Faithful Michael Jackson fans started flocking to his childhood home in Gary, Indiana at 4 this morning.

Samantha Moritz and her dad drove from the town of Highland, Indiana to pay their condolences to the king of pop.

Now, 15, Samantha swears she fell in love with Jackson's music at the tender age of 3. Samantha clutched a laminated photograph and autograph of Jackson. She got them during Jackson's last visit to Gary in 2003.

Just what is in the water being served up in Chicago City Council chambers?

For decades now, the place has been a magnetic pull for the ethically challenged.

This morning, 29th Ward Alderman Ike Carothers pleaded not guilty to federal corruption charges that include bribery and fraud.

I’m not a political reporter, but I occasionally cover politics. I’ve talked to Roland Burris numerous times over the past two years and he always seemed like a genial person – and an honest person, at least by Chicago standards.

But this morning, I saw a very different side of the man who is now the junior senator from Illinois.

I didn't even know this existed.

A museum dedicated to my first and favorite childhood doll: Raggedy Ann.
The Raggedy Ann & Andy Museum is located in downstate Arcola, Illinois.

This morning I was disheartened to learn that the slumping economy is forcing the museum to close.

Swine flu fears have some people anxious, on alert and possibly overreacting.

More than 150 deaths in Mexico are blamed on the virus so far which is thought to be the epicenter of the illness. Health officials say the number of confirmed swine flu cases in the United States has jumped to 68 though none of the cases have been fatal.

There also reported cases in the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific region. Americans are being urged not to travel to Mexico if they don't have to.

Former Governor Rod Blagojevich is desperate for some cash. He's been unemployed since January, when he was booted from office, and his legal bills are surely mounting. So now he's looking to cash in on his pseudo-fame.

The indicted Blagojevich was in court this morning asking for his travel restrictions to be lifted so he could jet off to the lush jungles of Costa Rica and participate in a "Survivor"-style reality show called "I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here."

But the judge denied his request.

We'll calmly file this into Bizzare Medical Stories:

A man in Russia thought he had cancer. His doctor thought he had cancer. Turns out, he had inhaled a seed and a tree sprouted in his lung.

The full story and pictures follow but BE WARNED they're not for everyone!

If you're obese and fly on United Airlines, get ready to pay for second seat.

Starting today - the Chicago-based air carrier says it may bump severely overweight passengers from sold-out flights.

I am an animal lover. I love them so much that, when I get tired of covering news, I just might go back to school to become a veterinarian or at least volunteer at an animal shelter.
Over the years, I have adopted everything from a chicken and green iguana to snakes, turtles and rabbits.

Ousted governor Rod Blagojevich morphed into Radio Rod - serving as a guest host on the Don Wade and Roma show. As he left WLS studios, it was apparent that although Blagojevich is no longer governor, he still acts as if he is.

A 14 year old boy was a cop for five hours. Can this be serious? Is it really that easy? This young man doesn't even have a drivers license and yet he was able to walk into a police station check out a radio and get an assignment with a real police officer. It sounds like something out of the movie Catch Me If You Can.

The holiday shopping season is officially underway. I don't know about you, but I love giving one-of-a-kind gifts to my friends and family. But I think the folks at Miller Park Zoo in downstate Bloomington are missing the mark with their idea of a unique Christmas gift.

They're actually making and selling Christmas ornaments out of...get this ...droppings from reindeer. This is no joke folks.

We all know that sex sells. But a college grad from California is adding a twist. She’s selling her virginity.

The AP reported on a major brawl that broke out last night between the Peoria Chiefs (whose parent team is the Chicago Cubs) and the Dayton Dragons. The fight sent one fan to the hospital and 15 players were ejected from the game along with the teams' managers.
Watch WGN's video of the brawl after the jump.

photo courtesy NY Daily News

Oprah Winfrey called it a “new definition of what diversity means for everybody.”
In an interview on her show Thursday, a transgender man who is pregnant told the nation he always wanted a child and considers it a miracle. People Magazine first picked up Beatie’s story and has a full spread on him on newsstands Friday, April 4th.

Here’s the background;
34-year old Thomas Beatie, a one time pageant queen, says he decided to become a man 10 years ago, taking testosterone treatments and having breast surgery to remove glands and flatten his chest. He says he kept his reproductive organs knowing he wanted a child one day. That one-day happened 6 months ago when his wife Nancy inseminated him using a syringe of sperm from a donor bank. Beatie says he stopped taking testosterone 2 years ago, and his hormone levels are normal. The happy couple also says their roles in raising the child won’t change. Nancy will be mommy Thomas will be daddy.

What his doctor says;
First, Beatie says he was turned down by several other doctors before Dr. Kimberly James, a doctor in the couple’s Oregon town, decided to pick Thomas up. Dr. James says the baby is totally healthy, and it is a normal pregnancy.

Arguments of course have erupted over this story.
Some are wondering if they are bringing the child into a healthy environment or will their be confusion because daddy gave birth. Others are wondering why the couple are parading themselves before the media and seeking out attention. To that, the couple has said they wanted to release the news on their own terms, instead of having it spread after the baby is born. By the way.. it’s a girl.

Whether good or bad, I want to hear your thoughts on this story.

Here’s a scary thought. By 2050, we will be having sex with robots, even marrying them. That’s the prediction of chess master turned artificial-intelligence expert David Levy.

In his new book, Love and Sex With Robots: The Evolution of Human-Robot Relationships, Levy writes technology is advancing so fast that one day there will be robots so lifelike we won’t be able to tell them from real people.

Click on the cover for a summary of the book.

In an interview with the Houston Chronicle, Levy points out there are some upsides to these “sexbots.” Especially for people who are physically unattractive, anti-social and/or have problems finding love. “They’re lonely; they’re miserable,” according to Levy. “I think society will be a much better place when they have an alternative that satisfies them without doing any harm to other people.”

Not a bad argument. Maybe the world would be a better place because everyone would be making love not war. So instead of sending in the Marines, we could unleash the “love machines.”

A CLTV blog reader sent us an interesting e-mail from a man trying to propose to his girlfriend. He wants people to forward the e-mail to as many people as possible in hopes that it will eventually get to his girlfriend Mary. He’s even created a website: http://www.proposal-to-mary.com.

I was of course intrigued, so I went to the site. It’s a cute, well-designed site. He even included a poem. Here's part of it:

My angel,
Five years ago, I will always remember the day
When fate made us meet, blissful Alaskan moments in May
Earth spun around us and a journey began
Love, warmth, happiness, enough the years to span.

But as much as I want to believe this guy, the reporter in me has doubts.

First, he never gives his name or where he lives. He will only say that he moved to the United States from Germany. He says he doesn't want to become a target and wants to protect Mary's privacy.

Then I started thinking this is some sort of scam, a way to steal someone’s identity or get money out of people. But in another convenient answer, he says, “I can understand that people might be suspicious about this proposal. But – I have not asked you for your email address, there is no advertising on my homepage, I do not want to sell anything. In fact, the higher the traffic on my homepage gets, the more money I will have to pay for internet traffic. So – I do not make money, I actually spend money.”

Finally, this guy’s plan is to send the proposal to 50 complete strangers, hoping they will forward it to as many people as possible. And some day, he hopes, it will reach Mary after it’s travelled a very long way. Mind you, they’ve been together for five years.

Has he lost his freakin’ mind! He’s finally decided to propose and he is leaving it to an Internet chain letter? Who ever this Mary is (if she really exists), I hope she's not holding her breath waiting for him to propose.