Author: Serkadis

St. Charles, Ill. — Bond was set at $8,000 Tuesday for a northwest suburban man charged with breaking his cat’s leg and then shoving his wife in their home on Monday.

John Rodriguez, 45, of the 300 block of Woodridge Circle in South Elgin was charged with a felony count of aggravated animal cruelty and misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty and domestic battery, Kane County State’s Attorney’s office spokesman Chris Nelson said.

South Elgin police said Rodriguez caused severe injuries to the cat and later made physical contact with his wife during an argument over the animal in their home Monday.

He will appear for a status hearing on March 3, Nelson said.

Read the original article from FOX Chicago News.

Distributed via Chicago Press Release Services

Hugh Macleod has done a good job of building “cartoons drawn on the back of business cards” into a nice business for himself. He explains the secrets of his success in his post, “the three keys to social marketing” in which he states:

1. Figure out what your gift is, and give it to them on a regular basis.
2. Make sure it’s received as a real gift, not as an advertising message
3. Then figure out exactly what it is that your trail of breadcrumbs leads back to.

#1 and #2 are his version of “CwF” and the essence of “RtB” is captured by #3. Macleod considers his style of business a gift economy:

They put stuff out there, as gifts. Great content, great ideas, great insights, great personal connection. By giving so much of themselves, for free, every day, they build up huge surpluses of goodwill, so when you’re finally in the market for something they’re selling (and they’re ALL selling something, trust me), they’re first on your list.

However, what Macleod describes is not really a true gift economy, since, as an explicit part of his so-called gift economy, there is an expectation that some selling will occur. There is a key difference between a “gift” and giving something away for free. Since, in a true gift economy, there is no expectation that the gifter will ever be reciprocated for their gift. Instead, there is just the hope that “what goes around comes around” and someone else will eventually give them something that they need. “Give it away and pray” is not really a good business model.

That said, he’s doing many things right. Macleod uses his blog and social media to connect with his fans and distribute them his brand of daily cartoons (although in my experience, his site could stand to make his cartoons a little more accessible — he would be well served to make them more searchable, and easier to embed). Then, he gives them good reasons to buy by selling limited edition prints, books, custom commissions and even his own brand of wine, Stormhoek. Added all up, this allows Macleod to make a seemingly nice living, which is great. So, what Macleod is describing, in his own words, is really Mike’s CwF+RtB concept, which brings up another great point. While we do a lot of discussion here on how CwF+RtB works well for musicians, it’s important to note that it’s not just for the music industry — it works for anyone that is doing a good job connecting with fans.

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The latest installment of Ubisoft’s third-person action-adventure title has been dated. Yes folks, Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands will be released on May 18, just barely days before the Prince of Persia movie hit theaters around

URBANA — A Rantoul man arrested over the weekend for having cocaine, Ecstasy and cannabis packaged for sale is due back in court March 9.

Robert Caudle, 33, who listed an address in the 300 block of South Steffler Drive, was arraigned Tuesday on charges of possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance, possession with intent to deliver cannabis, and possession of a controlled substance.

If convicted of the most serious, he would face six to 30 years in prison.

State’s Attorney Julia Rietz said Rantoul police were called to Caudle’s home about 10:15 p.m. Saturday for a domestic disturbance.

When they arrived, Rietz said, his girlfriend said she was there alone with her 2-year-old child, there was no dispute and didn’t know who called the police.

Officers asked if they could come in to be certain there was no problem and in the kitchen saw a plastic bag of cannabis and an open drawer containing a digital scale and pills.

After seeing the cannabis and pills, officers asked for permission to search the apartment and received it. They found Caudle in the bathroom and an additional 6 grams of cocaine, 85 grams (just under 3 ounces) of cannabis and five Ecstasy pills, all packaged for sale, Rietz said.

Caudle faces an extended prison term if convicted based on prior conviction for possession with intent to deliver cannabis and aggravated battery.

He was also wanted for failure to appear in court Feb. 9 on an unrelated case of possession of a controlled substance.

Distributed via Chicago Press Release Services

URBANA — A 35-year-old Urbana man accused of stealing from his own father’s business is due back in court next month.

