Now that Village President Larson and his cronies have succeeded in forcing their plans for a superfluous 226 million dollar convention center down the taxpayers' throats, I invite all area residents to drive (or walk) past the northeast section of Schaumburg and see the destruction for themselves.

Like something out of a science-fiction horror movie, one recent day huge machines uprooted and destroyed every single one of the hundreds of trees that used to be there. And one can only imagine the horror experienced by the many rabbits, squirrels, deer, birds and other life as their entire world was destroyed.

And perhaps them as well: One can't help but wonder if most were captured by the fence that had been put around the entire perimeter shortly before the mayhem began, and mercilessly slaughtered.

As you pass over tollway 90 on Meacham road, look to the east and see how the ugliness stretches all the way from Meacham to the residences in the distance; all the way north from the tollway to Thoreau Drive. Then remember how until recently that entire area had been filled, for decades (perhaps even centuries), with oxygen-producing trees; a pristine oasis of life in the increasingly concrete desert that Schaumburg has become.

Look, and remember, even if you think what replaces it will ultimately be worth the price. A moment of mourning to mark what has forever passed is not too much to ask.

And as you ponder the destruction, if you try to console yourself that at least some jobs will be created by this, you are just buying into the myth (that is, lie) that politicians at all levels (federal, state, and local) have been brainwashing people with for decades.

For while the government can certainly destroy jobs (primarily via unjust taxes and regulations that make the cost of producing the good or service more than what customers are willing to pay, particularly in light of cheap foreign labor and costs of living)... it can not create jobs!

All government can do is shift jobs from those that people want to support to those that profit the politicians. Think about it: If the government spends 226 million dollars of taxpayer money to pay for certain jobs (such as the destruction of a mini forest and the construction and staffing of a convention center), that simply means that taxpayers have 226 million fewer dollars to spend on other products and services that would have supported the creation (or continuation) of other jobs!

Yet the politicians never talk about that side of it, because they don't want you to catch onto their scam. They want you to think that only if the government spends money are jobs created. They want you to go along with them and keep worshipping them as they steal your money and destroy your environment. Why? In order to spend the money on lucrative contracts for their friends. As well as new "friends" who will thank them for the multi-million, taxpayer-funded contracts with generous campaign contributions.

And of course those recipients of the lucrative government contracts don't think of themselves as accessories after the fact, receiving stolen money. But they should.

There was a time when newspapers were a watchdog of government on behalf of the citizens, reminding them of the limited role government is supposed to have in a free country, as outlined in the Constitution and Bill of Rights. Alas, over time the media has changed from being watchdogs to lapdogs, too willing to cheer on any increase in government power.

As a result most people today have been brainwashed into thinking that the government can do whatever it wants, tax as much as it wants, get into any business it wants, take any land it wants, so long as every few years we get to vote. The whole concept of a government of limited powers has almost completely been forgotten. Year after year the politicians take more power and the people let them get away with it.

The Schaumburg Review does deserve some credit for their excellent reporting of this issue and for expressing some reservations, including pointing out how unfair and un-American taxation without representation is. Yet ultimately even they unfortunately caved in and approved of the project.

Many residents of the area (including this writer), a quiet little tree-lined community next to (until two weeks ago) a mini forest preserve, considered it so nice that they have lived there for twenty years (or more). But now the woods are gone, and residents are told to expect years of loud construction noise. And that millions more taxpayer dollars will be spent to tear up Thoreau drive to change it from the current sleepy residential road into a major access road for the convention center.

As you look out over ground zero from the perch of Meacham road, contemplating the terror wrought by Larson and his "trustees", if you have any humanity in your soul a tear will come to your eye. And hopefully you will be filled with resolve to make sure that all of them are voted out of office at the next possible opportunity.

Neal S. Reynolds is a free-lance writer who lives in Schaumburg.

Copyright (c) 2004 by Neal S. Reynolds