Saturday, April 2, 2011

Endorsement Tracker: Marc Kaplan Endorses Molly Phelan

Several readers report receiving mailings from former COURAJ leader and aldermanic candidate Marc Kaplan in which he endorses Molly Phelan. The letter reads as follows:

Dear Uptown Friends and Neighbors,

Many of you have been asking me and people who worked on my campaign about whom to support in the upcoming run-off election. It's not an easy question because neither candidate has a history of supporting the principles our campaign was founded on, so either way we will have to fight hard to maintain an affordable Uptown in which we have a voice. But after much discussion, Neighbors United for Marc Kaplan is supporting Molly Phelan in the upcoming elections. We urge you to cast your vote for Molly as well.

Our main issue for years in Uptown has been affordable housing.  Molly has pledged to us that she will work to preserve all existing affordable housing; if Mayor-elect Emmanuel's plan for affordable housing citywide has not gotten off the ground in 6 months, she will work with us to develop a plan for increasing affordable housing in the 46th ward. Is it everything we want? No, but it's movement in the direction of supporting the needs of people who live in Uptown now.

We are also supporting Molly Phelan because we have experienced for 10 years what James Cappleman stands for. In the 10 years he has lived here, Cappleman has become the leader of movement to push low income people out of Uptown, and it is imperative that this movement be defeated. The list is exhaustive, be here are a few examples  of things he has done:

- With his confederates, Cappleman used CAPS Beat 2311 meeting to target 4707 N. Beacon, alleging "criminal activity," and got the Nuisance Abatement Task Force involved, bringing in building inspectors who wrote up so many building violations that the resident owners has to sell the building. It was developed as condos which sat vacant for years. It turned out that the criminal activity they had alleged did not exist.

- With Uptown Chicago Commission, Cappleman opposed the use of IHDA funds for the mixed income housing at 4700 Beacon, which was nonetheless built and is a successful development with large, family-friendly apartments.

 - When Beat 2311 began a holiday program. Cappleman opposed the program to give holiday gifts to children in Cornerstone shelter. saying receiving gifts "encourages homelessness." Despite his opposition, the highly successful program continues to this day.

- Cappleman was part of a group that supported legal action against Cornerstone shelter, again based on generating so many building violations that the hope was it would have to close. Many Uptown residents rallied to save the shelter, which had already laid out a schedule for fixing the violations.

- Cappleman helped institute a policy at 920 W. Lakeside that separates families., banning family members from even visiting the building who are identified as "load elements" for what are often minor scrapes with the law. Cappleman's policy even bans family members from visiting building residents who have serious diseases like cancer. This is the "best practices" that James Cappleman brags about.

Neighbors United for Marc Kaplan urges you to cast your vote for Molly Phelan. Yes, we will have to work harder than we've had to work in the last 24 years to keep our community affordable. But there is a real difference between the candidates. We've worked too hard to get where we are today to see Cappleman dismantle our community. Every vote will count in this election. Our votes will make the real difference. We are urging every person who voted for Marc Kaplan, or any other candidate because you thought that they would promote an affordable, sage and diverse community, to vote for Molly Phelan on Tuesday, April 5th.

Molly is clearly the best choice and our best hope to continue the progress in the 46th Ward. We need to vote smart for ourselves, our families and our community. Once again, we are urging everyone to vote for Molly Phelan.

With much respect,
Marc Kaplan

104 comments:

  1. wow..this ward needs more affordable housing???
    is this is crazy...

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  2. In order to try to win this election, Molly Phelan has sold her soul to Marc Kaplan. Anyone who wants to see a vibrant Uptown with safe streets has to vote for James Cappleman at this point. Marc Kaplan's wording is key here - Molly pledged to "maintain" - maintain all current affordable housing, maintain status quo.

    For any of us that want to see the 46th Ward improve, James Cappleman is without a doubt the only choice to be our next Alderman.

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  3. Politics amuses me.

    Remember Fix Wilson Yard, Marc? Who ran that? Molly...what was her last name? Oh yeah, Phelan.

    Remember what Harold Washington felt about Ed Burke? Ask Don Rose. The word "racism" comes to mind.

    I guess Marc has a short memory when support is waved in front of his group.

    http://www.uptownupdate.com/2011/03/chicagoist-burke-pac-targets-runoff.html

    Read my comments then laugh and weep and the glory that is Chicago politics.

    Then work for Cappleman because Tuesday promises to be nasty.

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  4. This is just getting silly

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  5. Wow, I'm gonna vote for James a second time after reading this!

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  6. This may in fact be a sign of the end times.

    Kaplan and the police union on the same side?

    I'm heading to the Upper Peninsula folks to my well stocked nuclear bunker.

    The end is nigh!

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  7. Read bluechristian.blogspot.com for tons of public record comments both now and in the past of the doublespeak and contradiction on James Cappleman. Let's put the meaningless emotional personal attacks aside and focus on facts and stance on issues. In that case it's indisputable that MOLLY PHELAN is by far the best candidate!

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  8. It amuses me the recent attacks on James from the Helen backers. Jon Trott has stepped up his attacks and now Marc Kaplan. Top that off with Helen going after him in last weeks debate. Makes me 100% sure I made the right choice early voting for James.


    Molly, the enemy of your enemy is not your friend.

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  9. Once again chipdouglas, bluchristian posts PUBLIC POSTED direct contradiction posts. You come back with emotional personal comments with ZERO factual comments. Typical of most UU posters. Is it too late to get to facts and issue stances only? Sad state of affairs...

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  10. He had a decent amount of voters in the election so this is very good for Molly unfortunately Molly is the new Helen based on her "promises" to Kaplan.

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  11. Eric ... what about chip's comments weren't factual?

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  12. Joseph Berrios and Mark Kaplan.

    Copwatch and FOP.

    A ton of real estate investors and promises to increase low-income housing.

    Molly really WILL promise anything to anyone.

    And I'm saying that as the great-grandson twice removed of PT Barnum, who once said the word "Uptown." So that makes me qualified to be alderman.

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  13. Erik, I am sure you are HUGE with the Eddie Bauer crowd, but blowing up UU's Facebook page and blog to get your point across does just the opposite. People tune you out like...well, like that plaid shirt you are still hanging on to from Eddie Bauer.

