My Latest Glimpse Into the Chicago Economy

Published June 3, 2010 at 10:18 p.m.

It's said that everybody in this town has some sort of hustle going. Quite often I come across evidence that it's true—and not just at City Hall.

The other night I stopped at a convenience store to buy a pack of gum. The store is just down the street from a large Catholic church whose bells were chiming for an evening service.

The clerk rang me up. "One sixty-four," he said.

I looked down at the pack of gum. The price tag said it cost $1.39.

A quarter tax on a pack of gum? I don't think so—not even in Cook County.

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