Attorney indiana mesothelioma

FEATURED LETTER

In another blow to the still-recovering tourism and hospitality industries, Cook County Board President John Stroger proposed in his 2005 budget the imposition of a 2 percent tax on both hotel rooms and restaurant sales in Cook County.

The Chicago Southland Convention & Visitors Bureau and its member hotels and restaurants strongly oppose this shortsighted new tax proposal.

The new taxes would drive Chicago's hotel room tax rate up to 17.4 percent, the highest in the nation. With the McCormick Place expansion in high gear, this new tax will severely hamper Chicago's efforts to remain competitive in the increasingly competitive convention business.

In the Cook County portion of the Southland, hotel room tax rates, on average, will climb to between 9 percent and 14 percent, averaging around 13 percent. Next door -- in Will County -- hotel room taxes will be about 2 percent lower.

The proposed tax puts Cook County hospitality businesses at a competitive disadvantage, especially for businesses in "border" communities, such as Lansing and Tinley Park. In Tinley Park, simply walking across Harlem Avenue will save you 2 percent on your hotel bill or a meal.

If the new Cook County hotel tax is implemented, Lansing residents and visitors can cross into Indiana and take advantage of a 5 percent hotel room tax, averaging about 7 percent less than across the border in Illinois. Also, there is no tax on restaurant food.

It may not seem like much, but to get a better idea of how it works, think about this: How many times have you passed up your local gas station to save a couple of pennies per gallon in the next town?

The irony is that in the Southland, hotels and restaurants already suffer from exorbitant property taxes. They pay their dues to Cook County, and now the county wants to single out hotels, motels and restaurants for even more taxes. It is already difficult enough to make a living as a business owner in Cook County without the added burden of higher taxes. Hardworking people will lose their jobs, and businesses ultimately will close.

We urge all of our Cook County commissioners, and especially the Southland commissioners -- Sims, Murphy, Daley and Gorman -- to research alternative ways to balance the county budget. Additionally, we urge Cook County residents and business people to contact their county commissioners and elected officials to express their displeasure with this tax proposal.

Jim Garrett, president/CEO,

Chicago Southland

Convention & Visitors

Bureau, Lansing

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Asbestos article all wrong

The article on asbestos tort reform [commentary, Jan. 5] should have disclosed that the writers' American Enterprise Institute is a partisan organization whose senior fellow is Lynne Cheney, wife of the vice president. As an attorney who has been practicing in this area of law for 17 years, I can truthfully state that the commentary editorial is not accurate about asbestos litigation in Illinois.

There is no asbestos lawsuit disaster in Illinois. In fact, Illinois -- particularly Cook County -- is considered a model asbestos jurisdiction because the courts here have enacted a unique way to make sure the most gravely ill asbestos victims have their day in court, while the less-impaired plaintiffs' cases are suspended.

This procedure is called the deferred asbestos docket. It was established in Cook County in 1991 and requires that people diagnosed with a non-disabling asbestos disease put their claim on hold until they develop cancer or debilitating asbestosis. Their statute of limitations is preserved, but no court or further legal action takes place until their medical condition worsens, at which time their case is reactivated and they may go to trial. Madison County also has a deferred docket.

Placing the less impaired cases on the deferred docket enables plaintiffs dying of mesothelioma and lung cancers, or their widows and families, to receive the court's immediate attention. It allows lawyers for both sides to quickly evaluate and move a case to trial or settlement. It grants the most gravely injured citizens their right to swift justice.

The commentary describes asbestos litigation as "the most excessive lawsuit craze in American history." Describing a mesothelioma victim's lawsuit as a "craze" is both insulting and incredibly callous. Mesothelioma is a malignant tumor that grows on the lining of the lung. More than 60,000 people have died of mesothelioma since the 1970s, and because asbestos is still being used, the deaths will continue and thousands of families will be devastated. Making it harder or impossible for these families to sue those who did them harm is the unworthy goal of tort reform.

Calling these cases frivolous is shameful. Misstating the facts of the judicial process to make a better political case is dishonest. Taking away asbestos victims' right to trial by giving congressional absolution to the corporations that are killing them is profane.

Kathy Byrne, Near North Side

Brute force

President Bush's savvy nominee for attorney general, Alberto Gonzales, knows how to deal with the political fallout from memos in which he defended torture and called the Geneva Accords "quaint." If the Senate's impending confirmation vote looks tight, he can just do a little arm-twisting.

Jeff Balch, Evanston

Newer not always safer

Contrary to several letters you have printed, older high-rise apartments such as mine at 59th and Stony Island are far safer than many modern buildings. We have three separate exits, including one to a fire escape. There is also a fire extinguisher and a standpipe on every floor. We have smoke detectors for each bedroom and the kitchen, as well as a fire extinguisher in the kitchen.

A friend who moved to an apartment on North Michigan Avenue has one exit into a long elevator lobby. She cannot go out her windows, there is no fire escape, and she's on the 17th floor. I do not consider her sprinklers that much of a "safety edge," especially since I have seen the damage a sprinkler system can do when it gets out of order! She will have to wait to be evacuated by the firefighters.

Maryal Stone Dale,

Hyde Park

Setting it straight

As a retired sprinkler fitter, I feel compelled to correct two misconceptions in the letter published Jan. 2 from Rev. Thomas Meik, "sprinkler alternatives." He mentions the costs incurred by installing automatic sprinkler systems. He does not realize that installation costs will be offset by a substantial reduction in fire insurance costs. Most of the news stories regarding the new ordinance fail to mention this very relevant fact.

Second, he suggests putting sprinklers in the stairwell, thinking that a fire in the building will deluge the stairwells with water. This is not the case. Automatic fire sprinklers are individually heat- activated, releasing water directly over the source of the heat and keeping the fire small. One or two sprinklers can handle the fire in most sprinklered buildings. Because the system activates automatically, there is less smoke, and occupants can safely evacuate the building using the stairwells.

Dan Beres,

Elk Grove Village

Ease up off teachers

Will someone please explain to me why Chicago Public Schools teachers must live in Chicago? If a teacher lives in a suburb where he or she can get lower-cost housing, why should they be penalized? If a teacher living in a suburb is willing to fight the madness of the morning and evening rush hours, inhaling exhaust fumes all the way, paying tolls, struggling to find the exit, depreciating his or her car until it becomes junk, just to get to school to teach, this teacher should not be criticized, he should be given a medal!

We need teachers dedicated enough to make personal sacrifices for their students just to do the job they were trained for. Punishing a Chicago teacher just because she lives in Plainfield is not in the best interests of the students she teaches. A re-evaluation of the rules is certainly required.

Is the Chicago Public Schools system so arrogant that it can censure a teacher for not living in the city? I am not a teacher, but I respect them for the work they do: They get little honor and much criticism.

David Crown, Des Plaines

Super deal for da Bears

I think that if the Chicago Bears could pull a fast one and trade its entire starting "offensive 11" for the starting "offensive 11" of the University of Southern California Trojans, hire USC offensive coordinator Norm Chow, and make a straight trade of Jerry Angelo and Lovie Smith for USC Athletic Director Mike Garrett and head coach Pete Carroll, we may well be on our way to building a serious Super Bowl contender.

Luke De Roeck,

Glenview

MY TWO CENTS