Friday, November 12, 2010

"She Speaks, Yet She Says Nothing: What Of That?"*

First, congratulations to CBS2 for managing to track down the usually-unavailable-for-comment Alderman Shiller.  Why, we thought she might be in China again!

Second, since spring, the 46th Ward has experienced three murders, nightly reports of shots fired, gang wars, too many shooting victims to count, and children running for their lives in their Halloween costumes while kids just a few years older were shot in front of them.  The alderman has been silent about all this, including avoiding comment about incidents of violence that happened right across the street from her office.  Neither she nor her staff  has made it to CAPS, block parties, or block club meetings (except the one in Lakeview where they held a farewell party for her). 

So what was a serious enough occurrence for Ald. Shiller to break her public silence and "no comment" policy?  Vandalized windows.  We'll say it again:  After the bloody, murderous past six months in the 46th Ward, Ald. Shiller decided to finally speak out... about vandalized windows.

Last, we have NO idea what she means in her comments:
It seems a little crazy and I have to say the dynamic is a little crazy,” said Ald. Helen Shiller (46th), who is stepping down after more than two decades representing a ward known for lakefront high-rises and subsidized housing.  Mixed-income and mixed-race communities have led to major differences in the ward.  “A great deal of the politics of the 46th Ward, from my perspective, has been taking advantage of frustration and anger that people feel and using that to polarize very important things in our community,” Shiller said.
Anyone got their Shiller-to-English translator handy?  Because surely she's not saying that Cappleman, Lam and Carroll are the reason for the anger and frustration here.  Right?  Right?

* Thanks for the quote, Will.

19 comments:

  1. As much as I could decipher from her 'interview', she said 'people are using anger to polarize...'

    I don't understand how she could not know, that she represents the bulk of Uptown resident's frustrations.

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  2. I don't agree with CBS2's Jay Levine that these are necessarily acts of political intimidation.

    It's as likely just some lone nut in the grip of some mania.

    The glass fornicator is all over the map ward wise, candidate wise, and target wise. Seems to be hitting elected officials too.

    Shiller's office door on Broadway was damaged 2-4? times in the past also. I think one involved gunfire?

    As for Shiller speaking it's almost as if Greta Garbo has spoken. Or at least JD Salinger when they both were alive.

    No comments on the shootings resulting in injury and death in the ward, but she blames toxic politics for this vandalism.

    Yeah, it's the toxicity of the politics that's the real problem. The shootings, well that's just random unfortuatness or unfortunacity.

    You've heard of random acts of kindness, well in Shiller's worldview there are also random acts of violence. It's random. Like wow, I can't even speak about it because it's so random.

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  3. sorry......just to add. She comments on smashed windows, but not a peep about the bloody Halloween shootings?

    Makes NO sense.

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  4. Yeah, she (Shiller) is useless.

    A better comment from her (Shiller) would be......
    Uhh.....

    "There are alot of people with problems in this neigborhood in large part because of policies set forth by moi or other polices that should have been quashed but were continued by moi but werent and have resulted in a strange menagerie of psych cases, homeless, drug addicts, undesireables and gangbangers concentrated in a very small area on the northside of Chicago. This has resulted in a cauldron of discontent and chaos.
    And at this point Im not sure who broke these windows, its a mystery.
    I think that pointing fingers at each other is crazy. We should just hunch our shoulders over and just accept the wonderful benefits of liberal policies gone completely awry in this grand social experiment that has been set forth in the finest corner of our fair city."

    Then she would bow with a jesters grin on her face.

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  5. Her comment reminds me of one of my favorite quotes from the movie Forrest Gump.

    Its the scene where Jenny's anti-war radical boyfriend smacks her around for the gazillionth time. Finally, she decides that she's had enough and this is his pathetic little attempt to explain himself.

    -------

    Jenny? Things got a little out of hand! It's just this war and that lying son of a bitch Johnson and...

    I would never hurt you.

    You know that.


    -------

    Man I love that scene. Blaming things out of your control for your own despicable actions. (Served with a side of mindf*ck, of course.)

    I have thought of this scene many, many times in relation to Shiller's Uptown.

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  6. Shiller-speak more accurately should have said, " A great deal of MY politics in the 46 ward has been taking advantage of the frustration and anger that people feel and using that to polarize very important things in our community."

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  7. The next 100 days can't come quick enough! Get this moron outta here.

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  8. Her tenure has been a mockery of competent management and leadership. She has repeatedly made a fool of almost everyone in the ward by getting reelected despite the fact. Her failed policies have certainly increased the likelihood of crime in Uptown. People have been hurt. I never understand how politicians like her and others in the local municipal government escape legal scrutiny and retire quietly on the public's dime. If we had any use out of the 46th ward's office before, they all have a chronic case of high school senioritis now. All we can expect from them is the dutiful deposit of our money into their bank accounts.

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  9. She is Uptown's Sarah Palin. Annoyance Theater could make a mint doing a Shilleriffic comedy sketch.

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  10. Can she be considered lame duck if she's actually been lame for the past 20 years?

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  11. She is Uptown's Sarah Palin.

    Ha! Hardly.

    Palin has never turned down a chance to speak to the media ... on any issue, at any time - for any reason.

    If anything, Helen's the polar opposite.

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  12. Hate to burst your bubble, Cheddar; but, I'm sitting here watching "Helen Shiller's Chicago" on TLC, right now.

    My favorite part (so far) is where Helen, in that annoyingly charming way that only she has, takes a thoughtful moment to tell the viewers that she can really see the 46th ward from her back porch.

    And coming up, she's going to explain how her kids have committed to abstaining from suing police officers ...

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  13. Perhaps you're right in that limited sense, Yo.

    I heard Brendan will be on "Dancing with the Stars".

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  14. Yo, I think she is just like Helen. Only speaks to those she knows won't lob any curve balls her way (takes Katie Couric out of the running, who knew "What are your favorite magazines to keep up on current events?" was a hard one?) and has no clue as to what is really going on. They both are concerned with THEMSELVES, and not the people they claim to represent. They both need to get out and stay out of politics.

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  15. Maybe so, though Palin does use social networking and even if she's only working with a short list of media outlets, she's on those outlets all the damn time.

    Not that I disagree, Palin's jumped the shark and I'm growing a bit fatigued; but, accept/deny her message, she's putting it out there and no one really has to go hounding her to get her opinion on whatever's going on in the world.

    Contrast that with a woman who retains a public office and simply can't be bothered to comment on things she's supposed to comment on even when those things happen right in front of her office.

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  16. If only Shiller left before the end of her 1st term like Palin. Ah to dream...

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