Corey Franzen, who listed an address on County Road 200 N, was charged Tuesday with burglary, alleging that he entered a trailer belonging to Franzen Construction in St. Joseph in mid-January intending to steal.

Champaign County sheriff’s Lt. Ed Ogle said Franzen is alleged to have taken copper and aluminum used by the construction company and sold it at a local recycler for about $2,000.

Ogle said there were several thefts that occurred between Jan. 16 and Feb. 10 and were brought to the attention of police by representatives of the construction company. Some of the stolen materials were recovered, he said.

Burglary is a Class 2 felony carrying penalties ranging from probation to three to seven years upon conviction. Franzen was ordered to return to court March 30. He remains free on bond.

Distributed via Chicago Press Release Services

All the votes should be counted, but a winner in the Republican primary for Illinois governor is still not certain more than two weeks after voters went to the polls.

State Sen. Kirk Dillard of Hinsdale said Tuesday he is catching up to state Sen. Bill Brady of Bloomington, but he believes he remains about 220 votes behind as he continues to hold out.

“We want to ensure that all votes are counted and counted accurately,” Dillard said. “This election is crucial to the future of Illinois and perhaps the Republican Party.”

But Brady was confident Tuesday he would still win in the end, saying “… we’re a little more comfortable today than I was on Election Day.”

Tuesday was the deadline for all election departments to have their remaining few thousand absentee and provisional ballots counted. Before Tuesday, Brady was ahead of Dillard by about 420 votes.

Election officials have until Feb. 23 to finalize their vote tallies and forward them to the Illinois State Board of Elections. Dillard said he is waiting until that day before deciding on whether to concede, move for a recount or – if he comes out on top – declare victory.

For one thing, Dillard said, a clear picture of the final statewide vote count won’t be available until all the numbers are sent to the state election’s board. The extra week, he said, will also help ensure local counting was accurate.

“The tiniest mistake can swing a 200-vote election,” Dillard said of the seven-candidate primary that drew some 750,000 votes.

Yet, suburban numbers reported Tuesday did not appear promising for Dillard, who generally did best in the Chicago and collar-county region compared to Brady.

Dillard gained 163 votes in Chicago and the counties of Cook, DuPage, Lake, McHenry and Kane, officials from those areas reported after their final tallying.

Brady tended to lead downstate and figures for those scores of election departments were not clear Tuesday.

Neither campaign was providing exact internal figures Tuesday.

Dillard did downplay talk of a costly and legally difficult recount if he remains on the short end of the final vote tally. He said Tuesday his losing margin would have to be “something less” than the roughly 220 he believed he had Tuesday to consider a recount.

“I want to do everything that I can to avoid a recount,” Dillard said. “The number would have to be very close for me to ever put my political party or the state of Illinois through a recount.”

Meanwhile, both candidates continue to focus on running against Gov. Pat Quinn in the general election, set for Nov. 2.

“We have to be in a position to take immediate action and we’re doing that, as I’m sure Senator Dillard is,” Brady said. “So what you do is you have to be respectful of your opponent in this race, work through that process, and in the meantime you can’t sit back and just wait. You have to position yourself. You have to talk to people. You have to be in a position to where you can hit the ground running and actually make some contacts that move the campaign forward.”

In other campaign news, Chicago Democrat Scott Lee Cohen’s withdrawal as a candidate for lieutenant governor is now official. The embattled primary winner’s letter of withdrawal was accepted Tuesday by the state elections board.

Cohen announced his withdrawal Feb. 7 after facing considerable pressure from Democrats concerned about his admitted history of steroid use as well as graphic domestic abuse allegations.

The Democrats’ state central committee will now have to pick a replacement to run with Quinn in the general election. The committee is set to meet next month.

Read the original article on DailyHerald.com.

Distributed via Chicago Press Release Services

Filed under: Sedan, Marketing/Advertising, Videos, Hyundai

The 2011 Hyundai Sonata is set to go on sale soon, so get ready for plenty of marketing to hype its arrival. Hyundai already showed the world its new mid-size sedan in a Super Bowl commercial, but we’ve just been handed a new commercial that’s set to begin airing next month. What does strapping an attractive young woman to bungee cords, then to an ATV and loading up those cords with enough potential energy to pull a tree stump out of the ground have to do with the new Sonata? Follow the jump to find out.

