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Kyle Hillman: Marriage Equality Will Be the Illinois Moderate Litmus Test

2013-05-21T22:53:18Z

There is very little doubt regarding the political leanings of a majority in the State of Illinois. It's a solid blue state with an overwhelming number of voters identifying themselves as strong or lean Democrat which is ever growing even beyond the stronghold of Chicago. Yet, even with this statistical advantage, the state elected Republican politicians like U.S. Senator Mark Kirk, Treasurer Dan Rutherford, and Comptroller Judy Bar Topinka from a statewide ballot. One thing all of these candidates have in common: They present themselves as moderates in their party.

Which is where the marriage equality issue comes intricately into play in Illinois. No issue has moved as quickly as support for equal protection for gay couples to marry, across all spectrums of the political landscape. None.

A recent Gallup poll has gay marriage support in the U.S. around 53 percent up from 27 percent support in just 1996. In Illinois, a recent poll, from the Paul Simon Institute, showed comparable results in that a majority of Illinois residents now support gay marriage, a sharp increase from a similar poll taken just three years prior.

Illinois is obviously not alone. Minnesota recently joined eleven other states making gay marriage legal and polls announced in the last week put Arizona, Virginia, and even Michigan as states with a new majority support. Michigan is even more surprising in that in just 2004, they passed a ban on gay marriage and according to a recent Glen Gariff Inc. poll 54 percent approve of a repeal.

With a looming vote here in the Illinois House, SB10 is going to force conservative legislators in the state to choose to support this societal shift toward equal marriage or else risk being labeled extreme and out of touch in future statewide races. One only has to look to the most recent gubernatorial race to see how the politics of association and fear work in non-presidential elections in Illinois.

I still contend that had the Illinois GOP not barely selected the heavily conservative leaning Senator Bill Brady, Illinois's Governor Mansion would be currently under GOP control. Select Brady they did, and the flailing Pat Quinn campaign (with a huge assist from Personal PAC) was able to define the downstate senator as the extreme anti-women conservative and by the slimmest of margins Governor Quinn won his first full term in office. They achieved this using an issue that had very little movement and had well established biases. Equal marriage doesn't have that inherent risk of motivating your opposition anymore, the needle for support is swiftly moving toward equality or at minimum an indifference toward the issue. The younger electorate see it as their battle for fairness, the older are more and more coming along.

Democrats in the state will be looking to replicate that effort with whichever candidate emerges from what is bound to be a rough GOP primary. With growing support even among their own conservative party, there will be no greater issue to define an opponent (and in doing so feed into the "GOP is out of touch" narrative) than equal marriage.

Trapped between a Tea Party electorate energized by former Illinois GOP congressman Joe Walsh and the apparent purging that was Senator Oberweis's crusade against (gay marriage supporting) former Illinois GOP Chair Pat Brady and you get very little room to maneuver. As gay marriage support numbers continue to accelerate, being able to support equal marriage and win a conservative primary is going to be the challenge a few ambitious representatives are going to have to take. It is also quite possible the Illinois GOP could have a serious contender who happens to be gay make a run at the 2014 Governor's chair, a situation that will make the upcoming vote and the rhetoric that comes with it even more intriguing.

It won't just be at the top of the ticket either, everything from Attorney General to Comptroller could be competitive and a legislator's equality stance could be the deciding factor to whether or not the suburban voter and the moderate Chicago voter can trust and relate to the candidate and ultimately "pull the lever."

Think it is just a conservative problem? Think again. Downstate Democrats are already looked upon within an aura of distrust statewide and minority candidates (looking to appeal to multi-cultural populations) who oppose equal marriage are going to find attracting any semblance of votes outside their community even more challenging than it already is.

It is with a sense of irony that I read that the voice of several recent anti-gay marriage robocalls to constituents of black caucus members was that of former State Senator Reverend Meeks. The former champion of voucher school education and poverty assistance in Chicago saw his efforts to become Chicago's second black mayor come to a screeching halt when it was reported that in 2006 he called homosexuality "an evil sickness." I constantly remind politicians what enthralls at the alter scares on the northern lakefront (and for that matter the suburbs).

With a vote upcoming any day now in Springfield and a Supreme Court decision that is likely to be less than an all-out victory for equal marriage, the issue won't be going away as some have hoped. For those in religiously organized districts and/or conservative districts the issue probably hasn't evolved fast enough to make the decision easy. Even if a legislator can't come to understand the fairness aspect of the issue, they must understand the political ramifications for not voting affirmatively will likely end or at least make incredibly unlikely future political advancement in Illinois.

Of course members without forward ambitions should be relatively safe in deep red or religiously organized districts in the state, but very few elected officials will tell you they aren't looking forward, and those that do are mostly lying.

