"Chicago Tribune" Reader

"Chicago Tribune" Reader

Obama suspends measure targeting Cuba

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 12:51 PM PDT

Bolivian-flagged cargo ship Ana Cecilia enters Havana's port upon arriving from Miami carrying household items shipped from the U.S. by relatives of CubansPresident Barack Obama notified Congress on Friday that he was suspending for six months a measure that would let any American whose property was seized in the Cuban Revolution of 1959 sue anyone of any nationality using the property today. "I hereby determine and report to the Congress that suspension, for 6 months beyond August [...]

Democratic outside groups raise more than $25M in second quarter

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 02:37 PM PDT

Five of the nation's largest outside political groups supporting Democrats raised more than $25 million in the second quarter, the organizations announced Friday. The disclosure comes from four super PACs, including one formed by former aides to President Barack Obama called Priorities USA Action, and one non-profit, American Bridge 21st Century Foundation. The super PACs [...]

Surfing goats make waves

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 12:20 PM PDT

It's official--the goats of California are definitely the coolest in the country.These two from Southern California, Goatee and Pismo, fit the bill: The goats have taken to surfing with their owner, Dana McGregor, who takes the pets everywhere--even into the Pacific Ocean. The goat whisperer told the Associated Press he "taught his goats to surf [...]

Tim Kaine campaigns with Barack Obama in Virginia

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 12:45 PM PDT

Politically vulnerable Democrats across the country may be shying away from President Barack Obama. But not Virginia Senate candidate Tim Kaine. Former Gov. Kaine on Friday got to play sidekick and opening act for Obama as the commander in chief made a three-stop campaign swing in his home state. Kaine touted the president's economic record, [...]

Digg, dug: A salute to the revered social news site, sold for peanuts

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 12:49 PM PDT

Born in Redding, Calif., Kevin Rose grew up in Las Vegas, kind of went to vo-tech high school and then dutifully dropped out of college, where he briefly majored in, you guessed it, computer science. Rose has an easy, cool style, seasoned with just enough contempt to keep amateurs and girls in thrall—and he collaborates [...]

Obama mocks House Republicans for health care repeal vote

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 12:06 PM PDT

On a campaign swing through the political battleground of Virginia, President Barack Obama on Friday mocked House Republicans for holding yet another vote against his landmark health care law. Thursday's action was the 33rd time the president's foes in the House of Representatives voted to repeal or defund Obamacare in whole or in part. "I [...]

How DARPA used two huge speakers to instantly suppress fire

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 03:44 PM PDT

DARPA, the military tech agency known for funding the development of terrifying (as well as adorable) robots and fascinating espionage technologies, found another way to put out fire without the use of water or chemicals. After showing off its fire-suppressing magic … Continue reading →

Unique cat beginning to grace world of Internet video

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 01:43 PM PDT

In the Internet world where cat videos are all the fancy, Bub the "perma-kitten" could be on the edge of viral stardom. "She's the best living thing on the planet," says Bub's owner, Bub (yes, the same name) Bridavsky of Bloomington, Ind., who says a rare genetic disorder has produced a one-of-a-kind cat. According to [...]

Obama staffer collapses, dies at Chicago headquarters

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 05:07 PM PDT

A 29-year-old man who was working at the Obama campaign headquarters in Chicago collapsed and died Friday, campaign officials said.

Mississippi's only abortion clinic spared

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 05:36 PM PDT

In this June 27, 2012 photograph, anti-abortion advocates stand outside Mississippi's only abortion clinic, singing and praying for their patients, and "counseling" them to reject abortion. Mississippi could soon become the only state without an abortion clinic because of a new law taking effect July 1. Critics say the law would force women to drive hours across the state line to obtain a constitutionally protected procedure, or could even force some to carry unwanted pregnancies to term.The clinic's owner, Jackson Women's Health Organization, sued Wednesday, in a federal lawsuit to stop a law that it says will effectively ban abortion in the state and endanger women's health by limiting access to the procedure. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)A federal judge upheld Mississippi's anti-abortion law Friday but said the state's only clinic can stay open and will not face any penalties as it tries to comply with the new mandate.

Judge gives Miss. abortion clinic time to comply with new law

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 03:55 PM PDT

Jackson Women's Health Organization is pictured in JacksonA federal judge says Mississippi's only abortion clinic can remain open as it tries to comply with a new anti-abortion law.

Romney wants apology from Obama

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 03:16 PM PDT

FILE - In this July 11, 2012 file photo, Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney speaks in Houston, Texas. President Barack Obama and Republican rival Mitt Romney's campaigns traded accusations of lying Thursday, ratcheting up an already heated race for the White House. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)Mitt Romney disputed reports that he worked for Bain Capital longer than he had publicly suggested, insisting Friday he had no role "whatsoever" in managing the company after February 1999 when he left to run the Winter Olympics. Public filings from the company suggest otherwise. In consecutive interviews with all five television news networks, Romney [...]

