Chicago Tribune (Chicago, IL) articles from June 2001

Chicago Tribune (Chicago, IL) archives from June 2001

College-level courses no longer for elite class.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Tracy Dell'Angela CHICAGO _ When Sandra Wright was a student at Stevenson High School, she was in that rarefied clique called the "AP kids." They were the driven and competitive students in the top 15 percent of their class who...

Buehrle still firing blanks; scoreless string hits 16 2/3 innings; White Sox make it 7 of 8.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Fred Mitchell CHICAGO _ It was Frank Thomas bobble head night at Comiskey Park Friday. But it was White Sox left-hander Mark Buehrle who had the heads of Detroit hitters on a swivel_again. With its 3-0 victory, the Sox have won...

Cubs beat rush to sign Korean teen pitcher.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Teddy Greenstein MILWAUKEE_When Korean teenager Jae Kuk Ryu struck out 20 batters in a seven-inning game last week, several major-league teams stepped up their efforts to sign him. But it was too late. Leon Lee, the Cubs'...

Wood ties Brewers in knots.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Phil Rogers MILWAUKEE_You know what they say about trades. Sometimes the best ones are the ones you don't make. Two weeks ago, a certain national baseball writer for the Tribune opined that the Cubs should do whatever it took...

Bucks' Karl cries foul.
June 1, 2001... Byline: K.C. Johnson MILWAUKEE_Bucks coach George Karl, who is to sound bites what Shakespeare is to plays, wanted to set the record straight. "I have tremendous respect for Philadelphia on the court," Karl said. "They are as good as...

Say it out loud: Libraries are hot.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Patrick T. Reardon CHICAGO _ It was like wrestling an alligator. For four hours last Tuesday, more than a dozen of the nation's librarians and book industry professionals struggled to come to grips with a formidable new...

For gossip on the Dalai Lama, look elsewhere.
June 1, 2001... Byline: James Warren The June cover of Psychology Today certainly should catch one's attention, with its big, smiling photo of the Dalai Lama and the headline, "GOSSIP: Why People Are Talking About You." Well, obviously curious about...

Chicago's exec pipeline narrow for women.
June 1, 2001... Byline: T. Shawn Taylor More women are among the top earners, corporate officers and directors at Chicago's largest companies than ever. But men still are far more likely than women to be placed in positions that are essential for...

Bag that inkjet cartridge during long absences.
June 1, 2001... Byline: James Coates Q. I travel a lot and am often absent for two to four months from my desktop workstation. (This message is being sent from Italy.) Inevitably upon my return, the jets in my inkjet printers are clogged with dried ink. I...

Papa's preaching generates a digital divide.
June 1, 2001... Byline: James Coates The disparity between America's economic haves and have-nots isn't the only digital divide we need to fret about. A great many parents are finding a yawning digital gap right in their own homes. Bright youngsters...

Lightweight laptop is heavy-duty.
June 1, 2001... Byline: James Coates My goodness, this may be the computer that a great many of us have dreamt about as we lugged those millstones called laptops about our busy lives. This pebble weighs in at a scant 3.5 pounds and delivers supercharged...

GOP gunning for Daschle.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Jill Zuckman WASHINGTON _ As the result of a one-man rebellion that altered the nation's political power equation, Democratic Sen. Tom Daschle, an earnest, soft-spoken South Dakotan, takes over as majority leader when Congress...

A politically incorrect career: Talking to Don Rickles.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Allan Johnson Known for ridiculing people from all walks of life for almost 40 years, Don Rickles at 75 doesn't have as much to prove as he used to. "My career is there," he says. "I've done it, you know." Aside from a...

Drug problems crystallizing, compounds may take dangerous forms.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Jon Van Despite all the high technology that goes into making modern drugs, there is still an element of hocus-pocus in the process, and sometimes mixing up the right ingredients will produce pills that aren't what the doctor...

Connie Payton running on her own.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Melissa Isaacson CHICAGO _ Connie Payton wasn't sure what to make of the dream and wasn't sure whom to tell about it. She hadn't dreamed of Walter in a while. It had been more than a year since he had died of liver cancer on...

Webb riding high, and dry.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Ed Sherman SOUTHERN PINES, N.C._Karrie Webb had a lovely afternoon Friday. She sat back, relaxed and enjoyed her good fortune. It had been a perfectly dry day for her, and a terribly wet one for nearly everyone else. The...

Bourque's goal gives Avs second victory, 3-1.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Neil Milbert EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. _ Ray Bourque's quest for the first Stanley Cup of his 22-year NHL career took a dramatic turn Thursday night when he blasted the go-ahead goal in the third game of the championship series. ...