Henry Henderson: Illinois Fracking Update

2013-05-21T22:20:12Z

The fracking debate is heating up in Illinois—as it needs to since it is becoming abundantly clear that fracking may have begun in this state. With almost no laws in place to protect the public from the known—and very scary—dangers associated with the controversial oil and gas extraction technology, communities across Illinois are in harm’s way. And with more than a quarter million acres of leases bought up by the industry in recent months, that danger is acute. The Illinois General Assembly is running out of time to take action to protect its citizens.

This state is not anywhere near ready for fracking and we do not think it should be allowed to move forward. But since hydraulic fracturing is legal in Illinois right now, immediate protections are critical. Under existing law, anyone with $100 can apply for a permit to drill and the state is obliged to give permission within 48 hours; there is no discretion to say no. That means Illinoisans are at risk today and we simply cannot allow that to continue. And that risk is not a paranoid hypothetical. Although the weak laws on the books provide very little information about what is happening on the ground, our information indicates that high-volume fracking has likely already started happening.

Of course, the best protection is not to frack at all. We worked hard last year to support a moratorium on fracking in Illinois, and we still would like to see a moratorium in place to give the state an opportunity to fully evaluate fracking, assess its public health impacts, and identify actions necessary to prevent harm. We have said the same thing in New York. We’ve said it before here. And we are repeating it now.

But should the moratorium not pass, this state simply must have rules in place to protect its citizens immediately. This is why NRDC and the Illinois environmental community took part in negotiations of the regulatory bill also in play in the General Assembly—to get what protections we can against this immediate threat in place now, while we continue the fight.

While not a comprehensive solution, and a far cry from perfect, the regulatory bill contains some crucial protections that citizens wouldn’t otherwise have. This includes giving them access to the courts, public disclosure of chemicals, assumption of fracker liability if water is contaminated, mandated water testing and strict wastewater management requirements. But make no mistake, there are still deficiencies and this bill won’t make fracking “safe.” As a negotiated bill, it still lacks many things we think are necessary including provisions for local community control over fracking, shoring up Illinois’ disposal well rules, as well as stronger setbacks to protect people’s health. We intend to continue pressing all of these issues and more, while in the meantime focusing on getting protections in place for communities in danger right now. We’re sending the oil and gas industry a strong message that we will not sit back and let them operate freely in the shadows, leaving Illinoisans to suffer the consequences.

This post originally appeared on NRDC's Switchboard blog.

Lawmakers: Gov't Fully Equipped To Handle Tornado Disaster Recovery

2013-05-21T22:08:30Z

WASHINGTON -- Top lawmakers and officials said Tuesday that the federal government has plenty of money on hand to pay for recovery efforts in the wake of the devastating tornado that struck Oklahoma.

The government has more than $11 billion in its main disaster relief fund. Recovery costs in the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore are expected to be a relatively small fraction of that amount. The devastating 2011 tornado that wiped out much of Joplin, Mo., for instance, required about $750 million in federal disaster aid.

Top lawmakers on Capitol Hill agreed that there's no immediate need for additional disaster aid.

"We'll do what we have to do, but we have a pretty hefty amount of money in the disaster relief fund," said House Appropriations Committee Chairman Harold Rogers, R-Ky. "We're not faced with an immediate need for a supplemental," agreed Rep. David Price, D-N.C., top Democrat on the Appropriations Homeland Security Subcommittee.

Nonetheless, some news outlets and those on social networks like Twitter rushed to speculate that Oklahoma politicians would face political problems in obtaining aid for their state – or accusations of hypocrisy for seeking such aid after voting against legislation in January to help Democratic-leaning Eastern states recover from Superstorm Sandy.

Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., for instance, was quoted as saying he thought any aid for Oklahoma should be financed with cuts elsewhere in the budget. He and most other Oklahoma Republicans voted against January's disaster relief bill, though Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., whose home is very close to the Oklahoma disaster site, voted for it.

Spokesman John Hart says it's a position Coburn has consistently held regarding federal spending on disasters dating to the 1995 bombing of a federal building in Oklahoma City.

A House panel is slated Wednesday to approve a homeland security funding bill making a routine $6.2 billion infusion into the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Disaster Relief Fund, which finances immediate recovery efforts like debris removal and temporary housing for people displaced by the storm.

Reforms put in place in 2011 gave FEMA a more predictable stream of disaster aid and the agency got additional funding from two Sandy relief bills in December and January. The relatively large FEMA balance likely means that Republicans will be spared from an internal battle over whether further aid needs to be "paid for" with cuts elsewhere in the federal budget.

Later, the government money is likely to help rebuild two schools and the city's hospital, along with other public infrastructure damaged by the tornado.

Therapy Dogs Who Helped Newtown, Boston Heal Oklahoma-Bound

2013-05-21T21:33:56Z

Just as they had following previous tragedies in Newtown, Conn. and Boston, a crew of Chicago-area therapy dogs are now heading to Moore, Okla. to help comfort victims of the devastating tornadoes that touched down Monday.

