Casey Toner

♥️ Well said

The driving-to-new-places-in-high-school-with-a-group-of-guys times were such full, rich times. Exploring. Esprit de corps. Opening up to the world.

Flossmoor didn't have the big sodium streetlights of Chicago so they'd all be a bit spooked pulling into the neighborhood

Has a good memory bubble up today of Beverly kids giving me rides from Chicago football activities to my house in the south suburbs. Far out of the way for them but they just got their driver's licenses and it was fun to ride around and hang. Made me smile thinking about it

City Sues For Millions In Damages After ‘Worst Landowner’ Property Auction Fails It’s the latest controversy surrounding land owned by Suzie B. Wilson and her sister Swedlana Dass, who have been caught in a legal web since a 2023 investigation by Illinois Answers Project and Block...

Great follow-up investigative reporting by @ctoner.bsky.social and @minabloom.bsky.social

blockclubchicago.org/2026/02/04/c...

City Sues For Millions In Damages After ‘Worst Landowner’ Property Auction Fails It’s the latest controversy surrounding land owned by Suzie B. Wilson and her sister Swedlana Dass, who have been caught in a legal web since an investigation by Illinois Answers Project and Block Clu...

illinoisanswers.org/2026/02/04/c... "Now, the city is suing the company that ran the auction, claiming the firm was negligent and incompetent and overvalued the land by failing to price in empty lots, which left the city hanging out to dry when the sale flopped."

It's near-white out conditions in Chicago as the snow comes down, and tonight's anti-ICE/CBP rally is wrapping up in front of city hall.

But not before the crowd bounces and chants, "I believe that we will win!"

YouTube video by Emperor X - Topic Renee Nicole Nicole Renee

youtu.be/gxv3ljq0ajU?... New Emperor X song about Renée Good

‘You’re One of Us’: After Off-Duty Cop Crashed Car Then Holed Up at Home in Armed Standoff with Police, He Got a Big Hug and Initially Faced No Charges Officer Ryan Harter eventually was charged with misdemeanors — nearly three weeks later.

An off-duty suburban cop crashed his car with his kids inside, fled home and held police at bay for four hours while armed, police records show. The standoff ended with a hug — and no charges that day.
https://bit.ly/4c0pGYQ

‘You’re One of Us’: After Off-Duty Cop Crashed Car Then Holed Up at Home in Armed Standoff with Police, He Got a Big Hug and Initially Faced No Charges Officer Ryan Harter eventually was charged with misdemeanors — nearly three weeks later.

Two months ago, a reader reached out to us with concerns about how law enforcement had handled a crash and 4-hour armed standoff with an off-duty officer in Plainfield, Illinois.

That night, police hugged him, closed the case, and told him "You're one of us" and "We want to protect you." Read more:

The Myth Of Cops Overdosing From Touching Fentanyl Persists For A Reason | Defector Drugs are, for the press, a moral issue. The press generally believes using drugs besides alcohol is wrong, and reacts accordingly.

Dan McQuade wrote about drugs and the people who use them in a way that was humane and instructive. Here's a good guidepost for person-first journalism. RIP defector.com/the-myth-of-...

🙌🐀🙌

Click

311 Complaints and Fines Fail to Solve Usual City Winter Woe —Too Many Snow-Packed Sidewalks As it considers pilot program to clear sidewalks, Chicago can look to Toronto, Syracuse where the cities do the plowing.

Reading about the viral snow plow naming contest reminds me of the city plan to plow sidewalks and make life easier for all especially those with disabilities and how the city threw the plan in the garbage. illinoisanswers.org/2024/03/26/3...

Keep an overnight drip!

Home - Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival The Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival returns January 21-Feb 1, 2026 with over 100 events at dozens of venues around Chicago.

If you're looking for something humane & restorative, I highly recommend the Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival. Literally pick any show and go. I took two buses to see tonight's matchbox puppet show at Constellation and laughed and cried
chicagopuppetfest.org

youtu.be/4EvoHDfBjiw?...

Several agents hold a person down and sprays them with pepper spray.

An observer arrested in Suth Minneapolis. Photo by Richard Tsong-Taatarii/The Minnesota Star Tribune

Chicago Police Brass Had Rejected Troubled Cop's Move to Elite Unit Before He Fatally Shot Partner The chief of patrol approved Officer Carlos Baker’s transfer despite denying his request for the move less than a year earlier because of “discipline’ problems.

Chicago police initially blocked Officer Carlos Baker from joining a tactical unit over disciplinary concerns, only to later approve his transfer. Months after the move, Baker fatally shot his partner.
https://bit.ly/4pG7LtW

Coolest play of the college football season. Proof of Indiana's destiny. Congrats to you and @johnchase.bsky.social and the rest of Hoosier nation

I'm going to be on @fox32chicago.bsky.social in a few minutes to talk about the Carlos Baker story. Tune in!

Paul Westerberg doing some world-class shit talking about Kurt Cobain. What makes it work is the 1) element of truth 2) the brevity of the insult 3) the elements of poetry including a rhyme 4) the plausible deniability. Lmao absolutely brutal

I propose a constitutional amendment requiring all physical and digital copies of Billy Joel's "Piano Man" to be destroyed and replaced with The Replacements' "Here Comes a Regular." It's the least we can do for the good people of Minneapolis and also America

Ribbon Cutting and News Night! — Mouse Arts and Letters Club Join Mouse Arts and Letter for our ribbon cutting at noon! A day full of facility tours will follow, plus pinhole cameras, calendars, merch, and at last, a news night at 7pm. Ring in the new year with...

Illinois Answers Reporter @ctoner.bsky.social will be a guest speaker at the Mouse Arts and Letters Club's "News Night" tomorrow at 7 p.m.

Learn more here: https://mouseartsandletters.org/events/event-one-ek26a

The same commander, who at a high level oversaw the same tactical team that was implicated in a theft of a Glock from inside his own police station that eventually turned up in the hands of a 16-year-old boy after being used in a series of shootings, was promoted last month to street deputy

Chicago Police Brass Had Rejected Troubled Cop's Move to Elite Unit Before He Fatally Shot Partner The chief of patrol approved Officer Carlos Baker’s transfer despite denying his request for the move less than a year earlier because of “discipline’ problems.

illinoisanswers.org/2026/01/15/c... My latest with @schuba.bsky.social and Peter Nickeas about the tac team cop who shot and killed his partner. After Carlos Baker's initial rejection, Baker's district commander approved his promotion even after Baker disobeyed orders and cussed out his sergeant

Looking forward to this conversation with @aliceyin.bsky.social and @ctoner.bsky.social and people interested in Chicago journalism on Friday night!

On occasion I'll have some small task that spirals and I'll say out loud in my worst English accent ITWAS SUPPOSED TO BE SO EEEASY

His earlier record had a song about a relationship falling apart because he couldn't bring himself to show up on time which I appreciated as a twenty something

YouTube video by Federal Reserve Statement by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell

Video message from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=KckG...
www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/s...