Hizzoner

The people of Chicago have spoken, or more accurately, 30% of them have. The reign of the Daleys will continue.

Last week Chicago re-elected Richard M. Daley for a 6th term with over 70% of the vote. I laughed out loud when hearing the election results, but I'm thrilled, too. Chicago without a Daley is like a St. Patrick's Day parade without the Irish.

Political pundits had predicted that this time around hizzoner was in serious trouble. But scandals, indictments and shady deals have always swirled around the Daley clan. The smoke rises, and they remain standing.

The simple truth is that Chicago has never looked better. It is one of the most exciting, forward-looking and award winning cities in America. The voters knew who to thank.

Who but a Daley could have pulled off the urban miracle called Millennium Park? And then there are the flowers. The entire town is resplendent with cascades of seasonal flowers and grasses.

I recently saw a map which ranked American cities by the quantity of their green architecture, i.e., grass roofs, sustainable building materials, etc. Little green pin head or pea sized dots indicated the cities' greenness. Chicago's green dot was the size of a ping pong ball. Thanks to Mayor Daley, Chicago has 2 million square feet of green roofs.

As the kids would say, "Chicago rocks". Mayor Daley is one urban legend who's the real thing.