Chicago aldermen on Thursday endorsed renaming Outer Lake Shore Drive from Hollywood Avenue to 67th Street in honor of Jean Baptiste Point DuSable — over Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s objections — during a profanity-laced meeting that fueled charges of racism.
Ald. David Moore (17th) unleashed the tirade in response to a substitute ordinance proposed by the Lightfoot administration that sought to clarify which sections of the Outer Drive were or were not impacted by Moore’s proposed name change.
“This is racist bulls–t,” Moore said at one point.
Moore only became more incensed when Deputy Transportation Commissioner Tom Carney argued it was “not uncommon to clarify from a legal standpoint” what portions of a roadway would be impacted by a name change and that Outer Drive is “not a legal designation.”
“That’s f—ing bulls–t,” Moore responded.
At that point, Transportation Committee Chairman Howard Brookins (21st) called for a momentary recess.
When aldermen returned, Ald. Jeanette Taylor (20th) sided with Moore.
Taylor called the substitute ordinance “very disrespectful” to Moore and his co-sponsor, Ald. Sophia King (4th), and the proposal they have “worked very hard on” for two years.
“This is important to the Black community. How hard is that? … This is crazy,” Taylor said.
“You expect us to go along to get along. That’s not gonna happen. This is what the community is asking for. If you can afford to live on Lake Shore Drive, you can afford to spend $20” for an address change on stationery, driver’s license and other legal documents.
Ald. Andre Vasquez (40th) branded the 11th-hour substitute that Carney called a “technical” correction “absolutely racist.” Vasquez accused the Lightfoot administration of playing, what he called, “the okey-doke.”
“Once again, the administration is finding ways to obstruct or change things that people introduced. If people want to find out why this government isn’t working, it’s because the executive branch does not have any respect for the legislative one to get work done for this city,” Vasquez said.
Downtown Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) countered that Moore’s original ordinance “may have been been a little too vague on the definition” and inadvertently impacted Inner Lake Shore Drive.
“A number of my colleagues are concerned about the costly implications for homeowners, police and fire. … That has an impact on tens of thousands of voters — not just on the North Side, but the South Side. And it’s not a $20 fix. It’s a very time-consuming and costly fix” to change mailing addresses, legal addresses, 911 addresses, Reilly said.
When the dust settled, the technical correction was put off for another day, but the name change in honor of Chicago’s first permanent non-indigenous settler was approved.
King, who joined Moore in co-sponsoring the name change, likened the resistance to renaming Lake Shore Drive to the blowback she got before Congress Parkway was renamed in honor of Ida B. Wells.
“These are just all, kind of, unconscious biases that come out. Individuals strategically put fear about money and about marketing and about all things that really aren’t that important, but do change the minds of people,” King said.
“We had no problem changing White Sox park. Very iconic. And several other Chicago icons. So marketing should not stop us from taking this moment of reckoning — in our world, in our country and in our city — to do what’s right. We should be leaders and do what’s right and turn Lake Shore Drive into DuSable Drive, which will set our city aside in a very distinct way by celebrating its true diversity and making our city even more iconic.”
Prior to the final vote, Moore apologized for using profanity in anger.
He acknowledged it set the wrong example for the young people he hopes to educate about the contributions of DuSable, “this great man, the founder of our city.”
“This will connect us. This will bring people together even more,” Moore said.
“This is history-making. It’s impactful for our young people.”
Moore assured his colleagues his intent was to have the name change impact “only three or four harbors along the Outer Drive.” If a technical correction is needed after the fact, Moore said he would spearhead that move.
Earlier Thursday, Lightfoot touted her alternative plan to invest $25 million to complete DuSable Park, create an exhibit honoring DuSable at the “most traveled part” of the downtown Riverwalk and rename the entire Riverwalk in honor of DuSable.
“There are gonna be three iconic statues that will tell part of the story of DuSable. I’m very enthusiastic about the proposal,” Lightfoot said.
“DuSable has not been properly recognized, in my view, as the founder of the city. We don’t exist if he doesn’t come [and] set up a trading post with his wife…And what we’ve done to date historically is woefully inadequate.”
Moore considers all of those plans a “great complement” to the revised plan he champions to rename the Outer Drive — not a replacement for it.
General fishing season in Wisconsin opens Saturday, as traditional on the first Saturday in May. Despite being the earliest possible opener, the weather is forecast to be nearly balmy.