    You want facts? This is what I do know. James was battling the elements of Uptown long before I got involved. Years ago I met James and Richard pulling up weeds & picking up litter. I thought that was pretty cool.

    Is Molly fit to be Alderman? Maybe. Does she deserve it? Maybe. Do I want to stand on the same line as Marc Kaplan & Jon Trott? Hells na!

    People vote for who you want. Enjoy the democratic process. When this is all done, let's take a shower (Not together) and start working to prevent the same bloodbath that was thrust upon us last summer.

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  14. This is all amusing

    The worst thing is if you go over to the UU Facebook page the obsession some people have with my "IrishPirate" identity is driving them bonkers.

    Short drive, I imagine.

    Right Erik.

    Jaysus, take a break.

    I'm heading over to the Bar on Buena for some alcohol and food to wash down the alcohol. Join me. I'm easy enough to spot.

    Really, walk into the bar, look around and see who has a stereotypical pirate attribute.

    I'll be there by 9:45.

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  15. Chip,

    damn. You made a funny.

    Well played.

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  16. Since Mark's campaign didn't have any money, I wonder who paid for this mailing???

    I guess we all have our price, don't we, Mark? I wonder if your deal with Molly (and Ed Burke and Joe Berrios and Walmart Dave Herro) stops with postage. I doubt it.

    The last time I saw Mark and Molly together, it was in the City Council Chambers at the Stop Labor Ready Hearing in front of the Zoning Board of Appeals. Molly was drafted as SLR's attorney on the spot and stood quaking on her feet addressing the ZBA.

    In the meantime, Mark and Brendan Shiller, firmly in Labor Ready's corner, sat in the gallery and made fun of her... in between Mark running out for smoke breaks. I know, I was sitting behind them and heard every nasty, smoky word.

    Well, I guess we all can be bought, even good little socialists and Daddy's Little Girls. I have to wonder how BOMA/Chicago ("The Voice Of Chicago's Office Business Industry") feels about their donation to Molly paying for Mark Kaplan's mailing? And if Mark regrets his nasty comments about Molly at the ZBA hearing? Or if they went out and had a cigarette after this deal was made?

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    Replies
    1. I know this is a decade old but. 1) Marc. With a C. 2) I dont know why you decided to include the smoking lie, like to make MarC look unkempt? Because in the 36 years I've known MarC, he has never once smoked a cigarette. Like random fact but, dude don't smoke. Never has. So.

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  17. Erik...what makes a Christian blog factual? New here, read the fine print...this is a place to voice opinions and expect that they will be disagreed with. If anything, this would lend support to the homophobic comments made here regarding Mol. This blog looks like something just put together, perhaps by Charlie Sheen in a troll moment. It even has a white supremacy feel to it. Granted, I didn't read all of it for fear the gray matter would ooze out of my ears. IP...you could make the Bar on Buena a very busy place this evening. Don't forget your plaid!

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  18. Erik... I believe the smoking comment may have been what we folks call SARCASM!

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  19. Um...Erik certainly takes things literally. I guess they don't teach irony at Notre Dame.

    You know, you smoke right after you've just gotten f*cked. Or f*cked someone over. It's kind of a draw as to which role Molly and Mark played.

    THAT's the reference to a cigarette. Was it good for you, too?

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  20. The Christian blog isn't factual Michele. The clear public quotes from this election vs. Last posted on the site are. Still, not one factual view here, all emotions. Pathetic.

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  21. Erik...hope all 29 followers vote only once on Tuesday. This site is not all about emotion, but you are allowed your opinion. If you consider me pathetic, I must be doing something right. Doublespeak? Really! Pot...kettle calling...(btw...reading UU is NOT mandatory...but a choice). nice push however, given no mail tomorrow.

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  22. Least we forget, that Mol has not spent her law degree working for a non-profit organization. Rather, a very lucrative law firm defending the lucrative ( please include fact Wilson Yard..as that was consider part of class warfare as described on blog). doublespeak?

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  23. I am voting for Molly Phelan because she is the most qualified candidate in MY opinion, sorry James Cappleman. No offense. I have self-endorsed her based on what I have gleaned from a long winter.

    I could do a line item detailed list of those reasons but that was why we had all of those "Great Debates" and forums, questionnaires....etc.

    If all some people have been doing is waiting to see who Mr. Kaplan is voting for so they can vote for the other guy I say...knock yourself out!

    One day she is Tea Party and the next day she is Shiller II, make up your minds. Silly state of affairs indeed, but it has been a long campaign.

    By the same token I have completely ignored the endorsement of Diane Shapiro, The only openly right-wing candidate who endorsed Mr. Cappleman as he has mentioned repeatedly since and it is in the sidebar of this website...now she had some wacky ideas.

    And Mr Retta endorsed him too even though he was roasted on this site for his affordable housing positions...so what? And Caitlyn McIntyre, and Andy Lam and.....whoever...so what?

    People can vote for who they want to vote for and endorse who they want to endorse. Although Diane Shapiro was way out there...I can overlook it...big deal.

    Cappleman is not Shapiro any more then Phelan is Kaplan. Now there is strange-bedfellows sentence if ever there was one.

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  24. Thanks Marc! This is seriously an endorsement for Mr. J.C.
    James is all about moving forward, NOT about being mired in the mud.

    This kind of thing, blazingly underscores why James is the way to go.

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  25. What happened to the Phelan/Cappleman homophobia story that was posted here a few days ago?

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  26. I was wavering between Cappleman and Phelan, but Kaplan has convinced me which way to go---Cappleman. Thanks, Marc!

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  27. Now THAT'S entertaining. Thank you Marc and Molly.

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  28. If anyone went to Monday's debate they know why Monday's debate FAR showed Molly as the FAR better candidate! How does anyone not see this?! It's obvious beyond belief that Molly is the ONLY candidate to move our neighborhood forward!

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  29. "My mouth is full of decayed teeth and my soul of decayed ambitions."
    — James Joyce

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  30. Erik,

    Your comments are so discombobulated and non-sensical that I can only partially decipher them.

    Some of your comments seem to be endorsing Cappleman over Phelan - I agree with those.

