I recently read an article in the Daily Southtown about how retired Chicago Heights Police Chief Charles Guiliani Jr. could have by 2035 an annual pension of more than $206,000. This is why the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund and the Illinois state pension funds are so in debt. Nobody, and I mean no one, myself included, should ever retire with more than $100,000 a year as a pension, and I think that’s being very generous.
Burbank
How can anybody, let alone U.S. Rep. Bill Foster, D-11th, agree to the Iran nuclear deal? This man is a physicist and should know better that Iran hasn’t kept an agreement in its entire history. They burn our flags and want to annihilate Israel, who is our greatest ally in the world.
Alsip Joe
Finally, someone is going to sell off the Thompson Center. Although I’m not crazy about Gov. Rauner, he finally made a move I like. With all the properties that Illinois state government owns, such as the vacant Tinley Park Mental Health Center site, the state should try to sell as much as it can to bring in revenue. In the middle of the Loop, the decrepit Thompson Center is prime real estate.
Terry, Palos Park
Syrians are fleeing their country for fear of their dictatorial government and the Islamic State. Because Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is fighting off ISIS’ attempts to make Syria into another Islamic state, we should support Assad.
Vice President Joe Biden needs to decide whether he’s running for president. He doesn’t know what he wants to do. He just wants to get on TV. That’s all. It’s nothing but wind about him running for president. He didn’t do a good job as vice president. Why does he think he can run our country?
Chicago
There was another mass shooting in Oregon. Surprise, surprise. Studies prove that if you possess a gun, you are much more likely to shoot someone accidentally or commit suicide than to protect yourself. Hunters and gun collectors need to find a more productive hobby. It’s time to repeal the Second Amendment. Banish all weapons for everyone except the military and police.
Marv, Bridgeview
One person wrote that the U.S. is crazy to go to Mars because “there is nothing there.” Really? How do you know? You might be very surprised to learn what might be there.
Tommy, Palos Hills
When did Speak Out become an all-political column? It seems that every single comment is of a political nature. Is there not anything else to Speak Out about?
How come 80 percent of the refugees who are fleeing/running from/deserting/Syria are able-bodied young men? Yet we should send our young men there to defend or recapture their country?
Orland Park
U.S. Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., admitted what most of us already knew — the Benghazi witch hunt has been nothing more than a political ploy to ensure that Hillary Clinton never makes it to the White House. Benghazi cannot, now or ever, be compared to the Iraq/Afghanistan debacle, which was made possible by Bush/Cheney/Rumsfeld, et al. Why don’t the Democrats blast this from the rooftops? The Republicans will do anything to bring down Hillary’s poll numbers. But so far, it’s not working.
Chicago
Enough already about poor Rod Blagojevich and how unfair it is that he is still in prison while other politicians are already out. News flash — the criminal justice system isn’t fair. Every day people who were convicted of the same crimes get different sentences. Prosecutors and judges have discretion as to what sentences to ask for and give. Those who plea bargain usually do less, or no, jail time. Not fair? Life itself isn’t fair.
Red, Hegewisch
Instead of going after Obamacare, why don’t we go after the real law that should be changed — the North American Free Trade Agreement? Because of NAFTA, about 1 million jobs have been lost, going primarily to Mexico. We’ve been losing good-paying since that law went into effect. The middle class has not grown at all.
For years, Illinois governors refused to raise the state income tax. Other states’ rates were higher. I lived in Michigan for a while, and my state income tax was 6.5 or 7 percent. You cannot run the state and pay bills if you don’t have enough money coming in. We evidently have not had enough. It has put us in the hole financially.
Ed, Homer Glen
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