"Chicago Tribune" Reader

"Chicago Tribune" Reader

Breaking down Romney's binder blunder

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 03:11 PM PDT

Gov. Romney's 'binders full of women' comment sparks debateThe GOP candidate's already infamous, infelicitous phrase at Tuesday night's debate—"binders full of women"—gave him a true Norma Rae moment.

Official: Pakistani girl shot by Taliban is moving her limbs

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 01:42 PM PDT

Indian students participate in a prayer ceremony in support of and for the recovery of 14-year-old schoolgirl Malala Yousufzai, who was shot in the head last Tuesday by the Taliban for speaking out in support of education for women, at a school in Ahmadabad, India, Wednesday, Oct. 17, 2012. Experts are optimistic that Yousufzai, who was airlifted Monday to Britain to receive specialized medical care, has a good chance of recovery because unlike adults, the brains of teenagers are still growing and can adapt to trauma better. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)A 14-year-old girl shot in the head by the Taliban for promoting female education has been doing better since she was airlifted to England for specialized treatment and has been moving her limbs, a Pakistani official said Wednesday.

Federal Reserve bomb plot suspect arrived on student visa

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 03:58 PM PDT

FBI arrests man in Federal Reserve bomb plotNew York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly says the 21-year-old arrested on charges that he plotted to blow up the Federal Reserve building in Manhattan came to the U.S. on a student visa.

Skydiver's feat could influence spacesuit design

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 02:17 PM PDT

FILE - In this Sunday, Oct. 14, 2012 image provided by Red Bull Stratos, pilot Felix Baumgartner of Austria jumps out of his capsule during the final manned flight for Red Bull Stratos. Baumgartner's death-defying jump from a balloon 24 miles above Earth yielded important information about the punishing effects of extreme speed and altitude on the human body - insights that could inform the development of improved spacesuits, new training procedures and emergency medical treatment. (AP Photo/Red Bull Stratos)Now that the dust has settled in the New Mexico desert where supersonic skydiver "Fearless Felix" Baumgartner landed safely on his feet, researchers are exhilarated over the possibility his exploit could someday help save the lives of pilots and space travelers in a disaster.

No suspects yet in Denver bar homicide-arson

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 05:04 PM PDT

Police investigators walk into Fero's Bar and Grill in Denver on Wednesday, Oct. 17, 2012, where the bodies of a man and four woman were discovered after firefighters extinguished a fire at the bar early Wednesday morning. Police think the blaze was set to cover up their slayings. (AP Photo/Ed Andrieski)Denver police don't have any suspects in the slayings of five people whose bodies were found at a neighborhood bar after a fire broke out early Wednesday, including one of the bar owners. Investigators believe they were killed before the fire and the blaze was set to cover up the slayings.

Brenly on leaving Cubs' TV booth: 'It was great fun'

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 04:30 PM PDT

Analyst Bob Brenly is leaving the Cubs' TV booth and he is expected to be announced soon as the replacement for Mark Grace in Arizona's broadcast booth.

Obama picks McCormick Place for election night rally

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 05:47 PM PDT

President Barack Obama will hold his election night rally at Chicago's McCormick Place, a source with knowledge of the event told the Chicago Tribune tonight.

Cubs broadcaster Brenly to leave WGN

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 03:07 PM PDT

Cubs analyst Bob Brenly has informed WGN-Ch. 9 that he will not be returning to the team's broadcast booth next year and will instead seek another baseball broadcasting position.

Obama still on defense after second debate—right where he wants to be

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 09:06 AM PDT

President Barack Obama gestures as speaks at a campaign event at Cornell College, Wednesday, Oct. 17, 2012, in Mt. Vernon, Iowa. The president sports a pink bracelet in honor of October being breast cancer awareness month. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)Woody Allen is often quoted as saying that "80 percent of success is showing up." Hackneyed though this expression has become, it applies quite accurately to the election as it stands today. President Barack Obama showed up at the debate on Tuesday night and stabled his teetering campaign. Given the wide consensus that Obama did [...]

