Morning shorts
Wednesday, Oct 22, 2008 - Posted by Kevin Fanning
* More Illinois schools fail to meet No Child goals
However, an analysis of the data finds 39 percent of Illinois public school districts failing to make adequate yearly progress this year, compared with 28 percent in 2007.
Statewide, 31 percent of schools failed to meet NCLB targets on student reading and math tests, compared with 24 percent in 2007.
* More Illinois schools fail to meet No Child Left Behind goals
* Middle School Teachers May Have to Go Back to School
The Chicago Board of Education will vote on a new policy today that would force many middle school teachers to pay for an additional credential.
* CPS Employees Indicted for Engaging in Paycheck Scheme
* Assessor’s tax-relief idea a ’stunt’: Daley
* Mayor reverses on who’s to blame
Two years ago, Mayor Daley accepted his share of responsibility and offered to “apologize to anyone” for the torture of suspects by Jon Burge — even as he argued that the ultimate responsibility rests with the Chicago Police Department.
On Tuesday, the mayor changed his tune.
* Aldermen want Burge to pay back pension
* After decades of accusations, Burge finally faces charges
* Cook County judge still faces claims in torture case
Cook County Judge Dennis Dernbach is the last remaining defendant in the multi-million dollar lawsuits that four alleged torture victims brought against the city and county.
The lawsuits claim murder confessions were coerced by former Chicago Police Cmdr. Jon Burge and his officers.
* Fitzgerald Announces Burge Indictment
* Burge indictment was a good day for justice
* Feds catch up with Burge
The perjury and obstruction of justice counts against Burge mark the first criminal charges in the long-running scandal. But a dozen or more officers once under Burge’s command who have denied under oath taking part in the alleged torture could be in legal peril as well.
The indictment of the 60-year-old Burge breathes new life into a scandal that has had a stubborn hold on the Police Department and the city and involves claims of abuse—electric shock, Russian roulette and suffocation with bags and typewriter covers. The allegations continue to figure prominently in the appeals of dozens of inmates.
* Daley stands firm on 2009 budget cuts
“You have to balance your budget. These are difficult times. … I’d like to have more policemen. I’d like to have all of these things. Sure. Everybody would. If you ask any citizen, they’d like to have it. But, next year is gonna be worse than this year. We have to be realistic.”
* Investing in Low-Income Communities
* Salt price hikes worry suburbs
* Governments offered bargains on surplus goods
Local government and non-profit agencies will learn how to purchase state and federal surplus items at deep discounts during an event at Shawnee Community College Friday.
* The Illinois Technology Partnership is giving away iPhones
- schock commercial? - Wednesday, Oct 22, 08 @ 10:01 am:
how about the video of the new schock commercial featuring mendoza?
- Levois - Wednesday, Oct 22, 08 @ 10:17 am:
Mayor Daley wasn’t having a very good day yesterday wasn’t he?
- Ravenswood Right Winger - Wednesday, Oct 22, 08 @ 10:43 am:
Hoepfully the media gives Daley some scrutiny for his actions (or lack thereof) when he was Cook County State’s Attorney when all this cop torture was allegedly taking place.
Given the media’s lack of testicular virility to examine this (or Obama’s record) I doubt it.
- Amy - Wednesday, Oct 22, 08 @ 11:04 am:
City budget difficult times….well, cut out the PR contracts! Katz and Jasculca Terman are listed as having done PR work for the Blue Bag system. since that was such a failure, why more money for people who got questionable results? If the times are tough, the purse strings should be tightened on outside contracts.
- fedup dem - Wednesday, Oct 22, 08 @ 11:21 am:
I think a big round of thanks should go to attorney Frank Avila, who served as the attorney for Aaron Paterson, one of the four former Death Row inmates who shared in a $20 million settlement from the City of Chicago back in January. Avila played a major role in keeping public attention focused on this case for years.
In addition to representing his client in court proceedings that seemed like they would never end, Avila repeatedly hosted numerous public affairs programs on Cable-TV to discuss the police torture issue. Avila and others were critical of the role of Mayor Daley (then the Cook County States Attorney when the police torture abuses took place), as well as outgoing States Attorney Dick Devine.
Making this stand and criticizing Daley, Devine and the powers-that-be on this subject of police torture was not the politically safe move for Avila to make. The criticism from Avila on this issue probably cost him his Democratic Primary race for Water Reclamation District Commissioner in 2002 and again in 2004. But in the end, it was the right thing to do, and he should be commended by everyone for his courage.
- Cheswick - Wednesday, Oct 22, 08 @ 11:27 am:
I’m really curious how the Illinois Dept. of Central Management Services came to be the middle-man for municipal salt purchasing. Apparently, CMS does this for more than just the South Suburban municipalities. Can all municipalities get in on this? What about counties? Does CMS get a fee for this? So many questions.
- Deeda - Wednesday, Oct 22, 08 @ 12:10 pm:
The NCLBA is meant for all children in school. I have a child with autism and I bet he brings down the school goals.
- wordslinger - Wednesday, Oct 22, 08 @ 12:47 pm:
The blue bag program was a ridiculous boondoggle from the get-go. Cost a lot, achieved nothing. Except some folks got richer.
- Truthful James - Wednesday, Oct 22, 08 @ 1:30 pm:
The salt problem hits every commercial property owner in Illinois. Not only have the private sector snow plow people been faced with prices much more than doubling, the lurking presence of the State sequestering the barge loads (provided the Illinois River does not freeze shut and even afterward) for the State and the municipalities, leaves the rest sucking hind tit. That’s what happened last year, and when supply was loosened the prices had gone way up.
The lack of sunspots on old Sol, presages a colder than normal winter, but is not a predictor of precipitation. Look for a River freeze up and even higher salt prices.
With the economy in the shorts and small stores in the strips going out of business, plus (in Crook County the property taxes on commercial property escalating while residentials are held back under the Assessor’s 7% solution, there is no joy in commercial property Mudville — gonna be a lot of Casey’s striking out.
In other local news, the Blug Bag program was finally found out. Trash collectors were dumping it like they did everything else. Who had the bag concession? Put another way, who is left holding the bag?
- Bubs - Wednesday, Oct 22, 08 @ 1:46 pm:
Instead of additional policemen, in Chicago we get a huge oversupply of middle managment political hacks.
I guess that is the Mayor’s idea of “realistic.”