Here is Kurt Justice at Kurt’s Island Sport Shop in Minocqua with his usual extended take on opening weekend for those headed north:
It’s the cusp of the 2021 Walleye opener here in the Northwoods! As usual, nothing ever seems the same from one opener to the next.
A very early ice out back in late March followed by temps in the 80’s in early April shot water temps up quickly. Walley spawning started early and is all finished this year, even with the cold snap we’ve experienced dragging things out. So…what to expect?
Lake temps that hit the high 50’s back in early April fell back in to the 40’s for most of the rest of this month. The cold mornings and warming afternoons could be helping opening day anglers by dragging out the slow warm up, keeping the post spawn bite active as minnows, insects and leeches start to fill the shallow, newly emergent weeds with food and warmth.
Working those newly greening weed beds with the customary jig/minnow, jig/leech or jig and plastic combinations should be all most angers need to do well this weekend. Finding those patches of green weeds and areas with slightly warmer water will be key. A temperature difference of just 2-3 degrees from one part of the lakes shallows to another can make all the difference.
Watch as water temps rise in the afternoons as Crappies, Pike, Largemouth Bass and Bluegills move to the shallows to warm and feed. Long cast with weighted floats (so as not to spook the fish) will be key for panfish anglers. Casting stick baits (Husky Jerks, X-Raps, Rattlin Rouges) has been effective as early season catch and release Bass anglers have been finding out.
Looks to be great weather for our opener, we’ve missed the pre-spawn and spawn bite, but that happens more often than not and gives those Walleyes less pressure as they work to repopulate our waters.
Bait supplies look good for this opener with only Redtails and Dace in short supply. With water temps looking to get into the 50’s by the weekend, don’t be shy about adding some leeches or crawlers to your arsenal.
The Sky are only five days into training camp, and the team has already felt Candace Parker’s presence and impact in a big way.
Sky coach and general manager James Wade said Thursday no player has stood out in particular through the first week and then laughed and quickly brought up Parker.
“Having Parker here is a big boost for our team,” Wade said. “Her presence has been felt every time she steps on the floor.”
Wade followed that up, acknowledging other players who have looked good, including Stefanie Dolson, Diamond DeShields, Kahleah Copper and Lexie Brown.
It’s not that players haven’t stood out, but rather that training camp is a process, and Wade seems adamant on getting ahead of himself in it by offering up early praise. Everybody still has a lot of information to take in at this stage of the season.
The Sky have been without Courtney Vandersloot, Allie Quigley, Astou Ndour, Ruthy Hebard and Gabby Williams due to overseas commitments. While rookie Shyla Heal has been waiting on her travel visa and unable to move to Chicago.
Wade said Ndour was on a plane to Chicago while he was fielding questions from the media. Vandersloot and Quigley are back in the United States and arrive in Chicago in the next few days. Wade expects to see those three on the court sometime next week after going through the league’s COVID-19 protocol that includes returning six negative tests.
Hebard returns from Turkey this weekend and will go through the same protocols. Heal is expected to have her travel visa by next week.
The priority for Wade will be building cohesiveness once his entire roster is available with a condensed amount of time.
“The fact that we have players that play overseas and come back late is just the world we live in,” Wade said. “We started off really well last year and didn’t finish very well. I would rather have it the other way around.”
Dolson said the first week of camp has been extremely focused despite not having the entire roster intact. Young players like Natasha Mack have come in and are playing unafraid which raises the intensity level.
Dolson added that Parker’s presence gives the team another layer of leadership. She’s already become the teammate players are turning to with questions.
After a disappointing 2020 season, Dolson looked refreshed and said she’s feeling great. She’s lost 28 pounds with the goal of losing 35 by the start of the season.
Dolson is coming into this season healthy and more confident after a difficult time in the WNBA bubble. She said that’s a feeling the entire team shares.
“We’re excited to have a season where we all stay healthy and compete at our highest level of basketball,” Dolson said.
“He is more dangerous and effective than any man we have in the field.” – Typical action-movie cliche line from “Tom Clancy’s Without Remorse.”
The Amazon Prime original movie “Tom Clancy’s Without Remorse” has to be considered one of the more disappointing films of 2021 so far, given the long and rich history of entertaining adaptations of Clancy’s work and the vibrant star power of its leading man.
Amazon Studios presents a film directed by Stefano Sollima and written by Taylor Sheridan and Will Staples. Rated R (for violence). Running time: 111 minutes. Available Friday on Amazon Prime Video.
