A summer reading pleasure from Tom Hanks

You would expect a book by Tom Hanks to be likeable, right?

Becuase Tom Hanks is pretty much likeable in everything he does. And folks like Tom Hanks in return. Maybe not in everthing, but at least in some things.

And he's been in so many.

A League of Their Own is one of my favorites. As a long-suffering White Sox fan, I often need to recall Hanks' declaration in that movie: "There's no crying in baseball!" Some nights I need to recall that several times an inning. Some nights I cry anyway.

I'm a big fan, too, of the movies Hanks made with Meg Ryan, even Joe vs. the Volcano. Imagine: There was once a time when "brain fog" was an obviously laughable diagnosis, not a recognized and dire consequence of long-COVID.

You probably have different favorites by Tom Hanks. That something-for-everyone appeal is no mean feat in our fractured society.

But it was one Tom Hanks movie in particular that made me look forward hopefully to The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece, namely, That Thing You Do. Not just because it is a sweet, enjoyable movie, but because Tom Hanks directed that film and wrote it. If he could write a good movie, perhaps he might also write a good book.

And he certainly did. Although, obviously, I hate the book's title.

Who wants to type out The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece 15 times in a book review, right?

But that's about the extent of my criticism of Tom Hanks' new book.

That, and maybe the framing device didn't work well/ got lost or forgotten along the way/ wasn't really necessary.

The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece is a book about the making of a movie and, along the way, about the making of movies generally, about acting and actors, and about history (Hollywood and otherwise). In my view, TMAMMPM rivals David Niven's Bring on the Empty Horses as an insider's guided tour of the Great American Dream Factory. Niven, like Hanks, was more than just an affable leading man; he was heavily involved as a producer during the early years of television. He knew how the business worked. Niven's book was largely first-person stuff, episodes about his interactions with others; only occasionally did he not name names. But, in a very real sense, Niven could probably be most truthful in those stories where he was not naming names.

The auteur at the center of TMAMMPM may have started out as Hanks' alter ego. He shares Hanks' well-documented, weird obsession with typewriters, for example. I don't understand the fascination. I used typewriters back when that was all we could use. In the early days of my practice, I could, when necessary, squeeze five and six letters into three and four spaces with an IBM Selectric. I could do wonders with correcting tape and Wite Out. I learned how to touch type in junior high. I made beer money in undergrad, typing other people's papers at a quarter a page (50 cents if someone was truly desparate) on an old, noisy portable manual typewriter. Allegedly portable. But my battered old typewriter is up in the attic these days, not in a shrine.

However much the writer-producer-director character may have started out as just a stand-in for Hanks in TMAMMPM, I think Hanks found a way to make him and all the other show business characters in the novel into believable, stand-alone characters, while still allowing Hanks to weave in truthful anectdotes, about real people, dishing serious dirt, without naming names, and still staying nice. As perhaps only Tom Hanks can. Tom Hanks knows the modern business from all sides, just as Niven knew the business in his time. Hanks has written, directed, produced, acted... I'd bet he could splice the film if it snapped in the projector; he could probably fix the popcorn machine, too, if necessary. Even in the almost completely fictional world of his novel, Hanks easily persuades you that he is telling you some serious truth -- without (apparently) dumping on anyone.

You may wonder how the first part of the book, about the troubles of a single family in post-WWII California, will fit into the movie-making part. It is not at all obvious. But you will expect that it will happen -- I'm not ruining anything for you by telling you that much -- and you will enjoy how it does.

Everybody likes Tom Hanks. You will like him even more after reading The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece.

My Jerry Springer story

Photo by David Shankbone via Wikipedia

The passing of Jerry Springer this week reminds me of the time someone called and asked me to sue him.

This is how the phone call began: I said, "Jack Leyhane," and the caller said, "I want to sue Jerry Springer."

Even with this very limited vocal sample, I could definitely detect that the caller had a distinctive accent.

If you guessed that the caller's accent was Received Pronunciation, you are both very funny and completely wrong.

Although I do remember exactly how the call began, I don't recall exactly when it happened. I apparently did not note the call on my time sheets.

But the Internet tells us that the Jerry Springer Show was based in Chicago between 1991 and 2009; I was very much on my own when I fielded this call, so we can narrow it down to somewhere between 2004 and 2009. Because I did not take contemporary notes, the quotation marks used hereafter are taken from my best recollection, and not meant as an assertion that I recall the exact words used. Marilu Henner, I am not.

Now, if I had been blessed with even a modicum of common sense, I would have immediately responded with something like, "Oh, gee, that's too bad. I'm sorry, but I'm conflicted out -- I'm Jerry Springer's agent." But, obviously, I was not Jerry Springer's agent; I never met the man. Also, I never could come up with a snappy comeback when I got blindsided by something totally unexpected. And who would have expected this?

So, instead, I asked something like, "How did you find me?"

"On line," he said. Or, "on the computer."

At various times during the Aughts, when I still harbored dreams of building an actual firm with real-life associates, I dabbled in promotional websites with Martindale Hubbell and West. For a time, I may have had both. But, if this was the kind of inquiry generated by these efforts, I was clearly doing something wrong.

I plunged on.

Not because I had to, obviously. But, from time to time, I have been afflicted with a morbid curiousity. This was one of those occasions: "Why do you want to sue Jerry Springer?"

The story came tumbling out. It seems that Mr. Springer was doing a show on men who were cheating on their wives with one of their wife's relations. My caller, it seems, was carrying on with his wife's cousin. The producers flew them all up to Chicago -- himself, his wife, and his wife's cousin (I didn't ask if the caller took the center seat on the flight up, but I wanted to). The producers picked them up in a limo, then put the whole bunch up in a hotel downtown (no, I didn't ask how many rooms they booked either), and brought them down to the studio for the show. But they didn't get on TV.

As I sit here now I can't remember if he told me that the problem was the show ran long or whether the producers just decided to use one or more different threesomes. But my caller was plainly upset at not getting his 15 Minutes of Fame.

Seriously.

I asked some clarifying questions. "Did anyone promise that you'd be on TV?" I asked.

Well, no, he said.

"What did they promise you?"

"Well, they promised to fly us to Chicago and back again."

"And they flew you up just like they said?"

"Well, yeah."

"And they're going to fly you back, too?"

"Yeah. Limo is coming in an hour."

"OK. And they promised to put you up in the hotel? And they did that, too, right?"

"Well, yeah."

"They feed you and all?"

"Room service and everything. Very nice -- but they didn't put us on TV!"

"Well, sir," I said (I had never asked his name), "maybe someone else might figure it differently, but here's the way I see it: They did everything they promised to do. They didn't put you on the show, but they didn't promise to do that. I don't think there'd be much chance of winning if you were to sue. I admit that free advice is worth every cent you pay for it, but that's my opinion anyway."

My caller wasn't satisfied, but he could see he wasn't getting anywhere with me. Besides, he had a limo to catch.

I hadn't thought about that incident for a long time. But remembering that I had to field calls like that every so often makes my not-entirely-voluntary retirement just that much easier to bear.

I wonder now if the fellow got the center seat on the flight home?

Waiting for a telephone call from an oil change place....

I'm not Andy Rooney, but I'm feeling cantankerous and curmudgeonly these days and, like the late Mr. Rooney, I'm not afraid to tell you about it.

And right now, too, since I'm effectively prevented from doing any of the other things that I am supposed to be doing right now while I wait for a phone call.

