A Campaign to Nowhere IF YOU ARE FOLLOWING the mayoral campaigns in Indianapolis these past few weeks you know how grim is the future of our capital city. As has been written before here, both the Democrat and Republican are speaking out for gun control, the code words for “I’m going to focus on inanimate objects and ignore crime if it has a racial component.” Their incessant and pandering television ads are an embarrassment to…

by Mark Franke A recent conversation with my editor over future writing assignments inevitably led to Donald Trump. I don’t like writing about him, or about Joe Biden for that matter. That whole situation seems to me to be a surreal collision of “Citizen Kane” and “The Wizard of Oz.” My editor, with his feet more firmly grounded in good literature, called it “Shakespearean.” That caused a light to go on, just like in the…

by Maryann O. Keating, Ph.D. When Hoosiers gather to discuss local government expenditures, polarization kills conversation. Comments like, “We absolutely need more bike trails,” and “It’s the potholes, stupid,” do not help. Why not start with principled limits on government, a recognition of scarce tax revenue and a locality’s particular concerns? Consider four groups that successfully direct local funds to preferred projects: Interest groups seeking to direct local funds to their preferred projects function legitimately,…

by Richard McGowan, Ph.D. With turmoil rising in 1780s France and a revolution in the near future, the royalty and the wealthy plus the clerical hierarchy — in other words, the 3 percent of the population who held power — drafted edicts to limit the spread of ideas. They censored the press. In another time, Hitler had his Kristallnacht. In current day China and today’s Russia, governmental censorship on the free flow of ideas diminishes any…

by Mark Franke Immigration may be a difficult problem but that does not preclude a solution — that is, assuming there is the political will to affect such a solution. The political morass is beyond my comprehension or ability to navigate. That frees me to think unencumbered for possible solutions. Fortunately, I hang out with a group of friends who like to focus on what can be done rather than what can’t. Several weeks ago…

by Richard McGowan, Ph.D. People who are homeless have recently been the focal point of attention, especially in Los Angeles. Los Angeles City Council voted 11-3 to ban homeless encampments within 500 feet of schools and day care centers. Of course, being in California means the action drew a protesting mob that brought city council business to a halt. Other encampments, like the one near the L.A. freeway, were simply cleared out — despite the…

by Mark Frank This is a sad tale but with a happy ending. It is also a fairy tale subsumed in the gothic horror novel that is our immigration mess. It’s about one immigrant who did everything he could legally to become a permanent resident of the United States and was thwarted time and time again until this summer when he finally was granted legal reentry to the United States and reunion with his wife…

Don’t Just Stand There, Join Something HOOSIERS TAKE FOR GRANTED what economists call “social capital.” We have been aswim in it throughout our state’s history, beginning with our pioneers and settlers and continuing into our period of industrialization and innovation. You might assume, then, that social capital is something we can draw upon without additional effort. You would assume wrong. The supply is dwindling. Still, those who come to Indiana from other parts of the country…

by Dennis Ganahl, Ph.D. The first time I heard the phrase “Winning by losing” was a couple of weeks ago. A Republican county commissioner enlightened me with a conspiratorial wink. Our group had just lost a vote to freeze seniors’ property taxes. The “winker” had introduced our bill to the county council. I should mention here, the “winker” is planning to run for state senator during the next election cycle. State senator is a status…

County Overall County SCI Family Unity  Community Health  Institutional Health Collective Efficacy  Adams County, Indiana 79 94 63 63 -1 Allen County, Indiana 46 43 31 69 32 Bartholomew County, IN 65 67 44 65 62 Benton County, Indiana 73 51 81 69 -1 Blackford County, IN 64 41 57 57 91 Boone County, Indiana 89 94 42 89 93 Brown County, Indiana 71 28 54 82 97 Carroll County, Indiana 74 68 56 66…