those that stood high and proud to NOT do that to you.

When all is said and done, and people are elected to office, will you be able to live with the reputation you guys have done to yourself?  We all know that winning in Bolingbrook is all about how many people you get to support you or risk losing their jobs.  that alone shows how much bullying you do before an election. 

The new candidates votes will speak volumes to you incumbents.  For each person that votes for independent, it will tell you that people are sick of your bullying and inability to do the job. 

Last time 30% of Bolingbrook spoke and voted AGAINST Roger.  30% is a great deal of the population, but he did nothing to change, and ignored the fact that a write in candidate, with two last names took that many of his votes.  What will it be this year?  How many people have you lost with your stealing signs, untrustworthyness, and padding your pockets?  Probably a lot.  Will it change your greed and anger?  Probably not.  It is time to start listening to the needs of the residents.  The need is for an honest politician, that listens to what we want before voting...

From Mad Dad of Bolingbrook 

Favorite Voting Statements....

"Those who stay away from the election think that one vote will do no good: 'Tis but one step more to think one vote will do no harm." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, and you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost." ~John Quincy Adams

"People often say that, in a democracy, decisions are made by a majority of the people. Of course, that is not true. Decisions are made by a majority of those who make themselves heard and who vote -- a very different thing." ~ Walter H. Judd

 "Without general elections, without unrestrained freedom of press and assembly, without a free struggle of opinion, life dies out in every public institution...in which only the bureaucracy remains as the active element." ~ Rosa Luxemburg

"Democracy is the only system that persists in asking the powers that be whether they are the powers that ought to be." ~ Sydney J. Harris

History: The Right to Vote

The right to vote wasn't just handed to Americans. They had to fight for it.

http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=4638

When the polls open on Election Day, every citizen over the age of 18 will be able to cast a vote. It is a right we take for granted, one that defines our nation as a democracy. But universal suffrage — letting everyone vote — did not appear overnight with the ratification of our Constitution. Two hundred years ago, you had to be white, male, and wealthy in order to vote. The three people profiled on these pages dedicated their lives to changing that fact. Without them, suffrage might still be the privilege of a chosen few.

What to do when voting on Tuesday

When you enter the voting booth on Tuesday, remember that NOBODY can find out what you marked on the ballot.  When you enter your ballot in the ballot box, ensure that nobody is looking at your sheet.  This is your private vote. 

Even at the county level, they can only tell people that you did or did not vote.  It does not say whom you voted for.  If you pledged to vote for someone because you fear for your jobs, family, etc... don't be.  Once you enter that booth, nobody can tell you whom to vote for or what you voted... despite what they tell you.

Keep your vote private and make your vote count.  We will put together our recommendation list by Monday so you can bring that into the poll booth with you. 

Enjoy the weekend!

Joe Napionello, Trustee Candidate, Victim of Ricky Morales Bullying

Joe Napionello ran for trustee to be the only trustee on the board with the knowledge to turn around the Golf Course, Airport, and Americana Estates into profiting companies. 

What he has gotten is much worse.  This story is about the thank you and F*** you that he got when he ran for office from the Mayor and the current Trustees.

First, they covered his signs with the incumbent party signs (Morales, Shanks, and Brown)
Then, they stole signs in the night
Next, Ricky flips out, verbally accosts him and steals his signs right in front of him.
To make matters worse, Ricky then denies the allegations and tells people Joe is a liar.
In finality, they spread false rumors that he wants to tear down schools.

All this guy wanted was to bring a profit to the businesses and thus, reduce taxes.

The way he has handled this is so promising.  After the stealing incident, he reported first thing in the morning to Mr. Claar's to ask for his signs back.  No harm no foul.  Roger has avoided him, so now the authorities get to deal with this problem  This has given Joe some awesome followers.  We love you Joe and so do the residents.  Keep on smiling and keep your head high.  You have run an honest election despite what they have done to you.  Get through the next few days and then sue the first parties a**!

Felix Greco goes with BOLD support statement

Felix Greco, the Wheatland Township Democrat supported by Nick Palmer, wanted to run for Trustee.  Then, after meeting Roger Claar, changed his mind.  We reported earllier that this Democrat supported Roger's incumbents with a sign, and now he has made a bold statement by putting up a banner on the same block that Ricky stole the challengers signs!

I guess the Democratic Party knows who NOT to support anymore.

Who is tearing down schools?

Election time has gotten really rotten in Bolingbrook.  The First Party has been slinging mud like it was going to help all the residents clear up their skin issues.  However, what the residents need to know is that it is not mud, it is crap.

To stop Joe Napionello from gaining speed in this election, they have started a rumor that he will be knocking down schools.  Yes, a trustee knocking down schools.  LOL, now this is funny.  To top it off, the only person that seems to close schools (Phoenix) is the school board incumbents Gougis, Venegas, and Quigley.

So why would Leroy, Pat, and Tricky Ricky stoop to crap slinging?  What has Joe done to them?  Nothing but become a victim of Ricky's anger and theft, and be a top candidate to take their jobs.

So what else will we hear about this week?

Village Trustee Race Rounding Final Corner! On to the Finish Line!

Approaching the Finish Line...

Tricky Ricky is still on the ground in the second stretch.  He has not built up the trust of the residents when he claimed he did not steal the signs.  We don't see him finishing anything but last in this race.

Ken Cygan, who tripped over Ricky the same day and took donations from Unions to support his campaign, is hobbling on one broken leg towards the finish line.

Pat Shanks, who has been invisible this election is running on the grass, instead of the dirt, hoping to find her way through.  At least she is still ahead of Tricky and Cygan.

Cozy Nash is whipping his horse non stop and is spending money, but the support is lacking.  This is like the old horse that races in every race and holds steady in the middle.  Every time a whip is thrown, one part speeds up while another slows down.  This horse just cannot seem to get ahead.  He sends out postcards, but it lacks information.  He puts up signs, but nobody knows who he is.  He puts fliers on doors, but it lacks info.  Whip, slow, whip, slow... 

