"Chicago Tribune" Reader

"Chicago Tribune" Reader

'Sopranos' star, James Gandolfini, dies at 51

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 05:34 PM PDT

James Gandolfini, the actor best known for his Emmy-winning portrayal of a conflicted New Jersey mob boss in the acclaimed HBO cable television series "The Sopranos," has died while vacationing in Rome, Italy, the network said on Wednesday.

Hawks Game Day: A must-win Game 4

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 05:53 PM PDT

The Hawks jumped out to a fast start via a Michal Handzus shorthanded goal, but a power play strike from the Bruins' Rich Peverley tied things 1-1 late in the first period of Game 4.

'Sopranos' star James Gandolfini dies at 51

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 04:36 PM PDT

Variety is reporting that 'Sopranos' star James Gandolfini has died. Representatives for HBO have confirmed that the actor has died in Italy at the age of 51.

Few options for Brazil leader in face of protests

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 04:36 PM PDT

In this photo taken Monday, June 17, 2013, a demonstrator holds a Brazilian flag in front of a burning barricade during a protest in Rio de Janeiro in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. President Dilma Rousseff has tried to placate the largely middle-class crowds by supporting their right to protest, and the Sao Paulo municipal government has rescinded the 10-cent hike in bus and subway fares that sparked the demonstrations in the first place. But as the protests grow even bigger, with two major marches called for Thursday, the Brazilian government seems at a loss over how to address the sweeping, urgent demands of its people. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)SAO PAULO (AP) — With massive protests by middle-class Brazilians demanding wholesale government reforms, people all over this continent-sized country have reached a verdict on the streets and online: "The giant has awakened."

FBI says it uses drones on U.S. soil

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 03:19 PM PDT

Robert Mueller gestures at the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee at an oversight hearing about the FBI on Capitol Hill in WashingtonThey are called in for surveillance in some situations, Robert Mueller said.

Homes evacuated as new Colo. wildfire erupts

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 04:42 PM PDT

Jeremy Beach wipes away a tear as he sees his home off Ravine Drive West for the first time since the Black forest fire started last week, Tuesday, June 18, 2013, in Colorado Springs, Colo. Residents were allowed back into the area for a short period of time to view the properties that sustained the most damage from the fire. The Black Forest Fire, the most destructive wildfire in Colorado history, has destroyed 502 homes and charred more than 22 square miles. It was 85 percent contained Tuesday. (AP Photo/The Colorado Springs Gazette, Michael Ciaglo) MAGS OUTA new wildfire in the foothills southwest of Denver forced the evacuation of dozens of homes Wednesday as hot and windy conditions in much of Colorado and elsewhere in the West made it easy for fires to start and spread.

Compromise among senators eyed on border security

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 04:55 PM PDT

People shout out against the Strengthen and Fortify Enforcement Act in the hall outside the House Judiciary Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, June 18, 2013. The committee in the Republican-led House is preparing to cast its first votes on immigration this year, on a tough enforcement-focused measure that Democrats and immigrant groups are protesting loudly. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)WASHINGTON (AP) — After secretive talks, key senators expressed optimism Wednesday night that they were closing in on a bipartisan agreement to toughen the border security requirements in immigration legislation that also offers a path to citizenship to millions living in the country illegally.

Obama making plans to tackle global warming

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 05:16 PM PDT

President Barack Obama speaks in front of the iconic Brandenburg Gate in Berlin Germany, Wednesday, June 19, 2013. Obama is planning a major push using executive powers to tackle the pollution blamed for global warming in an effort to make good on promises he made at the start of his second term. "We know we have to do more — and we will do more," Obama said in Berlin. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is planning a major push using executive powers to tackle the pollution blamed for global warming in an effort to make good on promises he made at the start of his second term. "We know we have to do more — and we will do more," Obama said Wednesday in Berlin.

Body near Patriot's home was semi-pro athlete's

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 04:58 PM PDT

Two members of the Massachusetts State Police walk toward the front door of the home of New England Patriot's NFL football player Aaron Hernandez in North Attleborough, Mass., Wednesday, June 19, 2013. Their knock on the door went unanswered. State and local police spent hours at the home Tuesday as another group of officers searched an industrial park about a mile away where a body was discovered the day before. (AP Photo/Erika Niedowski)BOSTON (AP) — A man found dead in an industrial park about a mile from New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez's house was a semi-pro football player with connections to Hernandez, his family said Wednesday.

Brazil officials reverse subway, bus fare hike

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 03:51 PM PDT

A masked protestor walks near a burning barricade as riot police stand guard near the Castelao stadium in Fortaleza, Brazil, Wednesday, June 19, 2013. Protesters cut off the main access road to the stadium where Brazil goes up against Mexico in the Confederations Cup soccer tournament. Beginning as protests against bus fare hikes, the demonstrations have quickly ballooned to include broad middle-class outrage over the failure of governments to provide basic services and ensure public safety. (AP Photo/Andre Penner)SAO PAULO (AP) — Leaders in Brazil's two biggest cities said Wednesday that they reversed an increase in bus and subway fares that ignited anti-government protests that have spread across the nation in the past week.

Sao Paulo officials reverse subway, bus fare hike

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 02:28 PM PDT

A masked protestor walks near a burning barricade as riot police stand guard near the Castelao stadium in Fortaleza, Brazil, Wednesday, June 19, 2013. Protesters cut off the main access road to the stadium where Brazil goes up against Mexico in the Confederations Cup soccer tournament. Beginning as protests against bus fare hikes, the demonstrations have quickly ballooned to include broad middle-class outrage over the failure of governments to provide basic services and ensure public safety. (AP Photo/Andre Penner)SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazilian leaders in Sao Paulo say they are reversing a 10-cent hike in bus and subway fares that has sparked widespread protests across the nation.

