Indiana Writers Group column for March 1 and thereafter 780 words (Editors: Optional 83-word trim noted in text) by Andrea Neal In 1836, the Indiana General Assembly set out on a major venture to boost the economy. The title of the legislation told it all. The Mammoth Internal Improvements Act would establish a system of canals connecting Indiana to the Great Lakes and, from there, to the East Coast and the world.    Lawmakers, undeterred by…

Indiana Writers Group column for Feb. 22 and thereafter 670 words by T. Norman Van Cott, Ph.D. It is often a heartbreaking story. It is also a repeating story. Details change, but the essentials remain the same. What is it? It is people on parole and probation committing yet more crimes — thousands each year. Those foisting these parolees and probationers on us pollute our social environment just as owners of poison-spewing factories pollute our…

Writers Group column for Feb. 15 and thereafter 740 words INDIANAPOLIS — When the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church announced recently it would be leaving its inner-city location for the affluent suburb of Carmel, Indianapolis leaders were disappointed but not surprised.   Suburban flight has been going on since the 1950s and, high gas prices notwithstanding, shown no signs of letting up. Mayors from LA to Baltimore conceded the residential market to suburbia decades ago.…

Indiana Writers Group column for Feb. 8 and thereafter 740 words INDIANAPOLIS — As state tourism slogans go, Indiana’s latest — "Enjoy Indiana" — had to be an all-time worst. Lt. Gov. Becky Skillman was right to dump it and embark on a search for something better.      No controversy there. The question is: Who decides what’s better?      In December, the Indiana Office of Tourism Development made clear that the issue would…

For release Feb. 1 and thereafter 501 words by Eric Schansberg, Ph.D. Since the Supreme Court’s recent and controversial decision in Kelo vs. New London, legislators in Indiana and elsewhere have begun to pass laws to temper the government’s ability to seize property under the auspices of economic development. Evansville, for example, has moved in recent weeks to reclassify another area of downtown as "needing redevelopment" — in particular, the Hadi Shrine. This is the…

for Jan. 25 and thereafter 616 words by Cecil Bohanon, Ph.D. What is the proper job of Indiana state government? Reasonable people can and do disagree. Almost all believe the state ought to maintain prisons. Most of us think the state should have a role in financing roads and schools though perhaps not in operating them. Traditionally, conservatives and libertarians have drawn the line here, whereas those who are more liberal or progressive have envisioned…

Indiana Writers Group column for Jan. 18 and thereafter 690 words INDIANAPOLIS — Wells County Assessor Connie S. Prible isn’t seeking re-election, so she can risk being blunt about the inadequacies of township government.   "I can’t think of anything township officials do right now that couldn’t be handled at the county level," says Prible, who’s been handling real estate assessment for her county’s nine townships for most of 20 years. Don’t get her wrong. She…

Indiana Writers Group column for Jan. 11 and thereafter 544 words by Eric Schansberg Labor unions continue to be in the news sporadically. This summer’s 50th anniversary of the AFL-CIO merger was ironically paired with a maverick union group’s decision to break from the pack (the "Change to Win Coalition"). Then, just in time for Christmas, unionized transit workers in New York City hamstrung The Big Apple by going on strike. Locally in recent weeks,…

Indiana Writers Group column for Jan. 4 and thereafter 730 words by Andrea Neal INDIANAPOLIS – Indiana lawmakers have been tinkering with ISTEP for close to 20 years. After all this time, you’d think we’d have a test that meets the needs of parents, teachers and students and satisfies all the state and federal bureaucrats who have hinged funding promises on student achievement. We don’t. During the 2006 session of the Indiana General Assembly, the…

Indiana Writers Group column for Dec. 28 and thereafter 574 words by Dick McGowan A recent series of articles in the Indianapolis Star provided a sampling of opinion from women and shows why our society will not soon have better balance between home life and working life. The articles were written only by women. (Could the newspaper find no men who left a career to assume a larger family role?) One writer immediately invoked "sexist…