Leroy Brown has taken a lot of heat in this election and his team mate tricky Ricky has brought his counts down.  The recent allegations of campaign dollars from the high paid attorney is showing those that like Leroy, that his job is not to be liked but to be responsible.  He will be losing many of his typical voters this year because of this.  He can no longer count on his group of people to vote in his favor.  He has also lost a great deal of support because of taking two salaries from tax payers, while one was jacked up $30G in four years time.  His involvement with dirty Mark Crawley's tactics, and getting a political friend a job, has hurt his image as well.  These are big issues this year for tax payers.  He is in the race, but no longer a front runner.  He is falling back more and more each time we write a story of dirty political games like surrounding signs, throwing fliers on the ground of opponents, and stealing signs.  Leroy is in the position to stop this dirty political game and has not done so, thus encouraging and standing behind it.  As a reminder, he also broke Bonnie's constitutional rights last year running for office.  His nice man image has shattered in a million glass pieces.

Joe Napionello is holding pace with Cozy Nash, but he is a wild card.  He could slow up or speed up at any moment.  His signs are gorgeous, and his fliers are appealing.  He is likable.  He stands for something good.  But this is his first election and as a philly could pick up speed or slow down.  This last stretch could put him in first or fifth, it is yet to be determined.

Rhonda Reed Slaughter is the turtle and Bob Bowen is the hare. Slow and steady Rhonda could win this race.  She has spent two years gaining serious followers.  She talks numbers and numbers don't lie.  She came out strong at the gate and has not lost one iota of speed.  It is amazing to say that she is not slowing down.  She started walking for signatures and has been walking ever since.  Her goal seems simple.  Educate the public and get in office to make changes.  Simple enough! 

Bob, the hare that came out strong, has also been in the race for two years.  His tactic is loud and proud and is opposite Rhonda's.  Rhonda steals the heart of many women with her laid back tactics, while Bob is a sure hit with men.  He makes his information known by attending meetings and holding the trustees and Mayor accountable.  They are both fiscally conservative, which Bolingbrook needs now. They are also both independent, meaning they do not have to vote for a party's favor, but only for the best interest of the residents they serve. They are neck to neck in this race and are both fighting to finish first.  They each devote time every day to walk door to door, fix signs, and talk to residents.  This will be an interesting race.  I don't think I could pick a sure bet for first just yet...

Poll Watchers Needed

Calling all Patriots!

Last year we had some democracy issues in Bolingbrook and we want to ensure that this does not happen again.  We are asking residents to step forward to become poll watchers on April 5th.  A poll watcher checks in on the election judges to ensure fair election proceedings are taking place.
Some common concerns they will need to address in Bolingbrook are as follows:
1.  Campaigning lines are 100 feet from the door to the polling ROOM, not building.  After 100 feet from the room, all campaigning can be done, signs put out, and flyer's handed out.
2.  Flyer's and other paper with candidates names on them are ALLOWED in the polling booth to help you cast your vote.
3.  The election judge CANNOT put your ballot in the box for you and has NO RIGHT to look at your ballot or make suggestions on who to vote for.
4.  Election technicians need to be checked before opening or tampering with the ballot boxes.  (Last year someone falsified credentials).
5.  All problems get called to the Will County States Attorney office, not the local Police.
6.  Removal of signs or flyers on election day is tampering with an election which is a federal felony. 
7.  Bribery of poll watchers or election judges is a felony.
8.  Poll watchers can and should closely observe with camera in hand the tallying of votes after the polls close to ensure fairness.
9.  All other items related to poll watching will be supplied prior to poll watching dates.

So who would like to help democracy take it's course in Bolingbrook and join the poll watchers list?  Email info@bolingbrookreport.com for more info.

Friends of Valley View Incumbents take large donations from Unions!

The Teachers Union is the largest Union tht deals with the schools.  They fight hard for preks, raises, and more of your tax dollars.  During Steven Quigley's regime as chair of the school board, he has raised taxes each year.  A few weeks ago, after annual budgets were passed, he gave the teacher's Union a 5% annual increase! 

In most private companies, 3% in a down economy, is high.  But when someone is spending your money and does not care, it is easy to shovel out 5% increases and continue to increase your taxes...

In March, AFT local 604, once the raises were issued, gave their recommendations to vote these incumbents in.  Then they donated $9,000!  This is more then any other candidate has going into this election.

When the teachers want someone to win, they sure back them!  If people vote for Quigley, Venegas, or Gougis, we can expect more 5% raises and perks, but unfortunately this means an increase in our taxes.

Who is the Chairmen and Treasurer for Bolingbrook First Party?

Low and behold, the chairman of Tricky Ricky, Leroy Brown, and Pat Shanks political party is none other than Carol Penning.  The same person that booted Bonnie off the ballot two years in a row.

But the shocker is who the treasurer is.  Robert Kalnicki, running for library board and earning a salary from CSC!

If this does not show corruption for the trustees giving large donating dollars to pet charities!  CSC gets hundreds of thousands of dollars as donations, rubber stamped by these trustees.  The two people that are a part of CSC is Carol and Robert.

Pay to play in their campaign party?  Of course Carol and Robert want them to win, as the next trustees will probably vote NO to CSC donations on tax payers dimes.  No more fattening their wallets on my dime!

First Party Bought off by Vendor for Campaign Cash

The incumbents Leroy Brown, Pat Shanks, and Ricky Morales were bought off in a Pay to Play scheme during this election. 

Bolingbrook attorney law firm, Tressler LLP donated a $1,000.00 donation to support their cause to run for office.  What this means is that now, these Trustees will continue to rubber stamp weekly invoices for Tressler LLP amounting to a Million Dollars annually!

What could this money have gone for?  Have you seen the 5000+ signs around town? 

This attorney has high stakes to ensure that these rubber stamp incumbents win.  Bob Bowen approached the Village last year asking them to accept bids for this service (and offering his services as a professional procurement officer for the bidding pro bono), showing the Village that he could find an attorney just as capable for $200K, saving the Village money.

The incumbents needed the money so bad in this election, for fear of losing, that they sold their sole to the devil on tax payers dimes.

Time to vote the incumbent OUT!

March Madness hits 100 Articles!

Thanks team for doing such a great job at hitting the goal of a minimum of 100 articles for the month of March!

April Gavin pulling in the lead for School Board

With the school board election coming in seven days, we are closely watching for the most "likely" to win.  April Gavin has pulled ahead in the polls and appears to be the "most liked" candidate to sit on the school board this year. 

