The Rahmformer's latest campaign is 30 seconds of Emanuel talking tough, letting voters know he considers all city employees, from the Mayor down to the lowest garbage collector, city servants, while metaphorically about cracking the whip on city workers who are just collecting a paycheck. Some of the more choice quotes. more ›

Friday’s late night crowd at Gorilla Tango Theater is raucous and loud, with some patrons sloshed to the point of major distraction. But complaining about a drunken scene at sketch comedy revue Boozelegger’s Ball is like complaining about excessive violence in There Will Be Blood. The title alone should clue you in. more ›

One of the more contentious races in Tuesday's election is at the Cook County Board of Review, where incumbent Joe Berrios is facing a stiff challenge in trial lawyer Jay Paul Deratany. For many homeowners throughout Cook County, the Board of Review is their best chance at finding relief from both the monster property tax increases proposed by Mayor Daley and the County Board and the skyrocketing assessments of County Assessor Jim Houlihan. more ›

Listen, we've kept mostly quiet about the daily newspapers' coverage of the online world. We love and thrive off our paper brethren. And for the most part, aside from every story about an online trend being about 13 months behind the actual trend, we think they get it right. Hell, we actually miss James Coates, since we found his computer advice to be direct, engaging, and idiot-proof. more ›

We meet with liquor or wine company reps every week, so our palate gets a good workout. Occasionally these salespeople have marketing reps from specific brands' or spirits' holding companies in tow trying to sell us on the hot drink of the moment that the Parises, Britneys and Lindsays of the world — and their lemming-like cults of personality — are abusing while advertising the handiwork of their Brazilians getting out of cars. We'll invariably... more ›

Tom Simon does a lot of things right. He investigates white collar crimes for the FBI, volunteers for a youth crisis hotline, biked thousands of miles for AIDS charities, and donates his organs to perfect strangers … just because he can. But whatever you do, don't call him a hero. According to Simon's blog, The Kidney Chronicles, his desire to "help others and alleviate suffering" led him to consider handing over one of his kidneys.... more ›

Nell Taylor and Emerson Dameron, Founders of Chicago Underground Library more ›

See enough sketch comedy and you’re bound to experience a head shaking, teeth gritting night when you’re questioning why you abandoned the warm, comforting glow of your Magnavox. At last weekend’s Chicago Sketchfest, we eavesdropped on a few patrons in that predicament, discussing what they’d like to see abolished in sketch comedy: "Casting a woman in your group for the sole purpose of being 'the girlfriend', 'the spouse', or the object of lust." "Mistaking 'zany'... more ›

Now that the feds have led 20th Ward Alderman Arenda Troutman away in handcuffs, can we really say that as many as 15 seats in the city council are in play this election year? After she was arraigned in court and released on a $10,000 bond, her attorney, Sam Adam Jr., suggested that she was being punished for helping a constituent out with a "favor." It seems that in the 20th Ward, favors can cost... more ›

Really, what was Big Red thinking when she decided to sell pictures of her dog and her honorary black belt in karate in a garage sale? There is low, and then there is low. Defeated Republican gubernatorial candidate Judy Baar Topinka held an estate sale over the weekend to rid herself of "tchotchkes" collected in her 26 years of public service. Included in her collection of tchotchkes are a 5-foot stuffed penguin, a singing plastic... more ›

After playing the part of the stern nanny to the entire city of Chicago for most of last year, the City Council is making it easier to booze it up over the holidays. The Daily Southtown reports that businesses throughout Chicago will be allowed to start selling alcohol at 8 a.m. on Christmas and New Year’s eves. Both holidays fall on a Sunday this year, a day when alcohol sales are prohibited before 11 a.m.... more ›

A few days ago on Chicagoist we mentioned that Secretary of State Jesse White's daughter was arrested on drug charges. To flesh out your memories, here's the gist of the incident: Undercover cops performed a sting operation at the Ida B. Wells complex, around Pershing and Cottage Grove, posing as drug dealers. Lorraine White was one of 17 people arrested Thursday morning for allegedly buying drugs from one of the officers. As it turns out,... more ›

L.A. Times editor Dean Baquet resigned his post yesterday. The Trib reported that the L.A. Times reported that Baquet was "forced to resign at the request" of the new publisher, David Hiller. Hiller replaced former publisher Jeff Johnson, who was replaced because of his continued resistance to the Trib's Co.'s continued calls for job cuts at the paper. Whew, we need to take a deep breath. more ›

