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☆ The seemingly AI-generated ads for 'Civil War,' A24's most expensive film, are laughable — especially if you're from Chicago
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-20 | by ( Kelsey Vlamis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

One image appears to show soldiers in a boat somewhere near Los Angeles pointing their guns at a giant swan. "These are AI images inspired by the movie," the source told the outlet. Promotion for the horror-comedy "Late Night with the Devil" has been bogged down by complaints that the filmmakers used AI. AdvertisementMarketing for "Civil War" has been controversial even beyond the use of AI, with some people criticizing it as misleading. The images A24 posted do not do that feeling — or the movie they're supposed to be promoting — justice.

Persons: —, Wilco, Cmon, zQSEUj9ecd — Alex Pope Organizations: Service, Business, Hollywood Reporter, Miami Locations: North America, America, Chicago, Marina City, York, Los Angeles, Echo, New York

CHICAGO (AP) — Voters are set to cast their ballots Tuesday to decide competitive U.S. House races during the Illinois presidential primary. Democratic incumbents in at least two Chicago-area congressional races are locked in energetic challenges in the strongly Democratic territory. “We plan on finishing what we started.”It’s a crowded five-candidate primary field, including Chicago City Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin, a former Davis ally who now says it’s time for him to be voted out. “I’m running to use my knowledges, my expertise, my intellect.”He has backing from top Illinois Democrats. Also running are Chicago educator Nikhil Bhatia and Kouri Marshall, a former deputy director for Pritzker.

Persons: Danny Davis, Kina Collins, Davis, ” Collins, “, ”, Melissa Conyears, Ervin, Conyears, “ I’m, I’m, J.B . Pritzker, Nikhil Bhatia, Kouri Marshall, Pritzker, “ Chuy ” Garcia, Chicago Alderman Raymond Lopez, Lopez, Garcia, “ He’s, hasn’t, suburbanites Organizations: CHICAGO, —, Democratic, DISTRICT U.S . Rep, Chicago Democrat, Chicago, Chicago Teachers Union, Chicago ) Bears, Illinois, Gov, Chicago Alderman, City Council, Democrat, Chicago police, Republican Locations: Chicago, “, Mexico

☆ Four Years On, Covid Has Reshaped Life for Many Americans
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-13 | by ( Julie Bosman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Jessie Thompson, a 36-year-old mother of two in Chicago, is reminded of the Covid-19 pandemic every day. Sometimes it happens when she picks up her children from day care and then lets them romp around at a neighborhood park on the way home. Other times, it’s when she gets out the shower at 7 a.m. after a weekday workout. “I always think: In my past life, I’d have to be on the train in 15 minutes,” said Ms. Thompson, a manager at United Airlines. A hybrid work schedule has replaced her daily commute to the company headquarters in downtown Chicago, giving Ms. Thompson more time with her children and a deeper connection to her neighbors.

Persons: Jessie Thompson, ”, Thompson Organizations: United Airlines Locations: Chicago

☆ In Chicago, It’s Summer in February
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-27 | by ( Julie Bosman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

February is usually frigid perfection for the ice rink at Millennium Park in downtown Chicago, a favorite winter stop for tourists and local families that stands in the shadow of the reflective sculpture known as the Bean. Under an intense sun and 70-degree air temperatures, water slowly trickled out of the empty rink, flooding the surrounding concrete. Winter in Chicago — or the lack of it — reached an unnerving peak on Tuesday, when meteorologists predicted that the city could break a 48-year-old high-temperature record. Around the city, it looked like summer: Apartment windows were pushed open to catch the warm breeze. Restaurants set up tables and chairs on sidewalks for al fresco lunch service, a rare sight in a Chicago February.

Persons: Bean, — Locations: Chicago

☆ As Buses of Migrants Arrive in Chicago Suburbs, Residents Debate the Role of Their Towns
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-29 | by ( Julie Bosman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

These days, it has also become a welcome center of sorts for migrants. Volunteers are working there daily, accepting donations of socks, puffy North Face jackets, snow pants and bars of soap. For more than a month, city officials said, buses from Texas have avoided Chicago entirely, dropping hundreds of migrants in suburbs that have been given no warning that they are en route. In December, Chicago enacted penalties for bus operators who drop off passengers outside of designated times and locations or without a permit. The dynamic has played out elsewhere as well, sending some migrants to New Jersey suburbs of New York City.

