At one time the name Chuck Panici meant something in many places, namely in the south suburbs of Chicago. He was mayor of the City of Chicago Heights from 1975-1991. During that time, he welcomed President Ronald Reagan, Vice-President George Bush, Illinois Governor Jim Thompson, and many other lesser known politicians. (Chuck Panici, to the…
Did Former Daley Official Get Sweetheart Loan from Local Non-Profit?
by Michael Volpe •
Neighborhood Housing Services, a nationwide non-profit that claims it helps protect low- and moderate-income borrowers from such things as mortgage fraud, is again itself appearing to engage in curious lending activity through its own mortgage financing division. This time it appears that Neighborhood Housing Services gave a series of sweetheart deals to a former official in…
The Story of Fadwa Suleiman, Coming to a theater near you?
by Michael Volpe •
Fadwa Suleiman is a Syrian actress equivalent to Jennifer Aniston. Yet Suleiman’s never starred–and surely never will star–in a role quite like the one she’s currently playing in real life. In the last two months, Suleiman has gone from celebrity to protester to revolutionary-freedom fighter, and finally to a fugitive disowned by her own family.…
Deported from America: The Human Toll of our Convoluted Immigration Priorities
by Michael Volpe •
Mario Benitez has lived in America, legally, since he was three years old. He lived most of his life in Chicago, a sanctuary city where it’s virtually impossible to be handed over to ICE. All of that didn’t matter and in September 2011 Benitez, now 42, boarded a bus headed for Mexico. He was beginning…
Chicago Nonprofit “Neighborhood Housing Services” Accused of Mortgage Fraud
by Michael Volpe •
A Westside Chicago man is accusing the Neighborhood Housing Services (NHS), a local non-profit regularly praised for protecting low and moderate income folks against predatory lending, with using the very same predatory lending tactics they claim to fight against. Beyond that, he claims that a plethora of government bureaucracies and local, state, and national politicians…
Preckwinkle Disparages Tea Party: Announces Cuts and other Controversial Comments
by Michael Volpe •
When asked how she felt that some of her budget policies would be cheered on by the Tea Party movement, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle initially responded by saying, “God, I hope not.” The remark was made during a speech in which Preckwinkle made more than a few controversial comments, and gave everyone–Tea Partiers…
