News: August 2009 Archives

A pair of Coloradans - Sarah Haskins of Colorado Springs and Mike Reed of Boulder - took the titles at yesterday's 27th annual Chicago Triathlon. Haskins won the women's title by 35 seconds over Sarah Groff and Reed won the men's race by 57 seconds ahead of Matt Chrabot. But despite excellent weather yesterday, the triathlon was marred by crashes in the 24.9 mile cycling phase that cost lead contenders Julie Dibens, a 2004 British Olympian, and U.S. Olympian Andy Potts a shot at winning.

Things aren't looking good for the Pale Hose right now. After yesterday's 8-3 thumping at the hands of the AL East leading New York Yankees, the Sox have lost 8 of their last 10. They were also outscored by a grand total of 23-5 in their three-game set in the Bronx. Yesterday, starter Freddy Garcia did alright, allowing three runs over six innings to the Yankees, and left the game with the Sox down only 3-2. But the bullpen let it get away as Randy Williams and Scott Linebrink combined to give up five runs in the seventh. Scott Podsednik went 3-for-4 with an RBI for the Sox and Jermaine Dye belted his 25th homer of the season, but it was for naught. Next up for the Sox? A crucial series in the Metrodome against the now second-place Twins, which starts tonight at 7:10 pm (CSN).

     

Having begged his way out of town in April, Jay Cutler returned to Denver on Sunday night as a member of the Chicago Bears, to face off against the Bears' former QB Kyle Orton and his Broncos. Fans showered Cutler with boos when he took the field, but with a 27-17 victory, he had the last word before departing the Mile High City this time. At home on the turf of Invesco Field, the Bears' QB threw for 144 yards while completing 15 of 21 passes, with a touchdown pass and no interceptions--good for a 106.1 passer rating. He closed out his half of work by leading the Bears on a 98-yard drive that gave the team a 17-3 lead at the intermission. "I knew it was going to be a hostile environment, which was good," said Cutler. "It's good preparation for us going into Green Bay the first (regular-season) game."

With jury selection all wrapped up, opening arguments are set for today in the trial of James Degorski, the second man accused of murdering seven people at a Palatine Brown's Chicken restaurant in January 1993. The victims were Lynn and Richard Ehlenfeldt, owners of the restaurant, and five of their employees: Guadalupe Maldonado, Thomas Mennes, Marcus Nellsen, Rico Solis and Michael Castro. The victims' bodies were piled in a cooler and freezer while less than $2,000 was taken from the restaurant. The first suspect, Juan Luna, was tried in 2007 and found guilty on all seven counts of murder and sentenced to life in prison. While Luna confessed and even named Degorski in the confession, jurors won't be hearing that tape at trial. The big break in the case came in 2002 when Degorski's then girlfriend, Anne Lockett, finally gave in and told police Degorski had admitted committing the shootings to her. The Daily Herald has an extensive archive of stories on the murders.

One thing about Daley and his pals that you can count on is that they tend to know what they're doing when they say they will or won't do something. So it came as a bit of a surprise that 33rd Ward Alderman Dick Mell told the Tribune he would call the selection meeting to replace former Commissioner Roberto Maldonado sooner than Tuesday's meeting. The Cook County Board of Commissioners voted to roll back the sales tax increase in July, before Maldanado left the board to become 26th Ward Alderman. Stroger vetoed that bill, but it looked like the board might have the 14 votes it takes to override that veto.

LAist rocked out hard at the Vans Warped Tour to a lineup of "new-age punkers."

After a failed attempt to shoot and kill an off-duty cop believed to be a rival, four gang members were charged with attempted first-degree murder, Chicago Breaking News reports.

A South Side man believed to have been responsible for at least nine bank robberies along the Red Line this year was arrested by the FBI's Violent Crimes Task Force on Friday.

