Backhanded Compliment

Higgins in the Sunday Sun Times:

Seems the "J-Fed" moniker is now accepted practice at the Sun Times. Nice to see we helped start a trend.

And of course, the typical media slander regarding overweight cops. On the whole, we've noticed that CPD doesn't seem out of line with the general population in terms of body types. What seems to convey a sense of "overweight" is the bulletproof vests, the tons of crap carried in vest pockets, a 25 pound duty belt that pulls already shapeless polyester into a saggy mess and people using the cargo pants pockets for anything that doesn't fit in the vest.

Are we (and our readers) the only ones starting to feel this so called "fitness" spiel as a piss-poor distraction to the real problems of rampant cronyism, political favoritism and general all around unprofessionalism in the face of rising crime rates and a death spiral for morale?

Friday Sun Times Editorial

We figured we'd address this first thing Monday morning as it's a higher traffic day rather than burying it all weekend. The Sun Times wrote an editorial, taking the police to task for daring to be overweight. A sampling:

• Chicago Police Supt. Jody Weis isn't the bad guy: It only makes sense to demand that police officers stay in shape -- for their sake and ours. Cops must climb up and down stairs. They must run. They must use physical force.
• The sight of a chubby cop doesn't do much to engender public confidence. It's hard to imagine that cop lumbering up the stairs in a three-flat to end a domestic squabble or hopping a fence in an alley in pursuit of a thief.
• The FOP also would like the city to install kitchens with stoves and refrigerators in police stations, so that officers can prepare healthy meals. But cops need to be on the street, not playing Charlie Trotter back at the station, and fattening fast food is hardly the only restaurant option open to them. Many restaurants, happy to have the protective presence of a police officer, offer discounts. And there is always the brown-bag lunch.

Well, as the Sun Times employs a restaurant critic or two, we'd request the following:

• Within the geographic boundaries of the following districts, find at least three restaurants that serve a decent, heart healthy, reasonable priced (as discounts will be hard to come by if everyone eats there) meals that can be driven to, parked at, seated, ordered, cooked, served and eaten within a 30 minute time frame (and these MUST be 24 hour joints as the Department runs three shifts):
• 002, 003, 004, 005, 006, 007, 011, 015, 025.

Keep in mind, you get caught holding yourself down on a job to travel to these restaurants, that's a violation.

You run over 30 minutes and get caught, that's a violation.

You get caught congregating (remember, there aren't that many healthy restaurants to go to), that's a violation.

If you park in a bus stop or on a hydrant to try to squeeze in that 30 minutes lunch and you get caught, that's a violation.

For our civilian readers, three violations (or SPARs) in a twelve month period is a day off without pay. Five violations is three days off. And these violations can be for uniform discrepancies, tardiness, missing court, or any of almost 30 infractions during the course of a year - you see why cops are loathe to risk getting one for a lunch break?

Remember also, money spent on lunches by reporters and business people are tax deductible if they talk shop - not so with cops. Although not obligated to listen to the radio, if a citizen approaches you for police service, you are required to perform your job. And unless the Department is giving out SUV's to everyone, where are we and our partners supposed to carry the coolers with our "brown bag" lunches so they don't spoil?

That Bella suggestion for refrigerators in the Districts is looking better and better, but we're sure no one will want to give us travel time to the station to pick up the brown bag.

Share the Traffic

SecondCitySarge has a couple of posts up, and a promise of more to come.

Saturday, a uniform post, debating the merits of the baseball hat versus the traditional; light blue versus dark uniform shirts; vest covers; pants.

Sunday, a short discussion of the 6th working day and how to eliminate it. SCS brings up the fact that our pay is based on a 2080-hour work year and a 5 on - 2 off, 5 on - 3 off schedule like NYPD would result in a 1950-hour work year and an approximate pay cut of $4,000 per officer. We're sure the mayor is already looking into this schedule with that familiar gleam in his eye.

SCS is promising a look at the 12 hour day coming up soon. Check them out.

No More Writs?

We aren't sure what this means, but we're sure some detective can enlighten us. From our e-mail, we get the following:

• You want to talk about homicide rates going sky high and clear up rates going way down discuss the new policy coming down the pike once again tying the hands of ALL DETECTIVES, No more taking custody of cook county jail inmates on writs.
• The last several homicide investigations several of them HIGH PROFILE have been done on writs where the known offender is in the jail on other charges and the detectives need him @ the area for line-ups etc.
• The guy who buried the dude in the basement 5 yrs ago= writ
• Reginald Potts who killed the executive girl in Calumet City after stalking her= writ
• Several of the offenders from Univ. of Chicago student murder= Writ

How is this going to work and how will it affect the clearance rates?

Violent Saturday

Weekend is only half over. And it's not even warm outside:

• Domestic murder: A man is in custody in connection with the fatal stabbing of a 26-year-old woman early Saturday during a domestic dispute on the West Side, police said.
• Simeon shooting: An 18-year-old who was attending Saturday classes at a South Side high school was shot and killed this afternoon outside the school, authorities said.
• West side teen killed: Chicago police are investigating the slaying of a 15-year-old West Side youth who was fatally shot a block from his home Friday night.

And a Cicero murder leads to a shooting at Mount Sinai Hospital in 010:

• A 25-year-old reputed gang member was shot and killed while walking in an alleyway in southwest suburban Cicero Friday evening. Hours later, rival gang members retaliated and shot a man outside Mount Sinai Hospital, where fellow gang members had gathered to hold a vigil.
  

Summer's coming boys and girls. Watch your asses and your partner's, too.

More Tax Money Pissed Away

This so called "federal monitor" seems to be nothing more than a tool to funnel money to politically connected people who's connection may have failed them at some point:

• Chicago aldermen ridiculed and condemned a federal hiring monitor on Friday for awarding $75,000 to the son of the City Council's elder statesman as compensation for a 2003 aldermanic election that was stacked against him.

  Jay Stone, son of Ald. Bernard Stone (50th), got one of the biggest chunks of a $12 million fund created to compensate victims of City Hall's rigged hiring system.

Ridiculous. And we heard a bunch more connected people got payouts because as political animals to begin with, they were the only people who could prove politics had anything to do with them being denied opportunities.

What's the definition of insanity again?

Mette Accuser Convicted

As noted on this blog months ago, Mike Mette's "accuser" got picked up and convicted for DUI.

• Click here for link - Gothard conviction is halfway down the page
  

How this affects his credibility is a question for his lawyers, but as Jacob Gothard seems to have a bad habit of getting drunk and then breaking the law, it might bear some exploration.

Inspector General Uh Oh

Why even bother firing corrupt employees when the Mayor owns the courts?

• A Chicago city employee who was fired from her job in the inspector general's office after being arrested for shoplifting was acquitted Thursday of the charge, her attorney said Friday.
  
  Tracy Buckley, 36, who was an assistant chief investigator, was charged with misdemeanor theft after about $100 worth of merchandise was stolen from a Whole Foods Market, 6020 N. Cicero Ave., in January.
  
  Her attorney, Ron Menaker, said Judge Stuart Katz found Buckley not guilty of the charge Thursday.
  
  Menaker had argued that there was an "innocent explanation" for Buckley's actions. She had inadvertently attempted to leave the store with the merchandise to retrieve her debit card from her vehicle in the parking lot, he said.

Of course, now she'll sue for her job back, and she'll probably win a reinstatement along with back pay. But you or us wandering out past the last point of payment with $100 worth of groceries? We'd be lucky to get just thirty pending.

The Cost of Chicago Government

A while back, we railed about how no one in Illinois could seem to produce a road that stood up to the wear and tear of Chicago winters. This while we drove numerous highways in Wisconsin, Michigan, even Iowa, which have comparable winters at the very least and in some cases, much worse in terms of snowfall and icing, yet very few pot holes or pavement crumbling. Hmmm.

