The final salute

It is always the second item on the agenda for every Village Board meeting.

               The Pledge of Allegiance.

               For the most part it’s routine.  Just as it was at the March 18 Village Board meeting.

Retiring Police Chief Steve Balinski
bids a fond farewell
at the March 19 Village Board meeting

               But tonight, it was a subtly different.  While the throngs in attendance stood, placed their hands over the hearts and recited the pledge, one member of the audience, impeccably dressed in his Police Department dress uniform, saluted the flag as he said the pledge.

               It was a class, even poignant thing to do – pay tribute to the country with dignity and honor.

               But that’s what you would expect from Police Chief Steve Balinski.

               Balinski was honored with a reception prior to the meeting and then with the presentation of the obligatory resolution by the Village Board.  In essence, the night belonged to Balinski.  As well it should have.

               His salute, most likely his last as Buffalo Grove’s top cop, could have been seen as more than a salute to the country.  It very well could have a been a salute to the village and the people “Bo” served for nearly four decades.

               If a coach reflects the character of his team, then the Buffalo Grove Police Department reflects Balinski class as a professional and person.

               “I am blessed because of everyone here,” an emotional Balinski said.  “I feel lucky to come to work every day.  All of you have been very important to me. You’ve been my strength. You’ve allowed me to succeed.”

               And while Balinski thanked the expected – the village staff, the elected officials and, of course, his colleagues in the Police Department – he became emotional and tearful for the one person he said has “always been there, my wife, Karen.”

               That’s Balinski.  An honest cop, a good cop, a class cop – and a caring cop.  I’m a staunch admirer of the men and women of the nation’s police and fire departments.  They’re not all perfect – no one is – but they face daily challenges that most of us can’t even imagine.  Buffalo Grove is fortunate to have a class police department.  I have worked with the department on and off for more than 30 years, before Balinski was chief, when the department was located in the basement of Village Hall, so my admiration is not based on any recent events.

               “We were always a team,” Balinski said.  And that team wasn’t limited to police headquarters, but to the entire village.  A lot of police departments boast that they “serve and protect” – but none do it the way the BGPD does it.  Good leaders recruit and groom good professionals.  For 36 years, Balinski has been part of that – even though he initially thought the job offer was a joke.  “I thought it was a fraternity buddy,” he said.

               It wasn’t.  Instead it was the start of an amazing career.  “When you wear star or badge – it’s about opportunity, service,” Balinski said.  And over the past 36 years he provided both – service to a community that seen unprecedented growth, and the opportunity to truly serve and protect.

               For whatever reason, I remember an editorial cartoon that appeared in the Chicago Sun-Times shortly after former Chicago Police Chief Orlando W. Wilson retired.  In essence, it was a police badge and night stick talking.

               The badge said “I shine a little brighter;” while the nightstick said “I stand a little taller.”

               They’d say the same thing about Balinski.

Butch McGuire's coming to Buffalo Grove?

I was dumbfounded.

There he was, sitting nice and relaxed -- Proverbial candidate and community activist Chicken Little.

Chicken Little

Generally this time of year I find him with his feathers really ruffled – between chicken soup for Passover and eggs for Easter, he’s nervous.

But not this year.  He looked cool, calm and collected.

I had to ask why this year was different from all other years.

“I have a plan,” he said, “for a new business in Buffalo Grove.”

Let me guess, I said, a comedy club.

“Nah,” he said, “I have something more original – and besides – it’s a proven success.”

I wasn’t sure I wanted to hear this, but good ‘ol C.L. never ceases to amaze me.

So what’s his big idea?

“Well,” he said “after attending the recent candidates’ forum, I’ve decided I need to continue the legacy of the man himself.”

Who? I asked.

Butch McGuire.

Excuse me – the late founder of what many consider the original singles bar?  Here in Buffalo Grove?

“Yep,” C.L. replied.

But wait, how do the candidates for the April 9 Village Board election factor into your decision to open a singles bar in Buffalo Grove?  Seriously, if I saw the slate of four on Division Street I’d probably give up drinking.

“It’s not the people, dummy, it’s the idea.”

I’m lost, I told him.

“OK, the candidates’ forum brought together a bunch of people who were curious what other people had to say – you know, like going into McGuire’s.”

