McHenry County Blog

Congressman Joe Walsh opened a Woodstock office right on the Square Monday morning.

This is a government office, as opposed to the campaign office he opened in Downtown Crystal Lake the weekend before last.

As I approached the new digs, I saw people carrying picket signs.

Covering Joe Walsh, one always has photo opportunities.

But, phooey.  When I got inside, I discovered that my flash was jammed.

The Congressman was there, but the light was so poor and he moves so fast, I couldn’t get anything bu fuzzy photos.

A post on FaceBook from Tonya Franklin, the mother of a waitress fired by Crystal Lake Outback Steakhouse, led to a demonstration at the restaurant Sunday afternoon.

Most of the message follows:

Boycott Outback Steakhouse ~ Don’t Tread On Me!

Here's the message: "State of Illinois stated she was Wrongfully Terminated! MAN UP - Outback Steak House."

My daughter was fired from Outback Steakhouse after a customers (husband/wife) got very upset over her wearing this bracelet, the woman kept asking where she got it and what it meant and when my daughter said my mom got it at a TEA Party convention the woman flipped.

Flags were flying in the wind on Route 14 in front of Outback.

“Those were the wrong two words to say to me. The Tea Party is ruining this Country and you need to get yourself educated little girl”.After the woman was finished insulting her she said, “Box up my damn food, get me some more water and while your at it get me your damn manager”.

She sent the owner over and he was at the table for close to 10 mins or longer and then he said he had 2 complaints tonight and that he was letting her go.

He is insisting it isn’t over the bracelet, but she has been with the corporation for several years and a couple of transfers.

No one ever requested she not wear it.

I for one am boycotting Outback forever.

I also used to bartend for them back in the day.

BTW I just ordered 400 more of these bracelets and they say “Don’t Tread On Tea”.

Now a 3-4 yr work history, 2 Carraba’s locations and an Outback reference down the drain.

And a report about the demonstration:

"Fired for a bracelet. HONK 4 Free Speech," the sign says.

“The event at Outback Steakhouse was a huge success.

“There were about 60-75 people there at it’s peak; I’d say about 45-50 people were there the whole time, 4:30-6:30.

“We were in the Outback parking lot for awhile, and the other half of the people on Rte. 14, then the police came about 5:15 and politely asked us to stand out on the easement on Rte. 14.

“CONSTANT honking of horns throughout the evening!

“The Northwest Herald came and interviewed the fired employee, and took pictures.

“Meghan has a document from the State of Illinois that states that she was wrongly fired.”

For more McHenry County Blog, click here.

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Posted Monday night:  Outback Steakhouse management sent an email to a protestor late Monday.  You can find it here.

“Spending Our Loot Will Get You the Boot,” reads the sign carried by one man in last week’s pre-Island Lake Village Board meeting demonstration in front of Village Hall.

Citizens backing opponents to Village President Debbie Herrmann turned out in force to express their opinions over what they considered excessive legal fees paid to Ancel Glink.

A video can be found here.

I can’t remember more picketers outside of any other local village or city hall.

The Friend of McHenry County Blog did have a camera in the car, but did report that teachers were picketing in front of Huntley High School today.

Pictures perhaps the next time such an event occurs someone will send me a photo.

The following press email has just been received explaining a demonstration will be held at State Rep. Jack Franks office on Route 47 just north of Business Route 14.

The last time a demonstration was held

in front of Franks’ office is was because he and Mark Beaubien had singed on to the bill to put the U.S. Supreme Court’s legalization of abortion into Illinois law.

The bill, House Bill 2354, was killed.

Both Franks and Beaubien withdrew their co-sponsorship from the bill after the day of picketing.

On the civil unions bill, however, Beaubien is unlikely to draw back his support because he has taken such a leadership position.  I heard him on radio promoting the bill.

The email follows:

Dear Fellow Patriot:

Illinois’ SB1716 (the “Civil Union” bill) is rearing its ugly head once again. Click here for the current bill as read (.PDF).