Some claim it's the road salt, others say the thaw/freeze cycles. Some even claim it's because the Illinois Combine and the Chicago Machine hand out contracts to crooked road builders who use substandard concrete and asphalt, slap dash work, shoddy engineering and bribed inspectors who overlook flaws in the pours in return for political kickback to campaigns (just look at a "who's who" of road building companies and match it up against political contributors - amazing!)

Whatever it is, it's costing us money again:

• The number of "damage to vehicle" claims filed with the City Clerk's Office has nearly tripled in the last year - from 486 last year to more than 1,300 this year.
  
  The city usually pays half the cost of each legitimate claim filed.

We also notice how Channel 5 doesn't even try to estimate the total bill. That might embarrass the Mayor after his recent tax raises.

Not That We Sell Ad Space...

...but bloggers, people not too dissimilar to ourselves, willing to put it all out there every single day and do it with almost zero overhead and some halfway decent advertising, are beating the print media to death:

• The newspaper industry has experienced the worst drop in advertising revenue in more than 50 years. According to new data released by the Newspaper Association of America, total print advertising revenue in 2007 plunged 9.4% to $42 billion compared to 2006 -- the most severe percent decline since the association started measuring advertising expenditures in 1950. The drop-off points to an economic slowdown on top of the secular challenges faced by the industry. The second worst decline in advertising revenue occurred in 2001 when it fell 9.0%.

You think there's a reason Frank Main writes about a third of the Sun Times by himself, either under his byline or as a STNG stringer/staffer and Fran Spielman another ten or twenty percent? A lot of smoke and a cracked mirror.

Credit Where Credit is Due

Seems that some people are being left out of the heavy handed praise being dished out regarding the apprehension of the killer of a pregnant mother of three this past Halloween. Praise is being heaped upon the cameras, the detectives, the cameras and we think the cameras again - anything to justify the expenditures of million of dollars that did nothing to prevent a murder and didn't even capture the actual murderer.

What it did capture were faces of potential witnesses. And how good were those photos? Pretty damn bad evidently, because it took a couple of people adept in computer enhancing of the photos to actually give the detectives something to work with.

But we don't see their names anywhere. We guess that "working hard" mantra and being a "team player" platitudes being heard around the corridors of power are still the echoes of ones heard under the last half a dozen superintendents.

National Headlines

Anyone else think Daley is spitting up bile after Thursday's news reports? This is just the MSNBC report:

• CHICAGO - The morning trip to school for dozens of teenagers here had all the normal signs: bleary eyes, oversized jackets zipped up against the chill, the seemingly endless wait for the bus.

  But there was tension underlying the routine: The trip was under the watchful eyes of parents, an alderman, a principal and police.

  The escort to and from Crane Tech High School this week, dubbed "Operation Safe Passage" is just one of the ways Chicago is dealing with a wave of violence that has stunned the city.

"...stunned the city." Anyone else out there stunned? Or has anyone else out there been reading the signs and putting two and two together as many of our readers have been doing for years?

This was everywhere over the past two days and its taken the luster off a lot of Daley's Olympic dream. Granted, there's still enough crooked cash and bribes to win the Games, but that's always the way its been.

Ladies and Gents - Mayor Daley

Evidently, the rumors that he's been trolling the blog are true:

• SCC, no need to post this...
  
  You are such a douche bag. Your ranting and raving about everything is getting tiresome. You cast such negativity upon the department by your constant bitching and moaning. Give the new boss a chance... Oh, and don't forget to GO FUCK YOURSELF TOOL!

Well, Mr Mayor, if you hadn't driven this entire department into the ground with your constant meddling, your over promotion of pompous coat holders and door openers (starting with Townsend) and proceeding through the decades making 30% of all bosses who were relatives, cousins, political players, baby sitters, boyhood friends, bartenders, mistresses and general all around incompetent boobs, then we wouldn't be having these problems today, would we?

We didn't invent the problems. We didn't even create the atmosphere which allowed the problems to flourish and birth new problems. That was you and your organization. And now in this new age of internet media that you cannot control, we can expose what 20+ years of stupidity has done to what used to be a great career and turned in into a ruin from which it may never recover.

(yes, we know it probably wasn't the mayor posting, but it's so much funnier if we pretend it was - SCC.)

Knock Knock

Who's there?

Police.

Police who?

Police. Can we come in and search your house without a warrant, without probable cause, without anything that would even remotely seem like we have any reason at all to be in your house? Pretty please?

This is a bright freaking idea:

• [Washington DC] The Metropolitan Police Department yesterday moved cautiously into its program to ask to search homes in the District for illegal guns while civil rights activists knocked on doors and used bullhorns to keep residents from participating.

• The department initiated its program by distributing literature at police stations and Boys and Girls Clubs to gauge public interest. It plans to begin the searches in two weeks.

  Police spokeswoman Traci Hughes said the Safe Home program attempts to reach parents or guardians who think or know their children have guns and will offer amnesty for certain gun- and drug-possession charges.

The Washington DC police department has promised to overlook any found drugs, housing violations or anything else that could come to light during these voluntary searches. The ACLU of course, doubts this and frankly, so do we. Does anyone really think if the police ran across something like the "Keystone kids" living in squalor and inhuman conditions that no one would go to jail? Or a meth lab? Or some beaten and bruised domestic victim? Of course not.

As the article notes, there are already mechanisms in place for parents to get unwanted guns and drugs out of their houses - call the police, be a parent, and get junior on the right track.

But to have the police go door-to-door and ask for guns? Someone keep the mayor away from the TV, radio, newspapers and internet for a few days.

Look! Shiny Objectsl!

Oooooo! Aren't they pretty! Shiny shiny shiny!

Hey, jackass, wake up. You know who gave you those? The mayor. Stop playing with the mayor's balls.

From the Sun Times on Wednesday:

• City Hall is negotiating with Chicago's police union to require officers to take physical fitness tests throughout their careers.

  But under the city's proposal, officers would not have to pass a fitness test for promotion, police spokeswoman Monique Bond said.

  Officers who flunk a test would receive help from the department to get in shape, Bond said. The proposal does not specify how often officers would have to take a fitness test, she said.

This is a distraction. It's going no where. There is no way in hell the City is going to give us an hour a day to work out, not with the homicide rate up 15%, the aggravated batteries spiking in the springtime and dead gang bangers school children stacking up around town.

The City is also not going to address the underlying causes of weight gain so eloquently described by Greg Bella in a previous press release. And they definitely won't be implementing some of Greg's more humorous remedies (stoves, refrigerators, veggie cook outs with J-Fed).

The union is taking the "high road" so to speak, sticking by their agreement with the City not to negotiate in the media. The City however, seems bound and determined to put everything they can in the papers and they have their tame reporter exploiting J-Fed's off-the-cuff remarks to lever concessions from the FOP.

It shouldn't be happening and the next time it does, the FOP really ought to go to town on the mayor and his cronies that are circumventing the process via whatever means possible.

UPDATE: Look! More Shiny Balls!

From the Tribune:

• At a Chicago Crime Commission luncheon held in his honor Wednesday, Weis said he would like to update the department's "horrible" fleet of squad cars in answer to a question about how he might help patrol officers on the street.
  
  With Chicago's rugged winters, a sport-utility vehicle might make more sense than the traditional Ford Crown Victoria, he said.
  
  Weis also wants better quality flashlights and radios and said he thought officers' guns should be more uniform.

And where is this money going to come from? First issue on required guns. Digital radios aren't cheap (not to mention the cost of integrating them into OEMC which is at least two generations old now). And a fleet of SUV's In Daley's "green" Chicago?

