Half Past the Month: ‘Unfriending’ the Career Politicians
by Craig Ladwig The cartoonist for the Indianapolis Star wrote a good-hearted explanation over the weekend for why he has had to “unfriend” a family friend, the vice-president elect. One of his points is that those of us in the high calling of journalism cannot allow ourselves to be corrupted by political friendships. “Just don’t mess up,” the cartoonist remembers Read the full article…
Backgrounder: Whose Lives Matter?
by Richard McGowan, Ph.D. “Truth hurts no cause that is just.”—Mohatma Gandhi During the holidays, Minnesota’s largest newspaper, the Star Tribune, had an article with the headline “‘All Lives Matter’ ornament at Minnesota store sparks online backlash.” The Star Tribune reported that a shopper took a picture of the ornament, available at Gertens Garden Center, Read the full article…
Half Past the Month: You versus the Mandarins
LOCAL GOVERNMENT has turned on us. You could watch it happen from a news desk. It was rather sudden actually. One day we were dealing with hard-pressed public servants doing their best in the impossible job of squaring public-policy circles. The next day we were facing mandarins (to use our friend Tom Huston’s characterization), expert at Read the full article…
Huston: Statehouse Mandarins Push a Gas Tax
by Tom Charles Huston The members of the General Assembly have barely warmed their seats and the fury is already reaching pitched levels on social media. It is over the proposal by the new Republican governor (washed into office by the Trump landslide) and the Republican legislative leadership (known affectionately as the Mandarins) to hike Read the full article…
Neal: A Move to Ensure the Bicentennial Legacy
by Andrea Neal Although Indiana’s bicentennial celebration is now history, there is a move in the Indiana General Assembly that has the potential to preserve its legacy for generations to come. Sens. Eric Koch, R-Bedford, and Dennis Kruse, R-Auburn, would commit Indiana high schools to teaching a one-semester elective course on Indiana history. It would Read the full article…
Huston: Dan Coats Won’t Be Draining any Swamps
by Tom Huston I am disappointed in Donald Trump’s choice of former Sen. Dan Coats to serve as Director of National Intelligence. Senator Coats certainly has the competency to preside over the massive intelligence bureaucracy if the objective of his tenure is simply to maintain an even-keeled equanimity among the tribes which constitute the intelligence Read the full article…