Michael B. Jordan has plenty of opportunities to fire off weapons and flex his muscles and throw hands here, but delivers a surprisingly flat and underwhelming performance playing the kind of action anti-hero perfected by the likes of Denzel Washington, Bruce Willis, Matt Damon, Scarlett Johansson, Angelina Jolie, Liam Neeson, The Rock, Charlize Theron and we could go on forever. You know, the kind of guy or gal who often starts out as a cop or a soldier but becomes disillusioned with the system after a betrayal and goes ROGUE and also OFF THE GRID.
That’s exactly the kind of cliche, er, character, Jordan portrays here. We have seen John Kelly as a supporting player in previous film adaptations of Clancy books (Willem Dafoe played him in “Clear and Present Danger” in 1994, and Liev Schreiber in “The Sum of All Fears” in 2002), but now John is front and center as the senior chief of an elite team of Navy SEALs sent into Syria to extract a CIA agent ostensibly being held captive by the Syrian Army. The ensuing rescue mission/shootout is indicative of many of the impressively choreographed but murky action sequences that permeate “Without Remorse,” where there’s lots of shouting and shooting and explosions and carnage, but it’s often difficult to keep up with the proceedings as we squint through the dust and darkness. One assumes the intention was to replicate the true chaos inherent in such situations, but that doesn’t necessarily make for clearly defined cinema.
We know there’s a problem with this mission from the get-go because it’s telegraphed via the duplicitous and smarmy CIA operative Robert Ritter (the chameleonic Jamie Bell, excellent as always), who smirks and calls John “sweetheart” and brushes off his concerns, even after it’s determined the bad guys aren’t soldiers, they’re ex-Russian military turned mercenaries and they don’t play by any established rules of war. Nevertheless, the mission is a qualified success, with John and his colleagues gunning down numerous anonymous henchmen.
Cut to a few months later, with John and his eight-months-pregnant wife Pam (Lauren London) hosting a cookout at their Washington, D.C., area home, which is a REALLY nice spread and looks more like something a wealthy senator might own. All is well and peaceful; in fact, as John is retiring from the SEALs to take a lucrative and relatively safe gig doing private security. What could possibly go wrong?
Well, John could be chilling on the sofa later that night, listening to his favorite jams on his noise-canceling headphones, so he’s late to spring into action when a team of Russian assassins get their revenge for that Syrian mission by gunning down his wife (Lauren London) and unborn child, and seriously wounding John before he kills most of them. (One gets away.) As John puts it later, in one of the many, many lines that will ring familiar with fans of this genre: “They took everything from me!” Also: “Now we’re going to play by my rules!”
And off we go on our path of vengeance. After a brief period of mourning, John sets out on a mission to find out what’s really going on and to gain his revenge on anyone connected with the massacre in his home. For a time “Without Remorse” becomes a prison picture, and not a very good one, as John fends off a myriad of corrupt guards with orders to kill him — and then he’s recruited by his longtime friend and former SEALs supervisor Karen Greer (Jodie Turner-Smith) and the aforementioned CIA operative Ritter to lead another dangerous mission, this time to Russia. Despite John’s frequent observation he’s just a pawn in a larger chess game (there’s even an early foreshadowing scene involving an actual game of chess), he agrees to take the gig, which might just help to uncover a conspiracy to start a war between the United States and Russia. (It’s complicated. And convoluted.)
Jamie Bell plays a duplicitous CIA operative.Amazon Studios
Based on the 1993 novel of the same name (with many updates and revisions) and directed by Stefano Sollima (“Sicario: Day of the Soldado”), “Without Remorse” was filmed largely in the legendary Babelsberg Film Studios just outside Berlin — and while you can see ample evidence of the preparation and the attention to detail and the large-scale ambition onscreen, it never quite jells into an involving character study or a fresh action tale. Jordan’s line readings reflect the by-the-book nature of the story, and when the main villain is finally revealed, it’s hardly a surprise — and his demise is borderline ridiculous.
Halfway through the end credits, there’s a scene setting up further adventures. Even this Easter Egg is overwrought, as two characters stand side by side in the night, gazing at the Washington Monument and setting up the sequel. Here’s hoping when that happens, John is given a better vehicle to drive.
Public health officials in Cook County are serving up COVID-19 vaccines to bar and restaurant workers as the suburbs follow in lockstep with Chicago’s latest round of eased coronavirus restrictions.
