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Rummana Hussain--Mamdani The Kingmaker
Just when you thought the Trumps couldn’t get any greedier, Jared and Ivanka invade Albania. Ben riffs. Rummana—aka, Chicago’s foremost authority on Mayor Mamdani—talks…Mayor Mamdani! He went 3 for 3 in Tuesday’s congressional primaries. What does that say about the future of American politics? Also, Rummana makes a prediction about the two sports known as football. Rummana is a columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times. Her views are her own.
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June 17, 2026
April In Spain
Took me awhile to find my way to John Banville, the great Irish novelist. But find him I did, and now I’m hooked.In the last two months, I've read three of his novels and got a fourth on the way, on order from the library. It’s like fr…
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This Land Was Made For You And Me
A few days ago, my wife and I took off for California by way of Iowa, Nebraska and Arizona--by car. Yes, a real road trip.And before I left, I reminded myself...Benny, old, boy--it's a big country out there, and you'll be driving through MAGA la…
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I've been writing and thinking about Chicago politics for so long that just about everything I see in politics reminds me of something I've already seen in Chicago.But sometimes Chicago fools me. Sometimes I'll see something in Chicago and think--…
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North Side South Side
As the self-appointed bridge between those who are addicted to sports and those who know nothing about it, I feel compelled to update the know-nothings about the latest brouhaha gripping Chicago's baseball world.So here goes...First, the name.…
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Where The Sidewalk Ends
Sad to say, I missed out on the children's poetry by Shel Silverstein--I was born too early.By the time Where the Sidewalk Ends, his first poetry collection, was published, I was almost out of my teens.Too old for such things.That was in 1974.…
May 12, 2026
Dwight Garner Knows Everything
The time has come for me to pay homage to the man who knows everything--Dwight Garner, book reviewer extraordinaire for the New York Times.One of my favorite Sunday morning moments occurs when, book review section in hand, I flop on the couch…
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