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Illinois

* Odds Gov. Ryan will do time?

* Tribune Editorial: How free trade boosts Illinois

Here’s another example you can use. Illinois sells about $1 billion worth of pork each year. Nearly 13 percent of pork-related jobs here are tied to exports. Eliminating tariffs on U.S. pork sold in South Korea would increase the demand and could add $10 to the price of a live hog. The Latin America pacts combined could raise live hog prices by another $2.66 per hog. That’s good for Illinois pork producers.

* 29 counties take on gun legislation

* ComEd rate relief on ice

* Law puts restrictions on highway hiring practices

* Vickroy: Driving law causes rift between mother and child

* New law to change driver’s ed curriculum

* New law targets metal thieves

* Stricter rules for dental sedation

* Illinois officials seek review of BP air quality variance

* Lawyers: Blog libeled us

“You can say I’m an idiot, but you can’t say I’m a crook,” Sterk said. “Just because it’s a blog, people think they can hide behind a veil of secrecy. They can’t. And that’s going to be an expensive lesson for someone.”

The suit, filed in Cook County Circuit Court, seeks damages from the blog and its creator, listed as John Doe.

posted by Paul Richardson
Monday, Aug 27, 07 @ 7:25 am

Comments

“You can say I’m an idiot, but you can’t say I’m a crook,” Sterk said.

Baloney. You can say he is a crook, as long as you genuinely BELIEVE it to be true and are not negligent or unreasonable in doing so–you are protected so long as, based on the available evidence, a “reasonable” person would draw the same conclusion. In other words, you can’t commit libel simply by being wrong–you must either do it intentionally or with reckless disregard.

Comment by Squideshi Monday, Aug 27, 07 @ 7:48 am
The Tribune editorial is wrong. Governor Blagojevich does not allow the sale of pork in Illinois. Just ask him.

Comment by Fan of the Game Monday, Aug 27, 07 @ 8:19 am
You CapFax comments link doesn’t work. Just saying.

Comment by Levois Monday, Aug 27, 07 @ 9:53 am
Re: 29 counties - good for them! I know they are nonbinding referenda, but they do help reinforce the fact that Metro Chicago isn’t all that there is to Illinois.

Comment by Ken in Aurora Monday, Aug 27, 07 @ 10:03 am
The pro-gun backlash in Illinois has only just begun. Stay tuned.

Comment by Pro-Gunner Monday, Aug 27, 07 @ 10:54 am
Wrong, Squideshi. The allegedly defamatory statements are not opinions, but rather purport to be facts, and they ascribe criminal conduct to the plaintiffs (which means that they don’t even need to prove actual damages in order to win a judgment). That blogger probably shouldn’t defame lawyers . . .

Comment by gulag Monday, Aug 27, 07 @ 11:22 am
…or anyone else. One of my great peeves about the blogs; people state opinions as facts.

Comment by steve schnorf Monday, Aug 27, 07 @ 11:46 am
Steve: Is that a fact or an opinion?

Comment by Patriot Monday, Aug 27, 07 @ 12:37 pm
Gulag, you are correct–I stand corrected:

The test is restrictive: a defamatory statement is constitutionally protected under the First Amendment only if it cannot be reasonably interpreted as stating actual fact. Kolegas, 154 Ill. 2d at 14-15. Several considerations aid the analysis: whether the statement has a precise and readily understood meaning; whether the statement is verifiable; and whether the statement’s literary or social context signals that it has factual content. See Mittelman, 135 Ill. 2d at 243; Hopewell v. Vitullo, 299 Ill. App. 3d 513, 518-19 (1998); see generally Bryson, 174 Ill. 2d at 100-01; Restatement (Second) of Torts ‘566 (1977).

Comment by Squideshi Monday, Aug 27, 07 @ 2:14 pm
Hey everybody, in case you hadn’t heard… Blago has filed suit against Madigan to force him to call special sessions, and make sure a quorum is present, EXACTLY when the gov wants him to. See SJ-R link for more info and full text of the lawsuit.

Comment by Lainer Monday, Aug 27, 07 @ 2:47 pm
Patriot, godd catch

It is my opiniom that it is a fact.

Comment by steve schnorf Monday, Aug 27, 07 @ 4:38 pm