Organizations: Metra Locations: Wilmette, Chicago, Wilmette —, Texas, New Jersey, New York City

☆ A Chicago artist says his viral tweet of a 'rat hole' helped pay his rent in a day
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-15 | by ( Marielle Descalsota | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Chicago artist Winslow Dumaine's post showing a rat-shaped hole in the ground went viral. AdvertisementA Chicago artist posted a photo of a rat-shaped hole in the ground, and it ended up going so viral that it helped him pay his rent. "Had to make a.pilgrimage to the Chicago Rat Hole," Dumaine wrote in the post, which has since garnered 5 million views and over 136,000 likes. Had to make a pilgrimage to the Chicago Rat Hole pic.twitter.com/g4P44nvJ1f — Gatorade Should Be Thicker. AdvertisementThe 32-year-old told Business Insider in an email that a friend had told him to "keep an eye out for the rat hole" while walking together in Roscoe Village.

Persons: Winslow Dumaine's, Dumaine, —, Winslow Dumaine, g4P44nvJ1f —, I'm Organizations: Service, g4P44nvJ1f — Gatorade, Block, Chicago Locations: Chicago, Roscoe Village, Downtown Chicago, China, France, Rome, Czech Republic, Vietnam, Temu

With his rental earnings and increased salary, Vij was able to buy more rental properties in southern Ontario. Investing in rental propertiesVij's first rental property was a two-story detached home with seven rentable rooms, two miles away from McMaster's main campus. Otherwise, whatever money Vij made from his job and rental property went straight into savings for more rental properties. "I want to own as many assets as possible that generate cash flow and use any extra cash to buy more assets." In 2023, Vij broke even on his rental properties.

Persons: Karun Vij, Vij, —, I'd, Karun, Jeremy Applebaum, I'm, Seema, Vij Vij, He's Organizations: CNBC, aha, McMaster University, McMaster, Fortune, Fiverr Savings, Spotify, Amazon Prime, Google, Walt Disney Locations: Hamilton , Ontario, Canada, McMaster's, Cambridge, Ontario, Chicago, Brampton , Ontario, Toronto, Mississauga, Hamilton, Milton , Ontario, Windsor , Ontario

☆ The hidden expense that's sucking $74 billion out of the economy
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( Bartie Scott | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

They said rising costs kept the board from expanding amenities residents wanted, such as a shared composting system. jhorrocks/Getty ImagesRising price for peace of mindIn the constellation of household costs, insurance is often one of the lesser-noticed line items. But recently the rising cost of repairs and the frequency of damaging weather events have made the deal go sour. Rising insurance costs could inflict more pain on another bruised area of the economy: housing affordability. For this reason, insurance companies could decline to cover them or require costly upgrades before agreeing to a policy.

Persons: that'd, Mark Pauly, Tim Quinlan, you'll, Quinlan, it's, Francesco D'Acunto, D'Acunto, Pauly, they've, Nature, John Coletti, That's, Bartie Scott Organizations: Insurance, Research, Bank of America, Global, American, Casualty Insurance Association, University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business, Insurance Information Institute, Georgetown University's McDonough School of Business, Social Security, National Flood Insurance, Business Insider's Locations: Logan, Chicago, Florida, Wells Fargo, California

More than 1,200 people in Israel died, most of them in the Hamas attack, and about 240 hostages were taken from Israel into Gaza by Palestinian militants. The army said Tuesday that it has captured Gaza’s legislature building, the Hamas police headquarters and a compound housing Hamas’ military intelligence headquarters. Israeli news sites showed pictures of Israeli soldiers hoisting the Israeli national flag and military flags in some of the buildings. The Israeli military did not give a reason for her death, while Hamas said she was killed in an Israeli strike. On Nov. 5, the Israeli military struck a car on the road between the southern Lebanese towns of Ainata and Aitaroun.

Persons: —, Gilad, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Lula, ” Lula, “, Lynn Gottlieb, KNTV, WASHINGTON, Janet Yellen, Shelly Shem Tov, Omer Shem Tov, Benjamin Netanyahu, JERUSALEM — Vivian Silver, Silver, Yonatan Zeigen, ” Zeigen, Noa Marciano, Marciano, ”, Israel, Iqbal Abu Saud, Ramzi Kaiss, Israel’s, KFAR, Ayelet, David Kachko Kazir, Aftonbladet Organizations: Palestinian, Hamas, Health Ministry, “, FIRE, Jewish, Peace, Berkeley, Consulate, Grand, Station, New York, Islamic, Treasury Department, TEL, JERUSALEM TEL, Israel, JERUSALEM, Israel Radio, Rights Watch, Israel — Residents, DR Locations: Gaza, Israel, Gaza City, Palestinian, Gaza's, Detroit, israel, ISRAEL, GAZA, JERUSALEM, DE JANEIRO, Brazil, “, CALIFORNIA, FIRE OAKLAND, California —, Oakland , California, Chicago, New York, United States, Islamic Jihad, Iran, Lebanese, United Kingdom, U.S, TEL AVIV, JERUSALEM TEL AVIV, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Canadian, BEIRUT, Lebanon, Ainata, Rights Watch Lebanon, KFAR AZA, Israel —, Kfar Aza, SWEDEN, DENMARK, COPENHAGEN, Denmark, Sweden, Danish, Egypt