With Mike Evans stepping down, this will place her a sure winner in this election. 

Opponents are pushing hard to take Quigley, Venegas, and Gougis spots.

Venegas and Gougis have never run an election.  They were placed on the board to replace vacant seats.  It is alleged that their positions were given solely on clout, not ability.  This same process has eliminated April Gavin twice.  However, the residents will speak up and show the incumbents that she should have been the one picked over these two candidates that were handed the position.


Good luck April!

If I were to write a book on Bolingbrook Government, it would go like this...

Bolingbrook Mayor Roger Claar took his regime in 1986.  He was afraid of losing his lucrative job so he stopped letting the reporters ask him questions for fear the residents would see how lucrative it was to him and get him out.  The reporters had no choice but to print "fluff" news,

The residents could not see what their government was up to.  Then they started getting greedy.  If nobody is watching, then that is what people do.

The Trustees and the Mayor found it lucrative to do construction projects.  Large pay-to-play dollars are put out for donations for top bidders and the Mayor's war chest grew to over a million dollars!  He was able to offer friends jobs and the Trustees started up "not-for-profit" organizations.  Things were going good.  He kicked them donations and he got the campaign money.

Then one day a group of younger individuals stepped forward and wanted to see the books.  They stumbled upon the doings of the Trustees and Mayor, and a watch dog group was formed.  This hurt the ability for the Mayor and Trustees to continue to do business their way.  However, they failed to stop and it was finally reported. 

The residents found out and the Mayor and Trustees could only scream that the residents were all liars, in order to cover their actions.  However, numbers do not lie.  The bond debt the Trustees created was huge, bills were passed, and the trustees were caught rubber stamping everything. 

The elections came and....
This is how my book would start.
From a Bolingbrook resident...

Incumbents vs. Independents, why vote Independent? Trust!

Every door I walk up to I get the same response.  "I want change" all the residents say.  Well that is a good first reason as to why incumbents need to step back this election.
Here is my reasons:
These three candidates had time to make a change.  They failed with rubber stamp voting.  They lost the trust of the residents when they failed to address the big issues with transparency this year.  Those issues included handling foreclosed properties, bond debt, cost for the American Water takeover, and even not addressing residents concerns.

Trust is earned in a community of residents that are responsible for employing these public servants.  When we look at what all the independents are running on, we see that the issues are similar.  The reason?  They have complained about these issues and were met with dead pan stares of the current administration.

So now the public wants to be heard and wants change.  They want people they can trust. 

When Rick Morales claimed he did not steal those signs, it further hurt the trust of the residents in him.

When Pat Shanks, being called out as rubber stamped, did not stop rubber stamping every other week, they lost more trust.

When Leroy was called out about Bolingbrook security, and how it was nice to have meetings in the Village to discuss what to do, but then nothing got done, people lost trust.

When you lose trust in your officials, it is time to move on.  Trust is important with public servants.  Do you still trust them with your tax dollars after they just lied and stated they did not raise taxes?  Is sales tax not taxes to them?  Is gas, sticker, cell phone, waste water, and all the other taxes they raised not taxes?  There are more then one way to tax a resident and Bolingbrook has the highest taxes around in these areas.  So who are they lying to and why?  Why not be honest and tell the truth to gain trust?  Because that is not how they have ever operated and won't be as long as they are voted in.

Keep this in mind for the election next Tuesday.

Can anyone tell me what the incumbents campaign promise is?

Can anyone tell me the issues that the incumbents will be working on to make Bolingbrook a better place?  I can't seem to find that anywhere.

Attention Safety Workers

Never forget what happened last year.  Your jobs were cut for two straight years.  The incumbents told you that Bonnie Alicea would cut them, they lied, so they told you to vote for them.  Once they had your vote, they cut 94 of you.  Bonnie would not have.

They waited almost two years to talk about your expired contracts.  They let the Village down when they cut Police during a recession.  (Remember when recessions hit, crime rises).
They cut Public Works and Code Enforcement. 

They do not care about Bolingbrook residents safety.  They claim it was budget issues.  The issue was they would not cut their budgets for spending at hotels, giving away free money to pet charities, or cut their lavish salaries or perks.

Vote for those that take personal safety as being important to the residents and vote out the incumbents.

With nobody cleaning up our streets, this is what we get...

Top Issue this Election? Forclosed homes...

Bob Bowen (www.bobofbolingbrook.com), Rhonda Reed Slaughter, and Joe Napionello want to lean on the banks for taking care of forclosed properties.  The incumbents, Leroy Brown, Pat Shanks, and Rick Morales have not promised ANYTHING about what they can do about this.  They have also not expressed anything they HAVE done about this.  Ricky being a banker probably just wants to foreclose on and take away even more people's homes?

Foreclosed properties bring down home values and make the neighborhood look horrible.  Crime happens in vacant homes.  It is time to vote for people that will take action on these.  Below are some of your neighbors.  Tell us what you think!

Did the Trustees keep Bolingbrook looking good?

The Village has $201,288,142 in bonded indebtedness (as reported in FY 2009/2010 financial statement); most of this was used for infrastructure projects; i.e., road improvements, building construction and land acquisition. (According to their fact sheet)

Last year Bonnie reported her street was only half paved.  We posted the pictures of how bad her street on Bothwell looked.  We received many complaints from residents about their road issues through the year.  These are some pictures that we received.  Now we want to know what money went into fixing our streets.

Bottom line, don't lie to the residents to say you used that bond debt for them...

Who Approves our Village Attorney Bills? The Current Trustees do...

Last year we publicly gawked at our Million Dollar Attorney and bosom buddy to Roger.  His name is Jim Boan with Tressler law firm.  We gawked that any village would spend so much on legal costs.  His cost per hour was triple most attorneys and he finds ways to keep on charging!  (See the new American Water Lawsuit).

It is no surprise this company has gotten rich on tax payers dimes.  However, it is not HIS fault.  It is the Mayor and Trustees that stamp each one of his bills as approved and do not seek outside bids for services in over 10 years.

