Chicago may soon become a new model for tolerance in high school.
Today, Chicago Public Schools CEO Arne Duncan recommended that the school board approve plans for 20 new schools, including the first high school for gay, lesbian, transgendered teens and allies.
Does it really teach tolerance? I don't think so.
What it does is send a message--a wrong message--that Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgendered people are different and need to be separate.
Today, Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart ordered his deputies to stop taking part in evictions of properties that have been foreclosed upon starting tomorrow.
Dart says he made the move because of the skyrocketing number of foreclosures in the Chicagoland area.
This story took on significant meaning to me recently. For nearly a year, I've battled with a law firm in Wisconsin to try and save the home my mom was so proud of buying in early 2004. It was the first house she was able to buy on her own.
Video: "Putting Lipstick on a Pig" is lazy reporting
The national media is taking the easy way out.
Late Tuesday, Senator Barack Obama went on the attack. He called the McCain/Palin campaign's reformist image "putting lipstick on a pig".
"The other side, suddenly, they're saying 'we're for change too.' Now think about it, these are the same folks that have been in charge for the last eight years," Obama said to the crowd.
"You can put lipstick on a pig. It's still a pig. You can wrap up an old fish in a piece of paper and call it change. It's still going to stink after eight years. We've had enough," he exclaimed.
Watch the video here:
Instead of covering the issues, the press is covering a darned pig statement.
Something stinks. I think it's the reporting barnyard they're wallowing in.
"The time is now to unite as a single party with a single purpose."
Those were the words Senator Hillary Clinton said as she opened her speech at the Democratic National Convention.
If you didn't see it, the 20,000+ delegates were on their feet for a good number of minutes, cheering, holding up "Hillary" signs and chanting rythmically "Hill-a-ry, Hill-a-ry"
The message, as expected, was one of unity. Though it is of note that her speech veered in the direction of her own stump speech... for her own candidacy.
Waiting for Blago... What you didn't see on the evening news
Governor Rod Blagojevich signed a bill into law Monday, it was to make sure that those who violate orders of protection have GPS tracking bracelet--so victims know if their abuser is nearby.
The bill is named in honor of Cindy Bischof, the Arlington Heights woman who was shot and killed by an ex-boyfriend outside her office.
That was the news story.
What didn't make the news that night was the tardiness of Governor Blagojevich.
Chicago Police Superintendent Jody Weis responded to the Governor's offer to bring in State Police officers to help curb violence in the city today.
Though he said he's willing to take on more officers to assist in targeting higher crime areas, he added he's not sure why he and Mayor Daley weren't asked about the plan before an announcement was made at a press conference yesterday.
The mayor yesterday and Weis today truly seemed to be blindsided by the offer.
What's the true motivation behind it?
Perhaps it'll become more clear in the next few days.
As a taxpayer, it worries me that our leaders don't seem to be working together to solve this serious issue.
What do you think?
We'll be following reaction, including yours. Tune into Garrard McClendon Live tonight, he'll be taking your calls and asking for your opinion.
California is now the second state in the Union to allow marriage for gay couples.
The ladies in the picture above are 84-year-old Phyllis Lyon and 87-year-old Del MartIn .
They're lesbians.
They met in 1953 and have been together ever since.
On Monday, the two were married in San Francisco; the first of many couples to tie the knot on the first day that the state allowed the ceremonies to go forward.
55 years together. Straight or gay, that is astounding.
When you think about it, these ladies had more pressures than most. They were together in a time before the Stonewall riots in New York City. They were together in a time before gay people were called gay. Most importantly, they were together in a time when simply being together was a crime in many parts of the country.
They built a life together against all odds.
The Liberty Council, a group that opposes marriage for gay couples, has responded to May's court ruling allowing the marriages to happen with a move to amend the California state constitution.
The measure will be on the November ballot that would change the constitution to "provide that only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California."
It's a measure Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (R-CA) said he doesn't support.
As I read the story of Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon, my journalistic instinct to remain silent on the subject went away.
As a society, we need to encourage and be respectful of loving relationships like these. They make our communities and, in turn, our country stronger.
An article from LiveScience.com caught my eye today:
A Dutch woman who reached 115 years of age and remained mentally sharp throughout life also had a healthy brain when she died, a new study finds.
The woman's brain showed almost no evidence of Alzheimer's disease. The finding suggests Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia are not inevitable, as had been suspected.
What the article did not say is if this woman was blessed with incredible genes or if she lived her life in a certain way... a way we could all learn from.
I look at personal examples when it comes to mental decline in later years.
My two grandmothers, maternal and paternal, are still alive. My maternal grandmother never smoked and rarely drank alcohol. Her diet was normal--if not on the healthier side. She is living in the Alzheimer's unit of a nursing home. Though she still recognizes me and others close to her, she can barely be understood and exhibits many symptoms of advancing Alzheimer's.
My paternal grandmother, who's 7 years older than my other grandma, still lives in her own house. She jokes around with me, watches her beloved Brewers on television and even goes to the casino every once in a while.
What baffles me is that she smoked for a number of years before quitting about 25 years ago. She also ate, my most estimates, a staggering amount of red meat and artery-clogging foods.
Though she has some physical ailments at the age of 86, she is quite independent.
Reading the story of the Dutch woman makes me wonder--is our longevity and quality of life marked by decisions we've made in how we've lived our lives? Is it pre-determined in our DNA? Or, is it simply a crap shoot where some of us--no matter how we've taken care of ourselves--luck out with health while others do not?
Hello to you, this is Sean Lewis. Thank you for taking the time out to read this post.
Friday at 10am, CLTV begins airing NIU: Together Forward.
It's another look at how the shootings at Cole Hall February 14th touched the lives of students on campus.
This isn't just a look back at the events from that day.
This program is a look forward at how a small group of students lives were changed because of the tragedy.
We worked closely with student journalists from NIU's Northern Television Center, the student newspaper "The Northern Star" as well as a sit-down interview with the president of NIU, John Peters.
It takes a different look at what happened that day... a new perspective from the eyes of students who were inside the classroom and outside, documenting the response by school officials and emergency personnel.
I hope you are able to watch and appreciate the efforts of these students and leave your thoughts on the show.
The half-hour special airs at:
10 a.m. and 3 p.m. Friday May 16th,
2 and 8 p.m. Saturday May 17th
10:30 a.m. and 3 and 7 p.m. Sunday May 18th
This weekend is NIU's graduation weekend.
Here are the clips of the program, if you can't see it on television:
New Poll: Clinton stands better chance than Obama vs. McCain
An Accociated Press-Ipsos poll out Monday shows that Hillary Clinton has a better chance of beating John McCain in November than Barack Obama.
Clinton leads McCain in the hypothetical matchup 50 percent to 41 percent.
Obama leads McCain 46 percent to 44 percent.
This poll was conducted, presumably, over the course of the weekend... the same weekend that the name Jeremiah Wright was once again in the news.
Rev. Wright was the guest of the Detroit NAACP where he tried to explain, again, the sermon that many of us have heard only portions.
Those "soundbites" from one sermon have come to define months of the campaign for Barack Obama.
Because of those soundbites, Obama made a pivitol speech on race in the United States. He then faced a barage of questions regarding the former preacher from his Chicago church. Being forced to denounce remarks and distance himself from a man he considers family.
This morning I thought, "Are the recent public appearances of Rev. Wright hurting Barack Obama's campaign... again?"
Just as the drawn-out battle for the Democratic nomination is being seen as hurting both Clinton and Obama down the road, keeping Wright as a front-and-center reminder may actually be taking votes away from Obama.
Make no mistake--I don't think this is right.
I can't imagine how I'd feel being held responsible for the words of someone else.
Also, I can't imagine taking 30 seconds of out of an hour sermon and trying to understand the real message.
That's foolish.
