Closing of Wells Street Bridge creates uncertainty for CTA riders

The shutdown of the Wells Street Bridge has the impact of a blocked artery, straining the circulation of much of the CTA rail system.

The lower tier of the 91-year-old bridge was closed to vehicles and pedestrians in November for repairs, and now it's CTA riders' turn.

Even though only Brown Line and Purple Line/Evanston Express trains normally travel across the Wells bridge connecting the Loop elevated structure to tracks north of the Chicago River, service on six of the eight CTA rail lines is being affected by bridge and track work continuing through the week, transit officials said.

Weekday rush hours are expected to pose the biggest challenge to the transit agency and its customers. Brown Line trains will operate much less frequently during most of the day — running every 10 to 12 minutes, officials said. And Evanston Express service is canceled until March 11. Purple Line local service will continue to operate between Howard Street in Chicago and Linden Avenue in Wilmette.

On weekends, Green, Pink and Orange Line trains will terminate their runs at certain stations in the downtown area, officials said. A weekend free shuttle bus will operate to link the Chicago/Franklin, Merchandise Mart, Clark/Lake, Washington/Wells and Clinton/Lake stations, officials said.

Riders are being told to plan for longer, slower commutes starting Monday on trains that will be more crowded than usual. The frequency of trains on the Brown Line is being reduced because of the need to operate more trains than usual on the Red Line tracks, including in the State Street subway, officials said.

"Experience has taught me to become a little nervous any time the CTA changes service," Rick Gordon, 41, a Brown Line rider who commutes between the Western station and the Washington/Wells stop in the Loop, said Friday morning after getting off the train downtown.

Gordon, an investment counselor, said he still plans to ride the Brown Line on Monday. But because he won't be able to ride across the Wells bridge to his normal stop, he will instead take advantage of the free CTA shuttle bus that will operate between the Chicago Avenue station and the Loop "L," stopping at the Merchandise Mart, the Clark/Lake and Washington/Wells stations.

During rush hours, two of every three southbound Brown Line trains will travel through the Red Line subway tunnel, making all stops to the Roosevelt station, officials said. They will then head north through the subway and up to Fullerton Avenue, then will continue making all Brown Line stops to the Kimball Avenue terminal, officials said.

One of every three Brown Line trains will remain on the regular Brown Line route south of Fullerton but will make the last stop at the Merchandise Mart station, near the north end of the Wells bridge.

Extra service will be provided on the Red Line, in part to accommodate heavier passenger loading caused by the suspension of all Purple Line service south of Howard through the week, officials said. Commuters who normally ride the Purple Line/Evanston Express service might consider budgeting up to an extra hour travel time if they will ride the all-stop Red Line to downtown.

Also, the transit agency will introduce free shuttle trains that circle the Loop and alternative bus service to provide options for the thousands of riders affected over the roughly nine-day bridge closing, which began Friday night.

CTA officials predicted that the commutes of many rail customers will be only several minutes to 15 minutes longer than normal travel times during the service interruptions. But in light of the unpredictability of CTA service even under normal cases, allowing extra time would help commuters ensure they arrive at their destinations on time.

"We urge customers to think about their options because this will not be a typical commute for most Brown and Purple Line commuters," CTA spokesman Brian Steele said, adding that delays are likely on other lines too because of expected ridership shifts.

With some commuters taking Monday off for the Casimir Pulaski Day holiday, the first full test of the CTA's alternative service plan will likely be on Tuesday.

The service disruptions will last until completion of the Wells bridge replacement project, upgrades to the busy downtown rail junction at Lake and Wells streets, and track replacement around the curves at Hubbard and Kinzie streets. Regular CTA service resumes in time for the morning rush period on March 11, following the first phase of bridge reconstruction, officials said.

A second closing of the Wells bridge will occur April 26 through May 5, when the $41.2 million overhaul project is scheduled to be completed, the Chicago Department of Transportation said.

The Wells bridge's trusses, steel framing, railings, bridge houses, major structural parts and mechanical and electrical parts are being replaced, but the original 1920s-era appearance of the double-deck bridge will be maintained, CDOT officials said.

Full details on the CTA service changes are available at transitchicago.com/wellsbridge.

jhilkevitch@tribune.com Twitter @jhilkevitch

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Cellar victim Kampusch raped, starved in film of ordeal

VIENNA (Reuters) – A new film based on the story of Austrian kidnap victim Natascha Kampusch shows her being repeatedly raped by the captor who beat and starved her during the eight-and-a-half years that he kept her in a cellar beneath his house.

Kampusch was snatched on her way to school at the age of 10 by Wolfgang Priklopil and held in a windowless cell under his garage near Vienna until she escaped in 2006, causing a sensation in Austria and abroad. Priklopil committed suicide.

Kampusch had always refused to respond to claims that she had had sex with Priklopil, but in a German television interview on her 25th birthday last week said she had decided to reveal the truth because it had leaked out from police files.

The film, “3,096 Days” – based on Kampusch’s autobiography of the same name – soberly portrays her captivity in a windowless cellar less than 6 square metres (65 square feet) in area, often deprived of food for days at a time.

The emaciated Kampusch – who weighed just 38 kg (84 pounds) at one point in 2004 – keeps a diary written on toilet paper concealed in a box.

One entry reads: “At least 60 blows in the face. Ten to 15 nausea-inducing fist blows to the head. One strike with the fist with full weight to my right ear.”

The movie shows occasional moments that approach tenderness, such as when Priklopil presents her with a cake for her 18th birthday or buys her a dress as a gift – but then immediately goes on to chide her for not knowing how to waltz with him.

GREY AREAS

Antonia Campbell-Hughes, who plays the teenaged Kampusch, said she had tried to portray “the strength of someone’s soul, the ability of people to survive… but also the grey areas within a relationship that people don’t necessarily understand.”

The British actress said she had not met Kampusch during the making of the film or since. “It was a very isolated time, it was a bubble of time, and I wanted to keep that very focused,” she told journalists as she arrived for the Vienna premiere.

Kampusch herself attended the premiere, looking composed as she posed for pictures but declining to give interviews.

In an interview with Germany’s Bild Zeitung last week, she said: “Yes, I did recognize myself, although the reality was even worse. But one can’t really show that in the cinema, since it wasn’t supposed to be a horror film.”

The movie, made at the Constantin Film studios in Bavaria, Germany, also stars Amy Pidgeon as the 10-year-old Kampusch and Danish actor Thure Lindhardt as Priklopil.

“I focused mainly on playing the human being because… we have to remember it was a human being. Monsters do not exist, they’re only in cartoons,” Lindhart said.

“It became clear to me that it’s a story about survival, and it’s a story about surviving eight years of hell. If that story can be told then I can also play the bad guy.”

The director was German-American Sherry Hormann, who made her English-language debut with the 2009 move “Desert Flower”, an adaptation of the autobiography of Somali-born model and anti-female circumcision activist Waris Dirie.

“I’m a mother and I wonder at the strength of this child, and it was important for me to tell this story from a different perspective, to tell how this child using her own strength could survive this atrocious martyrdom,” Hormann said.

The Kampusch case was followed two years later by that of Josef Fritzl, an Austrian who held his daughter captive in a cellar for 24 years and fathered seven children with her.

The crimes prompted soul-searching about the Austrian psyche, and questions as to how the authorities and neighbors could have let such crimes go undetected for so long.

The film goes on general release on Thursday.

(Reporting by Georgina Prodhan, Editing by Paul Casciato)

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Texas Monthly: Sign Language Interpreters Bring Live Music to the Deaf

On the last night of the 2012 Lollapalooza music festival in Chicago, the sun set over a crowd of thousands who had stood for hours waiting to see Jack White, the headliner. A figure strode onto the stage, setting off a cascade of cheers.

But it was not Jack White, the singer-guitarist, it was Barbie Parker, the festival’s lead sign language interpreter.

Ms. Parker, a Texas native, and members of her Austin-based company, LotuSIGN, had interpreted more than 20 bands’ sets for deaf and hard of hearing festival attendees that weekend. As evidenced by the positive reception she received, her interpretations had won over a good part of the hearing audience as well.

At live music shows, Ms. Parker, 45, does not just sign lyrics — she communicates the entire musical experience. She mouths the words. She plays air guitar and air drums. She jams along with the bands.

“Music is such a large part of who I am,” she said. “I want to be able to open up that experience.”

Ms. Parker was bored in her accounting job and had two young children when she enrolled in her first formal American Sign Language class at San Antonio College about 20 years ago. She became fascinated with interpretation after reading a book about it at her local library and, in a chance encounter just hours after reading it, met the sister of a friend who happened to be an American Sign Language interpreter.

