Pay Raises?

Doesn't Conehead's budget have a hole in it? Like $700 million or something?

• (paywalled Tribune article) As Chicago’s 50 aldermen scramble to balance the city’s budget, they will have one new cost to pay for: raises they gave themselves.

  Every member of the City Council elected to take the 2027 pay bump, according to budget documents. Meanwhile, Mayor Brandon Johnson decided to forgo it.

  The widespread move to not opt out of the inflation-tied boost of around 2.3% sends the highest aldermanic salaries to $159,264, an amount 29 council members make. The lowest salary will sit at $128,892.

Conehead turned it down? Is he running for re-election or something? Trying to appear like a common man or something?

• Altogether, the decisions by aldermen to give themselves raises will cost taxpayers almost $200,000 more, a minuscule amount compared with the $17.6 billion Chicago budget Johnson proposed for next year.

  The move comes as many in the council blast Johnson for proposing new spending. In their calls for cost cutting amid financial challenges, some Johnson opponents have called on City Hall to reconsider similar raises given to thousands of city employees, a key reason the city spends more every year.

So the aldercreatures bitch about Conehead's new spending initiatives, claim he's irresponsibly spending everywhere else, and the gift him the opportunity to call them all hypocrites for taking optional pay raises while he turns his down.

Idiots. 

Welcome to 011

For those out of the loop, 011 recently had pretty much the entire basement locker room gutted after decades of water damage, mold growth, environmental hazards and large electrical fire if we recall, back in the early 2000s.

We say "recently," but a number of emailers told us this project started over a year ago and everyone was living out of their cars for the entire time there were no lockers available.

Good news - the locker room is back!

 Well.....that's....interesting.

You Want to Save Money?

Of course, everyone wants to save money....except politicians. 

And no politician is going to want to cut this money - they get to spend it without any annoying taxpayer oversight:

• While Chicago's mayor works with the Chicago City Council to pass a 2027 budget, each councilmember has money set aside to dedicate to projects in their wards as well. In most cases, constituents can have a say in which projects are selected.

  Right now, each of the city's 50 wards – regardless of their size – has $1.5 million in annual spending for neighborhood-specific improvements.

  "People want a say in what we are spending their money on," said 48th Ward Ald. Leni Manaa-Hoppenworth. Each alder decides how much of that money goes to projects chosen by the people who live there in a process called "participatory budgeting."

Which is essentially, a lie. This money is directed to favored constituencies that few voters would ever approve of....as well as favored individuals who suck up to aldercreatures.

And 50 times $1.5 million is $75 million spent annually on nonsense. 

Attacks on the Rise

The years of demonizing the Police instead of criminals is paying dividends for democrats, socialists, communists and "progressives" (but we repeat ourselves):

• Chicago police officers are increasingly finding themselves the target of attacks and shootings, according to department data reviewed by WGN Investigates.

  Seven officers have been shot so far this year compared to two in the same time period last year. That’s the highest in 4 years. Thirty-eight officers have been shot at, the highest in three years.  

  “It’s sad to see that people don’t respect law enforcement,” said SWAT officer Nick Linker who was shot just below his bulletproof vest in July while rescuing a family from a man who allegedly shot his mother-in-law and held his wife and 14-year-old daughter at gunpoint.  “[People] don’t respect law and order.  We still, though, we continue doing what we do.”

  Last year, there were 2,730 reported assaults and batteries against police officers, the highest in 10 years, according to department numbers. 

Part of it is manpower shortages. Another part is ghetto lottery attempts. The biggest part though is the continued under-charging and undermining of the rule of Law combined with the concerted effort to dissuade any attempts at enforcement.

You get what you vote for. 

Another SAFE-T Murderer

You know who doesn't miss court?

• people in custody

And as an added bonus, they usually don't commit murders either:

• For nearly five months, Cleophas Polk had an active arrest warrant after he stopped appearing in court in a pending stolen-vehicle case. When authorities finally caught up with him and brought him before Judge Michael Clancy, the judge released him. Three days later, Polk beat a man to death with a wooden board on a West Side street.