However, his company is fraught with Village fund billing.  See the article below to see how they handled Oak Lawn's Village investigation into his billing and funds and what the results were.


http://www.thereporteronline.net/atf.php?sid=20780&current_edition=2010-06-10

The bottom line is how much tax dollars have we lost in this avenue?  Why have the Trustees not hired Burt Odelson of Odelson & Sterk to investigate as they did in Oak Lawn? 

Steve Quigley running for school board

Before you vote for Steve Quigley, ask him these two questions...
1.  Did he have a good time on your tax dollars partying in Boston? (See man on man action!)

2  Did he enjoy the game as well?

Thank him for spending your tax dollars correctly... 

Remember he never put a restriction on conferences after this event, even though we put pressure on them to do so.  All we asked is that NO MORE conferences get approved for the members that abused the privilege.  Guess that would have been taking away his free party trips...

Ricky Part 3

Will the real Trustee Morales please stand up?

I can't count the number of times Mr. Morales has erred in the last year.  It all started when Bonnie Alicea stood up to a board meeting to address him.  She asked him "To Trustee Morales, did you review the budget before you passed it?"  Mr. Morales was dumbfounded.  It took fellow board Trustee Swinkunas to come to his rescue, referring to the document packet that was left up front for anyone's review.  When Bonnie questioned why it was not given to each Trustee before the meeting, the answer was that it was too much paper.  (Too much paper for the Trustees to pass over 2 Million Dollars every other week to print, or too much for them to argue, or too much for them to read... we will never know).  But Bonnie countered that with "Why can't it be emailed or posted online?"  At this point Mr. Morales asked Bonnie, "Will you be attending every meeting?"  The crowd of Rogerites exploded in applause at Morales' attempt to stop a citizen from asking them, the local government, questions.  Bonnie waited for the applause to die down before answering, "if it is to fight for our transparency, then yes I will". 

A year later we look at her effort as courageous amongst a corrupt government that tries to hide within secrecy.  To stand up to a machine, at the age of 34, and a mom of a two year old, to demand answers to her community and her taxes is incredible.  But we have to ask ourselves, are all the board members corrupt?  We started to focus on the individuals, starting with the one Trustee that was trying to stop us from asking questions.  This story will give you a true tale of Mr. Morales...

Mr. Morales received his first position on the board after another member stepped down.  At the next election, he accepted a great deal of money from Roger to run and win the Trustee seat.  (Enough that someone could have bought a very good car for that amount!)  Two weeks ago at the Village Board Meeting, Trustee Morales made another huge mistake.  He lied to the taxpayers that pay his salary.  He claimed he did not attend fancy dinners costing tax payers hundreds of dollars during a budget crisis.  Robert Bowen then presented an invoice for a $100 per person lunch Ricky had with Roger and another $50 per person dinner Ricky had with Roger.  Ricky was uncustomarily silent when presented with his own invoices for reimbursement for $50-$100 lunches at our expense.  This put Trustee Morales into a tight bind.  He was caught in a lie. 

Ricky has to run and WIN to get his spot back now.  Later this week we will be discussing the Village finances, and we want to clarify why you voted for Mr. Morales for his position and answer the question, "Did he do what he promised and did he do his job"...
Most people do not know that Mr. Morales is a V.P. at a bank.  He supposedly understands Finance more than most of the residents.   Had he examined the bonds, would he have passed so many of them and put us $468 Million dollars in debt?  If he did know he was passing them, did he know what this was going to do to the residents?  And more importantly, what was in it for him?  It appears that most social events attended by the Mayor recently included him as a partner.  The investigation begins...

Ricky part two

So what did we find?

Evidence:
Fact:  Check request receipts were requested for Mr. Trustee Morales.
Fact:  Invoices were sent for Mr. Morales for both lavish $100 Springfield luncheons AND $50 Christmas dinners
Fact:  A Check was cut for Mr. Morales' attendance--that's OUR tax money going to fatten Morales' stomach.

So why did Ricardo flip out;
--his standard knee jerk reaction to lie and cover up? 
--embarrassed that he was caught red-handed with his hand in the tax payers' cookie jar? 
--afraid that the truth about his misappropriation of OUR tax money would destroy his chances for reelection or his aspirations to run for mayor?

So did he attend or skip out forcing taxpayers to pay for empty seats?  Did Mr. Claar use his name to take someone else instead?  It appears not only did Bob not lie, but he proved that Trustee Ricardo is lying to the taxpayers about his frivolous spending of our tax dollars!  Good job Bob!  See www.bobofbolingbrook.com

We proved Ricky Morales was a liar last year... This is the stories we printed in 2010

TRUSTEE RICARDO MORALES
 LIAR LIAR, PANTS ON FIRE!

Trustee Ricky (Ricardo) Morales lost it and screeched "It's a lie...show the proof!" at the May 11 Village Board meeting when it was exposed he was squandering tax payer money on lavish $100 luncheons in Springfield on one hand while hypocritically and irresponsibly voting to support Claar's firing of paramedics and police officers on the other hand.
Ricky's tantrum occurred after Bob Bowen confronted him at the board meeting on May 11, 2010.   In a pointed expose, Bob revealed that while the Trustees were supposed to be looking at the Village budget for savings, they were still continuing to spend lavishly on themselves while cutting our services.  At this point, (as seen on Channel 6), Trustee Morales went on an angry tirade and stammered he never attended these events that Bob revealed he was wasting OUR tax money on.  This public announcement prompted us to investigate!

Proof at http://bolingbrookreport.com/localpolitics/watchdoginformation.html

Last Seven Days Until Election

For the last 7 days we will be reminding people of the last two years and what has happened in Bolingbrook.  There is a strong need for change.  Because they would like you to forget before you vote, we would like you to remember.... Stay tuned as more information becomes available!  All hands are on deck this week at the Bolingbrook Report!

Do you remember what the Trustees voted on for the Native American Ground?

John Q Public said...

