Stacie Freudenberg / Chronicle

Avoid crime by staying alert

The South Loop is an interesting neighborhood. In recent years it has become a bustling, growing residential area where new condominium high-rises are being constructed on every available, empty plot. It also caters to the college population with four major schools located within its limits.

But despite the influx in population and businesses drawn to the area, the South Loop can also be a dangerous place to be. Not unlike other major cities, crime is always a factor in metropolitan hubs like Chicago. The South Loop has long been considered one of the safest places to live and work in the city of Chicago. Read more...

Bush touts abstinence

(U-WIRE) CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — President George W. Bush doesn’t do sex. Before marriage, that is.

In its most recent budget proposal, the Bush administration has tried to increase spending on abstinence-only sex education programs by $73 million, to $135 million per year. Nominally, these programs are supposed to help prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases and help teens avoid unwanted pregnancies. In reality, only the conservative action groups will benefit from these programs. Read more...

Tribune’s Schmich off-target

The Chicago Tribune is reportedly set to launch a primarily entertainment-focused, “edgier,” tabloid-format edition aimed at young adult readers, tentatively called the Red Eye. According to articles in the Tribune itself, the forthcoming Red Eye will target the 18-34 age demographic—which makes sense since newspaper readership numbers are down for that audience and advertisers aggressively target that age group. Read more...

Smoker says ‘show me the money’

Earlier this month a Los Angeles jury handed down a record-shattering, jaw-dropping decision against a tobacco corporation. Philip Morris, the largest and best-known tobacco giant was ordered to pay—get ready—$28 billion to one woman who smoked her way into lung cancer.

This is the largest punitive award ever given to a single plaintiff in a tobacco lawsuit; the previous record was $3 billion—chump change, comparatively speaking. Read more...

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