  This week, following a jury trial that ended with Polk being found guilty of murder and robbery, Clancy sentenced the 33-year-old Polk to 65 years in prison.

Sounds like Clancy knows he f#$%ed up and wants to bury his mistake in prison for a few decades lest his name keeps popping up every election season.

Podcast Discontinued

How many house mice are headed back to the street?

• “Roll Call,” the podcast produced by the Chicago Police Department, quietly faded into the sunset following the exit of the former superintendent who launched the show, the department has confirmed.

  “The podcast has ended,” a spokesperson wrote in response to questions submitted via email. “We will continue to share the work of our department through other mediums.”

  Records in recent months show the exit of multiple staff members connected to the project. According to her LinkedIn profile and city records, former host Miriam Sobh started a role at an engineering and project-management firm in August following her departure from CPD.

  Jon Hein, the former chief of patrol first credited as the executive producer of the program, retired May 31. Joshua Wallace, a former police commander who appeared as a host, confirmed he retired from the department in July. 

  That was five days before the latest episode of the podcast was published. Created a little more than a year ago, a new “Roll Call” podcast was updated almost every month before the most recent episode went live.

No one knows how much it cost - FOIA requests by the media revealed a few thousand bucks for equipment, but didn't take into account hundreds of thousands in salaries, and then it appears the Department stopped answering FOIA requests, which is usually a giant Red Flag.

Then with numerous exempts leaving (Heiniken and Wallace), the Larritorious' vanity project pretty much died, meaning there was a spotlight that was about to be directed at it....and it was easier to just let it die that defend it.

Unit One?

This one is blowing up in the comment sections:

• Salute to Commander Mike Santos. He single handily took out one of the officers responding to assist a unit in 010. Not only did Commander Krash strike the officer with his vehicle but he demanded the paper car make the officer (on foot mind you) Unit 1. Smh. Commander santos was then overheard in the hospital trying to explain that the officers injuries were not related to the car accident but he may have a previous unreported condition.

Sure, because Officers always show up to work with blunt force injuries and Tahoe paint chips embedded in their uniforms.

The Tribune has one version of the story:

• A Chicago police officer was injured Wednesday night by a Chicago Police Department vehicle during a foot pursuit on the city’s West Side, sources said.

  The 30-year-old officer was on foot near Douglas Boulevard and Spaulding Avenue at 7:18 p.m. when he was struck by a vehicle driven by the commander of the CPD’s Ogden  (10th) District, sources told the Tribune. The officer, a member of CPD for nine years, underwent surgery at Mount Sinai Hospital, where he remained Thursday, sources said.

  It was not known what prompted the pursuit, and the commander did not respond to an inquiry from the Tribune.

Surgery? This story is going to get interesting....along with the report writing. 

Another version has the Officer tripping in front of the commander's car....which still doesn't make him Unit One. We aren't going to quote the Pursuit Order chapter and verse, but the Operator of any Department vehicle is responsible for just about everything under the sun and in the direction of travel.

Get well soon Officer. Maybe our readers know of a good Personal Injury attorney?

Are Judges Qualified?

In most cases, nope:

• The 2026 midterm election is rapidly approaching, and while there are dozens of big races on the ballot, many voters may be mystified by the process of electing judges.

  In Illinois, there are three different levels of courts where judges are put before the voters, either in contested races to determine which judges will be selected to serve and in retention votes, which are taken after either six or 10 years, depending on the court in question.

  So how does the system work? How do voters find out if judges are recommended or not? And where can voters find information on which judges they’ll vote for?

To make it simple, you can always vote "NO" across the board. Sure, a few of the non-DEI judge might be qualified, but those are few and far between. 

In the meantime, here are a couple of websites to scan through:

• The Chicago Bar Association has a list of judges running, a couple Highly Qualified (HQ), a whole bunch listed as Qualified (Q) which doesn't mean much, just that they probably paid their dues and bought plenty of fund-raiser tickets for their political sponsors, and a few Not Recommended (NR);
• Safe Streets Chicago specifically recommends against voting for eight particular judges due to their inability to hold criminals in custody for violent crimes, the most well known of these incompetent morons is Tyria Walton who released the crack addict who tried to kill an Officer in 011 with his own squad car;

And of course, CWB had their recommendations up (Page 1 and Page 2) weeks ago. 

