You might be wondering why an actuary would bother to write about an aldermanic race. You might also be wondering what an actuary does. Let me start by saying that we are the people that folks hate and don’t even realize it. You see, actuaries are typically known for determining what premium to charge for insurance coverage. So if you think you pay too much for your auto, homeowners, health, life, or disability insurance, at least you now know who to blame! While I no longer price insurance products, one of my ongoing responsibilities is to evaluate financial risk. My professional experience has taught me that the ability to correctly assess risk involves many considerations and has implications that go far beyond the business world.
On March 31, 2011, I attended an 8th ward meeting, which had two purposes: 1) to say goodbye to Rosemary Argus, who has diligently served our ward for 10 years; and 2) to evaluate the candidates who are campaigning to replace Rosemary as alderman. Over the past year, I have had the pleasure to get to know Rosemary and have learned that she truly has a servant’s heart. She has always been very approachable, and her desire to help others has been apparent. The current and former mayors and aldermen haven’t always seen things her way, but her decisions were always based on what was good for the community rather than being politically motivated or motivated by self-interests. Rosemary Argus has consistently been a shining light in a community that has had its share of challenges and difficulties. She has earned my respect, and this is how I will remember her.
Our ward meeting included visits by Mayor Moylan, 5th ward Alderman James Brookman and his wife Carla. Although they could have used this time as an opportunity to thank Rosemary for her service, the Mayor and the Brookmans instead displayed nothing short of disrespect and disregard for Rosemary and the residents by joining the Mauro cheerleaders. Unfortunately, the Mayor and the Brookmans don’t live in our ward, so they won’t be able to cast a vote (at least, not legally). However, it’s always nice to know where our political cronies stand. Transparency is very beneficial when it comes to evaluating risk.
At our meeting, both candidates had a chance to listen to the various concerns of our residents and respond to their questions. Some of the issues, such as flooding, occupied more time. But there were other concerns that were no less important – the presence of reckless drivers in our neighborhood and the threat they pose; the parking congestion around the condos; the monopolistic American Water Company which supplies water for some residents in Waycinden Park; and effectively dealing with emergency rescue situations – to name a few. Whoever gets elected tomorrow will have to tackle these problems and find a way to work collaboratively with the Mayor and other City Council members. The question all concerned 8th ward residents must decide is which candidate is the best choice.
One of the challenges of my job as an actuary is that decisions must often be made even when there isn’t always sufficiently credible data to draw a meaningful conclusion. The 8th ward aldermanic race presents a similar dilemma for residents. If you are a friend or relative of one of the candidates, you know who you are going to vote for. But if you are like the rest of us, there may be some uncertainty. After all, both candidates are new to the role and thus unproven.
I was in attendance at the 8th ward meeting so I do have some additional “data” to evaluate. In order to help you make your choice, I decided to compare the risk posed by each candidate with respect to five characteristics: 1) loyalty; 2) integrity; 3) passion to serve and willingness to listen to others; 4) exercising fiscal responsibility; and 5) knowledge of 8th ward problems.
LOYALTY
Both candidates have businesses which are not in our ward. Mauro Construction is in the 1st ward, while Mike Charewicz’s Accurate Auto Business is located in the 2nd ward. One valid concern for residents is how the candidates would vote if they were put in a position where they had to decide between allocating money to the 8th ward or to the ward where their businesses are located. The first risk that both candidates pose is divided loyalty.
However, there are several factors which immediately call into question Mr. Mauro’s loyalty as well as his integrity (discussed below):
· Mr. Mauro was not on the list of the 8th ward registered voters as of July 2010.
· Mr. Mauro signed his own petition without being a registered voter in the 8th ward.
· Mr. Mauro now claims to live at 1103 Holiday Lane, which is located in the 8th ward, but he used the address of 1230 Doreen Drive on his nominating petitions. Since April 2007, the listed owner of 1230 Doreen Drive is Carmine Lullo. Mr. Mauro has also owned the property in the 5th ward at 2244 Douglas Avenue since September, 2008.
· Mr. Mauro also owns property at 1030 N. State Street in the City of Chicago.
So where can we expect to find the candidates after April 5th? If Mr. Mauro told us the truth, the answer is 1103 Holiday Lane. Mr. Charewicz lives at 1375 Elmhurst Road and has lived there since 1985. There are no clouds surrounding his residency. If you are curious, go and ring his doorbell. And why not pay Mr. Mauro a visit while you are at it? After all, you are entitled to get to personally know who you are voting for. Keep in mind that ownership of property is not evidence of loyalty and commitment. The key point is that Mr. Mauro is not, and never has been, connected to the 8th ward.
Mr. Charewicz poses a lower risk of disloyalty. He has had a history of residency in our ward, and there is no compelling reason to challenge his loyalty other than the fact that his business is not in our ward.
INTEGRITY
The best independent source to evaluate the candidates with respect to integrity is their customers. A man’s business dealings can tell us a lot about their character. Unfortunately, no such information is available on either candidate. However, Mr. Mauro has a few blemishes on his record. First of all, he sits on the Economic Development Commission, and it was brought to light by Alderman Argus, at a City Council meeting, that this group has not followed its own bylaws for many years. It is troubling when a man running for public office is unwilling to follow the rules. Do we have any basis to expect any different conduct should Mr. Mauro be elected as alderman? If you are still sitting on the fence, please read on.
According to the Journal and Topics, Pat Mauro was charged with Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol in September 2002 after he was stopped by a Des Plaines police officer near Mt. Prospect Road and Oakton Street. He was reported by the court records as “weaving from lane to lane," and he "had a strong odor of alcohol on his breath." The report added that he "was swaying while standing outside his vehicle."
Unfortunately, this was not the end of the story. The records also reported that the policeman that investigated Pat Mauro found a stun gun inside Mr. Mauro's car when he was conducting a search. Mr. Mauro was charged with Unlawful Use of a Weapon.
So what happened to Mr. Mauro? He was referred to a "remedial or rehabilitative program" and slapped with a $505 fine. He got off on the DUI charge by accepting supervision. As for the stun gun, his explanation was that he purchased it at a flea market in Wisconsin three years earlier and intended to give it to his mother for protection purposes. Perhaps Mr. Mauro had one of those senior moments!
There have been no reports of Mr. Charewicz having similar trouble with the law.
If you value someone who leads with integrity and aren’t interested in the prospect of having your alderman bailed out of jail, then consider voting for Mr. Charewicz. He poses less risk when it comes to failing to display integrity in public office.
PASSION TO SERVE AND WILLINGNESS TO LISTEN TO OTHERS
The job of an alderman pays $3,000 a year, so it’s pretty safe to say that this factor is not motivating either candidate to run for alderman. It is easy for the Mayor and alderman to be motivated by other perks and business dealings which accomplish nothing but to bring dishonor to their own name as well as to Des Plaines. If a person wants to serve in government, they should have a passion to serve others. I scanned the literature of both candidates for any evidence of a desire to serve and a willingness to listen to others. Here’s what each had to say:
Mike Charewicz:
“I had the pleasure of serving as both a Boy Scout Troop Leader and Chairman for Pinewood Derby Committee, as well as, sponsored several of my children’s Waycinden area softball/baseball teams.”
“…I want to serve as your Alderman. I want to continue giving back to the community that has been so good to my family.”
“I will host local meetings, encourage block captains to share their concerns with me, and I will be your voice on the City Council.”
Pat Mauro:
Public Service: “When city vehicles where (typo intentionally included) unable to plow Dover Lane for days after this year’s Blizzard, up stepped Pat Mauro who used his company’s end loader to plow open our street. I thank Pat for showing real leadership and I’m proud to support him for alderman.” – Manish Modi 8th Ward Resident
“Improve city services by setting clearly defined benchmarks and then give city workers the tools to meet them.”
“I’ve worked with Pat on several projects and his knowledge will be a great asset to the city. He’s the most qualified person to tackle the issue of flooding and that’s the type of person Des Plaines needs right now.” Robert Provenzano Maine Township Highway Commissioner
“I believe my record shows that I’m the best prepared to tackle the tough issues facing the 8th Ward and our city.”
Based on their own words, which candidate do you think will listen and empathize with your concerns?
There were other indications during the meeting of the ability of each candidate to listen to others. Mr. Mauro was frequently smug, inarticulate, and condescending in his mannerisms. While attempting to answer a question from Mr. Austin Stanton, he repeatedly addressed Mr. Stanton as “Stanton.” It is important to recognize that Mr. Mauro faced Mr. Stanton in public forums because Mr. Stanton was also contending for the position as alderman, but had to drop out of the race for personal reasons. Either Mr. Mauro has a poor memory or he is simply a rude and ignorant man.
