Illinois

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Zoo Makes Gifts from Reindeer Poo

(Newser) - Reindeer have found yet another way to give of themselves for our holiday benefit. An Illinois zoo is selling Christmas tree ornaments fashioned from the creatures' droppings, the Bloomington-Normal Pantagraph reports. The small droppings are dried, painted, and incorporated into whimsical designs. The $5 gifts have been dubbed “magical...

Teen Critical After Jumping From Moving SUV on Dare

200 Ill. teens played the stunts-for-cash game

(Newser) - An Illinois grand jury is investigating a scavenger hunt that left a 17-year-old in critical condition after he jumped from a Dodge Durango moving at 25mph. As many as 200 teenagers were apparently competing for cash by performing stunts and videotaping them last Friday. Erik Nava's team was winning the...

Missing Student Found Dead in Ill. Frat House

Police unsure how body went unnoticed for 8 days

(Newser) - An Illinois Institute of Technology student mysteriously turned up dead in a storage room of his fraternity house yesterday, after being considered missing for 8 days, the Chicago Tribune reports. Benjamin Collen’s death has been ruled an accident—the 19-year-old sophomore died of asphyxia after inhaling carbon dioxide from...

Obama Vacates Senate Seat, Effective Sunday

Dem's absence, and Biden's, could effect stimulus plan during lame-duck session

(Newser) - President-elect Obama will resign from the Senate effective Sunday, the Chicago Tribune reports. Illinois state law makes Gov. Rod Blagojevich responsible for choosing Obama’s successor, but states no deadline on the appointment. That could be problematic, with a vote possible during Congress’ lame-duck session on pressing economic issues; the...

Politicos Jockey for Obama's Senate Seat
Politicos Jockey for Obama's Senate Seat
ANALYSIS
Nov 5, 2008 10:42 AM CST

Politicos Jockey for Obama's Senate Seat

Jackson Jr. among possibilities as Illinois guv looks to fill spot

(Newser) - Now that Barack Obama is officially headed for the Oval Office, Illinois’ political class has turned its attention to his Senate replacement, Time reports. The choice rests with unpopular Democratic governor Rod Blagojevich, who is no doubt looking for a pick that will save his own political skin. Rep. Jesse...

Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin's Daughter Dies

Durbin faces re-election Tuesday for third term

(Newser) - Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin’s daughter died yesterday from a congenital heart condition, CNN reports. “Chris Durbin, 40, fought a heroic lifelong battle with heart disease,” said a spokesman. Durbin, who worked at the Department of Agriculture for 16 years, leaves behind a husband and a son. Her...

Rap Fan's Sentence: Bump Bach
 Rap Fan's Sentence: Bump Bach 
Oct 9, 2008 2:58 PM CDT

Rap Fan's Sentence: Bump Bach

Unable to listen for 20 hours, defendant opts to pay fine

(Newser) - An Illinois municipal court offered to reduce a 24-year-old’s fine for a noise violation if he listened to 20 hours of classical music, but he lasted just 15 minutes, the Springfield News-Sun reports. "I didn't have the time," says the college basketball player, denying that the symphony...

Mac Misleads in Obama Sex-Ed Ad
 Mac Misleads 
 in Obama Sex-Ed Ad 
ANALYSIS
Sep 10, 2008 11:49 AM CDT

Mac Misleads in Obama Sex-Ed Ad

Legislation Republican is criticizing meant to protect kindergartners from pedophiles

(Newser) - John McCain’s new campaign ad accusing Barack Obama of voting to teach kindergarten kids the explicit details of sex, is “deliberately misleading,” Margaret Talev notes for McClatchy. While in the Illinois legislature, Obama voted in favor “age-appropriate” sex ed—which for young kids would primarily consist...

Monster Bans, Other Crazy Illinois Laws

Bowling bans, anti-monster ordinances still on books in land of Lincoln

(Newser) - Sure, every state has some bizarre laws on the books, but Illinois might take the cake for the oddest. Some highlights from WBBM-TV's compilation of the most perplexing:
  • In Chicago, it is illegal to eat in a burning building.
  • In Eureka, a man with a mustache is prohibited from kissing
...

Pols Try to Curb Enthusiasm for Ped-Texting

Illinois bill would make typing while crossing street a misdemeanor

(Newser) - Though walking and texting is commonplace for many Americas, experts and politicians are considering whether the increased risk of walking into a mailbox—or oncoming traffic—is worth the convenience. A bill to make the practice illegal is working through the Illinois legislature, the Chicago Tribune reports, with advocates citing...

