Author: chicagoinquirer

by Bobby Caina NEW YORK  — Throngs of spectators lined the streets of New York on Thursday as colorful, high-flying balloons helped usher in the holiday season during the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. The annual tradition, which dates back nearly a century, packed streets as a procession of giant inflatables and floats streamed for more than 40 blocks from Central Park to Herald Square. Children balanced atop metal barricades and hung from scaffolding to watch the balloons amid mostly sunny skies and a slight breeze. “Blue, Blue. There’s Blue,” yelled Divyam Kumar, 6, as his father helped balance him and…

by Gerald Imray DOHA, Qatar — Joy for the Williams family of Spain on Wednesday at the World Cup. Then despair for the same Williams family, who are also of Ghana, on Thursday. Williams brothers Iñaki and Nico have managed to mark both sides of their family’s heritage in the most incredible way at this World Cup in Qatar by playing for two different countries. They were both born in Spain but their parents are from Ghana. Nico was part of the Spain team that beat Costa Rica 7-0 on Wednesday in the tournament’s most compelling performance so far. He…

LUSAIL, Qatar – Neymar was pictured in tears on the Brazil bench after leaving his team’s 2-0 win over Serbia to begin their World Cup campaign in Qatar on Thursday, after picking up an injury to his right ankle. He will now have to wait between 24 and 48 hours to find out if he will play again at this year’s World Cup, according to team doctors. The Brazil forward was subjected to nine fouls throughout the game by a physical Serbian side and was replaced by Antony in the 80th minute after spending some time on the ground at the Lusail Iconic Stadium following a hard tackle by Nikola Milenkovic. – World…

by Anne D’Incenzio NEW YORK — While Black Friday will mark a return to familiar holiday shopping patterns, uncertainty still remains. The U.S. job market remains strong, consumer spending is resilient and inflation has been slowing. But elevated prices for food, rent, gasoline and other household costs have taken a toll on shoppers. As a result, many are reluctant to spend unless there is a big sale and are being more selective with what they will buy — in many cases, trading down to cheaper stuff and less expensive stores. Shoppers are also dipping more into their savings, turning increasingly…

by Rich Rovito MILWAUKEE  — DeMar DeRozan had 36 points and eight assists, and the Chicago Bulls beat the Milwaukee Bucks 118-113 on Wednesday night. Chicago began the week with a 6-10 record but has now beaten the NBA’s top two teams. The Bulls ended Boston’s nine-game winning streak on Monday. Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic scored 18 points apiece for Chicago, and Coby White finished with 14 points. Giannis Antetokounmpo had 36 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists for the Bucks, who lost for just the second time in 11 home games this season. Brook Lopez scored 20 points…

by Paul Wiseman WASHINGTON  — Most Federal Reserve officials at their last meeting favored reducing the size of their interest rate hikes “soon’’— just before raising their benchmark rate by a substantial three-quarters of a point for a fourth straight time. The central bank’s policymakers saw “very few signs that inflation pressures were abating.” Still, a “substantial majority” of the officials felt that smaller rate hikes “would likely soon be appropriate,” according to the minutes of their Nov. 1-2 meetingreleased Wednesday. The Fed is widely expected to raise its key short-term rate, which affects many consumer and business loans, by…

by Alex Brandon CHESAPEAKE, Va.  — A Walmart manager opened fire on fellow employees gathered in the break room of a Virginia store, a witness said Wednesday. Six people died in the country’s second high-profile mass shooting in a handful of days. The gunman, who apparently killed himself, was dead when police found him, said Chesapeake Police Chief Mark G. Solesky said. There was no clear motive for the shooting, which also left four people in the hospital. The store was busy just before the attack Tuesday night with people stocking up ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, a shopper told…

CHESAPEAKE, Va.  — A shooting at a Walmart in Virginia on Tuesday night left several people dead and wounded, though the exact numbers were not immediately known, police said. The shooter was among the dead, officials said. Officers responded to a report of a shooting at the Walmart on Sam’s Circle around 10:15 p.m. and as soon as they arrived they found evidence of a shooting, Chesapeake Officer Leo Kosinski said in a briefing. Over 35 to 40 minutes, officers found multiple dead people and injured people in the store and put rescue and tactical teams together to go inside…

by Mark Sherman WASHINGTON  — The Supreme Court on Tuesday cleared the way for the imminent handover of former President Donald Trump’s tax returns to a congressional committee after a three-year legal fight. The court, with no noted dissents, rejected Trump’s plea for an order that would have prevented the Treasury Department from giving six years of tax returns for Trump and some of his businesses to the Democratic-controlled House Ways and Means Committee. Alone among recent presidents, Trump refused to release his tax returns either during his successful 2016 campaign or his four years in the White House, citing…

by Andrew Seligman CHICAGO  — Zach LaVine was back where he wanted to be, on the court and helping the Bulls get a win they sorely needed. Even better, it came against the team with the NBA’s best record. LaVine scored 22 points, DeMar DeRozan had 28 and Chicago stopped Boston’s nine-game win streak, beating the Celtics 121-107 on Monday night. Patrick Williams scored a season-high 17, and the Bulls made it look rather easy against a team that’s 13-4. They led by 13 at halftime, got it up to 21 in the third quarter and withstood a push to…