David Roeder: Some investors are quick to invest in gold. Others would never touch the stuff. But whether or not you are a gold bug, you should check on your mutual fund holdings. You might find yourself wading more than bunion-deep in bullion without even realizing it. With gold cracking $1,200 an ounce and up by more than a third this year, more fund managers are entering the market.
A Southwest Side man has been charged with child abuse. Police said he violently shook his 3-month old infant son, causing internal injuries to the baby.
David Roeder: Like a movie plot, the announcement of plans for an $80 million film studio on the West Side, the largest such facility outside Hollywood, may be too good to be true. Nick Mirkopoulos, chairman of Toronto-based Cinespace Studios, stirred lots of talk a month ago when he announced plans for a studio on the site of the Ryerson Inc. plant at 2558 W. 16th St. He said he had signed a contract for the property. He later said he was misunderstood.
The rest of the holiday weekend will be tense for the captains of high finance. The news from far-off Dubai guaranteed that. The announcement was timed for the Thanksgiving break in the United States and for a Muslim holiday. Dubai World, a profit-seeking arm of the city-state in the United Arab Emirates, said it wanted a six-month reprieve on repaying $60 billion in debt. It conjured visions of domino defaults on government-backed debt. Reuters reported senior bankers saying that in neighboring Abu Dhabi, many banks have loan exposures of more than 30 percent in Dubai.
David Roeder: What's an idled home builder to do while the housing market nurses its hangover? Some are battling off creditors, others are lying low. But Buz Hoffman, president of Lakewood Homes, is selling his knowledge as a developer. A home builder has skills that translate to commercial projects. The home builder knows about land planning, entitlements, construction management and much more. So Hoffman has signed on as the hired developer for a shopping center under way in the picturesque village of Long Grove.