    I hope that you and Kaplan, et al, keep commenting, because the twisted-pretzel illogic you use serves as a good metaphor for Molly's FLIP-FLOPPING campaign and positions. Your comment may actually add to Cappleman's victory margin !

    Molly has repeatedly called public housing and your / our neighborhood areas nothing more than a "slum" and the "dumping ground" of Chicago with "Towers of Poverty" etc. - what do you make of that?

    Do you think she was complimenting you, or somehow promising to maintain existing low-income housing that she found every nasty epithet to condemn in the debates and in her lawsuit?

    If you, Mark Kaplan and Mr. Trott think that Molly is beholden to any promises to you - rather than to her promises to her real estate developer funders and her Ed Burke puppet masters, you are more gullible than even Molly thinks you are.

    Molly and her developer pals can't wait to send you packing to another part of town..... or farther.

    What are you going to do then, threaten to withhold campaign donations from her, or outbid her downtown cronies for her vote? Good luck with that.

    For the sake of the people you presumably care about, don't be as presumes you are.

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  31. I'm just trying to figure out if Kaplan can even picture designer-duds Molly marching up Broadway - in stilettos or flats - to visit affordable housing - I can't.

    I remember when Jane Byrne briefly moved into Cabrini Green, security detail in tow.

    I hope Marc isn't counting on Molly doing anything like that in Uptown - she doesn't get paid security and I don't think she'd find the closet space adequate.

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  32. Meant to say to Erik & Kaplan...

    For the sake of the people you care about, don't be as gullible as Molly presumes you are.

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  33. Was really on the fence on this vote. Could have gone in either direction. No longer. J.C. just got my vote. This is an endorsement Molly could have done without.

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  34. Ooops. There goes Ms. Phelan's campaign. I read the endorsement up to the point where Mr. Kaplan described the "confederates" (HAHAHAAHA) reporting a building which had so many building violations that the landlord had to sell the building. I wasn't shocked to find that Mr. Kaplan's letter showed no concern for all the building violations. The "more affordable housing part" just blew my mind away. Mr. Kaplan must not get out much.

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  35. Hmm. I seem to recall Molly calling Wilson Yard the "new Cabrini Green" during her days building her aldermanic campaign with "Fix Wilson Yard"...and she certainly wasn't supportive of affordable housing during her "Fix Wilson Yard" pre-official-campaign media availabilities.

    So, either she was lying through her pearly-white teeth to her "Fix Wilson Yard" donors...or she's lying through her teeth to Kaplan the Bartender and his buddies...or she doesn't really KNOW what she is in favor of (except her purchase of the alderman's office) which says she will say anything she thinks she needs to say in order to eke out a Bush v. Gore-style victory.

    Go figure.

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  36. The other day Molly came ringing my doorbell and I opened my windows to see who it is. She politely introduced herself and asked me how I'm doing. I told her I was busy watching Borat. She then asked me who I am voting for and I told her that I still have several hundred of her and James' mailers that I need to read through. She then told me she doesn't want to disturb me but... and at that point I said thanks and closed the window.

    Geez, I really feel like that campainging is starting to look like 6th grade class president campaining. Usually the most attractive and/or coolest person would win those, and honestly I don't think either one of the candidates are attractive or cool.

    I know my story will help you make a decision.

    WA WA WE WA!

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  37. Posted in the comments several days ago but I feel it is more important now. 

    I want to know, from Molly, "What Would You Do For A Klondike Bar"?

    It almost seems like she will do or say anything. 

    This is why:

    This recent development raises very interesting and valid points as well as additional areas for speculation for ward residents to ponder, consider or otherwise hash out in their minds prior to showing up at their polling locations on April 5th. 

    Molly Phelan's first campaign in the Ward was essentially the Fix Wilson Yard lawsuit. She was the leader of the movement and the lawsuit. One can only assume that the  very strong verbiage used in Molly's first campaign was either written or approved by her, either way she sure did not run away from the style, or ideas that the verbage conveyed until her second campaign which is the campaign that is now in it's twilight hours. 

    My speculation here is that when the Fix Wilson Yard Campaign was in full swing and Molly was freely dispatching her tomes of fire and brimstone, Helen was still a contender in the race for 46th Ward Alderman. Molly knew she was going to run. What she did not know was how many other candidates also planned on running and she did not know about the two big monkey wrenches that sidetracked her campaign. Daley was still thought to be running for Mayor and Helen had still not declared that she would not seek re-election. Capitalizing on the class divide, and the line in the sand that Alderman Shiller drew over the course of her tenure would seem like the best way to differentiate herself and conquer the Ward. 

    Just like the weather, political landscapes change, and in the City of Chicago this year the politics was as stormy as the winter we just endured. 

    Fast forward from the first campaign Molly ran to the current one. Molly is now a champion for the same things she campaigned against, without any explanation as to when, where and why she had this Damascus Road conversion. 

    She went from campaigning against the powers that be (Daley,Shiller, Burke, et al) with her volatile rhetoric, to joining forces with Alderman "I need city body-guards paid for by taxpayers because of the last time we were in a situation with a new council and mayor" Burke. Alderman Reilly and who knows who else. 

    Is her desire for this position so strong that she is blind to how disingenuous she is being?

    After the debate at Truman College Monday night, another group of people gathered in the back of the debate area. This group led by Marc Kaplan and comprised of the members of the groups ONE, And Copwatch discussed how they were going to get the word out to support Molly in this  her most recent campaign. I listened in as Marc explained they were going to find out the next morning from Molly how much money her campaign was going to give their group. 

    Is Molly tough on crime? My guess is she does not like crime based on her first campaign documents about Wilson Yard being Beacons of Crime. The only active crime related endeavour other than pontificate on mailers, websites and debates is her now newfound relationship with the CopWatch Crew. 

    The gist of her campaign seems to me can summed up by a marketing campaign used a few years ago by one of my favorite summer time treats. Klondike Bars. 

    Molly "What would you do for a Klondike Bar?"

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  38. Just for grits and shins let's assume Molly wins on Tuesday. It could happen.

    Do you really think she'll work for more low income housing in the ward?