Ancient Native American camps, modern Native American camps, French trappers, early settlers of the prairie from out east, and the Boughton family farm - ALL once existed at the north end of Kings Road IN BOLINGBROOK. (at the fork of the DuPage River) But now, the clueless government of Bolingbrook is planning to literally "pave over" the most historic and beautiful spot on the entire river...and for what? A useless bridge to the other side.
HAVE YOU DRIVEN ACROSS THE RIVER ON WEBER/NAPER LATELY? Holy crap its like driving on the moon.
So rather than fix it, and keep it from flooding, we need ANOTHER bridge? And we need to destroy history to do it? Ask yourself this - how many historic places have you visited in Bolingbrook? 1 maybe 2? Now how many PRE-historic sites have you visited? The answer is none. Not because they aren't there, but because we keep destroying them. Rather than embrace, investigate, learn-from, promote and even profit from our cultural resources, we'd rather borrow money and destroy them for a bridge that we don't even need. Thanks once again Claar for your marvelous dog-breathed insight.

Flyer stealing cheats!

Today a candidate for school board was putting flyers on doors as he walked.  Right behind him, a lady driving a gray car, was throwing his literature bags on the ground and replacing them with the First Party propaganda literature. 

This Caucasian lady, a woman in her 30s was interfering in an election and littering.  We are awaiting more info as to if she was caught or if a police report was filed.  We will keep you informed. 

The bottom line though is, did the incumbents not learn a lesson when Ricky got busted?  People that will lie, cheat, and steal should not be in office.  We first thought it was just Ricky, but since the political party has given permission to do this today, we are now blaming Leroy Brown, Pat Schanks, Ricky Morales, Rick Gougis, Steve Quigley, and Leo Venegas for stopping at nothing including lying, cheating, and stealing.  These are the same people campaigning together and supporting each other.  The same people that tell their political support team to litter on peoples property and to steal the flyers of opponents.

This is absurd and criminal.  I hope the residents see this and realize that they cannot vote for people that have been mishandling their tax money in the same way.

$500 REWARD FOR INCUMBENT FIRST PARTY CAMPAIGNER TRASHING NON-INCUMBENT CAMPAIGN MATERIAL RIGHT NOW

There is a $500 reward for an incumbent First Party Campaigner--CAUCASIAN FEMALE MID 30s IN AGE DRIVING A GRAY VEHICLE--going door to door right now trashing non-incumbents campaign literature on doors and replacing them with First Party of Bolingbrook campaign brochures.

If you see this woman destroying non-incumbent campaign literature and file a police report leading to her arrest--there is a $500 reward being offered by the staff of the Bolingbrook Report.

THE WOMAN WAS MOST RECENTLY SEEN near Lily Cache and Briarcliff at 2:35 p.m. today trashing non-incumbents campaign literature on doors and replacing them with incumbent First Party of Bolingbrook campaign brochures.  She fled IN A GRAY VEHICLE when approached by a non-incumbent school board candidate.

Don't judge Leroy Brown, or Pat Schanks by their likeability, judge them by accountability

Many people have been inquiring about what the Trustees have rubber stamped.  Our response is "everything".  However, just to make our point about how important it is to vote this time around, you need to hear one thing they voted in.

We know that Leroy, Pat, and Rick the rat voted in the losing money Golf Club.  But, did you know that the trustees had to vote in many items for the Golf Club?  Let's take a look at how they spent your tax money...

We did an on the spot investigation a few months back and went to the Golf Club during a Bears game.  We wanted to show busy this Golf Club was, since it was costing us the taxpayers millions of dollars in losses. 

What we found what that the incumbent trustees voted for a facility to be run by a company that could not bring in one customer during a Bears game. 

They also voted to install a "Private" Hot tub that looks like it seats 20.  We were told that this is for private events and is not available to the public or the golfers.  It has been alleged that these private events are political in nature.  But guess what this must have cost and was approved by rubber stamp trustees?

Let's not forget that they approved this place to have 3 saunas.  One in the ladies, one in the men, and one for private parties...

And in finality, they wanted private lockers.  Many of these are names of politically connected people.

So judge these Trustees (Leroy, Pat, and Ricky) not for how good they look or how nice they appear to be (ok, you can clearly go ahead and judge Ricky the banker foreclosure rat road raging sign thief on how nice he appears to be).  Judge them on how well they did the job.  Had you known they would have done this to the tax payers once upon a time, would you have voted over again for someone else?  This is the point of the election.  They will do their best to hide their pasts and try to make it seem like others are the bad guys.  The proof is in the pudding.  The pudding is that Bolingbrook is the ONLY Illinois community that has it's own public golf course that is 70,000 sf big and hosts these amenities.  It is losing millions of dollars annually and forcing the firing of police, paramedic, public works, and fire personnel--and for this we only have one Trustees board to blame. 

For their bad decisions means we will hold them accountable to the tax payers.  We are the Watchdogs.

Quigley costs taxpayers on Boston Conference last year

Do we want to re-elect officials who party like its 1999?  What about if we told you it was paid for by tax payers?  Last year Steve Quigley attended a conference with Mike Evans and had a great time.  Then, he asked for we the taxpayers to pay his partying costs.

We FOIAed the costs and expenses last year.  This is what they gave us.

We asked for a breakdown of the $501.28.  They refused to give it.  They stated it was "personal".
We reminded then that nothing is personal if you used taxpayers money to reimburse him.  We should NOT be paying for Quigley's lap dances--the arrogance!
They responded with "we cannot give this information."
We responded "just tell us if this is the hotel, airfare, or other expenses."
They responded "other expenses placed on his own credit cards".

We want to know if the Boston Baseball game, the drinking tab, and the wild party was on that credit card.
Why would they reject the FOIA request?  If it is personal and not business, then why did we reimburse them?

This is the same man running for office.  He is the chair of the school board and responsible for the largest part of your home tax bill.  Is this the kind of person we need in charge?  Think before you vote and vote the incumbents out!

Remember this picture of the "education" conference fully billed to we the taxpayers when you do....

Leroy Brown, Clout, and Mark Crawley

To follow up on the story about Mark Crawley, sign hit man for Roger Claar, we wanted to explain how clout works in Bolingbrook.

Mark is an avid political fan of the incumbents and Roger Claar.  He has put up more signs this election for the incumbents then anyone else.  However, it is not his full time job.  His job, for the last few years has been security for Jane Adams Middle School. 

Many wonder how he got his job, but maybe this will shed light onto this subject.

Leroy Brown's job with the school district is the Head of School Security.  This is his job description.

Job Summary:  Performs functions including:  assist in recruiting, training, and evaluating district employed security personnel, and serve as the direct contact with emergency law enforcement agencies including police liaison officers.