Ten dogs from Addison, Ill.-based Lutheran Church Charities' K-9 Comfort Ministry began their 12-hour drive to Moore just after noon on Tuesday, according to Fox Chicago. The golden retrievers are reportedly being driven straight through and were expected to arrive Tuesday evening.

Lutheran Church Charities staff and volunteers pray before their comfort dogs depart for Oklahoma on Tuesday in Addison, Ill. (via Facebook)

The dogs received an invitation from Pastor Muenchow at Messiah Lutheran Church in Oklahoma City, according to a Razoo.com page raising funds to help cover the dogs' travel expenses. As of late Tuesday afternoon, the page had raised over $5,100 toward the church's efforts.

(Follow live updates from Oklahoma. How to help.)

Tim Hetzner, the president of Lutheran Church Charities, previously told HuffPost the dogs "help people as they process all the emotions they go through in any type of crisis."

And though the dogs' stay in Oklahoma will be temporary, their impact will continue beyond their visit. According to Fox, each of the dogs has their own business card and Facebook profile, allowing victims to keep in touch.

Would Making Chicago Our State Capital Reduce Political Corruption?

2013-05-21T20:48:56Z

Is the geographic remoteness of Illinois' state capital relative to most of the state's population a major contributing factor to its historically high levels of political corruption?

Two recently published papers recently argued that the more isolated state capitals are -- and, internationally, capital cities in general -- the more associated they are with corruption.

As pointed out by the Washington Post's Wonkblog, Springfield, Illinois stands out as one of two U.S. capitols with both a "remote" location and a high level of corruption as measured by federal convictions for public corruption between the years of 1976 and 2002 in one of the papers, a working paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research.

(Read the NBER paper in full. Scroll down for examples of Illinois officials convicted of corruption.)

But would things be better for Illinois if the capital were relocated -- likely much to the chagrin of certain downstate lawmakers -- to Chicago, beacon of all things politically ethical? Chicago magazine's Whet Moser took up the question in a recent blog post and noted that the state "has a lot of political and cultural structures underlying its Chicago-centric corruption" -- including weak campaign-finance laws.

Influential political blogger Rich Miller of the Capitol Fax last year lambasted the claims of a previously released version of the paper, arguing that Springfield is "hardly isolated" and that many local reporters -- both Springfield- and Chicago-based -- do excellent work digging into allegations of public corruption.

Another columnist -- Pat Gauen of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch -- previously wrote that the study's claims were "at odds with my common sense."

Nico Lang: What Hating Gwyneth Paltrow Says About Us

2013-05-21T20:34:52Z

This month, Gwyneth Paltrow pulled one hell of a pop culture hat trick. In addition to breaking international box office records with her newest film, a little movie called Iron Man 3, People named her as the world's "Most Beautiful Person." The world, however, proved itself not so fond of the multi-hyphenate actress. After her second foray into the world of cookbooks, Gwyneth Paltrow was voted the "Most Hated Celebrity" in the world. I sincerely hope that Kim Jong Un was ineligible.

For the top honors in Star Magazine's poll of famous pinatas, Paltrow beat out folks like Justin Bieber and Madonna, who everyone seems to agree on disliking. It will surprise absolutely no one that people dislike Katherine Heigl, as the media backlash on her "outspoken" persona has killed her career, and Paltrow herself gets more press about being an out-of-touch elitist than being an actress. The very name of some of these folks inspires rage.

Why do we hate Gwyneth Paltrow? It's not difficult to imagine why; she gives you reasons to dislike her -- as if she were handing them out like fliers on the street. Paltrow's personal lifestyle blog, GOOP, is an unintentionally hilarious look at the unguarded privilege she trades in.

On GOOP, you can purchase "must-haves" like a $298 bathrobe or a Mongolian cashmere throw rug at the low, low price of $1,098. Everything on the site feels pulled from Drew Droege's Chloe Sevigny impression, and one half expects to find Paltrow shilling an "ironic coin skort by Obesity and Speed." She slays me. What would I do without her around?

Whereas celebrities like Jennifer Lopez try to play down their wealth by insisting they are "from the block," Paltrow embraces her status, name-dropping like it's her job. (Actually, it kind of is.) Gwyneth Paltrow recently defended her right to be entitled. Shooting back at her critics, Paltrow quipped, "What, am I supposed to pretend like I don't have money?" In an industry filled with false modesty, Paltrow broadcasts her celebrity net worth.

In a post-99 percent movement America, it's not surprising that Paltrow pushes our buttons about wealth and modesty, but what troubles me is how high she places on this list. She's silly and self-involved, but is she really worth hating that much?

After Paltrow, we see celebrities like Kristen Stewart (#2) and LeAnn Rimes (#12) placing high on the list, for reasons that are equally benign. The list is a fascinating indication of our cultural priorities of hate, and LeAnn Rimes and Kristen Stewart are high-profile figures who cheated on their partners. Their male cheater counterparts, Jesse James (#19) and Ashton Kutcher (#13), both placed lower -- despite the fact that James' scandal was far more public.