The Millennials and Gen Zers are already rolling their eyes at this point: OK, Boomer. Nobody makes phone calls anymore.

But -- let me quickly interject -- I agree with that sentiment. I am indeed in total accord with same. I resorted to a telephone call only as a last result.

All I wanted to do was make an appointment for an oil change for the family vehicle. As a true modern person would, I visited the website of said oil change place for that express purpose.

Admittedly, I used a desktop computer and not my phone. The young people may be asking what's a desktop? In 20 years, or maybe in only 10, that may be a serious inquiry. I hope not, but it may. Right now, however, it's just heckling.

I prefer to see what I am doing, and the larger screen of the desktop affords me a better opportunity for this than does my phone. Also, I can type. Therefore I can fill in the blanks on a website form faster and more efficiently on a desktop than most Millennials or Gen Zers can on their phones, even with their amazing thumbs. My thumb is not nearly so nimble. Consider the desktop as a sort of accommodation.

I have successfully scheduled oil changes on this site previously. On a desktop. Without incident. So (anticipating the follow-up line of heckling here) I did know how to use the site, thank you. I fully expected to repeat my previous accomplishment on this occasion without undue difficulty.

Yet my expectations were not realized.

The website loaded fine and I specified the services I needed with no difficulty. But for some reason, though I could select a date for my appointment, I could not select a time. The drop down menu would not drop down.

I tried clicking around a few different ways. I got out of the site and started again, but ran into the same problem.

But I did not despair. Nor did I yet resort to a phone. The site was not working properly in Chrome, so I tried Firefox instead.

But I ran into the same problem again, and at the exact same spot on the form.

It was only then that I determined to make an actual phone call.

I called the telephone number specific to the location where I hoped to obtain service.

But, of course, that's not where the phone was answered. The company I was trying to deal with has several locations in the Chicago area. Apparently calls directed to any one of these are answered at some central location.

I explained myself to the person answering.

"You are attempting to schedule this appointment for our Niles location, is that right?" she asked.

Yes, I did not say, that is why I dialed the number for the Niles location. I did not say this because this response sounded more snarly than sunny, no matter what reading I gave that line in the privacy of my own head. I realized it might have seemed hostile. I did not mean to seem hostile.

But, now that I knew this was some central location, after confirming my intent to reach the Niles store, I proceeded to explain the website issue. She said she'd have someone look into that right away.

No, I don't really think she'll actually tell anyone about that either.

Anyway, she tried to ring the Niles store while I waited. But, she said apologetically, the manager must be on the phone because there was no answer. She asked for my information, so the manager could call me back when he was free. I dutifully provided it.

And now I'm stuck here waiting for the phone to ring so I can accomplish the two-minute scheduling task that I undertook about two hours ago.

At some point, obviously, I have to go on with my day. But I asked for this phone call... and so, I think, I must be honor-bound to wait some time for the call to be returned.

What were the rules in college? If the teacher failed to show on time, the students were free to leave, but only after waiting a sufficient interval. Was it 10 minutes for an assistant professor and 15 minutes for a full prof?

Well, I've waited one whiny essay for the manager of the oil change place. Surely, that should be reasonable.

Except... well... if he calls and I don't answer... then I have to call back and start the whole process over, don't I?

I hope they get that website fixed soon....

Cook County to open south suburban center for hard to recycle materials

And just in time for Earth Day, too! Read on for the press release issued today by Cook County, but, bottom-lining this, the new CHaRM Center will take small appliances, TVs, even some styrofoam -- stuff that no one else seems willing to take....

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle today announced the grand opening of the Center for Hard to Recycle Materials (CHaRM Center). Spearheaded by the County’s Department of Environment and Sustainability (DES) in partnership with South Suburban College (SSC), the new facility provides a permanent location for residents to drop-off items for reuse or recycle that diverts waste from landfills, waterways and vacant lots. Cook County allocated nearly $1 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding to partner with SSC on the new facility and to create sustainable practices and programs that increase recycling across communities in the Southland.

“Establishing a location where residents can bring items that are not typically accepted through traditional recycling services will ultimately help our environment by keeping these items out of landfills,” said President Preckwinkle. “I am grateful to South Suburban College for their partnership in ensuring critical recycling services are available to all County residents.”

The CHaRM Center is the first of its kind in Cook County. Residents can drop off materials such as electronics, textiles, used medical equipment, furniture and small appliances, Styrofoam and general household recyclables including plastic, glass, metal and paper are accepted. Materials will be refurbished or recycled.

The center opens on Earth Day, Saturday, April 22 from 8:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. at SSC located at 15800 South State Street, South Holland, Illinois 60473. The CHaRM Center will be open Tuesdays from 7:00 a.m. – noon, Thursdays from 2:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. and the second Saturday of every month from 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

“South Suburban College is ecstatic to partner with Cook County to further its environmental and sustainability efforts,” said SSC President Dr. Lynette Stokes. “The partnership will allow SSC to act as a community steward and lead by example, promoting materials for reuse and recycle to ultimately reduce waste. The permeant recycling drop-off facility is easily accessible to Cook County residents, fosters the local environment's health and educates the local community on the importance of recycling.”

As part of the grand opening of the CHaRM Center on April 22, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency is sponsoring a one-day household hazardous waste collection event for residents. Accepted materials include items such as old gasoline, household batteries and lawn chemicals among others.

In addition to funding for the CHaRM Center, the County has allocated over $100 million in ARPA funding to support a clean environment for all and to fight climate change.

This is a great program... assuming, of course, that the stuff that gets dropped off really does get recycled. Which, in other cases, has not always happened.

Not meaning to provide a buzz kill to this feel-good Earth Day story, but Mother Jones magazine ran a sobering article recently, "Your 'Recycled' Grocery Bag Might Not Be." It's a long read, but worth your time.

Donation is one thing -- and it's one thing that we can all do -- but follow-through is necessary to confirm that materials intended for recycling really are. Because, unfortunately, and too often, material intended for recycling winds up in landfills (or our oceans) anyway.

Another problem I never thought I'd have: An old blog post is alleged to have violated Blogger's "community standards"

UPDATE: Immediately after posting this, I opened an email from Blogger saying that the 2010 post described herein has been reevaluated and reinstated. The brown paper wrapper is off. Kind of takes all the wind out of my sails, don't it? Today, at least, if not, a couple of weeks ago, I pressed the right button. My thanks to Blogger... although, in all honesty, I wish they'd held off for a few days so I could convince myself that the following article somehow helped my cause....

I've been using the Blogger platform for Page One of this site since 2006. I started this Page Two in 2008.

That was so long ago, blogging was fashionable, even (arguably) hip. (I realize, of course, that this time is long past; this is why I am so careful to call what you are looking at a "site" instead of a "blog." It sounds more current that way. At least to me....)

Anyway, in that time, between these two sites, I've put up over 4,400 articles (I like to think that 'articles' sounds more contemporary than 'posts'). Some have been better than others, obviously; I even won an award (in 2012) from the Chicago Bar Association for one post. I mean, article. I got an honorable mention from the CBA in 2014, too.

(It wasn't too many years after this that the CBA stopped giving out Kogan Awards. I deny any responsibility for this.)

Along the way, I've attracted some modest trappings of success. For awhile, I even had some of my own trolls. But I try not to be overly controversial in what I publish, and the trolls eventually lost interest.

In other words, I'm boring.

