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The [Wednesday] Papers

By Steve Rhodes

“Legislation that aimed to diversify corporate boards in Illinois passed during the final days of the General Assembly’s spring legislative session, but was stripped of a key provision that would have mandated minority representation,” the Tribune reports.


“The bill, H.B. 3394, would have required Illinois companies to have at least one woman, an African American and a Latino on their boards. But the version that passed the Senate dropped that requirement in favor of one mandating that publicly traded companies in Illinois report on their websites the demographics of their board and executive ranks as well as plans for promoting diversity in the workplace.”
I’m pretty sure most publicly traded companies already do that. If not, you can almost always just look at the board yourself and at least make some determinations as to diversity. So a big nothingburger.

“It’s a different bill, but I do believe the objectives of the original bill will be met,” said Rep. Emanuel “Chris” Welch, D-Westchester, who authored the bill.

Hardly. Look, I don’t know if a legal requirement as to the makeup of corporate boards is the way to go, but don’t piss on my leg and tell me it’s raining.
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“Data collected by the Tribune last month found that of the 30 most valuable companies according to market capitalization in Illinois, all but one had at least three women on their boards. Half had only one African American, and six – Walgreens, Kraft-Heinz, Mondelez, Arthur Gallagher, IDEX and TransUnion – had no African Americans.”
Half of the boards had no Latinos at all, and the rest had only one Latino board member or declined to comment.
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“While this legislation moves us in the right direction and toward a commendable level of transparency, I am disappointed that the end result was significantly watered-down and has no regulatory teeth,” Felicia Davis, president and CEO of the Chicago Foundation for Women, told the Tribune. “Building diverse corporate boards, ones that truly reflect the population of our state, is no small undertaking. The understandable concern is that companies won’t prioritize diversity on their boards if it is not required.”
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Note: I slightly edited some of the Tribune passages for higher quality, including adding links – like to their own damn review last month.
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American Eyewear
“When so many industries got globalized in the 1980s, the American makers of eyeglasses got pummeled from two directions: The Italians were better at fashion, and the Chinese could copy just about any design and produce it cheaper than anybody. Hallowed names like Bausch & Lomb, American Optical and ArtCraft all hit the skids in the years that followed,” Crain’s reports.
“Today the surviving makers of eyewear in the U.S. can be counted on one hand. But the biggest of all, State Optical, is just five years old and based in Vernon Hills, where a partnership of four headed by CEO Scott Shapiro is churning out high-quality acetate frames in a 20,000-square-foot plant where 65 people are employed.”
I did not know this. Or if I did, I forgot.
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But is it really okay for State Optical to say this?
“State Optical Co. is a first-of-its-kind brand of luxury American eyewear proudly being manufactured in Chicago, USA.”
After all, they’re based in Vernon Hills, and the last time I asked Alexa, Vernon Hills was not Chicago.
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“‘The U.S. eyewear manufacturing industry may be “poised for a comeback,’ in the view of one company owner,” Invision reports.
“Charles Whitehill, owner of Shuron, says demand is increasing for his firm’s offerings, according to an article published by Crain’s Chicago Business.
“The comments were part of a profile on State Optical, which the publication says is the largest U.S. eyewear maker. Shuron, based in Greenville, SC, is the second-largest.
“We’ve got customers from Canada and Japan and all over coming to us to make American products for them, said Whitehill, who is 82. ‘We can’t keep up with the orders.'”
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It turns out State Optical has been a bit of a media darling in recent years. To wit:
* Observer: This ‘Made in Chicago’ Optical Brand Is Bringing Luxury To The Midwest.
* Chicago: Everything You Need For A Gourmet Picnic. (They’re the sunglasses.)
* CNN Business: Chicago Factory’s Rare Mission: Manufacture Eyewear In U.S.
So maybe not as much as it first appeared on Google, but in 2017, yes.
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This Just In


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First Carlin, Now The Dead


With no corrections as far as I can see. Hey Trib edit board, hold yourself accountable before preaching to everybody else. (See both the thread and the Cap Fax post.)
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ChicagoReddit

Volunteer stuff for elderly lady to do from r/chicago


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ChicagoGram
Take it EZ.

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Zero + cold beer ❤️ @zerothepom #chicago #dogs

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ChicagoTube
Vince “Lefty” Johnson’s original “Night Train” / West Side Chicago Blues.

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BeachBook
“I Work In The Environmental Movement. I Don’t Care If You Recycle.”

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A Computer Engineer Had The Brilliant Idea Of Using Snapchat’s Gender-Swapping Filter On Artworks.

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Student Punished After Putting High School Up For Sale On Craigslist.

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TweetWood
A sampling.
Global capitalism is brutal. Our luxuries – and mere conveniences – are provided by the broken backs of other people we deem “less than” or merely ignore. Including children. Real trade agreements would fix this.


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The Beachwood McRibTipLine: On the regular.

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Posted on June 5, 2019