Showing an offensive firepower the team has lacked most of the season, the Cubs exploded for 11 runs to take game two of their series with the Mets, 11-4. Starter Ryan Dempster allowed two runs in the first, but the Cubs scored a run in the second and two in the third. The Mets took two more from Dempster in the fourth to take a 4-3 lead, but it all came to a screeching halt in the bottom of the fifth when the Cubs exploded for six runs, four of which came on rookie Jake Fox's first career grand slam. With 10 homers, 39 RBI, and a .300 batting average in just 61 games, we have no idea why Fox isn't starting over any of the Cubs' overpaid outfielders on a regular basis. Dempster pitched six innings and striking out seven while giving up the four runs. Bradley, Ramirez, Fontenot, and Hill all joined Fox in knocking in runs. The final game of the series starts at 1:20 pm (WGN).

An increase in robberies and gang members hanging out in various parts of Rogers Park has area residents worried.

Narcotics police arrested two men suspected of shooting a man in his 30s during a robbery Friday afternoon on the South Side.

It shouldn't be a surprise at all: teachers pressured to change grades for students. A Sun-Times investigation revealed reasons such as:

"to avoid parental conflict. The parent is a CPS teacher."

"graduating senior who needed to pass and parent pressure."

"principal wanted graduation rate to increase so she would not be reprimanded."

It's easy to overlook today's fourth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina's landfall along the Gulf Coast. Of course, it's been four years since the storm came ashore and the stories have faded into the background as the city of New Orleans and the smaller communities along the Gulf Coast continue the slow road to recovery, but there are still a few stories of local interest in connection with the anniversary.

5-2 was the final score of the Cubs’ victory over the New York Mets Friday afternoon. Starters Ted Lilly and Pat Misch dueled through seven innings, allowing just one run apiece. Lilly came back out for the eighth, however, and left runners on the corners for Kevin Gregg. Gregg gave up an RBI double to Fernando Tatis, but Daniel Murphy was gunned down trying to score from first. Leading 2-1, the Mets opted for reliever Brian Stokes in the bottom half of the inning. Stokes was hit hard, surrendering knocks to both Milton Bradley and Aramis Ramirez before grooving an 0-2 slider to Alfonso Soriano. Soriano put the pitch over the wall in left to give Chicago a decisive three-run lead. Both Soriano and Bradley reached base safely in all four plate appearances, making amends for a few ugly plays in the field. The Cubs and Mets play game two at 3:10 this afternoon.

• The Tribune catches up with the elderly man who was involved in yesterday's shooting incident in the Loop.
• CPD Supt. Jody Weis wants the city to fight lawsuits brought against the police department rather than simply settle each one.
• Gov. Quinn has ordered the closing of Tinley Park's Howe Developmental Center.

We've been sitting on our hands the past few days, trying to resist calling/emailing/texting/sending passenger pigeons to Ald. Helen Shiller's 46th Ward office (again) for an answer to the weeks-old question "what, exactly, is going on in Uptown?" She finally posted a press release yesterday, which we've been reading... and rereading... for substance all day. It's lacking. But it does finally address the Aug. 13 Uptown Riot.

Brother, in the year 2020: Hey, remember when Dad took us to the 2009 AVP Crocs Cup Championship Kentucky Grilled Chicken Chicago Open?

The White Sox staved off the series sweep and picked up half a game in the Central with their 9-5 win over the Boston Red Sox on Thursday. Chicago scored four runs in the second and four more in the third, as Jayson Nix picked up three RBI and Carlos Quentin contributed a two-run poke over the Green Monster. Starter John Danks stayed scoreless into the fifth, but back-to-back homers by J.D. Drew and Alex Gonzalez finally put Boston on the board. With the big lead behind him, Danks worked through the sixth, ending the day with six hits, a walk and two earned. The BoSox battled for three additional runs in the eighth and ninth, but ran out of outs before they could make it a game again. The White Sox jump from the frying pan into the fire as they arrive in New York today for a three-game set with the Yankees.