Think of only hearing this:
A host of unemployed citizens face the grim problem of existence, and an equally great number toil with little return. Only a foolish optimist can deny the dark realities of the moment.
When, during the same speech, we also heard this from Franklin D. Roosevelt:
So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.
If you were to hear that first soundbite, you'd be left with a far different impression than hearing the entire speech that rallied the American people to work through the Great Depression.
As we look at the Rev. Wright and his potential impact on Barack Obama's campaign, remember that Wright is also trying to have people understand that his 30 years of work shouldn't be boiled down to 30 seconds.
We were loved by family unconditionally and had a safe place to go... we called it home.
There are, of course, exceptions.
Shelter, Inc., based in Arlington Heights, has helped thousands of children in the Northwest Suburbs by taking them into their care and giving them that love most of us took for granted.
On Saturday,April 19th, Shelter, Inc is hosting its second 5k walk and Kidz dash to raise money it needs to keep the programs going.
CLTV is a media sponsor and I will be joining many of my coworkers to show our support.
I truly hope you can make it out on Saturday morning.
Find a new train, we're apparently on the wrong track
According to a new CBS News-New York Times poll, 81 percent of Americans believe the United States is on the wrong track.
Folks, I was driving home when I heard that on the radio Thursday afternoon and I nearly drove off the road. Not because of the number itself... but because of what I heard next: That's the worst the number's been since it was first asked nearly 20 years ago.
Are we really that pessimistic as a nation or is it the reality?
Let's take a look through the New York times.
There is this article Friday that shows employers cut 80,000 jobs across the country in the month of March.
Then, there's this article that shows a significant increase in the use of food stamps, and their equivalents, as those people lose their jobs and can no longer afford to eat.
Both of those were published the same week as a statement from Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke which sounded decidedly uncertain if the U.S. could avoid a recession and another poll showed that a majority of the world's nations have a negative view of the United States--for the first time.
It's truly a lot to wrap your head around when you think what goes into "being on the wrong track."
Certainly we all have our own perspective. Is it the economy on the whole, the housing crisis, the Iraq and Afghanistan war, or is it because some of the more than 1,000 people surveyed for the poll had just lost their job?
For me, it shows that "perception" is everything. A track is what we make of it.
Nearly 140 years after the first Trans-Continental railroad was completed here, maybe it's time that we start off to build a better, more modern track--one that will alter our perception and get us out of an old rut.
A few years ago, I saw a bumper sticker that said that very phrase... and I chuckled.
Now, a report by the U.S. Government confirms the cost of raising a child in a middle income family will cost $204,060.
Suddenly, I'm not chuckling.
$204,060?!?!
Over the course of 18 years, that breaks down to $11,336.00 per year.
According to the report, families making less than $45,800 before taxes can expect to spend about $148,320 in real terms over the course of their child's first 17 years.
Families with more income, say more than $77,100 a year, will spend $298,680 in 2007 dollars on raising their '07 child.
In all, it shows that making the decision to have a child should also include the financial ramifications but it shouldn't be everything.
As a product of a single parent, low-income household a successful childhood is more about the support and guidance you can give your child... not about the Nintendo Wii.
Today, a new national record high was reached for the average price of gasoline.
$3.22/gallon for regular.
Wall Street saw it coming. AAA saw it coming. Actually, everyone saw it coming.
The "experts" blame the new record high on the price of crude oil. True to test, the price of a barrel of crude oil flirted with $110 today.
The reason for the high price of oil? Well, we know it isn't increased demand. As a country, we have curbed our appetite, ever-so-slightly, for gasoline.
Is it because OPEC and other oil producers aren't pumping enough oil? Not really.
But, I encourage you to do a quick Google search on the stock prices for various oil companies. They're way WAY up over the last 10 years.
I'm smart enough to know that I'm not smart enough to know why the price of gas is so high. I just keep paying, trying to cut back where I can and hoping that the price will drive the need for a better alternative to fossil fuels.