Obama's Republican Pal Gets Grief
Obama's Republican Pal Gets Grief
Jul 18, 2008 1:25 PM CDT

Obama's Republican Pal Gets Grief

Appearance in campaign ad costly for Ill. senate colleague

(Newser) - Kirk Dillard is a lot like many Obama supporters. He came to respect and admire Obama, and he appeared in an early primary ad saying so. But the Illinois legislator also happens to be a Republican—and a delegate for John McCain. Now that Obama is the nominee, Dillard’s...

Illinois Man Calls Home a Church, Saves $80K in Taxes

Locals suspicious of religious conversion

(Newser) - An Illinois man has declared his home a church, knocking $80K off his property taxes in the bargain, the Chicago Tribune reports. George Michael says he got an online pastor's degree and transformed his $3 million lakefront estate into a house of worship so his disabled wife and daughter could...

MillerCoors Taps Chicago for New Headquarters

Conglomerate to merge operations from Denver, Milwaukee

(Newser) - Chicago will be home to the new corporate headquarters of beer conglomerate MillerCoors, the Tribune reports. The Windy City edged out Dallas to serve as a neutral location for the nerve center of Denver-based Molson Coors and Milwaukee-based Miller. Chicago attracted MillerCoors because it has "access to an attractive...

The Games Candidates Play, Casino Edition
The Games Candidates Play, Casino Edition
ANALYSIS
Jul 3, 2008 1:16 PM CDT

The Games Candidates Play, Casino Edition

Poker pegs Obama as deep thinker; McCain's flash evident in craps

(Newser) - The presidential contenders are both gambling men, and long ago picked poisons—flashy craps for McCain, backroom poker for Obama—that reflect strikingly different competitive natures. McCain, whom aides recently had to drag from the tables, loves the “thrill seeker’s” game, Time notes: He heartily plays for thousands...

Ex-Con Suspected in 8 Murders Captured in Ill.

Nicholas Sheley recognized in a bar

(Newser) - An exhaustive, two-state manhunt for an ex-convict suspected in eight grisly slayings ended with the man quietly arrested last night outside a bar known as a police hangout. Police knew from a number of witness reports that Nicholas T. Sheley, 28, was in the area, said the police chief in...

Fish Toxin Buyer Linked to Murder Plot

Man after puffer fish poison was seeking hit man

(Newser) - An Illinois man busted trying to buy enough puffer fish toxin to kill dozens of people had been seeking to hire a hit man on the internet to kill a mystery woman, reports the Chicago Tribune. The financial planner sent emails to people offering $8,000 for the murder, authorities...

Illinois to Sue Countrywide, CEO Over Foreclosure Fiasco

State blames company for foreclosures

(Newser) - The state of Illinois will sue Countrywide and its CEO today for "unfair and deceptive practices" in the first suit related to the current mortgage crisis. The company is accused of pushing loans on homeowners even if they couldn't repay them, the Wall Street Journal reports. Illinois' attorney general...

Ragtag Levees Leave Midwest Soaking

Locals and towns run disorganized barrier system

(Newser) - As the Midwest battles massive flooding, the New York Times looks at the region's patchwork of homemade levees—which fail to meet federal standards and tend to spring unexpected leaks. Bill Clinton's White House advised a uniform levy system 15 years ago, but the report was read and forgotten. “...

19 Levees Now Breached
 19 Levees Now Breached 
UPDATED
Jun 18, 2008 1:20 PM CDT

19 Levees Now Breached

More failures in Ill., Mo., swamp farmland

(Newser) - More levee breaks in Missouri and Illinois today put at 19 the number that have failed along the cresting Mississippi, Reuters reports, further swamping farmland. "They were lower level agricultural levees," said an Army Corps of Engineers spokesman. "We're also watching another seven levees that may overtop...

Levees Crumbling, Midwest Struggles to Stem Tide

Aging infrastructure is barely coping with severe weather

(Newser) - The worst flooding in 15 years has exposed some serious vulnerabilities in the Midwest's aging infrastructure, the Chicago Tribune reports. Levees, bridges, and dams, some a century old, are barely coping with severe storms—while some are collapsing completely. Dikes and levees broke in several states last week after torrential...

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