It’s a stretch, I said, but OK, tell me more.

“And just like a singles bar, the folks hear the things they expect to hear.”

I was beginning to catch Little’s idea a bit.  The forum did produce a nice crowd and the candidates presented their stands, which is the stuff you expect and want to hear.

“From my perspective,” Little said, “I was able to walk away without fearing the sky is falling.”

But, I asked him, do you think the sincerity was there.

“Probably more, he said, because three of the four are repeat customers, so to speak.  In fact, I think I heard someone say, “excuse me, but what’s your sign?”

Not quite – I think someone was asking for a sign – a lawn sign.

“Oh, that makes sense.”

So do you still think a singles bar makes sense?

“Absolutely, if the lively art of conversation can bring people out for a candidates' forum, imagine what’s they do for fun and relaxation.”

C.L., I said, this is Buffalo Grove, where folks don’t come out unless...

“Yes, I know...the sky is falling.  Maybe I’ll need to have karaoke.”

Nah, I told him, some performers can be painful to listen to.

“True.  But the allure of conversation and heated debates could make it interesting.  Maybe I could give it a Chicago Cubs theme.”

What, only have a successful year every 105 years or fade every August?

“Well, there could be a lot of singles without much scoring.”

Don’t quit your day job, I told him.

C.L. said he has one concern about his single bars idea.

“I’ll need bouncers.  I mean what if a fight breaks out?”

No sweat, I said, just call 9-1-1.

“That’s my concern,” he said.

Why? I asked.

“What if I can’t get through?”

Looking at the whole student can make a difference...

As an educator, it’s not unusual to meet with a parent who is panic-stricken because his/her child has issues because he/she may have ADHD, be on medication for one reason or another, have a broken finger nail or may have just broken up with a significant other – as significant as others can be to high school kids.

                In addition to going through the litany of paperwork, I often smile and tell the parent or guardian that I know a young man who has gone through some of the same issues.  I tell them that it took a while to identify his ADHD, but working with health care professionals and educators, he managed to get on track.

                A key, I tell them, is to let the student find his or her own way.  Medications, counseling and Individual Education Programs (IEPs) are just part of the overall program.  Letting kids succeed on their own may be one the best treatments a student can have.  I have found that some parents are so obsessed with student success that they become the ones who are in need of help.

                True story: I had a parent tell me once that had she known there were going to be some standardized tests administered, she would have adjusted her student’s medication.  Whoa, Nellie, let’s get Trigger back in the stable.

                Parental obsession with wanting our kids to succeed may be “normal” (as normal as parenting can be) – but we need to look at what’s behind it and how we approach it.

                Many education administrators are obsessed with student success – for their own purposes.  The more AP classes, AP tests and higher ACT scores we can post, then, by golly, the better the front office looks.   And, by gosh, when U.S. News and World Reports puts out it list, and the school is listed – celebrate – the school has done its job.

                But has it?

                The student that I tell parents about never took an AP test and while he did really well on the ACT, it was no big deal to him.  The school didn’t push him too much because he worked with the special education staff and that just isn’t “cool.”

                At least it wasn’t until the student was selected to National Honor Society – as a sophomore.  And, oh yes, he was an Illinois State Scholar.  And, oh yes, not that it’s important to the school, but he also had a double-digit scholarship for each year of college.

                What the school doesn’t know is that the student performed extremely well in a rigid engineering program.

                But see, education has become so quantitative that it has lost focus on the qualitative aspects of education.

                So I tell parents to relax because their student will mature and, with support and letting their student prove to him or herself that they can succeed – they will.

                I let them know because the student I’ve been telling them about graduated on Saturday and I know his parents are proud of him.

                Believe me, we are.

                

Is all the news that's fit to print worth it?

What a difference a month can make.  Literally.

            It was a month ago when the buzz making the round in the town of big bison focused on a phone call in the wee hours to Village Board President Jeff Braiman from deposed trustee Lisa Stone about the status of the village’s web site.

            Seriously.

            Shortly after that incident, an item appeared in the Pioneer Countryside that Stone had some issues at a local eatery.

            I was asked numerous times if I was going to blog about it.

            And each time the answer was simple.  No.