• Adding fuel to the talk that Sam Zell's short reign at the Tribune is almost over, yesterday Trib bondholders filed a motion to probe into the billionaire's takeover of the newspaper.
• DAMMIT! Our bid was $39,999,999.
• Governor Quinn has vetoed a campaign finance bill, saying that it "should go back to the drawing board." Critics have complained the bill has too many loopholes.

After six years of silence, former Gov. Ryan chief-of-staff Scott Fawell and his co-defendant and fiancée, Andrea Coutretsis finally spoke out on Ryan, prison, and even the 1994 crash that killed the six Willis children, appearing on WTTW's Chicago Tonight to talk to Carol Marin.

Gun shots were fired outside the WLS Channel 7 studio at Randolph and State Street, and at least one person is being reported as injured. We'll have more as this develops. [CBN and Twitter]

As expected, Blackhawks star Patrick Kane and his cousin James have reached a plea deal to settle the case against them for their August 9 assault on a cab driver over 20 cents. The two Kanes pleaded guilty to the non-criminal charge of disorderly conduct. The sentence? They must write a letter of apology to cab driver Jan Radecki. Not a bad deal considering they could have each faced 15 days in jail and a $250 fine for the misdemeanor charges they were indicted on. The pair also have a conditional discharge, which means they have to stay out of trouble for a year to avoid further punishment. Kane shot the Trib a text message, saying, "Right now all I'm going to say is I'm happy to move forward."

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, well-known for attention-grabbing stunts (as evidenced by this simple and totally NSFW Google search) has enlisted Andy Dick and Martin Short to produce a clever two minute short to draw attention to its campaign to pressure McDonald's to improve its treatment of chickens.

After working the night shift at Pockets in Lincoln Park, Victorino Valle pulled his minivan in the garage of his Brighton Park home and just before closing the garage door, turned to see his 8-year old son Alexander in a state of shock. Alexander told his father that he heard a baby crying in the alley. His parents discovered a crying newborn lying in a trash can and immediately called 911. According to Chi-Town Daily News, when the police arrived they found a two-week old boy in the trash can which was filling with rain water.

Solid starting pitching and a big eighth inning led the Cubs to a 9-4 victory over the Washington Nationals Wednesday. Rich Harden limited the visitors to two runs on five hits over the first six frames, while Chicago matched that mark offensively with a two-run homer by Milton Bradley, who shook off the criticism from Cubs fans. Bradley then gave the Cubs the lead in the seventh on a fielder’s choice, and the North Siders piled it on in the eighth, scoring six runs to secure the win. Koyie Hill and Derrek Lee each contributed a pair of RBI to the rally, as Hill finished the night 3-for-3 with a walk. Angel Guzman and John Grabow were scoreless in relief, and Carlos Marmol’s two earned runs in the ninth were inconsequential thanks to the large lead. The rubber game is at 1:20 this afternoon.

Dan Proft, conservative commentator and just one of a cast of thousands running for governor released an outtake from a recent taping of a campaign commercial.

We all know there are some jerks in the Wrigley Field bleachers. And while some hurl beers at the opponents' outfielders, others have been known to hurl insults at an under performing Cubs outfielder or two -- just ask Corey Patterson, Jacque Jones, or Juan Pierre. So does it surprise anybody that Milton Bradley, the Cubs' current waste of $10 million, is whining that Cubs fans say mean things? "I'm talking about hatred, period. I'm talking about when I go to eat at a restaurant, I have to listen to the waiters bad-mouthing me at another table, sitting in a restaurant, that's what I'm talking about -- everything, " explained Bradley when asked on Wednesday to clarify comments made the day before.

• The threat of the city closing multiple mental health clinics is once again rearing its ugly head.
• Chris Kennedy may not be running for public office next year, but he has been to the University of Illinois board of trustees by Gov. Quinn.
• There's been a shuffle in the plans to build a museum in Gary in honor of Michael Jackson.

Frank Castaldi of northwest suburban Prospect Heights entered a guilty plea this afternoon to federal charges stemming from the accusation that he had bilked investors out of tens of millions of dollars in a lengthy Ponzi scheme. According to court documents, Castaldi managed to convince over 450 people to give him $77 million dollars to purchase 6 month promissory notes, which Castaldi guaranteed would net a 10% - 15% return on their investment.

