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Morning shorts
Wednesday, Jan 30, 2008 - Posted by Kevin Fanning * Real estate groups rally against Chicago transfer tax hike * ICC will hold hearings on Ameren rate hike request * Congressmen react angrily to VA findings * Illinois offers help for veterans with brain injuries * WTVP optimistic about financial future * Council to honor Mayor Sawyer on Friday * Chicago City Council panel backs earlier curfew
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- Ghost - Wednesday, Jan 30, 08 @ 8:56 am:
x-mas has come early for Obama…. Edwards is dropping out of the race.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/01/30/edwards/index.html
his supporters appear to trend a lot more towards Obama then HRC. Could really help Obama.
- Truthful James - Wednesday, Jan 30, 08 @ 9:32 am:
The demise of FutureGen; the cutbacks at Fermi — Illinois really has influence on the national scene. Not.
Rich — discovered the Future Gen article just because I was passing through. The Title in your Blog needs to have been more specific — evern a separate thread.
- The Federalist - Wednesday, Jan 30, 08 @ 10:18 am:
FutureGen: Now we know how the Indians felt about the Federal Government breaking promises and treaties. Hope we hold DOE’s feet to the fire. We may not win but we can inflict pain by exposing DOE to daylight.
- downstate hack - Wednesday, Jan 30, 08 @ 10:43 am:
Agree with Truthful James, the Future Gen story deserves a separate thread. Obama, Durbin and Rod and especially Republican leaders in Illinois should lead the charge on condemning USDOE back handed and unethical moves. If Texas would have been chosen Bodin would have increased funding.
- Anonymous - Wednesday, Jan 30, 08 @ 10:56 am:
I seem to remember there were a lot of caution flags flying about the future of the Future Gen project even before that big announcement was made in December. So, doesn’t Blago share some of the responsibility for the “cruel deception” of the residents of Mattoon — announcing the project as a done deal when it clearly was not?
- Ghost - Wednesday, Jan 30, 08 @ 11:21 am:
The Death of Print (Google launches America Votes)
Rich, interesting article about googles new service. short version, google claims to allow for much more targeted advertising for canidates, and is providing tracking tools that let individuals to filter infromation in elections to what they want to see.
The author also predicts this will hurt local online papers advertising dollars.
ANyway, looks linteresting to say the least.
http://www.thebusiness.co.uk/trading-floor/477901/google-launches-america-votes.thtml
- Snidely Whiplash - Wednesday, Jan 30, 08 @ 11:52 am:
Chicago’s real estate transfer tax is already oppressive, and a hike will make it even harder for first time buyers, who’ll have to come up with about four grand cash just to pay the City for the privilege of purchasing a $300k-$400k home, which unfortunately is now what it costs to live in a middling home in a decent neighborhood.
Most sellers are making huge windfalls selling homes they bought for $100k 20 years ago for $350k today. At least put the tax on the seller, who is better able to absorb it (generally).
- Truthful James - Wednesday, Jan 30, 08 @ 11:59 am:
Snidely,
Although R.E. Brokers like to convey the polite fiction, it is not the seller who pays. Directly or indirectly, the biyer pays by meeting seller’s acceptable price (as opposed to listing) price.
Seller may require a few dollars more, but the only people it benefits is the Assessor who can then raise the taxable value a few dollars more in assigning the A.V. The buyer then pays marginally higher taxes for the privilege.
- Snidely Whiplash - Wednesday, Jan 30, 08 @ 12:19 pm:
James,
Understood, but my point is that the buyer has to come up with the City’s “share” as part of their closing costs and must (and least “should”) come up with that in cash at closing, in addition to their down payment and other costs.