Chicago - A message from the station manager

The [Tuesday] Papers

By Steve Rhodes

It was another Weekend at Benny’s.
bennycolumn.jpg
I love that cat.


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Of course, every time I see Benny he lobbies for more cat news in the Beachwood. I’m always like, “Dude, you should be my cat correspondent!” And he’s like, “How much does it pay?” And that’s where the conversation always ends.
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See the entire weekend photo album here.
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Back In Black To School
“The new school year began Tuesday for about 350,000 Chicago Public Schools students. Children and their parents dodged raindrops as weather made for a soggy start to the morning,” the Tribune reports.
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Labor Nay
“The sights and sounds of the annual Labor Day parade drew thousands of spectators Monday, marking one of the last hurrahs of summer,” the Rockford Register-Star reports.
“Members of Ironworkers Local 498 rode atop a steel girder to recreate ‘Lunch Atop a Skyscraper,’ a famous 1932 photo of ironworkers having lunch 69 floors above New York City during the final months of construction of the RCA building. The Local 498 girder in Rockford’s parade was on the back of a truck and carried nine men and two women who waved to onlookers.”
It’s pretty awesome! Click through to see.
However . . .
“According to archivists, the photograph was in fact prearranged. Although the photograph shows real ironworkers, it is believed that the moment was staged by Rockefeller Center to promote its new skyscraper. Other photographs taken on the same day show some of the workers throwing a football and pretending to sleep on the girder. The photo appeared in the Sunday photo supplement of the New York Herald Tribune on October 2, 1932.”
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“Some historians believe there was a sturdy level of the structure, then called the RCA building, just below the frame,” the Washington Post reports.
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Still, these are pretty cool:


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Also: Timmy never fell down a well.
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Labor Day Lead
“Cookouts, parties, and family dinners were pretty common this Labor Day, but they’re running differently in University Park,” CBS2 Chicago reports.
“[M]any families in the south suburb still can’t trust their running water. And they have been going without safe, lead-free running water all summer, but never saw this continuing all the way into Labor Day weekend. And they’ve had it.”
The Illinois Attorney General’s Office filed suit against University Park’s water supplier, Aqua Illinois, last month.
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“According to Aqua, things are improving and impacted residents can drink and use their tap water if they run the water for two to three minutes and then use specialized filters.

“As a reminder, you can consume your tap water while under the advisory if you take the proper protective steps, which include running cold tap water for two to three minutes and then filtering cold tap water through faucet filters or pitcher filters certified by the NSF to remove lead,” Aqua said in a community update issued this past Friday. “If you haven’t already, we recommend impacted customers watch our video tutorial outlining these steps.”

“But University Park families said they would not be taking that chance.”
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Aqua’s core values are Integrity, Respect and the Pursuit of Excellence.
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Aqua’s chairman, president and chief executive officer is Christopher Franklin.
“Franklin also attained national print and broadcast media coverage for the company, changed the name and rebranded the company and its subsidiaries, and expanded its investor relations outreach to increase analyst coverage of the company.”
Good job, Franklin.
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“[W]e have built unprecedented momentum in our municipal acquisition strategy, which is largely the result of the passage of fair market value legislation in a number of our states,” Franklin said in an earnings call last February.
From an August 2018 press release:
“Aqua America Inc. (NYSE: WTR) today stated that amended legislation signed into law by Governor Bruce Rauner will continue to allow companies like Aqua to pay a fair market value for water and wastewater systems, benefitting local governments, customers, and the environment.”
Then-state Sen. Kwame Raoul was one of the sponsors of that bill – not that there’s necessarily anything wrong with that. I really don’t know. I have no clue. Just flagging it. Perhaps someone can fill me in. But maybe play nice with your customers and show some gratitude. Many folks run their tap water through filters as a matter of course, but no one wants to be warned by the water company that they ought to do it just to be safe. That does not inspire confidence – which means, Mr. Franklin, you’ve failed at your job. You are in charge of people’s water! Act like it.
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Meanwhile . . .
“All public schools in East Chicago, Indiana were ordered closed Monday due to a water boil order.”
Wasn’t Monday a holiday? Or was Monday the day the schools were ordered closed? To wit:
“All schools will be closed Tuesday due to a citywide boil advisory, the School City of East Chicago said in a news release Monday night,” the Northwest Indiana Times reports.
Whatever the case, that strikes me as not good.
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New on the Beachwood . . .
An Exuberant Latin American History Of Pop Art
This looks really cool – at the Block Museum up at Northwestern this month through December.
The exhibition examines how Pop Art’s bold and colorful imagery, references to mass culture and representations of everyday objects, signs and symbols, were embraced by artists working across the hemisphere. Pop América also takes a timely and critical look at the social and political impulses behind Pop Art from the mid-1960s through the mid-1970s.
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Taylor Swift Killed Arlington Park
The real reason why we can’t have nice things.
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Patience And Payment
How the White Sox need to finish what they’ve started.
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Beachwood Sports Radio: Bipolar Cubs Now In Manic Phase
Hungry Nick and the dinosaurs. Plus: Steve Albini, Master Of Sparks; How Yu Darvish, Jose Quintana and Lucas Giolito Turned It Around; Chili Stew; This Would Be The Perfect Ending To The Bears’ Kicking Circus And Give The City A New Hero To Replace Alligator Robb; and more!
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ChicagoReddit

r/inclusiveor Chicago edition from r/chicago


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ChicagoGram


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ChicagoTube
Toy Hunting In Chicago.

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BeachBook
A sampling of our latest offerings over there.
As Rising Heat Bakes U.S. Cities, The Poor Feel It Most.

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Tracksmith Marketing Itself As The Anti-Nike.

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What We’ll Lose By Limiting September Rosters.

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When A Southwest Airlines Flight Was Delayed, Passengers Got Increasingly Frustrated. Then The Gate Agent Did Something Remarkable.

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What I Know About Famous Men’s Penises.

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TweetWood
A sampling of the delight and disgust you can find @BeachwoodReport.
It’s really an interesting phenomenon – how many people don’t believe in the truth when it gets in the way of their earnings, or acquiring/maintaining power. They just don’t believe we should live in a world where facts matter. Our whole culture is built on deceit. Deceiving each other for money, influence, sadist satisfaction. That’s why I hate it so much when journalists – and others in “truth professions,” such as those in the criminal justice system – betray their core values (and so blithely). Of course, every profession should be a truth profession. Would we really fail to function economically if everybody just decided to be honest? Perhaps we’d prosper more! Instead of working hard to create fake trust with consumers, for example, you could actually earn real trust! Wouldn’t profits skyrocket? A race to the truth top! Anyway, this Ring dude is a failure as a human.


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From Inc.’s Founders Project: First, I Lost on Shark Tank. Then, I Sold My Startup for Over $1 Billion.
“Failing on Shark Tank was a low point for Ring founder Jamie Siminoff – but it forced him to succeed.”
Good job, everyone.
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“Does Trump Ever Lie? White House Press Secretary Says ‘No.'”
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“The Trump Team Is Now Lying About Lying.”
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The Beachwood McTipster Line: Skat, Kat.

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Posted on September 3, 2019