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Chicago Tribune: City Council warned to 'check yourself before you wreck yourself'
First the Cook County Board tried to crack down on serial gadfly George Blakemore — and now the Chicago City Council may be getting in on the act.
Though proposed rules for public participation at City Hall meetings discussed Thursday would apply to everyone, the 74-year-old Blakemore — often the only member of the public to speak at council hearings — plausibly claimed they were aimed at silencing him.
Bloomberg: Pensions Fly Only If You Believe They Can
There’s a bank run happening in Dallas. The funny thing is, it’s not happening at a bank.
The city’s pension for firefighters and police is disastrously underfunded. Start with the normal problem that virtually all public pension plans are facing (overpromising benefits, underinvesting in the fund). Add in an attempt to make good on promises by investing in “non-traditional” assets like timber and real estate, which didn’t pan out as the investors had hoped. Add in a deferred retirement program which allows people to accumulate assets in the fund long after their retirement date — and to withdraw that money in a lump sum whenever they want. And what you get is a big mess.
Points and Figures: The Dichotomy That Is Chicago Today
Yesterday I spent the day listening to TechStars Chicago Demo Day pitches. In the morning, the companies pitched to investors. It was great to spend time and make new acquaintances with investors, and renew relationships with other investors. The Chicago investment community is growing. New people are coming into it and that’s awesome. Each brings a unique perspective.
TechStars Demo Day is always an uplifting event to me. It gets better and better every year. So much positivity in the room. Early stage Chicago investors have done better than most. When I speak with entrepreneurs they can’t imagine building a company anywhere else. It’s not because this is home for them-it’s other tangible and intangible reasons.
Chris Gladwin gave the keynote speech this year. He sold his last company to IBM, and promptly started another one. Ocient is in it’s early stages. It was his third successful exit. I guess that’s why you bet on jockeys.
Sun-Times: Council puts cart before horse, borrows $25 million for cop cars
Chicago aldermen agreed Friday to put the cart before the horse — or rather, the squad car before the police officer.
The City Council’s Finance Committee tacked $25 million onto a previously-approved, $1.25 billion borrowing to bankroll the purchase of 600 new police vehicles for the 970 new officers Mayor Rahm Emanuel has promised to hire over the next two years.