10 is enough. Warning that COVID-19 “is winning the war,” Gov. Pritzker is lowering the boom on Will, Kankakee, Kane and DuPage counties—limiting the size of indoor and outdoor gatherings …
■ … and leaving open the prospect of reinstating a statewide stay-at-home order.
■ Chicago-area hospitals are bringing back visitor restrictions.
■ Chicago-area hospitals are bringing back visitor restrictions.
■ The Chicago Police Department is (finally) encouraging cops to wear their masks.
Giving thanks safely. Consumer Reports offers a guide to pandemically responsible holiday gatherings.
■ An epidemiologist’s family plan: “We have agreed to limit contact with other people as much as possible the week before Thanksgiving.”
Hail, no. Notre Dame University’s president—you know, the one who got COVID-19 after not wearing a mask at the White House—is scolding fans for jamming onto the field after Saturday’s game …
■ … and the university is ordering coronavirus tests for all students.
■ A University of Virginia professor of medicine explains “why we didn’t get a vaccine by Election Day—but why we may get one soon.”
Most forthright headline of the week—so far. That honor would go to Slate for “An Interview With the Owner of the Sex Shop Next to Four Seasons Landscaping.”
■ The Tribune’s Rex Huppke: “Some might argue it’s impossible to find common ground with people willing to believe … conspiratorial word salad served by Trump’s bug-eyed attorney, Rudy Giuliani, outside a Philadelphia lawn care company next to a porn shop. … But I’m told it would be just like an evil liberal to think such things.”
A reader writes. “You might want to do some poking around on unemployment claim fraud. I’ve had two pieces of mail sent to our house with other people’s names on them (neither having ever lived at our address) and then I just received notification that someone had filed unemployment on my behalf. … I have a few friends who have had similar experiences, but I’m not seeing anything about … what to do if it happens to you.” Poking accomplished:
Cabinet pulls. President Trump’s dismissal of Defense Secretary Mark Esper—which Slate’s Fred Kaplan describes as “an act of pure spite”—may be “a feather in Esper’s cap.”
■ Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson is one of at least three top administration officials out with COVID-19 that seems to have spread at an election night watch party.
Rahm resistance. Progressive icon Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is signaling President-elect Biden that a cabinet role for ex-Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel would constitute “a hostile approach to the grass-roots … wing of the party” …
■ … because of Emanuel’s role suppressing details of the police shooting of Laquan McDonald.
■ Chicago-area environmental leaders are counting on Biden for “strong Day One actions” on the environment.
■ Transit activists are similarly hopeful.
■ Metra’s experimenting with more bike-friendly trains.
‘I am not saying nothing.’ In an interview with the Trib, the mother of Kenosha shooting suspect Kyle Rittenhouse declined to express sympathy to the victims’ families.
■ A 19-year-old Kenosha man faces felony charges, accused of giving Rittenhouse a gun.
McDonald’s farm stand. A plant-based burger—the McPlant—is headed to McDonald’s …
■ … spooking investors in Beyond Meat.
New Macs. Apple planned today to unveil a new generation of Macintosh computers.
■ You can watch here at noon Central time.
Amazon embattled. The European Union has filed antitrust charges against the company, accusing it of abusing its dual role as a marketplace and retailer …
■ … putting the company at risk of penalties totalling $37 billion …
■ … which is about 20 percent of owner Jeff Bezos’ net worth.
Warm farewell. Chicago’s broken its record for consecutive 70-degree days in November …
■ … but that ends tomorrow.
A reader writes. “You might want to do some poking around on unemployment claim fraud. I’ve had two pieces of mail sent to our house with other people’s names on them (neither having ever lived at our address) and then I just received notification that someone had filed unemployment on my behalf. … I have a few friends who have had similar experiences, but I’m not seeing anything about … what to do if it happens to you.” Poking accomplished:
■ It’s a problem—for instance, in Elmhurst, La Grange and Yorkville.
■ Illinois has a website and a toll-free number to call in such cases: (800) 814-0513.
■ See an Illinois Department of Employment Security video on “Unemployment Insurance Fraud & Identity Theft.”
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