[Source: Hyundai]

Continue reading Video: Yes, this is a commercial for the 2011 Hyundai Sonata

Video: Yes, this is a commercial for the 2011 Hyundai Sonata originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 19:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Niles, Ill. – A man is dead after apparently shooting his estranged wife before turning a gun on himself Tuesday afternoon in north suburban Niles.

The shooting happened in the 8100 block of Prospect Court at 3:47 p.m., according to Niles Police Sgt. Tom Davis.

It appears the shooting stemmed from a domestic situation in which the couple may have been going through a divorce, Davis said.

The man shot his estranged wife when she showed up for visitation and then turned the gun on himself. He was found dead at the scene.

The woman was taken to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge by Niles paramedics and was conscious and talking when police arrived, Davis said.

The Cook County Medical Examiner’s office has been notified of the man’s death but did not have his identity or pronouncement time at 5:30 p.m.

A spokesman said the man was in his 40s.
The incident remained under investigation by Niles police Tuesday evening.

Read the original article from FOX Chicago News.

Distributed via Chicago Press Release Services

San Bernardino County, California | Unique Collections

It all started at a photography convention in 1972, when Ken Bannister, VP of a manufacturing company, passed out Chiquita banana stickers to people he encountered. The goal, he said, was simply to get people’s attention and to make them smile. After all, what better way to garner a grin than by using the fruit that’s “shaped like a smile.”

Soon after, Bannister started receiving banana-related paraphernalia — or “banana-phernalia” — in the mail. Inspired by his banana publicity, and eager to keep people smiling, Bannister then began referring to himself as “Bananaster” and “T.B.,” short for “Top Banana.” The nicknames stuck and “Bananaster” eventually became the founder of the first ever International Banana Club.

Bannister received so much banana-phernalia that he decided to open the club’s first and only museum, the International Banana Club Museum, in 1976. Today, the museum is home to 17,000 banana collectibles, all of which have been donated by members of the club. Objects range from a gold-sequined Michael Jackson banana to the world’s only petrified banana. With so many objects, the museum holds the Guinness Book of World Record’s title of “World’s Largest Collection” devoted to one fruit.

Membership to the club is a flat rate of $15 and, just like Bananaster, members can come up with their own nickname. Additionally, members can climb up in social ranks; the more banana-phernalia one donates, the higher the “B.M.” (banana merit) they are rewarded, such as PHB, Doctorate of Bananistry Degree. Banana Club members are said to get extra discounts when presenting their Banana Card Clubs in public, though a simple smile is what the club strives for. And if the smile isn’t enough, members can also brag about their fellow famous Banana Club-ers: Jay Leno and former US President, Ronald Reagan.

Salt Lake City, Utah | Unusual Monuments

Gilgal Garden is a wondrous little patch of land created by Thomas Battersby Child, Jr. in the mid-twentieth century. Hidden away at the center of a block behind houses and businesses, it contains 12 original sculptures, and over 70 stones engraved with Mormon scriptures, poems, and literary texts.

Child, a Mormon, spent nearly twenty years working on the garden, located on about a half-acre behind his home. The most arresting of his creations is a sphinx with the head of Joseph Smith, founder of the Mormon Faith. However, the garden is filled with all kinds of strange carved images, such as grasshoppers and disembodied heads.

There is even a life-sized statue of Child himself. A visitor must walk a stone path to view these works of art. Each stone is engraved with biblical and literary quotes.

Filed under: Convertible, Performance, Geneva Motor Show, Bentley, Luxury

Bentley has dropped the details on its newest creation ahead of its unveiling at the Geneva Motor Show, and claims that it’s produced the world’s fastest four-seat convertible and the quickest drop-top Bentley in the automaker’s history.