Avalanche's victory in New Jersey is a first.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Neil Milbert EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. _ The Devils' workshop no longer is the temple of doom for the Colorado Avalanche after Thursday night's 3-1 victory in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup finals that put them two games away from winning...

Latest generation of organic gardeners embraces old methods, new motives.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Beth Botts Mention "organic gardening," and many people still think of back-to-the-land folks in tie-dyed T-shirts and overalls planting tomatoes in old tires. But to an increasing number of people, organic gardening means...

Jobless rate will get worse, economists warn.
June 1, 2001... Byline: William Neikirk WASHINGTON _ The unemployment rate fell slightly last month to 4.4 percent of the work force, the government reported Friday, but analysts warned of heavier joblessness ahead in an economy skirting the edge of a...

Many cities raising minimum-wage rate.
June 1, 2001... Byline: V. Dion Haynes SANTA MONICA, Calif. _ Representing a new thrust in a movement to boost pay for the working poor, the City Council here has given preliminary approval to a living-wage ordinance that for the first time would impose...

Annan sells HIV fight to big business.
June 1, 2001... Byline: John Diamond WASHINGTON _ U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan called on American businesses Friday to open their minds and their checkbooks in the fight against AIDS. Speaking at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Annan contended that...

Suicide bomber kills more than a dozen outside Tel Aviv disco.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Hugh Dellios JERUSALEM _ A Palestinian terrorist detonated a bomb at the entrance to a crowded beachfront club in Tel Aviv on Friday night, killing at least 16 Israeli teenagers and himself and wounding at least 70 others. It...

Business events of the week ahead.
June 1, 2001... Byline: William Sluis The economy's stumbles haven't done much to deter Americans from shopping, although reports of free-spending habits are growing fewer. Gone are reports of consumers storming the stores, credit cards in hand. Small...

Peruvians unsure as they head to polls Sunday to elect president.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Patrice M. Jones LIMA, Peru _ One candidate is an ex-president who distinguished himself as leader of one of the most disastrous governments in modern Peruvian history. The other has been labeled a womanizer and drug user,...

Finger-pointing on the rise after markets' swoon.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Janet Kidd Stewart and Kathy Bergen Now it's personal. After getting rich together as they rode the great bull market of the 1990s, investors and their stockbrokers now are more frequently turning on each other as they sift the...

Estate tax isn't quite dead yet, so business owners afraid to change.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Janet Kidd Stewart Business groups cheered last weekend as Congress passed a tax-cut package that puts to rest the so-called "death tax." But, to paraphrase Mark Twain, the enthusiasm over its demise may be greatly exaggerated. ...

Time to face the facts about celebrity profiles in magazines.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Steve Johnson In the June issue of Esquire, a profile of R.E.M. lead singer Michael Stipe depicts him indulging in a number of interesting behaviors that did not, in fact, take place. Among these are eating a dispenser full of...

Plesac now the pride of Illinois.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Dave Surico CHICAGO _ Illinois standardbred sensation Plesac one-upped himself and in the process became the most accomplished state-bred trotter in nearly 40 years. Plesac defeated reigning Harness Horse of the Year_and...

Times already changing for Webb, new prep mile record-holder.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Philip Hersh CHICAGO _ Ron Warhurst knows what he is getting into. After more than a quarter-century of coaching cross-country and track at the University of Michigan, he is about to take charge of the most celebrated high school...

Deflated Fire gets an early chance to rebound; team needs to put harrowing defeat `behind us'.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Bob Foltman CHICAGO _ If Fire defender C.J. Brown had his way, Major League Soccer teams would play every Wednesday and Saturday. More games would mean fewer practices and less time to savor victories_or dwell on defeats. ...

United increasing its control over commuter operation.
June 1, 2001... Byline: John Schmeltzer For years, passengers flying into Chicago aboard United Express had only a rough idea where their connecting flights might be found at sprawling O'Hare International Airport. The commuter operation of UAL...

Round Chair was a design trendsetter.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Leslie Hindman Q. Some Downtown Association volunteers recently found these two chairs while cleaning up an old office building. Unfortunately, the seats of both chairs have been damaged. We removed a "homemade" upholstery job and...

Wartime past haunts reburial of German dead.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Tom Hundley PRAGUE, Czech Republic _ The main German cemetery in Prague looks like the set of a low-budget horror movie. Vandals have pried open crypts and overturned coffins. Human bones are mingled with discarded household...

