Taking issue with the issues -- or lack of

This is never a good time for candidates.  Accusations, campaigns, major statements and, for one candidate,  chicken soup.

Having announced his candidacy a few months ago, Chicken Little, along with FIDO have been finding themselves on the outside looking in.  "It's amazing how much coverage my opponents, Sid Mathias and Carol Sente, have received," Little said.  "And they're not even addressing the issues."

Candidate Little

So what's the problem?  "It's turned into to one smear after another," Little said.  "In fact," he clucked, "the biggest issue in the campaign seems to be former Buffalo Grove trustee Lisa Stone."

So how, I asked, does Stone become an issue?  "Because she claimed to be in the Mathias camp and then Mathias came out and said nope, she wasn't".

So this is an issue of great significance for a state representative?  Not really. as Little pointed out, the alignment, or perceived alignment, depending on to whom you speak, or which online media comments you read, is the issue.  Mathias added fuel to the fire by allegedly not addressing the issue at a campaign Town Hall meeting, which really bothered people.

So once again a Lisa Stone-fueled snowball began rolling. But is it relevant at this time?  If she wants to support Mathias, that's her business.  If he wants to align himself with her efforts, that's his business.

What's lost is the reason Sente and Mathias are running -- not to please Lisa Stone -- but to represent the people of the newly drawn 59th district and take their views to Springfield.

Remember Springfield?  It's the state capital and also the name of the Simpson's hometown.  The two parallel each other.  It seems that the state is being led by Homer or Ed Flanders or even Apu.

So while representatives from around the state ponder ways to improve the state fledgling credit rating, diminishing state pension program and a crumbling infrastructure -- residents of the 59th are hearing about Lisa Stone's support of Mathias.

"So who cares," Little asked.  A fair number of people who like to post on on-line media sites.  "They address the issues?" Little said.

Little may be on to something. There hasn't been much debate about the issues.  Only who supports whom.  I don't really care who Lisa Stone supports.  In fact, I don't really care who anyone supports.

What I want is to know where the candidates stand.  Period.

"So what do they do?" Little asked.

Send out more junk mail.  You've seen them, the ones with superimposed pictures of opponents with cash hanging out their pockets or hiding behind a mask.

"Sounds like a disservice to the voters," Little said.  "You'd think they would just simply state their positions and ideas."

You would, indeed.  Instead we're more infatuated about who supports whom.

"So what's the answer," Little asked.

I'm not sure. The state has about as much stability as the Bears offensive line, and the candidates seem to have their heads in the sand.

"Well," said Little, "my position is clear on one thing."

And that is?

"There won't be a chicken in every pot."

True.  They'll  all be in Springfield.