by Ryan Cummins What will it take for my town — or for your town — to be what the people who live there believe to be best? A hint: It is not parks, jobs, housing, industrial parks, downtowns or any of those things, although you might find them in the better cities and towns. It is when the great number of citizens believe they are responsible for themselves, their families, their neighbors and not…

MY MAYOR is the fellow you would like living next door — cheerful, thoughtful and civically involved, and his family until recently owned a tavern. So some of us were conflicted this week reading his uncharacteristically strong statement on the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accord. He opposes the decision, we learn, because he is “deeply concerned” about saving the planet. Frankly, it didn’t sound like him at all. His friends at the Green Frog Inn might…

 by Maryann O. Keating, Ph.D. Is there a link between good local governance and the self-reported well-being of residents? An article in the summer Indiana Policy Review surveys the research and outlines existing data for 45 cities and towns across Indiana in 2013-2014 to weigh factors associated with self-reported levels of well-being. The goal of the study is to find patterns between Indiana towns to assist officials and the general public in realistically assessing and…

The reviewer, an adjunct scholar of the foundation, is formerly the Associate Vice Chancellor for Enrollment Management at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne. Reviewed by Mark Franke It’s difficult being a classical liberal these days. Is one a conservative or libertarian in current political speak? To get all the way down into the verbal gutter that too frequently describes our political discourse today, does one qualify as a True Conservative? A Tea Partier? An Angry…

Not for publication, quotation or distribution. For the use of the membership only (630 words). MITCH DANIELS is said to suffer no fools. With the diplomas handed out and the federal student loan money in the bank, it is a good time to reflect on what that might mean for Indiana higher education. Daniels is sympathetic to the thinking behind the “Chicago Principles,” a letter drawing the line on student protest. “Our commitment to academic freedom means that we do not support…

Q.  If you were to relocate or start a business, which Indiana cities would you consider? Click HERE to participate in this quarter’s sample of membership opinion.

For the use of the membership only (673 words). NOW THAT NEW ORLEANS has rid itself of Robert E. Lee, et al., it surely must be Fort Wayne’s turn. How long can it be, given the new rules of acceptable statuary, before someone smashes Gen. Anthony Wayne to smithereens? For if political correctness is the measure, Mad Anthony is high on the list of marble and bronze undesirables. Consider for starters that the general’s only recorded words…

(For release May 26 and thereafter.) by Jason Arp Being a city councilman in a medium-sized city, you are going to come across the writings of Dr. Richard Florida in one way or another. Real estate developers, Chambers of Commerce heads and politicians of all stripes have learned that Florida’s concept of “quality of place” translates into big bucks at the taxpayers’ expense. The best-selling author, however, has recently done an about-face that might signal…

(Not for publication; for the use of the membership only.) A FEW DAYS AGO the top story on the front page of our morning newspaper was not the threat of a North Korean nuclear attack or the chaos in Washington. It wasn’t even the impact of increased state taxes on a dwindling middle class. No, it was that a black justice on the Indiana Supreme Court is retiring and it appears that his seat will not be filled by…

“Life, liberty and property do not exist because men have made laws. On the contrary, it was the fact that life, liberty and property existed beforehand that caused men to make laws.” — Frederic Bastiat by Craig Ladwig Watching last night’s meeting of our city council, the fellow in the next chair leaned over to ask, “Do you think they know about private property?” That was not apparent even on the Republican side of the…