Opinion: Mark Kirk and the Illinois Curse [Chicago Tribune]

The Chicago Tribune ^ | June 10, 2010 | Steve Chapman

[BillyBoy]

Opinion: Mark Kirk and the Illinois Curse

by Steve Chapman
Updated: 6:4 PM 6/10/2010

Multiple Page View

Running for Congress in 2000, Mark Kirk told a Chicago Tribune reporter he had almost drowned in Lake Michigan as a teenager. "I should be at the bottom of that lake, but I was given a rare gift of a second life," he confided. "And to be given a second chance means it has to mean something. For me, that means making a difference through public service, and it all comes from the lake."

This brought to mind what Oscar Wilde said of one of Charles Dickens' scenes: "One must have a heart of stone to read the death of Little Nell without laughing." After Kirk's earnest tale, no one should have been surprised that he has a genius for creative self-promotion.

[BillyBoy]

SOME MEMORIAL QUOTES FROM THE ARTICLE:

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"The congressman has never been one to minimize his talents. Once, in a candidate debate, he responded to a question about immigration reform by announcing grandly, "I could answer that question in Spanish, since I attended Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico." Kirk finds himself amazing and expects you to agree."

"Republican Peter Fitzgerald. He was so honest and capable — I'm not joking here — that the Illinois Republican Party found him impossible to bear, inducing his retirement after one term."

"The office will fall to either Giannoulias or Kirk, who seem to be determined to raise our opinion of Burris."

"By this point, the average Illinoisan, ordered at gunpoint to choose between [Kirk and Giannoulias] the two, would reply, "Shoot." It's a familiar dilemma in a place where state government has four branches: executive, legislative, judicial and correctional."

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I can't believe it. A Chicago Tribune editoral that makes sense and one that I whole-heartedly agree with. Someone pinch me.

[johnthebaptistmoore]

He’ll be fired very soon, if he isn’t fired already.

[stars & stripes forever]

I was given a rare gift of a second life," he confided. "And to be given a second chance means it has to mean something

Is this the same Mark Kirk who voted for partial-birth abortion?

[VeniVidiVici]

"I could answer that question in Spanish, since I attended Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico."

Well, that explains alot

[Lancey Howard]

Is this the same Mark Kirk who voted for partial-birth abortion?

This is the same scumbag who voted for cap and tax; the same scumbag who, if elected God forbid, will be the next Jeffords/Specter/Chafee waiting to happen. I hope he gets creamed by the rat. Better to be knifed in the face than stabbed in the back.

[BillyBoy]

=================================

MARK KIRK TRUTH FILE
JUST SAY NO TO SOCIALISM

" "The GREENEST candidate in the race... better than Barack Obama!"
- Carol Calabresa/The Sierra Club, 2008
" The strength of our campaign remains the Democrats"
- Mark Kirk, 2008

Freepmail me to get ON or OFF this list.

=================================

MARK KIRK TRUTH FILE
JUST SAY NO TO SOCIALISM

" "The GREENEST candidate in the race... better than Barack Obama!"
- Carol Calabresa/The Sierra Club, 2008
" The strength of our campaign remains the Democrats"
- Mark Kirk, 2008

Freepmail me to get ON or OFF this list.

=================================

MARK KIRK TRUTH FILE
JUST SAY NO TO SOCIALISM

" "The GREENEST candidate in the race... better than Barack Obama!"
- Carol Calabresa/The Sierra Club, 2008
" The strength of our campaign remains the Democrats"
- Mark Kirk, 2008

Freepmail me to get ON or OFF this list.

MARK KIRK TRUTH FILE
JUST SAY NO TO SOCIALISM

" "The GREENEST candidate in the race... better than Barack Obama!"
- Carol Calabresa/The Sierra Club, 2008
" The strength of our campaign remains the Democrats"
- Mark Kirk, 2008

MARK KIRK TRUTH FILE
JUST SAY NO TO SOCIALISM

" "The GREENEST candidate in the race... better than Barack Obama!"
- Carol Calabresa/The Sierra Club, 2008
" The strength of our campaign remains the Democrats"
- Mark Kirk, 2008

[fieldmarshaldj]

Time for Kirk to step down. Enough is enough.

[usconservative]

I hope he gets creamed by the rat.

Alexi "I approved $42 million in loans to mobsters" Giannoulias thanks you for your support.

[Lancey Howard]

Ubama and Kirk thank you for your support of the communist Democrat agenda.

[usconservative]

Ubama and Kirk thank you for your support of the communist Democrat agenda.

I never said I'd vote for either one of them. You on the other hand professed for all the forum to see that you hope Giannoulias wins. Thanks 'Rat.

[Dengar01]

You really shouldn't wish that Giannulious should win. He is worse than Kirk IMO. But Kirk is bad, us IL FReepers have been begging the IL GOP to replace him with someone who is actually conservative.

The sad thing is we don't really have a candidate in this election and the only thing that is getting us all out to vote in the election is that the GOP candidate for Governor Billy Brady, is a downstate solid conservative, and he is leading in all polls against a Daley Chicago Machine thug named Pat Quinn.

I'm glad the Sox are doing better because I need something to take my mind off this crap. I think this has caused me to gain 10 pounds due to stress over this. I feel like the IL GOP is playing a sick joke on us conservatives here in Illinois.

IMO Giannulious would support GOP Agenda 0% of the time
Mark Kirk would support it 5% of the time (if that)

So once again we have no good candidate to vote for thanks to the scum who run the IL GOP and DEM parties, they are all in cahoots.

[Dengar01]

Anyways, THREAD HIJACK

I'm going to the game today, I am praying the Sox sweep and the Twins get swept and then the unthinkable will happen. We will be in first place!!!

I'll have to figure out how to put pictures onto twitter from the game. Since it is 3:05 there will be a ton of drunks who probably started drinking three hours ago.

I will try and be on my best behavior ;)
But you all know that I have a loud mouth so hopefully I don't get into a fight.

Go White Sox!!!

[usconservative]

So once again we have no good candidate to vote for thanks to the scum who run the IL GOP and DEM parties, they are all in cahoots.

They're all in cahoots at the National level too Dengar.

Look, let's be clear about this: the D's and R's are all in it for the power. Neither party really gives a rats ass about you or I, and I don't believe they give a shit about the country either. I really don't. Electing Republican's isn't going to fix the problem, it's simply going to change who's in charge and who controls the power. None of the damage Obama's done is going to be reversed because that'd limit the Federal Government's power over our daily lives. At the end of the day, both the D's and R's want to control us, it's just a matter of to which degree at this point.

They're all corrupt, there's not an honest one in the lot. IMO the Founding Fathers would've been done cleaning up this mess a long time ago. They revolted over far less than "we the people" seem to tolerate on a daily basis.

Whatever Happened To The Good Ol' Days? Make Mine FREEDOM!

[Lancey Howard]

Okay, now I remember you. You’re the moron.
I thought you were gone from here?
Anyway, have a nice life.

[usconservative]

Okay, now I remember you. You’re the moron.

You most certainly have that backwards. You're the MORON advocating Alexi Giannoulias win the Senate Seat in Illinois, Democrat supporter.

That's as moronic as it gets.

[Impy]

Well 2 of 3. Almost three, Marmol almost blew it today.

11 in a row.

Dustin Byfuglien was there the yesterday in his Sox hat. You could see the sadness in his eyes.