But as usual, we believe in taking the easy path - NO every single time. 

Mild Winter on Tap

Good news?

• As we move deeper into fall, a clearer picture is emerging of what the upcoming winter could look like across Chicago and the Great Lakes.

  NOAA released its official winter outlook Thursday, October 15, and the forecast continues to favor above-average temperatures for the Chicago area. A very strong to potentially historically strong El Niño is expected to play a major role in our weather patterns this winter.

  For meteorological winter, which runs from December through February, the Climate Prediction Center favors warmer-than-average conditions across the Great Lakes.

  The precipitation outlook is less certain. Forecasters at the National Weather Service in Chicago say their current thinking is for roughly average precipitation across the region this winter.

But "average" precipitation might just mean rain and not snow, which would save taxpayers a lot of money in terms of salt and Streets and San OT. 

And lord knows, Conehead needs every dime he can find.

Shrinking CPD?

We were told this wasn't happening. That Conehed was hiring all sorts of Detectives....which means nothing since Detectives come from the rank of Patrolman:

• Civic Federation President Joe Ferguson has accused Mayor Brandon Johnson of “chopping away” at the Chicago Police Department to help balance his pre-election budget after three years of shrinking CPD by attrition, but the mayor apparently wanted to go further.

  Acting Police Superintendent Fred Waller told the City Council Wednesday he negotiated with the mayor’s office to keep the police academy going year-round.

  At Waller’s request, the mayor agreed to keep the training going for 12 months, with recruit classes of “50 or more,” he said.

"...50 or more..."

When we went through, classes were 160 or more and started every four to five weeks. We had to get to 1300 W Jackson at 0530 AM just to get a parking spot on the street....two blocks away.

• “The budget your department has been handed by this administration … has shown a steady decline in budgeted police officer positions,” downtown Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) told Waller during Council budget hearings.

  “In 2024, 833 police officer positions were eliminated. In 2025, a net 54 officer positions were cut. Last year, only six were added back. This budget eliminates 132 more positions. Did the department ask for these reductions?”

  Waller replied: “Well, in negotiation for this year, the mayor’s office asked for those 132 positions. But we also negotiated for — instead of just having academy classes for about eight months of the year — we were given academy classes of 50 or more for the whole twelve months” of 2027.

  “That will allow us to catch up and have more robust recruitment,” he said.

  Last year, CPD hired 539 officers and lost 397 cops to retirement. So far this year, there have been 407 hirings and 363 retirements. The department is barely keeping pace with attrition.

Gee, if only someone was warning about this five, ten, even fifteen years ago.

The entire article is a glimpse into what we and others were predicting that many years ago....but all was ignored.

fbi Shootings

 

Two shootings in three days. 

The first:

• The man shot and killed by an off-duty FBI agent on the Lower West Side Monday evening had just fired shots at a group of people in a nearby homeless encampment before the agent intervened and ended the threat, federal officials said.

  Oscar Corrales, 27, originally from Venezuela, was in the country illegally and had an outstanding felony warrant for failing to appear in court in a pending Chicago felony shoplifting case, according to federal officials and Cook County court records.

Wait....an ILLEGAL ALIEN? Let in by the Drooling vegetable?? In possession of a gun??? 

Golly, so this was sort of a....public service-type shooting?

The second:

• An aspiring rapper was killed Wednesday morning in a shooting involving an FBI agent in south suburban Dixmoor, just two days after an off-duty FBI agent fatally shot another man who was allegedly firing into a crowd in Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood.

  [...] The FBI statement didn’t say what prompted the law enforcement action in Dixmoor or whether anyone was taken into custody.

  Cook County court records show Clark had been charged in a series of cases in recent years. In November 2023, Clark was arrested for leaving the scene of a crash in Hazel Crest where two people were “seriously injured,” according to court records.

  About a year later, he was arrested again for possessing a stolen vehicle and a loaded handgun in Sauk Village, records show. At the time of that arrest, Clark was also wanted on a warrant for an armed robbery in Lake County, Indiana, which was later tossed.

