The guard troops will use eight helicopters and ground support to deliver supplies to areas isolated by flooding. more ›

The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a previous decision allowing a lawsuit which holds Rumsfeld personally responsible for the torture of Donald Vance and Nathan Ertel, two former defense contractors in Iraq. more ›

This weekend marked the 8th anniversary of the beginning of the invasion of Iraq. Over 1,500 people marched downtown to mark the day, beginning in the Loop and rallying near Water Tower Place. More than 70 organizations participated, calling for an end to the U.S. occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan. more ›

Hundreds of demonstrators gathered last night to mark the seventh anniversary of the start of the Iraq War in Federal Plaza. Around 80 different organizations pulled together, beginning with a rally in the plaza and then marching down Michigan Avenue, ending in Washington Square Park. Both police and demonstrators were peaceful, in contrast to the 2003 rally where more than 800 people were arrested. One activist speaking at the rally said “I can’t believe I’m here again, seven years later.” With plenty of US troops and “contractors” still in Iraq and the war in Afghanistan escalating, we sadly have a feeling that the plaza will see many more demonstrations for years to come. more ›

Visit downtown on any given weekend, and you're likely to encounter someone who's handing out free stuff -- from breakfast bars to coupons to tiny booklets filled with "salvation." This Sunday, visit downtown to receive a free word from poet Jennifer Karmin, who will spend the afternoon in front of the U.S. Army Career Center performing "4000 Words, 4000 Dead," in which she passes words out to passersby. Karmin collects the words to represent each American who dies in Iraq; together, the words create a public poem. more ›

During the waning months of this year's epic presidential election, we saw the national conversation change from the War on Terrorism in Iraq to the global financial crisis. It's easy for those of us without family and friends in armed services to put the war in the back of our minds and focus on issues that hit closer to our homes. Tomorrow at the Chicago Department of Culture and Arts' Theater (78 E. Washington), the Vet Art Project will have a free, public performance created by war veterans in collaboration with artists of various mediums. The Vet Art Project allows veterans to tell their stories and creates discussion of how war touches all of our lives. more ›

Mayor Daley has many nicknames among Chicagoans, but we're going to start referring to him as The Harbinger of Doom. Daley announced that he has been informed by several CEOs to expect massive layoffs in the city's private sector as the nation's current economic recession deepens. "Huge layoffs are coming in November and December. And next year, there’s going to be [even more] huge layoffs. All the corporation CEOs have come in to tell me. That’s just the beginning. It’s not their end result." Oh, and that $420 million budget hole the city is facing? Turns out that's not the only bad news we're facing.

The Chicago Sun-Times reported last week that Chicago will close the book on 2008 with an unreserved corporate fund balance of just $1.5 million, a dangerously low level that, Wall Street Rating agencies warned, threatens the all-important bond rating used to determine borrowing costs. more ›

A new exhibit at the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago sheds light on the looting and destruction of Iraqi artifacts in the wake of the Fall of Sadaam. Catastrophe! The Looting and Destruction of Iraq’s Past, opened yesterday, the five year anniversary of the Fall of Baghdad, and continues through the end of the year. The exhibit focuses not only on the well-publicized looting of the Iraq Museum, but on the continued looting of these artifacts as well as the damage done to historical and archaeological sites from the ongoing war and what can be done to save them. more ›

With the Democratic primary election in the 14th Congressional District all but settled, Bill Foster and Jim Oberweis are duking it out over Iraq. Oberweis is accusing Foster of politicizing the Iraq War in his bid to take the seat that Dennis Hastert vacated by retiring. Foster says he won't support any policies that don't "change the course in Iraq and do it now." more ›

Head to Daley Plaza this morning at 10:30 a.m. for a quick early voting rally for Mark Pera. Pera, the assistant Cook County State's Attorney who is running against Dan Lipinski for the 3rd Congressional District seat, is the first serious candidate to challenge Lipinski since he went to congress in 2004. Pera's campaign has attracted a lot of attention, both online and in the district. Online support has helped helped fund his campaign, but anger in the district at how the elder Lipinski handed his seat to his son has fueled the viability of his candidacy. Still, he's running against the full force and weight of Chicago's entrenched Democratic Machine. more ›

There's more than just choosing candidates for President at stake when the Illinois Primary rolls around February 5. For instance, in our home 3rd Congressional district, puppet incumbent Dan Lipinski is facing an actual opponent this time in Assistant State's Attorney Mark Pera. more ›

Mark Pera, Democratic candidate for congress in the Third District, is launching his first TV ad today. Debuting on cable television around the area, the ad contrasts incumbent Dan Lipinski's supposed political affiliations with his actions in Congress. “The Iraq war is the defining issue in our campaign for Congress, and we’re giving voters a clear choice. I’m offering to voters real leadership in Congress to end this war and bring our troops home safely... more ›