    Hell, even Kaplan doesn't likely believe that. Her "pledge" to him is just like a chastity ring, easy to forget when the moment is right.

    My guess is this endorsement has more to do with hatred for Cappleman and UU than any belief that Molly will work with them.

    It seems to me that she has ambitions to go beyond alderman in the electoral game. Her main focus will likely be on that and not working with constituencies to insure they are happy. Nope, if you think an aldermanic race is expensive imagine a congressional race. That means keeping the big money donors happy.

    Cappleman likely has no political ambitions beyond the 46th ward. An alderman Cappleman would be more likely to work with various groups to try to keep them happy so they didn't support any opponents in future aldermanic races.

    Molly, eh.....not so much. She seems to have MDD. Molly deficit disorder. All about Molly, all the time.

    So folks with that my tub is running, where it's going I don't know, and it's time for me to take my bubble bath before a hard day of drinking and reading the Sunday papers.

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  39. My theory,.... Molly makes these packs with the Devil, promising to only be a one-term alderman. In turn, in 4 years, she hands back the reigns of our ward to the likes of Courass, Onesies, JPCommies, etc.... and supports their candidate...

    .. I have heard this idea more than once. Looking at who is backing her, the validity factor grows...

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  40. I am curious as to why some people in the ward received these letters? Selective mailing must be as contagious as the selective memory disease running thru Mols campaign. i am rejoicing in the fact that there is no mail today! I will be out working for James campaign on Tuesday. Hope lots of support shows up to help. We owe it to ourselves and to James. He has certainly been there for our ward in the past.

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  41. Guapo,

    my theory is that Meghan Fox is waiting in my bedroom right now.

    To paraphrase Caring Neighbor.......
    theories are like assholes.....as an asshole I know theories.

    I don't buy that and even in with the miniscule chance it's true how do they hold her to that?

    Nope, the simplest answer is generally the best. They hate Cappleman, UU and me. Not necessarily in that order.

    Now a comment was made that Phelan promised money to Kaplan and his followers to support her. Not illegal folks. It's called walking around cash for election day. To hire workers and such.

    Think Senator Clay Davis in "The Wire" and the game he pulled on Mayor Wannabee Tommy.

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  42. I've said similar things, p. Remember that discussion, pirate?

    This whole development is so bizarre to me because my social ethics are, at base, not so dissimilar from Marc Kaplan and Helen Shiller. I am often not a fan of how things go down around here but the issues they put on the table are ones that I am interested in fighting for as well. (In other words, its a matter of how to get things done not what needs to be done.)

    That being said, at no time have I ever seen Molly as part of that worldview. She has said things and acted in ways that I would never consider. These are the kind of things that require a fundamental shift in worldview in order to stop doing. I'm not saying she's "bad" or anything, I am just saying that she comes at Uptown's issues in a fundamentally different way than a Helen Shiller or Marc Kaplan does.

    So, its truly hard to wrap my head around this one...Copwatch and FOP agree on the same candidate? Large downtown developers and ONE agree on the same candidate?

    Overall, I'm concerned that the election process didn't involve much of the community growth we needed in order to move forward positively and together. While I'd love to be proven wrong, I can't see the Molly supporters I know reaching out and working well with Marc Kaplan or anyone running with his crowd. They were/are expecting Molly to be more of a badass than James and for a certain amount of things to happen quickly and without too many delicate negotiations. That's my take on it anyway.

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  43. The way I see it is Helen is still running the show and trying to run the race.

    She is secretly backing Molly because she hates James so much and sees him as the reason she couldn't win this time around.

    That would explain Marc aligning with Molly or I as like to call her Shillerlite.

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  44. Sassy I remember when you said those things, as well as Cub Reporter, IP and a few others. In fac it was many off the comments that I read that got my mind turning. This is why UU is a great clearinghouse of ideas, pertinent to our lives.

    I was in no way trying to steal your ideas or thunder.

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  45. Oh, I didn't mean it that way, p! :)

    These threads get so long its very easy for things to get hidden. I was remarking that at the time IP responded to my comments wondering what the heck I was saying. After seeing your comment after all these weeks, I was pleased that someone else saw it the same way too!

    Anyone and everyone is welcome to steal my thunder... plow through the things I say here and separate the wheat from the chaff...or ignore them completely. That's kind of the point, no?

    I would be interested in hearing from some solid Molly supporters in light of this new information. How do you imagine working together on some of Uptown's more challenging issues? Afterall, Molly will not be able to get the job done herself. What are you going to bring to the table? In a sense, we are electing you too.

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  46. What happened to the Phelan/Cappleman homophobia story that was posted here a few days ago?

    This one?

    http://www.uptownupdate.com/2011/04/46th-ward-race-takes-turn-for-negative.html

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  47. Thank you Mr. Kaplan for your endorsement of Ms. Phelan ... the information in your letter clarifies what we can expect Ms. Phelan to accomplish in out ward and it has decided my vote ... which will be for James Cappleman ...we need NO MORE new affordable or low income housing in Uptown

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  48. More affordable housing and more crime? Cappleman has my vote as well as all my friends around here. It is so very clear who is the best leader for our ward now and for the future.

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  49. Wow, that is a pretty big tent!

    I assume there are some mixed emotions on this from Molly's supporters.

    It would be fair to say that this close to the election, there is little sense in distancing your campaign from any voting block.

    So be it. I'm interested in seeing the results, and ready to end the election cycle and get busy forgetting about Helen.

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  50. Well I walked by Campaign Phelan HQ earlier. Many busy people inside. Preparing flyers for election day I imagine.

    Later on my way walk methinks I spied Marc Kaplan coming out of the tower just north of the McDonalds.

    The building was festooned in Phelan signage.

    Also EVERY dumpster and many of the city owned garbage cans in my alley had a Phelan poster on them.

    I was torn. Should I leave the signs up to serve as a metaphor for the Phelan campaign or should I strike a blow for clean dumpsters and tear them off?

    Really would a sign on a dumpster get her any votes? Would it cost her any votes?

    As usual I am perplexed.

    So many choices in life.

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  51. It will be hard to forget about Helen she left such a wreck in Uptown with her failed social experiment.

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  52. Marc Kaplan is a guy whose endorsement you need to immediately and loudly say "no thanks" to, NO MATTER THE COST.