China's distrust of the U.S. takes backseat to love of American culture.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Michael A. Lev CHONGQING, China _ Her hair was dyed the color of Beaujolais. She wore expensive sneakers from Taiwan, jeans from Hong Kong and a trendy T-shirt emblazoned with an American flag. She eats at Kentucky Fried Chicken,...

Chicago Tribune Market Report Column.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Bill Barnhart Jun. 1--Stocks ended the month on a positive note Thursday, despite fresh evidence that the U.S. economy remains weak. After an April rally, the Nasdaq composite index closed virtually unchanged in May. ...

Illinois Lawmakers Pass Budget, Include Incentives to Draw Boeing to Chicago.
June 1, 2001... Jun. 1--SPRINGFIELD, Ill.--In one final burst of energy, Illinois lawmakers passed a record $53 billion state budget late Thursday as Gov. George Ryan brokered last-minute deals to expand McCormick Place and deliver a scaled-down incentive...

Chicago Tribune Marketing Column.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Jim Kirk Jun. 1--Chicago Tribune has sent a new version of the Jim Kirk column, which was moved for Jun. 1 by KRT Business News as TB-MARKETING-COL. Please use this version: Chicago Tribune Marketing Column By Jim Kirk ...

Correction: Unilever to Sell 15 Brands.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Melita Marie Garza Jun. 1--Chicago Tribune has moved a new version of TB-UNILEVER, filed by KRT Business News for Jun. 1. This version fixes an error in the second paragraph pertaining to the city where Argo cornstarch is made....

U.S. Economy Weakens But Still Unlikely to Fall into a Recession.
June 1, 2001... Byline: James P. Miller Jun. 1--The U.S. economy weakened further in April but is still unlikely to slide into recession, according to a Thursday economic-activity report from the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. The data show that...

Lake Forest, Ill., Medical-Waste Disposal Firm Is Positive About Acquisition.
June 1, 2001... Byline: James P. Miller Jun. 1--When Stericycle Inc. bought a rival three times its size eighteen months ago, some observers wondered if the Lake Forest medical-waste disposal company had bitten off more than it could chew. So far,...

Microsoft CEO Says Company Will Work Harder to Collaborate.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Barbara Rose Jun. 1--Microsoft Corp., while not budging from its contention that it did not violate antitrust laws, is working harder to collaborate with industry partners than before its landmark legal battle, CEO Steven Ballmer...

Chicago Developer Looks for New Contractor for Pier Project.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Thomas A. Corfman Jun. 1--Developer Ray Chin is looking for a new contractor to take over the work on his ambitious Grand Pier Center project in Streeterville after an $8.6 million dispute with construction giant AMEC plc, which...

Chicago-Based Technology Consulting Firm Forms Think Tank.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Christine Tatum Jun. 1--Chicago-based technology consultant DiamondCluster International has formed The Center for Market Leadership, a think tank and research center aimed at flushing out the secrets of success. The center...

Illinois Telecommunications Equipment Maker Raises Restructuring Estimate.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Kelly Yamanouchi Jun. 1--Tellabs Inc., long a stalwart in the volatile tech sector, gave another sign Thursday that it's succumbing to widespread weakness in the industry. The Lisle-based telecommunications equipment...

Unilever to Sell 15 Brands, Including One Made in Argo, Ill.
June 1, 2001... Byline: Melita Marie Garza Jun. 1--More than 190 workers at an 85-year-old south suburban manufacturing plant that changed a town's name are facing some job uncertainty as their new corporate parent digests recent acquisitions. ...

Women lift the veil on abuse.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Teresa Puente and Noreen Ahmed-Ullah CHICAGO _ When she heard about the slaying last summer, Naila knew it was time to escape. Another young Pakistani bride, Shahpara Sayeed, had been set afire in the Uptown neighborhood,...

Wells proves he's up to test; pitcher wins first game since May 6.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Paul Sullivan CHICAGO _ Detroit leadoff hitter Jose Macias bunted off David Wells to start Saturday night's game at Comiskey Park, immediately testing the agility of the big-boned pitcher with the sore groin. Moving quickly off...

Who's coming to play? Series with Cubs could match 2 hot teams.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Fred Mitchell CHICAGO _ Next weekend's Cubs-White Sox series at Comiskey Park may not have playoff implications but it is certain to create a playoff-like atmosphere. "If the Cubs are playing extremely good baseball and if we...

Wood, Cubs roll 11.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Teddy Greenstein MILWAUKEE_Kerry Wood might not have five tools, but he's anything but one-dimensional. Wood proved that Friday night in the Cubs' 4-3 victory over the Brewers before a record Miller Park crowd of 42,392 that was...

