@joeengleman.bsky.social
Chicago writer & urban planner. Clips in the Chicago Reader, South Side Weekly, Barn Raiser, Dwell, Floodlight, Mother Jones, + more.
Reposted
New issue drop!
On the cover: Our gift guide!
🎨 Amber Huff
Pick yours up in person tomorrow or read the PDF now!
https://bit.ly/48prjMv
On the cover: Our gift guide!
🎨 Amber Huff
Pick yours up in person tomorrow or read the PDF now!
https://bit.ly/48prjMv
November 26, 2025 at 5:00 PM
New issue drop!
On the cover: Our gift guide!
🎨 Amber Huff
Pick yours up in person tomorrow or read the PDF now!
https://bit.ly/48prjMv
On the cover: Our gift guide!
🎨 Amber Huff
Pick yours up in person tomorrow or read the PDF now!
https://bit.ly/48prjMv
Feeling thankful that Shawn read the Cook County budget so I did not have to
new: i read the 2026 cook county budget so you don't have to.
spoiler: more money for police and prosecutors (plus a lot of other stuff).
spoiler: more money for police and prosecutors (plus a lot of other stuff).
Cook County law enforcement agencies get more money in 2026
The Cook County Board of Commissioners approved large investments in policing and prosecutions, over objections from advocates.
chicagoreader.com
November 26, 2025 at 12:10 AM
Feeling thankful that Shawn read the Cook County budget so I did not have to
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Most people know where I stand on Train Dreams but that doesn't stop me from thinking this is a great, well-written, informative piece on what many consider its shortcomings. chicagoreader.com/film-tv/movi...
Review: Train Dreams - Chicago Reader
Clint Bentley’s Train Dreams is a compelling and beautiful film, but it struggles as an adaptation to live up to its source material.
chicagoreader.com
November 25, 2025 at 9:57 PM
Most people know where I stand on Train Dreams but that doesn't stop me from thinking this is a great, well-written, informative piece on what many consider its shortcomings. chicagoreader.com/film-tv/movi...
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Absolutely love this piece by @BilgeEbiri. I too have enjoyed the Train Dreams Wars of 2025 because I love talking about movies. And I love reading pieces that don't align with my viewpoint. It's the movies we argue about that last. www.vulture.com/article/the-...
The Train Dreams Wars Are Here. Wait, What?
Behold the power of Netflix’s ability to generate discourse.
www.vulture.com
November 25, 2025 at 9:55 PM
Absolutely love this piece by @BilgeEbiri. I too have enjoyed the Train Dreams Wars of 2025 because I love talking about movies. And I love reading pieces that don't align with my viewpoint. It's the movies we argue about that last. www.vulture.com/article/the-...
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they were "controversial" for murdering palestinians at their food distribution sites.
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a controversial U.S.- and Israel-backed company that provided aid to Gaza, said Monday it would shutter operations.
US-backed aid company in Gaza shutters operations
The U.S.- and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, set up to distribute aid to Gaza as an alternative to the United Nations but which Palestinians said endangered the lives of civilians as they tried to get food, has said it will shutter operations.
bit.ly
November 24, 2025 at 7:13 PM
they were "controversial" for murdering palestinians at their food distribution sites.
Reposted
New Sharp Pins is out today, so why not read this story about the scene it emerged from? sharppins.bandcamp.com/album/balloo...
November 21, 2025 at 3:17 PM
New Sharp Pins is out today, so why not read this story about the scene it emerged from? sharppins.bandcamp.com/album/balloo...
Just curious: Has anyone who has recently read or re-read Train Dreams liked the movie?
November 21, 2025 at 1:27 AM
Just curious: Has anyone who has recently read or re-read Train Dreams liked the movie?
Reposted
NEW: Evanston has released video + reports surrounding a 10/31 incident where a CBP agent threatened to shoot people + another beat a handcuffed man.
We found some disturbing X posts from one of the feds, also seen in other viral videos. His name is Timothy Donahue, and it's now public record:
We found some disturbing X posts from one of the feds, also seen in other viral videos. His name is Timothy Donahue, and it's now public record:
Identified: federal agents who pointed gun, punched detainee in Evanston
Unraveled has verified a hate speech-laden X account belonging to U.S. Border Patrol agent Timothy Donahue, who was seen in numerous viral videos during Operation Midway Blitz. He and another agent, T...
unraveledpress.com
November 20, 2025 at 8:28 PM
NEW: Evanston has released video + reports surrounding a 10/31 incident where a CBP agent threatened to shoot people + another beat a handcuffed man.