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  53. Be Scared people! Mollys folks that have endorsed her and known for bringing a HUGE amount of voters to the polls,,,particularly in a run-off... if you dont vote and drag along your neighbors along, it is going to be a blow out ... and not in the way the bodes well for Cappleman.. Be scared Uptown...Molly's Minions are on the march!

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  54. I received a phone call this afternoon from Sheila Phelan, addressed herself as Moll's sister. Listened for awhile and then interjected that our household had already voted. She stammered a bit, but managed to resist the urge not to ask for which candidate we voted.

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  55. Cappleman gets the Hoffman endorsement, and Phelan gets Kaplan's...ouch. I can't wait for Tuesday.

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  56. So Molly knocked on a neighbor's door yesterday. The guy tells Molly, like many of us have told her, that he is tired of her dishonest campaign literature.

    Molly gets defensive and tells the guy "Cappleman started it... I went negative because Cappleman criticized my father!"

    When asked what she was talking about, Molly said she decided to go negative when Cappleman questioned whether Molly ethically should have been soliciting her law firm clients for campaign donations. Somehow Molly saw this as an "attack" on her father, rather than a question of Molly's morals and ethics.

    As we all recall, Molly at first tried to deny that she solicited her law firm's clients, but later, like lots of her claims and positions, she had to admit to it when she was caught by the Sun-Times in a lie after Molly's clients came forward to document her ethically questionable behavior.

    The longer this election season lasts, the more I think Molly got her training, not from Notre Dame, but from the CHICAGO OUTFIT - because whatever anyone says to her, she takes it a slight against "THE FAMILY" - i.e., Molly's mommy and daddy (the ones who actually have done something with their lives).

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  57. @Rob

    Exactly. I was thinking the same thing. I still can't wrap my head around how organizations like ONE, CopWatch, et al can align themselves with Molly after the whole Wilson Yard lawsuit. Incredible! Everyone I know who voted or will vote for Molly thinks that if elected, she will "clean house" in Uptown meaning get rid of a large amount ot the low- and no-income housing that saturated our ward. With that, Uptown will gentrify. Now, all that has changed? What planet am I on?!?

    And can I just say how sick I am of hearing about her parents? I would expect that of a junior high student government election. But if she does win-and I am worried about this-we will have to swallow our disgust and ....well I just don't even want to think about the possibility.

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  58. First,

    Lil Tomato. Make sure you vote and talk to your neighbors. At this point there ain't much else to be done.

    If Phelan wins, then she wins. She ain't Shiller and her Kaplanesque allies will soon learn how fickle she can be. She may just use that Coach bag she carries to wallop them upside their proverbial heads.

    If Cappleman wins, then he wins. He ain't Shiller either.

    So no matter what, Uptown is still better off that it is now.

    The truly amusing thing is I suspect Cappleman would be moderately better than Phelan dealing with the issues they claim to care about.

    They just loathe Cappleman and UU so much that they can't see that.

    Plus whatever walking around campaign money Phelan may have given them probably helps them prefer her.

    If it makes you feel any better walk down your alley and see if any dumpsters have Phelan posters on them. Then rip them off the dumpster and dance on them.

    Call it the Attack of the Killer Little Tomatoes.

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  59. Everyone I know who voted or will vote for Molly thinks that if elected, she will "clean house" in Uptown meaning get rid of a large amount ot the low- and no-income housing that saturated our ward.

    This is without question the general view I have heard. People who voted for her the first time around felt that she was the badass candidate. They'd get angry at you if you argued more moderate positions or-Heaven forbid-mention anything good Helen Shiller ever did.

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  60. Just as a side show to this circus, cold someone tell the mouth-breathing Phelen jagweeds to stop posting her signs on the bus shelters on Marine? It takes me and Spot an extra 20 minutes each night to tear every one of them off the CTA shelters. Friday, Saturday, Sunday. That's an extra hour of my life...gone.

    Oh, while we're at it, someone needs to tell them at the 46th ward ends at Lawrence along the lakefront? It's called a map, use it

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  61. As I commented last night, Marc's letter is without question an (unintended) ringing endorsement for James.
    James is actually here in the Ward, and has the track record.
    Thanks Marc!

    May I also say, I'm so tired of the robo-calls from Molly's camp. I like her, but she's not my first choice.

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  62. @Rob

    Exactly. I was thinking the same thing. I still can't wrap my head around how organizations like ONE, CopWatch, et al can align themselves with Molly after the whole Wilson Yard lawsuit. Incredible! Everyone I know who voted or will vote for Molly thinks that if elected, she will "clean house" in Uptown meaning get rid of a large amount ot the low- and no-income housing that saturated our ward. With that, Uptown will gentrify. Now, all that has changed? What planet am I on?!?

    And can I just say how sick I am of hearing about her parents? I would expect that of a junior high student government election. But if she does win-and I am worried about this-we will have to swallow our disgust and ....well I just don't even want to think about the possibility.

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  63. In case someone is not familiar with COURAJ (a group closely associated with Marc Kaplan), it is a group to fight gentrification and to maintain and expand affordable housing options in Uptown.

    The is the text from a flyer that COURAJ distributed to people at the Wilson L stop in 2009:

    Do You Want To Help Preserve a Diverse Community?

    Do you want to help solve the problem of destroyed families, lives and unaffordable communities?

    Do you consider yourself a good person who believes in helping your fellow man and woman?

    If you answered yes, we urge you not to buy a Condo in Uptown. The Condo craze is destroying our community. It is making the cost of living in Uptown unaffordable to working families, seniors and long time residents. By buying a condo you are adding to the artificial rise in property taxes that are making it very difficult to keep rents affordable. Help our community survive by buying elsewhere.

    Be part of the solution to the housing crises.

    Do the heroic thing and don’t buy in Uptown

    The people of Uptown will thank you and hold you in high honor.

    Thank You!

    For more information call COURAJ 769-2085

    _______

    Molly is now accepting an endorsement from someone who wants to stop economic development in the 46th ward. But, then again, Molly tried to stop development in Uptown with Fix Wilson Yard. Alligning herself with Marc contradicts her entire campaign, and this not about "building bridges" - notice that Molly made no mention of this endorsement on her campaign website or Facebook page.