Folks, when it comes to politics, I'm a nerd. Book carrying, taped eyeglass wearing, bona fide nerd.
I blame my mother for this personality trait.
When I was just a little Sean, I tagged along with her when she went to the polls to vote. She voted in nearly every election.
I would stand there, staring at the rows and rows of selections. She would point to which ones she wanted to vote for and I would flip the switch. Point. Flip. Point. Flip.
Take it from me it was a blast, for a 5 year old, to do something so "grown up" and I wanted more.
She said, "When you get older you can take me here and make your own choices."
That made me a political junkie.
I remember staying up to watch the 1984 election results. If you also remember that night, you know I wasn't up that late.
In 1988, I wrote this monstrosity of a report for social studies. It had charts, pictures and graphs.
That's when I really got into the electoral college. It's kind of confusing for a lot of folks... but it's really fun to play with the states and see what a candidate needs in order to win the 270 electoral votes to be president.
Whether you have a child or not, I encourage you to check out "270 to Win" and play with the numbers. Find out what which states a candidate must win to win!
It can help with understanding the process and encourage a younger generation to be engaged in politics... and math!
For more than 10 years now I've reported on tragedy and triumph--both small and large.
The shooting at NIU, by gunman Stephen Kazmierczak, hits home.
I have several friends and family members who've been students at Northern.
My college mentor, Allen May, a former television reporter who now teaches journalism at NIU was on campus during the shooting.
I called him just seconds after the first reports.
As he rattled off what he had heard from campus officials and from his own students outside, his voice--for the first time since I've known him--was shaky. You could tell that this seasoned journalist was unsure for his safety and, perhaps more importantly, for the safety of his students.
Kazmierczak, the 27 year old former NIU student, didn't just take six lives during the horrible shootings at Cole Hall; he took away the sense of security that many feel while they're on a college campus.
Because Steve Kazmierczak killed himself, we may never know what his intentions were. This is a guy who was a student himself-- even teaching as a graduate student at NIU last year.
He barged into a lecture hall and opened fire. Daniel Parmenter, Catalina Garcia, Ryanne Mace, Juliana Gehant and Gayle Dubowski were shot and killed.
Does this point to another case of the mental health system dropping the ball, such as in the case of Virginia Tech gunman Seung-Hui Cho?
Do we blame someone who may be mentally ill for carrying out such despicable acts?
As the investigation continues into what led up to the NIU shootings and the healing begins, I hope that leaders also take a look at how we can help those people,so sick, that they feel to end their lives--they must also take the lives of innocent people.
It was brought to my attention that some folks may be using a broad brush when it comes to labels for Hillary Clinton.
Some have called the junior senator from New York the first viable female candidate for president.
Viability, it seems, can take on many perspectives.
One perspective came in the form of an email from my aunt in Minnesota.
She was quick to point out that some in the media were less than accurate in calling Senator Clinton the first viable female to run for the White House.
For proof, she pointed to the candidacy of Senator Elizabeth Dole (R-NC) in 2000:
"Mrs. Dole has far longer public service in a variety of positions. I get annoyed what inconvenient facts are overlooked. "
As you may know, Elizabeth Dole served as U.S. Secretary of Transportation under President Reagan, U.S. Secretary of Labor under President George H.W. Bush as well as President of the American Red Cross for a number of years.
Republican, Democrat or Independent-- you have to admit those are some pretty impressive credentials that many presidential candidates would boast about.
So, why isn't Dole getting the credit as the first viable female candidate for president?
Because in the 2000 race, she wasn't.
By definition, viable means capable of working, functioning or developing adequately.
But even before the first test of political strength was cast in Iowa, Dole dropped out of the race. The reason wasn't qualifications. The reason was fundraising.
She wasn't able to grab onto enough money early enough. That, beyond race and beyond gender, is the key to success early in a campaign.
You need a lot of money to run for president and be successful. The money wasn't there for Dole eight years ago. Without it, her campaign couldn't work, couldn't function and wasn't capable of developing.