  In September 2025, Clark pleaded guilty to failing to report an accident and the weapons charge and was sentenced to three years in prison, with over eight months of credit for time served.

An aspiring rapper? With a history of violence-praising lyrics and numerous videos with "fake" guns?? And recently released from prison???

So....another public service-type shooting?

Taxpayers seem to benefit in both cases, which is a departure from the normal operating procedures of the feebs. 

Asking the Wrong Person

Silly (or stupid) aldercreatures:

• Chicago Police Department leaders faced questions from City Council members Wednesday during a budget hearing, with much of the discussion focused on a new gunshot detection pilot program announced last week by Mayor Brandon Johnson.

  The police department, which has the largest budget of any city department, appeared before alderpersons to answer questions about staffing, vacancy rates and overtime spending. However, several Council members expressed frustration over a lack of information about the planned gunshot detection pilot.

Waller is a convenient target / scapegoat, but he doesn't have answers. The CPD is merely the enforcement arm of the executive branch....you know, Conehead. The aldercreatures will get some nice soundbites out of this hearing, mostly about how they held the interim supernintendo to account....for stuff he doesn't control and doesn't have any information on that he is allowed to speak about because his boss has him under a mayoral gag order.

Nice Academy Conehead

What the actual f#$%?

• Off topic but potential scandal brewing at the academy. A retired copper has a daughter who is currently one month into the academy. She told of a particular male recruit in her class who has been sexually harassing female recruits in the form of smelling them, getting uncomfortably close, and asking things like what perfume are they wearing. Multiple female recruits brought this to the attention of their home room instructors who notified a sgt. Instead of firing the recruit for already displaying creepy behavior, they simply moved him to a different home room. This has been done TWICE already and he is now in the class of the daughter of my friend. How the hell can you allow this man to remain employed when multiple women have already complained about him. This is the type of idiot who you will see on the news a couple of years from now for trying to have sex with an arrestee or a victim on duty

Seriously?

If true (and this would probably be the shortest investigation in history) this is the easiest and best opportunity to fire this creep, YEARS before he turns into a headline-making scandal for either workplace issues, some disturbing traffic stop behavior or maybe something truly sinister with a prisoner.

Unless he's related to someone heavy? 

FOP Horror Show

The scream at the end is truly terrifying:

• Instagram Reel Ahead!

Is accountability truly a scary prospect?

Misuse of Data

Is this another one of those reasons for restricting collected data?

• ....an Exempt member found out that her husband had been cheating on her for two years by constantly running his plate through the plate reader. Now that they are separated, she runs his plate and his new lover’s plate through the app. She basically stalking them in her department vehicle and invading their privacy. She actually used the app to track him down and to find his new address to have him served him with divorce papers after she surveilled his house.

In this day and age, completely believable.

Hamstringing Investigations?

An emailer wrote to us:

• No one is really talking about this. There was no email. No admin message. Nothing. 2 days ago the entire Dept had their Genetec apps on the Dept phones updated, taking away the "plate" option on the app...the ability to check for LPR reads and hits. This was a huge tool that all sorts of working cops would use while on the street. Several of our arrests came from this technology. We would learn the plate info of a wanted offender, with a warrant or wanted for burglary, csa, or even murder. Or a vehicle used in several robberies or smash n grabs. If they dont flip the plate, we find the vehicle thru this technology and can track it thru the assortment of city wide LPRs. Now, its gone. Only sdsc rooms have access. Perhaps certain units still have it, dicks maybe. But Joe blow tac officer, sgt, Lt...nada. 

Our first guess was this was in response to a bunch of scandals and indictments regarding FLOCK cmaera misuse....and then they sent us a link:

• The Chicago Police Department released an updated draft directive Friday outlining how officers may use automated license plate reader, or ALPR, systems.

  The revised policy defines and regulates "external ALPR systems," which include private networks such as Flock. CPD says the department and the city do not own or operate those systems and have limited access to search data.

  The proposed rules would require officers who search an external system to enter a case number, offense type and a detailed reason for the search.

