Suspending Bea Reyna-Hickey over an e-mail that suggested more police ticket writing gave Chicago Mayor Daley an opportunity to do what he does best – not answer a question. I think that this might be Mayor Daley’s Mosque Moment – kind of like President Obama’s embrace and subsequent walk back from the Cordoba Initiative at Ground Zero in New York. Mayor Daley said this when he was questioned about the e-mail, “It’s just stupid. Some bureaucrat sent that out, This is a stupid e-mail. There will be appropriate discipline.”

Some bureaucrat?

Mayor Daley suspended Bea Reyna Hickey the Director of the Department of Revenue for the City of Chicago. Bea Reyna Hickey is married to my cousin. I have hundreds of cousins. Bea Reyna – Hickey is an extremely talented and diligent public service career professional. I have not spoken to Bea Reyna-Hickey, nor any of my family members about this suspension. In fact the last time, I saw Bea was at a Mass on St. Patrick’s Day weekend and that was only a nod through the crowd. I admire Bea and also like her very much. Mayor Daley was asked questions for which he had no answer, or didn’t feel like answering and treated Bea Reyna-Hickey very badly.

Mayor Daley was asked questions by reporters, because Chicago Police Department is badly under strength. and mortally over-tasked. Now, they are being goated for the Mayor’s budget problems. People who think that they know everything, rarely answer questions with anything like grace.

As a teacher, I know some things and also that there is much more that I do not know about. The right thing to do when asked a question is try not to obfuscate. Students ask questions – ‘ Is Billy Budd Gay?’ Could be. What do you think? I think that Claggert the Master-at-Arms might be a deeply closeted and frustrated homosexual, but I do not necessarily believe that Melville’s authorial intent was to free closeted homosexuals; rather to discuss the impossibility of opposites to possess the same place on the planet.

“Mr. Hickey, who attempted to improve upon Wien’s Approximation?”

I don’t know, hit me with a wet plank, but I just do not know.

As a teacher of British and American literature, I should have had some idea about the theme and the plot of Melville’s short novel, but the roots of quantum mechanics plum evaded me – I did not and do not know Physics. I did not and I do not know the score of the 1965 Rose Bowl – I could find out.

Mayor Daley seems to know damn little about . . . too many things, but that does not stop him from excoriating people who work for him. Reporters ask him questions all of the time and he does not seem to like that and he gets mad and sometimes he gets even with someone. Mayor Daley goes rage and purple. Ozzie Guillen gets mad too and at times lets fly with swears – in English and Spanish. Ozzie is bilingual and Mayor Daley struggles with his native tongue.

I like Ozzie Guillen. There is no guile in Mr. Guillen. There is no filter. What goes on in his brain comes out of his mouth. The other night Jim Thome unhorsed the 2005 World Champions, with a rousing homer in the 10th. The former hometown Mr. Incredible is with the Twins and gave Chicago a thumping. In the post game, Ozzie Guillen calmly answered every reporter’s question – especially the ones about Jim Thome. He was gracious and thoughtful.

Mayor Daley gracelessly suspended Bea Reyna-Hickey, who is married to one of my cousins and has served the City of Chicago for many years. Bea Reyna-Hickey was instrumental in saving many poor elderly Chicagoans, during the Heat Wave of 1995, while working for the Mayor’s Office of Housing. Nearly, 700 people died in July of 1995 and Bea Reyna- Hickey worked around the clock from July 13-July 25, 1995 to save lives. Bea Reyna-Hickey was appointed Director of Revenue by Mayor Richard M.Daley in 2000. Prior to that, she served as Deputy Director in the Department. Ms. Reyna-Hickey has also served the City with distinction in the Departments of Housing and Aviation.

Mayor Daley is not a very popular Mayor. That happens with time-in, I suppose. More so, Mayor Daley seems more interested in filling budgetary, ethical, and political potholes, than in addressing the needs of Chicagoans – i.e. –The appointment and retainment of Police Superintendent Jody Weiss – he’s an easy target of ridicule for cops and citizens, thus avoiding the Mayor’s need to impose the police measures required to end thug violence on children and solid citizens.

The parking ticket issue dovetails with out-of-control violence in Chicago. The Mayor was asked questions and he got mad. That is to be expected. He punished Bea Reyna Hickey, even though she did not send the e-mail. Mayor Daley called a very smart and good woman –stupid. What is odd is the fact that the Mayor allowed the oafish and opportunistic David Orr an opportunity to bad-mouth a solid public servant. Mayor-for-a-Week Orr kissed Mayor Richard M. Daley’s fanny, and tested the waters for a possible run at . . . some appointed office. The Chicago Sun Times and WBBM quoted Orr –

Cook County Clerk David Orr and several aldermen said the memo sends the wrong message to the public. City Hall considers parking tickets a revenue-generating tool more than a public-safety tool, Orr said.

“I don’t think we put the citizens first enough in this town,” he said. “This is one indication of it. There’s been too much pressure [on officers] to write tickets.”

Whydid the suspension of Bea Reyna-Hickey require a quote from the smarmy and talentless Cook County Clerk?

Cook County David Orr is wildly Progressive and a long-time member of the Democratic Socialists. In 1990, the alderman and week-mayor had the way cleared for him against two other candidates for County Clerk and the bad old machine allowed Democratic Socialist David Orr a sinecure.

David Orr, like most progressives, requires old fashioned ward support or spilt ticket initiatives in order to hold office. On his own, Orr would be cleaning cages at Pet Smart in some Ravenswood strip mall. Mayor Daley wants the e-mail about cops not writing more tickets to go away, because he is placing more parking meters in neighborhoods throughout the City that never had meters before. Meters are said to be going in on 103rd, Western Ave. 111th Street and Kedzie in the 19th Ward. People are already quite angry about this added insult to our injured wallets.

Like President Obama’s Mosque-querade , Mayor Daley insult of Rea Reyna –Hickey and the parking ticket e-mail will be grist for the question mill for months to come. Here’s one – Mayor Daley, why does the Cook County Clerk want your job?

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Pat Hickey is a regular columnist for the Chicago Daily Observer.  He is a relative of scores of people, including the husband of Bea Reyna-Hickey