A few days ago we unwittingly created a monster when we expressed our frustration about having to wait to see the schedule for this year's Chicago International Film Festival, which runs October 4-17. Well, we finally have a copy of said schedule in our hot little hands. What follows is a very brief, cursory summary of what you can expect this year (the full schedule will be online within the next few days). Regardless of... more ›

Happy first weekend of September - and happy Labor Day weekend, too, for our American cities! Let's take a look at what's been happening around the Ist-a-verse. The deaths of two firefighters shook Bostonist this week. Boston's firefighters bent over backwards all week long - first, they fought flames pouring from the Boston Tea Party museum, and then a restaurant fire killed two and injured many more. Their efforts make everything else - like Tom... more ›

We're sweltering in the heat here, the CTA sometimes seems to barely function and both of our baseball teams suck. All annoyances no doubt. But let's not forget that in the midst of all this a little thing called the Iraq War just keeps marching on: $442 billion and several thousand lives later. We can protest against it and agitate for change but most of the time it's much easier for us to put it... more ›

Last night was the first debate among Democratic candidates for the presidential nomination. On a crowded stage, the large group of suits that are hoping for the nod to take on a Republican in Fall of '08 for the White House argued about the nuances of the Iraq War. Erstwhile local gal Hillary had a well thought-out answer to the question "Do you agree with the position [that the war in Iraq is lost] of... more ›

On Wednesday it was discovered that an Orland Park firefighter was arrested for felony theft for falsely claiming he was fighting for the military in Iraq. Lawrence Masa was actually working for a private security firm in Iraq and was being paid quite well. During this time Masa made approximately $190,000 as a firefighter and $200,000 as a private security worker. Yesterday, Steven Slawinski, a Lemont Firefighter, was accused of the same crime. Slawinski, a... more ›

When Chicagoist was living abroad, discussions of American politics were often the most interesting, as well as the most embarrassing. Unlike the U.S., where many people would prefer news about Brangelina to political races around the globe (or in the States, for that matter), the global media has always taken interest in American politics. This election season, the hotly contested 6th Congressional District seat has unexpectedly become an international election favorite, with reporters from Europe,... more ›

Now in its 13th year, the Chicago Underground Film Fest is almost becoming an institution. Yet after more than a decade of presenting challenging, weird and hilarious films, CUFF still manages to seem fresh. Music videos are no longer the delivery system for underground music. But many filmmakers still use film as a way to explore how one art form enhances the other. Several film series at the fest including Jeff Krulik’s "The Maryland Trilogy",... more ›

Well, the protestors came. About five of them. Turns out the Evil Jackass Monsters of Hate Tour was a little understaffed. But what they lacked in numbers they made up for in unbridled asshattery: shouting vulgarities and waving signs reading “Thank God for Dead Soldiers.” At a funeral for an Iraq war vet. Can we stop for a fucking minute here? Think what you will about the war or the grillions of social issues that... more ›

The Westboro Baptist Church, with the charmingly named website of www.godhatesfags.com, is coming to Chicago Wednesday. Chicagoist is going to dub this the Evil Jackass Monsters of Hate Tour. The “Church” is based in Topeka, Kansas (that’s good publicity for the city), and it’s been protesting the funerals of Iraq war vets. The “Church” feels that our casualties in Iraq are part of God’s punishment for the United States tolerating the gays. It's monitored as... more ›

The primary election results are in, and here are some of the candidates you will see on the ballot in the November election: Governor-Democrat: Rod Blagojevich (70.1%) This was no surprise since Eisendrath never seemed to get his campaign off the ground. We know a lot of people who voted Eisendrath as part of showing their disapproval towards Blago. Governor-Republican: Judy Baar Topinka (38.0%) Topinka held off a late surge from Oberweis, who early on... more ›

Sometimes Chicagoist likes to venture out to the burbs and remind ourselves that politics outside the city limits is just as exciting as it is the Land of Daley. more ›

Henry Hyde, 6th District Congressman since 1975, is retiring next year, and the battle to take over his seat is heating up. Democrat Christine Cegelis, pictured at right, did respectably against Hyde in 2004, and appeared to be the leading Democrat in the race to represent the rapidly changing district, which includes parts of Cook and DuPage counties. However, Rahm Emanuel, 5th District Congressman and Chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, has not... more ›

Yesterday Senators Obama and Durbin both gave speeches criticizing the Bush administration’s policies in the Iraq war and called for US troops to return home. more ›

While we're always a bit apprehensive about lending too much credence to polls, the latest USA Today/CNN Gallup poll reports that 54 percent of the sample agrees that "the United States made a mistake in sending troops to Iraq". That percentage is as high as it's ever been. In the second half of June 2004 the same percentage of respondents agreed that the U.S. had made a mistake in Iraq. That was approximately a year... more ›

Lots of news at The Field Museum these days! From the selling of Indian art, to the preservation of Iraqi artifacts, to a new Incas exhibit, to a party: we've got it all summarized here. more ›