In our opinion, it is apparent how Mark Crawley got his job... Political crony clout.

Furthermore, many are wondering what Leroy makes on this job, as he is getting salaries from TWO taxing bodies, the Village and the schools.  His starting salary a few years ago, in a newly created position just for him was as follows:

In four years his salary has gone up tremendously. 

His salary went from $50K to $78 K in four years!  That is quite a raise! 
Is this also because of the relationship between Roger Claar and school board lead Steve Quigley?  Is this a position by clout as well?

It would seem that many positions are dolled out based on clout and taken out of taxpayers' pockets.  It is this kind of political mentality and nepotism that has caused the taxes in Bolingbrook to rise steadily and the debt to skyrocket. 

When people share that it is the school taxes that are the largest part of our tax bills, I would remind that the creation of lucrative positions based on clout costs the schools, and the schools raise the taxes to save the Village Trustees from having to do so.  When you have Village officials, family and friends taking from the schools, you know there is a major problem.

Reminder of the Last Local Election in 2009...

This was run in March 2009 in the Weekly Reporter

Does this look familiar to what is happening now?

Same party, same incumbents, same corrupt political machine, same fear that they could lose their ability to help themselves at will to OUR tax dollars...

What's Going on in the School Race for Board?

The school race is heating up, but it is never as controversial as the Trustee race.  However, front runner April Gavin is gaining speed, along with Ken Harris.  Both have been hitting a lot of doors these past few weeks and making their platforms known.

Little can be said about the incumbents.  We have not heard from any resident that has had a door knocked on by Quigley, Goougis, or Venegas.  Have they decided not to run? 

In light of what happened with tricky Ricky and that they are all linked on slates together, this incumbent team might take a dive as well. 

We see some similar traits in the past with Quigley.  When asked what he was going to do about the Boston trip and expenses to the taxpayers, he claimed to not know anything.  Amnesia on all those lap dances at the taxpayers expense?  Must be why he also refuses to turn over full receipts of his "expenses" as required by law.  (Reminder:  This is when some board members took a conference trip to Boston and went to the Red Sox Game instead, then partied like drunken sailors--but we mean no disrespect to sailors because at least sailors spend their OWN money and NOT someone else's). 

He was also heavily involved in NOT doing anything right with the Devon Hodges story.  (See links below).  He ruined a kids career all for nepotism and cronyism. 

Quigley has had a bad year.  He has yelled at residents when they have gotten up to speak at board meetings.  He has lost his temper more then not at most board meetings.  Does this remind anyone of Tricky Ricky Morales?

We have labeled him squigley Quigley for doing nothing to squiggle out of his responsibilities.

The saddest thing is that after the budget was passed, he issued a 5% raise to the teachers Union and the same week received their endorsements.  We call that a bribe.

We strongly feel that Hansen and Venegas might have had a chance in this race if they did not run on his slate.  Since they aligned themselves with such a highly controversial and unlikeable character, it is likely we will see the rise of April Gavin and Ken Harris to these positions soon.

The name in Bolingbrook is "FEAR"

Incumbents use their signs to COVER signs for Bowen, Napionello, and Slaughter.

To see more details, go to http://www.thenumbercrunchers-bolingbrook.com/ and see how many they covered so far.

This is not only dirty politics but shows fear of losing.  These incumbents can spend millions of dollars on signs and cover all the opponents signs if they wish.  It doesn't change the fact that:
Your signs are cheap
Your signs bend so no one can read them
Your signs match everyone elese's in blue (except the top runners Bowen, Slaughter, and Napionello)
Your signs show you are kings of "cover up"
and that you fear the Independents.

Also, we noticed that Creepy Crawley is putting out your signs again this year.  Last year a police report was filed against him for pulling and ruining signs of Bonnie's.  Although Mark Crawley is a security officer at Jane Addams, he does much better as Rogers hit man of signs.  If he cannot confront Bowen, http://www.bobofbolingbrook.com/, face to face, he will just pick on Bob's signs.  This is referring to both Roger Claar and Creepy Crawley.

True cowards show their face every election...

From:  A true Democrat resident

Tip from a Bolingbrook Resident

I am tired of hearing the incumbents and trustees / Mayor blame everything on Bonnie.  Heaven forbid other residents (and there are many) have opened their eyes to the truth.  This latest one was so crazy I had to write to the BR to report it!

Last month Trustee Mike Lawler and his wife filed for a divorce after 30 something odd years of marriage.  It is a hard time for the Lawler family.  However, when Mike told people that it was all Bonnie's fault, I had to draw the line. 

Lawler accused her last year of a school board members stroke and death and got sued.  Now he publicly made a comment that I overheard stating Bonnie is responsible for hie divorce?

I think bringing Bonnie into everything is a little too much.  It is time to take responsibility for your own actions.  This is for ALL the Trustees.  Stop blaming people and look in the mirror.  Lawler, this is wrong and somewhere your marriage collapsed.  Blaming Bonnie for it is wrong.  Ricky, denying your involvement in stealing signs is wrong.  What is wrong with these Trustees that they can't say they are "wrong" and apologize?  Maybe the residents can easily forgive, as everyone is wrong sometimes.  But you guys act like you're never wrong and Bonnie must have done it.  Enough is enough!

No wonder most residents have pledged that they won't be voting for you incumbents again.

Thanks,
Sharan

Makes me Laugh... from a Bolingbrook mom

So the incumbents accuse the Brook Report of trying to destroy Bolingbrook?  Well here is my say in it...

If calling for more transparency is destroying Bolingbrook, then destroy it.
If asking them to stop taking out bond debt is destroying Bolingbrook, then destroy it.
If asking them to fire the management company for the golf course who lose millions year after year is destroying Bolingbrook, then destroy it.
If asking them to cut their pay instead of the number of police is destroying Bolingbrook, then destroy it.
If asking them to stop rubber stamping bills means destroying Bolingbrook, then destroy it.
If reporting that a Trustee is a liar, thief, and road rager is destroying Bolingbrook, then destroy it.
If asking the Mayor to stop pay to play is destroying Bolingbrook, then destroy it.
Shall I continue?

I am not so sure they are using the words right when they say your destroying Bolingbrook.  I think they mean to say you're destroying the ill gotten gains in their pocketbook.