CHICAGO (AP) — Hundreds of Jewish peace activists and their allies converged at a major train station in downtown Chicago during rush hour Monday morning, blocking the entrance to the Israeli consulate and demanding U.S. support for an Israel cease-fire as battles rage in northern Gaza. Midwestern Jews and allies traveled to Chicago from Iowa, Missouri, Minnesota, Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin and Illinois for the demonstration, organizers said. The Israeli consulate in Chicago is in a building connected to the Ogilvie Transportation Center, a major commuter rail station. The Chicago rally is unique from the previous Jewish Voice demonstrations because in the Midwest, “progressive Jewish communities are far smaller and separated by distance,” according to an emailed press release from organizers. “Trains continued to run throughout.”The Israeli consulate in Chicago did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Persons: Ben Lorber, “, ”, Clara Belitz, IfNotNow, Meg Reile, ___ Savage Organizations: CHICAGO, Ogilvie Transportation Center, Chicago, Jewish Voice, Peace, Chicago police, Jewish, Grand, Station, New York, Washington , D.C, Hamas, Metra, West Madison, “, Associated Press, America Statehouse News Initiative, America Locations: Chicago, Israel, Gaza, Iowa , Missouri, Minnesota , Michigan , Indiana , Wisconsin, Illinois, Israeli, New York, Washington ,

☆ Fact Check: Miscaptioned clip of 2021 pro-Palestinian rally in Chicago
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-10 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Footage captioned online as showing a rally in Chicago supporting “Hamas’ terror attack” predates the clashes between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas in October 2023. However, matching footage has circulated across multiple social media platforms since at least 2021. On May 16, 2021, thousands of demonstrators in downtown Chicago rallied in support of Palestinians, according to reports at the time by the Chicago Tribune and NBC 5 Chicago. Multiple pro-Palestinian rallies took place in downtown Chicago throughout May 2021, ABC7 and the Chicago Sun Times also reported. On Oct. 9, Palestinian supporters rallied in downtown Chicago against the violent conflict, as seen in news reports from ABC 7, CBS News Chicago and MSNBC.

Persons: Israel ”, escalations, Read Organizations: Hamas, Facebook, VK, Chicago, Chicago Tribune, NBC, Chicago Sun Times, Associated Press, ABC, CBS News Chicago, MSNBC, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Chicago, Israel, Palestinian, Gaza, Russia, U.S

☆ United Airlines' pilots accept new labor contract
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

United Airlines pilots protest for a new contract in downtown Chicago, Illinois, U.S, April 19, 2023. REUTERS/Caroline Stauffer/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSept 29 (Reuters) - United Airlines' (UAL.O) pilots have ratified a new four-year contract that includes a significant pay increase and other benefits, the union representing the pilots said on Friday. A committee represented by the Air Line Pilots Association, International (ALPA) reported 82% of the airline's pilots voted in favor of a new comprehensive working agreement that adds more than $10 billion of value to the existing contract. Pilot shortages in the United States have been persistent and are expected to last for years after many aviators left the industry during the pandemic. Analysts at Jefferies estimate the United States has a shortage of about 10,000 pilots.

Persons: Caroline Stauffer, ALPA, Aishwarya Jain, Shivansh, Shinjini Organizations: United Airlines, REUTERS, Air Line Pilots Association , International, Jefferies, United, Delta Air Lines, Thomson Locations: Chicago , Illinois, U.S, Chicago, United States

☆ Barry's CEO went from joining the gym to running the business in 11 years: I 'never expect to know what's next'
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Chris Dilella | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +10 min

In 2004, at the age of 26, Gonzalez took his first Barry's Bootcamp class in West Hollywood. "I had someone that I was dating at the time kind of challenged me to take a class," Gonzalez recalls. In 1998, entrepreneur Barry Jay established the inaugural Barry's Bootcamp in West Hollywood. And that was really how I like cut my teeth and got, you know, even more obsessed with the business," Gonzalez says. Joey Gonzalez Barry's CEOAfter North Castle Partners invested and named him CEO in 2015, Gonzalez started to build a strong leadership team.

