The [Tuesday] Papers

I briefly considered making fun of Mel Reynolds today, but his life is actually not very funny. It's tragic, and sad.

And so is the life of Sinead O'Connor. (And many of our own lives.)

I thought twice about tweeting this yesterday but decided it was okay because it was about airport security lines, not her:

Sinead O'Connor found safe in airport line; just needed to get away for a couple of hours.

— Beachwood Reporter (@BeachwoodReport) May 17, 2016

I now regret doing so, because I exploited her tragic situation to make a joke about inconvenienced travelers. That's really not worth the miniscule payoff.

Please see Sinead O'Connor No Joke.

Rickettsville
"Wrigleyville community leaders on Tuesday accused the Cubs of running roughshod over the neighborhood - and ignoring legitimate public safety concerns - in a heavy-handed attempt to open what they called the 'Midwest's largest beer garden," the Sun-Times reports.

"In a letter to Cubs Chairman Tom Ricketts, presidents of East Lakeview, Southport, Hawthorne and Triangle Neighbors Associations accused the Cubs of pulling the plug on months of negotiations in favor of an end-run around area residents and their local Ald. Tom Tunney (44th)."

The Cubs under Ricketts have been ham-handed with the neighborhood, the alderman and City Hall since day one. It's like Crane Kenney is running the operation or something.

(Btw, see/hear the Kenney item at 27:07 here.)

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"At issue is the Cubs' surprise decision to apply for a patio permit that could pave the way for extended liquor sales - until 11 p.m. on weekdays at midnight on weekends - at an open-air plaza adjacent to a renovated Wrigley Field.

"The Cubs organization is trying to bypass the community engagement process by going directly to the city's liquor commissioner to obtain this liquor license - a year-round beer garden of unprecedented size and scope, which would serve alcohol to 4,000-to-6,000 people, 10-to-12 hours-a-day 365 days of the year," the letter states.

"If the team's request is granted, the Cubs would have a patio liquor license '30 times larger' than Chicago's largest, which has a maximum capacity of 200 patrons."

I can't vouch for those figures, but I bet they're in the ballpark.

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"They want the Cubs to 'reconsider this misguided proposal' they claim will not accomplish the 'town square in Europe' that Ricketts has described as his model."

Name that square, Tom.

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"Last week, Tunney stood his ground against the Cubs' request for a patio license.

"Remember they wanted to close Clark and Addison? This is another way of trying to close Clark and Addison. If you look at the rules for the patio license they requested, they could stay open from 11 a.m. to midnight and allow people to drink all day and all night during the game and after the game. That's a public safety issue," Tunney said.

"You have 41,000 people in the stadium. We don't want an additional 4,000 people in the plaza at least for the first couple of years while we figure out how we can absorb the 100,000 square feet of food and beverage built into the planned development. That's the equivalent of 10 very large bars. The concern for the community is public safety for the fans and, for the residents, trying to keep our streets open."

Rickettsville. It's coming.

Sasha's Night Out
"Acclaimed music and culture writer Sasha Frere-Jones has abruptly exited the L.A. Times after less than a year amid allegations of expense-account shenanigans involving a strip club and accepting expensive freebies from sources," the Wrap reports.

Huh, that got Susanna Homan promoted! Minus the strip club part, of course. As far as we know.

1972 Chicago Newscast Ripped From Today's Headlines
As an old saying goes, the news never changes, just the players.

While that may not be exactly true, it is largely true.

Consider this WMAQ-TV newscast from 1972: CPS begs the state for money to solve its budget problems while threatening larger class sizes and teacher layoffs; tense race relations at Gage High School (more so than today, I would say; mostly because white parents have bailed out of the system); and a school shooting.

Take a look.

NSA Today
Gannett's next target!

Actually, it's the internal newsletter (actually named SIDToday, for Signals Intelligence Directorate) of the NSA, and the Intercept has culled each edition from the Snowden archive for your enjoyment, astonishment and outrage.

Who The Hell Are The Chicago Clovers?
I don't know, but they just got beat by the Wisconsin Storm.

Meet The Black Couch
Art studio and gallery in the old Hammond organ space. (Click through if for nothing else but the Hammond history.)

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BeachBook

Indiana Station Drops This American Life For Selling Out.

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Champaign-Urbana Dude Puts Air Guitar On Craigslist.

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Kickstarter: I Want Kenny Loggins To Play In My Living Room.

See also: Kenny Loggins at Chicago Book Expo.

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Rent Dispute Forcing Fischman Liquors To Close.

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McDonald's Is Most Visited Restaurant Chain In America.

Second only to Walmart in foot traffic.

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TweetWood
A sampling.

Access to sources, not power.

"Access to sources, not power." - Betsy Reed @TheWebbyAwards https://t.co/MKQSlFd1DR

— First Look Media (@firstlookmedia) May 17, 2016

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Subsidies won't save many from big health insurance rate increases. By @Trudy_Lieberman https://t.co/sewEcbtIc9 pic.twitter.com/Wg0bd3ttiu

— HealthNewsReview.org (@HealthNewsRevu) May 17, 2016

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Having adopted a poison pill, TribPub is now both dead and alive, a superposition that won't be resolved until we open the Tronc box.

— Beachwood Reporter (@BeachwoodReport) May 17, 2016

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Lacking any bids for acquisition, the board of The Beachwood Media Company swallowed a poison pill this morning.

— Beachwood Reporter (@BeachwoodReport) May 17, 2016

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The Beachwood Tip Line: Box-office poison.

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