Do I think that we should care all that much that Ashton Kutcher was unfaithful to Demi Moore? No, that's their marriage. But it's troubling that our culture of slut-shaming sets such clear double standards for gender behavior, where we punish women more for stepping out on their relationships than we do men.

However, this list shows that we tend to punish women more in general. Two-thirds of our most hated celebrities are women, and females count for seven of the top 10 slots. Renowned sleazebags like Donald Trump and Charlie Sheen didn't make the list, but Anne Hathaway nabbed the #9 spot for "trying too hard." New York Magazine was shocked she didn't win.

Compare this with Chris Brown. Despite his constant excoriation in the media as a domestic abuser, Brown came in last on the list. He just made it in at #20. Sean Penn famously tied Madonna to a chair and beat her with a baseball bat. Penn didn't even get a mention.

What makes Gwyneth Paltrow 20 times more hateable than Chris Brown? Why does Jennifer Lopez (seen as an arrogant diva, no matter what she insists) rank at #3 while the more publicly terrible Justin Bieber claims only the #8 spot?

In a piece for The Nation, Jessica Valenti states that it has to do with our double standards of success. Valenti argues that "the more successful you are, the less you will be liked," and this is a problem for women who need to be likeable to be approved of. Kristen Stewart is often derided for her inability to look happy, but Sean Penn isn't exactly Leslie Knope either. If you don't smile, you're a "b*tch" and a social pariah -- whereas Penn is a two-time Oscar winner.

Celebrities like Stewart, Gwyneth Paltrow or Kim Kardashian act as socially accepted repositories for our cultural misogyny, people you can say almost anything about without fear of backlash. At a time when things like street harassment are becoming increasingly unacceptable because of social policing and awareness, we're moving that harassment onto the internet. Instead of yelling at a woman on the street to smile, we're saying it to Kristen Stewart online -- because she can't talk back.

Quentin Crisp once said that in society, "there's no greater sin than being a woman," and Star proved him right. According to this list, we hate it when you harass or abuse women. But not as much as we hate women.

LOOK: The Deadliest States For Tornadoes

2013-05-21T20:16:00Z

Recent extreme weather events seem to reach into unlikely corners of the U.S., but the massive tornado that devastated Moore, Okla., on Monday tore right through the edge of a region so often battered by deadly twisters that it is known as Tornado Alley.

This part of the Southeast, which roughly covers the Plains states from South Dakota to Texas, allows Arctic air to funnel down alongside the Rocky Mountains into the plains, where it collides with warm air from the Gulf of Mexico, according to NBC News. But as the map below shows, some of the deadliest tornadoes have hit far east and south of Tornado Alley, which may be in part due to higher population density in some of these areas than in rural plains regions. After a rash of tornadoes killed more than 300 people in the Southern and Eastern U.S. in 2011, researchers questioned Tornado Alley's traditional boundaries.

Data released by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) show that severe tornadoes extend far beyond the plains, from the Midwest to the Deep South, according to a 2012 report from the research firm CoreLogic. Most of the Eastern half of the country is susceptible to tornado damage, with significant parts of 15 states facing extreme tornado risk.

Infographic by Jan Diehm for The Huffington Post.

He Did It, Again!

2013-05-21T19:47:55Z

DUNWOODY, Ga. -- Police in suburban Atlanta say rapper Chief Keef, whose name is Keith Cozart, has been arrested and charged with disorderly conduct.

Dunwoody police spokesman Timothy Fecht says officers arrested Cozart after responding to a call about illegal drug activity at the Le Méridien hotel just north of Atlanta Monday afternoon. Fecht says officers saw smoke and smelled marijuana wafting from a room.

It wasn't immediately clear what Cozart was doing in Georgia. Representatives at his booking agency said they didn't have contact info for an attorney for the 17-year-old Chicago native and didn't know much about the incident.

Cozart was arrested in January and spent about two months in juvenile detention for violating probation on a weapons conviction. He had received probation for pointing a gun at police in 2012.

10 Deadliest U.S. Tornadoes Since 1900

2013-05-21T19:35:53Z

-- A list of the 10 deadliest tornadoes in the United States since 1900:

_ 695 deaths. March 18, 1925, in Missouri, Illinois and Indiana.

_ 216 deaths. April 5, 1936, in Tupelo, Miss.

_ 203 deaths. April 6, 1936, in Gainesville, Ga.

_ 181 deaths. April 9, 1947, in Woodward, Okla.

_ 158 deaths. May 22, 2011, in Joplin, Mo.

_ 143 deaths. April 24, 1908, in Amite, La., and Purvis, Miss.

_ 116 deaths. June 8, 1953, in Flint, Mich.

_ 114 deaths. May 11, 1953 in Waco, Texas.

_ 114 deaths. May 18, 1902 in Goliad, Texas.

