Lanark Farmers Market

I would like to thank all the vendors and the customers who contributed to making the Lanark Farmers Market grand opening a success. There was a great turnout. We are looking forward to a larger number of vendors coming on July 6th, particularly produce (if ripe).

The Farmers Market will continue to be held every Tuesday through September, so come and join us. And remember to “Get it Fresh . . . Buy it Local!”

Sincerely,

Francesca Huggins

AmeriCorps VISTA Summer Associate

Lanark, IL

Old Settlers Thanks

Old Settlers Day Enhancement Committee would like to extend a big thank you to our endless list of volunteers and sponsors for their involvement with Old Settlers Days this year. We had something for everyone and without your time, energy, and donations this would not be possible.

The City of Lanark will have their 150th Birthday celebration during Old Settlers Days next year, June 2011. It will be a celebration created of many memories and milestones for Lanark residents, businesses, and visitors to take in at the Sesquicentennial Celebration. During the course of the anniversary celebration, the City will host events honoring old, new, and future hallmarks of Lanark. Help kick- off the celebration next year!

Old Settlers Days Sesquicentennial slogan will be “Lanark, a Celebration of People, Partnerships, and Progress.” Old Settlers Days Enhancement Committee will be one of many hosting events throughout the year for fundraisers and awareness of Old Settlers Days 150th Birthday Bash. If you would like to be involved with Old Settlers Days Enhancement Committee please contact Becka Millard or Katie Reifsteck for more information.

OSDEC member

Katie Reifsteck

Lanark, IL

Morthland Makes an Impression

Recently, the people of Rock Island County stood up and backed a brave County Board member who brought up the idea of rescinding the increase in salaries for some County officials. If money was flowing for everyone, a raise would be all right. But, these are tough times for many, and to rescind that action and create a freeze was encouraging for the public I am sure.

There is no doubt in my mind that Rich Morthland had the courage to bring up the idea to the public for their benefit and received a resounding “YES” to wanting to cut out the increases. The public overwhelmingly supported that idea. Three cheers to all.

I do wonder about the soon-to-be-raised to $90,000 a year for the County Board Chairman. I wonder why that has never been discussed by the Board and the people? It should.

Venita McConnel

Mt. Carroll, IL

Morthland’s Got Guts!

Time has passed since all of the excitement happened in Rock Island County on the matter of freezing some county officials’ wages.

Obviously, someone thought of the people for a change, and not the politicians. Job loss is really large in the entire State of Illinois. When salaries and services are raised so that it affects all of the people living in Rock Island, they need to be listened to. They were!

Rich Morthland, the only Republican on the RI County Board, thought it was important enough to take a stand on this issue as he did. The people agreed with him, and the raises were frozen. That took guts, Rich! Keep up the good work.

I can’t vote for you in Rock Island County, BUT I will be happy to vote for you this year to be a State Representative in District 71. It’s time for us, the voters, to step forward for independence and leadership instead of political parties.

Wendy Lou Klein

Savanna, IL

 

 

 

 

 

“And appetite, a universal wolf,

So seconded with will and power,

Must make perforce a universal prey,

And last eat up himself.”

— Shakespeare, Trolius and Cressida

If nothing else, Helen Thomas’ resignation - forced retirement - makes a mockery of the very mediated reality she so faithfully served for so many years. For not only is our press not free, it is clearly bought and paid for by principalities and powers that rear their heads most ugliest to smite one of their own, whenst he or she dare stray wayward. Thomas’s quixotic attempt to speak truth to power, a candid rejection of Israel’s apparent “right” to occupy, was more than the established mediators could allow; and Thomas was forced to pay the ultimate price, regardless of her status, press credentials, age or gender. And worse, lo are the few to defend her, even among the fifth estate. None dare risk defending Helen (and by implication, the First Amendment) if it entails even the slightest possibility of being linked to someone who must most certainly be an anti-Semite. Or so it would most certainly appear.