  The policy would also limit access to specific members of each police bureau whose duties require it. Each bureau would have a designated member responsible for overseeing the use of department-authorized ALPR systems and maintaining an audit of information requested and accessed.

So what does everyone think? This technology was barely in its infancy when we left, so we have almost no experience with it. We are also not fans of constant government surveillance and deliberately kept our electronic profile vague and minimal. Was this tool usable at the most basic street level?

Signatures are In

And the mayoral field is set....before the signature challenges and perhaps a lawsuit or two plays out (paywalled Tribune article):

• On the last day for 2027 candidates to turn in their nominating petitions, mayoral hopefuls lugged in their stacks of signatures Monday with some personal flair.

  Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza brought with her a red cooler of chicken and pork tamales and a spork. Cardiologist Dr. Lisa Nee and her team strolled in wearing physician white coats.

  Attorney William Quinlan came in over an hour after and took a shot at some of his rivals whom he recently sued: “To be clear … we’re just filing for one” office.

  Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias and others are also running for reelection in their current posts this November, prompting a lawsuit from Quinlan that was dismissed this month. Quinlan has said he will appeal.

The Quinlan lawsuit is because Giannoulias is running for the Secretary of State office in a week, but would leave if he won the mayoral election in February, a long Chicago tradition of having a "safety net" while running for other spots.

So the field looks like this (subject to change):

• Conehead, Willie Wilson, Brewer (to divide up the black vote)
• Giannoulias (the Machine/Illinois Combine favorite)
• Cardenas (the "progressive" communist)
• Mendoza  (the Hispanic Caucus choice)
• Quigley, Pappas (the has-beens)
• Quinlan, Holberg, Kelly, Nee, Ma (the unknowns)
• Carter-Walters (Republican) 

Should be a bunch of drama upcoming. 

"...lack of impulse control."

Well played judge:

• A convenience store employee was ordered detained after allegedly shooting a customer during an argument over an unpaid balance of about 47 cents.

  The shooting happened around 7:26 p.m. October 9 at a convenience store in the 4400 block of West Cortez Street. Prosecutors said Janeiro Jackson, 34, was working at the store when he intervened in a dispute between his manager and a 31-year-old customer over the remaining balance.

  [...] During a detention hearing, Judge Ankur Srivastava said there was “no viable self-defense claim,” noting that the customer was unarmed and was not threatening Jackson when he was shot. The judge also said Jackson demonstrated “a lack of impulse control.”

All over forty-seven cents.

Which, by the way, is about the cost of a single 9mm bullet nowadays. Just thought we'd mention that. 

Security "Monitors"

That commercial has become reality:

• If you take the train or bus in Chicago, you may have noticed new security enhancements while on your commute.

  The agency just launched a new ‘Safe Ride Specialist’ pilot program at key stations and major bus terminals earlier this month.

  A team of safe ride specialists could be seen at the Lake Red Line station Saturday afternoon providing another set of eyes and ears for Chicago Transit Authority passengers.

  “I think it’s going to be wonderful to assist with the police officers,” said one rider. “It will be great to keep everyone nice and safe.”

  The CTA said the specialists are trained in crisis and violence intervention and can help to de-escalate issues among passengers. They can also offer and connect riders with other services and support.

Guess what the hours are?

• Blue Line O’Hare Branch: Logan Square to Jefferson Park, Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
• Blue Line Forest Park Branch: Austin to Forest Park, Monday-Friday, 6 a.m. – 2 p.m.
• Green Line: Harlem/Lake to Conservatory-Central Park, Monday-Friday, 6 p.m. – 1 a.m., Saturday 6 p.m. – 11:30 p.m.
• Red Line: Lake to Roosevelt, 7 days/week, Noon – 3:30 a.m. 

The first two details are essentially useless.

The second two are statistics waiting to happen.

Nice to see the CTA has money to waste though. 

Wishful Thinking?

Sounds like Conehead's people wishing for an election miracle:

• Chicago’s top shopping destination is experiencing a long-promised renaissance, following a tumultuous decade of store closures, empty storefronts and little foot traffic.

