Photo by Little Pretty Make your own Obama logo. This isn't an endorsement. Think of this more as a challenge. Get creative. Local federal judge and U of C law professor Mark R. Filip was named deputy attorney general today. Hey, don't forget, it's No Cussing Week. And just when we were going to say "holy shit." A pregnant woman was injured when a 50-pound piece of concrete fell off a city viaduct and......

If the RTA extended the Blue Line out to the Yorktown Mall in Lombard, would you go? The Sun-Times reported yesterday that possible improvements to the city's transit system could include a longer trek on the Forest Park line, new bus routes on major expressways, and a north-south train between Midway and O'hare, among other things. But did you know that the CTA used to run all the way out to Aurora? It did...kinda. It......

Everyone knows the Internet can be a nasty place. From bloggers who bore their readers and wage war on grammar to commenters who spend their entire day viciously tearing others to shreds under pseudonyms, most of the opinions being touted aren’t always taken seriously. But how will this lovably effed up relationship evolve if the legal stakes are raised? We’re interested to see what will happen with the suit brought against an anonymous blogger in......

On a June morning in 1918, a circus train stopped on the tracks in Ivanhoe, Ind. The Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus was scheduled for a show in nearby Hammond later that day, but for the time being, an overheated wheel bearing box impeded their progress. Despite warning lights and a frantic flagman, another train slammed into the back of the idling troupe. Fire erupted throughout the wooden cars, sending 86 people to their deaths and injuring 127......

Both Kraft and McDonald's have been busy recently with business moves. Tuesday Crain's reported that Kraft placed a $7.2 billion bid for French snack food giant Danone. Danone, makers of Dannon and Stonyfield yogurts, and Evian bottled water, is the world volume leader in bottled water, fresh dairy, and biscuit (cookies) and cereal products. If the deal goes through, it would give Kraft a foot in the door of emerging snack food markets in Russia......

This sounds pretty cool -- the State of Illinois' third annual small-business challenge cited 13 winners for its $10,000 Innovate Illinois grant program. You can find out more about the program here. Don't stop believin' in anonymity when it comes to the mob -- as the much-anticipated Family Secrets mob conspiracy trial opens, jurors will share their backgrounds, views on issues and reading habits-but not their names. It's Police Superintendent Idol! Three and "possibly......

Chicagoist recently learned that June is National Candy Month. While this sounds a lot like a Hallmark-invented celebration, who doesn't want an excuse to eat lots of candy? It turns out Chicago is a major hub in the candy industry. Between Fannie May, Ferrara Pan, M&M Mars, Affy Tapple, Jelly Belly, World's Finest Chocolate and now Frango returning to Chicago, it's almost shocking that the American Dental Association hasn't singled out our city as a......

Yowza! Forest Park's Athena Uslander is looking hot as one of the models featured in Dove's new "Pro-Age" advertising campaign. Ulsander is joined by four other "real" women in the advertisements, who are all proudly featured wearing their birthday suits and not much else. The 52-year-old mother of three is the owner of Athena's Silverland Desserts in Forest Park, where she cooks up some amazing-looking baked goods, in addition to shelling out words of wisdom.......

Do you feel as if your trips on the Blue Line are taking longer these days? You're not alone. Today, the Sun-Times is reporting on how the Blue Line to O'Hare — the second busiest branch after the Northside Red Line — is suffering from huge rush-hour crowds, compounding the problems already caused by crumbling infrastructure. Blue Line trains now putter through slow zones on a third of the tracks between Division and O'Hare, up......

As we nurse a post-club bodyache, we offer you this weekend's crime rundown: A 15-year-old boy was the victim of a drive-by shooting on the West Side Saturday afternoon. Dante Curtis was standing near the intersection of Laramie & Ferdinand when a light-colored van fired shots, hitting him in the chest and back. He was pronounced dead at Loretto Hospital. Proviso East High School student Gerardo Garcia, 18, was found in an alley in Maywood......

On Saturday afternoon, a carwash employee in Forest Park was cleaning a police car when he decided to take it for a joyride. After cleaning the car, he pulled out of the wash bay and into traffic, striking one vehicle before pulling back into the lot and hitting not one, not two, but five more parked cars. We had sort of passed on this story until reading that last little detail, when picturing the car......

After all the drama last night, the morning commute is not looking good. We recommend looking for alternate routes, if possible. Even though the Blue line will be running, it will be at reduced levels and we're sure that it will be busy and there will be a lot of waiting. Maybe we're being pessamistic, but that's just us. We're also assuming the #56 bus will be crammed. Another alternate route is to take a......

Slate explains what Ozzie might do for sensitivity training. Chicago is the 38th most expensive city in the world. Things we included in our 2016 bid for the Summer Olympic Games: collapsible stadium between Soldier Field and McCormick Place, a landscaaped promenade linking this new stadium to Soldier Field, and an Olympic Village on the campus of Michael Reese Hospital. Think Schaumburg or Palatine are the most affordable places to live in Chicagoland? Think......

CTA Run Numbers?...

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock, you know that today is St. Patrick’s Day. Yes, Chicago has a large Irish population and its history is dominated by the contributions of one particular Irish family. But like all other cities in the U.S., today is the day when anyone who’s worn a green shirt while eating a potato and watching a Colin Farrell movie will lay claim to a little “Irish” heritage. Chicagoist has always......

A 24-year-old Chicago man has been arrested and charged with rape and aggrevated assault in two seperate incidents on the North Side last month. Paul Cruikshank was charged on Sunday for his alleged involvement with the attacks on December 18th and 20th. Seems Cruikshank was arrested for an "incident" in Forest Park and it was then that he admitted to the rape, the attemped rape, and another crime in Forest Park. Analysis of DNA is......

The CTA is considering constructing a Silver Line that would connect the Blue and Green Lines. The proposed line would run between the Ashland stop of the Green Line, and the Harrison junction, where the Forest Park and Cermak Blue Lines meet. There�s not a station there, so it sounds like they�d put one in. Other proposed Silver Line stations include a stop at Madison for the United Center (good call) and one on Van......