It would also appear that while no one power can lay claim to a monopoly on how our worls “out there” is mediated, what Herbert Marcuse applied to a method of cognition, we can apply to any corporate medium, asserting while assuring its legitimacy: “’The whole is the truth,’ and the whole is false.”

Cordially,

John P. Jankowski

Stockton, IL

Commentary . . .

Bankers’ Dream and Government Nightmare

By Arthur Donart, Ph.D.and

Christine M. Palese

The Troubles Asset Relief Program, a.k.a. TARP, was intended to stop the collapse of our financial system by preventing the “too big to fail” banks from failing. The “housing bubble” burst, and unregulated derivatives came back to bite. The jolly bankers and Wall Street executives had been plundering like Somali pirates and pocketing hippo-sized bonuses when their sky fell down, hurting nearly everyone. You would think that this would have a sobering effect, as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation continues to mop up failing banks.

However, there are those who see opportunity to plunder more, in all this chaos. They see a pot of gold at the end of the failing bank rainbow. This is how it works.

- Borrow TARP funds at 5% interest to buy your failing bank, especially if it has a fairly good loan loss reserve.

- Settle the losses at fifty cents on the dollar, and let F.D.I.C. pick up 80% of the loss.

You have to pick up the other 20%.

- Use your loan loss reserve to pay your 20%.

- Pay back your TARP funds.

- Take the remaining money in the loan loss reserve as profit.

For example, say the loan face value is $200 million, and the settled amount is $100 million. You just lost $100 million, but wait. F.D.I.C. will cover $80 million, so you are now only $20 million in the hole. Seems bad, but don’t fret; your loan loss reserve has $50 million in it. Take out the $20 million you lost, plus the $5 million interest on the TARP funds borrowed, and you have a cool profit of $25 million. Your loan loss reserve fund is gone, but so are all your bad loans.

There is yet another step to be taken. Thus far you’ve only dealt with the “bad” loans. What about the good loans that are “under water?” These are loans you are holding. They are not in default, but more is owed on the property than their current book value. If they go bad, the F.D.I.C. may not absorb part of the losses, if the loss share agreement has expired. It is going to come out of your loan loss reserve fund (Ouch! That’s the profit.) So, protect the loan loss reserve fund.

This is where things get very tacky. The temptation is to call the borrowers in and insist that they pay down the principal on their loan to at least market value. If they are in business and you have their business credit as well, you can threaten to close their line of credit, if they fail to meet your demand.

Are such tactics ethical? That is up to debate. I would argue that such a practice is unethical; however, it really doesn’t matter. What does matter is that such a strategy is illegal. It is a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practice Act 15 U.S.C. # 1692, Title 15- “Commerce and Trade“, Chapter 41- “Consumer Protection“; Sub Chapter V, “Debt Collection Practices.”

- The bank may not change the terms of your mortgage without your consent.

- The above Federal Law requires that they acknowledge up front that they are trying to collect on a debt.

- They must come to you and at a time convenient to you.

- If you are not in default, you have no obligation to even meet with the banker.

- If [the] loan in question is secured by your principle residence, the bank is required to offer a loan modification, by reducing the interest rate, or amortize the loan over 40 years.

- If that won’t work, they must defer a portion of the principal balance.

Currently the FDIC has this standard modification language in all of the purchase and assumption agreements with banks that wish to acquire the assets of a failed bank. Banks that have received TARP funds are also required to participate in the Home Affordable Modification Program (a.k.a. HAMP) as a condition of those funds.

Unfortunately, there are banks that will claim they are not covered by the Fair Debt Collection Practice Act, because it only applies to third party collection agencies. Don’t buy their garbage! If the bank is a national bank, a member of the Federal Reserve System, insured by the F.D.I.C., then that bank is covered by this Federal Law. Unfortunately, there are sleazy bankers out there quite willing to break the law and mark up a giant profit--essentially using taxpayer money to screw taxpayers.

