Honoring the Servicemen and Servicewomen of Past Wars

Americans celebrated Memorial Day last weekend with probably as many picnics as visits to a cemetery or a war memorial, but the war in Iraq is on everyone's mind these days.

At Fountain Square on Monday, Mayor Lorraine Morton spoke of the debt owed the men and women who have served and are serving their country, "a debt that can't be paid in ceremonies and parades, by prayers or by singing the national anthem." It is, she said, "a debt we can acknowledge but can never repay."

What, then, is the proper way to honor the men and women in the armed services of this country?

We can honor the dead who served in past wars and conflicts by trying to understand the principles for which they fought, the causes that put them in harm's way and the effect their service has had on this country - in perpetuating the freedoms we cherish and defending our national honor and our international leadership.

We can, as Mayor Morton suggested, keep their deeds alive and teach our children the meaning of this day, because that is a way to work for "national peace for future generations."

We can also honor them by continuing to maintain a public space that honors their service.

Fountain Square, Evanston's war memorial, is a new hot item for developers. Of the two proposals to redevelop the space to date, one would push the war memorial onto the boulevard south of Davis Street. The other proposal is unclear about the fate of the memorial, but it appears in the model that the columns memorializing those Evanstonians who died in war would be replaced by an outdoor restaurant and expanded public plaza.

Two veterans who spoke on Monday asked that the City continue to keep Fountain Square as a memorial to Evanston's war dead. The City should listen; wars and those who served in them should not be forgotten.

War is hell and it should not be glorified. But the efforts of those who kept our freedom alive should not be taken lightly. They should be honored publicly.

E-Mail

By Charles Wilkinson

Why is it every time I write an e-mail I want to begin with the word "Dear" and catch myself thinking in paragraphs instead of telegram phrases?  I am not a newcomer to cyberspace (though "geek" or "techie" I am not.). But when it comes to e-mail, both sending and receiving, I have a snail-mail mindset I continually need to confront.

For many reasons, getting mail has always been an event in my daily life.  AOL must have known that about me when I signed on, because its "you've got mail" had me hooked from day one. And although I am not the world's best letter-writer, whether in frequency or in newsy-ness, I like to think my snail-mail letters honor structure and style, if not grammar and spelling.

E-mail is an altogether different matter, at least for one who rarely uses it in a business context. I tend to be casual and therefore somewhat careless when I write. I tell myself, "It's the nature of the beast," when, re-reading something too quickly expressed, I have regrets for not having edited before hitting "send." Sometimes I blame it on the e-mail I am responding to; other times on being in too much of a hurry to respond; still other times on cute and clever language that is too often insensitive to the recipient.

That being said, I have formulated a few rules for writing and responding to e-mails.

First, write with respect, meaning, finding and taking the time I need to express myself clearly, as I would in writing a traditional letter. That may sound self-evident, but e-mail's easy way of connecting often sabotages one's thought processes and meanings.

Second, respond accordingly. Often a one-line message needs only a one-line reply or none at all. Other times, I need to respond to what an other has written instead of saying, "Good hearing from you," then going on about me, never referring to the sender's content. Hey, I have done it. Rule of thumb? "Do unto others ..."

Third, never hit "send" without re-reading or even sometimes waiting a day or two when matters are more sensitive. I fail most frequently here, either out of carelessness or impatience. Yet, I am surprised at how often, when I re-read or let sit, I rewrite entire paragraphs or re-phrase a feeling or two.

Finally, learn to live with the fact that e-mail is not read as instantly as it is sent. Most people do not live in front of computer screens. Even the most important or sensitive e-mail may not be read for days. That is why snail-mail needs to be an option. Aesop's tortoise lives.

Text-messaging?  That I will save  for another life.

The Cicadas Are Coming

By Peggy Tarr

Hickory, Dickory, Dock!
Cicadas watched the clock.
It was now seventeen.
They knew this would mean
That they had to emerge on the scene.

These insects of significant girth
Live as nymphs down in the earth.
Then after years there's an urge
For cicadas to emerge.
Which they do in a common surge.

The nymph will then head for a tree
Where it undergoes changes we see.
It produces wings
And begins to "sing"
To attract a bride-to-be.

Now cicadas lack mouths that can bite,
So they should not evoke so much fright.
And they're only around
To produce their loud sound
For a few weeks, naturalists have found.