Distractions people. Every single one of them

More Rumor Quick Hits

All sorts of interesting rumors lately. We cover the "uniform commissary" in depth below this post. We also heard the following in the comments:

• The massive transfer of Sergeants down south has been delayed or canceled? What the hell is going on? Did someone point out that there are seniority issues involved in the involuntary movement of individuals from their respective districts and watches?
• Closed Market is dead? Again? We shall reiterate for the slower readers who are monitoring the site from 35th Street - if you can detail people from HQ for 90 days and not affect operations, then HQ is overstaffed by at least that many people. If any place needs to learn to do more with less, it's Headquarters.
• The people being stripped for years old beefs? There's a common thread to each rumored removal - a Rule 14 violation. This tracks with an initiative rumored to have begun with the recently departed Deputy Superintendent of Patrol who told anyone who'd listen that a Rule 14 violator is "no good" to the Department. They can't work undercover, they can't be on warrants, they can't even testify at a municipal hearing. There are under 100 of them currently on the Department and we'd imagine that each and every one of them is going to be put through the wringer shortly.

The mayhem continues.

Uniform Commissary?

Among the more interesting rumors to rear up lately, Uniforms would now be "purchased" through a "Department store" and you would be able to exchange damaged items for replacement articles and everything would be... well... uniform we guess. What nephew or cousin of the mayor gets to run this show?

We would love to see how this works. Who gets what? We know people who like to have six uniforms, one for each day in a row worked. Are they issued six? Some people rotate two and three pairs of boots and gym shoes, especially during the hot months. Are they provided extras?

A sizable sub group of the Department (of which we number ourselves) uses a portion of the uniform check to maintain proficiency with our firearms. We purchase and go through a few hundred rounds each year just because we receive a uniform allowance and don't need a new uniform at the moment. Any chance we're going to see that ammunition at the commissary? We certainly can't see the city letting us bank it.

Everyone better look long and hard at any contract proposal that comes through with a reduction or elimination of the Uniform Allowance in favor of some "commissary" and "chit" system. It sounds like another nickel-and-dime you to death city proposal that enriches the connected and denies us a benefit.

Didn't We Cover This?

As predicted here months ago, and in fact, encouraged by most of our readers:

• Are Chicagoans trekking to the suburbs to buy cases of bottled water - and avoid a new nickel-a-container tax that adds $1.20 to the price of a 24-pack? Or are they making the switch to tap water to save money? One or the other is happening. Maybe both.
  
  Revenues from Chicago's new bottled water tax are trickling in - at a rate nearly 40 percent below projections - exacerbating a budget crunch that has already prompted Mayor Daley to order $20 million in spending cuts.
  
  January collections were $554,000. That's far short of the $875,000-a-month needed to meet the city's $10.5 million-a-year projection.
  

Whoa!!! Who'd have thunk it? People actually trying to save money?!? People shopping for bargains?!? People making a conscious decision to deprive the money gluttons of Chicago their hard earned money to waste on ever more onerous, crooked and failing programs?!?

Who the hell do these people think they are?

Keep buying suburban people. And if at all possible, keep buying out of county, too.

Great Story

A story for the bar...we mean, church social:

• The man is accused of walking into the muffler shop just before 9 a.m. Monday brandishing a gun and demanding money. There was no money, a worker said. A manager, who was not at the shop, was the only one with information about how to get in to the safe.

  But the gunman gave workers a request before he left. He left them his cell phone number and wanted workers to call him once the manager arrived so the safe could be unlocked.

  The workers, instead, dialed 911.

  "No one could make this up," said Grand Central District police Lt. Scott Schwieger.

  By noon, a plan had been mapped out to nab the suspect. He got the call he requested, but Grand Central District police tactical officers, who typically work in plainclothes, were waiting for his arrival.

  When the man walked into the muffler shop and showed his gun, a tactical officer announced he was a police officer, Schwieger said.

  According to police accounts, the suspect pointed a gun at the officer, and the officer fired twice, with one bullet hitting the suspect's leg. The suspect's gun did not discharge and no one else was injured.

Nice one.

Any Word?

On Captain movement? Captain promotions? Captain openings?

We figure that's the next big thing as the new commanders bring over people they like and trust.

Babysitting Again

Is this really the most judicious use of taxpayer dollars?

• Despite an enormous police presence, including a special escort for ABLA kids to and from the West Side school, nearly half of the students at Crane didn't show up for classes Monday -- the first day back after spring break.

  One-day attendance dipped to 52.8 percent -- even less than the 55.2 percent average attendance for the entire week after Crane junior Ruben Ivy was shot to death a half block from the school, Chicago Public Schools officials said.

A specially assigned bus. Police escort front and back. Aldercreature and more police on standby. A constant stream of Closed Market cars and who knows what else around the entire neighborhood. And we get this letter in the e-mail box:

• SCC, Manley high school, blocks from the Crane show of police presence, ended up in a riot today with a dozen kids going to jail, all over one of those "buck-fifty" hats. And if it isn't Manley, it's Marshall. And when it isn't Marshall, it's Orr. And if any of those high schools are tired out, it's Farragut or Little Village picking up the slack.

Funny how we don't see any coverage of the melee at Manley. Until someone has a toe-tag on them, they aren't news, we guess.

Save the Cargo Pants

The fashion police readers strike again:

• Obviously SCC does not work the streets. If he did, he would know how utilitarian the cargo pants are for the guys who work a beat car. Stay behind your desk and leave the police work, and cargo pants, to the people who actually put the cuffs on the bad guys.
• You probably don't work the street if you agree to get rid of those cargo pants pockets. You need all these pockets for your search gloves, FOP book, UCR code book, and pocket size hand sanitizers!
• Obviously, SCC, you don't work the street much, if you did you would want all the pockets you can get--no matter how they looked--its a survival thing--we need to place pens, FOP book, 10-in-1 tool, kevlar gloves, plastic throwaway hospital gloves, small version of incident reporting guide, MCC code book,flashlight, and i'm sure i'm missing out some things---We need all the pockets we can get--Us supervisors need it also for the tazer's cause in most of the districts the cases are broken and we can't use them--so we only have one choice but to place them in the cargo pants pocket

Again, we work the street daily, 6 in a row, just like a few thousand other guys and gals here. We only opined that the extra pockets made the pants look goofy. The material is fine, it wears better, doesn't show snags and holds up better under trying conditions.

We've been lectured by plenty of old timers, "The more you have on your belt, the less you have in your head." We'd like to add, "The more you have in your pockets, the less likely you are to do any police work."

Two words for everyone saying you need extra pockets for FOP books, UCR books, sanitizers, gloves, pens, 10-in-1 tools, flashlights, etc: Gear Bag. We've got all of the above plus our report box, two slim jims, ticket books, extra pens, screw drivers, and hat along with 5 pairs of flex cuffs, a third pair of handcuffs, leg shackles, extra OC, aspirin, a first aid kit and a half a dozen M-80's for fun time lawful police purposes.

You carry all that extra stuff in your pants, you aren't going to make it over fences undamaged.

More Stripped?

We heard that some people got stripped for alleged "offenses" that not only occurred in excess of 7 years ago (the alleged time restriction for CR's kept available for use), but for some CR's that have been adjudicated, accepted, signed on and suspension time served. And now they're going to be re-tried? Or re-investigated?

One of these cases is rumored to be 11 years old. Another slightly longer than that.

Anyone have actual cases?

Cameras a Waste in SF

First, the red light cameras in Dallas are being shut down at an increasing rate as people adjust their driving habits. Now, a study finds they don't even work in San Francisco:

• San Francisco's 68 controversial anti-crime cameras haven't deterred criminals from committing assaults, sex offenses or robberies - and they've only moved homicides down the block, according to a new report from UC Berkeley.

  Researchers found that nonviolent thefts dropped by 22 percent within 100 feet of the cameras, but the devices had no effect on burglaries or car theft. And they've had no effect on violent crime.