Obama on debates: He’s getting ‘the hang of this thing’

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 11:49 AM PDT

FILE - In this Oct. 16, 2012 file photo, President Barack Obama and Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney exchange views during the second presidential debate at Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y. They interrupt each other, bicker and ignore the moderator. Romney poses his own questions and demands answers. Speaking publicly for the first time since his second national debate with Mitt Romney, President Barack Obama—who began a campaign swing here in a small college gym—joked about his "improving" performance on the debate stage with the Republican nominee. "Now, as many of you know, we had a second debate [Tuesday] night. You know, [...]

Prep School Kids’ 'Vote for Somebody' video is right on time

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 11:16 AM PDT

After last night's debate, you may still be wondering who to vote for. Well, a group of children from Harlem's Democracy Prep School have some advice for you, and they put their encouragement in the form of a song. In their video, "Vote for Somebody!," uploaded to YouTube by the school, the children sing to [...]

Woman says she gave birth on Philly subway

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 02:56 PM PDT

A woman told police that she gave birth on the Philadelphia subway on Tuesday afternoon. The woman wasn't planning on giving her baby such a dramatic entrance, but the newborn wasn't going to wait. According to a report from CBS 3 in Philadelphia, the new mom approached transit police officer Loyd Rodgers at Philadelphia's Broad [...]

Embarrassed kid begs for donations after dad’s ‘Gangnam Style’ dance

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 11:16 AM PDT

"Gangnam Style" is a worldwide sensation that has inspired countless parodies, tributes, and downloads, and a whole lot of radio play. While most people who enjoy the song imitate the now-infamous dance associated with Psy's tune, not everyone is happy about it, especially when it involves their parents. Connor McKenna, son of Rob McKenna, Washington's attorney [...]

Police use Taser on blind man, thinking his cane was samurai sword

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 11:22 AM PDT

A blind man carrying a white cane received a 50,000-volt Taser shock from British police who thought his walking stick was a samurai sword. "It felt like I was grabbing an electricity pylon," 61-year-old Colin Farmer told the BBC. Lancashire police officer Stuart Williams said authorities had received several calls describing a man walking through [...]

Damien Hirst art show killed 9,000 butterflies

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 02:18 PM PDT

The artist Damien Hirst is known to stir up controversy. He's submerged a shark in a tank of formaldehyde, ditto a bisected cow and calf, and in an installation called "In and Out of Love," at the Tate Modern, filled two windowless rooms with live butterflies. The show's over, but the criticism has just begun. [...]

Teacher accused of bullying student with scented candle

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 11:56 AM PDT

A high-school Spanish teacher in Hiawassee, Ga., is being accused of "bullying" one of her students, who suffers from a severe nut allergy, by burning a scented candle containing nut oil and apparently triggering an allergic reaction. The teen's mother, Shannon Baldwin-Nguyen, says the teacher, Lynn Swanson, knew about her daughter's allergy and was warned [...]

Homeless man helps save baby born at truck stop

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 11:45 AM PDT

A homeless man hitchhiking at a truck stop near Oklahoma City turned out to be an angel for a young pregnant woman. Keaton Mason and her fiance were heading to a hospital because Mason was labor. They didn't make it, and Mason ended up giving birth in their white Honda at a truck stop along [...]

Video: 96-year-old claims to be world’s oldest father

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 01:26 PM PDT

Most people can only dream of living for 100 years, let alone fathering a child nearly a century after being born themselves. But that is apparently a reality today, as a 96-year-old Indian man claims to have fathered a child, his second in recent years. Ramajit Raghav and his 52-year-old wife, Shakuntala Devi, reportedly gave [...]

Aggressive or annoying? Some find debate too rude

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 02:54 PM PDT

FILE - In this Oct. 16, 2012 file photo, President Barack Obama and Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney exchange views during the second presidential debate at Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y. They interrupt each other, bicker and ignore the moderator. Romney poses his own questions and demands answers. This is presidential? They bicker, interrupt, talk over the moderator.

CSO ticket sales up, but not enough to prevent shortfall

Posted: 17 Oct 2012 03:16 PM PDT

Contributions, ticket sales rise but can't stem second straight shortfall; Yo-Yo Ma's contract extended

Revenues reached an all-time high at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, but the boost was not enough to keep the orchestra from running a large operating shortfall for the second year in a row.