Which is why I was shocked, a couple of weeks ago, to receive a notice from Blogger that one of my articles on this site, a piece from 2010, was in violation of Blogger's Community Standards.

The article was entitled, "Up all night with a sick computer." If you are brave enough to click on that link now you will find the article shielded by the Internet-equivalent of a brown paper wrapper. Judging by the recorded page clicks, only about 250 individuals were potentially contaminated by this content in the 13 years before this label was slapped on.

If you do read the article, which recounts my experience battling a Trojan Horse virus encountered while innocently browsing the Internet, you may find it overlong, self-indulgent, or not nearly as helpful or amusing as I thought it was at the time I pressed the "publish" button. But while I understand that some people don't like The Quiet Man in particular or John Wayne generally, I don't see how the article could conceivably be seen as violating any reasonable set of community values.

My best, non-expert guess is that, after all these years, a passing AI "spider" picked up on the scary website names (the ones that the Trojan Horse virus caused to pop up on my computer screen that night) (not linked, obviously) and leapt to the wholly unwarranted conclusion that I was offering links to pornographic websites.

After receiving the message, I clicked around ineffectually, trying to find some human who could look at the article and remove the 'brown paper wrapper.'

Blogger does not have much in the way of in-person customer service, and understandably so: Who would want to field calls all day from old ladies unable to post their latest kitten-playing-with-yarn videos... or from old lawyers grousing about inappropriate warnings being slapped on essentially innocuous content?

But I have noticed that whatever I did that first day has so far brought no response from the folks at Blogger. The 'brown paper wrapper' is still on that 2010 post.

I looked over the post again today and noted there was a button that could be pressed seeking review. I pressed. Then I wrote this.

Neither tactic may succeed in getting the label removed. But at least I've tried my best.

A death in the family at my "Church Home"

The obituary duly notes that Fr. Eric C. Meyer, C.P., was Associate Pastor at my home parish, Immaculate Conception, from 1987 to 2005, before becoming Pastor from 2005 to 2013, when the Passionists decided they could no longer operate the parish.

The information is accurate, of course, but incomplete: At least twice that I can recall, during his long tenure as Associate Pastor, Fr. Eric served as Acting Pastor. Perhaps the title wasn't meant to convey this, but Fr. Eric took it as a mandate: Given the authority to act on behalf of the parish, he acted.

Since learning, last Saturday, of his passing, I've been trying to recollect specifics about when these stints as Acting Pastor took place. One must have been in the mid-90s, when I was on the parish school board, because I remember a board meeting where he fulminated about some proposed change in Archdiocesan policy toward parish schools with which he strongly disagreed. I'm sure he was no less blunt with the people with whom he was speaking at the Archdiocese. I do not believe that he was in any way a diplomat by nature. He was a tireless advocate, though, for the continued independence and prosperity of IC Parish.

Our Parish Center is named for him. It had to be. He willed that structure into being -- with incessant fundraising, and with constant prayer -- his and ours -- whether we liked it or not. He composed a prayer on the subject and saw to it that it was recited by the entire congregation at every Mass for what seemed like forever. But he got the building built.

Fr. Eric was a scholar. Before coming to IC he had worked in a university setting; he had to learn, the hard way, that one can not question grammar school kids at a school Mass in the same way as he might have talked with college students. Think of Jean Luc Picard's awkwardness with children in Star Trek: The Next Generation, change the subject to theology, and increase the awkwardness factor by about tenfold. But he worked at it, and adapated, and got much better over time.

Not everyone appreciated his scholarship. He did sometimes get off on a tangent about the correct translation of this Greek word or that one, or how it was mistranslated into Latin, and later into English. He had such a grasp of Biblical history and culture besides, so much so that, one day, meaning to pay a compliment, I offended him: I said he reminded me of a Jesuit. I got an earful for that one -- about the scholarly traditions of many religious orders, the Passionists not least among these. But, hey, I didn't know any better; I'd gone to Loyola.

Fr. Eric was a well-traveled man, too. He'd walked seemingly every road in the Holy Land at one point or other (and I do mean walked -- he rode a bike, too, but so far as I know he never drove). Whenever he could tie it into the day's Gospel, congregants were likely to get a very detailed explanation, from personal experience, of how the geography in question contributed to the story. Not everyone appreciated the travelogues, either.

I, for one, was no great fan of Fr. Eric's singing, particularly at 7:30 Mass on Sunday morning, when there usually wasn't any musical accompaniment. But Fr. Eric had a good, strong singing voice and he couldn't help himself.

And Fr. Eric was a devoted Cub fan. This was a serious matter for me and my family. It's tough to be alienated from one's pastor on such a fundamental issue. But we came to a grudging, mutual understanding. In time, we came to understand that Fr. Eric grew up in practically the shadow of Wrigley Field, in St. Ita's Parish, and therefore could not help himself. And Fr. Eric became a little more tolerant, too: One Mother's Day, when my wife wore her Sox cap to church, Fr. Eric offered a special blessing to all the mothers present -- even the Sox fans.

Still, there were lines that could not be crossed: One Spring Sunday many years ago my wife and I were helping to host a Welcome Coffee in the Rectory Assembly. I don't remember whether it was for the School Board, or Parents Club, or the Sunday Pre-School. It was one of the days when it was our turn to help host. I do remember that the kids were still little -- still playing baseball in the house league at Oriole Park. And they'd just gotten their jerseys for the season and they were wearing them with pride -- until Fr. Eric caught sight of them.

"How could you allow your children to go out in public dressed like that?" he demanded.

Well... they were wearing Cardinals jerseys.

Some years ago I had occasion to interview a pastor who was one of the key architects of the "Soul Slate" -- a slate of Black judicial candidates -- I was looking for the story earlier today and of course I couldn't find it in my archives. Maybe it never got written. But I remember the interview because the pastor said that he had the same question for every candidate seeking his endorsement: "Where is your Church Home?"

And the pastor told me of one woman who'd come before his group and, in response to that question, named a church in Detroit, where the candidate had grown up. It was a very good church, the pastor conceded, a very prominent church, but he wanted to know where was her Church Home now. After all, he told me, she hasn't lived in Detroit for a good many years.

It got me thinking about how I would have answered the pastor's question about my Church Home. And the answer, then and now, would be Immaculate Conception Parish. Fr. Eric is not the only priest at that parish with whom I've enjoyed cordial relations; I have been on friendly terms with many of the priests who have served the parish over the years. And all of these have helped make IC my Church Home -- but, for me, Fr. Eric stands above.

Fr. Eric was a tireless advocate for our parish throughout his long tenure, without regard to whether his stance made friends Downtown or with his confreres among the Passionists. And I have no doubt that he will continue to be a tireless advocate on behalf of the parish in his new, eternal assignment. We were blessed to have him; we are blessed to have him still.

Robot to provide legal advice in traffic case: Should the guild feel threatened?

The DoNotPay app, which bills itself as the "home of the world's first robot lawyer," has announced a stunt that has attracted significant interest: Sometime next month the app will (via smartphone and earbuds) advise an actual defendant in a real American traffic court (not in California although, beyond that, the location is unspecified). This coverage on New Scientist is behind a paywall; Lauren Leffer's Gizmodo article is not.

Ms. Leffer's article notes that, "DoNotPay is also reticent to disclose case specifics because what they’re doing is likely in violation of courtroom laws and protocol."