            Granted, it would have been yet and other opportunity to jab at Buffalo Grove’s easiest target.  But at this point, the question is why?  Stone is (brace yourself) just another pothole down the highway of suburban life – or just about any place for that matter.

            What set her apart originally was her stint on the Village Board the put her in “public figure” and “public official” status.  Since being jettisoned out of the world of public service, she maintained a status as a “public figure” thanks to her diatribes at Village Board meetings.

            But comments on media sites, Facebook postings, tweets and other electronic forums doesn’t make someone a public figure.  When, however, a public official is victimized, odds are it will become “news” -- especially when a report is filed with the police.  So the Braiman-Stone cocktail can become an intoxicating news story, which it did when Stone, police reports say, called Braiman at 2:45 a.m. because the village website was down.  Tom foolery at its best, and given it that it involved the Village Board president, it became news.

So what’s the driving force that makes something “news”?

            Drivers.

Not Donald Driver, not drunken drivers, and not rush-hour drivers.

            News drivers, 10 of them -- importance, timeliness, proximity, magnitude, prominence, conflict, human interest, change relevance, and unusualness.

            You can probably go through the list and say that, well, golly gee, some people (guess who?) fit a lot of those categories so it is news. It may be, but it has become old news.  Yes, there has been conflict and just a tad (do you think) of unusualness has been involved.  Beyond that, it has become pointless.

            Comedians will tell you that when a joke does not work, don’t keep retelling it or force it because, as it has been said, you can put lipstick on something---but it’s still what it is.  Yes, I’ve altered the phrase to avoid anyone thinking I was calling them a pig.  That wouldn’t be kosher.

            Animals aside, the reality is this -- after a while some news, and some news makers, become old news.  And old news, like old garbage, just isn’t worth much.

Beyond that dimension known to man....

The usually calm and unflappable Chicken Little was in a tizzy.

“Darn Internet.  I had insomnia and was hoping to get to my favorite site.  But I couldn’t”.

He’s generally pretty calm about things and doesn’t chicken out, so when I found him technology challenged, I was surprised.  I asked him if he called Comcast.

Are you kidding? This is serious.  Not only can I not get to my favorite channel, but I can’t go to the village web site – You know what I should have done?”

No, what?

“Called the village.  Yep, that’s it.  The web site, when it’s working, says everyone is family – and this is a family crisis.”

I became concerned where this is going.  I asked him who he thinks he should have called.

“Hey, if you’re talking family, you go to the patriarch?”  So you wanted to call the village fathers?

“Nah,” he said, “only one – Village Board President Jeff Braiman.”

Super Chicken

Ah, let’s see – you said it was the middle of the night and you couldn’t watch Super Chicken, so you called an elected official.

“Sure, doesn’t that make sense?  I mean I missed my favorite part.”  (His Favorite Part)

No it doesn’t make sense

I told him that the reason it does not make sense is because the above scenario actually occurred.

But, as widely reported, it was not Chicken Little who made the call.

The call was made by deposed former trustee Lisa Stone who, according police reports obtained by the Freedom of Information Act, called Braiman in the middle of the night to let him know the village’s web site was out.

That’s right.  The web site was not functioning, so she called Braiman.

Why?  Because of his expertise in the Internet?  Because he has access to the village’s servers at home and can magically reset the web site?

Of course not.  Because the ongoing feud Stone has with village hall and anyone who does not agrees with her has reached a new level of surrealism.

The action of contacting a public official in the middle of night for a frivolous reason makes one thing clear.   Lisa Stone’s antics are not funny.  To paraphrase the late Rod Serling, they have gone beyond the fifth dimension known to man" leaving in their wake any semblance of respect, logic and now, decency.

The story, to no surprise, made the local media with a wide range of comments and reaction.

But why?  My guess is this is not the first time someone has received an annoying phone call about a seemingly ridiculous topic.

Because it’s Stone.  Her stint as a village trustee put her in the public spotlight, a role she seems to cherish, and also made her a public figure.  Once ousted by the recall, you would figure she would accept her fate and move on.

Not quite.  Stone continued, make that continues, to dwell away at her pet causes – water safety, pedophiles and whatever else may come her way on any given day.  And while they may seem like good causes, Stone’s approach is to rip, shred, antagonize and harass people to no end.