Mondays in May will be designated “restaurant days” at the county’s six suburban mass vaccination sites, Cook County Board Presidents Toni Preckwinkle announced Thursday.
Anyone can sign up for an appointment or walk up to the six sites in Tinley Park, Matteson, River Grove, South Holland, Des Plaines or Forest Park. But officials want to vaccinate as many of the “essential heroes” in the hospitality industry as possible with indoor capacity expanding to the lesser of 50% or 100 people per room.
“Restaurant staff people worked tirelessly, even as they were asked to pivot to new roles to meet new demands, even as hours were cut, doors were closed, and their own life livelihoods were in jeopardy,” Preckwinkle said. “Now we’re starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel, and people are returning toward cafes and restaurants for a sense of normal normalcy and camaraderie that we all have craved.”
An estimated 20% of restaurants statewide won’t survive the pandemic, according to Illinois Restaurant Association President Sam Toia, shuttering about 5,000 businesses and leaving more than 100,000 out of work.
“We were the first industry to be shut down, and probably will be one of the last industries to truly reopen and recover. Vaccinations are absolutely crucial to help drive our COVID numbers back down and get our guests back in restaurants,” Toia said.
The restaurant shot push comes as public health officials face their latest challenge in the pandemic with demand for vaccine slowing across Illinois.
“Most individuals who absolutely knew ahead that they wanted the shot have had the chance to get one,” Cook County Health CEO Israel Rocha said. “Now we have to change hearts and minds to encourage individuals who have not yet made the decision to get vaccinated.”
Israel Rocha Jr., CEO of Cook County Health, joins Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and others to address the details of the COVID-19 vaccine distribution plan last December.Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sun-Times file
Almost a third of all Illinois residents are fully vaccinated, and about half have gotten at least one dose, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health, which reported 107,689 more shots went into arms statewide on Wednesday.
But the state is now averaging just 97,434 shots administered per day over the past week — the first time that rate has fallen below 100,000 in a month, and a 27% decrease compared to the all-time high of almost 133,000 the state reported two and a half weeks ago.
COVID-19 vaccine doses administered by day
Graphic by Jesse Howe and Caroline Hurley | Sun-Times
“This will be an uphill climb, but we are committed to doing everything we can to get people vaccinated and remove barriers to access,” Rocha said.
As part of that effort, city officials announced the Chicago State University mass vaccination site is now offering the one-and-done Johnson & Johnson vaccine in its drive-thru facility, no appointments required. Pfizer shots are also available.
Still, “we’re not out of this yet,” Preckwinkle warned.
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle receives a vaccine shot at the vaccination site in the Tinley Park Convention Center in January.Brian Rich/Sun-Times file
The state reported 3,394 new cases of the disease Thursday, the most logged in a single day in about two weeks. They were diagnosed among 89,057 tests, raising Illinois average positivity rate to 3.5%. That figure is still down about 20% overall since April 12.
Officials also reported the disease killed 28 more residents, including a Cook County man in his 30s.
More than 1.3 million people have tested positive statewide over the last 13 months, and 21,927 of them have died.
For help finding a vaccination appointment in Chicago, visit zocdoc.com or call (312) 746-4835.
Three Chicago restaurants are the latest awardees of the distinguished honor of the Michelin star, the tire company announced Thursday.
The West Loop’s Ever (1340 W. Fulton), the South Loop’s Moody Tongue (2515 S. Wabash) and West Town’s Porto (1600 W. Chicago) were added to the list, rounding out the city’s 24 Michelin-starred restaurants.
“Michelin Guide inspectors were honored to commemorate the strength and creativity of Chicago chefs and restaurant teams throughout the past year,” said Gwendal Poullennec, international director of the Michelin Guides, via statement.
Here’s the inspector notes for the three new eateries:
TWO STARS (excellent cooking that is worth a detour):
Ever: “Chef Curtis Duffy and Michael Muser have triumphantly returned, and now preside over a bespoke room where the chef’s vision of fine dining enchants palates with complex flavors, stirring textures and visual fireworks.”
Moody Tongue: “Chef Jared Wentworth offers a tasting menu concept housed in the Moody Tongue brewery building. Each course of the seasonal, ingredient-driven menu is paired with an equally creative beer of their own design, seamlessly woven into the kitchen’s compositions.”
