Mayor’s Row………..by Ned Mitchell

                I’ve heard my Aunt Margie say “well I’ll be John Brown” several times in my life when she was describing an unbelievable event or when something odd had happened.  I found myself saying “well I’ll be John Brown” last week while watching our Governor Rod “I’m Next” Blagojevich duck in and out of Southern Illinois sowing the seeds of repercussion as he traveled about.

                First that famous reformer/unreformer landed in Harrisburg to announce the moving of the IDOT traffic safety division to that community that has been described by one Springfield politico as the “backdoor to nowhere”.  The Governor was ushered in through a back door to make the announcement in front of 200 supporters of the move.  Opponents of the move, mainly those who are faced with either losing their job or uprooting their families and moving south; were not allowed in the building and were forced to stand outside.  But hey, this is a democracy so why would we want to allow those whose lives are to be dramatically altered a say in the process?  To be sure there will be a legislative hearing in Springfield by a committee made up with legislators who can either approve the move or not but that hearing is only symbolic and the reformer/unreformer has already said it makes no difference the outcome of the hearing, the deal is done and the jobs are coming to Harrisburg.

                A couple of weeks ago I was in Harrisburg having lunch with two friends from down that way and they told me then about the pending move saying there was an 80% chance the event would become a reality.  I gave that little consideration, especially since the initial announcement said the jobs were coming to Benton which is located in Franklin County which has become the poster child for neglect from this Governor.  I mean Harrisburg is way off the beaten path for a state agency to move an entire division of traffic safety to.  One would think a division of such size and importance might be better located in a central spot like say Springfield for instance.  Of course this move is probably some time off as the powerful state union ASFME which represents over 100 of the 140 people who are being forced to move has already said the lawsuit is coming.  This lawsuit will be filed in Springfield and will be heard by a Springfield judge who probably won’t want to wear the jacket of the one person responsible for this political move.

                Let me assure you now that democrats in Franklin County are not happy campers.  Benton Mayor Gary Kraft while admitting that Benton did not have a suitable building for this division quickly agreed that Benton would construct a building for the division.  Others in the area pointed to the now empty Big John’s grocery store facility in West City that adjoins another soon to be empty property next door, the CVS Pharmacy that has plans to build a new facility at the intersection of Du Quoin Street and West Main Street.  To my knowledge Benton and Franklin County were never even visited or looked at.  When my friends from Harrisburg told me the move was going to happen I immediately asked why the Governor would do that.  They immediately replied that Saline County had been good to the governor and had supported him.  I checked the last election results and found that the Governor tallied 6,803 votes to his opponent’s 4,280 in Franklin County and in Saline County he had 4,618 votes to his opponent’s 3,215.  Well I’ll be John Brown, there goes that theory.  Franklin County has been much better to this buffoon of a governor than Saline County but once again we are left in the dust!

                The second time I thought out loud and said “I’ll be John Brown” was when I read in the Sunday paper that the reformer/unreformer was in Williamson County of all places, making another announcement.  I thought sure he was in town to squander another $4 million on the little league ballpark but I was wrong.  This time he was in town, again in a carefully scripted announcement with no room for questions, to say that he has created a summer youth program that will hire 350 kids in summer jobs.  Let me be one of the first to say I think this is a great idea; kids need summer jobs for a variety of reasons so anytime we can provide them it is a good thing.

                But hold on there my good democrat comrades in Franklin County; we were left at the altar again by our fearless governor.  The summer jobs program will find 50 jobs going to Carbondale, 50 to Marion, 50 to Sparta and 200 to the Shawnee National Forest.  Where are the summer jobs for Benton, West Frankfort, Sesser, Royalton, Christopher, Zeigler, Buckner, Coello, Valier, Thompsonville and parts in between?  Once again I examined the election results and the Governor carried Williamson County by a whopping 295 votes over his opponent.  Yes, the reformer/unreformer owes our neighbors to the south a debt of gratitude for all they have done for him.  That causes me to wonder if he will ever get them paid back. 

                So “I’ll be John Brown” twice in one week all rolled up in a neat little package concerning the reformer/unreformer and Franklin County.  One thing is for sure, there is no cure for stupid!

                Diversity was the rule at the historic Sesser Opera House last week as we hosted two shows at opposite ends of the spectrum in the entertainment world.  On Tuesday night we had the traveling show “Always, Patsy Cline” which featured 23 of her most famous hits that was followed up Thursday evening with the opera “Barber of Seville”.  Both events were well attended and no matter if you were a fan of the Opry or the Opera, we had both venues for folks to enjoy and Sesser impressed those who came for the shows.

                Wedding congratulations go out to Sesser resident Dorothy Feira and Joe DeAngelo who were married in a private ceremony Saturday afternoon.  We are happy for the newlyweds and wish them the best that life has to offer.  We have not lost a Sesser resident and community volunteer; we have gained another volunteer in this union!  They will live outside of Sesser on a farm.

                About 80 members of the Leber family enjoyed a family reunion in the Sesser area over the weekend and had lunch/brunch at the Opera House Café.  It was good to meet so many of them from St. Louis, Michigan, California and parts between.  We look forward to their visit next year!

                Dorothy Dugger broke her hip in a recent fall and is recuperating at Good Samaritan Hospital in Mt. Vernon.   She would enjoy cards, visits, or calls.

                Condolences go out to the family of former Sesserite Cliff Cockrum who died last week.  Cliff grew up in Sesser and ended up living in Benton where he was a successful businessman and former county board member.  In my opinion; Cliff was one of the best county board members to ever serve us.  He was elected as a republican which in itself is a rare feat in this county but he always had time to talk politics and was a good listener to even radical democrats like me.  We agreed on a lot, had a few political differences of opinion, but were friends.  Cliff called me a month or so back to just say “goodbye” as he told me his time was nearing an end.  He was calling a few friends for that purpose and my heart was warmed knowing that he considered me his friend.  I will miss Cliff and my thoughts and prayers go out to his wife Nancy and his entire family.

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