From Republican County Board Chairman candidate Mike Buehler:

The Coroners office and the loss of Liberty at the local level

Merriam Websters definition of Liberty

1: the quality or state of being free:
a: the power to do as one pleases
b: freedom from physical restraint
c: freedom from arbitrary or despotic control
d: the positive enjoyment of various social, political, or economic rights and privileges
e: the power of choice

You wouldn’t think that an elected position, with a mission that few understand the complexities of, could be at the center of such contentious debate in local politics.

You might also not think that eliminating the elected position of coroner would in any way affect the Liberties our Constitution affords us.

Merriam Webster would disagree.

The initiative to ask the voters of McHenry County to decide whether or not to abolish the elected office of coroner (and forever give up their right to choose and control who will run that office) could be voted on as early as this week.

The Board may have to vote on this without having all of the facts required to make an informed decision.

In weeks past, several members of the McHenry County Board had voiced concerns over the lack of facts presented, only to be dismissed or admonished by the current Democratic Chairman Jack Franks.

Some, who questioned the process during ad hoc meetings, were met with a raised voice and the violent slamming of a hand on a table. [by Jack Franks].

Others had their microphones cut off while speaking during the Committee of the Whole (COW) .

Ironically, the audio and video feed were mysteriously cut near the end of the COW.

All for exercising their right to ask for details about cost, implementation, or asking for input from a professional organization of coroners.

The costs are unknown as there’s been no cost-benefit analysis.

Implementation is also unknown.

But, it’s OK, because the Chairman will help you figure it out later.

A speaker from a professional organization?

Nevermind, the Chairman already knows what they’d say and deems it
unimportant.

Is it too much to ask for such trivial details?

It appears so.

To be sure there were some deficiencies found in the coroners department…by a sleep apnea doctor.

In order to find real solutions for the long term, we need to ask some real
questions:

Would simple changes in procedure and working towards accreditation be
sufficient to remedy said deficiencies?

Have the deficiencies been corrected?

If so, would more frequent verification that the new standards are being met be helpful?

Chicago Democrat Rahm Emanuel said, “You never want a serious crisis to go to waste.”

If you have an agenda and there is no crisis, what do you do?

Do you fail to appoint a coroner to the 6th largest county in the state and then months after the fact audit the office and declare it deficient?

I am not a career politician with an unknown agenda nor am I a mind reader.

Only our Chairman can answer those questions.

What I do know is that I would choose the real solution to implement change to procedure, accreditation, and frequent verification over the loss of my Liberty every single time.