It has undergone its mandatory 3 readings and simply needs to be voted upon.

Postponed since May, 2009; this bill was initially designed for the express purpose of what to do when a person dies, estate, heirs, etc.

In the dead of night back in 2009, the Illinois legislature stripped everything out of the bill and replaced it with the, “Illinois Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Union Act.”

While the bill states that it will respect the beliefs of religious organizations, there have been plenty of examples that once a homosexual couple is turned-away from a caterer, photographer, or even a Knights of Columbus hall, they will turn to the courts and the courts have gleefully ruled in favor of the couple.

To make matters worse, we have seen several state Supreme Courts rule that “Civil Unions” are akin to the unconstitutional “separate but equal” doctrine and have forced homosexual “Marriage” on their people.

The fall session begins next Tuesday, November 16 and State Representative Jack Franks has gone on record stating that, while he is against homosexual “Marriage,” he would support “Civil Unions.”

Please contact Jack Franks at Phone: (815) 334-0063, E-mail: jackfranks@franks4illinois.com There will be a rally against this legislation on Saturday, November 13^th @ noon at his Woodstock office located at:

1193 S. Eastwood Drive Woodstock! Please bring a sign and join in.

Senator Pam Althoff: (815) 455-6330, E-mail: pamela@pamelaalthoff.net

Senator Dan Duffy: (847) 277-7100 Dan@SenatorDuffy.com

Representative Mark Beaubien (847) 487-5252 strepmbeaubien@sbcglobal.net

Please forward this information to other people who will take action.

Jeff Ladd

Pro-Family Pillar

Given the short staffing at the Northwest Herald, it seems unlikely that a story with a photograph will appear on Sunday.

This press release from Huntley School District 158 reminds me that petitions for all school boards and McHenry County College are now available for circulation.

After the big TEA Party win in Delaware, I hope that people with the taxpayer’s pocketbook in mind will run for each local school board.

Those with a personal economic interest in who serves on school boards will surely be recruiting candidates and you probably won’t know who they are until they vote for teacher raises that exceed your own.

Here’s the press release:

ANNOUNCEMENT OF FILING PERIOD FOR SCHOOL BOARD CANDIDATES

Nominating petitions for the April 5, 2011 school board election in Consolidated School District 158, Board of Education of McHenry and Kane Counties, Illinois are available beginning Tuesday, September 21, 2010 through Friday, December 3, 2010, during regular days of business.

Four seats on the seven-member Board of Education will be filled at the April 5, 2011 election.

• Three (3) four-year terms, expiring in April 2015
• One (1) two-year term, expiring April 2013

Forms may be picked up in the office of the Board Recording Secretary, Naomi Fettes, at the Administrative Building, Door #1, located at 650 Academic Drive, Algonquin, Illinois on any business day between 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

A school board candidate’s petition must be filed in the same office no earlier than 7:30 a.m. on Monday, December 13, 2010 and concluding 5:00 p.m., Monday, December 20, 2010.

If you are interested in obtaining petitions and/or information on serving on the Board, please contact Naomi Fettes, Board Operations at (847-659-6158.)

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Note that the majority of the Huntley School Board is up for election.

I am appreciative of the press release, but truly transparent local governments would post copies of their petitions on their web sites. Making potential candidates identify themselves gives electoral information that inevitably will work its way into the possession of incumbents.

Those who went to Algonquin to protest being “Taxes Enough Already” were pretty much gone when my friend Pete Castillo and I arrived after taking part in the record-breaking demonstration in Crystal Lake.

Fortunately, Algonquin’s Stan Gladbach sent me some photos he took at the Algonquin Road protest site.

You can see signs saying

• Don’t Mortgage My CHILD’s Future
• Obamaconomics, Chains You Can Believe In
• Say “NO” to Socialism
• NO USSA

Here you see a man who usually photographs life much wilder than this flag and tea bag carrying dog and his master getting in some practice on a different venue.

reads the sign in front of what was left of the Algonquin TEA Party at about 1 PM.