Not just "likely," actually; it's a dead-cinch certainty in Illinois and probably in most places. Apparently, though, DoNotPay has found a jurisdiction which allows hearing impaired persons to use phones with Apple AirPods to amplify the proceedings. If Mr. Roboto (that's a Styx reference, not a sexist lapse) ever wanted to be a real lawyer, he might have a hard time with Character and Fitness should these shenanigans come to light. Ms. Leffer's article quotes DoNotPay's CEO, Joshua Browder, as saying the court will "definitely not" be aware of these arrangements -- so the company is setting out to deceive the court.

And, of course, actually whispering what to say in the client's ear would get any human lawyer sanctioned on the spot.

Leffer's article says DoNotPay is also planning a second stunt involving a speeding defendant facing a Zoom trial. "In that instance," she writes, "DoNotPay is weighing the use of a teleprompter vs. a synthetic voice — the latter strategy Browder described as 'highly illegal.'" Actually, neither strategy would be open to a human lawyer. At least more than once. If said lawyer were caught.

So these tests (or "experiments" as Browder calls them) would appear to confer a huge, as well as unfair, advantage for the AI over a similarly-situated human attorney.

But I wonder....

It seems safe to assume that the human test subjects that DoNotPay has recruited for these exercises have been carefully screened; like news anchors or sports broadcasters they would have to relay the AI-provided information seamlessly, without any perceptible delay as new instructions are received. Moreover, these first subjects would be strongly inclined to follow the direction provided by their robot lawyers. (And incentivized to follow that advice, too: DoNotPay promises to pay any fines that may result from adverse determinations.)

Having a direct, albeit surreptitious, audio channel into a typical client's cranium might prove a more mixed blessing for man or machine alike.

But let's put that aside for a moment.

A post by Anugraha Sundaravelu about these "experiments" on Metro.co.uk, claims that Browder's "ultimate goal is to have his app replace lawyers altogether in order to save defendants money" (the DoNotPay website is careful to note, on the other hand, that "DoNotPay is not a law firm and is not licensed to practice law").

But to determine whether non-lawyer robots could really replace living, breathing lawyers, said robots should be subject to the same strictures as the people they would supplant. So -- for a fair test -- no whispering in the defendant's ears. The robot and the defendant can chat outside the courtroom, as people do with their human lawyers, but not inside the courtroom. And certainly not after every question asked.

Real, unscreened clients routinely ignore their human counsel's advice and instructions -- at least until things go south -- at which point the lawyer is usually blamed for failing to provide what he or she has desperately tried to provide right along. Would robots really fare better?

I'd bet against it. And a disembodied AI can not even hunch over and cover its face in frustration as the client torpedoes his or her own case.
For the foreseeable future, at least, lawyers should have no fear of AI-replacements.

If it ain't broke, don't replace it -- even if it is avocado

Persons who spend too much time online -- a group that probably includes you inasmuch as you are reading this (it certainly includes me) -- will recognize this meme from Facebook or IG or, as Bill Belichick might put it, Snap-Face:

I can't credit the originator of this work, but I tracked this image down this morning on a site called MemeZila.com.

In The Free Press this morning Walter Kirn offers a more literary, and therefore lengthier, take on this fundamental truth. In Kirn's essay, O Holy Crap, the indestructible appliance is a citrus juicer, not a sickly green refrigerator (marketed as "avocado").

But the idea is the same: After introducing us to his immortal juicer (it dates to about 1940, he has determined), Kirn recounts a host of appliances, large and small, all purchased with the best of intentions and often from the very tip-top shelves (Kirn has enjoyed some material success as a novelist) that have wound up consigned to the local landfill, exposed as mere gewgaws and gimcracks, and all too soon. He writes:

It’s important to get to the essayistic part, where I ask what it means when the objects in our lives demoralize us in a blizzard of malfunctions that seem to be hastening by the month. But it’s also important—to me, emotionally—to bury the reader in details of the unceasing material disappointments I’ve faced. Disappointments of the sort we will all be facing en masse in a few days. Merry Christmas!

I could also cite several examples of my own seemingly indestructible appliances, surviving long past their freshness date. I won't, of course, because, well, karma. Don't tempt fate; that's my motto.

But I have to admit that the idea of older things lasting longer and working better than their newly-minted, would-be replacements is one that has become increasingly appealing to me as time goes on. I can't imagine why....

Challenging times ahead for some municipal candidates...

But only some.

Six challenges have been filed to the nominating petitions of five candidates in the Chicago Mayor's race.

That means that six of the 11 total mayoral candidates were not challenged. This happy half dozen includes Mayor Lori Lightfoot and several of her higher-profile challengers, to wit, Paul Vallas, Jesus "Chuy" Garcia, and the candidate backed by the Chicago Teacher's Union, Brandon Johnson.

Also not drawing challenges in the mayoral race were State Rep. Kam Buckner and 4th Ward Ald. Sophia King.

But three of the better-known mayoral hopefuls did draw challenges, namely, Dr. Willie Wilson, 6th Ward Ald. Roderick Sawyer, and Ja'Mal Green.

The two least-known mayoral candidates also drew challenges. I've been including campaign websites in this post where I can find them; I can't find one (yet) for Cong. Garcia. But, obviously, he'll have one soon enough.

I'm not too certain, however, that Johnny Logalbo will have one, whether the challenge against him is sustained or not. Logalbo does have a private Facebook group called Johnny Logalbo For Mayor 2023. You have to join to see what's there. I haven't done so at this point.

Mayoral candidate Frederick Collins does have a website; I've linked to it in this sentence. That website says that Collins has been a Chicago policeman for nearly 30 years.

Kevin Hobby is the named petitioner on the challenge to Willie Wilson's petition, although Ja'Mal Green has announced that he is behind this challenge.

It is not often (and certainly there is no requirement) that a candidate announces that he or she is behind a challenge to another candidate's petitions. Political insiders will know who is behind former State Sen. Rickey Hendon's challenges to Ja'Mal Green's and Roderick Sawyer's petitions. Or who is supporting Andre Holland's challenges to Johnny Logalbo's and Frederick Collins' petitions. At least the insiders will say they know. Former Judge Devlin Schoop has filed a separate challenge to the Logalbo's petitions as well.

In several aldermanic contests there are challenges to nearly all candidates' petitions. But, interestingly, on the Northwest Side, there are very few aldermanic candidates facing challenges.

Neither candidate in the 41st Ward has been challenged. Similarly, and perhaps surprisingly, at least based on posts I see in my Twitter feed, none of the six candidates in the 45th Ward will face any ballot challenge. Also, neither of the candidates in the 39th Ward has been challenged. On the Northwest Side, it is only in the 38th Ward that any challenges can be found: But, even here, only two of the six candidates filing will have to deal with a challenge. These are Gregory T. Schorsch and Franco Reyes.

Oh joy! Another election....

Unlike many judicial elections (which, at least in theory, are more genteel events than elections for Chicago's Mayor and City Council) Chicago City Council elections are seldom uncontested.

Ten candidates, you may have heard, have lined up to oppose Mayor Lori Lightfoot's reelection bid.

Second Ward Alderperson Brian Hopkins faces no opposition in his reelection bid. Neither does 17th Ward Alderperson David Moore, 27th Ward Alderperson Walter Burnett Jr., 32nd Ward Alderperson Scott Wauguespack, or 47th Ward Alderperson Matt Martin. But that's it. There are at least two candidates (pending the outcome of possible petition objections) in each of the other 45 aldermanic contests.