  Mayor Gavin Newsom called the report "conclusively inconclusive" on Thursday but said he still wants to install more cameras around the city because they make residents feel safer.
  

They make people "feel safer"? Until that knife or bullet really hits you we guess. But he'll keep spending tax payer's money.

Uniform Changes?

Any truth to the rumor of black vest covers, turtlenecks and cargo pants being outlawed?

A point for J-Fed if he's reading:

• We needed something better than the current 80/20s. The cargo pants are a decent material, but those side pockets are just goofy. Keep the material, go to a standard pants style.
• Turtlenecks are not a bad thing. Get rid of the tie instead - make it a dress uniform item only.
• Black vest covers really ought to stay. They don't show the dirt and wear as badly as blue ones. You want to see some atrocious vest covers, look at the ones supervisors wear. They're supposed to be white we heard, but yellow? And every single grease stain or black mark shows up on them. Black is fine, but standardize it across the board.

Debate if you like.

Nice Coverage

We have this story buried in the Times:

• A Lincoln Park High School girls' swim coach and Chicago firefighter was arrested in Elmhurst on attempted sexual abuse charges after he allegedly tried to solicit a child on the Internet, police said Saturday.

  Dennis P. Goggin, 42, of the 3600 block of South Union Avenue in Chicago was arrested Thursday by police in the west suburb, according to Elmhurst police Sgt. Steve Weatherford.

Then this one also hidden in the darker recesses of the paper:

• Griselda Bueno died alone, of a heart attack in her Berwyn home, after spending years helping everyone from children to the elderly in the Hispanic community make their way through the health care system.

  And when the 59-year-old woman's remains went to the Cook County medical examiner's office, an autopsy technician stole a three-carat diamond engagement ring that Bueno never took off, and diamond earrings, authorities allege.

And still, the lead story in Sunday's paper is a non-existent issue that has been hashed and re-hashed to death. Can you imagine if a copper was caught stealing? Oh wait, they were and it was front page for days on end. Same thing with the molesting sergeant and he's going to prison for almost two decades.

The Slum Times is continuing its slide into irrelevance at an alarming speed.

D'oh!!

Heat + Explosive Device = BANG!

• Two young brothers from the Back of the Yards neighborhood were wounded when a loaded handgun hidden inside an oven discharged as the oven was heated, police said.

  The boys' older sister turned on the oven to cook Friday afternoon, apparently unaware a parolee had hidden a gun inside, police said.

  The woman suddenly heard loud noises coming from the oven, followed by the screams of her bleeding 4-year-old brother, who was shot in a leg. A 12-year-old boy was struck in the forehead by debris caused by the gunshots, police said.

Thank goodness those innumerable gun laws kept a weapon out of the hands of a convicted felon on parole, eh? Because we're sure he only had it around for reasons as pure as the driven snow.

Sun Times Article

The Sunday Slum Times has a page 1 feature on how the Department doesn't "reflect" the population of the city it serves. It showcases the "reverends" and aldercreatures demanding that J-Fed correct this imbalance, probably by violating the law.

We'll link to the article Sunday morning when we can.

UPDATE: Here's the crap in all it's glory. Criticism to follow.

UPDATE: Anyone else notice that Fran added the Asians to the White number to make it appear Caucasians were the majority? Otherwise, how could Fran's numbers add up to 100% with only White, Black and Hispanic?

Oh wait Cauc-Asian...got it . Never mind.

Overheard at the Social Club

We think we heard this also, because they were talking about it where we were at. It needed it's own post though:

• Cline's claim to fame was his ability to reduce the number of homicides. He sold Hillard that he was capable of performing miracles.
  
  What really was going on was Cline, then Malloy and finally Maher were utilizing the two homicide review officers who work outside the office of the Chief of Detectives to reclassify homicides back to death investigations.
  
  It made the CPD look like it was doing a tremendous job but is was all Bull Shit.
  
  Pam Zekman had it right but "Fat Phil" lied to her and the citizens of Chicago to benefit himself and his gang.
  
  Just another example of how devious he was and it will take years for CPD to recover.

We heard, third hand, that J-Fed is having the homicide numbers for the past three years reviewed for "classification errors" that may have hidden certain deaths from being counted.

Long time readers will recall this theory making a regular appearance in the comment sections and it being the subject of at least one Pam Zekman report that made a certain Deputy Chief look a bit uncomfortable during an interview.

We have a disturbing feeling the hits haven't stopped coming yet.

TRU Downsizing

We gleaned a bunch last night at a drinking establishment or three along with an e-mail or two. We had club sodas all night long.

Seems TRU is downsizing. At least one platoon. That means like 80 cops, 8 sergeants and an lieutenant. It also explains some of the transfer order moves. If people had a better spot or needed an out, this was the opportunity to move before being placed out.

And speaking of the transfer order, there sure was a lot of movement using the "F" and "G" designations. We think those stand for Exempt Staff and Not Subject to Bid. But there were a bunch of them - not surprising seeing as how many exempts movements there were.

More surprising was the number of supervisors being moved south from existing spots. A whole bunch of people got moved as "B" and "C" options. Is this punishment for certain former minions?

Lieutenants? Get Your Resumes

Running the captain numbers, we have something like 65 spots filled and there are around 6 lieutenants trained up to be captains. That still leaves a minimum of 4 captains short and there should be a mandatory retirement or two this year.

Should J-Fed keep the captain rank (and according to various advisers we've heard quoted, that isn't even guaranteed) the full strength number is 75.

Start updating those SES packages.

How Charmingly Stupid

And this guy runs for office....and wins:

• If the Supreme Court strikes down the ability of municipalities like the District of Columbia to regulate guns, Chicago and other cities with handgun bans would see a return of gun stores and an upswing in crime, Mayor Richard Daley said Tuesday.

Based on what studies Mr. Mayor? Every study we've ever seen, even by anti gun groups shows a DOWNWARD trend in crime where ever guns are legal.

And we'd bet not one single gun store would return to Chicago or Cook County anyway - who wants to pay 10.25% tax to support your inanity?

Have you looked into dropping your armored car and 22 bodyguards yet? Or taking away Ed Burke's contingent?

We didn't think so, hypocrite.

Rumors Abound

Scandals in waiting:

• TRU cop with a trap in his car?
• 017 - what the hell is going on?
• Revising homicide numbers upwards? Going back 3 years?
• Why is everyone going to hate J-Fed shortly?

And other stuff:

• Sergeants next week?
• Captain movement? Captain promotions?
• Another high level "resignation"?

Stay tuned.

Global Warming is Real!

Seriously. Just don't look out the window lately:

• The National Weather Service has issued a winter storm warning for northern Illinois and northwest Indiana that will be in effect from until 1 a.m. Saturday. A winter storm warning means significant amounts of snow, sleet and ice are expected and travel will be hazardous.
  
  As of 4 a.m. Friday, the city’s Department of Streets & Sanitation has had its full fleet of 273 snow-fighting trucks on their routes, where they will remain until the storm ends.

Blizzards in Iraq. Record snows in Greece. Canada under the largest snow in a century. Glaciers not only growing, but growing exponentially (except for that single one on Greenland that Al Gore keeps whining about...oh, didn't the media report it was only one glacier shrinking?)

And finally, the myth of Global Warming extinguished beyond a reasonable doubt:

• "Runaway greenhouse theories contradict energy balance equations," Miskolczi states. Just as the theory of relativity sets an upper limit on velocity, his theory sets an upper limit on the greenhouse effect, a limit which prevents it from warming the Earth more than a certain amount.

  How did modern researchers make such a mistake? They relied upon equations derived over 80 years ago, equations which left off one term from the final solution.

So Al Gore's entire science is based on a wrong equation. Hahahaha. Fire up those grills people.

