By The Ghost of Lefty Rosenthal

With Pat Quinn’s rubbery spine the only thing left standing between sanity and a dramatic expansion of gambling in Illinois, we might as well start thinking about where the new Chicago casino will be located, along with possible names and themes.
* Capone’s, 2135 S. Michigan. The former location of Capone’s downtown headquarters, the Lexington Hotel, is perfect: close to McCormick Place with plenty of places to stash getaway cars. Geraldo Rivera could headline.
* Planet Las Vegas, 633 N. Wells. Bring back the Planet Hollywood gang and give them the whole of River North. Or just let each themed restaurant have its own casino. Bruce Willis and Sly Stallone could headline.
* Circus Circus, 1901 W. Madison. All those parking lots around the United Center offer plenty of room to build a casino around the arena, which could then also become the permanent home of the Ringling Bros. circus so the Bulls wouldn’t have to take that awful trip out west every year when the elephants come to town. Bozo could headline.

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Posted on June 1, 2011

By Ed Hammer

As we get closer to the end of the saga of Rod Blagojevich, with a jury about to decide the former governor’s fate for a second time, I wonder what he will be like in prison, where he is almost certainly going. The media image of Blago is that of a clown – almost likable, if you like clowns. How will that play out behind bars?

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Posted on May 31, 2011

By Steve Rhodes

From the peanut gallery, day one. All quotes are real*.
BLAGO: I’m Rod Blagojevich. I used to be your governor.
RHODES: Before I was impeached.
*
BLAGO: I’m here today to tell you the truth.
RHODES: Patti did it.
*
BLAGO: I’ve waited two-and-a-half years to get the truth out.
RHODES: And I’ve kept my mouth shut the entire time.

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Posted on May 27, 2011

By Ed Hammer

I do not know why, but there seems to be a trend in our culture to blame particular groups of people for specific ills. We blame all of Islam for 9/11. We blame immigrants for high unemployment. We blame African Americans for our cities’ high crime rates. We blame the uninsured for the health-care crisis. And now we are blaming teachers for failing schools.
I, personally, blame politicians for everything.
The fact of the matter is that most issues are complex. A multitude of variables are the cause for most crises. No entire race, religion, or class of people is responsible for any specific problem.
School budgets are in the red. Pensions are on the verge of bankruptcy. Student test scores are flagging.
Whose fault is that? Teachers’?
Again, I blame the politicians.

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Posted on May 26, 2011

By The Beachwood Private Sector Affairs Desk

“Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s top economic advisers promise nothing less than reinvention of city government as they develop strategies for slashing a looming massive deficit,” the Tribune reports. “Ultimately, Chicagoans may end up with a government more like Charlotte, N.C., which tries to run as much like a private business as possible.”
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We’ve heard a lot over the years about running government like a business and it’s always baffled us. Think of your own workplace; do you really want your government run like that?
Unlike governments, businesses go belly up all the time. Most start-ups are failures. Customer service is practically non-existent, incompetence is rampant and most of us are getting ripped off; would you really want Comcast or AT&T in charge of picking up your garbage, much less policing your streets?
Still, if that’s what the public wants – or, more like, profiteering insiders – then we’ve got a few suggestions for Rahm & Co.

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Posted on May 24, 2011

By The Task Force To Oppose Casino Gambling For Chicago

Talk of another attempt to install a casino in Chicago is once again rampant.
The talk may be just that – talk.
The two suburban legislators spearheading the effort refuse to discuss details of legislation, but hint a bill mirroring previous attempts at casino expansion will be introduced. Previous bills called for a Chicago casino as well as one in Rockford, Park City (near Waukegan), Danville and an undisclosed location in the south suburbs. Additionally current casinos would have more slots and horse racing tracks would have first time slots.
Recent campaign disclosures show that legislative casino proponents as well as other legislative leaders have received large campaign contributions from horse tracks and casinos.

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Posted on May 23, 2011

By Ed Hammer

The buzz around Rahm Emanuel’s inauguration this week reminded me of each time a new Secretary of State took office and signs had to be changed.
I served under four Secretaries of State: Dixon, Edgar, Ryan and White. The day each one was sworn into office, the process to change the name on the signs began post-haste. We are talking a lot of signs here. There were signs in hallways; signs on doors; signs outside buildings; and signs from Rockford to Cairo. Signs, signs everywhere a sign, clogging up the scenery. Breaking my mind.
I was a special agent supervisor for the Chicago office of the Secretary of State inspector general in 1991 when George Ryan was sworn in as Illinois’ 36th Secretary of State. That morning, a couple of workers removed Jim Edgar’s name from our office’s lobby door and put Ryan’s name in place. Edgar was a good boss and I knew it was an end to an era.
Additionally, in a true example of government efficacy, Edgar’s photo was removed from the front office’s wall and swapped with an image of Ryan that was three times larger. It was an omen of the problems we were about to face in the Department of Inspector General.
Similar deeds in Chicago were being reported as Rahm Emanuel began to assume office this week. The new mayor quickly reacted and ordered that only signs that were “essential” be changed. Some of those essential locations included the airport and the Skyway.
“I do not want people rushing out, making changes on a whole bunch of signs, wasting time, wasting dollars, for no reason,” Emanuel declared.
Back in February, when Rahm was still just a candidate for mayor, he reminded city workers that they were “actually public servants.” I am glad some of the workers were able to serve the public this week by letting us know who their new boss is. We might otherwise have been in left the dark.
Who says government workers are lazy?

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Posted on May 20, 2011

By Jesse Eisinger/ProPublica

After the worst crisis since the Great Depression, President Obama has unleashed an unusual force to regulate the financial system: a bunch of empty seats.
With Sheila C. Bair soon to leave her post at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Obama administration will have five major bank regulatory positions either unfilled or staffed with acting directors.

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Posted on May 19, 2011

By Deadly Talk

“I don’t understand about the world sometimes.”

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Homeless Chicago Man Donates $9,000+ From Daily Handouts He Receives To Help Struggling Mother & Child!

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Posted on May 18, 2011

By Mary J. Cristobal/Illinois Statehouse News
EDITOR’S NOTE 5/18: The validity of this story is now under question.
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EDITOR’S NOTE 5/24: Illinois Statehouse News has issued this correction: “In a report on legislative pay cuts and legislative pay raises, Illinois Statehouse News misidentified legislation in the Illinois Senate. SB260 deals with furloughs. SB2467 addresses lump sum appropriations that could result in pay increases for some lawmakers. Illinois Statehouse News regrets the error.”
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Illinois lawmakers usually say it loud and proud when they cut their own pay to save the state some money, but they are much quieter about raising their salaries.
A state Senate panel on Monday passed a plan requiring General Assembly members to take 12 furlough days for fiscal year 2012, which starts in July.
However, the same proposal, SB260, includes the “additional amounts per year” for other lawmakers – committee chairmen and committee minority spokesmen and spokeswomen.
The lump-sum appropriations in the proposal would increase pay for Senate committee chiefs by 14 percent. House committee bosses would see a 47-percent jump in pay. These increases are on top of the base $67,836 annual salaries that all lawmakers earn. Committee and leadership posts bring extra pay.
In other words, more taxpayers’ money would be funneled into extra pay for select lawmakers, said state Sen. Dale Righter, R-Mattoon.

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Posted on May 17, 2011