In spite of what you may have heard, based on a council member’s comment, Naperville is not a sanctuary city, a term for some cities that have policies or laws designed specifically for not prosecuting unauthorized immigrants.
I’m pretty sure that if the price of ‘refuge’ went up, council members would get many phone calls.
Council member Patty Gustin’s comment was in reference to the September 15th city council meeting during the discussion on the increase of ‘refuse’ (trash) fees appearing on utility bills. It does make one wonder, if Gustin knows exactly what she is voting on.
We all have ‘mis-speaks’, however some of us have more than others, and councilwoman Gustin qualifies as one of those folks. The disadvantage of talking a lot, is there is more opportunity for an interesting array of mis-speaks, and Patty Gustin, is without a doubt a talker.
Gustin, along with councilman Paul Hinterlong make meetings much more interesting by just waiting for gems of genius to be spoken by either. Hinterlong has had some of the more brilliant examples of “what were you thinking” , when he and “police chief” Bob Marshall were hatching a “gotcha” scheme during a (recorded) council meeting, to entrap Uber for breaking a law or ordinance that didn’t exist.
I am reminded of one of my favorite quotes attributed to Abraham Lincoln, “Better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to talk and remove all doubt”.
Not that I am suggesting Gustin or Hinterlong remain silent, because that would remove a lot of possible entertainment, but a little more thought before speaking for both might be a wise strategy.
There are two clear-cut additional reasons why less talking by both Gustin and Hinterlong would be beneficial:
- meetings would end much sooner; home in time for the Cubs game
- lights out sooner, cutting electric expense to help budget
Lincoln, Thomas Edison, and Joe Maddon would be proud.
Yeah, Patti’s dialogue was amusing, but everybody’s entitled to a “slip” once in a while. “Refuge” and “refuse” don’t sound too different, but everybody understands “garbage”. Tell it like it is; it still $2/mo. extra. And oh by the way, the new haulers for the garbage/recycling/brush, Waste Management, seems to be doing a good job. I’m pleased that the new yard waste stickers don’t expire until April 30, 2019.
p.s. I enjoy the watchdog’s missives, but sometimes I think you are nitpicking (as in this particular case).