Her latest harassment of Braiman is what has escalated this to a new level.  Beside the untimely phone call about the village web site being down at 2:30 a.m. (by the way, sources tell me it was due to routine maintenance) Stone had, according to the police report, “showed up at his office in Arlington Heights.  Braiman said Stone wanted to give him her business card for her sex toy business.”  Seriously.

The fact that Stone may have a business dealing with adult novelties (not frozen novelties, although some adults are frozen) is up to her.  She is probably not the only person in the village who has ::ahem:: a unique business.  But she’s in the spotlight and given her outlandish comments and accusation, she inherently put a target on her.

In an age where, as pundits like to say, “sex sells”,  anytime a public official or public figure is somehow remotely connected to sex in any way shape or form – it become news.  Stone's erotic entrepreneurship has done just that.  She’s not the only municipal official who has raised a few eyebrows because of their off-hours endeavors .  Back in the early 1970s, the mere speculation that a Lincolnshire trustee had posed for a Chip and Dale-like calendar, leaving his chip and dales uncovered, led to his leaving the board and slowly fading away.

So in addition to being known for her caustic, sarcastic, rude and otherwise questionable behavior, she now carries the tag of dealing in the adult pleasure business, which is generally not very mainstream.

Don’t be surprised if Stone vehemently defends her business and continues her verbal and media-comment assault on Braiman.  She will have a hard time repudiating the information about the 2:30 a.m. request for tech support because, as noted in the police report, the investigating officer called her “explaining the nature of this report.”  Stone, according to the report understood.

That given, she apparently also understands the curt, blunt and straight forward response she received from Braiman’s wife, who, according to police reports, said “How dare you call, go to hell”, and hung up the phone.  Face it, at  2:30 a.m., anyone in a sound sleep being awakened by an adversary because a web site is down.

Stone apparently doesn’t get it.  She told the Daily Herald that she was so upset with Ms. Braiman’s response that – ready – she “..is considering filing a complaint about Braiman's wife. "I'm going to come in and file a complaint about her," Stone said. "She shouldn't tell me to go to hell."

Let’s see, Stone provokes the response, which is the result of one her nasty comments, and then gets upset when people respond accordingly and wants to file charges.

I can’t imagine that happening.

Oh wait, yes I can.

Chicken fried election?

I’m still mulling over the village’s Electoral Board hearing, which determined that Jeff Battinus was not eligible to be on the ballot for the April election.

The outcome seemed inevitable.  Not because of who is on the Electoral Board – cynics will say the old guard was out to nail Battinus – but that’s not the case.  The Electoral Board consists of the Village President, Village Clerk and most tenured trustee, which means it was Board President Jeff Braiman, Village Clerk Jan Sirabian and Trustee Jeff Berman.  Period.

The challenge to Battinus’ filing was not by any of the old guard, but by relative new comer Andrew Stein who was elected in 2011 to fill the remainder of ousted trustee Lisa Stone.

To help breakthrough the confusion, I met with local political observer Chicken Little.  “I’m not sure what to make of the whole thing,” Little said.  “I’m actually kind of fried, which is not a good state to be in.”

I asked him what exactly bothered him.

“ Several things. For starters, do you need to be named Jeff to be involved in the village process?  I mean, really, look at who was there --  Jeff Braiman, Jeff Berman, Jeff Battinus, and just for good measure, the attorney consulting Jeff Stein – so we had for Jeffs and two steins.”

A frazzled Chicken Little

OK, so your point is?

“Nothing really,” Little said, “but it would be nice if we had some name diversity.”  So, I asked him, what about other candidates?  Do you think they ::ahem:: chickened out?

“Not sure,” he said, “I’m still trying to figure things out.”

Good luck, I told him.

Breaking through the abundance of Jeffs, "JBs" and multiple Steins, the result of the hearing means that the Village Board election will be uncontested.  There are three candidates – incumbents Beverly Sussman, Lester A. Ottenheimer III and Stein (remember, that’s Andrew Stein) -- for three spots.

So out of a community of 43,000 plus, only four people sought to serve – and because of the ruling by the Electoral Board, we’re trimmed to three.  Quite honestly, it’s pretty amazing, especially given how we’ve been led to believe that the village is corrupt, the trustees are dishonest, the village is going to hell and everyone should flee the coup.

