Frances Semler said she’d had “ENOUGH,” and I say, “amen.”

 Who hasn’t had enough of the mess that Kansas City Mayor Mark Funkhouser created by appointing Semler to the parks board back in June?

 Enough of the back-and-forth over Semler’s membership in the Minutemen Civil Defense Corps.

 Enough of the divisiveness. Enough of a needless distraction that did more to undermine Funkhouser’s first year in office than any of his many other flubs.

 I don’t know about you, but I was at “ENOUGH” long before Semler faxed out her resignation letter Monday night with that opening word in all caps.

 Thankfully, she went straight to the media, bypassing Funkhouser, who talked her out of it once before.

 Of course, not everyone was ready to move on. Judging from reader comments on The Star Web site and calls into the talk radio shows, many of folks have not had enough.

 Fine, if they want to continue flogging their issue of illegal immigration. But for the rest of us, these last seven or eight months have been like watching Lou Dobbs on a tape loop.

 Even if you agree that illegal immigrations needs to be curtailed (and I do), you wanted to throw a brick at the TV.

 Enough already!

 And now, thankfully, Semler has thrown the brick for us.  Likewise, the Semler controversy was a rallying point for civil rights organizations, which saw her continued presence on the parks board as a sign of disrespect to minorities.

 But their protests grew shrill and overblown as time went on. Last week the president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference spoke of the Semler appointment as if it were on the same level that brought about the marches in Montgomery and Selma.

 So when Semler said, ‘‘“ENOUGH,” she spoke for all of us who think Kansas City has more important things on its agenda than remaining a battleground over a national issue like illegal immigration.

 Let them duke it out in Washington. Fix the borders.

 But here in KC, we need to fix the neighborhoods, figure out light rail and keep the Save the Bannister Mall Group from saving Bannister Mall.

 In other words, issues specific to this community that tend to bring us together rather than tear us apart.

 Naturally, I was surprised to see my name mentioned in Semler’s resignation letter. Understand, I never suggested that she resign.

 She shouldn’t have been appointed in the first place. But more than once I’ve written approvingly of the mayor’s continued support for Semler. The guy deserved respect for not caving into pressure, I said.

 But in her letter of resignation, Semler pointed to the column I posted on the Prime Buzz page of KansasCity.com Thursday evening and which was published the next day in our print edition 

In our hour-long interview with Funkhouser after the SCLC pulled its convention. The part that Semler found objectionable was Funkhouser’s explanation that more than principle was at stake in his decision to keep her on the parks board.

 There was also a political calculation.

 He feared he would lose support from Semler’s fellow Northlanders if he forced her to step down. And he needed that backing to achieve other parts of his agenda.

 Here’s the mayor’s money quote, verbatim from my digital recorder:

 “The thing is, even if I weren’t trying to do what I thought was the morally right thing, and I am, but pragmatically, I need to have the support of the conservative white folks north of the river in order to do what I want to do for the vulnerable people of color south of the river.

 “It’s fine to posture, but if you want to actually get something done, you can’t squander all of your political power in the interest of making yourself look good.”

 Some Northlanders were upset by Funkhouser’s characterization. Not everyone is a conservative north of the river.

 However, Semler objected to the mayor voicing his belief that there was political advantage in keeping her on the board.

 “I felt like maybe he was using me to hold the Northland together,” she told me Tuesday.

 My column alone didn’t lead to her resignation. Semler was also offended by what she considered patronizing remarks from Funkhouser’s wife, Gloria Squitiro, that were published in a recent edition of the Kansas City Hispanic News.

 And then there was Funkhouser’s admonition for her to avoid next week’s Minutemen national gathering in Kansas City.

 Some will see her resignation as a win for Funkhouser. He lost a political liability without caving into pressure.

 Semler feels as if she’s coming out on top, because she’s free to speak her mind again on illegal immigration.

 “Free at last,” she said.

 But corny as it sounds, the biggest beneficiary is this town of ours. Last I looked, we were on something of a roll.

With this past us, maybe now we can roll on.