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  64. @ mr. Pirate-

    I already voted and it was for Cappleman. Now, will you join me in ripping down those signs and dancing on them? If our efforts are in vain and she wins, i invite you to join me for Pink Martinis while we sing "Je ne Veux Pas Travailler" while gazing at those constituents to whom Molly has made empty promises.

    oooooo, I'm feeling mean tonight and this is without a drop of liquor.

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  65. I'm so confused!

    James Cappleman send out two mailers saying:

    "although Alderman Shiller and I do differ on some issues, I have great respect for the work she has done in Uptown and the 46th Ward"

    and

    "Molly Phelan wants to end affordable housing in our ward!"

    And then there's this letter?

    It looks to me like James Cappleman is trying to align himself with Helen Shiller while folks in the community have decided that...well...James Cappleman doesn't want to give toys to homeless kids.

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  66. Ok all right I am calling shenanigans on this one.

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  67. Go James! We don't need more of the same with Molly=Helen obviously! Molly has no idea what needs to be done here. I have been holding publicly held community meetings since 2009 and I live in the 46th ward. Not only could I not get 46th ward support for crime, but we held those meetings in the 48th ward because Mary Ann Smith wanted to help us. Due to that partnership, we made great strides with the CHA, police, Mercy Housing, and the schools. James came to the meetings, where was everyone else? Molly or our elected officials?

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  68. Dave - Even strong critics of Helen - like me and like I have perceived Cappleman to be - can applaud the good that Shiller did and yet be consistent in strongly criticizing her in other critical areas - poor response to crime, to constituent issues and to needlessly dividing groups within our ward for political advantage. Few people are all bad or all good.

    I applaud Helen for bringing Pup-Town to our ward, the skate-board park, for the opening of the Uptown Public Library, her advocacy of AIDS issues and GLBT rights (whatever credit she justly deserves for these), yet I still could no longer support Shiller's failed (non)-approach to crime, business blight, housing, and her fomenting of constant division that was making things so much more conspicuously worse.

    Cub Reporter - thanks for reminding us of the COURAJ history of lobbying against buying in Uptown - some of us had forgotten. It makes the Phelan endorsement so much more bizarre - too bad this happened so late that Phelan may be able to avoid explaining her many campaign's contradictions, and this endorsement is the largest of those contradiction so far.

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  69. In order not to be confused, Dave, you've got to figure out the truth.

    Here's my breakdown of the facts.

    "although Alderman Shiller and I do differ on some issues, I have great respect for the work she has done in Uptown and the 46th Ward"

    -He's been saying this exact thing back to the last election. If you ask him personally, he will say the same thing. Unlike many people in this ward, he can actually tolerate extended discussions of the good that Helen Shiller has done in Uptown. Fancy that.

    "Molly Phelan wants to end affordable housing in our ward!"

    -I haven't seen this in a mailer but she did tell the Sun-Times that she is not interested in creating more affordable housing in this ward although she is supportive of more affordable housing in the City at-large. James said he might be open to it within the ward if it fell within certain census tracts in the ward. He is also in support of more affordable housing options in the City-at-Large.

    James doesn't want to give toys to homeless kids.

    -I'd like more facts about this claim. The letter reads as if he is against the "Toys for Tots" holiday program or against "Toys for Tots" for homeless children. This is hardly a position that any potential politician would express openly even if they felt it. There must be something more to this. There is, for example, a more "radical" approach to social services that doesn't deny help to people but discusses that help as part of a larger criticism of structures of oppression and inequality. The idea is to examine how charity works can actually serve as the handmaidens of oppression. Certain conservatives (who aren't interested in changing structures of oppression) will purposely go tone-deaf around this critique in order to claim that the person saying it doesn't want to help people. In doing so, they attempt to flip-flop who is "really" helping and who is not. "Taking food out of the mouths of babes?! I'm aghast, sir! What an utter disgrace! What a soulless person you must be!"

    I am not saying that this is the case here. Here we have a dispute between two on the same side (ie Kaplan also recognizes structures of oppression). But it could be the same rhetorical tactic. Why? Because it works.

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  70. I am so disappointed with Uptown Update. With all the pressing problems and issues in the 46th Ward and the City, this newsletter has lowered itself to posting negative comments and information. When I was running for Committeeman and Alderman, there were so many false and slanderous statements about me. I tried to stay above the fray and remain positive, but it was so hard. I experienced racism as the first African-American elected on the Northside and sexism as a woman candidate. There were many times I wanted to give up, but I stayed the course because I cared so deeply about the community and also my unyielding supporters. Many people have little knowledge about what a candidate has to endure for their constituency.

    What kept me strong were my faith and the constant reminders of my involvement, at a very young age, in the Civil Rights Movement. One of my role models was and still is Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. I leave you with his words:

    “In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”

    Sandra Reed

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  71. @Sandra - Uptown Update shouldn't be the object of your ire. They're not posting negative comments and information...some of the commenters do.

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  72. What exactly is Sandra's criticismm? That Uptown Update is being critical? Did she think the MLK quote would make up for her complete lack of specifics? I think her post is more cynical than just about anything else I've read in this thread.

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  73. Sandra seems to be saying that (one? both?) of the candidates are being unfairly maligned by "negative comments and information" on UU. She feels sympathy because she says she has experienced something similar.

    I'd suggest that anyone wishing to have more clarification on her thoughts give her some space so that she might feel comfortable re-posting with a bit more detail.

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  74. Here is real proof about where Cappleman stands on toys to the homeless. Read the bottom of this newsletter and see for yourself: UCC newsletter

    Both Kaplan and Phelan are sounding rather desperate to me.

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  75. I can understand Sandra's frustration, but I view Uptown Update (and many other blogs and online message boards) as a place to inform, discuss and debate. There are plenty of positive and negative comments about both James and Molly on Uptown Update. From what I can tell, the moderators of UU deleted comments that are either truly personal attacks or "spamming" - the same exact comment over and over.