God, we're so sick of Snakes on a Plane that we want to kill anyone and everyone that makes a "something on a something" joke. But then we realized that there was no way we could ever win this fight, and, hell, if you can't beat them, we might as well join them. And with that, you have the theme of this weeks' Gothamist network post. Austinist makes it easy for us, with Candidate on... more ›

Naperville leads the state in nailing drunk drivers! more ›

Maybe the constant weather changes were getting to people, but it was pretty cranky on Chicagoist last week. As opposed to crunky, which would have been pretty cool. more ›

Chicagoist has always said we should be on the payroll at City Hall to do PR for this fine city. We can go on and on about what a fine city this is, and will often do so with passion. World Championship sports teams, an incredible lakefront, a world-class skyline, and a public transportation system that has its faults, but really gets us where we need to go. We have a plethora of drooltastic restaurants, a wealth of art and culture, tons of live music, and the majesty that is the grid. We have a Midwestern friendliness and a down-to-earth way about us you won’t find in New York or Paris. more ›

Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan announced on Sunday that she will run for reelection, and so far she is easily in the lead as no one has yet stepped up to run against her. Madigan has released a statement on her campaign website that reads, in part: Whether the issue is protecting women from domestic abuse, protecting our children from sexual predators, protecting seniors from scam artists who are targeting them, fighting unfair pricing... more ›

Chicagoist feels fortunate to provide a public service to you, dear reader. We enjoy breaking hard hitting news and fostering a space for the vital debates of our time. more ›

Aurora mayor Tom Weisner will introduce plans for a citywide WiFi network as part of the 2006 operating budget, potentially making Aurora the first city in Illinois to provide free wireless internet access to its citizens. The budget proposal will ask the city council for $5 million to build the network infrastructure. An official from the mayor's office said that once the network is up and running, they may charge a fee for higher-speed access and provide basic access for free. more ›

This is a public service announcement reminding Chicagoist readers that there are few better ways to prepare for Halloween than putting yourself in the zombie's shoes. "How can I do that?" you ask. Good question. more ›

With the summer’s biggest music festival upon us, we can expect a huge influx of out-of-towners this weekend. As a public service to any visitors consulting this humble site, Chicagoist is happy to present a brief guide to exploring the city’s cultural attractions when you’re not gawking at rock stars in Grant Park. Since most of y’all will be staying downtown, we’ll keep you within a decent walk or cheap cab ride of the Loop. more ›

Where in the hell was this study when the cell phone ordinance was passed? The city's ban on using handheld cell phones while driving, sponsored by everyone's favorite council member, Ald. Burt "I-Have-My-Own-Bobble-Head-And-You-Don't" Natarus (42nd), was ostensibly put into effect to make the streets of Chicago safer from jackasses who are more concerned about the conversation they're having than the roads they are navigating, making headsets mandatory for those who wish to use their phones... more ›

Chicagoist got all wonked out of shape earlier this week about the (utterly ridiculous) photography ban at Millennium Park, but while we were raising our eyebrows and shaking our heads, Travel + Leisure magazine was dripping sugar-coated goodwill all over our city’s new gem. more ›

It’s a slow day here at the Chicagoist offices and that inevitably leads to a lot of web-surfing and snarky comments. Today’s target of our ire: Tara Reid. We know it’s like shooting fish in a barrel (actually, it’s like shooting really large baby fish that don’t have the ability to move…in a barrel) but we can’t help ourselves. What set us off was this AP story posted on Metromix. It seems that Ms. Reid... more ›

True, people that have property, and actually pay property taxes aren't really Chicagoist's demographic (or we assume, we're not doing much market research these days). But as a public service, we thought we'd remind you of those taxes you gotta pay by 5:00 pm today. Cook County residents should hustle down to the County Treasurer's office in person by 5:00 pm, or pay on-line by 11:59 pm. more ›

We asked you for your voting stories, and you delivered. Here's one we found pretty moving, from Michael: more ›

Fly through O'Hare recently? It's miserable. Even worse when there's a major storm system somewhere in the US. Recognizing the problem, Transporation Secretary Norm Mineta called airlines, the Federal Aviation Administration and others together to set a cap on the number of flights going in and out of O'Hare every day. The voluntary cap, announced yesterday, of no more than 86 flights per hour reduces the number of flights by about 60 a day. more ›