Stay on point, people

Commenters on SJ-R.com these last couple weeks are really getting “out there” with their remarks.

The main “arguments” seem to be:

• Hot Rod is to blame for the budget mess and needs to be removed from office (this is true and cannot be argued)
• Illinois is up in arms over the ban on license plate covers (heaven forbid police officers, who are already under microscopic scrutiny as it is, get their thankless jobs made just the slightest bit easier)
• Implementing school uniforms is akin to Nazi-ism. (um, what?!)
• State workers are whining little babies that don’t deserve to be paid AT ALL, let alone on time (screw you, all you jag-offs that say that. Let your boss threaten to withhold your paycheck but expect you to report to work and do your job, and see if you don’t get the slightest bit miffed.)

My personal favorite, though, has got to be the complete idiot who, commenting on the story of the Governor and his wife skipping the parade and only showing up briefly for the ribbon-cutting ceremony, proceeded to go all Mr. Blackwell on the First Lady for the dress and shoes she wore. I’m no fan of the Chicagoviches by ANY stretch of the imagination, but how does her outfit have anything to do with anything? You want to rip on the Governor, that’s fine. You want to support the Governor, that’s fine (although completely stupid). But don’t make some bitchy, catty remark about how the First Lady is dressed. Don’t make it personal. Let me qualify that: if you want to make it personal on him, go ahead. He’s an asshole and deserves it for dropping a giant deuce on this state. But leave her out of it. It’s not her fault (nor her wardrobe’s fault) that he’s a socialist pinko freak that has no clue how state government should work. Personally, I thought she looked fine. It’s the State Fair, people, not a black tie gala event at the Mansion, which, incidentally, happens to be a dwelling they would likely need GPS to find, but that’s another issue.

There have been many that have left intelligent, coherent comments, regardless of on which “side” they fall (pro-Blago or anti-same), but there have also been many that have proceeded to show their total ignorance (again, regardless of viewpoint), not just in what they say but how they say it. They can’t spell, they speak in run-on sentences, they speak in fragments that go nowhere. And we wonder why the rest of the country thinks people from the Midwest aren’t real bright.

Look, SJ-R.com comment posters, it’s simple: if you have a point to make, then make it. Don’t get mad when someone takes the opposing view; that’s the whole idea. It’s a place for the “unimportant” masses to debate topics that are important, and some not-so-much (the license plate cover ban and school uniforms, for example). Say what you want to say, but at least try to make it somewhat intelligent and keep it pertinent. Don’t make some completely irrelevant snide little remark about something that has nothing to do with the topic being discussed.

As far as Rod and the budget goes, I beg all of you to remember his antics come the next gubernatorial election. Get him and Emil (and many of their cronies) out of office as soon as possible. That is the most powerful means of commenting on our political leaders’ performance (or lack thereof) that we possess. Let’s use it. If you don’t vote, you can’t complain.