Judge OKs Tribune Co. exit from bankruptcy

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 04:27 PM PDT

The judge in Tribune Co.'s long-running bankruptcy case said in a memorandum that he would confirm a reorganization plan proposed by the company and its largest creditors, overruling objections to the plan brought by numerous parties.

Zimmerman seeks new judge in murder case

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 03:44 PM PDT

Undated handout photo of George ZimmermanThe Florida man charged with second-degree murder in the killing of unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin asked for a new judge in the case on Friday, accusing the judge currently assigned to the case of bias. Lawyers for George Zimmerman filed a motion requesting that Circuit Judge Kenneth Lester withdraw from the trial. In the filing, Zimmerman alleged that Lester had made "gratuitous" and "disparaging remarks" about him during a July 5 bond hearing and offered "a personal opinion" in the case. "In doing so, the Court has created a reasonable fear in Mr. ...

Film producer Richard D. Zanuck dies, age 77

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 02:43 PM PDT

Producer Dean Zanuck poses with his father Richard D. Zanuck at the gala presentation for the film "Get Low" at the 34th Toronto International Film Festival in TorontoHollywood movie producer Richard D. Zanuck, whose films include Oscar winner "Driving Miss Daisy," died on Friday of a heart attack, his spokesman said in a statement. He was 77. "Richard D. Zanuck, one of the film industry's most progressive and distinguished leaders died today (Friday, July 13th) of a heart attack in Los Angeles at age 77," spokesman Jeff Sanderson said in a statement. (Reporting By Bob Tourtellotte; Editing by Bernard Orr)

JPMorgan says bad trade has ballooned to $5.8B

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 09:12 AM PDT

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon enters the company headquarters, Friday, July 13, 2012, in New York. JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the United States, said Friday that its loss from a highly publicized trading blunder had grown to $4.4 billion in the most recent quarter, more than double the bank's original estimate of $2 billion. (AP Photo/Jin Lee)JPMorgan Chase said Friday that a bad trade had cost the bank $5.8 billion this year, almost triple its original estimate, and raised the prospect that traders had improperly tried to conceal the blunder.

Landslide smothers Canada town; 4 thought missing

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 12:31 PM PDT

The Johnsons landing landslide is shown in this Thursday July 12, 2012 photo provided by Emergency BC. Four people are still unaccounted for nearly 24 hours after a wall of rock, mud and trees cascaded down the side of a mountain above the shores of Kootenay Lake, tearing through the tiny community of Johnsons Landing, about 70 kilometres northeast of Nelson. At least three homes in the southeastern B.C. hamlet are engulfed by the muck, which is unstable and shifting, prompting searchers to call off rescue efforts at least once on Thursday afternoon. Emergency crews met at dawn Friday to consider the most efficient and effective way to search the massive mudslide for possible victims. (AP Photo/Emergency BC via The Canadian Press) HANDOUT PHOTO; ONE TIME USE ONLY; NO ARCHIVES; NOT FOR RESALEFour people were believed to be missing Friday after a wall of rock, mud and trees cascaded down the side of a mountain, flattening several homes in a tiny western Canada community.

The Bain drain: Is Romney repeating his mistakes?

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 11:11 AM PDT

FILE - In this March 3, 2012, file photo Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, speaks at a campaign rally in Dayton, Ohio. Asked about the disappearance of the daughter of fellow Bain executive Robert Gay in 1996 after an overnight rave party in New York, Romney answered, "I said let's close the firm, let's close the company — we were in Boston — and let's all of us fly down to New York and try to find her," he recalled. "So we closed the business, we went home and packed our things." (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)Mitt Romney would later describe it as one of his biggest regrets about his first run for public office. In 1994, Romney was a virtual unknown running to unseat Ted Kennedy as U.S. senator from Massachusetts. He campaigned on his business record as a turnaround artist at Bain Capital. But Democrats turned Romney's Bain record against [...]

Rice stands by VP comment: ‘There is no way that I will do this’

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 11:18 AM PDT

Is Condoleezza Rice Romney's VP Front-Runner?The popular news aggregator the Drudge Report posted a story Thursday night claiming that Mitt Romney is considering bringing Condoleezza Rice onto the Republican ticket as his vice presidential candidate. A top aide for the former secretary of state, however, tells Yahoo News that Rice has no plans to consider such an offer. Rice has previously [...]

Americans indifferent about 'Friday the 13th'?

Posted: 13 Jul 2012 09:05 AM PDT

Friday the 13th: Are you superstitious? Myth-buster Mike Watkiss isn'tSupposedly America's most common superstition, fear of Friday the 13th has been good movie material (12 times), but this summer we're kind of—indifferent. Maybe it's because we have better things to worry about. Searches on Yahoo! and Google for this day have been mild. Nonetheless, today's as good a day as any to check in [...]