Ms. Parker is now an integral part of Austin’s deaf community. Her two adult sons are proficient in A.S.L., and her company has provided sign language interpretation at music festivals across the country for several years. Next week, she and other LotuSIGN interpreters will take the stage with artists at the South by Southwest music festival in Austin for the sixth year in a row.

The number of deaf and hard of hearing music fans taking advantage of interpretation at free shows held at Auditorium Shores as part of SXSW has risen noticeably in the past few years, Frank Schaefer, the officer manager for the festival, said in an e-mail. The increase can be attributed, at least in part, to a growing number of interpreters who specialize in that kind of work.

A good interpreter is adept at signing, but Ms. Parker also wants her team to impart the emotions and feelings music conveys. Lauren Kinast, 44, who lost her hearing gradually, attended a Rolling Stones concert signed by LotuSIGN interpreters. Ms. Kinast had listened to the Stones growing up, but when she saw Ms. Parker and a colleague interpret their music, she came away with a greater appreciation of the band.

“Everything made it different, better,” Ms. Kinast typed in an interview. “Having the songs interpreted in my language, understanding the emotions behind it, the meaning behind it, and being a part of the concert experience just took my love for them several notches up.”

Ms. Parker first gained recognition in the mid-2000s for interpreting music at the funeral of the parent of a well-known member of the deaf community in Austin. At one point during the service, she needed to sign an emotional musical performance.

“The singer got inspired, so the interpreting had to get inspired,” Ms. Parker said. The signing seemed to further stir the singer, which further moved Ms. Parker. “There was a kind of reverb,” she said. “The deaf audience was just — I just saw these jaws drop open like, ‘Oh, that’s what it’s like.’ ”

After that, she began receiving requests to interpret at weddings, children’s recitals and, of course, live shows. In 2007, she started her own company, Alive Performance Interpreting, which in 2009 became LotuSIGN.

“They’re five-star interpreters,” said Stacy Landry, the program manager for the local government’s deaf and hard of hearing services in Travis County. (Ms. Parker has obvious clout in the field — her traditional interpreting services were used in January when she intepreted President Obama’s Inaugural Address in Washington.)

LotuSIGN interpreters specialize in analyzing lyrics for the artist’s intent in a song. But sign language interpretation, no matter where it takes place, is about more than translating words into gestures and signs. The interpreter must communicate an overall experience by expressing the speaker’s tone, the meaning behind phrases and idioms, and even if someone’s cellphone interrupts an otherwise-silent lecture hall.

One year, Ms. Parker interpreted at a Sheryl Crow concert held to celebrate of one of Lance Armstrong’s Tour de France titles. He was asked to take over on the drums for one of Ms. Crow’s songs.

“Well,” Ms. Parker said, “he wasn’t any good.”

Ms. Parker let the discomfort show on her face as she imitated Mr. Armstrong’s uneven drumming. She nodded subtly to assure perplexed members of the deaf audience that she was indeed doing this on purpose.

As the audience reacted, Ms. Parker saw a deaf man elbow the hearing man next to him and cringe. The hearing man nodded and made a similar pained face.

“They had this shared experience,” Ms. Parker said. The deaf man was truly part of the crowd.

LotuSIGN is working to mentor others in the hope of expanding access to live events. “You can’t do it without a lot of experience,” Ms. Parker said. “It is the hardest work I have ever done.”

Kathryn Jepsen is the deputy editor of Symmetry magazine.

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Next Groupon CEO will have experience, Lefkofsky says

Groupon has fired its chief executive and the money-losing company faces several challenges, but Executive Chairman Eric Lefkofsky is undeterred. The Chicago-based e-commerce site, he said, is "inches away from greatness."

Lefkofsky, Groupon's co-founder and largest shareholder, speaking to the Tribune in his first public comments since Thursday's ouster of Andrew Mason, declined to discuss specific reasons for replacing Mason, though he pointed out at least one recent management error.

He also sounded as if he now agrees with the widespread sentiment that Mason didn't have the right skills to deal with the company's unique problems: It is global, large, technology-driven and growing fast, but it's also unprofitable, dogged by competitors and under intense scrutiny for its missteps.

Lefkofsky said he looked forward to hiring a CEO "who has experience dealing with the issues we're dealing with … who has been there and done that."

In spite of Groupon's troubles, "the long-term horizon of the company is fantastic," Lefkofsky said.

He'll have to forgive Wall Street if it casts a skeptical eye at his optimism. Even though it's less than 5 years old, Groupon popularized the idea of using the Internet to match local merchants and customers and it is now an established business. A new CEO isn't going to make the company's problems magically disappear.

Groupon is at a crossroads, not just because it has to find a replacement for Mason, the co-founder whose playful, irreverent style set the tone for the company's culture. Groupon faces shrinking consumer interest in its daily deals business that sends online coupons for everything from restaurants to pedicures to inboxes every day. And it has huge problems in its European operations.

Groupon is attempting to evolve its business model beyond daily deals into an ongoing, search-driven local marketplace. But the investment has been expensive. To boost growth, the company launched a separate business selling products at steep discounts. But that retail business has dragged down profit margins.

"While a new CEO may bring better skill sets (particularly in technology or online commerce), we believe that the challenges Groupon faces will only increase," wrote Edward Woo, an analyst at Ascendiant Capital Markets.

Lefkofsky supports the new course Mason had charted with input from him and other members of the board of directors.

In North America, email now drives less than 50 percent of Groupon's transactions. Half of local transaction volume comes from what the company calls its "deal bank," its searchable inventory of deals that are active for longer periods of time.

"This isn't about 'Oh, my God, we're going down the completely wrong road,'" Lefkofsky said. "Largely, the strategy and the business is going to continue down the exact same path it has been on."

He described Groupon as a "pioneer of curated commerce. We're selecting a certain number of deals every day, and then we're serving them out to people, sometimes via email, sometimes via mobile."

But the board decided that as the company enters the next stage of its evolution, the time was right to find "a new CEO that had some of those skills we need long term," Lefkofsky said.

In the interim, Lefkofsky and another director, former AOL Inc. executive Ted Leonsis, will run the company.

"Both (Ted) and I felt the company was inches away from greatness," Lefkofsky said.

That's a stretch judging by the stock market. Groupon's shares are down 75 percent in the 15 months since it went public at $20 a share. On Friday, in reaction to Mason's exit, the stock jumped more than 12 percent to close at $5.10.

While Groupon caught fire as a startup, it has stumbled repeatedly as it has grown. The company made embarrassing mistakes during the process of going public and then faced scrutiny over its accounting methods.

Since going public, Groupon has turned a quarterly profit only once.

In the fourth quarter, its net loss grew to $81.1 million, and the company projected weaker-than-expected operating income for the current quarter.

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Blackhawks' streak at 21 with overtime win over Blue Jackets

The beat goes on for the Blackhawks — barely.

Against a banged up and usually bumbling Blue Jackets squad, the Hawks kept their record-setting points streak alive at 21 games with a 4-3 victory in overtime Friday night at the United Center.

The Hawks coughed up a third-period lead but came out on top when Brent Seabrook scored off a terrific feed from Jonathan Toews 3 minutes, 23 seconds into overtime to give them their second victory in as many nights.

"In overtime … you have some chances to jump into the play and take some chances," Seabrook said. "I didn't really expect Toews to make that pass. He didn't look at me once and I didn't yell. He's pretty good in those situations so I just let him do his thing.

"I don't think I shot the puck, it was such a hard pass it hit my stick and just bounced in."

Viktor Stalberg, Patrick Sharp and Bryan Bickell also had goals and Ray Emery earned the victory in goal as the Hawks improved to 18-0-3 on the season. Dating back to last season, the Hawks are at 27 games in a row with at least one point.

Vinny Prospal, Artem Anisimov and Ryan Johansen scored for the Blue Jackets but it wasn't enough as Steve Mason suffered the loss in goal.

The Blue Jackets, who entered the game with the fewest points in the league, were without defensemen James Wisniewski, Jack Johnson and John Moore and forwards Derick Brassard and Brandon Dubinsky but fought gamely.

A night after the Hawks opened their victory over the Blues with a Toews goal just 10 seconds into the game, the Blue Jackets struck quickly when Prospal jumped on a big rebound Emery yielded off a Derek Dorsett shot and fired it into the open net with 31 seconds elapsed.

Patrick Kane nearly tied it when he got free in the slot but fired a puck past Mason that clanged off the left post and slid harmlessly away. Not long after, Emery made a strong save on Cam Atkinson with his left skate to keep it a one-goal deficit.

Stalberg continued his mastery over the Blue Jackets with his 11th goal in his 15th game against them when the winger tapped in a puck in the crease during a scramble at the 16:09 mark. Mason then kept it even when he stoned Marcus Kruger from in front and the opening period ended tied 1-1.