  The mile-long stretch of North Michigan Avenue known as the Magnificent Mile is seeing a flurry of new store openings such as Uniqlo and the Hello Kitty Cafe, while at least five retailers have announced plans to open locations in the coming months.

  “I think we are getting ready to go to our prom,” Magnificent Mile Association President Kimberly Bares said. “We’re on the cusp of some of the best years that Michigan Avenue has seen.”

  A number of leasing deals coupled with more than $250 million in capital investments by landlords and retailer confidence pushed North Michigan Avenue’s retail vacancy down to 25.8% from 33.8% in 2025, according to October data from Chicago-based brokerage firm Kirsch Agency.

Very few persons are hoping for a revival of actual tax-generating revenue sources more than City Pension recipients....present company included. But a boutique clothing store and a Hello Kitty eatery aren't the big generators needed.

Scandal Inbound?

Seriously?

• BREAKING NEWS!!!!
  
  The OIG came to Area 1 Detective Division unannounced and ceased a couple of computers and a few other pieces of equipment yesterday evening.
  
  Rumor has it that they have been and are nearing the end of a multi year OT FRAUD investigation involving current and past supervisors including LT’s.
  
  They allegedly used video surveillance, GPS and cooperating individual(s) - yes plural!!! Shouldn’t be in two place at one time, at your side gig/hustles, on Tik Tok

In this day and age of cameras everywhere, social media tags, GPS, etc., people should be smarter instead of getting caught like this.

Brandon Body #96

Still a chance to hit one-hundred:

• A woman who is seven months pregnant struggled for at least three minutes to tell Chicago 911 operators she had been shot Friday night, according to records and radio transmissions reviewed by CWB Chicago. The emergency response was further delayed because nobody else reported the shooting and the local ShotSpotter network, which used to monitor the block for gunfire 24/7, was disconnected by Mayor Brandon Johnson in 2024.

  [...] The block had been covered by the city’s ShotSpotter network for years before Johnson ended the city’s contract with the company after the Democratic National Convention in September 2024. ShotSpotter used acoustic sensors to pinpoint suspected gunfire and automatically alert police, allowing officers to respond even when no one called 911. Without that system, police rely on callers to report shootings and provide enough information for officers to locate victims.

  Since the system was deactivated, CWB Chicago has identified 96 cases in which shooting victims appeared to experience lengthy waits for emergency assistance in areas previously covered by ShotSpotter. In some cases, nobody called 911 to report the gunfire. In others, callers provided too little information for officers to quickly find the victims.

C'mon hoodrats!  You can do it!

Closing Schools

A bunch of people have asked who should they vote for for School Board president.

There are four candidates, and only one has declared he won't close a single school:

• Hilario Dominguez, a former political director for the Chicago Teachers Union, is the only candidate who is pledging not to support school closings.

Gee, a former CTU political director AND the candidate supported by the CTU, who wants to keep every school open - even those operating at 5% of capacity. Plus, he's been the subject of at least one investigation regarding minor students. So if you're a big fan of fiscal responsibility, not to mention banning suspicious characters from contact with children, this moron should be a hard "No." 

Among the others:

• Jessica Biggs, a former principal, and Victor Henderson, a prominent defense attorney, said they would consider closing schools, but only after hearing from communities that would be affected. Sendhil Revuluri, a former Chicago board member and math teacher, made the case for closing under-enrolled high schools, in particular, because they typically can’t support a wide array of classes and programs.

So those three should be seriously looked at as they haven't ruled out closures. 

But anyone supported by Fata$$, Prickwrinkle, the CTU and Machine politicians in general, really shouldn't be considered.

Sergeants Made

 Late on Friday:

Congrats to the deserving. 

Good Questions

From a regular e-mailer about the supposed ShotSpotter re-activation:

• 1. What company was granted the pilot program to replace shot spotter?
  
  
  2. Was that company the city’s selected RFP bidder who was, and I quote: “hands down, head-and-tails above all else”? 
  
  
  3. Or, was the company hand picked by BJ as a political favor bypassing the RFP committee process/selection sitting on the Chief Procurement Officer’s desk? Maybe a certain vendor who accompanied BJ on his trip to Rome (to see the Pope)? Possibly footing the extravagant bill for the pilot program ?!? 
  