At this point in his career Roger Ebert has earned the right to write about whatever subject that strikes his fancy, and he does so with eloquence, wit, passion and keenly honed journalistic instincts. Ebert also cut his teeth in newspapers when reporters and columnists had a reputation for hard-drinking and late night war story sessions at the Billy Goat; Ebert has said on many occasions that this is what newspapermen did.

A doctoral student from Chicago's Adler School of Professional Psychology is still missing, despite the efforts of the US government, a private company specializing in rescues and 280 other volunteers and police. The Red Cross is supervising the effort. Daniel Gimelfarb, 28, has been missing in a Costa Rican national park since Aug. 11. His parents arrived Aug. 13 to lead the rescue mission. According to the Sun-Times, Gimelfarb spoke fluent Spanish and was in good physical condition when he left.

Workers at SK Hand Tools, which has a plant on Chicago's West side and another in suburban McCook, walked out Tuesday morning on a one day unfair labor practices strike. SK Tools withdrew coverage last May without notice, leaving employees there, who are members of Teamsters Local 743 to pay for health care out of pocket. "This has been devastating," Local President Richard Berg said. "It's like anybody else in society. If you don't need health insurance, you're fine, but when you need it, you really need it." Noting that one worker has been hit with $20,000 in medical expenses, he added, "People are threatened with losing their homes, with financial ruin." Like many U.S. manufacturers, SK Tools has been hit in the economic crisis and union officials acknowledge that the company has has been having some financial difficulties. They say that a concession proposal was put forth that would have cut wages by 20 percent, and reduced pay by $4 an hour for the first six months of the new contract.

Mark Kirk, Illinois's 10th District Congressman and GOP front runner for the state's U.S. Senate seat, has been been trying to get in front of conservative rage at Obama lately. Earlier this month he held a press conference in a downtown Chicago federal building (in his capacity as a U.S. Congressman) to denounce the House version of the proposed health care reform legislation. Then, he called the bill partisan and expensive, and cited medical malpractice reforms as the key to cutting costs. This week he's upped the ante, lying about the details of the proposed legislation. "Should we provide taxpayer health care for people who are illegally here in the U. S.? I do not think we should provide federally-subsidized health care to illegal aliens," Kirk asked the crowd before rhetorically answering his own question. He failed to mention that the proposed legislation doesn't actually offer health insurance coverage for those in the United States illegally.

It was a rough night in Wrigleyville on Tuesday, as the Cubs fell to the league-worst Washington Nationals, 15-6. Carlos Zambrano provided an offensive spark with a solo homer in the third inning, but did not find the same success on the mound, surrendering eight earned runs in 4.1 frames. In the fifth, Zambrano walked two consecutive batters to load the bases and push home a run before getting the hook, and substitute Aaron Heilman promptly gave up the grand slam to double the Cubs' four-run deficit. Chicago responded with some late-inning power, scoring two on a ball off the wall by Geovany Soto and receiving a pair of solo shots from Jeff Baker and Milton Bradley, but they could not keep step with Washington, who posted three more in both the seventh and eighth. Bradley went 4-for-4 in the losing effort, halting a 1-for-19 slump at the plate. The Cubs will attempt to do better when they take the field at 7:05 tonight.

As Governor Quinn struggles to find ways to balance the state budget without help from the General Assembly, an unlikely duo of litigants have filed separate suits to stop cuts in state spending and further tax hikes. AFSCME, the largest public employee union in the state filed suit in Johnson County earlier this week to prevent the 2,600 layoffs that Quinn has threatened to impose if an agreement can't be reached the cut the state's payroll obligations. And Blackhawks owner Rocky Wirtz has filed suit in Cook County Circuit Court, challenging the constitutionality of the state’s new video poker law as well as liquor, candy and a menu of other tax increases set to take effect September 1.