When I replied to my aunt's email I did note this:
"Interesting, though, that both of them have very successful and powerful political husbands.
Still makes it seem like there's a ceiling for women in politics. The message being, 'We'll trust you with the important job, just as long as you have the support next to you'"
That may be the next political hurdle.
History may look back on Elizabeth Dole with a great deal of recognition.. not as the first viable female presidential candidate... but as the first well-qualified female candidate.
In the Commonwealth of Virginia, rubber testicles may be on their way out.
This is how HB 1452 reads:
"No person shall display upon or equip any motor vehicle with any object or device that depicts, represents, or resembles human genitalia, regardless of size or scale."
The novelty item isn't new but it is striking a chord for Delegate Lionell Spruill, Sr. One of his constituents recently complained about them. His young daughter, it seems, saw a pair on a truck and asked what they were for.
I mean, what do you say? Driving down the road isn't the best place to have that conversation with your little girl.
So, the bill was written. It's only a couple of lines but it strips the ability for anyone to display those replicas on their vehicle.
A few years ago, when I was working in Virginia the state lawmakers had another bill they were considering.
It was dubbed the "droopy drawers" law. It was supposed to outlaw people from wearing jeans and the like if they weren't covering a person's butt. You know how the kids wear 'em these days--a la Hip Hop Style.
The bill didn't pass. What it did do was embarrass much of the state because the bill was made fun of across the country.
I think HB 1452 is poised to do the same thing.
Sure, these "things" are in bad taste. But should it be illegal?
I'm sure the cops in Virginia have better things to do than to pull someone over and write them a ticket because a pair of tasteless testicles are hanging from the back end of his or her pickup.
See, I knew your curiosity would be piqued by the headline!
Thanks for stopping by. OK, here's the deal on this story:
I've heard of this before. Dad is in the workshop, slices off his fingers and through the miracle of modern medicine *POOF* Dad's toe is now sitting squarely on his hand as a thumb.
Don't get me wrong, I think it's wonderful that dad has his opposable thumb-toe. But now he's a 4-toed dad with some balance problems that requires months of physical therapy to overcome.
As I read this today and then read about Illinois' organ donation program having 3 million people registered it dawned on me:
Why can't we have donor limbs?
Well, as I found out, we do. It's just very rare and very complicated.
In order to do a limb transplant of any kind the bone marrow of the donor limb must be very close to that of the person who needs the limb.
The chances of that, as you can imagine, is one in a million.
My advice? If you aren't a donor already and it's not against your religious beliefs, become a tissue donor.
Illinois reached a milestone by hitting 3 million people on the donor registry.
By joining it, not only could it help others who need an organ transplant... but perhaps your neighbor--who just happened to let his or her finger get in the way of the band saw in the workshop.
The biggest automaker in India, Tata, unveiled the world's cheapest car this week.
The Nano car (iPod fans may gasp) is roughly the cost of a new Apple Computer-- $2,500.
At a miniscule 10 feet long, 5 feet wide, the Nano lives up to its name. The 2-cylinder gas engine delivers 33 horsepower and a top speed of just over 60 mph.
The basic version is very basic. No radio, no passenger side mirror and only one windshield wiper. Air conditioning is only available in the deluxe version. That one costs more.
Why do we need such a vehicle?
The Nano was developed to meet the demands of a growing middle class in India. According to Tata, this car will target families that currently cram several people onto one two-seated scooter that sells for about $900.
The impact of this car could be enormous.
Environmental experts are shuddering at the thought of millions of new gas-powered vehicles pumping more carbon dioxide (a major greenhouse gas) into the air.
Another implication is the tug on the world's oil supplies.
Tata insists that the Nano will get about 50 mpg and will meet Indian and European emission standards. Still, all those cars will inevitably increase demand for oil. Last week's record high of $100 per barrel for oil may sound cheap in a few years.
Company Chairman, Ratan Tata, believes he is doing what is right for his country.
