"Chicago Tribune" Reader

"Chicago Tribune" Reader

Challenger disaster still haunts NASA 25 years later

Posted: 22 Jan 2011 04:16 PM PST

Lessons learned the hard way are reflected in extreme caution with Discovery's next launch.

Two days before the space shuttle Challenger made its final flight, Carl McNair spoke to his brother Ron McNair on the telephone. It was mostly small talk: Super Bowl XX being played that day, William "Refrigerator" Perry, the weather.

QBs could make the difference

Posted: 22 Jan 2011 04:42 PM PST

Dan Pompei: The NFC championship game is a clash of cultures. It pits the honor of George Stanley Halas against the honor of Vincent Thomas Lombardi. But in its simplest form, it is Jay Cutler versus Aaron Rodgers.

10 things you might not know about speeches

Posted: 22 Jan 2011 03:08 PM PST

Speeches

President Barack Obama and speechwriter Cody Keenan, a Chicago native, were praised for the president's address after the Arizona shootings. Next comes Obama's State of the Union speech on Tuesday. Here are 10 things to talk about:

Keith Olbermann leaving MSNBC

Posted: 21 Jan 2011 07:33 PM PST

'The most China-friendly city in the United States'

Posted: 22 Jan 2011 12:22 AM PST

In China, good business often includes personal overtures.

Burge sentence leaves divide | Judge rebukes police leaders

Posted: 21 Jan 2011 10:22 PM PST

Some alleged torture victims see 'complete injustice,' but one of their lawyers calls judge's decision 'courageous'

Moments after former Chicago police Cmdr. Jon Burge was sentenced Friday to 4 1/2 years in prison for lying about his role in torturing criminal suspects, Mark A. Clements stood before a wall of TV cameras, his hands shaking and tears rolling down his face.

How a company received $8 million only to go bust

Posted: 22 Jan 2011 07:15 AM PST

How a fast-growing Chicago meat-packing company received $8 million with the help of state tax credits and then went bust four months later

P rotein Solutions, a highflying supplier of meat to restaurant chains such as T.G.I. Friday's, abruptly filed for bankruptcy protection in October. Its remaining equipment will be auctioned later this month.

Bears, Packers, rivalry and identity

Posted: 22 Jan 2011 06:13 AM PST

Though the passionate hatred shared by Bears, Packers fans is just part of life

On the cusp of the Packers-Bears playoff, Chicagoans stand united, Packtose intolerant, loathers of cheese in all its forms, sneering in the direction of those green and gold neighbors to the north.

Books: Freveletti takes on Ludlum's 'Covert-One' series

Posted: 22 Jan 2011 05:47 AM PST

Jamie Freveletti is the author of, so far, two fine novels that fall under the international thriller umbrella: "Running From the Devil," published in 2009, is set in Colombia and was named the best first novel by the International Thriller Writers in 2010; and "Running Dark," about Somali pirates, was published last summer.

Poll: Race recedes as a factor in Chicago elections

Posted: 21 Jan 2011 10:39 PM PST

Tribune polls tests residents' assumptions about our neighborhoods and attitudes

In a bygone era, when Chicago politics seemed consumed by a stark racial divide, Leslie Hill's vote might have been automatic for a black mayoral candidate.

Police shoot teen in Evanston

Posted: 22 Jan 2011 01:40 AM PST

Police shot and wounded a 17-year-old in north suburban Evanston after reportedly watching him fire shots at a vehicle Friday night, officials said.

Lake Forest-based Hospira to stop making execution drug

Posted: 21 Jan 2011 06:01 PM PST

Lake Forest-based drugmaker unable to reach agreement with European regulators on Pentothal

Executions across the U.S. are expected to be delayed for what could be several months following a Lake Forest-based drug company's decision to stop making a key anesthetic used to execute prisoners on death row in 34 states.

26-year prison sentence for teen guilty in Fenger beating

Posted: 21 Jan 2011 05:49 PM PST

17-year-old seen striking first blow on infamous videotape

A teen charged in the videotaped beating death of Fenger High School sophomore Derrion Albert wept in court Friday as he said goodbye to his mother and sisters after being sentenced to 26 years in prison.

Emanuel's big money lead, Bears-Packers TV ad

Posted: 21 Jan 2011 05:40 PM PST

Finance reports show Emanuel raising $11.8 million, Chico $2.4 million, Braun $446,000

Mayoral candidate Rahm Emanuel (center) will spend $150,000 for a television ad during Sunday's Bears-Packers, a demonstration of his substantial fundraising lead over opponents Carol Moseley Braun and Gery Chico.

Chinese leader visits Payton Prep, invites students to visit

Posted: 21 Jan 2011 06:31 PM PST

Chinese president invites 20 at high school, home to Chicago's Confucius Institute, to return the favor this summer

Even before Chinese President Hu Jintao's words were completely translated, Walter Payton College Prep high school students were cheering.

An imposing body of work

Posted: 21 Jan 2011 06:31 PM PST

Painted Bears fan bares his loyalty, wind chill be damned

Mike Lyp is a painter whose canvas is his body — all 302 pounds of it. With temperatures in the 20s expected, Sunday's Bears-Packers game will present a classic case of the suffering artist.