SmartRemarks

The Chicago Reader is a local institution. It dates back to 1971, one of the oldest free weekly papers in the country (preceded by the Village Voice and perhaps one or two others). And it’s been near and dear to my heart since I first moved to Chicago in the mid ’80s. It always provided a reliable weekly dose of irreverent local commentary and, more importantly, it was the clearinghouse for information on what was going on around town where and when, and whether it was worth your attention.

Then, two years ago, it was sold to Tampa’s Creative Loafing media company. It’s been downhill ever since.

Yesterday, after a lengthy court battle, the Reader changed ownership again… in bankruptcy court. And what happens next… is anybody’s guess.

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Tags: Chicago, Chicago Reader, internet, journalism, media

Here’s a man-bites-dog story for you:  on Tuesday in Springfield, capital of our fair state, over 5,000 people rallied in support of a tax increase. 

There’s good reason for this. The state income tax is flat (i.e., regressive) and one of the lowest in the country, at only three percent… and has been kept that way for years, placing political advantage over good sense, as the state has run a chronic structural deficit.

The current economic meltdown has exacerbated that situation to the point where it’s no longer possible to ignore or “fix” with accounting shell games. The state was facing an $11.5 billion deficit for FY 2010 alone. That’s nearly as large as California’s, and nearly twice as bad when measured per capita. Thus, Gov. Pat Quinn (the successor to our illustrious indicted Gov. Blagojevich), who as I have written before is a reformer and basically decent guy who therefore could never have made it to the governor’s office through conventional means, has proposed a painful but fair and prudent solution: some budget cuts (about $1.3 billion, including some layoffs and furloughs), accompanied by a modest tax increase—bumping the corporate rate from 4.8 to 7.2 percent, and the personal rate from 3.0 to 4.5 percent (with the automatic exemption increased from $2000 to $6000 per person). 

Now, you might think that with a Democratic governor, a Democratic state senate, a Democratic state assembly, an obvious emergency on their collective hands, and broad public support, it wouldn’t be too hard to get this passed, right? But this is Illinois.

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Tags: Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, Lisa Madigan, Mike Madigan, Pat Quinn, taxes, Todd Stroger

My 20th college reunion was last weekend. I was a bit taken aback by this because, first of all, it’s simply impossible:  I certainly haven’t been out of college for two decades. My infallibly accurate internal calendar tells me it’s more like six years, seven max. But twenty? That’s absolutely ridiculous.

Nonetheless, they insisted on holding the event, and I attended. I’ve always had a soft spot for reunions, not least because I’ve never really been the best at keeping in touch with people as time goes by (although Facebook does make that a lot easier these days), and organized reunions provide a great opportunity to “catch up.” 

I hung out with a lot of old friends, new acquaintances, and a few professors, and generally had a terrific time. (The Saturday afternoon wine tasting, ironically one of the least expensive events, was particularly enjoyable.) Still, there was something of a wistful feeling to the whole endeavor that it wasn’t quite possible to shake.

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Tags: Chicago, college, Shoreland, unemployment, University of Chicago

First things first:  after what we’ve suffered through in recent years, merely being able to say “Governor Pat Quinn” is almost as delightful as being able to say “President Barack Obama.” 8-) 

After a mere seven weeks in office, Illinois’ new governor has a budget proposal ready, and he gave a formal address in Springfield yesterday announcing it. I listened to the whole thing on Chicago Public Radio, unfiltered and uninterrupted, no sound bites, no spin. (Who doesn’t love public radio?) Anyone who missed it can listen here, or read the full text here (courtesy of  the Tribune’s Eric Zorn).

It was a strong speech, and it sounds like a courageous budget—tackling some issues that state government has been dodging for years. There will nevertheless be a great reactionary hue and cry (as the comment thread on the Trib’s initial article demonstrates) because it includes a small income tax increase.

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Tags: budget proposal, Chicago, economy, Illinois, Mike Madigan, Pat Quinn, taxes

The question of who will fill Obama’s Senate seat has gotten the lion’s share of media coverage, but meanwhile things are heating up around another question, the one of who will replace Obama’s Chief of Staff—Rahm Emanuel—in the seat from Illinois’ fifth Congressional district, here in Chicago.

I went to a meeting tonight of the local chapter of Democracy For America (the organization that springboarded out of Howard Dean’s 2004 presidential run), for a presentation and discussion of what’s happening in the 5th district. The room was packed, standing room only—I’d estimate at least 80 people there, on a cold wintry weeknight. Locally, at least, this contest is attracting some real attention.