• Two men were charged with the murder of retired Bartlett attorney Carl Kuhn; the men allegedly suffocated Kuhn to death and stole his extensive gun collection.
• The Sun-Times has the uplifting story of 11-year-old "hero" Adonis Bell.
• A pair of University of Illinois trustees refuse to go gentle into that good night in spite of pressure from Gov. Quinn.

When we received word that the Mayor was going to apologize his way back into our hearts tonight, and apologies would fall from the heavens like manna, we here at Chicagoist took the opportunity to look into our own hearts and wonder what a totally rueful City Council and County Board might look like. Then we got into the gin a little early and it all went off the rails. We all know that when the Mayor makes a move, everyone else scurries to follow his lead - so, without further ado, our predicted wish list of regrets follows - and then it's all yours.

Indiana governor Mitch Daniels, himself a Republican, offered up some advice to Illinois Republicans trying to find their way out of the deep dark political wilderness they've been in since George Ryan left office. “Part of our formula here has always to keep the debate very civil—never personal criticism—and always try to have a better answer,” Daniels told the Tribune. “If Illinois Republicans think they’ll come back simply by putting up a picture of the former governor or lamenting the decline of this or that, then that’s not enough, and they wouldn’t deserve a return to office.” Daniels also said that having a better balance between the parties in power would lead to better governance. “I’m a fan of competitive politics,” said Daniels. “It’s not healthy when either side has a long-term monopoly. They get sloppy. They get arrogant. I do wish them well. I think Illinois would be well-served by a better balance, and then therefore a more active debate.”

According to an ongoing investigation by the Tribune, 12th Ward Alderman George Cardenas has been using tax dollars to rent office space for his ward office from a company his family owns. The Tribune's investigation into how city aldermen are using their city expense accounts shows that Cardenas spent $17,120 in 2008 to rent his office, which is in a building owned by himself and some relatives. He told the Tribune he didn't see any problem with that, but then backed down when pressed. "There's no reason to be [in the company] if it's going to cause me headaches," he said. "I do everything aboveboard."

The White Sox couldn’t keep pace with the Boston Red Sox on Monday, as they dropped game one of their road trip, 12-8. Gordon Beckham’s two-run homer gave Chicago a 4-1 advantage in the top of the third, but the lead wouldn’t last long. Jose Contreras allowed six unearned runs to score in the bottom half, but was largely responsible for all of them. With two away and a runner on first, Contreras walked two batters, hit a batter, committed a fielding error, threw a wild pitch and surrendered a three-run homer to Boston’s Mike Lowell. Chicago was able to add three runs in the fifth thanks to a big fly from Paul Konerko, but the bullpen failed to keep Boston’s bats quiet, as they tacked on two in the fourth and three in the seventh. The poor outing by Contreras will relegate him to a bullpen role, as the Chi Sox tweak the rotation in an effort to gain ground on Detroit. Game two starts at 6:10 tonight.

We don't enjoy starting our mornings by having a downright hissy fit, but reading the Sun-Times story on Mayor Daley's planned speech in which he'll allegedly admit he made a mistake with the infamous parking meter deal is throwing us into a hulk-out rage. Know why? Well, for starters:

No, this post is not a repeat from 2008. Or 2007. Or 2006. For the fourth time in as many years, Bears defensive tackle Dusty Dvoracek has apparently suffered a season-ending injury. Dvoracek left Saturday night's preseason game against the New York Giants with a knee injury, and while he was seen with his right heavily wrapped in ice afterward, he declared it to be fine. However, rumors of a scheduled MRI alluded to the fact it might be more serious. After the tests, coach Lovie Smith called it a sprained MCL, but the Sun-Times reports Dvoracek has a torn ACL in his right knee, as well, and he's finished for the year. We'll see how long before the Bears place him on the injured reserve list to make it official.