But ... Hickory, Dickory, Dock.
Other cicadas watch the clock.
It'll be seventeen
When they know it will mean
That they have to emerge on the scene.

My mother had a thing about insects. If it crawled or flew, she was out to get it. She sat on our front porch during the summer with insect spray and fly swatters. Fortunately there were other people who appreciated and valued these miniature creatures and did not seek their demise while outdoors.

The media has, for the most part, presented the coming of the cicadas as an attacking force in a horror movie. Sigh.

Wee Willie Newsperson, ranting through the town
On a lot of stations, like a babbling clown;
Rapping on the radio, singing it like a rock:
Look out! The cicadas are coming. It's seventeen o'clock.

Nymph, the young of an insect with incomplete metamorphosis (change of form or structure)

Letters to the Editor

How Safe Are Cell Phones? Answer at Library Lecture
Editor:

Cell phones: Are they safe for your children? Are they safe for you? These questions will be addressed by world-recognized medical scientist, epidemiologist, and author, Dr. George Carlo, at the Evanston Public Library, Saturday, June 9, at 10:30 am.

Dr. Carlo, chair of the Science and Public Policy Institute in Washington, D.C., has a unique perspective - he headed the wireless industry's $28.5 million health research program from 1993-1999, one that was supposed to give cell phone radiation a clean bill of health. However, evidence from that research, along with a growing body of research since, has pointed to problems.

Dr. Carlo urges precaution with cell phones and wireless, especially regarding children and young people. He calls for change in a flawed public policy that currently prevents federal health agencies from taking steps to protect the public.

This is a talk that every parent, and anyone using wireless, cannot afford to miss.
- Marne Glaser

Another Successful Aging Well Conference
Editor:

As co-chairs of the ninth annual Aging Well Conference and Film Festival, we want to thank all those who participated in this year's events.

By any measure, both the film festival and conference, for older persons and those who care for them, were a terrific success.

More than100 seniors, family members and professionals attended Evanston's celebration of Older Americans Month.

We are indebted to our conference speakers and to Mayor Lorraine Morton, for her lively, inspiring welcome. We also wish to thank the Evanston Community Media Center for videotaping the conference.  We were particularly fortunate to have Reeltime Independent Film & Video Forum as our partner for the second time for the film festival.

As always, we are especially grateful to the wonderful staff and residents of the King Home, our gracious host for all nine years of the Aging Well Conference. In addition to giving us a home, the King Home also furnishes much of the audiovisual equipment and a delicious continental breakfast for our guests.

The Aging Well Film Festival and Conference are free, owing to a generous consortium of people and agencies that serve the senior community by giving their time, expertise and in-kind services: The King Home, Council for Jewish Elderly, Covenant Methodist Home Care, Evanston Commission on Aging, Evanston Mental Health Board, Evanston Police Department Senior Services, Evanston Public Library, Evanston/Skokie Valley Senior Services, Faith in Action Evanston, Interfaith Housing Center of the Northern Suburbs, Levy Senior Center, LivHOME, Inc., Mather Lifeways, Mental Health Association of the North Shore, Metropolitan Family Services, McGaw YMCA, North Shore Retirement Hotel, North Shore Senior Center, PEER Services, Inc., Reeltime Independent Film & Video Forum, Seniors Action Service, Inc.

To these agencies, our speakers and all those who attended the events, we extend our gratitude.

We couldn't have done it without you.
-- Susan Cherco, Margaret Gergen, Co-chairs: Ninth Annual Aging Well Conference & Film Festival

Trashbusters 2007 Was  A Citywide Success
Editor:

 Keep Evanston Beautiful celebrated its 21st year of community "trashbustin'" in April.  Trashbuster events planned for the month were cell phone recycling at the Ecology Center and the Civic Center, schoolyard improvements, trash cleanups and other beautification and recycling efforts.

