• A former O'Hare security chief is speaking out about how unsecure the airport is.
• Note to Blago: they're laughing AT you, not with you.
• The Reader's Whet Moser nails the Chicago Now vs Mike Doyle feud.

• NIU's police chief, Donald Grady, has been placed on a leave of absence after allegations of improper ethical behavior were made by NIU's student newspaper.
• Joseph Caputo, a former pricing analyst for MPC Products who turned FBI informant, has been awarded $4.5 million for helping the FBI crack a price-inflating case against the company.
• In the wake of all the fuss over the CTA's new proposed hikes and service cuts, The Reader's Whet Moser took a thoughtful look at transit issues in a few other large cities.

Is Sam Zell pulling a fast one on taxpayers with his sale of the Chicago Cubs? It seems like he might according to the Washington Post's Allen Sloan. And as The Reader's Whet Moser points out, this is not exactly the first time Zell has pulled some shady shenanigans in his dealings with the Tribune Company. more ›

Our pals at the Chicago Reader are now under new management. New York-based hedge fund Atalaya Capital Management bought the Reader's parent company Creative Loafing for $5 million. Atalaya managing partner Michael Bogdan told the Reader's Michael Miner, "It's absolutely our intention to run it. The Reader's a great publication and we want to make it even better." Whet Moser has more and Miner also spoke to former Tribune managing editor Jim O'Shea who will likely play a role under the new management. more ›

• The tragic story of a 9-year-old boy who died while visiting a South Side construction site with his father today.
• Chicago Public Schools are pushing for a $43 million property tax increase; that breaks down to about $18 more a year for property owners.
• That fuel surcharge on city cabs goes back into effect on Thursday.

With all the doom and gloom about the city's 2010 budget, it seems the always-on-top-of-things Whet Moser of The Reader has zeroed in on a pretty easy solution: TIFs. more ›

There's plenty going on in Chicago's bid to claim the 2016 Summer Olympics. Here's a few of the stories that caught our eye. more ›

• Chicago Police are investigating what seems to be a serial rapist terrorizing the Bucktown neighborhood after another attack of a woman leaving the Western Ave. Blue Line stop.
• Former pro-wrestling star Verne Gagne is in hot water after a man he threw to the ground in a nursing home died as a result of the incident.
• On the eve of the 10th anniversary of Gene Siskel's death, former partner-in-criticism Roger Ebert gives a heartfelt remembrance of Siskel.