I asked the candidates to explain how they would work collaboratively with the Mayor and City Council, given that neither one had experience in the role of an alderman. I used the issue of flooding as an example of a problem which the City Council has been divided about. It’s been a big problem for our ward as well as the entire City of Des Plaines, but what I was interested in knowing was each candidate’s strategy in building peer consensus, not solving the flooding problem. Mr. Mauro’s response focused entirely on the issue of flooding, and he never answered my question. Mr. Charewicz immediately understood my question and discussed how it would be important for him to get to know the other aldermen and their way of thinking. He not only answered my question, but he showed that he was listening.
It is fair to say that neither candidate was an eloquent speaker. Studies have found that fear of public speaking is the number one fear of most Americans. But there are other factors we can use to evaluate the candidates and help us make our decision. Mr. Mauro began his presentation by awkwardly standing behind a podium and reading off cue cards. He was tense and maintained poor eye contact with the audience. On the other hand, Mr. Charewicz consistently stepped away from the podium, maintained an open posture throughout his dialogue, and maintained regular eye contact with the residents. He remained calm and relaxed and honestly and openly admitted that he doesn’t have all of the answers and isn’t familiar with all of our problems, but at least gave the residents the reassurance that they would be heard.
If you’re interested in a man that thinks he has all of the answers and enjoys the praise of others, then Mr. Mauro is your man. However, if you want someone who will listen to you, then the evidence suggests that Mike Charewicz should get your vote.
EXERCISING FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY
Both men are business owners, but running a government and running a business are two different things. Success as a businessman doesn’t translate into fiscally responsibly behavior in government. Both candidates remain committed to improving the City’s financial position. Mr. Mauro tells us in his campaign literature that he wants to protect businesses and taxpayers from bad economic development and uses the example of the Five Corners TIF. Mr. Charewicz is committed to using the future casino revenue for designated capital improvements and ongoing flood mitigation effort.
With $120 million of debt to contend with, our future alderman will definitely be challenged in the area of exercising fiscal responsibility, which has a direct impact on the community in terms of the increase in the quality and number of services offered. The City Council has not always been prudent in its spending habits. The successful candidate can do something to change this.
The ability to exercise self-discipline, however, goes hand in hand with demonstrating fiscal responsibility. We have already seen clear evidence of Mauro’s lack of discipline on the Economic Development Commission. Mr. Mauro has been given his chance and failed. Of the two candidates, Mr. Charewicz poses less of a risk with respect to failing in the area of fiscal responsibility.
KNOWLEDGE OF 8TH WARD PROBLEMS
While discussing the problems confronting 8th ward residents, Mr. Mauro suggested that a solution to one of our parking problems would be to create a parking area to provide relief from the congestion. If Mr. Mauro had any idea of the extent of flooding in our ward, he would never have proposed such a preposterous idea. What the 8th ward needs is updated infrastructure, not more building and construction. Mr. Mauro boasted that he knows the 8th ward issues, and that they are the same issues as those confronting other wards. Sorry to burst your bubble, Mr. Mauro, but you haven’t got a clue what you’re talking about!
As mentioned earlier, Mr. Charewicz readily admitted that he isn’t an expert on all of our problems, even though he has been a resident in our ward for his entire time in Des Plaines. Sometimes it’s best to be honest. When a man thinks he has all of the answers, he’s not inclined to listen to others very carefully. The added danger is that individuals that conduct themselves in this manner are likely to propose and implement solutions that don’t work and are sometimes costly. It is unrealistic to think that either candidate is going to solve all of our problems overnight. Remember that seven other people get to vote on any issue brought before the City Council. If you value a person who will lead by humility and that offers the better prospect of successfully tackling our problems, Mr. Charewicz should get your vote.
CONCLUSION
There are certainly other factors which could be have been used to compare the candidates, and you will have to make your own decision in this regard. Supporters of Mr. Mauro will vehemently disagree with what I have said, and that is their right and privilege. Unfortunately, your candidate hasn’t given me one compelling reason to vote for him. Instead, my vote will go to Mike Charewicz, who satisfied the criteria I consider important in a candidate.
Although the citizens in Illinois have become accustomed to greed and corruption by our political leaders, we should not become disheartened and give up. Unless we hold our public officials accountable for their actions, nothing is going to change. I encourage every resident in the 8th ward to stay informed and to carefully consider the character of the candidates before casting a vote. This is an important matter, and the 8th ward residents can ill forward to remain apathetic and indifferent.