The 2011 Bentley Continental Supersports Convertible is the soft-top sibling to the marque’s latest coupe, packing the same twin-turbocharged 6.0-liter W12 as the hard-top and putting out 621 horsepower and 590 pound-feet of torque. Also like the fixed roof variant, the Supersports Convertible can run on either gasoline or E85, returning a 0-60 mph run of 3.9 seconds and a top speed on 202 mph no matter what fuel you choose to top up with.

Other carryovers include the all-wheel drive system and ZF-sourced six-speed automatic that sends power to four, 20-inch, 10-spoke wheels shod in high-performance Pirelli rubber (275/35Z R20). However, unlike the hard-top, the rear seats remain, along with carbon fiber buckets and matching trim, Alcantara and a host of interior amenities.

Bentley hasn’t released pricing on the Supersports Convertible yet, but considering the coupe starts around $270,000, you and three friends can share the $300k tab when it goes on sale this summer. Press release after the jump.

Continue reading Geneva Preview: 2011 Bentley Continental Supersports Convertible

Geneva Preview: 2011 Bentley Continental Supersports Convertible originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 19:49:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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URBANA — Champaign County Sheriff Dan Walsh is warning area residents about the dangers of a telephone scam that cost a county woman nearly $90,000.

Walsh said on Tuesday afternoon that the woman received telephone calls saying she won a lottery, but she needed to advance fees before she could receive the “prize.”

Walsh said the woman sent almost $90,000 to another country over several months before she reported the incident to police.

“We found out about this toward the end of January, and it came to my attention,” Walsh said.
Walsh said scammers frequently contact their victims by telephone, e-mail or regular mail.

“Sometimes the version is they won or have a lot of money in a foreign country but need your money to make things work,” Walsh said. “Of course, you will get rich when they share their money with you. No you won’t. It’s a scam!”

Walsh said another common scam involves somebody offering to purchase a local resident’s item on eBay using a bad check for more than the price, with the seller sending back the difference with a good check.

Walsh said the sheriff’s office frequently refer reports of people being scammed to the FBI, but he said these matters often fail to meet the FBI’s criteria for an investigation.

“And finding the guilty party is next to impossible,” Walsh said.

Distributed via Chicago Press Release Services

CHICAGO — Lollapalooza may turn into Gaga-Palooza this summer.

The Daily Swarm music Web site reported Tuesday morning that Lady Gaga will be headlining the summer music festival in Grant Park, which runs from Aug. 6 to Aug. 8.

Green Day and a reunited Soundgarden will also headline the festival this year, The Daily Swarm says.

The Web site attributed the rumors to “multiple industry sources.” Several other Web sites have quoted the Daily Swarm rumor since.

If the rumors are correct, it will be Lady Gaga’s second appearance at Lollapalooza.

She also made an appearance in 2007, before her rise to fame, playing a daylight set while wearing a bikini and fishnet stockings, and with brown hair.

But this time, The Daily Swarm reported her performance will make a far bigger splash.

“Lady Gaga will bring the new, arena-sized version of her Monster’s Ball tour – which is set to kick-off in Manchester, England, later this week,” the Web site reported.

The Daily Swarm said “the biggest question” about this year’s Lollapalooza is whether Arcade Fire will return to reprise their performance at the first Chicago weekend Lollapalooza festival in 2005.

Lollapalooza began as an itinerant festival, first from 1991 through 1998, then in 2003, when Jane’s Addiction headlined a 30-city tour.

Lollapalooza was canceled in 2004, but emerged in 2005 as a destination festival in Chicago, which it has been ever since.

The festival draws hundreds of thousands of people each year.

Read the original article from WBBM News Radio.

Distributed via Chicago Press Release Services

A lot of you know about the ROM series WMPoweruser has been trying to put out but it seems we have a slight problem. We have taken it upon our selves to personally help the TG01 community and create working, cooked WMPU series ROM but we hit one bump, lack of SPL.

The device has never been as popular as most other device in its level for example the HTC HD2 and so with that issue.

It never got a huge community it deserved and it never received anyone willing to put real time into it and get anything going for it. We however aim to change that, and are looking for someone to help.

We want to get someone that knows how to make ROMz and even an unlocker, and we will supply them a free TG01 if they can get a ROM cooked for it and maybe a hard SPL also.