In the second, Daniel Carcillo continued his gritty play with a big hit on the Jackets' Fedor Tyutin. The legal blow drew a response from Nikita Nikitin, who dropped the gloves with Carcillo and was on the receiving end of a flurry of punches from the Hawks winger.

The Blue Jackets kept coming and took the lead when Anisimov's shot from the point deflected off Carcillo and bounded past Emery.

Late in the second, the Hawks' offense kicked into gear. Sharp evened the score 2-2 when his backhander from the left circle somehow made it through Mason's pads and trickled across the goal line.

A splendid individual effort from Bickell put the Hawks ahead with less than a minute later. The winger stripped Anisimov of the puck, skated in two-on-one with Stalberg and rifled a wrist shot from the left dot past Mason to the stick side.

In the third, Emery held the lead when he stoned Prospal on a point-blank shot but later Johansen beat him with a nice move in the slot.

"We're finding ways to really get it done," Stalberg said. "It's pretty amazing to be a part of a run like this. It seems like it hasn't gotten to our heads at all. We're staying with it … and that's all we can do."

ckuc@tribune.com

Twitter @ChrisKuc

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Well: A Rainbow of Root Vegetables

This week’s Recipes for Health is as much a treat for the eyes as the palate. Colorful root vegetables from bright orange carrots and red scallions to purple and yellow potatoes and pale green leeks will add color and flavor to your table.

Since root vegetables and tubers keep well and can be cooked up into something delicious even after they have begun to go limp in the refrigerator, this week’s Recipes for Health should be useful. Root vegetables, tubers (potatoes and sweet potatoes, which are called yams by most vendors – I mean the ones with dark orange flesh), winter squash and cabbages are the only local vegetables available during the winter months in colder regions, so these recipes will be timely for many readers.

Roasting is a good place to begin with most root vegetables. They sweeten as they caramelize in a hot oven. I roasted baby carrots and thick red scallions (they may have been baby onions; I didn’t get the information from the farmer, I just bought them because they were lush and pretty) together and seasoned them with fresh thyme leaves, then sprinkled them with chopped toasted hazelnuts. I also roasted a medley of potatoes, including sweet potatoes, after tossing them with olive oil and sage, and got a wonderful range of colors, textures and tastes ranging from sweet to savory.

Sweet winter vegetables also pair well with spicy seasonings. I like to combine sweet potatoes and chipotle peppers, and this time in a hearty lentil stew that we enjoyed all week.

Here are five colorful and delicious dishes made with root vegetables.

Spicy Lentil and Sweet Potato Stew With Chipotles: The combination of sweet potatoes and spicy chipotles with savory lentils is a winner.

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Roasted Carrots and Scallions With Thyme and Hazelnuts: Toasted hazelnuts add a crunchy texture and nutty finish to this dish.

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Carrot Wraps: A vegetarian sandwich that satisfies like a full meal.

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Rainbow Potato Roast: A multicolored mix that can be vegan, or not.

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Leek Quiche: A lighter version of a Flemish classic.

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Incomes see largest drop in 20 years

U.S. consumer spending rose in January as Americans spent more on services, with savings providing a cushion after income recorded its biggest drop in 20 years.

Income tumbled 3.6 percent, the largest drop since January 1993. Part of the decline was payback for a 2.6 percent surge in December as businesses, anxious about higher taxes, rushed to pay dividends and bonuses before the new year.

A portion of the drop in January also reflected the tax hikes. The income at the disposal of households after inflation and taxes plunged a 4.0 percent in January after advancing 2.7 percent in December.

The Commerce Department said on Friday consumer spending increased 0.2 percent in January after a revised 0.1 percent rise the prior month. Spending had previously been estimated to have increased 0.2 percent in December.

January's increase was in line with economists' expectations. Spending accounts for about 70 percent of U.S. economic activity and when adjusted for inflation, it gained 0.1 percent after a similar increase in December.

Though spending rose in January, it was supported by a rise in services, probably related to utilities consumption. Spending on goods fell, suggesting some hit from the expiration at the end of 2012 of a 2 percent payroll tax cut. Tax rates for wealthy Americans also increased.

The impact is expected to be larger in February's spending data and possibly extend through the first half of the year as households adjust to smaller paychecks, which are also being strained by rising gasoline prices.

Economists expect consumer spending in the first three months of this year to slow down sharply from the fourth quarter's 2.1 percent annual pace.

With income dropping sharply and spending rising, the saving rate - the percentage of disposable income households are socking away - fell to 2.4 percent, the lowest level since November 2007. The rate had jumped to 6.4 percent in December.

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Tax on pack of cigarettes sold in Chicago up $1 to $6.67

On the eve of a $1-per-pack Cook County cigarette tax increase, County Board President Toni Preckwinkle stood in the glow of X-rays showing damaged lungs, surrounded by some of Stroger Hospital's top pulmonary specialists as she discussed how smoking shortens people's lives.

The setting and talking points made clear the message Preckwinkle wanted to convey Thursday: This is a public health problem, one she plans to fight by giving smokers an incentive to quit and teens a reason not to start.

But the county's tax increase is more than just a campaign to protect people from emphysema and lung cancer. Preckwinkle is counting on $25.6 million this year from the move to help balance the budget. The history of cigarette tax increases suggests the county will be lucky to get that much in 2013 and should expect diminishing returns in the years ahead.

Smokes are a financial well that public officials have gone to repeatedly to shore up shaky finances at the local and state level. When the county tax increase takes effect Friday, a pack of cigarettes purchased in Chicago will come with $6.67 tacked on by the city, county and state. That's just behind New York City's nation-leading $6.86 in taxes per pack. It will also push the cost of a pack of cigarettes in Chicago to as much as $11.

Recent cigarette tax increases have had only a short-term benefit to the government bottom line. Some people quit, while others buy cigarettes online or outside the county or state.

When the county last raised the cigarette tax — by $1 per pack in 2006 — collections initially shot up by $46.5 million, hitting $203.7 million, county records show. But by 2009, the county collected $20.4 million less than it had in 2005.

Mayor Richard M. Daley bumped up the city of Chicago's share of the cigarette tax by 32 cents in 2005 and another 20 cents in 2006, to 68 cents per pack. He saw collections rise from $15.6 million in 2004 to $32.9 million in 2006, according to a city report. But city cigarette tax revenue fell to $28.4 million in 2007, and continued dropping to $18.7 million by 2011, records show.

At the state level, Quinn pushed through a $1-a-pack hike in June.

Before that, state lawmakers and Gov. George Ryan agreed on a 40-cent increase in 2002. Cigarette tax proceeds went up by more than $178 million in 2003, to $643.1 million, and rose to $729.2 million in 2004. The revenue then fell steadily to $549 million by 2010 before edging back up to $580 million last year, according to state records.

The county is preparing for the windfall from the $1 increase to be strong this year, then decline. County officials project that after bringing in $25.6 million for the remainder of this budget year, the increase will net about $29 million for 2014, $21 million in 2015, $15 million in 2016 and just $9 million in 2017.

Preckwinkle says that's OK with her.

"My hope would be that over the long run this is no longer a way in which governments look to raise money, because fewer and fewer people are smoking," she said. "So I would hope that we have the effect of reducing our revenue because more people quit."

The county could end up saving money as cigarette tax revenue falls because uninsured people with ailments related to smoking are such a heavy financial burden to the public hospital system, Preckwinkle said.

In the meantime, Preckwinkle pledged to hire more staff this year to crack down on stores selling untaxed packs and large-scale tobacco smuggling from surrounding states. "We anticipate that there may be some noncompliance, as there always is when you institute an increase like this," she said.

Preckwinkle also acknowledged that the higher tax rate will push some smokers into surrounding counties or Indiana to pick up their packs, but she predicted such cross-border runs will not last.

"While people may initially, when the prices rise, go to other states — Indiana, Wisconsin or wherever — over time that trek gets very tiresome and time-consuming, and they return to their former habits of buying their cigarettes nearby," Preckwinkle said.

But David Vite, president of the Illinois Retail Merchants Association, said he thinks the cigarette taxes in Cook County are now so high compared with surrounding areas that smokers will continue to make the longer drive, and Illinois stores near jurisdictions with lower taxes will struggle even more.

"You might see people return to their old patterns if we were talking about a slight disparity, say 25 cents a pack," Vite said. "But now we're talking about a difference of nearly $3 a pack compared to Indiana, almost $30 a carton. You're going to see guys working in factories saying, 'It's my week to make a run,' heading to Indiana and coming back with $1,500 worth of cigarettes for all their co-workers."

jebyrne@tribune.com

Twitter @_johnbyrne

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Cellar victim Kampusch raped, starved in film of ordeal

VIENNA (Reuters) – A new film based on the story of Austrian kidnap victim Natascha Kampusch shows her being repeatedly raped by the captor who beat and starved her during the eight-and-a-half years that he kept her in a cellar beneath his house.

Kampusch was snatched on her way to school at the age of 10 by Wolfgang Priklopil and held in a windowless cell under his garage near Vienna until she escaped in 2006, causing a sensation in Austria and abroad. Priklopil committed suicide.

Kampusch had always refused to respond to claims that she had had sex with Priklopil, but in a German television interview on her 25th birthday last week said she had decided to reveal the truth because it had leaked out from police files.

The film, “3,096 Days” – based on Kampusch’s autobiography of the same name – soberly portrays her captivity in a windowless cellar less than 6 square metres (65 square feet) in area, often deprived of food for days at a time.

The emaciated Kampusch – who weighed just 38 kg (84 pounds) at one point in 2004 – keeps a diary written on toilet paper concealed in a box.

One entry reads: “At least 60 blows in the face. Ten to 15 nausea-inducing fist blows to the head. One strike with the fist with full weight to my right ear.”

The movie shows occasional moments that approach tenderness, such as when Priklopil presents her with a cake for her 18th birthday or buys her a dress as a gift – but then immediately goes on to chide her for not knowing how to waltz with him.

GREY AREAS

Antonia Campbell-Hughes, who plays the teenaged Kampusch, said she had tried to portray “the strength of someone’s soul, the ability of people to survive… but also the grey areas within a relationship that people don’t necessarily understand.”

The British actress said she had not met Kampusch during the making of the film or since. “It was a very isolated time, it was a bubble of time, and I wanted to keep that very focused,” she told journalists as she arrived for the Vienna premiere.

Kampusch herself attended the premiere, looking composed as she posed for pictures but declining to give interviews.

In an interview with Germany’s Bild Zeitung last week, she said: “Yes, I did recognize myself, although the reality was even worse. But one can’t really show that in the cinema, since it wasn’t supposed to be a horror film.”

The movie, made at the Constantin Film studios in Bavaria, Germany, also stars Amy Pidgeon as the 10-year-old Kampusch and Danish actor Thure Lindhardt as Priklopil.

“I focused mainly on playing the human being because… we have to remember it was a human being. Monsters do not exist, they’re only in cartoons,” Lindhart said.

“It became clear to me that it’s a story about survival, and it’s a story about surviving eight years of hell. If that story can be told then I can also play the bad guy.”

The director was German-American Sherry Hormann, who made her English-language debut with the 2009 move “Desert Flower”, an adaptation of the autobiography of Somali-born model and anti-female circumcision activist Waris Dirie.

“I’m a mother and I wonder at the strength of this child, and it was important for me to tell this story from a different perspective, to tell how this child using her own strength could survive this atrocious martyrdom,” Hormann said.

The Kampusch case was followed two years later by that of Josef Fritzl, an Austrian who held his daughter captive in a cellar for 24 years and fathered seven children with her.

The crimes prompted soul-searching about the Austrian psyche, and questions as to how the authorities and neighbors could have let such crimes go undetected for so long.

The film goes on general release on Thursday.

(Reporting by Georgina Prodhan, Editing by Paul Casciato)

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Global Health: After Measles Success, Rwanda to Get Rubella Vaccine

Rwanda has been so successful at fighting measles that next month it will be the first country to get donor support to move to the next stage — fighting rubella too.

On March 11, it will hold a nationwide three-day vaccination campaign with a combined measles-rubella vaccine, hoping to reach nearly five million children up to age 14. It will then integrate the dual vaccine into its national health service.

Rwanda can do so “because they’ve done such a good job on measles,” said Christine McNab, a spokeswoman for the Measles and Rubella Initiative. M.R.I. helped pay for previous vaccination campaigns in the country and the GAVI Alliance is helping to finance the upcoming one.

Rubella, also called German measles, causes a rash that is very similar to the measles rash, making it hard for health workers to tell the difference.

Rubella is generally mild, even in children, but in pregnant women, it can kill the fetus or cause serious birth defects, including blindness, deafness, mental retardation and chronic heart damage.

Ms. McNab said that Rwanda had proved that it can suppress measles and identify rubella, and it would benefit from the newer, more expensive vaccine.

The dual vaccine costs twice as much — 52 cents a dose at Unicef prices, compared with 24 cents for measles alone. (The MMR vaccine that American children get, which also contains a vaccine against mumps, costs Unicef $1.)

More than 90 percent of Rwandan children now are vaccinated twice against measles, and cases have been near zero since 2007.

The tiny country, which was convulsed by Hutu-Tutsi genocide in 1994, is now leading the way in Africa in delivering medical care to its citizens, Ms. McNab said. Three years ago, it was the first African country to introduce shots against human papilloma virus, or HPV, which causes cervical cancer.

In wealthy countries, measles kills a small number of children — usually those whose parents decline vaccination. But in poor countries, measles is a major killer of malnourished infants. Around the world, the initiative estimates, about 158,000 children die of it each year, or about 430 a day.

Every year, an estimated 112,000 children, mostly in Africa, South Asia and the Pacific islands, are born with handicaps caused by their mothers’ rubella infection.

Thanks in part to the initiative — which until last year was known just as the Measles Initiative — measles deaths among children have declined 71 percent since 2000. The initiative is a partnership of many health agencies, vaccine companies, donors and others, but is led by the American Red Cross, the United Nations Foundation, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Unicef and the World Health Organization.

This article has been revised to reflect the following correction:

Correction: March 1, 2013

An article on Tuesday about a coming measles-rubella vaccination campaign in Rwanda misstated the source of the vaccine and some financing for the campaign. The vaccine and financing are being provided by the GAVI Alliance, not by the Measles and Rubella Initiative.

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Economic expansion weakest since 2011

The U.S. economy barely grew in the fourth quarter although a slightly better performance in exports and fewer imports led the government to scratch an earlier estimate that showed an economic contraction.

Gross domestic product expanded at a 0.1 percent annual rate, the Commerce Department said on Thursday, missing the 0.5 percent gain forecast by analysts in a Reuters poll.

The growth rate was the slowest since the first quarter of 2011 and far from what is needed to fuel a faster drop in the unemployment rate.

However, much of the weakness came from a slowdown in inventory accumulation and a sharp drop in military spending. These factors are expected to reverse in the first quarter.

Consumer spending was more robust by comparison, although it only expanded at a 2.1 percent annual rate.

Because household spending powers about 70 percent of national output, this still-lackluster pace of growth suggests underlying momentum in the economy was quite modest as it entered the first quarter, when significant fiscal tightening began.

Initially, the government had estimated the economy shrank at a 0.1 percent annual rate in the last three months of 2012. That had shocked economists.

Thursday's report showed the reasons for the decline were mostly as initially estimated. Inventories subtracted 1.55 percentage points from the GDP growth rate during the period, a little more of a drag than initially estimated. Defense spending plunged 22 percent, shaving 1.28 points off growth as in the previous estimate.

There were some relatively bright spots, however. Imports fell 4.5 percent during the period, which added to the overall growth rate because it was a larger drop than in the third quarter. Buying goods from foreigners bleeds money from the economy, subtracting from economic growth.

Also helping reverse the initial view of an economic contraction, exports did not fall as much during the period as the government had thought when it released its advance GDP estimate in January. Exports have been hampered by a recession in Europe, a cooling Chinese economy and storm-related port disruptions.

Excluding the volatile inventories component, GDP rose at a revised 1.7 percent rate, in line with expectations. These final sales of goods and services had been previously estimated to have increased at a 1.1 percent pace.

Business spending was revised to show more growth during the period than initially thought, adding about a percentage point to the growth rate.

Growth in home building was revised slightly higher to show a 17.5 percent annual rate. Residential construction is one of the brighter spots in the economy and is benefiting from the Federal Reserve's ultra easy monetary policy stance, which has driven mortgage rates to record lows. (Reporting by Jason Lange; Editing by Andrea Ricci)
 

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Ex-convict looks to be winner in 2nd District GOP squeaker

Republican voters are suggesting the 2nd Congressional District replace one felon with another after picking ex-convict Paul McKinley as the candidate to run for the seat recently ceded by former U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr.

While official results in the GOP special election will not be certified until next month, McKinley had a 23-vote lead over Eric Wallace, a multimedia company owner from Flossmoor, with all precincts reporting Wednesday.

McKinley, a convicted felon who served nearly 20 years in state prison for burglaries, armed robberies and aggravated battery, declared victory. Wallace, however, was not willing to concede, and he called the prospect of McKinley representing the GOP "an embarrassment."

McKinley is a frequent protester in Chicago with nearly a dozen arrests to prove it. His campaign mantra has been to rage against the machine. During candidate forums, McKinley has given passionate speeches blaming all of the district's woes on the long rule of the Democratic Party machine on the South Side and in the south suburbs.

"I was the only one in this party making the effort to rattle the saber against the machine," said McKinley, who would square off against Democrat Robin Kelly in the April 9 special election in a district that is overwhelmingly Democratic. "I think that's what resonated."

As McKinley celebrated his apparent victory, the state's Republican leadership was coming to grips with the fact that its party had just nominated someone with a long rap sheet to run in a district where the last three Democratic congressmen have left office amid scandal. That includes Jackson, who pleaded guilty last week to federal charges.

Pat Brady, the state's Republican chairman, had no comment Wednesday about McKinley's prospects. Privately, Republican leaders expressed dismay and concern. Given the historic Democratic leanings of the district, no national or state financial help from Republicans is likely, they said.

Wallace, who appears to have fallen just short for the GOP nomination, still holds out hope.

"We're waiting for all of the outstanding ballots to be tallied, including provisional as well as absentee," said Wallace, who lists a doctorate in biblical studies. "With it being this close, it wouldn't make a lot of sense not to wait for those to be counted. There could be 30, 40, 50 absentee ballots out there."

But in Cook County, there were just four such ballots. In Chicago there were three outstanding absentee or mail-in ballots and 67 provisional ballots. It's unclear how many of those provisional ballots were for the Republican primary, but very few GOP ballots were pulled in the city.

"He has that right, but he sounds a lot like Mitt Romney," McKinley said of Wallace's wait, alluding to Romney's delay in conceding victory in November to President Barack Obama.

Wallace expressed disappointment in the turnout, especially the low number of votes cast in Will and Kankakee counties, where he said many Republicans chose to cross over and vote in the Democratic primary to support Debbie Halvorson, who had opposed the president's proposed assault weapons ban.

"All they did was contribute to Robin Kelly winning, and now the Republican who is in the lead — and I've gotten to know Paul and like him — but Paul is a convicted felon," Wallace said. "If he ends up winning, it's just going to be an embarrassment for the Republican Party."

According to the Illinois Department of Corrections, McKinley was sentenced to concurrent three- and four-year sentences in 1978 for burglary and armed robbery in Cook County. In 1981 he was sentenced to four years for burglary, according to a prisons agency spokeswoman.

In 1985, McKinley was sentenced to five years for two counts of aggravated battery causing great bodily harm and 30 years for armed robbery. He was paroled in 1997, according to the state.

Two weeks ago, the Tribune asked the Cook County circuit court clerk's office to provide the old court records tied to those convictions. As of Wednesday, the records were not available. McKinley once again declined to discuss the convictions.

From 2003 through 2007, McKinley was arrested 11 times in the county for various offenses, most of them tied to protests. In many cases, the charges ultimately were dropped.

During a June 2005 bench trial, McKinley was found not guilty on two felony counts of threatening a public official. The case stemmed from a protest in which then-3rd Ward Ald. Dorothy Tillman accused McKinley of telling her to "take your country ass back to Mississippi. I'm going to get your country ass." McKinley insisted he was exercising his right to free speech and was acquitted, according to records.

In 2007, McKinley was sentenced to 20 hours of community service after being found guilty of disorderly conduct during a City Council meeting protest, records show. McKinley used a bullhorn to scream "profanity-laced statements" to aldermen as they were speaking, according a police report. Police arrested McKinley after he refused to stop banging on the glass window in the seating gallery overlooking the council chambers, records show.

McKinley also pleaded guilty to a June 2007 charge of criminal trespass to land. According to court records, he was asked to leave the Homan Square Foundation after his questions about the nonprofit's hiring procedures had been answered. The group advocates for the redevelopment of the West Side site that used to be Sears headquarters.

The candidate has not shied away from his arrest record during the campaign.

"I'm the ex-offender trying to save the next offender, and I believe Robin Kelly, she will become the next offender, too," McKinley said. "All of these next offenders in this district have been Democrats."

Kelly declined to be interviewed Wednesday.

bruthhart@tribune.com

rap30@aol.com

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New Attention to First Lady

CLINTON, Miss. — To her admirers, Michelle Obama is the patron saint of quinoa, charged with reducing the nation’s dangerous obesity rate and helping children eat better. To her detractors, she is the fun-killer, possessed with crushing America’s cookies.

But either way Mrs. Obama has taken her message once again on the road and is making clear that her campaign for healthy school lunches and fewer fat children will not be deterred.

“Now is truly the time to double down on our efforts,” she told state officials on Wednesday at an elementary school here, where she also entertained a giant group of students with a cooking contest in the cafeteria between school chefs and the celebrity food personality Rachael Ray.

Signaling that her “Let’s Move” campaign, now in its third year, will remain a central part of her own policy agenda, Mrs. Obama began a three-city tour to promote new federal school lunch policies, beginning here in Mississippi, where childhood obesity rates have fallen even as the overall rate remains the highest in the nation. “I am beyond thrilled to be back here in Mississippi,” Mrs. Obama said as lawmakers rose with their smartphones to snap photographs of her.

In 2011, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that nearly 40 percent of Mississippi residents were obese. But in 2007, with the blessing of Gov. Haley Barbour, the state began to attack the problem with legislation intended to reduce fat in school lunches and to increase exercise programs.

From 2005 to 2011, obesity declined 13.3 percent among elementary school children in the state, according to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Similar new federal standards for school lunches were set by the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act, which began in the current school year. Promoting that federal legislation, which has been relatively hard fought, is a centerpiece of Mrs. Obama’s campaign.

“Your schools did hard work, replaced their fryers with steamers, hallelujah, and started serving more fruits and vegetables and whole grains,” Mrs. Obama said. She added, “The results of these efforts speak for themselves.”

Ms. Ray, who has worked in the White House garden and championed the healthy eating of Mrs. Obama’s campaign, said that her interest in healthy food in schools stemmed from the notion that “every American needs to be concerned about the health of our nation’s kids.” The visit to the school here will be featured on her television program.

After meeting with adults, Mrs. Obama repaired to the school cafeteria for the school chef cook-off contest, where scores of children in red shirts, which matched the bowls of apples on the tables, waited for her arrival by talking, squirming and struggling to contain their excitement.

Mrs. Obama has attracted the praise of obesity experts, chefs, nutritionists and others who applaud her White House garden, her school lunch efforts and her focus on exercise, recently demonstrated in an appearance on NBC’s “Late Night With Jimmy Fallon” doing the “mom dance.” She has also found herself in the cross hairs of conservatives and other critics who see her efforts as meddlesome, frivolous or undignified.

Recently, Mrs. Obama has come under increased scrutiny after flying largely under the radar since the end of the 2012 presidential campaign. On Sunday, she announced the winner of the best picture award at the Oscars via satellite from the White House, which caused a minor national kerfuffle as some pondered the propriety of her appearance.

In The Washington Post on Wednesday, the columnist Courtland Milloy went on a full-frontal attack of both the first lady’s agenda and the attention to her appearance, which he implied she had invited. “Enough with the broccoli and Brussels sprouts,” he wrote, “to say nothing about all the attention paid to her arms, hair, derrière and designer clothes. Where is that intellectually gifted Princeton graduate, the Harvard-educated lawyer and mentor to the man who would become the first African-American president of the United States?”

Her dancing with middle school students, doing push-ups on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show,” running out for tapas with her girlfriends and clipping her locks into modern bangs both thrill and deeply annoy a nation that projects much onto its first ladies.

She will continue her tour on Thursday in Chicago, where she will announce a physical fitness initiative in schools with the tennis player Serena Williams and Education Secretary Arne Duncan. From there, Mrs. Obama will continue on to Missouri to promote adjustments in the food offerings at Walmart and discuss changes to other food businesses. She is traveling with Sam Kass, the senior policy adviser for her White House healthy food initiative.

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Groupon drops 24% on weak results, forecast

Groupon Inc., the Chicago-based daily deals website, offered up an earnings disappointment Wednesday after the market closed, and its stock price tumbled about 25 percent in after-hours trading.

The company posted a fourth-quarter net loss of $81.1 million, or 12 cents a share, missing consensus analyst estimates, which called for the company to earn 3 cents a share. Revenue for the quarter came in at $638 million, up 30 percent year-over-year and in line with estimates.

Lower margins associated with its Groupon Goods sales and higher marketing costs — taking a smaller cut from merchants to attract new business — were cited as factors contributing to the quarterly loss.

Andrew Mason, co-founder and chief executive of Groupon, pointed a finger overseas as the primary cause.

"It was continued volatility in our international business that drove the weaker-than-expected profitability in the quarter," Mason said during the earnings call Wednesday. "We still have much work to do to bring our international operations to the same level of those in North America."

The company lost $67.4 million for the year, or 10 cents a share, on revenue of $2.33 billion. Projections for first-quarter revenue between $560 million and $610 million fell below consensus estimates of $655 million. The disappointing earnings and tepid forecast sent Groupon's share price plunging from nearly $6 down to about $4.40 in after-hours trading.

Launched in 2008, Chicago-based Groupon created its own e-commerce niche with heavily discounted daily deals blasted out to subscribers via email. While targeting has become more sophisticated, growth has slowed and with it, investor enthusiasm.

The company has set out to reinvent itself, introducing search-driven deals stockpiled with ongoing offerings, and continuing to build out its own store, Groupon Goods, which sells everything from orthopedic pet beds to diamond tennis bracelets at a discount. Those initiatives have yet to make much of a dent on the bottom line.

Groupon shares hit an intraday low of $2.60 in November but rebounded after Tiger Global Management, a New York-based hedge fund, acquired a 10 percent stake in the company.

That same month, Groupon rolled out its local marketplace in Chicago and New York, a bank of thousands of ongoing deals that the company called an "evolutionary step" toward demand shopping. Customers who search online for everything from Mexican restaurants to Brazilian waxes will see relevant active deals offered by Groupon, hopefully pulling them to the site to fulfill their purchases.

While still a small part of Groupon's sales, it represents a big shift from its familiar push model, where daily deal emails fill inboxes with hit-or-miss offerings, to a pull dynamic where customers come to its sites in search of a variety of products and services.

Mason said Wednesday that the shift will ultimately pay dividends for Groupon and its investors.

"We just believe that the potential of a local marketplace business, where you can fulfill demand instead of shocking people into buy(ing) something they had no intention to buy when they woke up in the morning … it's just a much larger business opportunity," Mason said.

Analysts remain mixed about Groupon's prospects to evolve the business model beyond its core daily deals.

Edward Woo, senior research analyst at Ascendiant Capital Markets, has a "sell" rating and a $2.50 price target on the stock. He remains cautious because of slowing growth in the company's daily deals business, and he is not convinced that Groupon Goods, which accounted for $225 million in fourth-quarter revenue, is such a good idea.

"There's only a couple really big, successful e-commerce companies out there, Amazon being the biggest," Woo said Tuesday. "If you were to place your bets, do you really think that Groupon can take on Amazon? Most people would say no."

While not quite bullish, Evercore Partners analyst Ken Sena sees encouraging signs from Groupon's new searchable local marketplace and improving mobile engagement, upgrading the stock two weeks ago from "conviction sell" to "underweight," with a $5 price target, before the earnings report Wednesday.

"There are a couple of things we're encouraged by as we look at the overall story," Sena said Tuesday. "The fact that traction on mobile seems to be really strong, and growth within (their) local marketplace. I think that's an important overall business model evolution as the company moves from a push-based model to a pull-based model."

Arvind Bhatia, senior research analyst at Sterne Agee, recently upgraded Groupon to a "buy" with a $9 price target, citing the local marketplace initiative as a driver for long-term growth.

"Groupon has become synonymous with discounts," Bhatia said Tuesday. "The initial years were all about sending that email and letting you know there's a hot deal and it's going to expire soon. I don't think it's a bad thing to combine the push email with the pull."

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Winter storm: Lingering snow could mean messy commute

Tom updates Tuesday's storm. (WGN - Chicago)

The storm that struck in midmorning had socked the Chicago area with the season's biggest snowfall by Tuesday evening and was expected to drop another inch or two as it lingers through Wednesday, forecasters said.

That means the morning rush hour could be a bit messy, though it shouldn't be nearly as bad as Tuesday evening's commute was for motorists like Bob Reed, of Geneva. Speaking from a cellphone as he crawled west on Interstate 90, Reed blamed sloppy drivers more than sloppy roads.

"When it snows like this, it's like there are no traffic laws at all," Reed said. "Normally we have very aggressive drivers, but now we've got people going the wrong way down one-way streets, people jumping out of line to pass you."

The northern suburbs were hit hardest Tuesday, with Gurnee in Lake County reporting 10 inches of accumulation and Beach Park, also in Lake County, reporting 9.5 inches.

By 10 p.m., 4.2 inches had fallen at O'Hare International Airport, according to the National Weather Service. That brought the official total for the season to 17.8 inches, and February's total to 14.3 inches.

Many city and suburban schools closed early and canceled sports games and practices. By 9 p.m., more than 500 departing flights had been canceled at O'Hare and Midway airports, with about the same number of arrivals also canceled, according to FlightStats, which gathers data from airports and airlines.

Cars and buses slid into ditches and crashed into each other on slick roads. The Illinois Tollway and Chicago's Department of Streets and Sanitation dispatched their full fleets of snowplows and salt trucks.

Snow fell at about 2 inches an hour in some northern suburbs. Any snow Wednesday or the rest of the week won't be nearly that intense, said meteorologist Casey Sullivan of the National Weather Service. Leaving early for the morning commute, however, won't be a bad idea, he said.

In a winter of sparse snowfall, some welcomed the storm with enthusiasm — particularly those who stand to profit from it. James Koch, the owner of Jimbo's Plowing Service in Tinley Park, said the snow was a gift in a winter that's been a bust for plow truck drivers.

Koch bought a new truck and plow after the record snowfall during the 2011 Groundhog Day blizzard. Since then he has failed to realize the returns he expected on his investment, he said.

"It ain't like what it used to be," Koch said. "Chicago always had a good snowfall, and now we're not getting snow until January. If you don't get a big snow in December in this business, you're basically playing catch-up all year."

The snow also gave fresh life to plans for winter recreation. Gloria Morison, of Highland Park, was at a brunch Tuesday morning when she saw the first flakes fall. She said she immediately started making plans to try out a new pair of cross country skis, thinking she could go down her street before the plows came to get to the Green Bay Trail.

Chicago Transit Authority buses had a hard time navigating some roads Tuesday. A few buses got stuck near North Stockton Drive and West Dickens Avenue, police said.

"Obviously, we're advising operators to drive with caution," CTA spokeswoman Lambrini Lukidis said.

With snow forecast to fall periodically Wednesday and Thursday, drivers should continue to heed that advice, said Sullivan of the weather service. Even after the storm passes there could be more in store, with unrelated lake-effect snow possible Friday, he said.

"We'll see."

Tribune reporters Ryan Haggerty and Naomi Nix contributed.

ehirst@tribune.com

jhuston@tribune.com

agrimm@tribune.com

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Advanced Breast Cancer May Be Rising Among Young Women, Study Finds

The incidence of advanced breast cancer among younger women, ages 25 to 39, may have increased slightly over the last three decades, according to a study released Tuesday.

But more research is needed to verify the finding, which was based on an analysis of statistics, the study’s authors said. They do not know what may have caused the apparent increase.

Some outside experts questioned whether the increase was real, and expressed concerns that the report would frighten women needlessly.

The study, published in The Journal of the American Medical Association, found that advanced cases climbed to 2.9 per 100,000 younger women in 2009, from 1.53 per 100,000 women in 1976 — an increase of 1.37 cases per 100,000 women in 34 years. The totals were about 250 such cases per year in the mid-1970s, and more than 800 per year in 2009.

Though small, the increase was statistically significant, and the researchers said it was worrisome because it involved cancer that had already spread to organs like the liver or lungs by the time it was diagnosed, which greatly diminishes the odds of survival.

For now, the only advice the researchers can offer to young women is to see a doctor quickly if they notice lumps, pain or other changes in the breast, and not to assume that they cannot have breast cancer because they are young and healthy, or have no family history of the disease.

“Breast cancer can and does occur in younger women,” said Dr. Rebecca H. Johnson, the first author of the study and medical director of the adolescent and young adult oncology program at Seattle Children’s Hospital.

But Dr. Johnson noted that there is no evidence that screening helps younger women who have an average risk for the disease and no symptoms. “We’re certainly not advocating that young women get mammography at an earlier age than is generally specified,” she said.

Expert groups differ about when screening should begin; some say at age 40, others 50.

Breast cancer is not common in younger women; only 1.8 percent of all cases are diagnosed in women from 20 to 34, and 10 percent in women from 35 to 44. However, when it does occur, the disease tends to be more deadly in younger women than in older ones. Researchers are not sure why.

The researchers analyzed data from SEER, a program run by the National Cancer Institute to collect cancer statistics on 28 percent of the population of the United States. The study also used data from the past when SEER was smaller.

The study is based on information from 936,497 women who had breast cancer from 1976 to 2009. Of those, 53,502 were 25 to 39 years old, including 3,438 who had advanced breast cancer, also called metastatic or distant disease.

Younger women were the only ones in whom metastatic disease seemed to have increased, the researchers found.

Dr. Archie Bleyer, a clinical research professor in radiation medicine at the Knight Cancer Institute at the Oregon Health and Science University in Portland who helped write the study, said scientists needed to verify the increase in advanced breast cancer in young women in the United States and find out whether it is occurring in other developed Western countries. “This is the first report of this kind,” he said, adding that researchers had already asked colleagues in Canada to analyze data there.

“We need this to be sure ourselves about this potentially concerning, almost alarming trend,” Dr. Bleyer said. “Then and only then are we really worried about what is the cause, because we’ve got to be sure it’s real.”

Dr. Johnson said her own experience led her to look into the statistics on the disease in young women. She had breast cancer when she was 27; she is now 44. Over the years, friends and colleagues often referred young women with the disease to her for advice.

“It just struck me how many of those people there were,” she said.

Dr. Donald A. Berry, an expert on breast cancer data and a professor of biostatistics at the University of Texas’ M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, said he was dubious about the finding, even though it was statistically significant, because the size of the apparent increase was so small — 1.37 cases per 100,000 women, over the course of 30 years.

More screening and more precise tests to identify the stage of cancer at the time of diagnosis might account for the increase, he said.

“Not many women aged 25 to 39 get screened, but some do, but it only takes a few to account for a notable increase from one in 100,000,” Dr. Berry said.

Dr. Silvia C. Formenti, a breast cancer expert and the chairwoman of radiation oncology at New York University Langone Medical Center, questioned the study in part because although it found an increased incidence of advanced disease, it did not find the accompanying increase in deaths that would be expected.

A spokeswoman for an advocacy group for young women with breast cancer, Young Survival Coalition, said the organization also wondered whether improved diagnostic and staging tests might explain all or part of the increase.

“We’re looking at this data with caution,” said the spokeswoman, Michelle Esser. “We don’t want to invite panic or alarm.”

She said it was important to note that the findings applied only to women who had metastatic disease at the time of diagnosis, and did not imply that women who already had early-stage cancer faced an increased risk of advanced disease.

Dr. J. Leonard Lichtenfeld
, deputy chief medical officer of the American Cancer Society, said he and an epidemiologist for the society thought the increase was real.

“We want to make sure this is not oversold or that people suddenly get very frightened that we have a huge problem,” Dr. Lichtenfeld said. “We don’t. But we are concerned that over time, we might have a more serious problem than we have today.”

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What's next for revitalized Chicago Loop?

Michael Edwards has only been in town for a few months, but the new executive director of the Chicago Loop Alliance says the warm reception he's getting makes him feel part of something distinctly Chicago.

There's the strong handshake upon meeting. Direct eye contact. A hearty "Welcome to Chicago," he notes. "It's really a dynamic thing," Edwards says with a laugh. "I get it all the time."

A Buffalo, N.Y., native who took the role in November, Edwards arrived at a crucial time for the alliance, which is charged with representing downtown businesses and promoting the area as a destination to live, work and play. On the rebound from the Great Recession, the Loop is aiming to solidify its place as a hub for businesses, retail and residents — from college students to urban professionals to empty nesters who seek easy access to transportation, Millennium Park and museums.

But the return hasn't been easy. During the economic downturn, vacancies shot up, but a rash of new apartments are under construction in downtown Chicago. Target Corp. filled the long-empty Carson Pirie Scott & Co. storefront with its new urban format on State Street in July, and a few blocks up The Gap will open a new store in the spring. State Street's crown jewel, Block 37, is still trying to land a big tenant to drive more foot traffic to the mall.

Now that vacancies are declining and rents are climbing, Edwards and other civic leaders are aiming to figure out what's next for the business district and State Street retail corridor.

At its annual meeting Tuesday, Edwards and the Chicago Loop Alliance announced development of a five-year strategic plan aimed at clarifying the organization's role in economic development, housing, transportation, tourism, culture and services in the Loop. It's the first ever in the organization's history.

The process will tap input from business owners, elected officials, civic leaders and alliance board members, said Edwards, who held similar positions in Pittsburgh and Spokane, Wash. He replaced executive director Ty Tabing, who left in the summer to head up an economic development organization in Singapore.

The strategic planning process is under way, and a draft is due in June. Oakland, Calif.- based MIG Inc. was hired to assist in developing the new strategy.

With the Loop moving in the right direction, it's time to shift gears and ask residents and business owners what they think of its opportunities and challenges, as well as the role of the alliance, Edwards says.

The need for a new plan is driven in part by Edwards' arrival, but also by the fact that the State Street special service area, one of 44 local tax districts that fund expanded services and programs with a property tax levy, is up for renewal in 2016. The State Street SSA collects about $2.5 million annually.

Part of the planning process will include determining whether the SSA, which is administered by the Chicago Loop Alliance and pays for such services as public way maintenance and district marketing, security and economic development, should be expanded to encompass all of the Loop's business and retail districts, including Dearborn Street and Wabash Avenue as well as North Michigan Avenue, he said.

No decisions have been yet, Edwards said. "We're pretty focused on State Street, but can we provide that level of service to other areas?" he said.

Edwards said the new strategy will also determine whether the alliance, which has an annual budget of about $3.4 million, should take on a larger role as an advocate for the Loop.

"We have a website that's all about our members that gets about 10,000 hits a year, and we need about 2 million hits a year. And we need to control the narrative about what's going on downtown," he said.

With other local organizations such as Choose Chicago and World Business Chicago tasked with touting the region, "Is there a role for us to amplify this notion that we're an authentic American city that's an economic engine for the region?" asked Edwards. "Is there a role for the CLA to help promote that or not?"

If the new focus of the alliance has yet to be determined, Edwards has few opinions. Any new partnerships with other local groups, he said, will have to be formed "organically."

And he predicts the alliance's focus will likely shift to "typical downtown management duties — keeping the area safe and clean," coupled with "a little more economic development sensibility as opposed to an arts sensibility," he said.

For years, the Chicago Loop Alliance has run the PopUp Art Loop program in which public art was showcased in vacant storefronts. But the number of empty retail spaces along State Street has been cut in half, to about six, Edwards said.

Now that State Street has evolved, it's time the alliance's role evolved too, according to officials.

"We're seeing a lot of tremendous opportunities for growth in the Loop, whether it's in retail, new companies coming downtown, new residents or tourism," said Martin Stern, executive vice president and managing director at US Equities Realty and board chairman of the Chicago Loop Alliance.

Added Edwards: "There's a sort of feeling that we need to be more focused, provide more value, provide more leadership."

crshropshire@tribune.com

Twitter @corilyns

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Blackhawks win in overtime, extend streak to 19

Nikolai Khabibulin stumbled coming out of the tunnel from the Oilers' dressing room to start the second period before steadying himself on the bench and taking the ice.

Then the Oilers goaltender was tripped up by the Blackhawks, and the longest streak in NHL history to start a season without a regulation loss lives on at 19.

Marian Hossa scored the winner in overtime to lift the Hawks to a 3-2 victory over the Oilers on Monday night at the United Center. Patrick Kane and Viktor Stalberg had goals in regulation and Ray Emery earned the win in goal as the Hawks improved to 16-0-3 this season. Dating to last season, they have gone 25 consecutive games with at least one point.

Jeff Petry and Nail Yakupov scored for the Oilers, who kicked off a 17-day, nine-game trip with the loss.

The Oilers came out with the speed and determination they displayed last season against the Hawks when they won three of four games with a 24-15 goal advantage. Emery was tested early but came up big when he dropped to his pads to smother an attempt from the slot by Ales Hemsky.

A delay-of-game penalty on Magnus Paajarvi for flipping the puck into the stands produced offense from both sides. Edmonton got on the board while short-handed as Lennart Petrell raced into the Hawks' zone on a breakaway after defenseman Duncan Keith fell down. Emery made a strong save on Petrell's attempt, but the rebound was ripe for the picking and Petry fired it into the open net.

With time running out in the penalty, the Hawks displayed the resiliency that has been a key to their points streak as Kane worked his way into the slot and slid a backhander past Khabibulin for his 10th goal of the season and a 1-1 tie.

Later in the first, Emery kept it even when he stoned Corey Potter from in close with the Oilers on the power play.

In the second, Daniel Carcillo, who was the most physical player on the ice for both sides with booming hits throughout the game, had a chance offensively from the slot but couldn't solve Khabibulin.

Brandon Saad's second penalty of the game for the Hawks led to the Oilers' second goal. Edmonton moved the puck nicely and Sam Gagner hit an open Yakupov with a pass and the rookie unloaded a one-timer past Emery.

Stalberg pulled the Hawks even early in the third when he stuffed a shot under the pad of Khabibulin from the crease. A video review confirmed the puck crossed the line and the score was 2-2.

The close game was nothing new to the Hawks, who entered the game with a 9-0-3 mark in one-goal games.

"The whole league is close," coach Joel Quenneville said. "When you aren't playing … you're watching and it's a one-goal night and you're hoping it's not a three-point game. Everybody keeps themselves in games."

ckuc@tribune.com

Twitter @ChrisKuc

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Oscars telecast review: Guys, it’s not about you

NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) – Would it shock you to learn that this year’s Oscars producers also produced “Chicago“? Not at all? OK.

Self-referencing was the order of the evening Sunday at an overstuffed Oscars telecast where host Seth MacFarlane and producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron decided the ceremony was All About Them.

That was the only explanation for a lengthy opening sequence centered on how MacFarlane would fare as host, and numerous reminders throughout the show of how much we all enjoyed “Chicago.”

Thanks, guys, but we kind of took care of praising “Chicago” when it won Best Picture in 2002.

The Oscars are always a treasure trove of hilarious narcissism – it’s inherently obnoxious to hear some of the richest and best-looking people alive praise one another and themselves.

This year had plenty of the usual silliness – as when best supporting actor Christoph Waltz praised Quentin Tarantino for going on a “hero’s journey” to make films. And it won’t exactly reduce Hollywood’s sense of self-importance that no less than Michelle Obama handed out the Best Picture. (“Argo” won.)

Inflated egos are to be expected. But we can usually count on the producers and host to share the spotlight. Not so this year.

You can’t really blame MacFarlane for turning the opening into a “Family Guy” episode, with all of his show’s requisite pop culture references, parody songs and gay panic jokes. MacFarlane brought in William Shatner to play Captain Kirk critiquing the show from the future.

The “Ted” director and star made it all of eight minutes before his first gay joke. He sang a song about actresses’ “boobs” with the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles, then clarified that he isn’t a member.

“Oh, trust me,” Captain Kirk said from the future. “In July 2015, you join the chorus.”

The theme of the night was celebrating musicals, but it was hard to find anything else consistent about the ceremony. Like many an overstuffed blockbuster, the three-and-a-half-hour show refused to leave anything out.

Studio slates are so dominated by CGI monstrosities that Oscar voters now nominate pretty much every grown-up movie they see for Best Picture. Rather than make hard decisions, they give us a grab bag.

And so we get extended ceremonies like this one, which somehow always manage to cull names from the “In Memoriam” segment, but not boring parts of the show. Key figures like the host and producers are allowed to protect their vanity pieces, and viewers just have to deal.

We were occasionally rewarded for our patience. Shirley Bassey and Adele gave spectacular performances of Bond songs from five decades apart. Jennifer Hudson delivered another excellent rendition of “And I Am Telling You I Am Not Going” from “Dreamgirls.” And we learned that Channing Tatum and Charlize Theron are good dancers.

But of course they are.

Catherine Zeta Jones did a commendable job on “All That Jazz” from “Chicago” – but couldn’t we have left it at that? The producers also reunited their cast as presenters – to remind us once again how much we apparently still cherish their decade-old film.

Near the end of the ceremony, Tarantino made his hero’s journey to the stage to accept his well-deserved award for Best Original Screenplay and remind us of the importance of writers.

One thing the best writers do is keep it short. Maybe next year should be a tribute to writers.

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Horse Meat in European Beef Raises Questions on U.S. Exposure

The alarm in Europe over the discovery of horse meat in beef products escalated again Monday, when the Swedish furniture giant Ikea withdrew an estimated 1,670 pounds of meatballs from sale in 14 European countries.

Ikea acted after authorities in the Czech Republic detected horse meat in its meatballs. The company said it had made the decision even though its tests two weeks ago did not detect horse DNA.

Horse meat mixed with beef was first found last month in Ireland, then Britain, and has now expanded steadily across the Continent. The situation in Europe has created unease among American consumers over whether horse meat might also find its way into the food supply in the United States. Here are answers to commonly asked questions on the subject.

Has horse meat been found in any meatballs sold in Ikea stores in the United States?

Ikea says there is no horse meat in the meatballs it sells in the United States. The company issued a statement on Monday saying meatballs sold in its 38 stores in the United States were bought from an American supplier and contained beef and pork from animals raised in the United States and Canada.

“We do not tolerate any other ingredients than the ones stipulated in our recipes or specifications, secured through set standards, certifications and product analysis by accredited laboratories,” Ikea said in its statement.

Mona Liss, a spokeswoman for Ikea, said by e-mail that all of the businesses that supply meat to its meatball maker  issue letters guaranteeing that they will not misbrand or adulterate their products. “Additionally, as an abundance of caution, we are in the process of DNA-testing our meatballs,” Ms. Liss wrote. “Results should be concluded in 30 days.”

Does the United States import any beef from countries where horse meat has been found?

No. According to the Department of Agriculture, the United States imports no beef from any of the European countries involved in the scandal. Brian K. Mabry, a spokesman for the department’s Food Safety and Inspection Service, said: “Following a decision by Congress in November 2011 to lift the ban on horse slaughter, two establishments, one located in New Mexico and one in Missouri, have applied for a grant of inspection exclusively for equine slaughter. The Food Safety and Inspection Service (F.S.I.S.) is currently reviewing those applications.”

Has horse meat been found in ground meat products sold in the United States?

No. Meat products sold in the United States must pass Department of Agriculture inspections, whether produced domestically or imported. No government financing has been available for inspection of horse meat for human consumption in the United States since 2005, when the Humane Society of the United States got a rider forbidding financing for inspection of horse meat inserted in the annual appropriations bill for the Agriculture Department. Without inspection, such plants may not operate legally.

The rider was attached to every subsequent agriculture appropriations bill until 2011, when it was left out of an omnibus spending bill signed by President Obama on Nov. 18. The U.S.D.A.  has not committed any money for the inspection of horse meat.

“We’re real close to getting some processing plants up and running, but there are no inspectors because the U.S.D.A. is working on protocols,” said Dave Duquette, a horse trader in Oregon and president of United Horsemen, a small group that works to retrain and rehabilitate unwanted horses and advocates the slaughter of horses for meat. “We believe very strongly that the U.S.D.A. is going to bring inspectors online directly.”

Are horses slaughtered for meat for human consumption in the United States?

Not currently, although live horses from the United States are exported to slaughterhouses in Canada and Mexico. The lack of inspection effectively ended the slaughter of horse meat for human consumption in the United States; 2007 was the last year horses were slaughtered in the United States. At the time financing of inspections was banned, a Belgian company operated three horse meat processing plants — in Fort Worth and Kaufman, Tex., and DeKalb, Ill. — but exported the meat it produced in them.

Since 2011, efforts have been made to re-establish the processing of horse meat for human consumption in the United States. A small plant in Roswell, N.M., which used to process beef cattle into meat has been retooled to slaughter 20 to 25 horses a day. But legal challenges have prevented it from opening, Mr. Duquette said. Gov. Susana Martinez of New Mexico opposes opening the plant and has asked the U.S.D.A. to block it.

Last month, the two houses of the Oklahoma Legislature passed separate bills to override a law against the slaughter of horses for meat but kept the law’s ban on consumption of such meat by state residents. California, Illinois, New Jersey, Tennessee and Texas prohibit horse slaughter for human consumption.

Is there a market for horse meat in the United States?

Mr. Duquette said horse meat was popular among several growing demographic groups in the United States, including Tongans, Mongolians and various Hispanic populations. He said he knew of at least 10 restaurants that wanted to buy horse meat. “People are very polarized on this issue,” he said. Wayne Pacelle, chief executive of the Humane Society of the United States, disagreed, saying demand in the United States was limited. Italy is the largest consumer of horse meat, he said, followed by France and Belgium.

Is horse meat safe to eat?

That is a matter of much debate between proponents and opponents of horse meat consumption. Mr. Duquette said that horse meat, some derived from American animals processed abroad, was eaten widely around the world without health problems. “It’s high in protein, low in fat and has a whole lot of omega 3s,” he said.

The Humane Society says that because horse meat is not consumed in the United States, the animals’ flesh is likely to contain residues of many drugs that are unsafe for humans to eat. The organization’s list of drugs given to horses runs to 29 pages.

“We’ve been warning the Europeans about this for years,” Mr. Pacelle said. “You have all these food safety standards in Europe — they do not import chicken carcasses from the U.S. because they are bathed in chlorine, and won’t take pork because of the use of ractopamine in our industry — but you’ve thrown out the book when it comes to importing horse meat from North America.”

The society has filed petitions with the Department of Agriculture and Food and Drug Administration, arguing that they should test horse meat before allowing it to be marketed in the United States for humans to eat.

This article has been revised to reflect the following correction:

Correction: February 25, 2013

An earlier version of this article misstated how many pounds of meatballs Ikea was withdrawing from sale in 14 European countries. It is 1,670 pounds, not 1.67 billion pounds.

This article has been revised to reflect the following correction:

Correction: February 25, 2013

An earlier version of this article misstated the last year that horses were slaughtered in the United States. It is 2007, not 2006.

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