“Hey, don’t get personal,” Little said.

The ruling which took the contest out of contested election was pretty cut-and-dry.  Stein (oops, make that Jeff Stein) told the hearing that there were three cases that addressed election filing challenges and in all three cases, the Appellate Court upheld the ruling.

Which didn’t surprise Battinus.  “I made a mistake,” he said.  “My problem was a clerical error.”  Battinus noted, several times, that the ruling takes away the opportunity for Buffalo Grove residents to have a choice.

Depending on your point of view, Stein – make that Andrew Stein – emerges as a goat or a hero.  Jeff Stein, however, made it clear that there is no way to over ride the statute.

Unlike some previous gatherings in the Council Chambers (ponder this for a minute – why are they called the Council Chambers, when it’s one room and the Village does not have a council?  Just asking.) the atmosphere was actually pleasant and respectful.

“You did the tough part,” Braiman said.  “You went door-to-door and got hundreds of signatures from people on the street.”  Braiman noted that the Electoral Board had “no authority to do otherwise.”

Berman concurred, noting that “whatever sympathies or thoughts we may have, the courts have ruled.”

Battinus, who moved to the village in 2010, was gracious in accepting his fate.  “ I have to be accountable.  I screwed up.”  Battinus says his goal is to serve “my community – that’s it.”  He is mulling a run as a write-in candidate, but still needs to file paperwork with both Lake and Cook counties.  Among other things.

Battinus says it depends on fund-raising, estimating it will take nearly $6,000 to run a campaign, which factors in signs, mailers and even attorney fees.  “A grass roots effort won’t be enough…If nothing else, I have name recognition.”

‘Whatever he does, he’s going to be very careful about crossing his Ts and dotting his Is.  “I won’t make the same mistake again,” he said.

He won’t be able to as long as Andrew Stein is around. 

The process for reviewing candidate filing challenges is cut and dry.  The question is why would someone, in this case Andrew Stein, challenge a candidate’s petition and why.

Stein contends he has done elections in 2009 and again in 2011 when he ran for the Village Board.  He said the reviews were a learning experience and in one case he contacted a candidate’s staff member to tell him that there was an error.  Good neighbor Stein?

Maybe.

Concerned public official?

Maybe.

Battinus, however isn’t so sure, and here’s where it gets interesting.

Battinus told the hearing that Andrew Stein told him on three occasions that he should consider not running.  “The third time,” Battinus said later, “he said someone would contest it (his filing).”

Stein told me that he did in fact talk with Battinus and discussed his (Stein’s) consideration to run in 2009.  “I talked with him about my background in 2009 and that people told me I didn’t have the experience,” Stein said.  He added that he suggested to Battinus to gain more experience and build name recognition.

Stein says he told Battinus that if he followed the directions in the candidate’s guide their probably would not be a problem.

Stein says he did “all the research I could” after the filing deadline and was more than a little surprised when he found that Battinus did not file an economic disclosure form.  Stein said he spoke with Battinus on Jan. 1 to discuss his filing, but did not tell him that it was he who was going to file the objection.  Stein said he discussed the options with Battinus which, Stein said “were to withdraw and save yourself and the village money for legal fees, or right it.”

“I hate to say it,” said Little, “but it seems kind of scrambled to me.”

C.L. might be on to something here.

Battinus did little to defend himself and, barely 14 minutes into the hearing, asked the Electoral Board if they could go to closing remarks.

Had Braiman and Berman, along with attorney Jeff Stein not made it clear that there was no way to go against the statutes, there could have been some interesting debate.  Instead, it resorted to an exchange of polite understandings and Battinus admitting that he made the error and he was not “angry with him (Andrew Stein).” 

All that was missing was a group hug.

“So what happens now?” Little asked.  “Can I run as a write-in candidate?”

“And that is?”

As noted, potential write-in candidates must file their intent to run as a write-in candidate in both Lake and Cook counties in order for their votes to count.

“And if I don’t?” he asked. 

Simple – your votes won’t count.

“Hmmm,” he said.  “What if there’s a crowd of write-in candidates?”

Seems to me there won’t be, especially since there was only one nonincumbent who had planned to run.

“Why do you think that is?” he asked.

Not sure – lack of time, lack of money or lack of interest.