ONE STAR (high quality cooking, worth a stop):
Porto: “Young chef Marcos Campos’ style is anchored by his Spanish heritage and explores the Atlantic coast of Spain and Portugal through its conservas, seafood and specialty rice dishes.”
Ever chef Curtis Duffy. Michael Muser
Ever’s Duffy and Muser received two Michelin stars in 2014 at the Avenues at The Peninsula Chicago, and three stars the next four years (2015 to 2018) at Grace, which shut down in 2017.
And Campos, Porto’s executive chef and partner with the Bonhomme Hospitality Group, specializes in Mediterranean cuisine.
Alinea in Lincoln Park remains Chicago’s only three-star restaurant. Three of the restaurants starred in Michelin’s last guide, in 2019, closed last year: Band of Bohemia, Blackbird and Everest.
The new selections will be available on the Michelin app, said officials in a statement.
The Bulls and Blackhawks have been playing before empty stands at the United Center during the pandemic. Sun-Times Media
With two million vaccine doses administered and health metrics improving, Mayor Lori Lightfoot is reopening Chicago a little bit more — this time to let restaurants and theaters serve more patrons and allow fans inside the United Center for the first time since the start of the pandemic.
The new Phase Four rules, effective immediately, allow the Bulls and Blackhawks to close their seasons before roughly 5,250 fans per game — 25% of the United Center’s capacity.
The Blackhawks play at home Thursday and Saturday against the Florida Panthers, then finish their regular-season home schedule with two games in May. The Bulls have a home game Friday, the first of six regular-season games left.
That 25% rule also applies to Wrigley Field, Guaranteed Rate Field and Soldier Field, an increase from the current 20%. The 25% also includes churches, synagogues, mosques and other houses of worship.
Restaurants and bars can increase indoor capacity to 50% or 100 people, whichever is less. The cap had been 50% or 50 people.
Meetings, conferences and conventions held at large indoor venues like McCormick Place now can operate at 25% capacity or 250 people, whichever is less.
Festivals and, what the city calls “general admission outdoor spectator events” get the green light to welcome 15 people for every 1,000 square feet.
The same rules apply to flea markets, which can operate at 25% capacity.
2:41 p.m. Shot, please! Preckwinkle pushes vaccinations for restaurant workers as indoor capacity expands
Public health officials in Cook County are serving up COVID-19 vaccines to bar and restaurant workers as the suburbs follow in lockstep with Chicago’s latest round of eased coronavirus restrictions.
Mondays in May will be designated “restaurant days” at the county’s six suburban mass vaccination sites, Cook County Board Presidents Toni Preckwinkle announced Thursday.
Anyone can sign up for an appointment or walk up to the six sites in Tinley Park, Matteson, River Grove, South Holland, Des Plaines or Forest Park. But officials want to vaccinate as many of the “essential heroes” in the hospitality industry as possible with indoor capacity expanding to the lesser of 50% or 100 people per room.
“Restaurant staff people worked tirelessly, even as they were asked to pivot to new roles to meet new demands, even as hours were cut, doors were closed, and their own life livelihoods were in jeopardy,” Preckwinkle said. “Now we’re starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel, and people are returning toward cafes and restaurants for a sense of normal normalcy and camaraderie that we all have craved.”
An estimated 20% of restaurants statewide won’t survive the pandemic, according to Illinois Restaurant Association President Sam Toia, shuttering about 5,000 businesses and leaving more than 100,000 out of work.
1:43 p.m. 23 coronavirus cases, one of them fatal, linked to lunch at warehouse in Naperville, federal safety agency finds
A federal investigation has found that a Naperville warehouse failed to quarantine employees following a COVID-19 outbreak tied to a luncheon that caused nearly two dozen workers to contract the virus, including one who died.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration says Midwest Warehouse and Distribution System Inc. failed to take steps “to identify, inform, isolate and quarantine” exposed employees.
In all, 23 employees tested positive for the coronavirus days after the late October luncheon, including one employee who died of complications on Nov. 4, the agency said in a statement.
The Woodridge-based company faces a fine of $12,288.
1:09 p.m. Free rides, pot and savings bonds: Vaccinators get creative
Free beer, pot and doughnuts. Savings bonds. A chance to win an all-terrain vehicle. Places around the U.S. are offering incentives to try to energize the nation’s slowing vaccination drive and get Americans to roll up their sleeves.
These relatively small corporate promotion efforts have been accompanied by more serious and far-reaching attempts by officials in cities such as Detroit, where they’re offering $50 to people who give others a ride to vaccination sites. Chicago is sending specially equipped buses into neighborhoods to deliver vaccines.