Nice Toy

When they do strike down the Chicago ban, we've already got our new home defense weapon picked out:



We'll take two please.

Related?

On one hand:

• Chicago police and school officials are hoping parents will take heed of a new curfew that goes into effect Saturday night and ensure that their children are home on time.
  
  The new law requires that youths ages 17 and younger be home a half an hour earlier, at 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturday and 10 p.m. the rest of the week.

All well and good. But we're so shorthanded, enforcing this new rule will be a feat of mind bending flexibility that we aren't sure is going to happen. And what about this?

• A 12-year-old girl was shot and wounded on the city's Southeast Side in what police described as a gang-related incident, officials said.
  
  The shooting occurred about 9 p.m. in the 8900 block of South Houston Avenue, police said.
  
  The girl was running away from the gunfire when she was struck by a bullet in her lower back

Why not 9pm curfews? 830pm curfews?

When do you stop drawing the line?

SCC is Ill

Whatever the hell bug is going around has knocked a few of us for a loop.

Regular posting resuming this morning.

That is all.

SCC Contest!

Gee, if we had just known all we needed a new motto, we would have had this contest years ago!

• Chicago Police Supt. Jody Weis issued a new "core values" statement to officers Tuesday, one of a handful of big changes he has made since taking over the department Feb. 1.
  
  "These core values are on display by many police officers everyday," Weis said in a statement. "But we want to ensure that every police officer knows, accepts and displays the tenets that define what a Chicago police officer should be."
  
  The values statement will be taught to new recruits at the training academy and given to officers at roll calls and at police stations.

Yup, this will solve all our problems. Thanks god J-Fed made it here to backassward Chicago to bless us with his glorious knowledge and leadership. It feels like Moses has come down from the mountain, doesn't it?

• The core values follow the acronym POLICE: professionalism, obligation, leadership, integrity, courage and excellence.

New SCC Contest! Make your own acronym. Our entry is as follows:

• P is for Political Promotions, made without regard to ability;
  
• O is for Owed, as in "favors owed," or "obligations;"
  
• L is for Liability, many "want" it, but only the lowest are liable;
  
• I is for Incompetence throughout the ranks of supervisors;
  
• C is for Clout, which rules the day, despite repeated denials;
  
• E is for Embarrassment, in thinking that coming up with some cutesy "core value" press release is going to rid us of the political repercussions of promoting unqualified sons, daughters, wives, husbands, nieces, nephews, cousins, lovers to positions far beyond their abilities.

Core Values is going to solve all our problems? Holy Crap.

Another TASER Killing

The talking heads are all over this one. Trouble is, once again, there's not a single piece of evidence that says a TASER killed him:

• An autopsy Wednesday proved inconclusive for a 24-year-old man who died after being Tasered by police on the Southwest Side.

  Roberto Gonzales, 24, of the 4800 block of South Wood Street, was pronounced dead at Mount Sinai Hospital at 8:15 p.m. Tuesday, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office. Gonzales was Tasered in the 2700 block of South Trumbull Avenue, the medical examiner's office reported.

  About 7:30 p.m., police took a man -- reportedly high on drugs -- into custody after he caused a disturbance at an unidentified location in the Marquette Police District.

Oops! There it is - "reportedly high on drugs." Once again, the specter of "excited delirium" comes into play. We give this another year or two before someone comes up with a better name for it, but the fact is, if someone is whacked out on chemicals and the police restrain them from hurting themselves or others, they may die and it will have nothing at all to do with a TASER being used.

Anti Gun Nuts Frothing

We aren't getting Concealed Carry here. Not yet anyway. But our friends, families and neighbors won't have to fear being labeled criminals for having the means to defend themselves in their homes anymore. We're checking the sales on "street sweepers" next week.

The Supreme Court hasn't even ruled on the DC Gun ban and already the softballs are out in force predicting anarchy, bloodbath and disorder. They completely miss the fact that 48 states already have Concealed Carry or Shall Issue and not a single one of them turned into Dodge City. Hell, they didn't even turn into Detroit or Chicago or Washington DC.

The only place gun violence went up was in placed that banned guns.

The gun ban is going to be struck down in DC. There's no question about it. And that is going to provide Second Amendment advocates with a precedent to bring down Chicago's gun ban. The people backing Heller in the DC case have already said they're coming to town and we for one are hoping the NRA is going to fund them adequately. We're setting aside contributions already.

Good News or Not?

Rumor has it that Skahill and IAD are going to take the investigation of Complaint Register numbers out of the hands of District supervisors.

On one hand, this sounds like a good idea. It removes someone who is way to close to the investigations from having their personal relationships and feelings get in the way (team supervisors investigating their picks, field sergeants investigating the people they work with daily).

On the other hand, it's going to mean a larger IAD presence. We heard they were interviewing a number of detectives to work at IAD. As they are trained to investigate, this might be a good thing, but it will mean a lot more thorough investigations, which could mean something completely different for anyone caught playing outside the lines.

US Supreme Court

Well, on the bright side, it would appear that the fundamental Right to Bear Arms will be upheld:

• Americans have a right to own guns, Supreme Court justices declared Tuesday in a historic and lively debate that could lead to the most significant interpretation of the Second Amendment since its ratification two centuries ago.

The scope of government regulation permitted will be the key component of the US Supreme Court decision (above link to FT.com - registration may be required):

• The most difficult question for the court is: what kind of laws can governments pass to restrict the constitutional right to keep and bear a gun?

  Chief Justice John Roberts made clear that the DC law would not meet his test as a reasonable regulation of firearms ownership. “What is reasonable about a total ban on possession of handguns?” he asked. But several other justices defended the ban as a reasonable response to the crime problem in America’s capital city.

  Mr Heller’s lawyer said the court could find that Americans have an individual right to own guns but still allow governments to regulate some types of weapons, such as machine guns, and who can own them.

The talk among Gun Rights advocates is that they are willing to settle for a partial victory permitting households to own firearms because that will give them a lever to take down New York and Chicago total handgun bans. It would also derail various bills the Cook County board is attempting to pass and give ammunition to plenty to other Gun Rights groups to challenge ill conceived rules that only serve to disarm the law abiding.

It's a start.

Econ 101 and 102

These jackasses just can't get it together:

• The Daley administration has rejected a developer’s request for administrative approval to build Chicago’s second Wal-Mart and first super-center that sells groceries.

  The decision by Planning and Development Commissioner Arnold Randall means the City Council may have no choice but to re-live the political donnybrook that gave birth to the vetoed big-box minimum wage ordinance.

And what's the bottom line here?

• Brookins accused Mayor Daley of ducking the issue to avoid alienating unions that spent millions to elect a City Council more independent of the mayor.

  “You would think that, given the state of the economy, we would welcome 500 new jobs to Chicago. Instead, we’re pushing ’em away because nobody wants to take the heat from certain unions that still have issues with Wal-Mart,” he said.

Five hundred jobs. Mostly recession proof jobs because everyone still needs to eat. And for all the grief Wal-Mart gets, they still provide decent products at lower prices, helping stretch family budgets a bit farther.

But the mayor and aldercreatures continue to drive businesses from the city.

Who Has Info?

We heard that tavern business is down across the state due to the smoking ban imposed upon various public venues.

If bar business is down, forgive us, but doesn't that mean that a large portion of sales tax revenues are also down? And excise taxes on liquor and spirits?

Anyone know where we can find totals, comparisons or statistics? And where oh where is the City, State and County going to make up these shortfalls?

Space Filler

Since SCC... oops, I mean Mr. SCC, had that cardiac episode yesterday, he gave me control of the blog for a couple of days. My name is Monique Bonds (Mrs. SCC) and I currently hold a position in the Department that allows me lots of free time since my entire Department isn't allowed to speak to the media much anymore.