Warren Harding and the Great Depression That Wasn’t

By Jerry Kohn

If you attended a typical American high school and took a typical course in American history, you no doubt learned the great myths of the Great Depression. [i] You were likely taught that this depression was the result of greedy Wall Street speculators, inequality of wealth, and the “do nothing” Presidency of Herbert Hoover. You also learned how a wise and inspiring hero by the name of Franklin D. Roosevelt saved America from this depression with his New Deal and then saved America all over again nearly ten years later (and from the same depression!) by involving the U.S. in World War II.

What you likely never heard about in school was the much shorter depression of 1920. In its initial stages, this depression was every bit as severe as the more famous (or rather infamous) one that would begin nine years later. From 1920 to 1921, the estimated gross national product plunged 24% from $91.5 billion to $69.6 billion. During that same period, the number of unemployed people jumped from 2.1 million to 4.9 million or roughly 12% of the workforce. [ii] Home and farm foreclosures and bank failures spiraled, and calls for federal relief came from every corner of America.

Unlike Herbert Hoover and FDR, however, then-President Warren G. Harding had both the wisdom and the courage to resist these pressures. Harding understood that depressions were the unavoidable result of speculative bubbles created by monetary inflation. As Harding explained, “There will be depression after inflation, just as surely as the tides ebb and flow.” [iii] The painful liquidation of unsound money and unsound businesses created by Woodrow Wilson’s foolish intervention in World War I was not only unavoidable but necessary if the economy was ever to return to a sustainable path.

Under President Harding, there would be no huge government bailouts to save failing businesses or banks, no grand federal make-work programs to employ the unemployed, no massive regulation of the economy to reign in the markets, stifle investment or impede trade. Most important, there would be no major wars started to stimulate production of useless war materials or to destroy “surplus labor.” Though then-Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover urged the President to take drastic action to fight the depression, Harding largely brushed Hoover’s exhortations aside. Though Harding did humor his Commerce Secretary by calling for a White House Conference on Unemployment, Harding cautioned the conferees regarding the use of federal funds declaring, “The excess stimulation from that source is to be reckoned a cause of trouble rather than a source of cure.” [iv]

Harding was not entirely passive, however. To fight the recession, he called on Congress to dramatically reduce both taxes and spending. Under Harding, federal spending was cut from $6.3 billion in 1920 to $5 billion in 1921 and to $3.2 billion in 1922. Federal taxes were also reduced from $6.6 billion in 1920 to $5.5 billion in 1921 and to $4 billion in 1922 with budget surpluses each year used to reduce the federal debt. [v]

The results were astounding. By 1922, GNP had recovered to $74.6 billion and unemployment fell by nearly 50% to 2.8 million (6.7%). By 1926 with Harding’s Vice President, Calvin Coolidge, in the White House, unemployment had fallen even further to 1.8% (the lowest rate ever recorded in peacetime). Unfortunately, behind the scenes the Federal Reserve was already in the process of inflating yet another monetary bubble. This new bubble would burst (as all bubbles do) in the famous crash of 1929. By this time, Harding was dead and Coolidge in retirement. Having learned nothing from Harding and Coolidge, President Hoover proceeded to raise taxes, increase spending, intervene massively in the economy and the rest is, well, mythology.

Jerry Kohn is a Policy Analyst for the Illinois Taxpayer Education Foundation.

[i] See Lawrence Reed, “Great Myths of the Great Depression” Available at http://www.mackinac.org/4013 and also John T. Flynn, The Roosevelt Myth (San Francisco, 1948).

[ii] Jim Powell, “America’s Greatest Depression Fighter” Available at http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig4/powell-jim4.html. Accessed 6/4/2010.

[iii] Ibid.

[iv] Murray N. Rothbard, America’s Great Depression 4th ed. (New York, 1983) 172.

[v] Powell, loc. cit.

Open House at Heartland

In 2005 Heartland Pet Welfare hosted an Open House to invite the community to visit our new shelter. It had recently been completed and the “residents” were moved in and settled. On Sunday, July 11, we will host another Open House at the shelter at 2720 Wacker Road in Savanna from 1 to 4 in the afternoon. There have been recent upgrades of the “condos” at the shelter as well as other changes since the shelter originally opened.