There are currently 14 candidates for the open 21st Ward seat (although current Ald. Howard Brookins, Jr. was unsuccessful in his 2022 countywide judicial bid, he nevertheless opted not to run for reelection to the City Council). Thirteen candidates filed to replace outgoing 6th Ward Ald. Roderick Sawyer (he's opted to run for Mayor); twelve more filed to replace outgoing 5th Ward Ald. Leslie Hairston.

Judges, once elected, are freed from the burden of future contested primaries. Their continued employment is determined in 'yes or no' retention elections (every six years for judges of the Circuit Court, every 10 for judges of the Supreme or Appellate Courts).

Chicago alderpersons, of course, have no such luck. While, as noted, five City Council incumbents will have no obstacle to their reelection, every alderperson in my area of the City (just as an example) faces one or more challengers.

Ald. Nicholas Sposato will have to overcome five challengers (Cynthia M. Santos, Ed Bannon, Franco Reyes, Gregory T. Schorsch, and Bruce Randazzo) in order to win reelection in the 38th Ward. In the 45th Ward, incumbent Ald. Jim Gardiner also faces five challengers (Susanna Ernst, Megan Mathias, Marija Tomic, Ana Santoyo, and James Suh).

Incumbent Ald. Samantha "Sam" Nugent faces a challenge from Denali Dasgupta. In my own 41st Ward, incumbent Anthony V. Napolitano faces a challenge from attorney Paul Struebing.

Interestingly, neither the incumbent City Clerk (Anna M. Valencia) nor the incumbent City Treasurer (Melissa Conyears-Ervin) drew a challenger to their reelection bids. Every rule has an exception.

The complete list of candidates filing for the 2023 Chicago primary can be found at this link.

Today is International Tolerance Day; did you get your cards and gifts mailed in time?

I looked this up so you don't have to: Today, November 16, has been declared the International Day of Tolerance by the United Nations. The U.N. established this annual observance in 1996.

Perhaps you missed the memo. You weren't alone.

But in a world where people find it increasingly difficult to acknowledge the common humanity of anyone who disagrees with them on seemingly anything, perhaps a day to celebrate the virtue of tolerance really is necessary.

Unfortunately, Tim Rickard, in today's Brewster Rockit comic (reproduced at the top of this post) probably has nailed the way the International Day of Tolerance would likely be celebrated, if it were celebrated at all....

Cook County judicial wannabes may want to bookmark this one: County launches "Find My District App"

Omnia Gallia in tres partes divisa est, as Julius Caesar wrote, but the old Roman mapmakers did not have a patch on the cartographers of modern Cook County: They have managed (as FWIW readers well know) to divide all of Cook County into 20 judicial subcircuits.

Problem is, we don't yet have maps of the new subcircuits.

They're coming. They're just not here... yet.

Meanwhile, though, Cook County has launched a new, interactive map to help voters (and would-be judicial candidates) figure out all the various districts in which they live... including, obviously, their new subcircuit.

Here's the County's press release, issued yesterday:

President Preckwinkle has announced a new transparency and civic engagement initiative with the launch of “Find My District,” an interactive web map that shows a majority of the overlapping political districts of any address in Cook County, using public data provided by the County Clerk.

Visitors to the site can enter an address or point to a location on the map and find its districts as well as the district’s elected representatives and their contact information. Visitors can also use their phone or computer’s built-in GPS to find the information for their current location.

“Illinois has more units of local government than any other state in the nation,” said President Preckwinkle. “Our Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Department created this interactive map to make it easier for residents to find and contact local officials and learn about their responsibilities.”

"The Clerk's Office is pleased to partner in this new interactive initiative that will help Cook County residents identify the government offices that serve their communities and provide them with the information that they need to contact their elected officials to make inquiries, access services, and make their voices heard," said Cook County Clerk Karen A. Yarbrough.

At the County level the app covers:

• Commissioner Districts
• Board of Review Districts
• Judicial Districts [meaning subcircuits -- all of Cook County is the First "Judicial District" -- ed.]

At the local level the app covers:

• School Districts
• Fire Protection Districts
• Library Taxing Districts
• Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Districts
• Municipalities
• Wards
• Political Townships

The app also covers:

• State Senate Districts
• State Representative Districts
• Congressional Districts

At some point, this app could be very useful for judicial wannabes -- but not yet. I checked.

The app says I'm still in the 10th Subcircuit -- which I have been since the Cook County subcircuits were first created -- but, under the new map, I believe I will be in the 11th. The app doesn't say that. Yet. It will.

Pete Rose seeks reinstatement for the 4,256th time

A Cincinnati television station has this latest story and a link to the above letter, which it says was obtained from TMZ Sports.

Don't hold your breath waiting for MLB to respond favorably.

MLB is much, much too busy watching its stake in Draft Kings, one its "co-exclusive" official betting partners (along with BetMGM), to respond to the increasingly desperate pleas of one old man who gambled on baseball before MLB decided to plunge headlong into gambling itself.

Even if that desperate old man does have more hits than any other man who ever played the game.

Look, I get it: Pete Rose has done nothing to endear himself to the Lords of Baseball. According to a great many accounts, Rose hasn't been an endearing sort. If there were a Top 10 list of "Nice Guys in Baseball," Rose wouldn't be in the top 4,256. What does (what should) that have to do with his amazing baseball résumé?

Now that professional gamblers and MLB have openly entered into a myriad of lucrative professional partnerships, Rose -- whose unforgiveable sin, remember, was gambling, not being a jerk -- belongs in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Otherwise Commissioner Manfred looks sillier than Claude Rains did in this scene from Casablanca:

The only thing I ask -- and I ask this only because the record does not support that this individual actually compromised his performance one iota, even when gamblers' money was allegedly strewn about his hotel room -- is that Joe Jackson, a member of the White Sox (the same team that is now the official sports betting partner of Caesars Sportsbook and the exclusive casino partner of Caesars Entertainment), be reinstated and enshrined in Cooperstown before Rose.

Cook County finds a clever way to celebrate Halloween

Governmental units, whether state, local, or national, can not let any holiday slip by unnoticed. So it will surprise no one that Cook County sought to commemmorate Halloween in some way.

But how?

Zombies?

I think it was the Illinois Emergency Management Agency, a couple of years back, that cleverly promoted a disaster preparedness campaign with commercials about how to deal with a zombie apocolypse. Very clever.

But, if that idea was floated in the offices of Cook County government, it must have been shot down quickly: The midterm elections are next week, after all, and nobody would want to risk offending an important constituency like the undead so close thereto.

Then someone hit on the brilliant idea of rabid bats. Bats are as much a symbol of Halloween as jack-o-lanterns. And rabid bats are an actual public health concern, even in urban areas: We may not have all that many belfries here, but there are many other places in Cook County where bats can congregate, sometimes in large numbers.

So today, on Halloween, the County of Cook has published this interactive map shwoing locations where rabid bats have been found in Cook County. A non-interactive screenshot of that map is published above. According to the press release announcing the map, 11 rabid bats have been found already this year in Cook County.

And -- and this is creepy -- according to Dr. Tom Wake, DVM, the administrator of the Cook County Department of Animal and Rabies Control, a significant number of these rabid bats have been found inside people's homes. (Cue scary music.)

To help prevent the spread of rabies throughout the County, ARC hosts low-cost or free Partners in Prevention clinics, where rabies vaccines and microchips are administered to County pets. ARC has hosted 35 clinics so far this year with the final clinic of the season scheduled for Saturday, November 5. In 2022, ARC has helped vaccinate 5,033 pets against rabies and administered 2,863 microchips. (Click on this link to view rabies vaccine and microchip clinic information.)