In yet another shocking expose, it turns out that patronage workers (specifically those that are exempt from Shakman oversight) were given large pay raises between 2006 and 2009. Those workers, 28 forest preserve employees, had all contributed financially to the campaign funds of Cook County Board President Todd Stroger; his late father, former board President John Stroger; or the 8th Ward Regular Democratic Organization.

However, unlike the hair trigger closings that happened in May, the CDC this fall is recommending closure only in the event of a "major outbreak." They've also revised the guidelines as to how long a sick child should stay home, reducing the previously advised seven days to the usual time length for kids with a fever -- the student can return to school 24 hours after the fever breaks.

Today is the final day of the government's controversial "Cash for Clunkers" program but by the sounds of it, if you didn't cash in over the weekend, you're pretty much out of luck now.

After Keanu Reeves starred in that remake of The Day the Earth Stood Still, we thought we'd seen the bottom of the barrel. What idiots we are. Courtesy of Variety we've just learned of something even worse. Much, much worse.

Cubs Dodge Sweep

Mayor Daley has tossed around the number $22.5 billion as the value of the economic boost the city of Chicago would receive if it hosts the 2016 Olympics. But some experts are saying that number is more Olympian dream than reality. Crain's talked to several experts about MayDay's projected boon for the city and the answers they came away with leave us a bit cold about hosting the games.

A new crosswalk sting kicks off tonight, aimed at ticketing drivers who risk pedestrian lives. The Chicago Police department has done similar stings in the past, but this one is different: it's during night-time hours. Officials told the Tribune the four main areas they're focusing on this go-around are River North, Austin, Wrigleyville and 79th Street from about Ashland to the Dan Ryan Expressway. Failure to yield to crossing pedestrians will get you a ticket that can range from $50 to $500, so beware and follow the law.

Gothamist was amazed that former Giants star Plaxico Burress pleaded guilty and will face 2 years in prison for charges related to the November incident where he brought an illegal gun into a Manhattan nightclub and accidentally shot himself because the gun was falling down his pants.

Dushon Brown, principal of Gwendolyn Brooks College Prep, had to take 20 unpaid days of leave this summer for renting out the school without the Chicago Public School system's permission, according to the Tribune.

A city commission recommended Chicago's Loop area receive $15.5 billion for building developments and transportation improvements by 2020, Chi-Town Daily News reports. Area residents protest, saying such a plan would negatively affect residents' "quality of life" by increasing the population and straining resources in the area, including parking. One resident who spoke against the plan at the Saturday afternoon meeting said that besides changing the character of the South Loop, the money designated for the plan would be better spent on lower-income areas in the city.

The White Sox picked up a game on Detroit with a 4-1 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday. John Danks only permitted three hits over 6.1 innings, but it was the six walks that made him work for the win. Baltimore's lone run came in the seventh when Matt Thornton allowed an inherited runner to score from third on a wild pitch. Otherwise, all the offensive highlights belonged to Chicago, who got a solo shot from Carlos Quentin in the second, RBIs from Alexei Ramirez and Mark Kotsay in the fourth, and a freebie of their own when Jermaine Dye scored on a wild pitch in the fifth. A.J. Pierzynski reached safely in all four of his plate appearances, notching two hits and drawing two bases on balls. The Sox and the Orioles will settle the series at 1:05 this afternoon.

Have no fear, Cubs fan. Even though your team is having an awful August (7-12, losers of four of their last five), your manager isn't going anywhere. With the recent team slump and the finalizing of the sale of the team to the Ricketts family, we suppose there were bound to be whispers Lou would set sail after '09. Not so, Piniella tells the Sun-Times: ''I'm planning to come back next year." Of course, a lot can happen between now and the first week of April 2010 but we'll go ahead and take Lou at his word. And, while we're at it, buy him a boat-load of Pepto-Bismol to deal with that bullpen.

Taking the reins from Hispanic-focused immigration rallies, hundreds of Asian and Pacific Islander immigration advocates will gather for a “town hall meeting” in North Park today, Chicago Breaking News reports.