    I think this discourse is a vital part of an election. Obviously, a candidate can't speak to every voter personally in the last days before an elction, and especially in this election, there has been information and endorsements that has been made public that can certainly impact who a person will vote for tomorrow. Discussion and debate is a critial component of the American political landscape. A blog like Uptown Update is a medium for that discourse.

    An informed voter should use a variety of different sources to learn about a candidate - a blog and campaign mailers are just two sources of that information.

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  76. In less than 34 hours we should know the winner of the election.

    I predict either Cappleman or Phelan will win.

    I also predict many people will be overjoyed.

    Many people will be underjoyed.

    Expect more silliness before 7pm tomorrow. Maybe even after that.

    Hopefully it will remain peaceful.

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  77. Molly is having her election party at the Riviera. Quite a large venue for an election gathering, don't ya think?

    Maybe she plans on having all the people from JPUSA and COURAJ in attendance?

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  78. Free Klondike Bars at the Riviera tomorrow night!

    ( thanks P!)

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  79. I am going to preface this by saying that, while I am a political field operative, I am not employed by either candidate in this election. But the fact that there are 81 comments on this specific topic makes me have to say something.

    Look. Whatever ends up happening with or without this endorsement letter hitting mailboxes will be the result of each campaigns' ability to get voters out to vote. If you are a James or Molly supporter and have been volunteering consistently or sporadically while posting here, you are amazing.

    If you are taking time to post your thoughts on this election without so much as stepping into the campaign offices, but are working within your buildings/streets to talk directly to your neighbors about why you should vote for the candidate you support, great.

    If you are just posting your thoughts here and keeping to yourself on the election, shame on you. There is nothing more frustrating than to find a comments section or message board on a website that has amazing dialog occurring, but that is the extent of it. And if you find yourself participating in a cyclical conversation where you are echoing what someone else has said/something similar to what someone else has said in support of candidate X; and if this is what you consider your 'political participation,' then you make me a sad panda.

    Get up and do something about it. Not the type who "volunteers?" Talk to your neighbors today. Want to help with the campaigns' respective vote targets? Go get into the office. Join the rest of us fanatics that are knocking doors, working the phones, handing out palm cards at the El or bus stops. We're really friendly people in the offices!

    Currently [pre-moderator approval], there are 17.5 hours until the polls open tomorrow; and 30.5 hours until the polls close. I know the staff I've been volunteering with has been giving it their everything, and I imagine that fatigue is starting to set in with the other office. I encourage you to provide your candidate with some reinforcement support. Get in and volunteer for a couple of hours. Especially tomorrow, either before you go to work, after work, take a sick day, leave early, skip the gym, order a pizza for dinner instead of cooking (or join the victory parties). Got kids? Bring em. Got a pet? Ask a neighbor to let them out for you.

    But most importantly: Go vote. And take a friend with you, or a neighbor. Because, as most have already said, Uptown stands to be the biggest beneficiary of the next Alderman/woman, whomever ends up with the most people getting out to vote tomorrow night.

    Cappleman Office: 4133 N Broadway
    Palin's Office: 4660 N Broadway

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  80. ...It seems I may have suffered a Freudian Slip at the end of that post. I'll be supporting James.

    In the words of Ms. Molly: "Obviously"

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  81. Something Sandra Reed may not realize, as well as others: Uptown Update writes the FRONT PAGE of the blog. The comments are written by the readers.

    I defy Sandra, and anyone else, to read the blog without clicking through to the comments, and the claim that UU has posted nasty, biased or untrue information about this election.

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  82. 100% agree with gg. Keep in mind that UU is a volunteer effort. It's not CBS, it's not NBC, it has no obligations. It is the product of hard work and if one can not appreciate it then move along. No one is forcing you to read.

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  83. Hilarious. I'm pretty sure I received this in the mail and it went strait into the trash with every other flyer. I really wish candidates wouldn't waste the paper.

    After reading this "endorsement letter" I have to say I'm 100x MORE likely to vote for James Cappleman. I'm tired of the shootings, the drugs and the vandals. I want to be able to take a stroll on a nice evening through the park without thinking I might get caught in crossfire.

    If removing "affordable housing", homeless shelters and drug treatment facilities is the only way that ACTUALLY WORKS then so be it.

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  84. Question though...

    Molly's backed by the Fraternal Order of Police. That seems like a good connection to end crime. Would they back her if she wasn't planning to clean up the neighborhood??

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  85. The outgoing FOP leadership is noted for being in the tank hacks for "da machine".

    Also they tend to support Irish candidates because the FOP is still dominated by the pasty Irish.

    Also Molly's great grandpa was a cop killed in the line of duty.

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  86. A factual response to the utter bullcrap assertion posted by Marc Kaplan about James Cappleman not wanting to give toys to children at Christmas, from right here on UU.

    Uptown Police Toy Drives (check out the comment as well)

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  87. Irish Pirate is right. The Fraternal Order of Police endorsement is a vote by the executive leadership of the police union - the vote of likely 5-12 people. The FOP endorsement is a political one - they didn't interview the candidates. Their endorsement is by no means that Chicago police officers support or personally endorse Molly, but I am sure the Phelan campaign is perfectly fine if that is what you think.

    Wendyinmotion - James has very extensive experience in working with both the 20th and 23rd police commanders, which is vital since our ward is split between the two districts. James has worked closely with the commanders, officers, and the tatical units.

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  88. Wendy,

    I wouldnt trust this Kaplan endorsement either way.

    MY FEELING is that its a ploy by Molly to try and get votes anyway she can. Smart? Dirty? That's for you to decide.

    Both candidates have stated they don't want more low income housing in the ward. Cappleman has conceded once, that I know of, that he would allow more if it is "done the right way", or something along those lines.


    No candidate has stated they would reduce low income housing, but both "promised" to maintain what already exists here. Maintain what??? percentages, number of apartments? I dont know. They are two vastly different things should you see a large increase in population throughout the ward.

    But, I wouldn't vote for Cappleman solely because one thinks he will reduce the stock of "affordable housing". I don't think either candidate is advocating that. Nobody wants any family to be displaced.

    Also, "affordable housing" does not have to equate to crime, nor should it. Unfortunately a few bad apples spoil the bunch.

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  89. Do we know if the Phelan campaign paid for this Kaplan mailing?