Persons: Joey Gonzalez, Little, Gonzalez, Barry Jay, Barry's, Jonathan, Francesca, Jake, I've, What's Organizations: Entertainment, Barry's, Big Apple, North Castle Partners, Harvard Business School Locations: —, Los Angeles, West Hollywood, New York City, Cuban, Italian, Chicago, Instagram, COVID, Austin, Denver, New York, LA, Frankfurt, Berlin, Copenhagen, San Francisco

Since the mid-20th century, the ground between the city surface and the bedrock has warmed by 5.6 degrees Fahrenheit on average, according to a new study out of Northwestern University. “All around you, you have heat sources,” said the study’s author, Alessandro F. Rotta Loria, walking with a backpack through Millennium Station, a commuter rail terminal underneath the city’s Loop district. “These are things that people don’t see, so it’s like they don’t exist.”It isn’t just Chicago. In big cities worldwide, humans’ burning of fossil fuels is raising the mercury at the surface. But heat is also pouring out of basements, parking garages, train tunnels, pipes, sewers and electrical cables and into the surrounding earth, a phenomenon that scientists have taken to calling “underground climate change.”

Persons: ”, Alessandro F, Rotta Organizations: Northwestern University . Locations: “, Chicago

☆ NASCAR to Start Its Engines Along an Unlikely Course: Downtown Chicago
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Mitch Smith | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

There is also a chance that the street race is a one-off. Ms. Lightfoot, who brought the race to the city, lost her bid for re-election this year and left office in May. Her successor and fellow Democrat, Mayor Brandon Johnson, has been polite but circumspect about NASCAR, though he attended a pre-race event this week. “Will this idea lead to the expansion of how we think about what can be offered in a major city?” Mr. Johnson said in an interview shortly before his inauguration. “If, on the other hand, it goes badly, I think there will be pressure on the new mayor to cancel this deal.”

Persons: Lightfoot, Brandon Johnson, “, Mr, Johnson, ’, Brian Hopkins, ” Organizations: NASCAR, Chicago City Council Locations: Chicago

☆ Tyson Foods to lay off 228 employees near Chicago who decline move to Arkansas
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

CHICAGO, June 13 (Reuters) - Tyson Foods will lay off 228 corporate employees in Illinois who declined to relocate to the meatpacker's Arkansas headquarters, eliminating about 46% of the total staff from two offices, the company confirmed on Tuesday. Employees have resisted a decision to consolidate corporate offices, which Tyson announced in October, as the company grapples with high costs for cattle and easing demand for meat from cash-strapped consumers. Tyson will eliminate 177 employees from an office in downtown Chicago and 51 employees in suburban Downers Grove, Illinois, starting on July 31, according to the state. The company said the layoffs were due to the consolidation of corporate offices to Springdale, Arkansas. Including layoffs at another office in Dakota Dunes, South Dakota, Tyson will eliminate about 490 corporate employees who opted not to relocate, out of roughly 1,000 workers.

Persons: Tyson, Tom Polansek, Bill Berkrot Organizations: Tyson Foods, Employees, Thomson Locations: Illinois, Arkansas, Chicago, Downers Grove , Illinois, Springdale , Arkansas, Dakota Dunes, South Dakota

☆ Walgreens unveils Chicago store with only two aisles and most products kept out of sight
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Parija Kavilanz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

New York CNN —Walgreens just opened a redesigned store in a downtown Chicago neighborhood where most of the merchandise is intentionally kept out of sight. It’s not designed to deter theft, Walgreens says. The new Walgreens store now has only two aisles for shoppers to peruse for their everyday needs, such as over-the-counter medication, bath and body care supplies, batteries, Band-aids, and grab-and-go snacks. Those hidden products – including color cosmetics, beer, wine and spirits, hair color products and gift cards – can only be accessed for purchase through a kiosk system, also set up in the store. Illinois governor J.B. Pritzker signed a bill that went into effect Jan. 1 that’s designed to crack down on retail crime by raising penalties on retail theft statewide.

Persons: Walgreens, Robb Karr, J.B, Pritzker, ”, Karr, “, John Hassard, Robson, Hassard, Lululemon, “ We’re Organizations: New, New York CNN, Walgreens, Roosevelt, What’s, CNN, Walmart, Target, Illinois Retail Merchants Association, Walgreens ., Robson Forensic, National Retail Federation Locations: New York, Chicago, America, Walgreens . Illinois, Atlanta, harm’s, San Francisco

☆ Walgreens has redesigned a Chicago store to put most of the products behind counters, and it could help cut down on theft
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Walgreens renovated a store in Chicago and moved most of the products off the shop floor. This could help the company cut down on theft amid a rise in organized retail crime. The company told the Sun-Times that the redesigned store in South Loop had more staff than the average store. Some customers told local news site Block Club Chicago that they felt the store had been redesigned to cut down on theft. Moreover, Kehoe said that theft isn't as much of a problem at Walgreens stores as it was.