“Or maybe the sky isn’t falling,” Little said.

2012 goes out with a usual array of police activity...

Well, 2012 went out with the usual assortment of police activity reported by the Buffalo Grove Police Department.  Here’s a look at some of the calls that may make you wonder what some people are thinking.

Sensitive, isn’t he?

Complainant reported that he told a driver that he was parked in a fire lane, and the driver told the complainant that it was none of his business. The driver also stated that if he is confronted by the complainant again, he will do bodily harm. Officers located the driver in the parking lot, and because the complainant did not want to sign a complaint, the driver was sent on his way.

Better late than never…

Resident reported that he lost his debit card a year ago, and did not report the matter to the bank.  The bank contacted the resident to tell him of on-going activity with the account.  The bank has cancelled the account.

Must have been during a full moon…

Resident reported that he had used drugs with a person he believed to be an FBI agent, and now there are more than forty officers outside of his house.  Officers noted that there were no officers or other persons of any kind outside of the resident’s house, when they arrived.  The resident refused to go to the hospital for an evaluation.

Yet, another scam…

Resident received an offer of employment after he posted his resume on Careerbuilder.com.  The offer required the resident to sign a contract and send his financial information so they could do a direct deposit into his account.  The resident correctly suspected this to be a scam. (This is not necessarily funny…but a good example of why people need to watch for scams…)

And for this they called the police?

Customer was making a disturbance because a store official would not allow him to purchase a large quantity of TWINKIES.  The official stated that only 10 TWINKIES per person is allowed.  The customer was advised the store can set limits and for him to buy his 10 TWINKIES and leave, which he did.

Let’s see, lights, camera, action?

Resident reported that he has a wildlife camera in his back yard, and when he reviewed the photos, he found one of a male subject standing in the yard looking at the resident’s house.  It is unknown who the subject is.

Talk about making the order “to go”….

Owner reported that one of his employees is going through a divorce and the estranged wife came to the business and caused a scene.  Officer spoke with the wife who could not understand why the police are involved, but did understand that she is no longer welcome at the business.

Talk about trash talking…

Officer observed a male subject take a bag of trash out of his car and place it into the Park District dumpster.  When the officer spoke with the subject he stated that he thought the dumpster was for public use. When the officer advised the subject of his misunderstanding the bag of garbage was placed back into the car.  A citation was issued.

Must be the excitement of Christmas morning…

Resident reported that her neighbors are arguing and that a child could be heard yelling and crying.  Officer spoke with the neighbor who stated that he and his daughter had just finished opening presents and the girl was excited.  No one else was in the apartment and the girl was fine.

Well, at least there is neighborhood watch…

Resident reported a male subject entering a neighboring home through a rear window.  Officers found the rear window closed but unlocked.  The home was checked and no one was inside.  Officer contacted the homeowner who stated that she asked her son to go to the house and retrieve some items, and since the son did not have a key, she told him to use the window.  The homeowner was advised to call 911 to let them know in the future if her son will be using the window again.

Did he have to pay waiting time?

Maintenance worker stated that while working inside the building, and unknown male subject began knocking on the doors and windows and requested to be let inside.  When the worker would not allow the subject inside, the subject left in a taxi.

And finally…

Downtown redevelopment, elections, crime?  The following article was covered by some media as  a major news story….

This is my final Buffalo Grove Police Blotter.  Due to financial reasons, my position has been cut from the budget effective January 1, 2013.

Though I have never met many of you, it seems as though we have become friends.  I appreciate your feedback and contributions to this Blotter.  I have enjoyed writing it for the past five and a half years and will miss doing so.  I do sincerely hope that you were well informed and that you have gained some knowledge on crime prevention and safety.  Remember to be a nosy neighbor and call 911 if you see anyone or anything that seems suspicious.  Thank you!

Have a Happy New Year and I wish you health, happiness and prosperity.

See ya!!!!!!!

Pete Lippert

Deputy Chief Ret.

But rest assured…the department responded…

We received a couple questions asking if the Blotter would continue. The answer is....Yes, The Crime Prevention Unit will continue to send out the Police Blotter. As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please contact the Crime Prevention Unit at 847-459-2560.

Thanks for your effort and hard work Pete.  Good luck ---  and keep the left arm straight.