Predicting the Fallout

Now that the dream is dead, there are quite a few questions on every one's minds. Some have popped up in the comments. Some are being bandied about at a local watering hole we frequent to enjoy non alcoholic refreshments. Some of it is roll call talk.

• Since the City doesn't need a few thousand rifle-trained cops for an Olympic event, will the rifle program be canceled?

We imagine that this would be a tremendous "F.U." by Daley to the CPD. He's going to be looking for scapegoats and here's the Police Department all ready and waiting to be kicked around. We wouldn't put a thing past him.

• The unions, specifically the Laborers, granted Shortshanks the ability to re-open their contracts at any time in the next few years. What happens now?

Odds are that Daley will re-open these contracts very shortly. Channel 7 is reporting the budget deficit is closing on $600 million. There's no way Shortshanks can balance this thing with $600 million in new taxes. We imagine he's going to double the unpaid days for non-union workers and double the layoffs for the unions. He's trapped because he made a whole lot of promises for Olympic-related construction work to keep the peace and that's evaporated.

• How much was spent on the Michael Reese land? How much was spent on posters, handouts, school material, fake crowds in Daley Plaza, etc.

We imagine a lot of this is going to come to the fore as "investigative reporting." The media smells blood and Shortshanks has lost a rather large battle. The businesses that were soaked for Millennium Park also coughed up for Olympic material. They're tapped out and probably not feeling to much loyalty to a weakened mayor. We can only hope.

• "reverend" land speculators? Connected business people? Insider deals? All that land around Douglas Park and Washington Park?
  

Again, we'll hear the stories. The media might grab a few. We'll see.

• All the cash generating assets have been sold for a pipe dream. Now what?

Now the taxpayers take it in the shorts. Plain and simple. Watch for middle class flight to take off in the next year or so. The economy isn't recovering, the housing market is still softer than goose droppings, manufacturing is taking a beating. Big cities can't operate in a "business as usual" type setting and Exhibit A is Chicago.

• Where does the casino go now? And who has the contracts?

The million dollar question. It will all become clear shortly.

And as far as we can tell, there is no "zero tolerance" mission being run against citizens of Brazil.