If you think you can comment below and we shall talk, thanks, this is all for the thinnest Windows Mobile device.

P.S WMPU Series ROMz are not dead yet, we have more devices coming soon, just a little hectic over here

Daily U-Turn: What you missed on 2.16.10 originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 19:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2010Feb16: Glaciers in west Greenland are melting 100 times faster at their end points beneath the ocean than they are at their surfaces, according to a study by NASA scientists and researchers at the University of California, Irvine and the University of British Columbia published online Feb. 14 in Nature Geoscience (NASA).

Reference: NASA http://jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.cfm?release=2010-050

Read the Eric Rignot, Michele Koppes, & Isabella Velicogna article in Nature Geoscience. Rapid submarine melting of the calving faces of West Greenland glaciers. Published online: 14 February 2010. http://www.nature.com/ngeo/journal/vaop/ncurrent/abs/ngeo765.html

Image Description: Calving front of Equp Sermia glacier, West Greenland, one of the four glaciers studied by Rignot and his team. Image credit: Michele Koppes, University of British Columbia. Image Location: NASA http://jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.cfm?release=2010-050

CHICAGO (CBS) ― It’s a divorce case that’s made national news and on Tuesday, the civil proceeding became a criminal case.

CBS 2’s Mike Puccinelli reports that a Chicago father faced a judge on contempt charges in a case stemming from a bitter dispute with his ex-wife over religious faith.

Joseph Reyes, 35, was at the Daley Center on Tuesday to find out if he was going to be thrown in jail for defying a court order barring him from taking his 3-year-old daughter to non-Jewish religious services.

Last month, Reyes invited reporters to come with him when he took his daughter to mass at Holy Name Cathedral. He said taking his daughter Ela to church violated no court order, because much of Catholicism is based on Judaism.

“I think that Christianity and Catholicism in particular is a radicalized form of Judaism. There are theologists that would agree with me on that point,” Reyes said.

Reyes had converted to Judaism after his daughter was born. His wife, Rebecca Reyes, has claimed he agreed to raise their daughter in the Jewish faith.

Joseph Reyes said that’s not true. He insisted they never agreed to raise the girl in the Jewish faith, that they never kept a kosher home, rarely observed the Sabbath and only went to Jewish services a few times together with the child.

“This is, in her mind, more about control,” Reyes said of his estranged wife on Tuesday between court hearings.

After his split from Rebecca, Joseph had their daughter baptized in a Catholic church without first consulting Rebecca. Joseph sent Rebecca a photo of their daughter’s late-November baptism at Queen of Martyrs Catholic Church in south suburban Evergreen Park, according to court records.

“I sent her pictures which she took as malicious,” Reyes said outside a Daley Center courtroom, saying that sharing the photos was simply a chance to show the girl all dressed up and enjoying the occasion.

She fired back by asking the judge in their divorce case to prevent Joseph from raising the child in any faith other than Judaism. She said failure to restrain Joseph would cause their daughter “irreparable harm.”

Cook County Circuit Court Judge Edward Jordan OK’d the temporary restraining order and the First District Appellate Court tossed out Joseph Reyes’ appeal.

Joseph’s attorney, Joel Brodsky, said, “I cannot see how taking a child to baptism or a church can ever be a harm to the child. It’s a loving experience.”

But Rebecca saw it differently. Through her attorney, she’s asked that Joseph be jailed for up to six months for violating the court order.

In court Tuesday, Joseph Reyes was formally charged with criminal contempt.

“It doesn’t feel good that’s for certain. I’m really doing nothing more than being the best dad I can to my daughter,” he said. “And the fact that that somehow resulted in criminal charges is demoralizing and insulting.”

Rebecca Reyes was not in court, but her attorney spoke for her.

Laura Ashmore said, “Our client has confidence in the judicial system and she wants to try her case in court and not in the media.”

Before Joseph Reyes was arraigned, the judge who granted the temporary restraining order barring him from exposing his daughter to any religion other than Judaism took himself off the case.

That happened after Joseph exercised his right to ask for a substitution of judge.