I found one of the few signs that were produced by the national TEA Party organizers in Algonquin…plus an ordinary tea bag.

But, as I mentioned above, what I saw was the tail end of the demonstration. Above is what its peak looked like.

I couldn’t figure the initials on this sign out until the man carrying it told me the “BHO” stood for President Barack Obama’s initials. Funny how newspapers don’t use his initials. Remember “JFK” and “LBJ?”

Here are some women who are about ready to wrap up their demonstrating against taxes they think are so high.

Don’t you love this flag covered protester carrying a sign that says,

Other stories you might find of interest:

Noon TEA Party Biggest Demonstration in McHenry County History at Route 14 and Main Street

TEA Party Moving Down to Cary

Obama Supporters Object to My Sense of Humor

On our way back from Milwaukee’s Mitchell Airport, we drove through Woodstock on Route 47.

There was a big back-up as we entered and left Burger King.

As we paused at the McConnell Road stop light, here’s what I saw framed by the railroad overpass.

Demonstrators on both sides of Route 47.

Traffic was moving slowly.

There were a lot of people on my side of the road.

The first sign I saw was on the city side of the road.

It was held by a man in a ski mask to ward off the 35 degree temperature and biting wind and said,

There is at least one other that says,

You can click on the photo to enlarge it, but it was taken through the windshield and is a bit fuzzy.

My wife asked if our son knew what that meant.

“Of course, everybody knows abortion kills a child!”

He sounded exasperated to be asked such an easy question.

Most of the protesters seemed to be right in front of State Rep. Jack Franks’ office.

A pickup truck held some youngsters.

One’s sign read,

A man held a larger sign saying,

Taking another approach, a man with hat and earmuffs held a poster saying,

Tough to do when the Republican Party under both Bill LeFew’s and Mike Tryon’s chairmanships would not even get a candidate to run.

Maybe next year one of the demonstrators will run for the office.

As we waited to turn left on Route 14, we a cluster of demonstrators. A boy held a sign with a happy face saying,

I’ll run more if I get some reports from people who took part in the demonstration. Maybe they will even send me pictures of those who spoke to the crowd.

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House Bill 2354 was introduced on Feb. 18th. Jack Franks signed on as a co-sponsor three weeks later on March 12th one day after it was voted onto the House floor on a 5-2 vote by the House Human Services Committee. Perhaps I will be excused for thinking that Franks is positioning himself for a statewide run for attorney general. With his colleague Julie Hamos also jockeying for the attorney general position and having become a co-sponsor the day the bill was introduced, perhaps I will be excused for suggesting Franks has figured out that a Democrat who is not acceptable to the pro-abortion Personal PAC will have a difficult time winning a Democratic Party primary election. Personal PAC has not traditionally been friendly to Franks.

HB 2354 basically puts into state law the ability to have an abortion any time during pregnancy.

I got emailed this photo from the time of Democratic Party President Woodrow Wilson this week.

It reminded me to the blue thumbed women we saw as Iraqis voted for the first time since being liberated from Saddam Hussein.

If only people in the United States valued the right the vote as these women did.

The picture pretty much says it all, but let me encourage you to register to vote if you have not done so.

If you have moved, you need to call the McHenry County Clerk’s office and ask how to change address. The phone number is 815-334-4242.

Click on the photo and you will be able to read what is on the signs better.

I got emailed this photo from the time of Democratic Party President Woodrow Wilson this week.

It reminded me to the blue thumbed women we saw as Iraqis voted for the first time since being liberated from Saddam Hussein.

If only people in the United States valued the right the vote as these women did.

The picture pretty much says it all, but let me encourage you to register to vote if you have not done so.

If you have moved, you need to call the McHenry County Clerk’s office and ask how to change address. The phone number is 815-334-4242.

Click on the photo and you will be able to read what is on the signs better.