I thought I'd share one of my favorite photos from years ago, back when I was still married to the orange fellow, Pat. You might remember him from previous TV appearances. You don't see him much at all anymore and I'm wondering if his position is going to be eliminated shortly. He runs a very dry and humorless blog that Mr. SCC won't allow me to name. It's a company blog, sanitized press releases and such, a whole lot of sucking up pretty much. It's way less funny than this place.

What people don't realize is that my ex-husband Pat didn't set out to be a police spokesperson. He used to have ambition (until the midget on the fifth floor killed it off). Pat wanted to be an actor. Unfortunately, acting with Pat's particular...um...skin tone limited his roles. I mean, look at this:Pat didn't have to wear make up for the role, but he refused to don the Oompa Loompa wig, saying it really messed up his "do." Gene Wilder fired him shortly after this picture was taken, but he still send us Christmas cards every year. Class act, that Mr. Wilder.

Anyway, SCC says he'll be back today. I told him the blog is in good hands, but he worries that he'll be losing readers to Pat's efforts. I told him not to worry.

Signed,
Monique Bonds

Kirby Sweating - Mayor, Too

Monique here again. Boy it was an interesting day in the media yesterday, wasn't it? I had to field a whole bunch of phone calls regarding Deb Kirby, what she knew and when she knew it. It was like working for the Carter Administration. Or was that the Nixon people? I can never keep those guys straight. Anyway, the heat is on and the mayor himself had to step up and read the media the riot act. I mean, if the mayor has to tell you to shut up and stop asking questions, you know there's got to be a huge story buried in there somewhere:

• The new head of the Chicago Police Department is standing by his choice to be his top legal adviser, despite a memo that raises questions about how she handled complaints about officers in an elite drug and gang unit. A memo obtained by the Chicago Tribune shows that an internal affairs investigator complained in June 2005 that his superiors had not approved a more aggressive probe of the Special Operations Section, despite mounting evidence of wrongdoing. The unit has since been disbanded, and seven of its former members face charges of robbery, kidnapping and making false arrests.
  

If I missed like 30 press conferences, someone would be screaming for my head. Well, maybe not. Pat would probably step in and be happy for the face time on the TV (he misses it). But these jokers miss at least that many court appearances? And the CR investigations? And the money beefs? And the alleged home invasions? All mysteriously disappear for years.

Oh, and did everyone see me quoted in the article? I'm soooo excited! I have to remember to get that one for my scrapbook:

• Kirby's promotion was part of a massive reorganization by Weis that also included replacing 21 of 25 district commanders.
  
  "The FBI has had a close working relationship with Deb Kirby," police spokeswoman Monique Bond said. "Supt. Weis has full confidence in all of the command changes he made."
  
  Bond said that prior to the memo being sent, some SOS officers' behavior was "under review" by the confidential investigations section, but that would have been secret, even from other people in internal affairs.

"Massive reorganization" doesn't even begin to describe what I'm doing to my rolodex, let me tell you. And that close working relationship with the FBI? It's a smokescreen seeing as Weis is ex-FBI now and it doesn't really matter. The full confidence thing is a boilerplate phrase we use when there's so much BS in the air, you can't even walk down a hallway without slipping on some.

The Tribune has a HUGE article that covers even more of the situation.

Signed,
Monique Bonds

UPDATE: Here's the mayor defending Kirby. That's kind of unusual. You think Deb knows where the investigations went south? Where the clout was? Who covered up for whom? How high the money went?

UPDATE: Here's the FBI releasing a statement that they aren't investigating Kirby. It sure seems like a lot of people are getting out in front of this media investigation and denying that they have anything to do with any part of it.

SCC Has Had A Heart Attack

Um, hello? I feel really weird talking to everyone out there and not being able to see you all. I can't believe my significant other has been spending all his spare time typing with seven or eight other buddies to a few thousand people who visit each day.

I found Mr. SCC (as he demands to be called at home) slumped over the breakfast table with a Sun Times in his hand. Don't worry, he doesn't buy the Times - he usually steals it from the neighbor's front porch or picks up one that the delivery man misses into the bushes. He's been trying to train the dog for a month to chase the driver so he drops more.

The paper was open to Mary Mitchell's column (he always calls her Mope-rah), so while I was waiting for the paramedics to arrive, I read the column:

• Stop blaming the Chicago Police Department, the Chicago Public Schools for what is happening to black children.

  When a teenager ends up in court charged with murder, it isn't society's fault. It is the parent's fault.

I admit, even my heart fluttered a bit at seeing that in print. But then I just thought, "Duh!" Who doesn't know that a child picks up his or her parents' habits, mannerisms, political leanings and life philosophy? Even a moron knows that and Mope-rah definitely qualifies as a moron. I continued to read as the paramedics walked in:

• Because Ivy was brazenly gunned down minutes from the high school, in an area routinely patrolled by squad cars, students are blaming police.

  As one female student put it in earshot of a reporter: "You didn't do s---. Why the f--- are you here now?"

  And police are supposed to want to wade into this land mine? Whatever happened to respect?

Well, to answer her question, people like her, Dope-rah, Sharpton and that "no good sonuvabitch Jesse Jackson" (again, those are Mr. SCC's words) have been preaching victimhood for years and a complete absence of personal responsibility. For god's sake, even Hillary preaches "it takes a village." It doesn't take a village - it takes two dedicated parents. As the paramedics did their thing, I read some more:

• Tragedies like this happen because too many parents let their teens find recreation in the streets.

  Too many of these same parents also believe it is normal for a teenager to have a rap sheet and to hang out with gang members.

  And instead of seeking help for out-of-control teens, these mothers -- and it is usually the mothers who find themselves in this position -- end up in front of a judge trying to convince the court that the accused is a good kid.
  

Well, I think Mope-rah is painting with a bit of a broad brush here. I never thought it was OK to let SCC Jr. hang out in the streets. I always knew who SCC Jr. was playing with, who's house he was at, what homework he had and what the teachers thought he could use improvement in. Again, nothing a reasonably intelligent human being can't see. Then the paramedics hauled Mr. SCC to the ambulance and rushed him to one of our finer suburban hospitals. I told them I'd catch up after I made arrangements for Jr.'s babysitter. I wasn't that worried about Mr. SCC - he's tough as nails and it'd take more than Mope-rah to kill him. I finished off the article:

• Parents who have given up on their kids and let them run wild in our schools and in our neighborhoods need to be held accountable.

  Maybe the best way to do that is to make the parents of the killers pay restitution to the parents of the victims, as one of my readers recently suggested.

  "I am tired of parents who continue to surrender parenting. . . . This doesn't happen overnight," said the Rev. Michael Pfleger, pastor of St. Sabina.

Holy sweet mother of god...pfleger is on board, too? I think I'm getting faint. Where's those smelling salts? Jr! Bring me the phone...9-1-1, just like we taught you.

Signed,
Monique Bonds (Mrs. SCC)

Michael Gordon Fundraiser

From the Gordon family:

• I know you sometimes promote events on the blog so I was curious if you could help me out by promoting our event. From your postings I'm guessing you aren't Cub fans, but the Michael P. Gordon Memorial Foundation is holding its fourth annual 'Roof Raiser' on Saturday, April 5 as the Cubs take on the Astros. The rooftop at 1010 W. Waveland holds about 200 guests. I have about 30 slots still open and would love to have another sellout.
  
• We hold two funders a year and donate to various causes reflective of Mike's life. An endowed scholarship has been established at Lewis University. We have made several contributions to the widows/families of POs killed both on and off the job. We have also sponsored family buses during National Police Week in DC the last three years. For us, it keeps a piece of my brother alive and we're able to help some people along the way.