  
  4. Was City Council notified of his decision to bypass the RFP process?? 

The speculation being that this isn't just a political calculation by Conehead seeking votes, but also a quid pro quo of a more financial nature - which many speculated about years ago that the right people weren't getting paid off when Conehead initially shut it down despite it being heavily supported by voters, aldercreatures and Larritorious.

Supernintendo Finalists

Supposedly, these are the names:

• First Deputy Ursitti
• Chief Papaioannou 
• Chief Novalez 
• Chief Parham 
• Outsider (possibly 2 outsiders)

Interviews will be taking place starting this weekend.

New Instagram Reel

877-DUES-NOW

•  Instagram link here

And as usual, you DO NOT need a social media account to view and sign along with the reel. Just "x" out the log in box and the video plays. 

Was there a meeting this past Wednesday? Any drama? 

Vote Damnit.

Election season is underway and The Contrarian has another article up with what we think is the only election that really has a chance of upsetting the usual Machine BS - the School Board:

• Of the many races in the November 3rd election in Chicago, none is more important or the most contentious than the one at the very bottom of the ballot: The election for Chicago’s first fully elected school board and an end to mayoral control of the public schools. This pivotal moment will determine not only the academic and financial direction of the Chicago Public Schools and their 304,687 children, it will also set the course for who will ultimately wield power in the City of Chicago.

  Depending on the outcome, the impact will extend beyond the interests of children and schools. Chicago’s politics and power structure will go through a radical shift that may persist for generations. Make no mistake, this election is the precursor to the February mayoral election. Yet most voters aren’t even aware these races are taking place, let alone understand the ramifications of their results.

  Chicago’s schools have historically been at the center of power. The power brokers of the old machine utilized schools as an access point to voters and, in some instances, served as patronage hubs. PTAs, fathers’ clubs and local school councils were often connected to local aldermen as a means to reach parents and influence voter turnout. Seems quaint by today’s standards of school politics.

  The political interests that govern the Chicago Public Schools today have a different agenda. They seek not only to maintain control over the schools as a power base, but also intend to indoctrinate students with an extreme leftist political dogma. Their ideology aligns with their socialist agenda, which they aim to promote directly from the schoolhouse to the fifth floor of City Hall, is foisted onto our communities, and is financed by you, the taxpayers of Chicago. Just check your upcoming property tax bill.

  This is not hyperbole. It is the reality of Chicago’s political landscape.

This election will have a direct impact on future property tax hikes, so it's actually a big deal. It's so important that the powers-that-be have hidden it at the bottom of everything when they figure voters will be too tired or bored to pay attention to what they're actually voting for.

The Contrarian article is extensive and closes with the poster we've had up a couple times already (click for larger version):

 

After you vote for these candidates, make sure you voted "NO" on a bunch of judges, too.

E.M. Success!!! (not)

That judge Bitch Beech and his EM program are working about as well as the SAFE-T Act and ShotSpotter:

• A man charged with robbing a Lurie Children’s Hospital employee on a Blue Line train spent months on the streets and on the CTA despite facing charges in three counties, being wanted on multiple arrest warrants, and wearing an electronic ankle monitor — until concerned passengers tipped off police the old-fashioned way: they told officers he was smoking a crack pipe on the train.

  Gregory Blount, 34, was ordered detained pending trial on an armed robbery charge this week by Judge Luciano Panici Jr. But his path to that courtroom took a circuitous, months-long route, leaving him wanted in Cook, DuPage, and Kane counties.

Just to review:

• out on a felony charge
• wanted in three counties 
• wearing a "judge Bitch" brand ankle monitor 
• enjoying a felonious crack fix on the CTA in violation of all sorts of "No Smoking" signs 

And it was the sign violation that did him in after law enforcement officials in three counties couldn't find him.

He was also arrested SEVEN times since last September, while warrants were in effect and while additional warrants were lodged for missing subsequent court dates. 

Great system.