Dr. Wake reminds residents that rabies is almost always fatal to humans if left untreated. The viral disease is transmitted through saliva and spread when an infected animal scratches or bites another animal or human. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, if you’ve been in contact with any wildlife or unfamiliar animals, particularly if you’ve been bitten or scratched, you should talk with a healthcare or public health professional to determine your risk for rabies or other illnesses.

While wild animals such as bats should never be handled by residents, they do play an important role in the County’s ecosystem, such as consuming large amounts of insects including mosquitoes. A single half-ounce little brown bat can eat half its body weight in insects each night.

Healthy bat populations reflect a complex ecosystem that provides the food and habitat they need. “Bats are amazing flying mammals that act as important biomonitors, helping to indicate the health of our environment,” said Chris Anchor, senior wildlife biologist for the Forest Preserves of Cook County.

The Forest Preserves has been actively surveying and researching bats for more than four decades, documenting nine species in Cook County. About half of Cook County bat species are colonial and roost in groups of hundreds or even thousands of individuals. The other species are solitary and can be found hanging alone or in small maternal family groups in trees and shrubs.

More information about rabies prevention can be found at this link.

Now... go check out that noise you keep hearing in the attic. But maybe don't go there alone.

On the passing of Jim Roche

Jim Roche and I joined the same law firm in 1980. His name went on the door. Mine went on the bottom of the letterhead.

I was the clerk there before I passed the bar. In those days, in addition to filing papers at the courthouse, or the occasional bit of research, that meant running personal errands. I picked up Jim's dry cleaning or fetched sandwiches as the occasion required.

While Jim was a 'name partner', his practice was always separate from the insurance defense practice of the rest of the firm. Still, as time went by, I got the opportunity to handle an occasional assignment for Jim. I welcomed these.

He left the firm several years before I did, moving a couple of blocks down North Dearborn Street to his own building, sandwiched between the brooding, granite Excalibur Nightclub (the former headquarters of the Chicago Historical Society) and the former SRO hotel where, on July 14, 1966, Richard Speck hid out after murdering eight student nurses.

It was a nice building nonetheless, though the stairs were narrow and steep (and steeper every year).

I had occasion to visit Jim's building on a fairly frequent basis after I went out on my own. Jim asked me to get involved in a number of matters, including several appeals, over the years. I will be forever grateful for his confidence in my abilities.

Jim's obituary refers to his "larger than life personality." He could command a room, to be sure, and often did, but I think my grandmother might have referred to him as more of a "mixer." He could say the most outrageous things and people would merely laugh. There was something in the way Jim said things that elicited amusement as opposed to anger. If I ever said anything similar, I'd get slugged. And more than once I may have looked for a quick escape route lest something he said draw a lightning bolt from Heaven. But the lightning bolt never came. I think God laughed along with everyone else.

And Jim seemed to know everybody. I don't mean to say he was everybody's friend; he had his likes and dislikes as anyone would. But even people that Jim may not much have cared for seemed to want Jim to like them, too. I saw that more than once.

I'll remember Jim as a big, shambling bear of a man, as rough around the edges as he needed to be, or not, to 'reach' his audience, whether judge or jury, but always sharp and quick-witted. And as good a lawyer as he was, I think he was a better businessman, who could earn and retain the loyalty of a broad range of impressive clients. He will be missed.

Jim's wake will be tomorrow, from 4:00 to 8:00 at St. John of the Cross Church, 5005 S. Wolf Rd., in Western Springs. The funeral Mass will follow Saturday at 11:00. Internment will be private. The family has asked, in lieu of flowers, for donations to the Brother Rice High School Endowment Fund.

Cleaning up the sidebar from Page One

It's time to move all the Cook County judicial candidate websites from the Sidebar on Page One over here.

The list follows this important caveat:

Many of these sites may have already gone 'dark' -- candidates are unlikely to have staked out long-term claims to their little corners of the Internet which would not be needed, one way or the other, after June 28, 2022. Some sites will have already been repurposed, sometimes to purposes far removed from their original purpose.

You have been warned.

That said, at least some of these sites will remain intact for some time, giving future candidates an opportunity to look at what they liked about this candidate's site, or that one, and what might work for them in 2024 or some other time down the road.

2022 Appellate Court candidate list:

• John H. Ehrlich
• Raymond W. Mitchell
• Dominique C. Ross
• Devlin Joseph Schoop
• Debra Walker

2022 Circuit Court candidate list:

• Jennifer Bae
• Dan Balanoff
• Maria Barlow
• Jerry Barrido
• Deidre Baumann
• Aileen Bhandari
• Howard B. Brookins, Jr.
• Tiffany N. Brooks
• Ann Buran-Vongher
• Dominic J. Buttitta, Jr.
• Patrick Campanelli
• Pat Casey
• Jorge Cazares
• Iris Y. Chavira
• Marcia O'Brien Conway
• James "Jack" Costello
• Araceli R. De La Cruz
• Steve Demitro
• Thomas More Donnelly
• John Fritchey
• Jim Gleffe
• Barry Goldberg
• Jacqueline Griffin
• Ruth Isabel Gudino
• Joe Gump
• Meridth Hammer
• Paul Joyce
• Nick Kantas
• David L. Kelly
• Kerrie Maloney Laytin
• Diana López
• Jenetia Marshall
• Viviana Martínez
• Mary Bernadette McMahon
• Thomas E. Nowinski
• Chloé Pedersen
• Amanda "Mandy" Pillsbury
• Tracie Porter
• Jackie Marie Portman-Brown
• Carmen Quinones
• ShawnTe Raines-Welch
• Chelsey Renece Robinson
• David S. Rodriguez
• Elizabeth "Beth" Ryan
• Don R. Sampen
• Yolanda Harris Sayre
• Gary William Seyring
• Owens "Joe" Shelby
• Claudia Silva-Hernandez
• Judie Lyn Smith
• Monica Somerville
• Christine Svenson
• Stephen A. Swedlow
• Sanjay T. Tailor
• Lisa Taylor
• Mable Taylor
• Bradley R. Trowbridge
• Rena Marie Van Tine
• Torrick Alan Ward
• Michael Weaver
• Wende Williams
• John W. Wilson
• Timothy W. Wright III

Organizing the Data: 9th Subcircuit - Cleveland Bernstein vacancy

Updated June 23, 2022

On the ballot this will be listed as the Cleveland vacancy, but it has been variously referred to by different evaluating groups. Candidates are listed in the order that they appear on the ballot in the Democratic primary; no Republican filed for this vacancy. This post may be updated before the primary as new information becomes available.

Sanjay Tailor - #191

Campaign Website

Bar Association Evaluation Narratives

The Chicago Bar Association says:

Judge Sanjay T. Tailor is “Highly Qualified” for the office of Circuit Court Judge. Judge Tailor was admitted to practice law in Illinois in 1991 and was engaged in private practice prior to his appointment to the bench as an Associate Judge in 2003. Judge Tailor served in the Chancery Division, Municipal Division, Domestic Relations, and Law Division prior to his current position as Acting Presiding Judge of the County Division. Judge Tailor was appointed as a Cook County Circuit Judge in January 2021. Judge Tailor is highly respected by his fellow judges and the lawyers who appear before him in court. Judge Tailor is an experienced jurist highly regarded for his knowledge of the law, integrity, diligence, work ethic, and excellent demeanor and temperament.