So by all means, destroy Bolingbrook and destroy their pocketbooks, as they have destroyed ours.  Either way, stick on them like glue and hold them accountable for their actions!  We need this site and the strong people that volunteer their services on this site to keep our lying, cheating, stealing elected officials as honest as we can and out of office as soon as we can.

Sincerely,
Mrs. Amanda S.

We want to hear from the residents!!!

Is Ricky's statement damage control or a serious mis-step?

Tell us your opinions on this matter and give suggestions on what you would have done if you had been caught doing this! 

Reply below.

Dear Mr. Leroy Brown

Did you know that Rick put your name on his lying statement?  Did you know it could take a few days before Rick gets picked up by the States Attorney, and when that happens you will all go down for the residents losing trust and faith in you?

In lieu of this, and as a past supporter of your candidacy, you need to distance yourself immediately and issue a statement to the public about this.  We don't want you to lose because you are on a slate with this candidate.  You are going to be held accountable for all his actions.  People will question if you were involved.

If you still want to be a top contender, please reply.
Sincerely,
Mr. G

Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire! Rick Morales publishing "it's not me!"

Can Ricky Morales stoop any lower? 
First, he has pretty much caused the worst error in political Bolingbrook history.  He was caught in a blind rage stealing signs.  Now, he makes the #2 mistake for having the corrupt Will County Republican Party walk door to door today to tell people to vote for them.  But the worst mistake he made just now!
#3 He publicly denies being involved in the theft!

Let's look at the facts.
1.  The Police report claims this incident happened a few doors down from his address.
2.  There are two witnesses
3.  His vehicle almost ran into the witnesses who wrote down it was a certain color Honda, as well as the plate numbers.  Police verified that the car belonged to Mr. Morales.
4.  The witnesses stated it was Mr. Morales that was yelling at their car, and they have seen him many times before.
5.  A 9-1-1 call was placed and response was in Naperville and Bolingbrook.  Both have Ricky's voice on the tape.

6.  Signs were removed and witness pointed out they were put in his car.
7.  The neighbor stated in the police report that a person she knows as Rick Morales came to her door to get permission to take the sign down. 

So what are we missing here?  Does Ricky have an evil twin?  He is claiming it is not his car?  He is claiming it was not his voice on the 911 tapes?  Is he claiming he dos not live right there?  Is he claiming it was not him that the neighbors stood face to face with?  Is he claiming it was not him that stood face to face with the eye witnesses?  What does he have to say about the statement that "My neighbors do not want your signs in their yard!"  Does Ricky's look alike who also drives his car live there too?  Is Ricky also claiming the cell phone pictures of Ricky at the scene of the crime are really of his evil twin and not him?


Here is the liar's statement...

A Message from Rick Morales
Dear First Party Supporters:

A message from Rick Morales, Bolingbrook Trustee

It has come to my attention that two candidates for Village Trustee opposing my candidacy have accused me of taking their political signs. In addition, that I have harassed them while they were putting signs up in the dark of night.

I can tell you that those accusations are not true. This is one of several unfounded allegations/accusations from the same group of individuals that are running against me. They have purposely and with premeditation, gone out of their way to slander us and have continuously used this method to gain attention. I have chosen not to engage them, as I give them no credibility and neither should you.

Their political stunts target the character of good citizens, while blemishing the image of Bolingbrook. Any allegations will be dealt with as needed by proper authorities.

The incumbents are committed to representing the Village of Bolingbrook and its residents with integrity and professionalism, while focusing on important issues such as business growth, infrastructure and public services. It is unfortunate that we must spend time addressing false allegations from individuals that are self-serving and have never been involved in any community organizations or events. The First Party stands behind the incumbents and asks you for your continued support on April 5th.

Sincerely,

Rick Morales, Leroy Brown, and Pat Schanks


So Ricky, how do you plan on representing the residents with integrity and professionalism when you print a lie like this?  Are you banking on the fact that the states attorney will not arrest you before the election?  If he does arrest you soon, you do realize your burying your entire party with two other candidates, right?

Pardon us if we thought you might actually issue a public apology for your wrong doings, so the residents would respect you.  I guess respect is not something you care to have.

Is Ken Cygan a Democrat or a RINO?

Ken Cygan seems to be trying to please too many people.  He started this campaign by winning over Cedra Crenshaw;s support and she is a strong Tea Party advocate and Republican.  He did this by claiming he was a Republican. 

Then he turned to the old chair's of the DuPage Democrats to get Char and Dan Droogan's support.  Both Cedra and Char got him signatures.

But at the same time he lashed out at established reform candidates like Bonnie, Bob (www.bobofbolingbrook.com), and Rhonda while purposefully never being critical of any of the incumbents RINOs.

Now his platform seems to be all over the place.  Is he Republican?  He is not taking about numbers, so he is unaware of the financial circumstances in Bolingbrook.  Maybe he is Democrat, as he is going for the Union support.

In hindsight, he is doing exactly what the current administration does.  He is calling himself Republican when he is really a RINO (Republican In Name Only).  Look at the current village debt and tell us that this administration has been run by Republicans!  No way!

We wonder which side was played a fool... Cedra or Char.  Which one will pull back their help when they see that he is a fence straddler.

So, a vote for Ken seems to be a vote for the same ol' crap.

From a local resident on the east side

Ken Cygan needs to take a better look at his answers if he wants votes

Ken has been the topic of controversy with the Union fundraisers he has been throwing.  Residents are asking what other issues has this candidate shown during this election...

Ken's first stab at a political web site was full of mud slinging at people he did not know or care to research about.  Bolingbrook's darling Bonnie Alicea took hits from him that she should not have had to go through. 

She has fought hard for the residents for two years before this election.  Bonnie stated, "I changed the transparency of the Village and started holding elected officials accountable for their actions.  I started up the first watch dog group to oversee the problems and reason our debt was so high.  Then out of no where, some punk starts attacking me on his web site for doing those things... I can't believe anyone would run on a platform against those things.  I don't even know him!".  She then further tells how she visited the web site to see for herself, and found that his platform was the very same one she used a year before when she ran for Mayor.  "I think he must be confused.  How do you plagiarize someone's platform and then criticize that same person for doing what the platform says?" 

