'I wanted action' / McDonald's cup concession / Record warmth?

‘I wanted action.’ But, identifying herself at last in New York magazine’s The Cut, the woman who created the viral “S__tty Media Men” Google spreadsheet says she got much more than that—including dismissal from her job.

The Los Angeles Times: Five women have accused actor James Franco of inappropriate or sexually exploitative behavior.
Journalists at Fox and The New York Times are also accused of misconduct.
A suburban volleyball coach long accused of sexual abuse has been banned from the Amateur Athletic Union “forever.”
Missouri’s Republican governor has admitted to an affair in which he’s accused of taking a photo to use as blackmail against the woman.
Organizers are gearing up for the second Chicago Women’s March Jan. 20, under the banner “March to the Polls.”
Democrats plan to invite victims of sexual assault to President Trump’s State of the Union address.

‘I was told I’ll never get the position because I wouldn’t go under the desk.’ A black female employee denied a promotion is one of several who told the City Council yesterday that a culture of sexism and racism persists at the Chicago Water Department.
A Tribune investigation: “75 women have been strangled or smothered in Chicago since 2001. Most of their killers got away.”

‘How in the hell can you protect our children when you can’t even control this crowd?’ A hearing on plans to close Chicago’s remaining Englewood neighborhood high schools devolved into an angry shouting match.
The Chicago School Board’s new chief wants ethics rules changed to let a school board member become her chief operating officer now instead of waiting a year.

‘Who is really doing the pushing—the mayor or wealthy developers like Kennedy?’ The Sun-Times’ Mary Mitchell revisits a 2014 speech that casts a shadow on gubernatorial candidate Chris Kennedy’s complaint last week that Mayor Emanuel’s policies “push people of color out of the city.”
The price of un-booting a car parked in a private lot would rise in Chicago under legislation that also provides slight new protections for booters’ victims.
Walmart credits new federal tax law for its decision to raise its minimum wage and give some workers a $1,000 bonus.
 UPDATE, 2:28 p.m.: … and then Walmart announced plans to shut dozens of its Sam’s Club stores, laying off thousands.

‘One way to get rid of laws that are generally unpopular and destructive is to enforce them stringently.’ And so, Tribune columnist Steve Chapman writes, Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ decision to end the feds’ hands-off approach to states’ legalization of marijuana “is more likely to boost support for legalization than to diminish it.”
Sessions’ crackdown reportedly blindsided the U.S. Treasury Department office advising bankers how to deal with pot growers’ money.
In California, legislation would automatically erase people’s pot convictions.
Jonathan Chait in New York: Confused Trump Tricked by Fox News Into Opposing His Own Surveillance Bill.”
A Washington Post rundown: Trump nominees who couldn’t get confirmed by the GOP Senate, but are still in government.
A White House ban on personal cellphones is set to take effect Tuesday.

McDonald’s cup concession. It says that by the end of the year, it’ll go cold turkey on the use of environmentally unfriendly plastic foam cups.
The Illinois EPA faces a lawsuit for missing a deadline on ethics rules governing environmental rulemakers.

Bite at the museums. Admission prices are about to rise next month by up to almost 22 percent at the Museum of Science and Industry and the Chicago History Museum.
The Tribune’s Steve Johnson previews some of what that extra money will get you.

Computer slowdown. Patches for the Meltdown and Spectre bugs that threaten almost all modern computers may be to blame.
And maybe for iPhones, too.

Record warmth? Chicago temperatures could top 60 today, before a 40-degree plunge over just three hours.

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