Sunday Cartoon: Better to Give Than Receive

'Tis also the season for charity.

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Town Square Extends Hours for Black Friday Shoppers

Town Square Wheaton will kick off the holiday shopping season with extended hours Friday, Nov. 23 through Sunday, Nov. 25.

Town Square Extends Hours for Black Friday Shoppers

Town Square Wheaton will kick off the holiday shopping season with extended hours Friday, Nov. 23 through Sunday, Nov. 25.

Town Square Extends Hours for Black Friday Shoppers

Town Square Wheaton will kick off the holiday shopping season with extended hours Friday, Nov. 23 through Sunday, Nov. 25.

Town Square Wheaton will kick off the holiday shopping season with extended hours on Black Friday and the rest of the weekend. Stores will be open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Black Friday, Nov. 23, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. The same holiday hours will start up again Saturday, Dec. 15 and run through the new year. Town Square Wheaton stores include:

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How Early is Too Early for Christmas Shopping?

It used to be Black Friday was for the earliest of early shoppers. Not anymore. Look around. The stores are ready now.

Look around the Chicago area and you'll see all the signs: The early birds no longer wait until Black Friday to do their Christmas shopping. This year, Black Friday is on Nov. 23, but big retailers and mail-order companies are starting well in advance. Amazon, for example, is beginning its Black Friday on Nov. 14. Crazy or crazy smart? Just how early is too early to shop for Christmas 2012 gifts? Take our poll.

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Patch Poll: Should Possession of Small Amounts of Marijuana be Legal?

Americans’ views on legalizing marijuana are changing and some governmental bodies are enacting or trying to enact laws to decriminalize possession of small amounts of the drug.

Fifty percent of Americans—the largest portion ever recorded—now favor legalizing marijuana, according to an October Gallup poll. That total is up from 46 percent last year. The Evanston City Council last month passed an ordinance amending the city’s marijuana laws so that any individual found in possession of 10 grams or less of marijuana will not be arrested. Instead, violators will be issued a notice to appear for a hearing, fined between $50 and $500 and possibly ordered to seek drug counseling, Evanston Patch reported. On the state level, State Rep. La Shawn Ford introduced a bill earlier this year that would lower the penalties for marijuana possession statewide. Rather than facing an arrest and potential jail time, anyone caught …

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Patch Poll: Has Black Friday Gone too Far?

This year, Black Friday was marred by violence and crime. Is it time for retailers to dial back the hype and promotion?

Should Black Friday be renamed Bloody Friday? Insane Friday? What-Has-This-Country-Come-To Friday? For some shoppers, Black Friday is all about the hunt for a good deal, and even a fun night, or early morning, out. However, in addition to a good deal on the latest electronics, Black Friday brought incidents involving pepper spray, shootings, looting and beatings. “Instead of a nice sweater, you need a bulletproof vest and goggles," Betty Thomas, 52, told the Associated Press Saturday while shopping with her family at a mall in Raleigh, N.C. Has this sales strategy gone too far? Should retailers be encouraged to dial back Black Friday hype and promotion? In addition to Black Friday, football is part of the Thanksgiving tradition, according …

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Joe Parkmoor

12:30 pm on Tuesday, September 18, 2012

God bless you, gina. You have my sympathies. I would never go shopping on Thanksgiving day or evening. Nor would I stand in line to shop before the crack of dawn the following day. I refuse to participate it an event which essentially robs people like you of their holiday.   more ›