Indiana Writers Group column for April 3 and thereafter 547 words FICTIONAL NEWS FLASH:  Purdue University professors have developed an orange-production technology for Indiana. State economic development experts lauded the news, saying hundreds of new jobs are coming. "The hemorrhage of Hoosier dollars to Florida is over," said one.    By T. Norman Van Cott So, can Hoosiers ride oranges to the economic Promised Land? A land filled with new jobs and retained dollars? The…

Indiana Writers Group column for March 22 and thereafter 556 words by Cecil Bohanon and John Horowitz In 1970, English language newspaper circulation in the United States was 62.1 million subscriptions. By 2004, this had fallen to 54.6 million subscriptions. This is a 12 percent decline, during a period when population has increased by 45 percent from 203.2 million to 293.7 million. One of the reasons for the decline has been the emergence of substitutes…

Indiana Writers Group column for March 15 and thereafter (A mug shot of Superintendent White is available on request) 750 words by Andrea Neal On a recent Sunday night, when so many were gathered around TV sets to watch the Oscars, some 500 Indianapolis residents gathered to hear Superintendent Eugene White lay out his vision for Indianapolis Public Schools. And to pray for him. The connection between the two  — public school and prayer —…

Indiana Writers Group column for March 8 and thereafter 568 words by Nicole Garnett Here is something bound to keep late-night comics busy: A recent poll revealed that Americans apparently know more about the television cartoon series "The Simpsons" than about the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. Only one in four respondents could name more than one of the rights protected by the First Amendment; only one in a thousand could name all…

Indiana Writers Group column for March 1 and thereafter 780 words (Editors: Optional 83-word trim noted in text) by Andrea Neal In 1836, the Indiana General Assembly set out on a major venture to boost the economy. The title of the legislation told it all. The Mammoth Internal Improvements Act would establish a system of canals connecting Indiana to the Great Lakes and, from there, to the East Coast and the world.    Lawmakers, undeterred by…

Indiana Writers Group column for Feb. 22 and thereafter 670 words by T. Norman Van Cott, Ph.D. It is often a heartbreaking story. It is also a repeating story. Details change, but the essentials remain the same. What is it? It is people on parole and probation committing yet more crimes — thousands each year. Those foisting these parolees and probationers on us pollute our social environment just as owners of poison-spewing factories pollute our…

Writers Group column for Feb. 15 and thereafter 740 words INDIANAPOLIS — When the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church announced recently it would be leaving its inner-city location for the affluent suburb of Carmel, Indianapolis leaders were disappointed but not surprised.   Suburban flight has been going on since the 1950s and, high gas prices notwithstanding, shown no signs of letting up. Mayors from LA to Baltimore conceded the residential market to suburbia decades ago.…

Indiana Writers Group column for Feb. 8 and thereafter 740 words INDIANAPOLIS — As state tourism slogans go, Indiana’s latest — "Enjoy Indiana" — had to be an all-time worst. Lt. Gov. Becky Skillman was right to dump it and embark on a search for something better.      No controversy there. The question is: Who decides what’s better?      In December, the Indiana Office of Tourism Development made clear that the issue would…

For release Feb. 1 and thereafter 501 words by Eric Schansberg, Ph.D. Since the Supreme Court’s recent and controversial decision in Kelo vs. New London, legislators in Indiana and elsewhere have begun to pass laws to temper the government’s ability to seize property under the auspices of economic development. Evansville, for example, has moved in recent weeks to reclassify another area of downtown as "needing redevelopment" — in particular, the Hadi Shrine. This is the…