If Joseph Reyes is found in violation of the restraining order, he could face as much as six months in jail and a $500 fine.

The couple, who met through Joseph Reyes’ boxing coach, married in 2004.

After having a child, Joseph Reyes says, he converted to Judaism, but only because he felt pressured by his wife’s family, he said.

He felt torn during the marriage about whether to introduce the toddler to his religion or wait for her to discover it on her own.

“Rebecca pushed me in the direction of waiting to come by it on her own,” he said, insisting again there was no agreement to raise the girl Jewish. “Maybe Rebecca decided unilaterally, but I never signed on to that.”

The couple separated in 2008, and after a 7-month stretch in which he didn’t see the girl, Joseph Reyes took his estranged wife to court.

On Tuesday, as the divorce case continues, Rebecca Reyes has sole custody of Ela with, Joseph Reyes taking his daughter every other weekend and every Thursday for dinner.

The child attends a Jewish pre-school, Joseph Reyes says.

“I have no problem with that. … If anything, I encourage Ela to see different perspectives.”

Read the original article from WBBM News Radio.

Distributed via Chicago Press Release Services

CHICAGO (WBBM/STMW)  — A man is dead after apparently turning a gun on himself after apparently shooting his estranged wife Tuesday afternoon in north suburban Niles, police said.

The shooting happened in the 8100 block of Prospect Court at 3:47 p.m., according to Niles Police Sgt. Tom Davis.

It appears the shooting stemmed from a domestic situation in which the couple may have been going through a divorce, Davis said. The man shot his estranged wife when she showed up for visitation and then turned the gun on himself. He was found dead at the scene.

The woman was taken to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge by Niles paramedics and was conscious and talking when police arrived, Davis said.

The incident remained under investigation by Niles police Tuesday evening.

Read the original article from WBBM News Radio.

Distributed via Chicago Press Release Services

Some of the movie studios (admittedly, not all of them) have been on a braindead fight against Redbox — despite the fact that Redbox had created a service that people liked and were paying for and that generated revenue for the movie industry. There are still ongoing lawsuits, but today came the news that Redbox caved to Warner Bros., on the most important point: delaying the availability of new release movies until 28 days after the release. Yes, this is the same deal that Warner Bros. convinced Netflix to agree to last month. Basically, Warner Bros. is telling people to either not rent its video or to download them from an unauthorized source.

The whole thing makes no sense at all. Warner Bros. mistakenly thinks that if people can’t rent a particular DVD in the first four weeks of release, they’re more likely to shell out money to actually buy the DVD. This is Warner Bros. pretending that it can influence customer behavior by denying them what they want. That’s a strategy that has never worked well. What this means is that at the moment when Warner Bros. actually puts some marketing effort behind the DVD release, that movie will not be available from the most popular rental options. And, the bizarre reasoning put forth by Netflix that this would benefit customers by improving inventory and availability of movies is not seen in reality. So rather than pissing off some customers because a movie is not available, you’re now pissing off all customers by making the movie not be available on purpose, and then effectively massively increasing the amount of time they have to wait to see the movie? Does no one at Warner realize that a lot of those “customers” will simply decide to go see other movies or to download an unauthorized copy instead?

Based on Warner Bros., logic here, why release movies at all?

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Now that the Rolls-Royce Ghost has hit dealerships, what’s up next from the uber-luxury BMW Group brand? According to sources, Rolls-Royce is planning new members of the Ghost family with concept cars, or “Experimental Cars” as the company traditionally calls them.

A coupe and cabriolet version are both rumored to join the Ghost lineup within the next few years and both will have a concept version to gauge consumer demand.

Chairman Ian Robertson told AutoCar that Rolls-Royce won’t necessarily stick to the “Ghost” badging for both variants. The move leaves the door open for such names as the Corniche and Carmargue for the coupe and cabriolet variants.

Insiders say that the company is also considering a long wheelbase version of the Ghost sedan. A hybrid version has also been rumored in the past.

Click here for more news on the Rolls-Royce Ghost.

2011 Rolls-Royce Ghost:

– By: Kap Shah

Source: AutoCar