President Trump is expected to announce he will nominate State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert, a Fox News presenter until two years ago, to be the next U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. — Associated Press, Dec. 7, 2018 WHAT FATE AWAITS a nation that grades its information on the physical appearance of the source rather than on experience, strength of character and intelligence? We’re going to find out because that’s where America is headed. It…

by H. Sterling Burnett, Ph.D. The plan by Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO) to shut down two large coal power plants and replace them with renewable energy sources is bad for ratepayers and bad for the state’s business climate. In fact, the only winner is NIPSCO, who will reap profits on the backs of ratepayers and federal taxpayers. NIPSCO provides electric power to approximately 460,000 customers across Indiana. In the Integrated Resource Plan NIPSCO…

“Something worth doing is worth measuring.” — Dr. John Crawford, Fort Wayne City Council by Ken Davidson Over the course of the past three years, obtaining information on Tax Increment Financing (TIF) districts has been made difficult and in some ways impossible. In 2016, shortly after articles appeared in the quarterly Indiana Policy Review, the Holcomb Administration stopped publishing data related to local economic development agencies. Previously, residents could go to the web site of…

by Leo Morris I was intrigued by a recent CNHI News story to the effect that Michigan’s legalization of marijuana for recreational use could create headaches for police in northern Indiana. For one thing, they have to be on the lookout for those legally using weed in Michigan who might be a little lax about wandering across the state line into a jurisdiction where their indulgence is still illegal. For another, officials “expect the new…

5:30 p.m. this Saturday Dec. 8 at Zianos on Dupont in Fort Wayne BRING A FRIEND: Seats are limited. At the podium will be Andrea Neal, Erin Tuttle and Marlin Stutzman speaking on “A Government Upside Down.” Expansive Q&A. Register HERE.

TO ACCESS YOUR ADVANCE COPY of the winter journal, please make sure your membership is up to date here. An individual membership is $50 and a corporate membership is $120. Thank you! The Eco-Devo Promises: Let’s Unwrap Them Unelected redevelopment commissions should not have the power to take money from other parts of government for a Tax Increment Financing (TIF) project, especially ones that never come to reality like the charades in my city. “It’s a Ponzi scheme” our county auditor said of the…

by Norman Van Cott, Ph.D. When teaching principles of economics to university freshmen and sophomores, I always give what I call my “Prozac lecture.” I warn them it is coming so they can bring their coping powers to class, prescriptions and otherwise. You’re probably thinking the lecture has something to do with economics being known as the “dismal science.” Not so. The lecture, rather, offers students a personal application of Albert Einstein’s observation that “compound interest…

by Ryan Cummins The truth is there is no accepted definition in Indiana now of what constitutes “economic development.” And that is part of the problem. For when something like economic development can mean anything, which it often does, then it can just as easily become meaningless, which it often is. Economic development should mean the actions undertaken by individuals or groups of individuals to improve the short-term and long-term economic conditions for themselves, their…

by Leo Morris This is actually a Christmas column. But it will take a while to get there, so please bear with me. My first job at my first newspaper was wire editor for the Wabash Plain Dealer. That meant that, in addition to being a reporter charged with gathering information and writing local stories, I got to come in early and, as they said back then, “strip the wire.” It was my duty to…

by T. Norman Van Cott, Ph.D. The Bible’s account of Joseph in Genesis (Chapters 37, 39- 49) presents a story rich in lessons. One is an economics lesson. To wit: Speculation in markets can play a positive role in promoting overall economic well-being. This is an important lesson because speculators are typically classified as societal thieves. Before drawing the economics lesson out of the account, let’s first look at its highlights. Joseph was one of…