By Anan, Oak Park’s newly elected president.

Frank

Posted: April 10th, 2013 10:17 AM

. . . . The VMA is a caucus not a party. The Trustees do not regularly consult with the “VMA leadership” The truth is that [trustees who resigned a few years back] didn’t realize how much work was involved for the wages that were peanuts. Its a thankless job. They didn’t know it was to be so much work.

—> At the first forum, Abu-Taleb got quick spontaneous laugh in his quick response as to why he was running for president having never been a trustee: “For the money.” See below about long meetings. ————-v

To Everyone

Posted: April 10th, 2013 1:56 PM

Some noteworthy comments in the wake of the Abu-Taleb victory:

1. The lackey problem (a bit on the bizzaro side):

Corporate VMA

Posted: April 9th, 2013 10:17 PM

You still have two administrative level bankers, and a corporate attorney at the helm of Oak Park. Until you get rid of the rest of the corporate lackeys, I’m afraid you have not won.

2. The good-guy approach:

[Trustee] Ray Johnson from Oak Park, Illinois Facebook Verified Posted: April 9th, 2013 10:09 PM

We’ve all benefited from John Hedges years of service and I thank him for all he has done. Congratulations to Anan and his team. We now move forward together with a spirit of cooperation focused on common ground and the needs of all residents. We have lots to do and I’m as committed as ever.

3. Ditto:

John Butch Murtagh from Oak Park, Illinois Facebook Verified

. . . if he’d run, say ten years ago, or 15 or 20, before people got tired of the same-old, same-old at Village Hall.

or . . .

. . . if no smart, able campaigner-restaurateur had not surfaced to challenge him.

or . . .

. . . if Oak Park demographics had not changed from super-idealistic to limited-pragmatic-with-view-to-making-our-utopia-work-better-than-before.

or . . . (fill in the blanks) . . .

A fascinating exercise, no?

. . . and should have left one of them there. An explanation to readers:

The first post, “Anti-Anan column raises issue from the dead?” shoulda, coulda been left there. In it Bowman called attn. to Jon Hale’s “One View” column which called attn. to now-president-elect Anan Abu-Taleb’s tax conviction and subsequent clemency reception.

News factor was employment by the opposition of what I likened to a “last-minute flyer on the doorstep.” So it might have stayed online, whence I evicted it, as those who punched the link that led nowhere know too well. Sorry.

The second, “Hale for ‘underdog’ Hedges in e-blast,” began to look like what I’d depicted unfavorably in the first one, too much of the last-minute flyer, not enough of news fit to print, as a well known newspaper used to say of what it offered. Not sorry. (Another great publication changed that, puckishly…

. . . and ending with announcement of new cloud drives. Great sell copy.

This year’s ersatz World Backup Day holiday coincides with a real one, Easter, and, while you could make analogies about resurrecting your data, the holiday the event’s organizers want to focus on is the one that comes a day later: April Fool’s Day: If you’re not backed up, there’s a chance you could end up looking like a fool.

Inspired.

. . . not often.

Showed up with my voter i-d card, thinking to make a point — I need i-d for driver’s license, not for voting? Oh? But one of the table people knew me, so I could only say I had it ready.

Woman shook head. Not needed, she said, which I knew. You’d take my word for it, I said, but point was lost as the long-time regular who knew me pulled my page up and pushed it across for my John Hancock.

Hey, it’s nice to be known, and no one in the village or out of it had an easier time of casting a vote.

7:30 or so it was. 20 to 22% expected, I was told. Not much.

Side note: the “next” button on the machine page, bottom right, was reluctant to respond, like the one at the library for taking a…

Robert Milstein from Oak Park
Posted: April 8th, 2013 6:59 PM[scroll
down]

We received an an email blast by Mr. Hale accusing Anan of misdeeds 23 years ago? Hedges publically said that it has no bearing on the election. He accepted Anan’s explanations and even the Journal walked past any inkling of a problem.

But sleeze rises to the top and Hale appears to be the new VMA hatchet man. Striking at the last moment like a true coward, John sought to besmirch a man running an honest, transparent campaign. Voters in OP are not stupid, they will see thru John and vote Anan

I would say so.

And would add that the 5/5/09 Wed Jnl piece by Ben Myers takes apart the Sun-Times piece on which Hale rests his case, in which case-resting Hale betrays at best a naive approach.

For instance:

The director of Northwestern University’s Center…