* Here you go…

* Tribune | Tim Mapes’ defense rests its case in perjury trial after 4 witnesses, setting stage for closing arguments Wednesday: Shortly before the defense rested Tuesday, Mapes confirmed to U.S. District Judge John Kness outside the presence of the jury that he wished to waive his right to testify in his own defense — a move that seemed all but certain given the inherent pitfalls of taking the witness stand.

* Sun-Times | Wife of ex-top aide to Madigan says he was ‘very sullen, very depressed … as if he was lost’ after being sacked: Rains said Mapes’ energy level went from “high” before he quit over bullying and harassment claims to “low-to-non-existent” afterward. She said his lethargy continued for months. After she encouraged him to find work, she said he wound up with a part-time job servicing trucks for UPS.

* Sun-Times | Illinois lands $1.3M federal grant to promote more women in construction industry: The grant money comes as part of President Joe Biden’s signature $1.2 trillion infrastructure package signed into law almost two years ago, and aims to promote gender equity and inclusion in the male-dominated field.

* WGN | Illinois operators warn of day care crisis: “We have eager staff and employees trying to work in the early childhood profession; unfortunately we can’t meet those qualifications,” said Karina Cortez who runs Ivy Academy in Elgin. Cortez and others say many day care centers already have waiting lists of children they can’t accommodate. She also says teachers need breaks through-out the day. “A human being can only work so many hours with love and joy in their heart until they’re burned out.”

* Landmark | Ford calls on state to reinstate decertified police officer: State Rep. La Shawn K. Ford (8th) called on the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board to reinstate Riverside police officer Zenna Ramos, who was decertified as a police officer by the state board in April. […] In 2008, Ramos was arrested for allegedly stealing three shirts, valued at a total of $14.99, from J.C. Penney at the North Riverside Park Mall. She was not a police officer then, but rather a 22-year-old single parent struggling with domestic violence-related issues who acted out of desperation.

* Tribune | Joliet nurses begin 4-day strike for increased staffing, higher pay: The union has been negotiating for a new contract since May. Ascension canceled a bargaining session on Aug. 15, the day after the strike was announced. Ascension representatives have said they will not come back to the bargaining table until Sept. 8.

* Sun-Times | Highland Park High parents say students are evading weapons detection systems, call for enhanced security measures: School leaders approved a limited rollout to purchase units in an amount not to exceed $80,000, Warner added, but the expense is not in the units themselves but in the staffing required to operate them properly.

* Bloomberg | CVS Health layoffs will affect nearly 300 Illinois workers: The Woonsocket, R.I.-based company is laying off 5,000 non-customer-facing, corporate workers at its offices across the country, and recent layoff notices filed with the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity show that 294 workers will be affected at three Chicago-area offices.

* Daily Herald | ‘Hazing defeats the purpose of the team’: What some schools are doing to ensure it doesn’t happen: “We’ve actually had multiple conversations as a football staff addressing this situation and making sure we have a culture that kids want to be a part of and are proud to be in,” said Teonic, who is 42-7 in his five years at South Elgin, and who has also been the head coach at Larkin and Hersey High schools and Harper College.

* Block Club | Luxury Container Homes Planned For South Side ‘Paused’ For Now: Burton and Casboni hoped to have the first families moved in by Christmas 2022, the developers previously said. In December, the duo pushed back their timeline and Burton said they would break ground “in the first quarter of 2023.”

* The Guardian | US businessman is wannabe ‘warlord’ of secretive far-right men’s network: The founder and sponsor of a far-right network of secretive, men-only, invitation-only fraternal lodges in the US is a former industrialist who has frequently speculated about his future as a warlord after the collapse of America, a Guardian investigation has found.

* The Daily Beast | ‘Tesla Syndrome’ Explains Why Tech Is Making Us Miserable: There’s a class war going on, but it’s not the one we usually think about. Owners and managers are fighting, and it’s mangling capitalism beyond recognition. Workers are fighting to prevent jobs from becoming “gigs.” But in corporate boardrooms, a less visible and even more disastrous fight is being won by the wealthy. It’s led to a situation where we have science fiction aesthetics with diminished functions, like “smart” fridges that stop cooling after rebooting.

* AP | Some states reject federal money to find and replace dangerous lead pipes: Washington, Oregon, Maine and Alaska declined all or most of their federal funds in the first of five years that the mix of grants and loans is available, The Associated Press found. Some states are less prepared to pay for lead removal projects because, in many cases, the lead must first be found, experts said. And communities are hesitant to take out loans to search for their lead pipes.

* Sun-Times | White Sox fire vice president Ken Williams, general manager Rick Hahn: “This is an incredibly difficult decision for me to make because they are both talented individuals with long-term relationships at the White Sox,” chairman Jerry Reinsdorf said in a statement. “Ken is like a son to me, and I will always consider him a member of my family.’’

* Crain’s | Potential Sox move adds to Bears intrigue in Springfield: Negotiations among the Bears, local officials and lawmakers have continued to make progress this summer, Moylan said, and he still hopes to present a bill that can pass in the General Assembly’s fall veto session. Reinsdorf’s clearing his throat could help or hurt that process, he added. “We’ll have to wait and see.”