by Cecil Bohanon, Ph.D. A simple insight I teach introductory economics students is that for-profit firms strive to maximize profit. What is more important, however, is that all for-profit firms, from a roadside taco stand to the largest company, receives constant feedback as to how they are doing through the metric of profits and losses. Economic losses send a clear signal that the firm is doing something wrong and gives it an incentive to change.…

by Andrea Neal It is the nation’s third largest cemetery and a “Who’s Who” of Hoosier heroes. One president, three vice presidents and 11 governors are buried there. The grave of poet James Whitcomb Riley occupies the highest point — the “crown hill” — and is one of the most popular tourist sights in Indianapolis. So is the less grandiose burial place of bank robber John Dillinger, an Indianapolis native who became nationally known in…

“If a book can lead a state out of the wilderness, this is it.” — Lead editorial in the May 14, 1992, Indianapolis Star “By increasing K-12 appropriations by $474 million, the 2015 budget contains the largest increase in K-12 education in the state’s history.” — press release, April 30, 2015, from the Indiana House of Representatives Republican caucus, part of a historic supermajority   THE LAST TIME John Gregg launched a campaign for governor,…

by Cecil Bohanon, Ph.D. The 2016 presidential race is anybody’s guess. Hillary Clinton is the Democratic front-runner as of now. There is no clear front-runner among the Republicans. In fact, no prospective Republican candidate polls more than 20 percent among GOP voters. Although my crystal ball is cloudy, I think a simple observation about the American electorate coupled with a bit of history give us some insight as to where the race may be going.…

BLACK FAMILIES in Indianapolis might want to keep their sons close in coming months. The gentry there is coming to help them. One hundred executives of groups with missions as impossibly diverse as the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles and the Girl Scouts of Central Indiana are organizing to save young black men. They march under the banner “Your Life Matters.” Nobody can argue with that, certainly, but the campaign and a companion study include nothing…

by Andrea Neal From the time he was a youngster, Eli Lilly was fascinated by pharmaceuticals. At 16, he served as an apprentice at the Good Samaritan Drugstore in Lafayette. During the day, he stocked shelves, washed bottles and ran errands. At night, he pored over the United States Pharmacopoeia to learn everything he could about mixing drugs. By age 20, Lilly had earned a certificate of proficiency in the field. Next, he opened a…

“In the abstract, we may envision an Olympian perfection of perfect beings in Washington doing the business of their employers, the people, but any of us who has ever been at a zoning meeting with our property at stake is aware of the urge to cut through all the pernicious bullshit and go straight to firearms.” — the playwright David Mamet WHAT DO WE DO when the citizenry simply isn’t good enough, when administrators, planners…

For the use of the membership only (465 words). THE INDIANAPOLIS STAR pulled out all stops in its Sunday, April 12, edition. While it gave priority coverage to the many ways in which Republicans hate gays and dream up ways to discriminate against them, it didn’t neglect the race card. In an article headlined “Uneven Indiana,” it addressed a problem I have harped about for the past several years: the decline in median family income.…

by Cecil Bohanon, Ph.D. Travel back to 1956 to a professional meeting of psychiatrists. Most in the group are smoking cigarettes, thinking nothing of it. Most also agree that homosexuality is a mental disorder. Fast forward to 2015 to a similar group. No one dares light up a cigarette and the overwhelming majority thinks being gay is not a disorder and are appalled by the suggestion that it is. Yes, how times and social mores…

by Eric Schansberg, Ph.D. We pay taxes every day. But for many people, April 15th represents “Tax Day” — the day when our income-tax forms are due. Many people file their 1040’s sooner, particularly when they’re receiving refunds. They have allowed the government to keep too much of their money all year. So why should they extend the interest-free loan to the government for a few more months? In terms of taxes on income, payroll…