The more sources of information about local affairs, the better I figure.

Actually, one of the most influential thinkers of my time in Aaron Wildavski’s Oberlin College (before he went to Berkley) government class was Yale’s Robert Dahl.  He wrote “Who Governs?”

The basic thesis, now challenged I see, is that no “power elite” is in control, as Floyd Hunter contended was the case in Atlanta.

My experience in the public arena still sides with Dahl.

A couple of years ago I searched for what Dahl did after I left college.  In the 1980’s he studied democracies from around the world, writing what was necessary for them to succeed.

One essential element is more than one source of information.

With the Northwest Herald dominating the McHenry County flow of news, it is my goal to provide something of an alternative.

Since Zane Seipler won his appellate court case to get his job back in the Sheriff’s Department, I think the need for alternative sources of news locally has been verified.

I posted a comprehensive story on Friday.  I linked to the case itself.

I’ve looked at the online version of the Northwest Herald three days running since I put up a story about the deputy and former GOP primary opponent to Sheriff Keith Nygren and have not been able to find a mention of the defeat of Nygren’s efforts to keep Seipler off work.

Nothing in the Daily Herald either, but that paper has pretty much abandoned McHenry County coverage since Chuck Keeshan left the beat.

Hey, folks.

This is a case with political implications.

You can’t ignore it forever or you will lose credibility.

But, back to Barrington Hills’ new information sources.

One is called “The Barrington Hills Observer.”

It appears to be put up by those not in power.

A top story, for instance, reports the following Appellate Court suit loss by the Village:

“…the Appellate Court ruled in that case, ‘because the [property owners] are using the stable for the commercial boarding of horses, which is a primary use and not a subordinate use, it is a use that does not comport with the Village’s Zoning Code.’  Immediate action on this matter should be clear to any elected or appointed member of our Village government.”

The second source is called “Preserve Barrington Hills” and there is no doubt that it is anti-Establishment.

Here’s what is on the front page:

The link to a subpoena shows what you see below: