Ad Categories: City Life

In a wonderful historical coincidence, January 17th marks the birth of Chicago’s most famous gangster and the public policy that made him, the day that the 18th Amendment became law.

A century ago, Chicago’s air was (probably) a lot worse than Beijing’s is today. Chicago was pretty proactive in terms of air quality, beginning as early as 1881, and advanced ahead of its peers—but things were still bad in the 1970s, when the real push for clean air swept the country.

The White House’s plan includes a lot that will be familiar: an assault weapons ban, limiting clips to 10 rounds, and research into the effects of violent video games and movies. And a lot that’s new, including a large mental-health component.

Research into pedophilia is starting to peel back the layers of why some people are attracted to children. In the meantime, the criminal justice system continues to struggle with how to protect children from a pathology we don’t understand.

While he’s pushing gun control at the local level, the mayor is encouraging Congress to pass legislation, a couple days before the President is expected to announce a plan… and Emanuel’s strategy looks a lot like the one he engineered in 1994.