Local history

In 1910, work on construction of the Bonner Manufacturing Co. plant west of Champaign on the Chicago and Havana railroad line is moving along in the best of form although there has been some delay on account of the rain. Much of the brick work has been completed and the steel workers are pushing ahead with their part of the contract. The building is supposed to be completed by October.

In 1960, St. John’s Lutheran Church, 509 S. Mattis Ave., C, will hold a dedicatory service for its new church building at 9:30 a.m. Sunday. A representative of English Brothers Co., general contractors, will present the keys to the building to architect Kenneth Wischmeyer who will in turn hand them to the pastor, Rev. Erhard Bekemyer. He will unlock the door and it will be opened officially by Lewis Clausen, chairman of the building committee, and Dr. A.M. Albright, president of the congregation.�

The next mayor of the city of Chicago? Emil Jones?

From the Chicago Tribune ...

"The looming retirement of Mayor Richard M. Daley opens the door to remaking the city's political landscape. Here's a look at many of the local players who could have a stake in the 2011 city election. Some have said they may be candidates for mayor, some have ruled themselves out — at least for now — and some just won't say."

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-met-city-players-20100907,0,198225...

Daley could retire a rich man

From the Chicago Sun-Times ...

"The size of Mayor Daley’s annual pension will ultimately depend on a number of questions only the mayor can answer, including which public pension plan he files under and when he files.

"But aside from those pension checks, the mayor could reap a retirement windfall of nearly $1.5 million.

"As of June 30, the mayor had $1,479,823 left in his campaign fund. And under state law, he can claim that as income as long as he pays taxes on it.

"In the late 1990s, state law was changed to prohibit politicians from using campaign funds for personal use. But the new law contained “a grandfather clause,” allowing candidates to declare as income the amount of money they had in their funds as of June 30, 1998.

"The Richard M. Daley Campaign Committee had $1,798,094.40 in the bank on that date. That means the $1,479,823.57 that he reported in his account earlier this year is most likely all fair game."

http://www.suntimes.com/news/cityhall/2683904,daley-campaign-funds-09071...

NYT looks at FutureGen revisions

From The New York Times ...

"The project is the third iteration of FutureGen, the carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) project that President George W. Bush announced in 2003.

"'This is fundamentally a shift in the definition of the project,' said Sarah Forbes, a senior associate at the World Resources Institute, a nonprofit think tank. 'FutureGen, the restructured FutureGen and FutureGen 2.0 are essentially different projects. They are all different efforts for storing CO2.'

"Gone from the original FutureGen is the integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) technology that turns coal into gas before drawing out pollutants and a component for producing hydrogen.

"There are now several IGCC projects going forward, DOE says, so wrapping it into FutureGen is no longer necessary. But critics disagree, saying no IGCC projects are large enough to test the technology on a massive scale or in combination with carbon sequestration components.

"Also gone from the new FutureGen is the old missing project site, Mattoon, in Coles County, Ill. Out the window with that site are environmental reviews, state permits and land rights secured for that property. DOE and its partners are hunting for another CO2 storage site and face a new round of permitting and efforts to calm neighbors concerned about living on top of sequestered CO2 that could affect their health and property values."

http://www.nytimes.com/gwire/2010/09/07/07greenwire-wad-of-doe-cash-does...

Fan tossed from baseball game ...

From The St. Louis Post-Dispatch ...

"Fans get ejected all the time in Little League baseball. Umps at that level don’t get paid enough to put up with all the chit-chat from overwrought parents.
"But a major league ump running a fan for chirping from behind home plate? That’s incredible.
"According to the Associated Press, the fan, Sean A. Ottow, 44, of Waukesha, Wisc., claimed he was heckling St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina and not Davidson.
“'But I never swore at him,' Ottow told the AP. 'He just got the umpire to throw me out. We were bantering back and forth and I guess Molina couldn't take it anymore.
“'You'd think these guys would have tougher skin than that,' he said.
"Police handcuffed Ottow to a bench in the Police Command Center at Miller Park and charged him with disorderly conduct. From that perch, the AP reported, he watched the TV broadcast while Molina struck out.
“'I don't care how much this costs me . . .  you're a loser Molina!” Ottow shouted at the TV."

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/article_5b349530-bb...

Quite a distinction

From CNN ...

"A new national poll indicates that slightly more than half of all Americans have an unfavorable view of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a finding that may make her the most unpopular Democrat in Washington nowadays."

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2010/09/08/cnn-poll-pelosi-unpopula...

Photos: