BACK WHEN WE BABY BOOMERS came of credit-card age, the trigger word was “new.” It was everywhere in advertising promotions carried by the then-novel medium of television. It came to signal products that were overpriced or of lower quality — pigs in pokes, products that couldn’t withstand close inspection. So it is today with “must” for the millennial voter. They are bombarded by arguments that they must do this and they must do that. Here…

By Donna Volmerding “For the poor you have with you always, but you do not always have Me.” — Jesus Christ In a letter to a local newspaper, a pastor wrote that “if we are authentic Christians, we are always on the side of the poor, the marginalized, the least, the last and the lost.” “Authentic” Christians do not dispute the fact that they are to be caring servants, but discussions about how best to…

Dear Editor: At risk of dampening the boosterism generated by the multi-million dollar Regional Cities hoopla, we offer this counter proposal written by our adjunct scholar Fred McCarthy in 1989 and published in the fall 2011 issue of The Indiana Policy Review: “The State of Indiana announces a new policy for business development. In the belief that businesses locate or expand more productively using long-term, genuine economic logic, we will no longer offer temporary tax…

THE CONCERN that a shift in the form of media ownership would change the nature of Indiana’s public discussion is realized in the Indianapolis Star. The newspaper, since its purchase by a widely held national corporation, has gone from a trusted statewide arbiter of that discussion to a myopic collection of digital headlines lecturing Hoosiers on their failings as citizens. In his book, “Coloring the News: How Crusading for Diversity Has Corrupted American Journalism,” William…

by John Pickerill Some claim that the Constitutional system (the Electoral College) for selecting the President. It was never the intent of the Constitution, however, for the President to be elected by direct popular vote — and for good reason. Part of their confusion is due to today’s state law code and how it circumvents the original purpose of the Electoral College. The intent was for Indiana voters to go to the polls in November…

by Andrea Neal Whatever the potential benefits of Barack Obama’s Clean Power Plan, this much is clear: It would kill Indiana’s coal industry and devastate our economy. Indiana gets 84 percent of its energy from coal, an abundant and affordable natural resource that — when burned — emits carbon dioxide that is blamed for global warming. “The Clean Power Plan,” an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule that takes effect Dec. 22, envisions a low carbon…

by Andrea Neal He was the A. J. Foyt of the harness racing world. During a 10-year career, Dan Patch broke records and raked in prize winnings. His appearance at events drew fans by the thousands. Through it all, he never lost a race. Sportswriter Charles Leerhsen calls Dan Patch “the most celebrated American sports figure in the first decade of the 20th century, as popular in his day as any athlete who has ever…

by John Kessler There has been a trend recently in economic development circles to encourage public-private partnerships. In this kind of partnership the government partners with a private business to pursue some sort of project. Typically, the government gives taxpayer money directly to the business as a subsidy to pursue the project or they guarantee a loan to help finance the project. To the politician and business, this kind of partnership is a great idea…

by Eric Schansberg, Ph.D. Although the United States is famous for being a “melting pot,” immigration has often been a contentious topic for us. In recent decades, illegal immigration has brought the issue back to the forefront. And since 9/11, worries about terrorism now mix with concerns about economics, culture and politics. Immigrants have come to America for centuries and they seem to have been a big net plus for the country. But as is…

by Cecil Bohanon, Ph.D. I think it was Mark Twain who said there are lies, damn lies and statistics. Of course, unlike a mere opinion a reference to a number gives an objective aura to a specific claim. It is no wonder that op-ed writers, this one included, love to pepper their writings with statistics from reliable sources. We must all be careful, however, to consider the context and format of the statistic. As I…