It's not that we aren't Cubs fans - we just aren't baseball fans. But we're happy to promote this event on behalf of the foundation. CLICK HERE for further details.

Once Again, On the Money

We comment that we'd like to see a breakdown of what "Red Light Cameras" generated at their respective intersections when installed compared to how they do today. And we speculated that the numbers trended downward as more people learned and adapted their driving behaviors. Then we get this in the e-mail a few days ago:

• Dallas City Hall has idled more than one-fourth of the 62 cameras that monitor busy intersections because many of them are failing to generate enough red-light-running fines to justify their operational costs, according to city documents.
  
  Initial gross revenue estimates for the red light camera system during Dallas' 2007-08 fiscal year were $14.8 million, according to city records. The latest estimate? About $6.2 million. City Manager Mary Suhm on Friday estimated net revenue will fall $4.1 million under initial estimates.
  
  That leaves Dallas government with a conundrum. Its red-light camera system has been an effective deterrent to motorists running red lights – some monitored intersections have experienced a more than 50 percent reduction. But decreased revenue from red light-running violations means significantly less revenue to maintain the camera program and otherwise fuel the city's general fund.

We aren't sure what the revenue sharing agreement might be in place here with the red light camera installers. But if the contractor isn't recouping their layout, the only option for them is to remove the cameras or renegotiate the contract with increasing fines to make up the shortfalls (see the dead body removal contract that was re-bid when Chicagoans weren't dying fast enough to meet the contract prices).

All part of the vicious circle pointed out yesterday.

Vicious Circle

Again, from the comments:

• Why aren't they focusing on bringing employment here? How about implementing methods of increasing revenue without taxation on Chicago residents?????

Here's a prime example of where "liberal thought" and cold harsh reality come into direct conflict. A few examples:

• Daley needs money. He institutes a "head tax" on companies with over five employees or something similar - we can't recall the exact number. A large corporation that needs large amounts of semi or low skilled workers (like a factory) has an annual outlay of many more thousands of dollars that locating outside of the city or even in a foreign country
• Daley needs more money. His aldercreatures pass something called a "living wage." Huge retail companies that may have established large retail outlets in the City's most impoverished and blighted communities decide not to build stores there, saving themselves millions.
• Daley needs even more money. He raises taxes by damn near $300 million dollars. People start shopping in the suburbs for food, gas, and everything else, depriving the City not only of the expected revenue from the tax hike, but the previously collected taxes also.
• Daley needs tons of money. He's starving for money. So he spends $59 million or so for another 200+ red light cameras. But guess what? People are learning. They are adapting their driving habits. We see it constantly. We'd love to see a graph outlining what each camera generated when it was installed compared to what it generates today. We'll bet it trends downward - heavily.
• Daley is under the gun to keep the CTA afloat. We don't know why - the CTA should sink or swim on it's own without state subsidies. But the governor that Daley helped install pushes through a monstrous property tax hike...in the midst of the biggest downturn in the mortgage industry due to bad lending practices.
• John Daley needs money for Todd Stroger. Lots of money. Todd has relatives that need jobs and raises and contracts and he has to hire people because "Hog Balls" Beavers needs to line his pockets since his daughter lost the opportunity to steal money as an aldercreature. So John and Todd force through a sales tax hike the likes of which has never been seen, pushing the sales tax to over 10%. That's over and above the tax hikes that have made cigarette running one of the more profitable enterprises a budding black marketeer can get into at an early age.

Not a single one of these examples is made up. And every single one of them is directly responsible for the businesses fleeing the area, shoppers buying in the suburbs and collar counties, and Indiana experiencing an economic boom that seems driven solely by Chicago consumers.

But as long as the Democrats continue to promise free money, housing and cheese to people who spend generations doing nothing but consuming oxygen in exchange for their votes, we will continue this death spiral until Chicago looks exactly like a worse version of Detroit.

Not Again?

An exempt covering up for their kid? Again? From the comments:

• Judy Martin is about to start her first week not looking too good. Her son gets into a fight with some on duty officers cause of his drunkenness Sat night. They end up taking him in and while in processing, he MF's all involved including supervisors while giving bogus info. He finally gets sober enough to say who he really is and what do u think happens? He is whisked away to 014 and on the hush hush, JM comes in her pajamas into 14 to pick up her son. Well just when we thought things have changed, well your wrong, its back to business as usual. No info of him in the system. Guess she owes that DC a favor now. God, i luv this job.

Didn't one exempt lose his spot over a similar stunt in the 023 District? And another for his own actions in the 019 District?

When are exempts going to learn that the cover up is worse than the actual crime?

Go Ronnie!

Ron knows train security:

• CTA President Ron Huberman got to revisit his days as a Chicago cop last week when he escorted a misbehaving passenger off an L train.

  The incident took place around 7:30 a.m. Thursday, on a southbound Red Line train going toward the Loop, according to CTA spokeswoman Noelle Gaffney.

• The "Tattler" story said Huberman stood up, glared at the man and said, "You're going to get off this train."

Huberman "glared at the man." Looks like Ron is building up his crime fighting credentials to step into J-Fed's shoes if the opportunity presents itself.

St. Baldrick's Results

Via Bill O'Reilly (no, not the FOX guy. the copper)

• The main event at the Academy was supported by over 20 volunteers, 10 barbers and 130 or so brave shavees. There were participants from two years old to 74 years old, both male and female.
  
• Many of the female donors were able to donate hair that was longer than 10 inches and will be used to create wigs for children that loose their hair to chemotherapy, and a few really brave lasses even went ahead and shaved the rest of their hair off to show their support and raise even more money for St. Baldrick's.
  
• As of this writing, we are close to the CFD total, but do not have enough raised to beat their overall total. However, if you average out the per participant donations average, we smoked them! It's not too late to donate on line, just go to our event web site, [...] and click on donate on line, or if you have a particular team or individual you would like to sponsor, click on event participants and find the team or person's name.

Next year, we'd be more than happy to get the word out earlier.

Elect Peraica?

Sure, it'd be nice to have someone in there who's going to be a thorn in the side of the Machine.

What office is he running for again?

• Cook County State's Attorney

And who's in charge of Cook County?

• Stroger, John Daley, "Hog Balls" Beavers - the Machine

And who approves the Cook County State's Attorney's Office budget?

• The Cook County Board, and believe us, they aren't about to be tossing any extra money toward Peraica to investigate the Machine OR itself. We'd actually expect a round of "belt tightening" to keep Peraica in check should he win.
  

Everyone, and we mean EVERYONE who is interested on Chicago, Cook and Illinois politics is REQUIRED to read "Boss" by Mike Royko. In it, he tells the story of how Ben Adamowski, a former ally of the original Mayor Daley converted to the Republican party after Daley shouldered him out as a potential threat to his power. Adamowski ran and won the State's Attorneys race on the platform of dismantling the Machine.

Royko outlines how Adamowski's first job was to hire hundreds of qualified attorneys to run the day to day business of the office - dope pinches, battery offenses, murders, rapes and various licensing offenses. That's the primary job of the office. And the lawyers have to be trustworthy - not loyal to the Machine.

Then there are the investigators, many, if not most of which were on loan from the Chicago Police Department (think Detached Services). Most of the people we know from Detached Services are heavier than shark poo. How many of them are trustworthy enough to not to be beholden to someone in the grasp of the Machine?

Adamowski eventually achieved fame by exposing.... wait for it ....

• The SUMMERDALE Scandal!

That's right! Adamowski achieved his greatest acclaim by jailing policemen who were running a burglary ring! And he allowed Daley the Elder to bring in a civilian, professor, non-police officer to run the Department and "reform" everything so that Daley won the next election in a landslide as a "reformer" and as a bonus, Daley's pick for Cook County State's Attorney, Daniel Ward defeated Adamowski in a bruising election rife with fraud, ghost votes and miscounts that all seemed to benefit the Machine.