Public health officials say the efforts are crucial to reach people who haven’t been immunized yet, whether because they are hesitant or because they have had trouble making an appointment or getting to a vaccination site.
12:19 p.m. City contact tracers had access to COVID-19 patient records after quitting or being fired, investigation finds
More than a quarter of the city’s COVID-19 contact tracers who left their jobs as of early this year still had access to patient data for at least a month after their termination, an investigation from the city’s watchdog found.
Inspector General Joe Ferguson’s office investigated Chicago’s contact tracing program, which is run by an organization under contract with the city, and found the Chicago’ Department of Public Health “did not consistently remove terminated users’ access” to a system of tracking COVID-19 patients within seven days, which is a standard.
Of the almost 600 contact tracers hired last year, the report found 50 of those workers had been fired or resigned as of Feb. 15, 2021. While all of the departing workers should have had their access to a system with patient data cut off within 7 days, only 11 had the ability removed. A month later, more than a quarter of those contact tracers were still able to look at patient information, though city officials told investigators they believe none of the ex-employees tried to access records.
COVID-19 contact tracing, which involves interviewing people who test positive for the virus along with anyone they might have infected, is considered an important tool in fighting the pandemic. While the report found that the city’s tracing program, run by Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership and more than 30 community organizations, largely did a good job of protecting privacy and reducing cybersecurity risks, it said some oversight practices can be improved.
11:45 a.m. US recovery from pandemic recession is showing momentum
Powered by consumers and fueled by government aid, the U.S. economy is achieving a remarkably fast recovery from the recession that ripped through the nation last year on the heels of the coronavirus and cost tens of millions of Americans their jobs and businesses.
The economy grew last quarter at a vigorous 6.4% annual rate, the government said Thursday, and expectations are that the current quarter will be even better. The number of people seeking unemployment aid — a rough reflection of layoffs — last week reached its lowest point since the pandemic struck. And the National Association of Realtors said Thursday that more Americans signed contracts to buy homes in March, reflecting a strong housing market as summer approaches.
Economists say that widespread vaccinations and declining viral cases, the reopening of more businesses, a huge infusion of federal aid and healthy job gains should help sustain steady growth. For 2021 as a whole, they expect the economy to expand around 7%, which would mark the fastest calendar-year growth since 1984.
11:09 a.m. 1 in 5 high schools students absent from class, CPS data shows
Almost one in five Chicago Public Schools high schoolers was absent last week regardless of whether they signed up for in-person learning or chose to stay remote, according to district data released Wednesday.
The new attendance figures come as officials celebrate the reopening of all CPS high schools last week, a milestone reached after long negotiations with the teachers union and after 13 months of closures because of COVID-19.
District leaders have said offering in-person classes is the first step to recovering from the pandemic, but they’ll face challenges in the months ahead in reengaging students who haven’t had consistent or quality access to education.
Districtwide, including elementary schools, “we are continuing to see the majority of our students learning virtually, with an overall attendance rate of 89.5%,” Bogdana Chkoumbova, CPS’ chief of school management, said at Wednesday’s virtual Board of Education meeting.
Keeping with trends throughout this school year, Black students and children experiencing homelessness have had the highest absentee rates, largely because those populations have been most impacted by the various barriers to learning during the pandemic.
10:02 a.m. Fans should still take precautions when attending sporting events
Is it safe to go to big sporting events during the pandemic?
Not yet, but there are ways to make it safer if you go.
“Yelling, chanting, hugging and generally pouring out our sports enthusiasm is still not the safest activity,” noted Jennifer Dowd, associate professor of population health at University of Oxford and chief scientific officer of Dear Pandemic, a website that offers expert opinions.
If you do decide to go to a game, outdoor stadiums are safer than indoor arenas, which won’t be as well ventilated. Venues that limit attendance and require masks are safer as well. Some teams are requiring proof of vaccination or a negative test for the coronavirus.
Once at the stadium, avoid indoor bars, restaurants and box seating, Dowd said. “Spaces that are indoors with lots of people eating and drinking without masks are still among the riskiest,” she said.
8:37 a.m. CPS to allow in-person graduations for class of 2021
Large commencements with hundreds of cheering parents, siblings and grandparents might not return for some time, but this year’s 8th graders and high school seniors will be able to take part in more traditional ceremonies than last year.