We found some disturbing X posts from one of the feds, also seen in other viral videos. His name is Timothy Donahue, and it's now public record:
We found some disturbing X posts from one of the feds, also seen in other viral videos. His name is Timothy Donahue, and it's now public record:
Reposted
omfg
Chicago: Did you know that police departments in the Chicago area coordinate on Slack? Now that I know it's accessible to public records requests, request away:
Their server is called CHI-INTEL and requests should be sent to the department that runs it, the Cook County Sheriff.
Send away!
Their server is called CHI-INTEL and requests should be sent to the department that runs it, the Cook County Sheriff.
Send away!
It *is* possible to get cross-jurisdictional and multi-police department Slack chats out of departments via public records requests. Here's a glimpse at the Chicago-area police Slack chat with people responding with the 👀 emoji to the news that there's been an ICE-involved shooting.
November 20, 2025 at 8:28 PM
omfg
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I was on City Cast this morning to talk about my @chicagoreader.com story on unhoused Chicagoans disappeared by ICE. Jacoby and I also talked about recently announced HUD cuts could lead to an eviction wave this winter, and what an encampment closure actually is. chicago.citycast.fm/podcasts/wha...
What Happens to Unhoused Chicagoans Detained By ICE - City Cast Chicago
Since Operation Midway Blitz began in September, we have covered dozens of protests, hundreds of detainments, and growing violence from the federal...
chicago.citycast.fm
November 20, 2025 at 6:42 PM
I was on City Cast this morning to talk about my @chicagoreader.com story on unhoused Chicagoans disappeared by ICE. Jacoby and I also talked about recently announced HUD cuts could lead to an eviction wave this winter, and what an encampment closure actually is. chicago.citycast.fm/podcasts/wha...
Reposted
Big news... WE'RE MOVING!
Our landlord raised the rent by 50%, so we're moving 4 blocks down the street. We’re sad to leave this space, but there are a few big things we’re pumped about in the new spot including:
Our landlord raised the rent by 50%, so we're moving 4 blocks down the street. We’re sad to leave this space, but there are a few big things we’re pumped about in the new spot including:
November 20, 2025 at 12:24 AM
Big news... WE'RE MOVING!
Our landlord raised the rent by 50%, so we're moving 4 blocks down the street. We’re sad to leave this space, but there are a few big things we’re pumped about in the new spot including:
Our landlord raised the rent by 50%, so we're moving 4 blocks down the street. We’re sad to leave this space, but there are a few big things we’re pumped about in the new spot including:
For my first book review & my first piece in @chicagorevbooks.bsky.social since its early days, I'm keeping my Denis Johnson November rolling right along with a review of "Flagrant, Self-Destructive Gestures" Ted Geltner's new biography of Johnson.
chireviewofbooks.com/2025/11/19/t...
chireviewofbooks.com/2025/11/19/t...
Ted Geltner’s "Flagrant, Self-Destructive Gestures" reconnects us with Denis Johnson - Chicago Review of Books
In “Earth Angel,” a review of Denis Johnson’s posthumously-published short story collection, The Largesse of the Sea Maiden, Rachel Kushner shared an anecdote about attending a reading by Johnson in t...
chireviewofbooks.com
November 20, 2025 at 12:59 AM
For my first book review & my first piece in @chicagorevbooks.bsky.social since its early days, I'm keeping my Denis Johnson November rolling right along with a review of "Flagrant, Self-Destructive Gestures" Ted Geltner's new biography of Johnson.
chireviewofbooks.com/2025/11/19/t...
chireviewofbooks.com/2025/11/19/t...
In my latest piece for @chicagoreader.com, I reviewed the film adaptation of Train Dreams.
One big question I'm trying to work through: Can an adaptation engineered to *feel* faithful to a work, rather than *being* faithful to it, be considered a success? chicagoreader.com/film-tv/movi...
One big question I'm trying to work through: Can an adaptation engineered to *feel* faithful to a work, rather than *being* faithful to it, be considered a success? chicagoreader.com/film-tv/movi...
Review: Train Dreams - Chicago Reader
Clint Bentley’s Train Dreams is a compelling and beautiful film, but it struggles as an adaptation to live up to its source material.
chicagoreader.com
November 18, 2025 at 3:33 PM
In my latest piece for @chicagoreader.com, I reviewed the film adaptation of Train Dreams.
One big question I'm trying to work through: Can an adaptation engineered to *feel* faithful to a work, rather than *being* faithful to it, be considered a success? chicagoreader.com/film-tv/movi...
One big question I'm trying to work through: Can an adaptation engineered to *feel* faithful to a work, rather than *being* faithful to it, be considered a success? chicagoreader.com/film-tv/movi...
I wrote about Train Dreams for @chicagoreader.com. It looked beautiful on the big screen, but the best picture may be the one you conjure reading Denis Johnson's novella.
chicagoreader.com/film-tv/movi...
chicagoreader.com/film-tv/movi...
Review: Train Dreams - Chicago Reader
Clint Bentley’s Train Dreams is a compelling and beautiful film, but it struggles as an adaptation to live up to its source material.
chicagoreader.com
November 17, 2025 at 11:08 PM
I wrote about Train Dreams for @chicagoreader.com. It looked beautiful on the big screen, but the best picture may be the one you conjure reading Denis Johnson's novella.
chicagoreader.com/film-tv/movi...
chicagoreader.com/film-tv/movi...
Reposted
FILM CRITICISM IS ALIVE AND IN LOVE, BABY!!
You won't believe the conversations about adaptation (and streaming services) @joeengleman.bsky.social and I have been having around the house lately.
Read my dive on HEDDA and Joe's on TRAIN DREAMS now online @chicagoreader.com ❤️🔥
You won't believe the conversations about adaptation (and streaming services) @joeengleman.bsky.social and I have been having around the house lately.
Read my dive on HEDDA and Joe's on TRAIN DREAMS now online @chicagoreader.com ❤️🔥
November 17, 2025 at 10:57 PM
FILM CRITICISM IS ALIVE AND IN LOVE, BABY!!
You won't believe the conversations about adaptation (and streaming services) @joeengleman.bsky.social and I have been having around the house lately.
Read my dive on HEDDA and Joe's on TRAIN DREAMS now online @chicagoreader.com ❤️🔥
You won't believe the conversations about adaptation (and streaming services) @joeengleman.bsky.social and I have been having around the house lately.
Read my dive on HEDDA and Joe's on TRAIN DREAMS now online @chicagoreader.com ❤️🔥
Reposted
“His folksongs – funny, wry, potent, vivid, storytelling to its core – were the perfect perspective to chronicle how American life so often meant learning to live with grave injustice, gentrification and constant change, even before the town he loved became ground zero for it.”
Something good comes along, then it’s gone: Farewell, Todd Snider.
When I moved to East Nashville in 2012, legend had it that if you wanted to find Todd Snider, all you had to do was go to Drifter’s BBQ in Five Points, and he’d be there at the bar. Nashville always h...
www.dontrocktheinbox.com
November 17, 2025 at 6:56 PM
“His folksongs – funny, wry, potent, vivid, storytelling to its core – were the perfect perspective to chronicle how American life so often meant learning to live with grave injustice, gentrification and constant change, even before the town he loved became ground zero for it.”
Reposted
This is more than the one-year allocation to DPD and DOH combined under the Housing and Economic Development Bond
NEW: Chicago must borrow $283.3M to cover the soaring cost of lawsuits alleging CPD officers committed a wide range of misconduct as part of the city’s 2026 budget, Mayor Brandon Johnson said, calling the move "prudent." @wttw.bsky.social
Chicago Set to Borrow $283.3M to Resolve Police Misconduct Lawsuits
It will likely cost Chicago taxpayers approximately $52 million in interest to borrow that money and pay off during the next five years, according to estimates provided to the Chicago City Council by ...
news.wttw.com
November 17, 2025 at 4:16 PM
This is more than the one-year allocation to DPD and DOH combined under the Housing and Economic Development Bond
"A riskier film would delve into Springsteen confronting his ideas about what art and music should be, but Deliver Me From Nowhere never gets that deep...To really appreciate something raw and inspiring about the Boss, go straight to the source and put on Nebraska."
chicagoreader.com/film-tv/movi...
chicagoreader.com/film-tv/movi...
Review: Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere - Chicago Reader
Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere resists the spirit of creative risk that inspired it and glosses over a very significant relationship.
chicagoreader.com
November 15, 2025 at 12:39 AM
"A riskier film would delve into Springsteen confronting his ideas about what art and music should be, but Deliver Me From Nowhere never gets that deep...To really appreciate something raw and inspiring about the Boss, go straight to the source and put on Nebraska."
chicagoreader.com/film-tv/movi...
chicagoreader.com/film-tv/movi...
