Chicago -
By Annie Waldman/ProPublica
Pope Francis has made serving the poor a central tenet of his papacy.
“Wealth makes us poor,” he told Cuban worshippers on Sunday, urging them not to forget “the smallest, the most abandoned.”
As the pope makes his first visit to the United States, he might want to reiterate that message to the nation’s Catholic colleges.
Posted on September 23, 2015
By Steve Rhodes
Anonymous sources, reckless rumors and uninformed speculation. Plus: My Only Japonais Story; United Airlines Has Finally Gone Too Far; Steve Reads The New York Post; and Steve Looks At Tinder.
Posted on September 22, 2015
By The Illinois Public Interest Research Group
Candidates in the 2016 presidential race would see a dramatic shift in their fundraising, and have a powerful incentive to focus more on small donors, under a proposed small donor public financing system, according to a study released on Tuesday by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group Education Fund.
Using candidate filings with the Federal Election Commission through July, “Boosting the Impact of Small Donors: How Matching Funds Would Reshape the 2016 Presidential Election” examines the impact of a program that matches small contributions with limited public funds for candidates who agree not to accept large donations.
“Right now, the vast majority of funds raised in this election are coming from big donors writing checks exponentially larger than most Americans can afford,” said Abe Scarr, Illinois PIRG Education Fund Director. “It doesn’t have to be that way. A small donor matching system would put democracy back in the hands of ordinary Americans.”
Posted on September 22, 2015
From Champaign To Chicago
“It started with an offhand remark made by Bob Dylan during his performance at Live Aid, the massive fundraising concert held at Wembley Stadium, London, and JFK Stadium, Philadelphia, in the early summer of 1985,” the History Channel notes.
“As television viewers around the world phoned in donations in support of African famine relief, Dylan said from the stage, ‘I hope that some of the money . . . maybe they can just take a little bit of it, maybe . . . one or two million, maybe . . . and use it, say, to pay the mortgages on some of the farms and, the farmers here, owe to the banks.’ Dylan would come under harsh criticism from Live Aid organizer Bob Geldof for his remarks (‘It was a crass, stupid and nationalistic thing to say,’ Geldof would later write), but he planted a seed with several fellow musicians who shared his concern over the state of the American family farm.
“Less than one month later, Willie Nelson, Neil Young and John Mellencamp announced plans for ‘Farm Aid,’ a benefit concert for America’s farmers held in Champaign, Illinois, on this day in 1985.”
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The History Of Farm Aid 30 Years After Its Founding In Illinois.
Posted on September 21, 2015
By The Electronic Frontier Foundation w/The Beachwood Added Value Affairs Desk
Appeals Court Affirms That Copyright Owners Must Consider Fair Use in Online Takedowns
A federal appeals court in San Francisco today affirmed that copyright holders must consider whether a use of material is fair before sending a takedown notice. The ruling came in Lenz v. Universal, often called the “dancing baby” lawsuit.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) represents Stephanie Lenz, who – back in 2007 – posted a 29-second video to YouTube of her children dancing in her kitchen. The Prince song “Let’s Go Crazy” was playing on a stereo in the background of the short clip. Universal Music Group sent YouTube a notice under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), claiming that the family video infringed the copyright in Prince’s song. EFF sued Universal on Lenz’s behalf, arguing that Universal abused the DMCA by improperly targeting a lawful fair use.
Posted on September 15, 2015
By Jon Herskovitz/Reuters
Hidden in the haze of the petrochemical plants and beyond the seemingly endless traffic jams, a Texas city has grown so large that it is poised to pass Chicago as the third biggest in the United States in the next decade.
Houston has been one of the fastest-growing U.S. cities for years, fueled by an energy industry that provided the backbone of the economy, low taxes and prospects of employment that have attracted job seekers.
But Houston also embodies the new, urban Texas, where political views have been drifting to the left, diversity is being embraced and newer residents are just as likely to drive a hybrid as a pickup truck.
Posted on September 14, 2015
By Alwyn Scott/Reuters
Boeing Co. is planning to move final production work for some 737 jetliners to a new facility in China, and is timing an announcement to coincide with the first U.S. state visit of China’s president, Xi Jinping, later this month, according to a published report.
The report in Aviation Week on Friday appeared to surprise elected officials, unions and industry leaders in Washington state, where Boeing now builds all 737s. The governor’s office, labor leaders and the industry association told Reuters they had not heard of the plan.
The International Association of Machinists District 751 said it was concerned about potential job losses. Boeing had not shared details of the plan, it also said.
Boeing declined to comment on the report, but issued a statement that left open the possibility, saying that it is always looking to expand and improve productivity.
Posted on September 12, 2015
By David Rohde/Reuters
U.S. government officials have blocked the release of 116 pages of defense lawyers’ notes detailing the torture that Guantanamo Bay detainee Abu Zubaydah says he experienced in CIA custody, defense lawyers said on Thursday.
The treatment of Zubaydah, who lost one eye and was waterboarded 83 times in a single month while held by the CIA, according to government documents, has been the focus of speculation for years.
“We submitted 116 pages in 10 separate submissions,” Joe Margulies, Zubaydah’s lead defense lawyer, told Reuters. “The government declared all of it classified.”
Posted on September 11, 2015
By Steve Rhodes
This is what it’s all about, people. Plus: I Worked In Florida; Dyett And The Problem With Process; The Only Sin Is Not Being Yourself.
Posted on September 6, 2015