Both indoor and outdoor graduations and other end-of-year events can be held this spring with some capacity restrictions, Chicago Public Schools officials announced at Wednesday’s virtual Board of Education meeting.
“As we look for ways to honor our graduates after what’s been a very difficult year, the district developed a plan to celebrate graduates while ensuring the safety of each school community,” Bogdana Chkoumbova, CPS’ chief of school management, told the school board.
“Schools will have the option to hold indoor, outdoor or virtual graduation events where students can obtain their diplomas and take pictures in their caps and gowns,” Chkoumbova said. “Graduations can either be social events, where mingling can occur, or spectator events that are ticketed and seated with no mingling.”
7:12 a.m. Outdoor mask guidance echoes what many Americans already do
In the small Nebraska town of Oxford, the school district dropped its mask mandate last month in what was a fairly straight-forward decision: Cases were down dramatically, and it didn’t bother local officials that their move flouted Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.
Those federal mask guidelines just didn’t seem to fit local conditions well in the town of about 800 people where hardly anyone wears a mask.
“We haven’t paid a whole lot of attention to what is going on at the federal level — mainly what is coming out through the state,” Southern Valley Superintendent Bryce Jorgensen said. “You just can’t compare Chicago to Oxford, Nebraska. Things are just different.”
On Tuesday, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention eased its guidelines on the wearing of masks outdoors, saying fully vaccinated Americans don’t need to cover their faces anymore unless they are in a big crowd of strangers. And those who are unvaccinated can go outside without masks in some situations, too.
For most of the past year, the CDC had been advising Americans to wear masks outdoors if they are within 6 feet of one another.
The decision marked the U.S. government’s latest step toward normalcy, but came as much of the country already had moved on from mask rules. The CDC essentially endorsed what many Americans have already been doing.
A total of 3,394 new cases of COVID-19 and 38 additional deaths were reported by Illinois health officials Thursday.
The latest cases were among 89,057 specimens tested over the last 24 hours, bringing the state’s positivity rate to 4%, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health.
A total of 107,689 vaccine doses were administered in the state Thursday, health officials said. An average of 97,434 vaccine doses have been administered per day over the last week.
Since the pandemic began, over 1.3 million people in Illinois have tested positive for COVID-19 and 21,927 have died, officials said.
A former Melrose Park police officer whose late grandfather was a reputed mob boss and whose brother is a former reality TV star pleaded guilty Thursday to his role in a gambling ring once run by a bookie now facing a prison sentence of more than two years.
A third individual, Ramiro Barajas, was also charged Wednesday as part of the same investigation, court records show.
Paloian admitted in January that he ran the ring from 2015 until 2019 in Chicago, Elmwood Park and Melrose Park. But federal authorities have said they “know now that Paloian was running a bookmaking operation as early as 2012 and continuing until shut down by the FBI.”
They also said the ring involved 60 gamblers, and that “a veteran police officer from a local police department” was among Paloian’s “most prolific agents.”
That turned out to be Amabile, who admitted Thursday to violating federal and state gaming statutes.
“Defendant recruited, managed, and supervised gamblers, and supplied them with log-ins and passwords which he acquired from Paloian so they could place wagers upon professional and collegiate sporting events” through a website, according to a plea agreement reached by federal prosecutors and Amabile, and accepted by U.S. District Court Judge Martha Pacold on Thursday.
The illegal gambling operation “accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in wagers, and generated hundreds of thousands of dollars in winnings and losses for the gamblers, the agents and the bookmaker . . . and generated at least $100,000 in gambling proceeds for the defendant,” the agreement stated.
“On a regular basis, defendant met with his gamblers to settle-up, i.e., to pay out winnings and collect losses from them,” the document said. “Defendant shared winnings and losses with Paloian on a 50% basis and routinely spoke with Paloian by phone or text.”
Former Melrose Park police officer John Amabile walks out of the Dirksen Federal Courthouse, Thursday morning, April 29, 2021.Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sun-Times
Notably, Amabile’s plea agreement alleges that Paloian maintained the gambling website Unclemicksports.com, drawing the most direct connection yet between the Paloian gambling ring and the one once run by Vincent “Uncle Mick” DelGiudice.
DelGiudice paid more than $10,000 a month for use of that same website, according to an indictment filed early last year. That indictment also named Mettawa Mayor Casey Urlacher as a defendant, though Urlacher was pardoned in January by then-President Donald Trump.