Persons: —, CWB, James Kehoe, Kehoe Organizations: Walgreens, Service, Chicago Sun, Times, Sun - Times, Block, Chicago Locations: Chicago, South, CWB Chicago

☆ 37-year-old owed $5,000 in tickets—now he's sold more than $1 billion worth of parking reservations
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-25 | by ( Tom Huddleston Jr. | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

If he hadn't been laid off or racked up $5,000 in parking tickets, Mark Lawrence might have never launched his digital parking company. SpotHero declined to provide revenue figures, but its website notes that it takes a 35% cut of each reservation. The company has other revenue streams, too — like selling price data analysis to parking sellers, for example. "The whole idea was that there's not enough parking, [and] how do we make it easy to park?" Turns out, there was actually plenty of parking, he says: "You just don't know where it is."

☆ Sam Zell, billionaire real estate investor, dies
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

He had a golden touch with real estate, and got his start managing apartment buildings as a college student. His father was a wholesale jeweler who dabbled successfully in real estate investment and the stock market. His first successes in real estate came while he was a student at the University of Michigan. After the savings and loan crisis of the 1980s, Zell went on a buying spree of real estate properties. He also encouraged institutional investors to pool their money for commercial real estate in the early '90s when it was on the outs.

☆ We moved from Chicago to a laid-back remote island in the South you can only get to by boat. We love it so far.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( Jordan Pandy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

In 2022 they moved their family to Daufuskie Island, South Carolina, near the Georgia border. Most Daufuskie Island residents leave their cars on Hilton Head and instead traverse the island by golf cart. Haig PointWe've come to Daufuskie Island five or six times before we decided to move. The ferry travels across the Calibogue Sound between Daufuskie Island and Hilton Head. Nicolle: The water taxi is free for children under 18, and for adults it's $6 each for the first two adults.

☆ Fact Check-Old, miscaptioned videos surface amid unrelated events in Chicago in April 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Some posts sharing miscaptioned clips refer to the closure of four out of the eight Walmart stores in Chicago, a move the retailer attributed to them not being profitable (here). “Just another Sunday night in a Chicago Walmart. VIDEO #2Another clip purports to show a Walmart store ransacked in Chicago this past weekend (here) (here). A tweet identifying the location to be a Walmart store in Chicago here (goo.gl/maps/Z9UyhoXYdimoBAfc9) is viewable (here). The clip may be related to large crowds that were seen near that gas station on April 2.

☆ The fallout from empty offices is coming. Here's where investors could see the pain
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +12 min

As concerns about regional banks roiled markets, investors weighed another threat: commercial real estate. Also, layered on top of the property value pressure, are the tightening credit conditions brought on by the recent turmoil in the banking sector. There is no doubt this scenario is a toxic mix for the capital-intensive real estate industry. At the moment, many experts say the real estate market isn't causing trouble for banks, but fears about the financial system are likely worsening conditions in real estate because liquidity is being reduced. The biggest concern is seeing how many other companies join Brookfield , Blackstone and Pimco in handing back the keys on office properties, Clancy said.

So You Want to Turn an Office Building Into a Home? There’s an appealing simplicity to the idea of converting office buildings into housing. Basically, they did this:How to Turn a 26-story Office Building Into a 30-story Apartment Building Cut a hole through 23 floors of the building. How to Turn a 26-story Office Building Into a 30-story Apartment Building Cut a hole through 23 floors of the building. That could change with tax abatements and subsidy programs, or if outdated office buildings lose so much value that the cost of acquiring them plummets.

☆ Saudi sovereign wealth fund reportedly near $35 billion deal for Boeing jets
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-11 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) is close to a deal to order Boeing commercial jets for the fleet of a new national airline, The Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday, citing people familiar with the matter. The aircraft order is valued at $35 billion, the report said, adding that the deal could be announced as soon as Sunday during an official launch of the national airline. The deal includes wide-body jets which are often used for long international flights, the report added. Boeing declined to comment and the Saudi PIF did not immediately respond to a request from Reuters for comment on the report. The deal is part of a rapid expansion by the country under a strategy to transform the kingdom into a transport hub and promote tourism.

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