Monday, March 21, 2011

Hey Rob, how about substance and not abuse??

If you are following the race for Buffalo Grove Village Clerk, you know that incumbent Jan Sirabian is being "challenged" by resident expert on everything and accomplisher of little, Rob Sherman.

Sherman continues to hammer away at Sirabian for her job performance.  What appears be the issue has little to do with Sirabian's performance, but rather Sherman's apparent sexist double standards and arrogance.

Sherman hammers away at what he thinks should be done with the village clerk's office, but has shown little effort, let alone interest, in what goes on in the village.  The campaign has proven to be yet another shaky soap box on which Sherman can stand on and brag and demonstrate boorish behavior.

As I have mentioned before, Sherman's claims to fame have been challenging the state-mandated moment of silent reflection in schools, having his car washed by Hooter's staff members, and attending the Naked Ladies Book Club.

Somewhere you would think he would be more attuned to the issues of the village.  When the Illinois EPA held its hearing in November, Sherman parked his massive Rob Sherman vehicle in front of Village Hall, smugly solicited nomination petitions -- and then  left.  He barely (no pun intended here), if at all, stayed for the hearing.  No matter how you feel about the L & L landfill, as a village official, or candidate, it seems to me that if you are genuinely concerned about the village, you would have stayed.

It's a case of actions speak louder than words.

Instead Sherman's campaign, if you want to call it that, is focused on ripping the minutes of Village Board minutes and addressing the fact that Sirabian  is a senior citizen.  She'll hit 70 on her next birthday.  News flash -- Sherman is also a senior citizen -- granted he's "only" 57, but he's eligible for an AARP card and before long, he'll reach the magic 62 when he'll get a discount at Dairy Queen.

But Robbypoo doesn't think like that -- his position seems to be that Sirabian keeps running because she's an egotist who wants the job for life.  His latest allegations stem from an article in the Countryside about the race.  In it Sirabian is quoted as saying she was going to she was going to keep the minutes of the Village Board meetings to a bare minimum, something which infuriated former trustee Lisa Stone.

If you check the minutes of most other public bodies, you'll find their minutes are similar to Buffalo Grove's.  Sherman likes to bully up to the Illinois Open Meetings Act by claiming a "summary of discussion," is needed. Summary, Robbypoo, not narrative.  It would be unreasonable and potentially biased for any village clerk to provide a narrative.

This election need to look at performance, dedication and character.  Sherman thinks it's acceptable to chastise  a public servant who has held the post for  32 years because the voters wanted her to.  Sirabian has hit potholes during her tenure, but any public official will.

Sherman's allegations that "..she is unworthy of re-election, regardless of what happens on April 5th, and that she has the maturity of an adolescent in middle school by throwing temper tantrums as her response to criticism..." are desperate and sophomoric and reflect the lack of respect Sherman has for someone who does not agree with him.

Sherman adds that  "since Jan cannot be relied upon to provide consistent quality and to not throw a temper tantrum whenever she feels like it, and since nobody else is willing to do the job, I'll take that job and do it right, every time, and not just when I feel like it, as our unprofessional incumbent does."

Unprofessional?  Let's see, I have yet to see pictures of Jan Sirabian with naked men or Chip 'N Dale dancers.  Nor have I seen stories about her attending underwear lectures.

What I see is the work she does on behalf of community charities and Veterans events.

Sirabian is not perfect -- but she's honest and does not skirt the past, something  Sherman does. While he is quick to interpret legal opinions, he seemingly avoids his training.  Does he have law degree?  What is his interest in charity? How does he support the nation's veterans?

And what about his background?  He's upset about Sirabian repeating as village clerk.  Given Sherman's background if he repeats that could make him a repeat offender.

If character counts, Sherman needs to stop throwing rocks in glass houses.

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