DelGiudice also pleaded guilty in February to running the sports gambling ring.
Although Amabile could face up to five years in prison and a substantial fine, the plea deal mentions six to 12 months as a possible range. The judge is expected to rule in August on Amabile’s sentence.
Amabile, who declined to comment after Thursday’s hearing, also has agreed to forfeit $100,000 which “constitutes proceeds of gambling activity,” court records show.
He resigned from the west suburban police department as the investigation came to light.
Amabile’s father Joseph is a former Melrose Park police lieutenant. Amabile’s uncle James is a former Melrose Park fire lieutenant who was convicted in a mob-related extortion case in 2015, sentenced to six months in prison and released from custody in 2016, according to interviews and records.
Amabile’s brother Joe became a minor celebrity after appearing on “The Bachelorette” and, subsequently, other reality shows.
Amabile’s late grandfather, also named Joseph, was a reputed “crime kingpin in the western suburbs,” and an acolyte of high-ranking hoodlum Sam Battaglia, before his death in 1976, according to interviews and published accounts. The grandfather was convicted of extortion in 1967 and sent to prison, according to his Chicago Sun-Times obituary.
Chicago Sun-Times obituary for Joseph Amabile, published Sept. 17, 1976.Chicago Sun-Times archive
Over the years, members of the family have donated to political campaigns benefitting Melrose Park Mayor Ronald Serpico — who has presided after a number of scandals and embarrassments within his police department during his many years in office.
In 2017, former Melrose Park police Detective Greg Salvi was sent to prison for a drug-dealing scheme that included stealing narcotics from his department’s evidence room.
In 2013, a motorcycle club started by Melrose Park cops disbanded after a reporter discovered members were wearing patches pledging support for the Outlaws, a notorious biker gang that’s been described as a criminal enterprise by federal authorities.
In 2009, former Melrose Park Police Chief Vito Scavo was convicted in a racketeering and extortion scheme and sent to prison.
Paloian was previously sentenced in 2002 to 41 months in prison for running a mob-connected bookmaking operation. Federal prosecutors also recently revealed that his name was on the prison contact list for imprisoned Cicero mob boss Michael “The Large Guy” Sarno, who had been arguing for compassionate release. A judge denied Sarno’s request earlier this month.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Amarjeet Bhachu wrote in a court filing that “Paloian has regularly sent money to Sarno’s prison account since he was imprisoned; these are no doubt the proceeds of his illegal gambling business.”
There is trouble in paradise. Adam Schefter of ESPN is reporting that Aaron Rodgers is very unhappy with the way things are with the Green Bay Packers and does not want to return. His departure from the NFC North would be a complete miracle. He has tortured the Chicago Bears for many years and not having to deal with that any more would be the greatest thing ever. They have had Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers for about 30 years not so it would be great to see them finally take a break.
The ChicagoBears would love to see Aaron Rodgers leave the Green Bay Packers.
Aaron Rodgers is currently the reigning MVP. A player has never been traded the year after they won the award in the history of the league. This would truly be a monumental shift in the current NFL. The Green Bay Packers are legit Super Bowl contenders with him there but would take a major dip if he wasn’t. Bears fans around the world would love to see it.
A lot of this probably stems from last year’s draft. The Packers literally traded up to select a quarterback named Jordan Love. They went behind Rodgers’ back to make the move as well because the reports are that he had no idea it was happening. Now, about a year later, this story is what is being reported.
It also came on the day of the draft. The early morning reports were that the San Francisco 49ers offered Green Bay a lot to get their all-time great quarterback but the Packers declined. Now, the report makes so much more sense. If Rodgers doesn’t want to be there, it is hard to see him being there.
Reigning MVP Aaron Rodgers is so disgruntled with the Green Bay Packers that he has told some within the organization that he does not want to return to the team, league and team sources told ESPN on Thursday.
There never has been an NFL MVP traded after winning the award in the previous season. The only MVPs not to return to their team in the season after winning the award were Norm Van Brocklin (retired after winning MVP in 1960) and Jim Brown (retired after winning MVP in 1965). https://t.co/hH8kZfuI0A
If the Bears traded up and selected a quarterback, fixed the offensive line a little bit, and Rodgers left the division, all of a sudden the 2021 season is looking much less bleak. This might be an unrealistic thing to happen but it sure sounds possible at this point. As mentioned before, it would be a complete miracle for the Bears.
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