The Chicago Council of Lawyers says:

The Hon. Sanjay T. Tailor was admitted to the Illinois Bar in 1991. He was appointed to the bench by the Illinois Supreme Court in 2021, after serving as an Associate Judge between 2003 and 2021. He is currently Presiding Judge of the County Division, where he hears cases concerning mental health, election, adoption, civil asset forfeiture, property tax, name change, and other civil matters. Previously, he was assigned to the Chancery Division (2015-2020), the Law Division (2009-2015), the Domestic Relations Division (2006-2009), and the First Municipal Division (2003-2006). From 1996 to 2003, he was an Assistant State’s Attorney in the Civil Actions Bureau of the Cook County State’s Attorney Office. He was also in-house counsel in the Law Department of the First National Bank of Chicago (1994-1995) and an Associate in the Special Litigation, Bankruptcy, and Workout Group at Chapman and Cutler (1991-1994). He is a member of numerous bar associations, including the American Bar Association, the Illinois State Bar Association, and the South Asian Bar Association of Chicago (founding member, advisory council).

Judge Tailor is a highly respected jurist who is praised for his knowledge, his preparedness, and his temperament. He has excelled in every judicial position to which he has been assigned. The Council finds him Well Qualified for the Circuit Court.

The Illinois State Bar Association says:

Sanjay Tailor has been licensed since 1991. He was appointed to the circuit court as a full judge in January 2021 and is currently the Presiding Judge of the County Division. Prior to the appointment, he had been serving as an associate judge since 2003 in First Municipal, Domestic Relations, Law Division, and Chancery. Prior to his appointment, he had worked as an assistant state’s attorney, for First National Bank and Chapman and Cutler. He is a member of the Illinois Supreme Court Committee on Judicial Education, and also served on the Court’s Committee on Judicial Performance for six years. He was a founding member of the South Asian Bar Association. He is active with other judicial organizations and has lectured on legal topics and taught at Loyola.

Lawyers appearing before him describe him as having superior legal knowledge, being always prepared, and excellent with complex cases. He has a calm demeanor and is always on time.

The Committee finds Sanjay Tailor highly qualified for election to the Circuit Court of Cook County.

Other Bar Association Evaluations

Arab American Bar Association: Recommended

Asian American Bar Association: Recommended

Black Women Lawyers' Association: Recommended

Cook County Bar Association: Recommended

Decalogue Society of Lawyers: Highly Recommended

Hellenic Bar Association of Illinois: Recommended

Hispanic Lawyers Association of Illinois: Highly Qualified

Lesbian and Gay Bar Association of Chicago: Recommended

Puerto Rican Bar Association of Illinois: Highly Recommended

Women's Bar Association of Illinois: Recommended

Endorsements

Chicago Federation of Labor
Indo-American Democratic Organization
IVI-IPO
"Girl, I Guess" Voter's Guide
AMVOTE PAC
Personal PAC

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Ann Buran-Vongher - #192

Campaign Website

Bar Association Evaluation Narratives

The Chicago Bar Association says:

Ann Buran-Vongher is “Qualified” to serve as a Circuit Court Judge. Ms. Buran-Vongher was admitted to practice law in Illinois in 1989. She was an Assistant Public Defender for 31 years, handling felony and misdemeanor matters. Ms. Buran-Vonger has spent the last 1.5 years as a solo practitioner. She was praised by both judges and adversaries for her legal knowledge, temperament, and work ethic.

The Chicago Council of Lawyers says:

Ann Buran-Vongher was admitted to practice in Illinois in 1989 and has been a solo practitioner since December 2020. She does criminal defense work exclusively. She had been a Cook County Assistant Public Defender for 31 years practicing in a variety of cases and locations including felony trial work at the Criminal Courts Building, the Juvenile Court, the 2nd Municipal District in Skokie, and Preliminary Hearings.

Ann Buran-Vongher is considered to have good legal ability and is praised for her professionalism, her knowledge of the law, and for her diligence. She is reported to be a zealous advocate for her clients while being praised for her integrity. The Council finds her Qualified for the Circuit Court.

The Illinois State Bar Association says:

Ann Buran-Vongher was admitted to the Illinois bar in 1989. She is currently a sole practitioner focusing on criminal defense, after retiring from the Cook County Public Defender in December 2020. Her assignment as an assistant public defender included Felony Trial in the Second Municipal District (Skokie Courthouse), the Leighton Criminal Court Building, Juvenile Court and Preliminary Hearings. She was a union steward for AFSCME Local 3315 and active with animal rescue groups.

She has jury, bench and quasi-trial experience in criminal matters, including some complex cases. Attorneys praised her legal ability, zealous advocacy for her clients, and her professionalism. Concerns were raised about the depth and breadth of her experience.

The Committee finds Ann Buran-Vongher not qualified for election to the Circuit Court of Cook County.

Other Bar Association Evaluations

Arab American Bar Association: Not evaluated through no fault of the candidate

Asian American Bar Association: Recommended

Black Women Lawyers' Association: Recommended

Cook County Bar Association:

Decalogue Society of Lawyers: Recommended

Hellenic Bar Association of Illinois: Recommended

Hispanic Lawyers Association of Illinois: Not Qualified

Lesbian and Gay Bar Association of Chicago: Not Recommended

Puerto Rican Bar Association of Illinois: Recommended

Women's Bar Association of Illinois: Recommended

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Organizing the Data: 14th Subcircuit - Jagielski vacancy

Updated June 23, 2022

Candidates are listed in the order that they appear on the ballot in the Democratic primary; no Republican filed for this vacancy. This post may be updated before the primary as new information becomes available.

Steve Demitro - #192

Campaign Website

Bar Association Evaluation Narratives

The Chicago Bar Association says:

Steve Demitro is “Qualified” to serve as a Circuit Court Judge. Mr. Demitro was admitted to practice law in Illinois in May 2000. Since then, he has handled a variety of litigation matters. He has demonstrated a strong work ethic and integrity. He has presided over more than 200 arbitrations in his legal practice. He is well-regarded for his temperament and demeanor, and he is respected for his civic and community involvement. Mr. Demitro has sufficient legal knowledge and ability to serve as a Circuit Court Judge.

The Chicago Council of Lawyers says:

Steve Demitro was admitted to the Illinois Bar in 2000. Since that time, he has been a Solo Practitioner. His practice is concentrated on torts (personal injury), but he also handles some criminal law, domestic relations, real estate, probate, and chancery matters.

Mr. Demitro is considered to have good legal ability and is praised for his temperament. He is very active in community affairs. He has had substantial litigation experience, particularly in recent years. The Council finds him Qualified for the Circuit Court.

The Illinois State Bar Association says:

Steve Demitro has been licensed since 2000. He has been a sole practitioner his entire career with a general practice handling mainly torts, but also some criminal, domestic relations, real estate, and probate matters. He was a hearing officer for the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District and an arbitrator for seventeen years. He is currently the Vice President of the Ukrainian National Museum, has lectured on legal topics to students, and is involved in other community organizations in the McKinley Park area.

He has limited bench trial experience. Most attorneys who have worked with him or appeared before him stated that he has good legal knowledge and ability, does research, and works well with different ethnic groups. He is always prepared, even keeled, and listens well.

The Committee finds Steve Demitro qualified for election to the Circuit Court of Cook County.