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  90. Why hasn't Molly's campaign said whether Marc Kaplan is correct about Molly's deal with Kaplan promising that Phelan will support more low-income housing (if Rahm doesn't move forward in a way that's 100% acceptable to Kaplan - it's unlikely that Rahm will)?

    Was Molly telling the truth when she said (to IVI, etc.) that she doesn't support more affordable housing in Uptown and called Uptown a "dumping group" with "towers of poverty", etc., or was Molly telling the truth when she promised Marc Kaplan that she would support more of her "towers of poverty"?

    There may be pros & cons to both more or less public housing in Uptown, but my problem is that I can't tell - because of Phelan's current cone of silence on this - whether Kaplan speaks for her or not. I find that hiding out on this issue by Molly to be cowardly and not honest with the voters.

    I received a robo-call from Molly's mother - Clare Phelan - today saying Molly was taught to always follow "the Golden Rule" (how does that square with Molly's negative hit mail pieces that distorted and mis-stated Cappleman's positions - photo-shopping blurred images of him, etc.?

    When such a politician starts pleading about the "Golden Rule", I know that politician has become desperate and not to be believed - as well as needlessly interjecting religious tenets into a campaign that has not been about God or love, or anything close to it.

    I also wonder why Molly's handlers would have the mother of a candidate, who (Molly) has shown a propensity to taut her parents' achievements rather than cite any of her own, make these calls for her.

    It once again makes Molly appear not ready to be an adult alderman, and makes her campaign seem like a crusade student council rather than for alderman.

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  91. It depends on the version of the Golden Rule Molly adheres to.

    Methinks it's "She who has the gold, makes the rules."

    Now pester your neighbors and try to get them to vote tomorrow.

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  92. FOP has no impact on CRIME.

    It's the Police Lodge.

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  93. A said...

    "FOP has no impact on CRIME.

    It's the Police Lodge."

    On the other hand the membership know a thing or two about crime and endorsed her based on those beliefs so whats your point A?

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  94. RR,

    shouldn't you be out posting signs on bus stops?

    That's ok almost as quickly as they get posted some pissed off residents take them down.

    I will give the Phelan campaign point for learning though.

    The signs now seem to be getting posted lower on the bus shelters which allows people better views of oncoming buses.

    Thank you.

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  95. Perhaps her golden rule is do onto others as they have done onto you

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  96. RR, as has been posted on this blog by FOP members previously, the FOP membership never voted on this endorsement, nor were they polled. It was a decision made by the outgoing leadership, who historically have been very machine-centric.

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  97. RR...great you supprt Molly. Is this FOP at all responsible for allowing the actions of a few bad apples to be alleged twice? Making the already difficult job they do even harder? Our police work to hard to be misrepresented and not protected by their leaders. On the topic of a few bad apples, did we forget that Cabrini Green was a failed process? Congregating large populations of poor people in apartMent buildings right next to each other for blocks and blocks follows the same principal. So all the violence here is just a few bad apples? I guess it is proportional to the size of the bushel. keeping diversity would benefit everyone. oversaturation, benefits noone.

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  98. If you're interested in what the men and women in blue feel, ask them their opinions on a candidate for alderman being in bed with the guy behind Copwatch, whose campaign was managed by a lawyer who sues cops for a living.

    I bet you would get quite an earfull on which candidate they hope wins. Despicable from someone who brags about her hero cop ancestor and her time as a CAPS facilitator.

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  99. @ RacineRacer said...
    ...On the other hand the membership know a thing or two about crime and endorsed her based on those beliefs...

    April 4, 2011 5:48 PM


    Sorry, RR, but "the membership" of the FOP DID NOT endorse Molly. Their Board made the endorsement... the same Board that endorsed Ed Burke's candidate for Mayor (Chico).

    I made an inquiry to a member of the FOP Board regarding Molly's endorsement but got no response. As of yesterday (03 April), FOP swore in a NEW President, Officers and Board of Trustees so I'm sure no response will be forthcoming.

    The FOP endorsed Mike Carroll in the Mayoral election based on the recommendation of "the membership". The FOP never looked for input from "the membership" for the runoff elections. How Molly got their endorsement is beyond me! The ONLY reason that makes any sense to me at all is that she is the grand daughter of a police officer who was killed-in-the-line-of-duty. Or, like Chico, she was the favorite of Ed Burke, who is a Chicago Police officer who has been on a leave of absence since he first became an Alderman in 1969. Are things a little clearer now?

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  100. Thought this was interesting. It was gleaned from the comments section on Second City Cop (SCC), where a commenter was lamenting on the fact that Molly Phelan had the endorsements of both the FOP and COPWATCH. It seems to lend some credence to the idea that the previous regime at the FOP were being manipulated by politicians like the mayor and Ed Burke.

    "The FOP polled the membership in the mayoral race. The return of those ballots was embarassingly low, pitifully so. Even then, by the numbers, Rahm won it. Still the board declared it a dead heat and endorsed Chico."

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  101. Today I voted for James Cappleman but that doesn't mean I hate Molly Phelan.

    The vitriol of some of you has surprised me, the hypocrisy even moreso. I'm not sure what function UU will serve tomorrow, should James win tonight. The idea that there was no bias is laughable - just look no further than this very post. Certain selections of Kaplan's post are bolded - that is a bias.

    Fine, it isn't journalism, but the stakeholders in this site aren't without opinion, nor do they limit those opinions to the comments after they post.

    Please note that the bolded selections are not the the accusations that Mr. Kaplan charges against Mr. Cappleman,nor are they the ones where he tacitly approves Ma. Phelan. No, in they eyes of UU, Mr. Kaplan is lucid only when he envisions that Molly will do things for him that James will not.

    And the Phelan camp must answer to this? The charges that James Cappleman is the Grinch who stole Christmas can be summarily dismissed, by all but two commenters, but plenty call for Molly's scalp for 'allowing' this endorsement.

    Regardless of outcome, Mark Kaplan is a resident of this ward tomorrow. So is Helen Schiller.

    I cast my vote for James because I thought he was the best candidate to speak for me, and some of these others, whose income, ethnicity, and background might not match mine.

    I like James Cappleman, but I definitely did not vote for his staunchest supporters.

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