Bere mum on skip in rotation.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Teddy Greenstein MILWAUKEE_Cubs manager Don Baylor tried to downplay his decision to skip Jason Bere's turn in the rotation. "It's no big deal," he said. Bere might not agree. While the veteran right-hander didn't say he...

Devastating sign can't sway Cubs doubter.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Rick Morrissey MILWAUKEE_So there I was, minding my own business, writing a column about my inner struggle as a Cubs agnostic, when it hit me. Let me be more specific. It hit my laptop. Milwaukee's Richie Sexson sent a...

Expos likely to follow Alou out of Montreal.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Phil Rogers CHICAGO _ Pedro Martinez is as much of a realist as a Felipe Alou loyalist. There's a ring of truth to his assessment of the precarious state of the Montreal Expos. "Montreal is going to have to move without...

Living in present works for Cubs.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Phil Rogers MILWAUKEE_Say this about the Cubs: They may not have added an elite player in his prime since Andre Dawson, but at least the guys in charge don't believe in white flags. When common sense says his team won't...

Big game, big ramifications; Bucks, 76ers plan on taking Game 7.
June 2, 2001... Byline: K.C. Johnson ST. FRANCIS, Wis._There's a big game scheduled for Sunday, so Dikembe Mutombo must be making guarantees. "We are going to win this series," the 76ers' center said. "We won't let them win in our building." ...

Battier scheduled to work out for Bulls.
June 2, 2001... Byline: K.C. Johnson CHICAGO _ When they were teammates at Duke, Bulls forward Elton Brand remembers Shane Battier as a freshman who got so nervous before big games that he would get sick. Now Battier is poised to make millions as a...

Allen conspires to save Bucks; 41-point effort forces Game 7 Sunday vs. Sixers.
June 2, 2001... Byline: K.C. Johnson s. Sixers MILWAUKEE_The playoffs are when reputations are made and memories are created, feats of skill or perseverance that become permanently etched in minds. No basketball fan forgets Michael Jordan...

Dynamic duo: Shaq and Kobe rank among the all-time best tandems.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Sam Smith Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant have one NBA championship, though hardly anyone believes they won't win a second within the next couple of weeks. With an undefeated run through the playoffs thus far, against three...

Preschool education has a strong track record.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Ronald Kotulak Preschool was originally started to help children at risk, such as those living in poverty or whose parents have little education, but it is quickly becoming the choice of middle-class and well-to-do families who...

Bears zero in on Big 3.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Don Pierson CHICAGO _ Entering week six of the Bears' protracted search for a general manager, NFL observers see three candidates as finalists: Tom Modrak, Jerry Angelo and Ted Sundquist. Three others whom club President Ted...

Martin case offers some ins and outs.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Michael Hirsley CHICAGO _ Casey Martin vs. PGA Tour Inc. has been a classic case of Insiders vs. Outsiders. From the viewpoint of professional golf purists, disabled pro golfer Martin is an Outsider who has the gall to ruin...

MTV, get smart about `Jackass'.
June 2, 2001... The following editorial appeared in the Chicago Tribune on Saturday, 6-2: X X X MTV has a program called "Jackass" that is so dumb, it's dangerous. The premise of the show is that viewers will watch other people do stupid,...

Remember, `Pearl Harbor' is a movie.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Julia Keller That buzz and thump you heard repeatedly last week was not from enemy aircraft. It was an assault by a crack squadron of history mavens, wave after wave of nitpicking know-it-alls, scores of smarty-pants types whose...

McCain says he has no plans to exit GOP.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Jill Zuckman WASHINGTON _ Frequently at odds with his own party and President Bush, U.S. Sen. John McCain spent the weekend tamping down speculation that he would turn Independent and run for president in 2004. It wasn't easy,...

Israel delays retaliation as Arafat denounces deadly bombing.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Hugh Dellios TEL AVIV, Israel _ As enraged protesters demanded all-out revenge, Israel on Saturday gave Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat a matter of hours or days to begin combating terrorism before it would lift a unilateral...

Congress may intervene in flap over Chicago's O'Hare Airport.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Mike Dorning WASHINGTON _ Not just once but several times, Ron Wyden has draped his lanky frame over a row of chairs and, as hundreds of thousands of other inconvenienced fliers have done, he has spent the night sleeping fitfully...

Wild, risky acts might get you into this adventurous club.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Lew Freedman CHICAGO _ Rob Faurot was in Zaire observing and photographing gorillas in 1992 when one of his subjects went celebrity-ballistic on him. Faurot apparently was staring too intently into the big fellow's eyes while...