Other Bar Association Evaluations

Arab American Bar Association: Recommended

Asian American Bar Association: Recommended

Black Women Lawyers' Association: Recommended

Cook County Bar Association: Recommended

Decalogue Society of Lawyers: Recommended

Hellenic Bar Association of Illinois: Recommended

Hispanic Lawyers Association of Illinois: Not evaluated through no fault of the candidate

Lesbian and Gay Bar Association of Chicago: Recommended

Puerto Rican Bar Association of Illinois: Recommended

Women's Bar Association of Illinois: Recommended
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Viviana Martinez - #193

Campaign Website

Bar Association Evaluation Narratives

The Chicago Bar Association says:

Viviana Martinez is “Not Recommended” to serve as a Circuit Court Judge. Ms. Martinez was admitted to practice law in Illinois in 2007. For the past eleven years, she has worked for Cook County in various legal roles. Ms. Martinez has very little litigation experience, which she acquired early in her career. She also failed to demonstrate experience handling complex litigation. Ms. Martinez does not possess the depth and breadth of practice experience to effectively serve as a Circuit Court Judge.

The Chicago Council of Lawyers says:

Viviana Martinez was admitted to practice in 2007. She currently serves as the Deputy General Counsel for the Chicago Public Schools. Between 2018 and 2022, she served as a Cook County Government Special Assistant Legal Counsel. In that role, she acted as legal advisor and counsel to the bureau chief or director in all matters related to the statutory authority and execution of powers of Cook County government departments and bureaus. She provided assistance in interpreting the legal ramifications of proposals, policy directives and other actions. From 2013 to 2018 she served as a deputy general counsel within the Cook County President’s Office and she was Chief of Staff and General Counsel from 2010 to 2013. She served with the Illinois Attorney General’s Office in 2008. She has served as a hearing officer for pre-disciplinary hearings for Cook County offices under the Cook County President Viviana Martinez is considered to have good legal ability and has excelled in the variety of professional positions she has had. She is reported to be well respected for her knowledge and for her managerial skills. She is praised for her temperament and is active in community activities. She has limited trial and litigation experience, but in looking at her successful career in its entirety, the Council finds her Qualified for the Circuit Court.

The Illinois State Bar Association says:

Viviana Martinez has been licensed since 2007. Since 2022 she was appointed Deputy General Counsel for Chicago Public Schools, managing attorneys, and drafting CPS contracts. Prior to her recent appointment, she held various positions within Cook County government, including as Special Assistant for Legal Affairs in the Cook County Bureau of Administration (April 2018 to April 2022), Interim Director of the Cook County Department of Adoption and Family Supportive Services (November 2018 to August 2019); Assistant Special Legal Counsel to the Office of Cook County Board President (March 2013 to April 2018); and Chief of Staff and General Counsel to then Cook County Commissioner Jesus “Chuy” Garcia (December 2010 to March 2013). Before that she has been an assistant attorney general and in private practice. She is a member of various bar associations, and a past board members of the Puerto Rican Bar Association. Currently she is on the board of the Illinois Equal Justice Foundation and volunteers with other community groups.

She does not report having any jury trial experience, [but has] some non-jury trials from early in her career. Attorneys reported that, while due to the nature of her job, they had limited experience observing her legal knowledge and ability, within the confines of her current role, she did have good knowledge of, especially with the effects of proposed legislation. All consider her to be very diligent, with a good temperament, and described her as a strong proponent of promoting equity and diversity.

The Committee finds Viviana Martinez not qualified for election to the Circuit Court of Cook County.

Other Bar Association Evaluations

Arab American Bar Association: Not Recommended

Asian American Bar Association: Recommended

Black Women Lawyers' Association: Recommended

Cook County Bar Association: Recommended

Decalogue Society of Lawyers: Not Recommended

Hellenic Bar Association of Illinois: Recommended

Hispanic Lawyers Association of Illinois: Qualified

Lesbian and Gay Bar Association of Chicago: Recommended

Puerto Rican Bar Association of Illinois: Recommended

Women's Bar Association of Illinois: Recommended

Endorsements

Chicago Federation of Labor
"Girl, I Guess" Voter's Guide
AMVOTE PAC

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Jorge V. Cazares - #194

Campaign Website

Bar Association Evaluation Narratives

The Chicago Bar Association says:

Jorge V. Cazares is “Qualified” to serve as a Circuit Court Judge. Mr. Cazares was admitted to practice law in Illinois in 1990. Mr. Cazares has practiced law for more than 25 years. He is currently a partner at his law firm. He received nothing but positive reviews for his practice, demeanor, and legal abilities. All the references the committee interviewed praised the candidate calling him a role model, the utmost professional, a groundbreaker (first Latino attorney at his firm) and stated that the county would be “lucky” to have him as a Judge and fortunate due to his kindness, even temper and extreme professionalism.

The Chicago Council of Lawyers says:

Jorge Cazares was admitted to the Illinois Bar in 1990. He is also licensed in various federal courts. He first joined Altheimer & Gray as on associate, and then went to Pugh, Jones & Johnson from 1992-2006 where he became partner. He served as general counsel to the Chicago Housing Authority from 2007-2008 and then returned to Pugh, Jones from 2009 to 2020. He joined Hinshaw Culbertson as a partner in February 2020 handling complex civil cases, employment discrimination cases, and contract work. He was the Chief Ethics and Chief EEO Officer for the CHA from 2017-2019. He is active in pro bono activities.

Mr. Cazares is considered to have very good legal ability. He has substantial trial work in complex cases and extensive motion practice. He is praised for his temperament and integrity. He is praised as an excellent trial attorney. The Council finds him Qualified for the Circuit Court.

The Illinois State Bar Association says:

Jorge V. Cazares has been licensed since 1990. In 2020 he joined Hinshaw and Culbertson as a partner, handling diverse litigation matters. Prior to joining Hinshaw, he had worked in both the private and public sectors including with Altheimer and Gray, then Pugh, Jones and Hubbard which became Pugh, Jones and Johnson. In the public sector, he served as General Counsel to the Chicago Housing Authority from 2007 to 2008 and also as the CHA’s Chief of Ethics and Chief EEO officer from 2017 to 2019. He was also an arbitrator for Cook County for seven years.

He is currently on the board of the Chicago Police Foundation and is a past president and current board member of the Gads Hill Foundation. He received an award for Outstanding Volunteer Service from the Constitutional Rights Foundation Chicago and also was recognized for service as president of the Loyola University Latino Alumni Board.

He has civil jury trial experience as lead counsel and has handled complex matters in both state and federal courts. While attorneys referred to him as straightforward, knowledgeable, hard-working, and diligent, there were concerns raised to the Committee regarding sensitivity to diversity.

The Committee finds Jorge Cazares not qualified for election to the Circuit Court of Cook County.

Other Bar Association Evaluations

Arab American Bar Association: Not evaluated through no fault of the candidate

Asian American Bar Association: Not Recommended

Black Women Lawyers' Association: Recommended

Cook County Bar Association: Not Recommended

Decalogue Society of Lawyers: Recommended

Hellenic Bar Association of Illinois: Recommended

Hispanic Lawyers Association of Illinois: Not evaluated through no fault of the candidate

Lesbian and Gay Bar Association of Chicago: Not Recommended

Puerto Rican Bar Association of Illinois: Recommended

Women's Bar Association of Illinois: Not Recommended

Endorsement

Fraternal Order of Police, Chicago Lodge No. 7

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