_ 103 deaths. March 23, 1913, in Omaha, Neb.

_____

Source: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Feeling Miserable? Blame The 'Pollen Tsunami'

2013-05-21T19:27:23Z

In news that will come as no surprise to Chicago-area allergy sufferers, Chicago's allergen measurer said Monday that the city is in the midst of an allergy season that can be described most accurately -- and terrifyingly -- as a "pollen tsunami."

Dr. Joseph Leija, who does the pollen count for the Midwest for the National Allergy Bureau, told the Chicago Sun-Times "the pollen from the trees and the weeds is just exorbitant" so far this allergy season and that the warmth and humidity over the previous weekend spurred on the highest counts of mold, grass, weeds and trees alike of the year to date.

"This is a pollen tsunami and those with sensitive respiratory systems need to keep the windows closed despite the beautiful, sunny weather," Leija said in a statement reported by ABC Chicago.

Leija said earlier this month that pollen in the area was higher than usual this year particularly for trees in the pine family, CBS Chicago reported.

Looking to avoid allergy-induced misery? Leija said said antihistamines can be helpful, in addition to rinsing one's nasal passages with saline solution. Local blogger Michelle Shea Walker suggested other natural remedies including eating spicy foods to help clear one's sinuses.

Power Of Moore Tornado Dwarfs Hiroshima Bomb

2013-05-21T19:17:10Z

WASHINGTON — Everything had to come together just perfectly to create the killer tornado in Moore, Okla.: wind speed, moisture in the air, temperature and timing. And when they did, the awesome energy released over that city dwarfed the power of the atomic bomb that leveled Hiroshima.

On Tuesday, the National Weather Service gave it the top-of-the-scale rating of EF5 for wind speed and breadth, and severity of damage. Wind speeds were estimated at between 200 and 210 mph. The death count is 24 so far, including at least nine children. The United States averages about one EF5 a year, but this was the first in nearly two years.

To get such an uncommon storm to form is "a bit of a Goldilocks problem," said Pennsylvania State University meteorology professor Paul Markowski. "Everything has to be just right."

For example, there must be humidity for a tornado to form, but too much can cut the storm off. The same goes with the cold air in a downdraft: Too much can be a storm-killer.

But when the ideal conditions do occur, watch out. The power of nature beats out anything man can create.

"Everything was ready for explosive development yesterday," said Colorado State University meteorology professor Russ Schumacher, who was in Oklahoma launching airborne devices that measured the energy, moisture and wind speeds on Monday. "It all just unleashed on that one area."

Several meteorologists contacted by The Associated Press used real time measurements, some made by Schumacher, to calculate the energy released during the storm's 40-minute life span. Their estimates ranged from 8 times to more than 600 times the power of the Hiroshima bomb, with more experts at the high end. Their calculations were based on energy measured in the air and then multiplied over the size and duration of the storm.

An EF5 tornado has the most violent winds on Earth, more powerful than a hurricane. The strongest winds ever measured were the 302 mph reading, measured by radar, during the EF5 tornado that struck Moore on May 3, 1999, according to Jeff Masters, meteorology director at the Weather Underground.

Still, when it comes to weather events, scientists usually know more about and can better predict hurricanes, winter storms, heat waves and other big events.

That's because even though a tornado like the one that struck Moore was 1.3 miles wide, with a path of 17 miles long, in meteorological terms it was small, hard to track, rare and even harder to study. So tornadoes are still more of a mystery than their hurricane cousins, even though tropical storms form over ocean areas where no one is, while this tornado formed only miles from the very National Weather Service office that specializes in tornadoes.

"This phenomenon can be so deadly you would think that something that catastrophic, that severe would lend itself to understanding," said Adam Houston, meteorology professor at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. "But we're fighting the inherent unpredictability of these small-scale phenomena."

Unlike hurricanes, which forecasters can fly through in planes and monitor with buoys and weather stations, usually over a period of days, tornadoes form quickly and normally last only a matter of minutes. While meteorologists and television hosts chase tornadoes and try to get readings, it's not usually enough. This storm lasted 40 minutes – long for a regular tornado but not too unusual for such a violent one, said research meteorologist Harold Brooks at the National Severe Storms Laboratory in Norman, Okla.

Still, the conditions needed to form such a violent and devastating tornado were there and forecasters knew it, warning five days in advance that something big could happen, Brooks said.

By Monday morning, forecasters at the National Weather Center, home of the storm lab and storm prediction center, knew "that any storm that formed in that environment had the potential to be a strong to violent tornado," he said.

"This is a pretty classic setup," Brooks said.

Tornadoes have two main ingredients: moist energy in the atmosphere and wind shear. Wind shear is the difference between wind at high altitudes and wind near the surface. The more moist energy and the greater the wind shear, the better the chances for tornadoes.

But just because the conditions are right doesn't mean a violent tornado will form, and scientists still don't know why they occur in certain spots in a storm and not others, and why at certain times and not others.

On Monday, the moist energy came up from the Gulf of Mexico, the wind shear from the jet stream plunging from Canada. "Where they met is where the Moore storm got started," Brooks said.

With the third strong storm hitting Moore in 14 years – and following roughly the same path as an EF5 that killed 40 people in 1999 and an EF4 that injured 45 others in 2003 – some people are wondering why Moore?

It's a combination of geography, meteorology and lots of bad luck, experts said.

If you look at the climate history of tornadoes in May, you will see they cluster in a spot, maybe 100 miles wide, in central Oklahoma, Houston said. That's where the weather conditions of warm, moist air and strong wind shear needed for tornadoes combine, in just the right balance.

"Central Oklahoma is a hot spot and there's a good reason for it," Houston said. "There's this perfect combination where the jet stream is strong, the instability is large and the typical position for this juxtaposition climatologically is central Oklahoma."

And the timing has to be perfect. Earlier in the year, there's not enough warm moist air, but the jet stream is stronger. Later, the jet stream is weaker but the air is moister and warmer.

The hot spot is more than just the city of Moore. Several meteorologists offer the same explanation for why that Oklahoma City suburb seemed to be hit repeatedly by violent tornadoes: Bad luck.

Of the 60 EF5 tornadoes since 1950, Oklahoma and Alabama have been struck the most, seven times each. More than half of these top-of-the-scale twisters are in just five states: Oklahoma, Alabama, Texas, Kansas, and Iowa. Less than 1 percent of all U .S. tornadoes are this violent – only about 10 a year, Brooks said.

The United States' Great Plains is the "best place on Earth" for the formation of violent tornadoes because of geography, Markowski said. You need the low pressure systems coming down off the Rocky Mountains colliding with the warm moist unstable air coming north from the Gulf of Mexico.

Scientists know the key ingredients that go into a devastating tornado. But they are struggling to figure out why they develop in some big storms and not others. They also are still trying to determine what effects, if any, global warming has on tornadoes. The jet stream can shift to cause a record number of tornadoes – or an unusually low number of them.

Early research, much of it by Brooks, predicts that as the world warms, the moist energy – or instability – will increase, and the U.S. will have more thunderstorms. But at the same time, the needed wind shear – the difference between wind speed and direction at different altitudes – will likely decrease.

The two factors go in different directions and it's hard to tell which will win out. Brooks and others think that eventually there may be more thunderstorms and fewer days with tornadoes, but more tornadoes on those days when twisters do strike.

"Tornadoes are perhaps the most difficult things to connect to climate change of any extreme," said NASA climate scientist Tony Del Genio. "Because we still don't understand all the factors required to get a tornado."

___

Online

The National Weather Center; http://www.nwc.ou.edu/

Seth Borenstein can be followed at http://twitter.com/borenbears

LOOK: The Most Popular Baby Names By State

2013-05-21T18:55:21Z

The Social Security Administration recently released 2012’s most popular baby names by state, and NickMom’s map of the list may explain why there are so many Jacobs and Sophias in your kids’ schools. Check out their graphic and scroll down for the complete list of top five boys' and girls' names in each state.

PHOTOS: Brookfield Zoo Announces Trio Of Dolphins Are Expecting

2013-05-21T18:31:13Z

Another baby boom is about to hit Brookfield Zoo.

On Monday, the Chicago-area zoo revealed three of its bottlenose dolphins are pregnant.

According to a release from the zoo, moms-to-be are Allie, 26; Tapeko, 31 and Spree, 10, all due to give birth during the summer and fall.

(See photos of the dolphin moms-to-be below.)

"Allie, Tapeko, and Spree are all healthy and their pregnancies are progressing well,” said Jennifer Langan, DVM, Dipl. ACZM, associate veterinarian for the Chicago Zoological Society. “Prenatal care for the expecting dolphins includes some of the same procedures as for expecting human moms: ultrasound examinations and blood tests.”

In addition to ultrasounds (see video, embedded) and other prenatal checkups, the Associated Press reports zoo staff will track the mammals' diet, body temperature and "blubber thickness."

“The baby already has blubber, just like mom does,” Langan told the Tribune of Allie's forthcoming offspring. The calf is expected to spend 12 months in gestation before emerging tail-first weighing in at about 40 pounds.

Motherhood is nothing new for Allie and Tapeko who have each had two and three successful calves, respectively, the zoo says. This pregnancy, meanwhile, is the first for orphaned Spree, who joins the Brookfield Zoo as part of cooperative work with Minnesota Zoo.

Jayson 'JC' Brooks On Food, Fame And The Darker Side Of Chicago

2013-05-21T18:17:28Z

Among Jayson Brooks' many talents, hiding out is not one of them.

"As a final acceptance of my height, I've grown my hair super, super long for this skyscraper effect," the towering (Brooks stands at 6'3") and well-coifed frontman of JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound told HuffPost Chicago in a recent interview.

Following a year of near non-stop performances around the globe and a nod from the hit Fox comedy "The New Girl," Brooks is easily the most recognizable face of the Chicago-based band.

Brooks acknowledged the group's popularity has grown since their 2011 album which featured a rousing soul cover of Wilco’s “I Am Trying To Break Your Heart.”

"More people are aware of us, and we're meeting a lot of random people," Brooks said. "I'm kind of jumpy by nature, so meeting people who recognize me surprises me. But, it's a flattering kind of surprise."

The singer called the poster on the "New Girl" "a real coup" for the band. "Jake Johnson (the character "Nick" on the show) is a big fan of the band. It's a nice little wink. I didn't know about it until someone sent me a message on Facebook telling me about it," Brooks said.

For the band's second release with Chicago label Bloodshot Records, Brooks said, "We're trying to get something together that's fun and new and exciting."

Brooks said the band started out with "danceable stuff, like Stax Records," which "made some impressions on people with that old sound." Now, the Uptown Sound is planting a foot in both worlds with nods to more experimental rock.

"It's not necessarily calculated, but the sound has been updated more this time around for this new record. There are synths, vocal effects.. stylistically borrowing more from Nile Rodgers than Albert King," Brooks said.

"Howl" is already pulling in rave reviews, meaning the recognition for Brooks and the rest of the Uptown Sound is unlikely to let up. The singer said the acclaim is both exciting and surreal."

Ahead of the Tuesday debut of "Howl," HuffPost asked Brooks to tell us more about his early days before the Uptown Sound by taking part in our My Chicago questionnaire.

Where in the city do you live and how long have you lived there? I live in Uptown and I've been my place for about three years, and before that was in Rogers Park for six, almost seven, years.

What is your age? What is your occupation? 32. I am an actor who is cast as a musician and it's the role of a lifetime. And also I'm an all-around artist. I actually don't do much visual work anymore, but I used to be a graphic designer, and I write poetry, and write songs — all kinds of "creative-oriented" stuff. Sorry, that response is not going to get me hired anywhere.

What was your first job in Chicago? My first job was as a talent agent — or rather — I started in a talent agency. I started out as the receptionist and worked my way up to being their film and talent person. But it sucked because as an ethical person, I was not acting because there couldn't be the appearance of favoritism should I actually book a gig I ended up auditioning for. I ended up leaving so I could go back to acting.

I got a really good grasp of learning how the industry works and learned what all that actors do wrong when visiting with their agents and such. I also got a really good feel for how specifically the Chicago industry works — or how the industry works in Chicago. I represented a lot people who I ended up working with later.

Even going back to "The New Girl," Lamorne Morris [ed note: the character Winston] was one of our exclusives. And I used to see him in the office all the time. Random shit like that; a whole lot of connections. Even though I had to put a lot of my acting aside, it was a good lateral education.

Interview continues below.

Which Chicago "celebrity" -- living or dead, real or fictional -- would you have over for dinner? What would you talk about? I say I'd have Curtis Mayfield. And we would talk about whatever. I'm sure we'd both eventually start talking about music, but I'd be happy to just sit and absorb. Maybe ask him, "Do you have any songs [from The Impressions] you recorded but never released? Anything you were kicking around with the band but never released?" Since you're gonna be dead again in like, three hours, you only have one more course before dessert and coffee, then you gotta head back to the grave. Might as well get it out now!

What is your favorite “last call” bar? Tough to say. If I'm in still in the neighborhood, I'd say Uptown Lounge because they're open till 4 a.m. I love Innertown [Pub] but they close at normal bar time. Maybe if my friends are all up for it, we'll go way north and head to Jackhammer or something, because on weekends they're open like 5 a.m. Basically, I can walk out of the bar and into some fresh sunshine and feel like a vampire. And terribly irresponsible.

Where is your favorite place to grab brunch? If I end up making it home and I sleep in my own bed, then I'll go to the Golden House right next to the [Riviera Theater]. It's all diner food. The best thing about them is that their menu is senior menu prices — but for everyone all day.

Maybe I'll hoof it over to the Golden Nugget on Lawrence. Or I'll go to Tweet if I have someone I want to impress. Usually after a night of partying it's all about getting carbs and oil and meat.

What are your go-to spots when you have visitors in town? Depending on how often they visit the city or where they're from, I try to take them to a show at Second City or just a walk along the beach — in the summer. Or, I go to the zoo and the botanical gardens out by Lincoln Park.

What is the last cultural event you saw in the city? What'd you think? Does IML [International Mr. Leather] count as culture? It is representative of a culture. Actually, I saw this play the other week, a show called "The Whale" at the Victory Gardens Theater. It was an amazing show, produced by a Chicago theater company.