It is much the same thought as Henry Ford when he started to produced the first affordable car, the Model T, 100 years ago.
Thing is, 100 years ago, Henry Ford was an innovator to produce the latest technology at an more affordable price through first-of-its-kind mass production.
Today, gasoline powered engines aren't the wave of the future. They're a tie to the past.
I believe Mr. Tata should take a cue from Henry Ford not only by bringing transportation to his country but by doing it through the latest technology.
How much more would it be to power the Nano by solar means or an electric motor?
My fear is that the very people in India who will flock to buy a new, cheap Nano will end up paying the price so many of us in the United States do now.
A mom sold a car she bought for her 19-year-old son. Why? Because he broke the rules. She found a bottle of alcohol in the car and promptly took out an ad in the local paper to teach her son a lesson.
The ad reads: "OLDS 1999 Intrigue. Totally uncool parents who obviously don't love teenage son, selling his car. Only driven for three weeks before snoopy mom who needs to get a life found booze under front seat. $3,700/offer. Call meanest mom on the planet."
The mom's name is Jean Hambleton. Since Jean took out the ad, she's gotten a flood of calls congratulating her on her tough stance.
According to Jean, her son's not happy. He says the alcohol belonged to a passenger--not him. Still, she says there were two rules when the car was given to him: No alcohol and always keep it locked.
The rules were broken. He paid the price.
I'm not going to call Jean and congratulate her but I would like to say "good for her!"
Jerry Springer, Maury Povich and the like make a living with shows revolving around horrible children.. just TERRIBLE children who have no manners, no respect and the inability to take responsibility for their actions.
What Jean did, in my opinion, was show the parents of those kids what they should be doing--what they should have done to produce successful, self-reliant and responsible citizens.
It seems that Republicans in the Equality State are going ahead with their Presidential Caucuses January 5th despite objections and sanctions from the Republican National Committee.
The decision for the move came in August. The hope was that it would propel Wyoming into the spotlight.
Did it work? I think you already know the answer to the question.
Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee and Ron Paul have barely stepped into the state to say "Howdy."
Rudy Giuliani and John McCain didn't even show up to so much as two step with folks.
In the the end, the RNC punished the state by taking away some of its delegates at the Republican Convention.
I'm sure that some attention will be paid to the results. Perhaps a mention of it on the evening newscasts and a feature story on Saturday's network morning shows.
That's all. No more. Sorry, cowboy.
For all the "change" that is being talked about in Decision 2008, the political process is still an institution steeped in tradition.
Iowa Caucuses, the New Hampshire Primary and Super Tuesday. That was the story decades ago and it continues to be now.
So, my ten-gallon hat goes off to the Republican voters in Wyoming as they caucus.
But, was losing delegates at the national convention worth being second behind Iowa?
Today, for the first time in history, oil futures tipped the $100 per barrel mark for a brief time. At the end of the day, the price of a barrel of crude oil settled in at $99.62 per barrel.
Why do we care?
Because that price is what oil companies will say is the reason for jacking up the price we pay for gasoline at the pump.
Here are the reasons today for the jump:
*Increased violence in Nigeria
*Rough weather at Mexican oil export ports
*OPEC report saying it might not meet its share of oil demand by 2024
I've been reporting the news for more than a decade and remember doing stories on historic LOW prices for a barrel of oil. We're talking less than $20/barrel. At the time, a gallon of regular was about $1.01. Dirt cheap.
Just months before 9/11, oil prices were just under $40/barrel.
Many complained that was highway robbery. Then, the war began.
But it's not just the war that's driven the price of oil up in the last 6 years. It is the increased demand around the world for oil. More so, it's the increased tolerance of us to pay higher and higher prices without cutting how much oil-based products we use.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not a huge conservation guy. I own an SUV. Given this, I still see the writing on the wall. The price of oil is never going down until our cars are powered by something else.
When will that happen? No clue.
It's more a question of marketing than technology at this point.