The Baltimore Orioles used a late-game rally to break a 1-1 tie and hand the White Sox a 5-1 loss on Friday night. Gavin Floyd and Baltimore’s Jeremy Guthrie found themselves in a pitchers’ duel through seven innings, with both hurlers allowing one run to score on solo homers. Floyd trotted back out for the eighth, but didn’t have the same command, surrendering a base hit and another home run before putting two aboard for the Sox ‘pen. Matt Thornton and Tony Pena then allowed a pair of Orioles to cross as the deficit swelled to an insurmountable four. Chicago’s lone run came courtesy of Jim Thome, whose assault on the record books continued with long ball no. 564. The Sox will take the field for game two tonight at 6:05.

• Charges have been filed in this week's violent beating of a Chicago firefighter in Lincoln Park; the suspect's lawyer claims it was the firefighter who started the fight.
• The sale of the Chicago Cubs and Wrigley Field to the Ricketts family has been finalized and now awaits approval from Major League Baseball owners.
• Speaking of the Cubs, they've been sued over a 2007 incident in which a wall of a building near Wrigley collapsed and killed a man.

Earlier this week, the identity of the man behind the original Obama Joker photo was revealed: Firas Alkhateeb, a student at the University of Illinois. Now, Alkhateeb isn't responsible for those "Socialism" posters that have gotten everyone in a tizzy out in Los Angeles. But Alkhateeb did originally post his Photoshop experiment on image hosting website Flickr. Until recently, when Flickr decided to delete the image. Thomas Hawk has more on this issue, as well as a great overview on Flickr's statement on the matter. TechCrunch also has an interesting take and looks at Flickr getting delete happy by shutting down a forum dedicated to the topic of the image.

It's been nearly 25 year since the Bears won Super Bowl XX -- doesn't that make us feel old! -- but the Bears team that brought home the Lombardi Trophy has never received their customary visit to the White House. Back in 1986, the Challenger Space Shuttle tragedy resulted in their visit being postponed, and it was never rescheduled.

Here's a shock: there may be some financial shenanigans afoot dealing with the 2016 Olympics and TIFs. A few weeks ago, we took at a look at the city’s new TIF Sunshine website where you can see all of the city’s TIFs, what they’re for and where they’re boundaries are. Last winter, the city announced Michael Reese Hospital would be the future site of the Olympic Village should Chicago be awarded the 2016 Olympics. In June of this year, the City of Chicago bought Michael Reese hospital for $86 million and Mayor Daley later announced that a new TIF would be created to help finance some of those Olympic dreams. That didn’t quite gel; we thought the hospital was already located in the Bronzeville TIF. So we took a look at the TIF transparency website with Friend of Chicagoist Adam Verwymeren and, lo and behold, Michael Reese Hospital was already in the middle of that existing Bronzeville TIF.

As if we didn't have enough to worry about between coyotes and cougars, we can add alligators to the list of wildlife they may snatch us away while taking the dog for a walk. Yesterday afternoon, someone reported seeing an alligator at the Chicago River, near Damen and Fullerton, prompting a visit from Animal Care and Control. The gator, which was reported to be between two and four feet long, had already eased back into the river and escaped to its underwater lair to plot my demise by the time the official showed up. Of course, alligator sightings in the Chicago River are not exactly new, but this one is just another reason for us to skip the kayaking tour.

The Cubs were welcomed to L.A. in grand fashion on Thursday, as the Dodgers' Russell Martin hit a bases-loaded round tripper to stick the Cubs with a 7-2 loss. The two teams traded runs over the first three innings on their way to a temporary 2-2 tie. The Cubs' scoring plays included a solo homer by Kosuke Fukudome in the second and an RBI knock courtesy of Aramis Ramirez in the third. On the mound, starter Tom Gorzelanny allowed his two runs, five hits and one walk during the first two frames and retired the Dodgers in order in the third, fourth and fifth innings. Gorzelanny was lifted after 82 pitches in favor of Angel Guzman, who did not have his best stuff. Two singles, a sacrifice bunt and an intentional walk set the table, and a first-pitch fastball cleared it. With the Cubs' loss and wins by St. Louis and Colorado, Chicago now sits seven back in the N.L. Central and six behind in the Wild Card race. They'll look to regain some ground behind Randy Wells tonight at 9:10.