To those who are not familiar with Heartland Pet Welfare, let me introduce our organization. We are the only cat shelter in Carroll County. We were established as a 501c3 not-for profit organization in 1999. Our goal was to provide assistance and help to control the over-population of cats in the area. Through the years we have housed hundreds of cats and found homes for them. We have also, when funds were available, provided spay/neuter assistance for pet owners to have their animals altered. Several feral colonies have been reduced through our efforts of trap/neuter/release of feral cats. We have answered calls from local authorities as well as concerned citizens when an abandoned or injured cat needs help. Our volunteers put in many hours each week to try to help as many animals as we can. Through spay/neuter we have eased the overpopulation, but it is still an enormous problem in our county.

We apply for grant money several times throughout the year, but in recent years the money is very difficult to obtain. We have had to rely on the kindness of local citizens for donations as well as hosting fundraisers to raise money to maintain the shelter and continue our work for the homeless animals. We would like to take this opportunity to thank those who have donated to us. Whether it was baked goods, yard sale items, monetary donations, shelter supplies, or shelter volunteering, every kindness has been appreciated. If you have joined our organization or helped in any way, please know we are grateful. We couldn’t continue to help our furry friends without this help. Remember also that we are a not-for-profit group, so donations are tax deductible.

Please mark July 11 on your calendar as a reminder to attend our Open House. We would love to show off our shelter, and the cats and kittens love to have visitors. Who knows? You may just fall in love with one of our feline friends and want to provide a loving home.

Hope to see you there.

Sincerely,

Penny Kreusch

Heartland Pet Welfare

Capitol Report

By Jim Sacia, State Representative, 89th District

Growing up a gearhead, trucks have always been a big part of my life. Holding a CDL myself, I have a special place for men and women who make a living in a ten wheel gravel truck or an eighteen wheeler. It’s a tough life and these are among the “salt of the earth” people who make this country so great.

With the construction season in full swing, an issue is bubbling to the top which could create a roadblock to area construction and road building jobs. I learned of the issue first from an area trucker Jeff Biesemeier. That got me in touch with Don Schaefer of Midwest Truckers who does a great job for the trucking industry.

Simply put, large contracting firms like Civil and Rockford Blacktop hire subcontractors to haul rock, asphalt, concrete, etc, to job sites. The Quinn administration has set a goal of 22.77% minority haulers to be employed on each project. Billions of dollars of federal money are at stake if efforts to meet requirements aren’t met. IDOT allegedly adopted a “no waiver” policy meaning that those percentages must be met.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled quotas are unconstitutional. Federal regulations require states to waive their goals for low bidders who fall short of the 23% but demonstrate “good faith efforts” to hit the subcontracting targets.

Area firms feel they must meet these objectives or come very close or lose out on bids. One extreme example reported in Crain’s Chicago Business, “IDOT last week awarded a nearly $16.2 million Eisenhower resurfacing project to the second-lowest bid, which was nearly $745,000 higher than the lowest bid. Arrow Road Construction Co.’s low bid was rejected because it fell just $41,604 short of the 24% DBE (disadvantaged business enterprise) goal, according to Edward Gower, a former IDOT chief counsel who represents both Arrow Road and Dunnet Bay.”

Here’s why the issue locally is really sticky. IDOT officials told a meeting of contractors that IDOT has established a no wavier policy. IDOT now says it has no such policy (see before mentioned $745,000 higher bid awarded), one has to wonder.

Area contractors have a strong core of highly reliable established truckers like Biesemeier, ready to haul. We don’t begin to have the number of minority haulers available to Chicago contractors, yet they know they must meet that “non-existent quota” or lose a bid.

If we don’t get a handle on this quickly, we will be wasting millions of dollars on second highest bids and some good folks will be sitting in the cab of a truck waiting for a call that isn’t going to come.

We will be scheduling our mobile office to be in your community shortly after the Fourth of July festivities.