I was there opening night, packed house — and there's no intermission, and a half hour into the show I had to pee. It doesn't say how long the show is, so how long will I be sitting there? Finally I get up and go, and there are monitors out in the lobby so you know when to go back in. The problem is I was seated in the middle of a row, and the last third of the play is really, really quiet. It's also a really emotional part, so basically I'm standing by the door weeping the entire time. Sobbing, but trying to do quiet sobbing. People with seats in front of me kept turning around, because there's this big black dude standing over them crying.

But one of the best shows I've seen at a long time.

If you had to have your last Chicago meal for some tragic reason, where and what would it be?
Taste of Lebanon, and I'd get a full-on plate of something. Then I'd just rock out with their lentil soup.

Cubs or Sox? I don't really follow sports so I'd say White Sox because they've never inconvenienced me.

Wicker Park, 1993 or Wicker Park, 2013? See, I have no frame of reference back in back in '93. I was safe in New Jersey's bosom, so I'd have to say 2013.

Chicago-style hot dog, Chicago-style pizza or Chicago-style politics? No one ever chooses the third one. Who the hell chooses that? I think it's terrible. Chicago politics: makin' me sad. Hot dog, definitely.

What advice would you give to a new Chicago transplant? Live near a train. There's awesome stuff in every neighborhood, so you can't screw yourself by where you live, only by not living near some transportation.

What do you miss the most when you're not in Chicago? Friends.

If you could change just one thing about our fair city what would it be? The gang problem. The gang-gun problem. I can handle shitty politics. One of our percussion students [ed note: Columbia College student Kevin Ambrose] actually got killed the other day. It's been a reality for me, hearing about so many people. It's always the kid with so much potential. It's an epidemic and there's something where I could wave a wand and get one wish, Chicago specific, it would be for people to have some sense.

It's a thing I'm very surprised someone hasn't already gotten a handle on, especially since we're in the hometown of the nation's president. There are countless gangland maps, there are well-known tattoos...people know the social lives of these gangs. I don't know what the cops have done to engage them in a non-adversarial way, but whatever they're doing doesn't seem to be working. We're setting records in the worst possible way.

Describe Chicago in one word. Home.

JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound's latest release, "Howl," is out now on Chicago label Bloodshot Records. The band plays May 25 at Mayne Stage.

In 1951's "Chicago: City on the Make," Nelson Algren wrote: "Once you've come to be a part of this particular patch, you'll never love another. Like loving a woman with a broken nose, you may well find lovelier lovelies. But never a lovely so real." Through My Chicago, HuffPost is discussing what, to this day, makes the patch we call home so lovely and so broken with some of the city's most compelling characters.

Valerie S. Lies: Why Illinois Nonprofits Should Care About IRS' Treatment of Tea Party

2013-05-21T18:10:11Z

As the hub of Illinois' diverse philanthropic and nonprofit community, Donors Forum has been following with great interest the story of how the IRS processed the tax-exempt applications of various Tea Party affiliated groups.

As usual, much of the media coverage out of Washington has focused on the partisan nature of the scandal. But what's missing in a great deal of the coverage is clear explanation about the different types of organizations that qualify as tax exempt, what they do to earn that status, and the failures in the current tax code to provide clear explanation of allowable activities.

All tax-exempt organizations have the right to fair treatment by the IRS, free from ideology and perceived political pressure. The role of the IRS is to carefully vet applications for tax-exempt status according to compliance with the law, not to determine the worthiness of each organization. And it should do so swiftly and impartially.

This incident has made it very clear that the rules defining allowable political work for select tax-exempt organizations need to be rewritten and clarified -- not merely to help organizations stay on the right side of compliance, but to provide bright line guidance for IRS staff to enable speedy, efficient and fair decision-making. We urge the House and Senate tax-writing committees to address tax reform this year and to provide much-needed clarity when addressing the rules for exempt organizations.

Further, it is critical that people understand that not all tax-exempt groups are alike and many, including charitable organizations, do not engage in any political activity.

The groups at the center of the scandal are those that applied for tax-exempt status under the 501(c)(4) classification, which is reserved for civic leagues and social welfare organizations. These groups are allowed to engage in some political activities, as long as it is not the majority of what they do.

This differs from the tax-exempt category reserved for charitable nonprofits, 501(c)(3). Organizations entitled to this tax-exempt status include human service providers, cultural institutions, education providers and private foundations. They cannot engage in any partisan political activities or work for the election or defeat of candidates. But charitable nonprofits do have the right to engage in public discourse and advocate for effective public policy on issues that impact their clients and their communities.

This blurring of the lines between different types of nonprofits could have a detrimental impact on organizations in Illinois. Charitable nonprofits earn their tax-exempt status every day by providing vital services in communities across the state. And they rely on donations and support from citizens to carry out their missions.

Nonprofits are rightly concerned that the partisan coverage of this issue will confuse the public and leave the wrong impression that charitable organizations are engaging in political activity. We can't allow these impressions to stand.

We hope this scandal and the partisan response in Washington doesn't bog down the IRS and hinder legitimate tax-exempt organizations from engaging in important work.