For release noon Oct. 5 and thereafter (780 words) The U.S. government is putting diplomatic pressure on the Chinese to permit the value of the Yuan to rise with respect to the U.S. dollar. The assumption is that if Americans pay more in dollars per unit of Chinese currency, Chinese goods would be less attractive in price, and U.S. imports would decrease. Similarly, the Chinese would find U.S. exports less expensive per Yuan, purchase more…

For release noon Sept. 28 and thereafter (655 words) In Indianapolis, a library volunteer blamed “our shortsighted taxpayer revolt and cap” for reduced hours at the Central Library Downtown. In Anderson, the business manager for the public schools blamed property tax caps for a $7.8-million shortfall. In Columbus, a street department supervisor said the caps were the reason the city ran short on sand and salt last winter to melt snow-covered roads. And in Muncie,…

For release noon Sept. 21 and thereafter In the two decades that the Indiana Policy Review Foundation has been commissioning research on public-sector unions, it has never been made clear to me why such unions exist. And now, in the middle of a recession, with union contracts straining Indiana municipal governments to the breaking point, there is need for the most serious and complete review. For public employment has grown by almost 250 percent in…

For release noon Sept. 14 and thereafter (656 words) As it turns out, the biggest issue on Election Day won’t be tax caps, Evan Bayh’s open Senate seat or Republican hopes of regaining a majority in the Indiana House. It will be turnout itself.            By all indications, voter enthusiasm Nov. 2 will dictate the outcome of all of the above.  If Democrats have a lackluster showing at the polls, if “Tea Party” conservatives turn up as…

For release noon Sept. 7 and thereafter (856 words) A USTRALIA is a long way from Indiana, but Hoosiers can learn a valuable lesson by observing the debates from the recent national election in Australia. One of the principal topics in their electoral campaigns this summer has been the provision of Internet broadband services to households. The debate has centered on who will provide the Internet service and who will pay the bill.  This Australian…

For immediate release (622 words) First of all, full disclosure. I have spent my adult life, sad though it may seem, writing editorials. So there is a vested interest here in the topic of this article — the public discussion. When public battles are fought by assigning motives rather than citing facts, we are in trouble. That is the case with the proposed Ground Zero “community center.” The headlines verify a concern that, the magic…

For release noon Aug. 31 and thereafter (669 words) If the term wind power evokes images of picturesque Dutch windmills amidst a landscape of tulips, take a drive up I-65 north of Lafayette. A wind farm in an Indiana cornfield looks more like the setting for a sci-fi film than for a 17th-century Flemish painting.           Hundreds of turbines loom over the adjacent countryside. Rotary blades of 100 feet or more top massive towers and sweep a…

Exclusive to the Muncie Star (614 words) “If you spend any time rubbing shoulders with Indiana’s ruling class, you’ll recognize the circular logic: ‘The solutions to our problems are not politically achievable, and in any case they are beyond local control.’”  The ink on the above introduction to the fall issue of The Indiana Policy Review was not dry when Gov. Mitch Daniels provided a working example of its application: “It’s not like we can get…

For release noon Aug. 24  and thereafter (502 words) In my home town of Muncie, a group of local citizens wants a public swimming pool, currently in disrepair, expanded into a full-fledged local water-park complex. The group has developed initial plans for an $8-million water park near downtown Muncie with the following mechanism to fund the expenditure: $6 million from local tax-backed bonds, $1 million from local foundations and $1 million from a local fund-raising…