Are we saying don't elect Peraica? No. Anything that shakes up the political order is good in our eyes.

But don't expect miracles when someone else is pulling the strings.

UPDATE: post clarified about the CCSA investigators. Back in Adamowski's day, they were usually cops, but today they're retired cops.

More Blatant Falsehoods

The quotes from J-Fed just keep on defying what we know to be reality. The latest:

• "If you work hard and do a good job, you will move up no matter who you know," Weis said after a swearing-in ceremony for dozens of commanders.

Bwahahahahahahaha. Oh lord. Please excuse us... hahahahaha.

Let's just point out a few of these people who are doing such a "good job"

• Moy - triple "merit." Worked how many hours in Patrol? Always been downtown
• Martinez - triple "merit." LAPA through and through
• Avila - double "merit" and possibly related to the governor via marriage?
• Martin - double "merit," possibly triple
  
• Crump-Hales - double "merit" at least and so lacking in knowledge, she actually cost the City a few hundred thousand in reverse discrimination cases backing Marianne Perry

We're sure people who have been around the block a bit more than us have even more stories about how qualified certain people are (or aren't) for these jobs. Might some grow into them? Sure, but the chances are slim. You learn to lead by knowing your job and the jobs of your people, not house mousing downtown.

We're not thrilled with a number of J-Fed's choices. We'll see if our opinions bear out this disappointment. A lot of it will rely on how much responsibility J-Fed makes his commanders assume. If he fires a few of them in the first 60 to 90 days, we'd be more impressed than not.

Obama Struggling

The Clinton attack machine couldn't have timed this any better. And what's truly amusing is the way the Chicago Sun Times closes ranks and publishes not one or two but about THIRTEEN separate articles, blog entries or photo spreads regarding his recent interview about the Rezko situation and his "church" of America haters.

• Mark Brown - Obama clears the air - for now
• Lynn Sweet - Obama gets it out in the open
• Mope-rah - Attacks on church trouble Obama
• Carol Marin - Obama comes clean at last
• and more

Obama kept all this in the shadows for so long. And the Chicago media aided and abetted this subterfuge. Now they're rushing to defend his new found "honesty" and "denunciations" of his church, a church he's attended faithfully for 20+ years. And then the affiliation with the SDS Weathermen bombers, his complete lack of a platform, the video of him promising to gut national defense. The Clinton people have done their homework so well that it's barely necessary for the right wing to raise a finger before the main event.

And once they release the footage of Obama nodding along with the congregation of "reverend" Wright's church during his blaming Americans for bringing 9/11 on themselves....

Well, we always thought Clinton was the more beatable candidate.

FOP Election Results

All the incumbents won handily. And the Trustee spots?

• CLICK HERE for full results of the election

Congrats to the winners.

Oh Really?

Does anyone seriously believe this?

• After Thursday's ceremony, Weis told reporters he was going to be placing more responsibility on his top people to help shape the future strategy of the department. He said he took no cues from Mayor Richard Daley and did not confer with him on his decision.

Let's just put that rumor to bed right now.

Name the double and triple merit promotions that somehow have landed spots that actually run the Department. Those are the people who have no concept of how to be the police, yet run the second largest department in the country.

Someone Stop This Now Please

Ok, the nanny state just got a whole lot bolder:

• Public boarding schools where homeless children and those from troubled homes could find the safety and stability to learn are being pursued by Chicago Public Schools officials.
• Chicago Public Schools chief Arne Duncan said he does not want to be in the "parenting" business, but he worries that some homes and some neighborhoods are unsafe, making education an afterthought.
• "Some children should not go home at night; some of them we need 24-7," he told the Tribune. "We want to serve children who are really not getting enough structure at home. There's a certain point where dad is in jail or has disappeared and mom is on crack ... where there isn't a stable grandmother, that child is being raised by the streets."

Doesn't want to be in the parenting business, but claims certain kids "should not go home at night."

This is insanity. Publicly funded day AND night care? Meals? Shelter? Aren't we already doing way to much of that via our already overburdened taxes? And now Arne wants to take full possession of children?

Further proof of the insanity of Chicago pols.

Obama's Lies

Coming back to bite him in the ass:

• Indicted Chicago businessman Antoin "Tony" Rezko was a more significant fundraiser for presidential candidate Barack Obama's earlier political campaigns than previously known. Rezko raised as much as $250,000 for the first three offices Obama sought, the senator told the Tribune on Friday.

So all those times he denied, denied, denied that Rezko was anything but a small time political contributor who never ever asked for any favors? Well, it seems that all that was a lie.

But it's politics damnit. People lie all the time. And he's promised to never ever lie anymore as long as we elect him president.

If one happens to get their news from anywhere but the Chicago media, you'd discover that this issue AND the shady real estate deal AND the lack of any substance in Obama's speeches is starting to become a very significant issue in swing states across the country. Not just for the Right either...Clinton's attack dogs are pushing in a last ditch effort to avoid a brokered convention.

Anyone Hear About This?

The Chicago media is reporting that there were some changes announced by the Department recently. Something about 21 or 22 new commanders and a whole bunch of other stuff.

Tribune, Sun Times, Channel 2, Channel 5, Channel 7, Channel 32.

Why didn't someone tell us about these things?

Oh wait. They did. Two freaking days ago.

Doing More With Less

Unless it's our tax money - then it's paying more for less:

• In a warning sign that Chicago's budget may be off the mark just three months in, Mayor Richard Daley announced $20 million in spending cuts Thursday, citing a "soft" economy.
  
  The reductions put the city "at the point" where citizens may begin to feel an impact on services, Daley said, but added he did not yet know which services might be affected.
  
  The mayor said he expects the national economic downturn will mean diminishing tax and fee revenues in Chicago. And city officials acknowledged they're watching to see if sales tax collections will take a hit because of a new 10.25 percent rate that threatens to push some buyers to stores outside Cook County when in full effect July 1.

So $289 million is raised taxes has led to....

• $20 million in additional spending cuts;
• fear of shoppers leaving the City and County to shop for lower priced goods, which of course will result in even LOWER tax revenues;
• a hiring freeze and overtime cuts, meaning even LESS spendable income for City workers forced to live in the highest taxed municipality in the nation

That closed loop system is really paying dividends for the Daley administration, isn't it?

And Speaking of More With Less

Expect less equipment, less training, and something else....

Oh yeah, less officers:

• $5 million by slashing nonpersonnel costs by 3 percent. Police, fire and the Office of Emergency Management and Communications will share the pain.
• $2 million by cutting police, fire and 911 center overtime not critical to public safety and by eliminating nonsafety overtime in all other city departments, including building maintenance.
• The bulk of the $20 million in expected savings comes from the hiring freeze at $11 million.

Like sending home an entire class of recruits and failing to keep up with the pace of retirements. And they want to keep telling us we're down index numbers? Anyone really wonder why?

IGOLD Event

Jesse and the Pfool get 100 people to picket a store that sells a legal product as regulated by County, State and Federal laws and it's the top story on every channel and front page of the print media (well, maybe front page of the metro section).

The midget turns on the crocodile tears with a dozen "reverends" and talks about banning guns in the entire United States and he gets national coverage.

So an event like the Illinois Gun Owner Lobby Day this past Tuesday that attracts 2,500 people marching down the streets of Springfield really ought to garner some heavy press, right? Right?

Well, no. If you hop over to IllinoisCarry.com and page through their forum pages, you can see the woeful lack of coverage up in Chicago and Crook County and some helpful links in the more rural areas of the state.

There are people for whom police protection is not minutes away - it's tens of minutes and more away and the only assistance they are going to get is what they have at hand. And if that assistance is a gun, then there is no way the State should be permitted to deny them that Right to self defense and security.