The following groups or individuals supported or participated in Trashbuster efforts:  Trashbuster Troopers  Mayor Lorraine Morton, City Manager Julia Carroll, Alderman Ann Rainey, Alderman Cheryl Wollin, Alderman Lionel Jean-Baptiste, Alderman Melissa Wynne, Alderman Steve Bernstein, Alderman Delores Holmes, Alderman Elizabeth Tisdahl, Alderman Anjana Hansen, Alderman Edmund B. Moran Jr., D65 Board members Jonathan K. Baum, Julie Chernoff and Mary Rita Luecke, ETHS Superintendant Eric Witherspoon and D202 Board member Rachel Hayman; Trashbuster Leaders Michelle Hayes (Brummel Park Neighbors), Kelly Marcelle (Boy Hope), Sue Hammerman (Evanston Running Club), Holly Fisher and Julie Fisher, Grace Pigozzi, Jill Brazel (Young Professionals of Evanston), Lauren Parnell (Interfaith Youth Corps), Abby Prujan (Beth Emet Preschool), Julia Westbrook (West Crown Park Neighbors), Mimi Davis (Chute Middle School Recycling Club), Katie Trippi (McGaw YMCA S.O.A.R. program), and Marisa Naujokas. 

The following Girl Scout Troops participated:  Troop 55 (Heidi Umbaugh, leader), Troop 189 (Mary Fitch, leader), Troop 2468 (Karen Delval, leader), Troop 3486 (Susan Ryan, leader), Troop1550 (Maggie Fleming, leader), Troop 194 (Debbie Hayes-Miller, leader), Troop 7 (Becky Zwolinski, leader), Troop 885 (Lisa Nielsen, leader), Troop 3473 (Margaret Perla-Bavis, leader).

Keep Evanston Beautiful thanks you all for your participation.  Remember that you can recycle your old cell phones and ink jet cartridges at the Ecology Center, 2024 McCormick Blvd., or at the Civic Center, 2100 Ridge Ave.
-- Sally Ennis, Community Awareness Chair, Keep Evanston Beautiful

Group Takes Stand Against Gun Violence
Editor:

On Sunday, March 25, at around 8:10 p.m., someone shot several bullets at a car that held a small group of young men driving on Brown Avenue. They made a quick turn onto Foster Street to try to avoid the bullets, which could have killed them and other innocent people in the neighborhood.

As a result of this misplaced behavior (by the grace of God no one was killed), some people were indirectly involved financially. For example, cars were damaged or totaled, or both. The small amount of money paid by the auto insurance companies - the Blue Book value - in no way covers the time, effort and money involved in cases like this.

Most times, other people are affected when certain people choose to make unsound decisions. Many people in our community and the Afrikana Network for Equality and Fairness (ANEF) will not tolerate random shooting or any other uncalled-for shooting by anyone on our streets.

Beware. We have the right to contact law enforcement.

We will carve out that which is needed to remove violence from our streets and communities.
-Madelyn Ducre

What If Drugs Were Legalized?
Editor:

"We're finding gangs are working together basically for business purposes... . They want to make as much money as possible." If these words spoken by a Neighborhood Enforcement Team representative are indeed the truth, then the Evanston Police Department needs to join ranks with economist Milton Friedman, former Secretary of the Treasury George Schultz, former editor of the National Review William Buckley and numerous other Republicans and staunch conservatives in the effort to regulate street drugs. If the profit motive underlying the street drugs trade were removed, gangs that exist to sell and profit from such sales would decrease in number and influence, as was the case during Prohibition.

More police and more prisons accomplished little to reduce the existence and influence of gangs that relied on alcohol sales during Prohibition. A return to the regulation of alcohol drove a stake into the hearts of those who profited from its illegal sale. Because gangs rely on the sale of illegal drugs to fund their operations, they would most likely be driven out of business by competition, if street drugs were regulated.

Imagine what would happen if the drugs that Americans purchase from their neighborhood drugstores were to be made illegal.

The legal gangs known as the pharmaceutical corporate/drugstore complex, along with their outrageous profits, would be gone, only to be replaced by illegal pharmaceutical drug sales by street gangs, along with the associated violence and other criminal activity.

A similar scenario would also occur should the "bud" sold by the gang known as the alcohol industry and consumed legally by Americans were to be made illegal, as was the case during Prohibition.

The money used to fight the war against drugs and gangs could then be used to fund more community outreach programs, including increased employment opportunities for Evanston youth, thereby providing them with a legal way to earn money. 

Yes, applying the tried and true principles of capitalism to the war against drugs and gangs would be the way to go in making Evanston a safer community.
-- Louis Silverstein, Ph.D