Daywatch: Inside Illinois' agricultural system
Good morning, Chicago.
As climate change ravages many corners of the country, Illinois — with its nutrient-rich soil and more temperate weather — is emerging as the land of opportunity.
But an agricultural landscape plagued by harmful farming practices, profit-focused landowners and a reliance on two cash crops could jeopardize the state's long-term future.
The Tribune is launching a series of special reports to examine how Illinois became an agricultural giant and analyze the hurdles today's farmers face amid a changing climate.
In part one of 'Cash crops, hidden costs,' we look at who owns land in Illinois.
Less than 25% of the state's farmland is owned by the person who works the land. So if farms aren't owned by farmers — who owns them?
To answer this question, the Tribune analyzed over 3.7 million acres across 10 counties with the most fertile soils, highest cash rents and available historical data.
Click here to see what environmental reporter Karina Atkins found.
And here are the top stories you need to know to start your day, including: what lawmakers passed over the weekend in Springfield, what that means for Bears stadium efforts and why the city is seeing a low rate of citations for dog bite complaints.
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While offering a sunny take on the passage of a roughly $55 billion state spending plan balanced in part by cutting back on some of his own priorities, Gov. JB Pritzker blamed Illinois' latest fiscal challenges not on a state tax system he once described as 'unfair' and 'inadequate' but on economic headwinds created by President Donald Trump.
'Donald Trump's incomprehensible tariff policies have put a tax on our working families and dampened the nation's economic outlook,' he said. 'The Trump slump is affecting every state, and the chaos and uncertainty of the Republicans' proposed cuts to health care and education and jobs have made budgeting, well, harder than ever before.'
While the Illinois General Assembly didn't end up passing legislation this session that helped or hurt the Bears' stadium efforts, one suburban lawmaker said the legislature got close to a deal on property tax legislation — a measure widely seen as a way to ease a team move to Arlington Heights.
Along with a budget that passed shortly before Saturday's deadline, Illinois legislators passed a flurry of bills in the final days of the General Assembly's spring session on issues ranging from police hiring practices to traffic safety.
Ed Wolf doesn't quite recall the moments between being knocked off his bike and losing a chunk of his face in November 2023.
But he remembers the phone call he made to his wife: 'I said, 'You have to come get me. I've been attacked by a pit bull,'' Wolf said. 'And she goes, 'Are you kidding?''
Since its inception in 1842, Washington Square Park has seen its fair share of eras.
But like any green space, the square needs its maintenance and upkeep. City officials say that in recent years, the park's grass has significantly deteriorated and needs to be aerated and seeded.
Forty retailers along Oak Street, Rush Street, Delaware Place and Michigan Avenue lent their storefronts and windows Sunday to PAWS for the annual Angels With Tails event. Inside and outside, people perusing the luxury shopping streets could find everything from playful kittens to former greyhound racing dogs.
Case Keenum thought he might be done.
The 37-year-old journeyman quarterback missed all of last season with the Houston Texans after suffering a foot injury during the preseason. He could see the writing on the wall. After 13 years in the NFL, it might finally be time to give it up.
Then the Chicago Bears called.
The shadow that follows second-generation athletes can be imposing.
Phoenix Gill might not receive the same level of publicity as Bronny James, but as the son of a University of Illinois Hall of Famer and member of the 1989 'Flyin' Illini' Final Four team, the St. Ignatius guard faced high expectations.
Now is the time of year when families start thinking about a summer vacation. In the pre-internet era, that meant getting out the creased, dog-eared maps from the car's glove compartment. Spread across a kitchen table, the maps fueled dreams of cross-country travel, unburdened by the reality of endless hours in an overstuffed vehicle.
Nafsi brings a chef's heart and soul food to the historic South Shore Cultural Center in Chicago, but the earnest service needs to rise to the occasion, writes Louisa Kung Liu Chu.
Condolences to everyone's calendar. Despite sobering news of canceled summer festivals and slashed National Endowment for the Arts grants, Chicago's summer — knock wood — looks to be as busy as ever.
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Fox News
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There's a way to aid Gaza. I know, my foundation just helped deliver 7 million meals... without incident
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What the media should be doing is joining us in telling the truth about the systemic failure for years in Gaza and the U.N. should be working with us to fix the system. The current systems, built to serve the Palestinian people, have not just been ineffective—they have been actively complicit in perpetuating suffering. From UNRWA to the Human Rights Council, bigotry has been wrapped in bureaucracy, funded by American and European tax dollars, and aimed squarely at helping terrorists wage a never-ending war with Israel. Activists disguised as humanitarians clutch their pearls and rush out press releases in support of these failed systems, exactly as terrorists hijack aid trucks or beat dissenting Palestinians in the street trying to get to humanitarian aid. The silence is deafening, but actually, it's worse. They keep spreading with no scrutiny the profane lies of Hamas. The fact is that there were Palestinians harmed last week, but not by GHF. 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