An expert urges greater investment in young students.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Charles M. Madigan It comes down to this: Should we spend, say, $5,000 a child now on the safe assumption that we will save $10,000 to $12,000 down the road in some cases? This is the arithmetic supporting preschool education,...

Bears missing the boat again.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Steve Rosenbloom CHICAGO _ Let me get this straight: The headhunter hired by the laughingstock formerly known as the Bears will interview two guys from the defunct and overwrought XFL for a potential general manager position but...

Tuning in to beetle's bite might save bark.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Tom McCann CHICAGO _ The white, glistening grub of the Asian longhorned beetle is such a tremendous threat not only because it kills trees, but because it is so very good at hiding, lurking deep within the wood of a tree before...

Fire makes most of opportunities.
June 2, 2001... Byline: James Warren WASHINGTON _ Exploiting its precious few opportunities, the Fire scored two goals in the second half to upend D.C. United, 2-1, on Saturday and stay atop Major League Soccer's Central Division. Before 14,473 fans,...

Unity of human race demands response to Taliban marker edict.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Ron Grossman The day Afghanistan's non-Muslims have to start wearing a distinctive marker, I'll put one on too. But I won't claim any special credit for this small show of support for religious minorities who, by recent decree of...

Unvarnished Nixon c. 1971: Bigotry revealed in tapes.
June 2, 2001... Byline: James Warren WASHINGTON _ If politics is the art of the possible, it was also for Richard Nixon the submersion of "the unspeakable." Unfortunately, Nixon's secret White House taping system betrayed him often, including on the...

Illinois school works to narrow achievement gap.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Stephanie Banchero CHICAGO _ Dominique Harrison snatched the manila folder off the high school counselor's desk and rifled through it. An honor roll student in 8th grade, Dominique was eager to peek at her freshman course...

With Market Troubles, Investors, Brokers Start Finger Pointing at Each Other.
June 2, 2001... Jun. 2--Now it's personal. After getting rich together as they rode the great bull market of the 1990s, investors and their stockbrokers now are more frequently turning on each other as they sift the rubble of the market meltdown. For...

Media Error Causes Stock in Chicago-Based Materials Company to Drop.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Melita Marie Garza Jun. 2--Stock in Chicago-based USG Corp. fell almost 25 percent Friday after Reuters news service incorrectly reported that the company, which is burdened by asbestos claims, had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy...

Drug-Producing Errors Lead to Compounds Taking Dangerous Forms.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Jon Van Jun. 2--Despite all the high technology that goes into making modern drugs, there is still an element of hocus-pocus in the process, and sometimes mixing up the right ingredients will produce pills that aren't what the...

Chicago's Executive Pipeline Narrow for Women.
June 2, 2001... Byline: T. Shawn Taylor Jun. 2--More women are among the top earners, corporate officers and directors at Chicago's largest companies than ever. But men still are far more likely than women to be placed in positions that are essential for...

Chicago Tribune House Hunter Column.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Genevieve Buck Jun. 2--CHICAGO--LAKE SHORE DRIVE HIGH-RISE SETS FAST SALES PACE: Here's another one of those "Who are these people?" and "Where is all this money coming from?" stories. And, once again, it's that old...

Chicago Health-Care Executive to Pay $1.1 Million in Insider Trading Case.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Robert Manor Jun. 2--A Chicago health-care executive who headed an area drug company targeted in a high-profile federal health-care fraud investigation has agreed to pay $1.1 million to settle insider trading allegations in a...

Investment Disputes Take a Toll on Both Sides.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Kathy Bergen Jun. 2--In the heyday of their five-year professional association, stockbroker William S. Watrous and client John J. Egan spoke on the phone most every day, ate lunch and dinner together now and then, and played the...

Jobless Rate Falls Slightly but Analysts Predict More Unemployment to Come.
June 2, 2001... Byline: William Neikirk Jun. 2--WASHINGTON--The unemployment rate fell slightly last month to 4.4 percent of the work force, the government reported Friday, but analysts warned of heavier joblessness ahead in an economy skirting near the...

Pressure Rises for Chairman to Complete Sale of Chicago-Based Realty.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Thomas A. Corfman Jun. 2--As negotiations drag on for sale of most of the suburban assets of troubled Prime Group Realty Trust, a respected real estate analyst on Friday strongly criticized management, increasing the pressure on...

Abbott Laboratories Says its Thyroid Drug Is Safe.
June 2, 2001... Byline: Bruce Japsen Jun. 2--Abbott Laboratories said Friday that its Synthroid drug is a "safe and effective" treatment for hypothyroidism, and that it will be submitting a new drug application under Food and Drug Administration...