I used to live in the 5th… back in the ’90s when it was represented by Dan Rostenkowski, then (for one term) Republican Michael Flanagan, then Rod Blagojevich… although I’d moved on to a new neighborhood by the time Rahm was elected in 2002. Not exactly a list covered with glory, but still, as those names might suggest (except for Flanagan, the only successful GOP challenger for the seat in 50 years), it’s a district that carries a bit more weight than the average Congressional seat, in terms of influence and career prospects.

And unlike the Senate seat, a vacancy has to be filled by special election. The primary for this one will be held on March 3, only eight weeks away. Chicago being a Democratic city, whoever wins the primary will win the general… and whoever wins the general can quite likely stay in Congress for as long as he pleases after that. And given that genuinely open Congressional seats in Chicago are not exactly everyday occurrences, it’s a free-for-all.

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Tags: Chicago, House of Representatives, Illinois, media, Rahm Emanuel, Tom Geoghegan, voting

A completely subjective list, of course. But what the hell… aren’t they all?

Going in to 2008, one could hardly open a magazine or flip a channel without hitting a media comparison to 1968. It was 40 years ago (a nice, round number), and it was a paradigm-shifting political year that looked familiar, with an open competition for the presidential nomination in both parties, all while a war was on overseas.

As it turned out, 2008 was a momentous year in its own right, arguably the most significant year in decades, and without question one we will all remember vividly. But it was not assassinations and riots that made its mark in the history books, unlike in 1968; it brought distinctive events all its own.

There’s not really a lot of room for debate over the two most significant news events of the year, and the annual AP survey of news editors corresponds with what almost all of us would surely conclude on our own, a point-counterpoint of encouraging and discouraging developments:

1) The presidential election of Barack Obama

I’ve already written quite a bit about this one, of course… but suffice it to say that it’s historic for the fact that he’ll be the first African-American president; it’s historic for the fact that he won with a (generally) upbeat, honorable, serious campaign; and it’s historic in that it marks a realignment back toward progressive politics after a generation of destructive radical conservatism, and after eight years of arguably the single worst president in American history. How Obama really performs in office of course remains to be seen, but what he’s accomplished so far this year stands on its own.

2) The worst economic meltdown in our lifetimes

Written more than a little about this, too, of course. It seems almost quaint now to recall that when I started this blog, back in mid-September—although we now know that we were already nine months into a recession—it was still possible to ask “how bad is the economy?” and wonder if it would still get worse. Within days, everything started to go to hell in a handbasket… in a way that seems to have created a destructive feedback loop, where every new development just exacerbates what came before. Homes foreclosing, jobs disappearing, businesses (and entire industries) collapsing, credit freezing, investments evaporating… we’ll remember this for a long time, no matter how much we might prefer to forget it.

After that, the choices grow more arguable. My assessment:

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Tags: Blagojevich, Chicago, climate, Congress, economy, Election 2008, financial crisis, FISA, history, Illinois, international, iPhone, journalism, Madoff, media, Obama, Top 10 lists

We all knew Gov. Rod Blagojevich was under a federal investigation, but nobody expected developments as dramatic as what happened today. FBI agents arrested Democratic Gov. Blagojevich at his home this morning, at the direction of U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald—the same man who brought down his predecessor, Republican Gov. George Ryan.

(Chicago is famous for its political corruption, but the state of Illinois as a whole is really no better, and it has always been bipartisan. In fact, this was our fourth governor out of five to be indicted, and if he’s convicted—not something to bet against—he’ll be the third out of five.)

Fitzgerald is emerging as the incorruptible prosecutor of the century, “a modern-day Elliot Ness“:  alongside his gubernatorial investigations he’s made time to convict Scooter Libby in the Valerie Plame case, not to mention former Sun-Times owner Conrad Black, and he’s also looked into the Daley administration. In fact, Blago’s Chief of Staff John Harris (also arrested today) spent nine years working for Daley, and his nose was none too clean then either; Daley and the rest of City Hall’s fifth floor must be feeling a little nervous themselves at this point.

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Tags: Blagojevich, Chicago, Illinois, Obama, Patrick Fitzgerald, Rahm Emanuel

Sorry, couldn’t resist the pun.

Seldom in political life has two-and-a-half months seemed quite so long a wait. People voted for Obama because they want change, and the daily news just makes them want it all the sooner. (Just today:  GM stock hits its lowest value in 60 years, DHL ceases North American operations and fires nearly 10,000 people, Circuit City declares bankruptcy as it goes into the holiday season owing $650 million to its suppliers.) But the inauguration isn’t until January 20, and as Obama pointed out in his press conference Friday, the country only has one president at a time.

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Tags: Chicago, Obama, Rahm Emanuel, transition