Chicago -
By Steve Rhodes
“Dozens of suburban Chicago families, perhaps many more, have been exploiting a legal loophole to win their children need-based college financial aid and scholarships they would not otherwise receive, court records and interviews show,” ProPublica Illinois reports.
Oh lord, what now?
Posted on July 30, 2019
By Steve Rhodes
“The race to roll out recreational marijuana in Illinois is encountering an unexpected obstacle: resistance from municipalities that want no part of the pot party,” Crain’s reports.
“Naperville City Council members recently voted 5-4 to reject recreational-use sales in the western suburb. Naperville joins Libertyville and Bloomingdale in pursuing opt-out rights under a little-noticed provision of legislation allowing recreational marijuana sales across the state starting Jan. 1. The law allows towns and cities to bar retailers from selling pot for recreational use within their borders.
“Other suburbs, including North Aurora, Deerfield, Bannockburn and Mokena, are scheduled to take up the issue soon. More municipal bans could slow the growth of recreational sales and the tax revenue state officials expect from marijuana.”
Posted on July 29, 2019
By Steve Rhodes
Getting a rare Friday column of sorts up post-podcast today.
Meanwhile . . .
Posted on July 26, 2019
By Steve Rhodes
“The national president of the Fraternal Order of Police demanded Thursday that Mayor Lori Lightfoot apologize to rank and file Chicago Police officers – and ‘conduct herself with more dignity and less immaturity’ – after Lightfoot was captured on an open mic calling their second vice-president ‘this FOP clown,'” the Sun-Times reports.
“Chuck Canterbury jumped into the controversy triggered by Lightfoot’s off-handed remark, first by tweeting the demand for a mayoral apology, then by accusing Lightfoot of immature behavior that has left Chicago Police officers feeling unappreciated by their new boss.”
Well, Canterbury certainly knows a thing or two about dignity and maturity.
Posted on July 25, 2019
By Steve Rhodes
You can find my vital, must-read Mueller testimony commentary on Twitter.
I will, however, highlight this tweet here, because it didn’t get the attention it deserves in so wittily articulating the frustration with his unwillingness – at least in the first half of the proceedings – to actually say anything:
Mueller, at home with his wife tonight:
WIFE: Oh Daddy!
MUELLER: I refer you to the report.#MuellerHearing
— Beachwood Reporter (@BeachwoodReport) July 24, 2019
Posted on July 24, 2019
By Steve Rhodes
“Mayor Lori Lightfoot and immigrant rights groups have sought to get Marriott hotels to cancel or move a trade conference hosted by U.S. Customs and Border Protection out of Chicago – but the convention will likely start on Tuesday as planned,” the Sun-Times reports.
“The agency is set to hold its annual trade symposium at the Marriott Marquis Chicago in the South Loop on Tuesday and Wednesday.”
As I’ve said before, I don’t think it’s fully appreciated that some local and state governments are essentially (and rightly) in a cold war with a federal law enforcement agency.
Posted on July 23, 2019
By Steve Rhodes
“Former Vice President Joe Biden has used Barack Obama’s beloved status among Democratic voters to insulate him from criticism from the massive field of candidates jockeying to be the next president,” the Daily Beast reports.
“But in recent weeks, the Democratic frontrunner has had that legacy used against him, with his competitors pointing the to shortcomings of the last Democratic administration as evidence that Biden’s not up to the task of leading the next one.
“Barack Obama, personally, is incredibly popular among Democratic primary voters,” Karthik Ganapathy, a progressive consultant now running his own firm, told The Daily Beast. “And also at the same time, there’s a growing recognition that income and wealth inequality got worse under his eight years, the climate crisis got worse during his eight years, deportations went up during his time in office, and so on.”
No comment.
Posted on July 22, 2019
By Steve Rhodes
For completionists, there was no column on Thursday.
An unexpectedly boozy long night on Wednesday screwed up the start of my latest long Weekend at Benny’s, and I’ve been trying to catch up ever since. Almost there.
I’m working on a column to post later today or as a Weekend Desk Report and, as of this writing, at 1 p.m., I just finished recording The Beachwood Radio Sports Hour #261 with Jim “Coach” Coffman. I’ll have that up later today.
5:51 P.M. Update: It’s up!
In the meantime, here’s some placeholder stuff because I hate seeing “The [Wednesday] Papers” up there when it’s Friday.
Posted on July 19, 2019
By Steve Rhodes
Now that Gatorgate is over, I’m going to try to ease myself back into the news which has been piling up over here due to procrastination, boredom, depression, frustration, and general so-sick-of-it-iveness.
Fortunately, given the heat wave moving in, I’ll be working from the comfort of the Beachwood’s Bucktown Benny Bureau today through Tuesday. Great timing, Dr. Nick!
Posted on July 17, 2019
By Steve Rhodes
Summer 2019 came to a close Tuesday when a Florida trapper caught the Humboldt Park Gator on his first try in the dark of night after a week of fun in an otherwise shitty season we’ll call Bummer. Now that the fun is over, horrible weather is closing in again and the city returns to a depressed condition induced by climate change and the worst presidency ever. Thanks for the good times, Gator Whose Name Should Be Humboldt in part because Chance the Snapper is too slick and too much of a mouthful. (The other part: Humboldt, duh.)
Posted on July 16, 2019