Not content with the $1 billion-plus the city has already received in federal stimulus funding, Mayor Daley is appealing to President Obama for even more cash. $800 million more, to be exact. Said Da Mayor, "This is not pork barrel. This is not wasted money. This is all about the future of this country." According to the Tribune:

Yesterday we told you about eight year old Shawna Lewis of Robbins, Illinois, who had the audacity to stand in front of her public library and ask the President of the United States to help keep it open.

Thanks to The Reader's Whet Moser (whose Chicagoland blog should be required reading) for sharing this fantastic video from last night's episode of WTTW's Chicago Tonight. The topic? That IVI-IPO lawsuit against the city for the parking meter fiasco. The entire video - featuring Clint Krislov, who is representing IVI-IPO, The Reader's Mick Dumke, and Ald. Bernard Stone (50th) - is worth your viewing, but if you have no attention span, just roll up to about 11 minutes. Mick, we owe you a beer.

As expected, Blackhawks star Patrick Kane pleaded not guilty to charges stemming from his alleged attack on a Buffalo, NY cab driver. His cousin, James M. Kane, also entered a not guilty plea. Both were indicted yesterday on a pair of misdemeanor charges in their alleged attack on a Buffalo, NY cab driver: third degree assault and theft of services. [Chicago Breaking News]

In what may be the most adorable publicity stunt this week, eight year old Shawna Lewis of Robbins, Illinois, stood in front of the village library Tuesday to ask President Barack Obama to help keep her public library open.

(c) Reports and records of the obligation, receipt and use of public funds of the State, units of local government and school districts are public records available for inspection by the public according to law.

A masterful performance from Rich Harden helped the Cubs beat the San Diego Padres on Wednesday, 7-1. Harden hurled seven scoreless innings, allowing just one hit and three free passes. The Friars' Mat Latos didn't have the same success, as Chicago was able to post five runs in the first four frames. Those five runs included ribbies from Koyie Hill, Derrek Lee, Kosuke Fukudome and Aramis Ramirez, and were supplemented by solo shots from Ramirez and Milton Bradley in the sixth. In addition to his flash of power, Bradley demonstrated his patience at the plate, drawing three walks as he reached safely in all five of his plate appearances. Sean Marshall allowed the lone San Diego score in the ninth, but the Cubs' big lead made it a non-issue. After salvaging the final game of the series, the Cubs move on to L.A. for a 9:10 start with the Dodgers tonight.

Reports indicate that on Thursday, the NCAA will strip the University of Memphis of its wins from the 2007-08 following an investigation into violations by the program. Those violations include accusations that Bulls point guard Derrick Rose had somebody else take his SAT exam and that family of the Chicago hoops phenom received other illegal benefits such as free travel.

If you've ever skim your email's spam folder before deleting them all forever, maybe you've seen emails about dietary supplements. Well, there's now a chance they're being sued by Oprah. The Great O has filed a federal trademark-infringement suit against dealers (around 40 in all) of dietary supplements and has even lent a hand to state attorney general Lisa Madigan who has filed three similar lawsuits. The problem is that Oprah pal Dr. Oz has given props to acai berries. But - as our spam folders can attest - there are legions of supplements that use acai berries and some have begun using Doc Oz and Oprah to sell their products even though neither O has ever officially endorsed a product. Given some of the scrutiny she's been under lately, we can understand why Oprah is cracking the whip.

In the ongoing drama surrounding what may be the most ambitious piece of Barack Obama's social agenda, Massachusetts Congressman Barney Frank and Illinois Congressman Jesse Jackson Jr both held town hall meetings the other day on the proposed health care legislation. Jackson's town hall, while peppered with protesters out front, was a study in how to hold a well-orchestrated public event.