MADISON - ST. CLAIR RECORD

To the editor:

For the third time in as many weeks I find myself writing a petition. My first was for the Illinois Commerce Commission. It seems I'm getting a shiny new transmission line behind my barn courtesy of AmerenIP. Next was the local township who has decided to abandon a nearby road in supplication to Peabody Energy. This week it's the Illinois Pollution Control Board.

I'm a do-it-yourselfer by nature but smart enough to know to you should call in the professionals when resources allow. The deep pockets of two mega-corporations are beyond the means of most private citizens, however. The playing field could never be realistically leveled. In this case pro se was the only way. As an engineer I feel much more comfortable discussing probabilities than I do res ipsa loquitur. Not that I'm complaining. In fact, I'm starting to learn more Latin than any layman deserves to know.

Any way, I just thought I'd share my newfound appreciation for legal professionals. It seems a lot easier to crack open a book and find the equation needed to solve a design problem than it is to sieve through endless cases and pages of administrivia. Just promise me that none of you will go about designing new dams or bridges. Thanks!

Mike Sabo
Marissa