US and Cuba agree to resume migration talks

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 03:28 PM PDT

FILE - In this June 4, 2009 file photo, Cuban coast guards, right, stop seven men trying to migrate illegally to the U.S. on a foam raft near Havana's Malecon. No one was arrested, according to police. The United States and Cuba have agreed to resume bilateral talks on migration issues next month, a State Department official said Wednesday, June 19, 2013, the latest evidence of a thaw in chilly relations between the Cold War enemies. (AP Photo/Javier Galeano, File)HAVANA (AP) — The United States and Cuba have agreed to resume bilateral talks on migration issues next month, a State Department official said Wednesday, the latest evidence of a thaw in chilly relations between the Cold War enemies.

Deen says she used slur but doesn't tolerate hate

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 04:26 PM PDT

FILE - This Jan. 17, 2012 file photo shows celebrity chef Paula Deen posing for a portrait in New York. Deen says she has used racial slurs in the past but insists she and her brother, who are accused of racial and sexual discrimination in a lawsuit by a former manager of their restaurant, don't tolerate hateful behavior. In a court deposition conducted on May 17, 2013 and filed Monday, June 17, 2013, in federal court, an attorney for former restaurant manager Lisa Jackson presses the 66-year-old Deen about her racial views and those of her brother, Bubba Hiers. (AP Photo/Carlo Allegri, File)SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — Celebrity cook Paula Deen said while being questioned in a discrimination lawsuit that she has used racial slurs in the past but insisted she and her family do not tolerate prejudice.

FBI ends Michigan search for Hoffa's remains

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 03:02 PM PDT

Investigators stand at the scene in Oakland Township, Mich., Wednesday, June 19, 2013 where officials attempt to restore the field to its natural condition after the FBI stopped the search for Jimmy Hoffa's remains. The FBI had been digging and searching for three days for the remains of Teamsters union president Hoffa who disappeared from a Detroit-area restaurant in 1975. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)OAKLAND TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — Beneath a swimming pool, under a horse farm and now a weed-grown field north of Detroit. For at least the third time in a decade, FBI agents grabbed shovels and combed through dirt and mud in the search for Jimmy Hoffa's remains or clues to the disappearance of the former Teamsters boss.

US tries saving Taliban talks after Karzai objects

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 03:15 PM PDT

Afghan police carry an injured Taliban fighter, who was captured after an overnight clash with Afghan police in Jalalabad, in the eastern province of Nangrahar, east of Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, June 19, 2013. Provincial police chief Masoon Khan Hashimi said his officers ambushed Taliban insurgents outside a village in the Surkh Rod district, killing several and capturing two. (AP Photo/Nisar Ahmad)KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Hopes dimmed for talks aimed at ending the Afghan war when an angry President Hamid Karzai on Wednesday suspended security negotiations with the U.S. and scuttled a peace delegation to the Taliban, sending American officials scrambling to preserve the possibility of dialogue with the militants.

Scattered street protests pop across Brazil

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 01:57 PM PDT

A masked protestor walks near a burning barricade as riot police stand guard near the Castelao stadium in Fortaleza, Brazil, Wednesday, June 19, 2013. Protesters cut off the main access road to the stadium where Brazil goes up against Mexico in the Confederations Cup soccer tournament. Beginning as protests against bus fare hikes, the demonstrations have quickly ballooned to include broad middle-class outrage over the failure of governments to provide basic services and ensure public safety. (AP Photo/Andre Penner)SAO PAULO (AP) — Scattered street demonstrations popped up around Brazil on Wednesday as protesters continued their collective cry against the low-quality public services they receive in exchange for high taxes and rising prices.

Syria troops fight rebels near major Shiite shrine

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 01:40 PM PDT

BEIRUT (AP) — Hezbollah fighters joined Syrian forces in battling rebels in a Damascus suburb that is home to a revered Shiite Muslim shrine, in a push to secure the area around the ornate, golden domed mosque.

Obama's job approval rating slips

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 01:09 PM PDT

US President Barack Obama gestures during their joint news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, June 19, 2013. Obama will renew his call to reduce the world's nuclear stockpiles, including a proposed one-third reduction in U.S. and Russian arsenals, a senior administration official said. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)And, fewer Americans use the "S" word to describe him, a new poll shows.

Obama urges 'bold' nuclear cuts in Berlin speech

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 01:19 PM PDT

US President Barack Obama, left, waves to invited guests next to German Chancellor Angela Merkel . right, in front of Brandenburg Gate at Pariser Platz in Berlin, Germany Wednesday June 19, 2013. , On the second day of his visit to Germany, Obama met with German President Joachim Gauck and Chancellor Angela Merkel and delivered a speech at Brandenburg Gate. (AP Photo/Michael Kappeler,Pool)BERLIN (AP) — Summoning the harsh history of this once-divided city, President Barack Obama on Wednesday cautioned the U.S. and Europe against "complacency" brought on by peace, pledging to cut America's deployed nuclear weapons by one-third if Cold War foe Russia does the same.

Bipartisan proposal on student loans circulating

Posted: 19 Jun 2013 02:25 PM PDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Students applying for financial aid for the coming school year could find some comfort in a bipartisan student loan compromise taking shape in the Senate that would prevent interest rates from doubling and set a single rate each year for undergraduate students, rich or poor.