Although Bonnie did not make it on the ballot two years in a row, she has kept her campaign promises.  She might not be paid as a Trustee, but she did work hard on improving Bolingbrook's way of doing business.

So we gave her an opportunity to critique Ken's newest statement and platform posted on the Number Crunchers. http://thenumbercrunchers-bolingbrook.com/kencygan.html

First, she points out that his education, occupation, and experience on his web site 6 months ago is not consistent with the education, experience and positions he is stating now.  That gravely concerns her that he has changed his story.  How do we believe this guy?  She also states that his reason to run for office seems to lack strength or purpose.  "It is vague" she stated. 

When asked about concerns with Claar and all six members on the board being Roger's men/ women, he states nothing about that concern, but states exactly what is on Bonnie's web site under the Independent Party. 

Bonnie tells us, "I was running under 'transparency and accountability'.  It would appear that despite the fact he trashes me, he has been using my established platform of two years being unable or too lazy to develop one of his own.  If he is now running on transparency and accountability, why has he not contributed to the watch dog group as I have?  Why has he not give credit to me for directly using my platform instead of just plagiarizing and claiming credit for it while slamming me at the same time?  (Confused, a Claar croney wannabee, or a do as I say, not as I do RINO?) Why has he not done even one thing to hold the incumbents accountable already?  Why would he slam those that DO hold them accountable and not make the incumbents be transparent?  Once again, he seems to be more than a little bit confused..."  

Maybe this is bad advice he is getting from other local politicians who are writing his stuff, but that is not a good thing that he cannot stand on his own and has no original thought processes of his own. We already have that with the incumbents.  We absolutely don't need more of the same.

When asked about budget cuts to safety, he replies with another answer that does not answer the question. Bonnie's take--"You say that one area we can decrease expenses is to hold banks accountable for foreclosed homes.  I am not seeing this expense in the Village financials.  I believe that the neighbors' incur these costs to keep the lawns clean and debris picked up to preserve their neighborhood."

Furthermore, he states he wants to add an ordinance to fine banks but that means we would be responsible for doing their job and whenever there is a new law, people have to be hired to oversee it.  That would cost and lose us a great deal of money.  Foreclosed properties have weekly check off sheets for inspection and we do not need to add these new positions to cut grass when they just need to be informed that the care is inappropriate."

When asked about the golf course, he responded he would review things.  He shows he has no knowledge of the actual business or the real issues.  This places him way behind his competition and even behind the residents that read this site.

Overall, we thank Bonnie for her contributions.  They are fair and not bashing Ken, even though Ken did trash her hypocritically out of the blue while at the same time plagiarizing her very platform.  Comparing Bonnie's real contributions to the community to Ken's lack of contributions, they are very insightful to see the differences different people are and would make.  Had Bonnie been on the ballot, we would have had a great Trustee for Bolingbrook.  I am not so sure Ken could fill those shoes.

Does the Fireman's Union wish to change the Endorsement?

In lieu of Rick Morales and the First Party (incumbents) recent behavior, will the Fireman's Union change their endorsements? 

Prior to Rick Morales stealing signs, they had publicly endorsed this slate.  Now the residents and firefighters are scrambling to choose other candidates.

"Once a thief, always a thief" is one statement made by a 20+ year resident this week.  "If Ricky stole those signs and did not blink and eye, think how much money he has stolen from the residents as the person in charge of our tax dollars!" she exclaimed.

This leaves the Firefighting Union to either continue to endorse a thief (which would show there is more involved than an endorsement) or endorse other candidates.

Ten days and ticking....

Public Works Union Employees Stand Firm on NO ENDORSEMENTS

In an cry of outrage, Public Works Employees admit that some of them might have gone to Ken Cygans $25 per person fundraiser to support his campaign, but those individuals do not speak on behalf of the organization. 

Public Works Union has YET to endorse any candidates for this election in ten days.  Prior to this election, they have always endorsed the incumbents (Roger Claar's group), just like the Police Union.  Neither have offered any endorsements for this election this year.  That speaks great volumes.  If they endorse a non-incumbent publicly, they could be at risk for consequences on the job.

However, a lack of endorsements have sent their members scrambling for their own options.  Many do not know which candidates are Pro-Union or not.  Union has not been a highly talked about issue.

Bob Bowen and Rhonda Reed Slaughter have waived the sign of compromise with Unions, holding firm on the fact that they need to look at all the information before making a good decision on behalf of the unions and the residents.  Bob Bowen has pointed out at many Village Board meetings that if his over $10 Million in money savings ideas that he proposed to the incumbent Trustees had been acted upon instead of opposed by the incumbent Trustees, the facts is 42 Union jobs would have been saved.  "It's hard to save anyone's job, including Union jobs, when you're too busy doling out tax dollars to way over priced pay-to-play suppliers as the incumbent Morales, Brown, and Schanks do," Bob Bowen reminded (www.bobofbolingbrook.com).
Some like Ken Cygan fully support the Unions without any plan on how to pay them which has caused an outcry from residents and Republicans who are screaming that he must not have looked at the numbers. 

Either way, the Public Works Union and Police Union personnel are on their own this election.  They need to study the candidates issues and weigh in on what they support as residents and what candidates really have a track record of proposing money saving ideas that would have saved real jobs. 

The hottest topic right now in Bolingbrook is the taxes and the foreclosures.  People want to hear what these candidates will do on both fronts.  Bob and Rhonda are running head to head in this election because they stand firm on these issues and are fighting for them as fiscal conservative independents.  This is why it has been hard to figure out which one of these two will finish the race in first or second.  They both believe the Village debt is way too high and the Rubber stamp board of incumbents put Bolingbrook in financial trouble.  They both believe the incumbents should have been doing more to lean on the banks about getting these foreclosed properties better cared for and back on the market faster for buying.  We have yet to hear from Ken on these issues. 

Joe Napionello is scheduled to release his statements on these issues later this week, but tips have suggested he is running on similar platforms to Bob and Rhonda, as all are a part of the newest independent movement in Will County.

It has been shared that the Will County Independent Party looks for certain attributes in an elected official before they will endorse or run someone.  If that is true, then it is possible these are strong candidates that have been interviewed by experts in residents needs.  It will be an interesting race!