As some across the interwebs anxiously await the Supreme Court's decision on whether or not to hear the controversial Obama birth certificate case (Zorn, we feel your pain), the President-Elect himself is more concerned with his actual job. In his weekly address, Obama outlined a plan that Politico is comparing to FDR's new deal. Check it all out for yourself below. more ›

Readers of my comments areas have come to expect that I’ll not only keep out most of the filth via editing or deleting offensive posts , but that I’ll respond to every reasonable challenge that’s issued to me, no matter how small the audience might be for an answer. more ›

It's been a year since former NBC 5 reporter Amy Jacobson appeared in a bikini at the home of Craig Stebic, husband of still-missing Lisa, a move that resulted in Jacobson's release from NBC 5. Now, she's fighting back against the rival network that aired a videotape of the incident. Jacobson and husband Jaime Anglada filed a $1 million lawsuit yesterday against CBS 2 for airing the infamous tape, claiming she has been unable to find work since the incident because CBS 2 portrayed her as "an adulteress and disreputable reporter." Chicago's personal Smoking Gun, Eric Zorn, has the court papers which claim the following: more ›

Dean Cage was wrongfully convicted of aggravated criminal sexual assault 14 years ago and has been in prison ever since. DNA evidence cleared him over the weekend. [S-T] more ›

We're always on the lookout for weird or cool Abraham Lincoln stuff. more ›

Funny Ha-Ha is a guaranteed good time. Tonight's edition at The Hideout features a host of writers, but seems to be "headlined" by Eric Zorn. We love Zorn, but find it kind of funny his credit is "Chicago Tribune Columnist & Blogger" while Claire Zulkey's is "Blogger & TV Critic for The Onion & Los Angeles Times." more ›

With the special election for Dennis Hastert's vacant 14th Congessional District seat coming up next Saturday, the race has heated up. Democrat Bill Foster has hit Jim Oberweis almost daily, pointing out the differences on Social Security, global trade, and the war in Iraq. Oberweis has fought back, calling Foster a liberal and a liar, and charging that he will raise taxes. The close race got even more interesting this week when Foster released recent internal polling indicating that he leads Oberweis in the race. Now Foster is claiming that Oberweis violated the so-called "Millinoare's Law", by failing to disclose that he was about to dump buckets of his own cash into the race. more ›

The Sun-Times takes a look at "elimination communication," a technique some parents are using to toilet train their very young children. Perhaps you read about it. In the New York Times. In 2005. [S-T, NYT.] more ›

Johanna Vera, 23, was charged with attempted murder for allegedly giving her children, 3 and 10 months, juice with rat poison and boric acid in it. Vera also apparently drank it herself. All three survived the November 29th incident, which Vera says stemmed from a domestic dispute that left her wanting to "die and take her children with her." [S-T] more ›

When last we checked in on Amy Jacobson, things weren't going too well. She went from working the point on the biggest missing person story of the year (before Drew Peterson's skeeviness made Craig Stebic look like a paragon of virtue by comparison) to out of a job, all because of an "what the hell were you thinking?" decision to slip on a two-piece bathing suit, take the kids in tow to Stebic's house and work the case while unknowingly being filmed by CBS 2 cameras. more ›

Ugh, finally: 28 aldermen are filing a petition to U.S. District Judge Joan Lefkow demanding the City release the names of the most-complained-about police officers. The Sun-Times's spot-on editorial is completely degraded by heinous illustration that accompanies it, from the same "artist" who also did yesterday's ricockulously bad Stroger drawing. The Book Cellar is hosting "Chicago’s Wittiest Women Writers" tonight. We deeply resent not being invited to participate, but cannot deny the wit of Stacey... more ›

The Illinois House approved legislation today that requires a moment of silence at the start of classes. This is the most pressing thing in the State's agenda? Not...say....transit funding? Or that 7-percent cap on property taxes? Or, oh, anything else? We're going to take a little moment of silence right now to think about that. Everyone hush. OK, we're back. The new law doesn't define how long a "moment" is, nor does it mention any... more ›

With all the Cubs hoopla going down in Chicagoland lately, it’s only natural for thoughts to turn to … cremation. At least, that’s how Eric Zorn feels today in his Trib column. Know that song “Go Cubs Go” that the Wrigley faithful sing after every victory? You should by now; a welcome change from the past two years, they actually had a winning record at home this season. Zorn spins the tale of Steve Goodman,... more ›

That's how many people are working illegally in this country, at least according to some estimates. Others put it closer to seven, depending on who you ask, and when. It's hard to get a handle on the actual number because most undocumented workers aren't too keen on standing up and being counted. Yesterday afternoon Elvira Arellano was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the federal agency charged with, among other things, keeping people from washing... more ›

Remember how some people thought the world was flat? That was their reality, and they believed in it with their hearts and souls. Now we can look back and know with certainty they were dead wrong. Well, today Chicagoist heard about an idea that sounds positively revolutionary, one that seems practically incomprehensible. But maybe it's just because we think we are so used to thinking the earth is flat, we can't possibly imagine a round planet. more ›

Although the week is shorter, that doesn't mean that there hasn't been political news out there to round up! This week, we're making a special dedication to Chicagoist's favorite bad guy, the man that makes us the national butt of every political joke in town, the guy that represents everything that is wrong with our local political system, Todd "The Toddler" Stroger. Without further ado, let's take a gander at his follies and foibles, and... more ›

This has been quite a week on the city council with a dozen aldermen headed to runoffs on April 17 in one of the biggest upsets in recent memory. Today we take a look back at a man that was as much a character of Chicago as any other, soon-to-be-former alderman of the 42nd Ward, Burt Natarus. In many ways he represented a time when being a character, when being eccentric was OK. As Eric... more ›

While some people are busy wondering if Barack Obama is in fact the Messiah, two of the Chicago Tribune's columnists/bloggers have been attending to some of the would-be next President's more immediate concerns. Eric Zorn has been polling readers all week as to what Obama's campaign theme song should be after mixed reviews of the music selection from his early campaign rallies. His choices so far have been a mix of classic but overplayed R&B... more ›

Come on, Chicago -- we know you're better than this. While your signs and banner should show support for your team, and maybe strike some fear in the opponent there are certainly limits to how far to go. You don't insult their mother. You don't question their sexuality. And you most certainly don't compare the game to a natural disaster that nearly wiped their city off the Earth. Yet one Bears fan's thought it would... more ›

Whew! What a week it's been in politics, and it's only Wednesday! Chicagoist has lotsa political tidbits for you today, so saddle up little buckaroo, and let's ride out! more ›