Reposted
It's been rumored for a bit they would leave mid-November. It's not the weather, just the natural lifespan of a ~225 person operation.
Before Border Patrol arrived, ICE was still here. They were smashing cars to pull people out of them, taking people from court and check-in appointments, etc.
Before Border Patrol arrived, ICE was still here. They were smashing cars to pull people out of them, taking people from court and check-in appointments, etc.
Bovino left LA to come to Chicago and it's not like LA saw immigration operations stop - just less showboating from his crew. So even if these circulating rumors over the last week turn out real, I'm pessimistic about how much change to expect on the ground.
November 11, 2025 at 4:49 PM
It's been rumored for a bit they would leave mid-November. It's not the weather, just the natural lifespan of a ~225 person operation.
Before Border Patrol arrived, ICE was still here. They were smashing cars to pull people out of them, taking people from court and check-in appointments, etc.
Before Border Patrol arrived, ICE was still here. They were smashing cars to pull people out of them, taking people from court and check-in appointments, etc.
Reposted
so much suffering and sacrifice only to to agree to terms that will beget more suffering and sacrifice.
November 10, 2025 at 12:29 AM
so much suffering and sacrifice only to to agree to terms that will beget more suffering and sacrifice.
Reposted
Senate Democrats going to grant legitimacy to the fascist government disappearing our neighbors and walk away with literally nothing in exchange.
They are the worst at this on the merits and the politics.
They are the worst at this on the merits and the politics.
Bridging my current life in Chicago and my past life in D.C., I argue today at @newrepublic.com that Democrats should ~never~ vote to fund this government. Make John Thune blow up Senate rules and Republicans wholly own the U.S. extra-military military doing war crimes against us, funded by us.
The Case for the Forever Shutdown
Senate Democrats actually allowing the GOP to stop funding the government is only the first step. Now they have to make the case that Trump’s government is illegitimate.
newrepublic.com
November 10, 2025 at 12:04 AM
Senate Democrats going to grant legitimacy to the fascist government disappearing our neighbors and walk away with literally nothing in exchange.
They are the worst at this on the merits and the politics.
They are the worst at this on the merits and the politics.
Thinking about a few lines from Mamdani's speech on Tuesday night while the Dems cave: "We have bowed at the altar of caution, and we have paid a mighty price...We will leave mediocrity in our past. No longer will we have to open a history book for proof that Democrats can dare to be great."
November 10, 2025 at 12:14 AM
Thinking about a few lines from Mamdani's speech on Tuesday night while the Dems cave: "We have bowed at the altar of caution, and we have paid a mighty price...We will leave mediocrity in our past. No longer will we have to open a history book for proof that Democrats can dare to be great."
Reposted
Durbin's office isn't answering and VM only during business hours
2/ The Senators who want to vote yes on basically any terms appear to be shaheen, Hassan, king and Fetterman. Slightly less clear but I think pushing that way are Peters and Durbin. You’ll note that four of these six are retiring. Others who seem on the fence include the two sens from Georgia and …
November 9, 2025 at 10:52 PM
Durbin's office isn't answering and VM only during business hours
Check out @dmbrown-tboy.bsky.social's @chicagoreader.com piece about how rideshare drivers at O'Hare are being targeted. chicagoreader.com/news/border-...
‘Like shooting fish in a barrel’ - Chicago Reader
Federal agents have repeatedly terrorized rideshare drivers at O’Hare International Airport.
chicagoreader.com
November 6, 2025 at 11:46 PM
Check out @dmbrown-tboy.bsky.social's @chicagoreader.com piece about how rideshare drivers at O'Hare are being targeted. chicagoreader.com/news/border-...
Incredibly fortunate to have my first film review published yesterday & in the @chicagoreader.com no less! It's about SPRINGSTEEN: DELIVER ME FROM NOWHERE.
chicagoreader.com/film-tv/movi...
chicagoreader.com/film-tv/movi...
Review: Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere - Chicago Reader
Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere resists the spirit of creative risk that inspired it and glosses over a very significant relationship.
chicagoreader.com
November 6, 2025 at 8:49 PM
Incredibly fortunate to have my first film review published yesterday & in the @chicagoreader.com no less! It's about SPRINGSTEEN: DELIVER ME FROM NOWHERE.
chicagoreader.com/film-tv/movi...
chicagoreader.com/film-tv/movi...