Indiana

Monday Morning Musings

Posted on January 05, 2009
I’ll be spending my week focusing on the Indiana General Assembly as lawmakers are back Wednesday.  In the interim though, here are a couple interesting tidbits of gossip and rumor that always make life more enjoyable. Sometimes a Cigar Really Is a Cigar The conspiracy theorists are having a field day over the recent City-County Council Committee [...

Diary of a Madman

Posted on January 05, 2009
As I get ready to focus on substantive legislative issues, I figured I’d have some fun with some recent hate e-mail that was sent to me.  This was posted on another blog and the person who wrote it did not sign their name, and frankly I don’t blame them after reading this...

The ?Vision? Thing

Posted on January 04, 2009
“Where there is no vision, the people perish” - Proverbs 29:18. “Pay attention to what you’re  doing dumb a**!” - My Grandfather. I cite those two quotes, one obviously more famous than the other, to address the criticism about Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard and his “vision” or lack thereof, his critics say, for the city...

Resolutions & Trusts

Posted on January 03, 2009
I try not to do New Year’s resolutions, but instead set goals for the year ahead.  That usually gives me plenty of time to meet them, drop the ball, and meet them again by the end of the year.  So with that in mind, here’s my advice for some your favorite elected officials...

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Blast From the Past

Posted on January 01, 2009
See anyone you recognize?  

The Top 10 for 2008

Posted on December 31, 2008
With today being the last day of 2008, it’s only fair we at Indiana Barrister note the top 10 most interesting news events of the year.  I decided to mix local, state and national stories.  As always, feel free to add your own suggestions. 10.  Townships Assessors voted out and the IPS bond referendum is voted [...

Get Well Soon

Posted on December 30, 2008
Best wishes for a speedy recovery to John Marshall Middle High School Principal Jeff White.   White tells me he suffered serious stress-related chest pain, but not a heart attack, this week and had a defibrillator installed.  He’s in good spirits and on medication and bed rest...

Greg Ballard Redux

Posted on December 30, 2008
I sat down with the Mayor of Indianapolis this morning for the standard end of the year interview.  Here are some of his thoughts local issues. Biggest Accomplishment: An honestly balanced budget and being a good steward of the taxpayers’ dollars and saving them close to $50 million in his first year...

Oops!

Posted on December 30, 2008

Blagojevich?s Rush to Roland

Posted on December 30, 2008
Just when I thought the situation in my home state could not get any more bizzare, it just did.  Soon to be formally indicted Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich today appointed former state Attorney General Roland Burris to the seat vacated by President-elect Barack Obama...

How I Spent My Winter Vacation

Posted on December 29, 2008
Although vacations are notorious for accomplishing absolutely nothing, there were some things that I learned while being “gone” for the last week or so.  Here they are. The people who are still trying to prove Barack Obama is not eligible to be President have way too much time on their hands...

Mitch Daniels Redux

Posted on December 29, 2008
Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels plans to present the budget to lawmakers on Tuesday, January 6. He sat down with us media folks Monday morning and answered some of our questions on the budget, education, government reform and other issues. Here?s a summary of portions of that conversation...

12 Months in 120 Seconds

Posted on December 26, 2008

Festivus For the Rest of Us

Posted on December 24, 2008
Only in my home state of Illinois is something like this possible. A Christian group wanted to put a  nativity scene in the Capitol, so the Secretary of State who oversees the facility, against his better judgement, put one up. Then the atheists got mad and then they got a display...

Merry Christmas!!!

Posted on December 24, 2008
Hope you have a great Chirstmas!  See you in a few days!      

Vanishing Act

Posted on December 23, 2008
As we get closer to 2009, I recently came across an on-line list of things that are “vanishing” and may not exist in a few years.  I’ve listed some of them.  What do you think should be included? The printed “Yellow Pages” Answering machines Handwritten letters Personal checks Drive-in theatres Honey bees News magazines Analog TV (this is going away in February 2009) Incandescent [...

Vacating Thoughts

Posted on December 22, 2008
I’m technically on vacation this week.  By “technically”, I mean I have days I have to use or lose.   But since there are still interesting things to write and talk about I figured I’d keep our conversation going on the blog.  Here are my thoughts on a few stories that have surfaced lately...

Sunday Morning Musings

Posted on December 21, 2008
Before heading back to Indy after a weekend of telling jokes and having a lot of fun at the expense of the current Governor of Illinois, I thought I’d post a few items of note for you to munch on until tomorrow… Expect a new report on charter schools to come out soon counteracting the [...

Make Your Case

Posted on December 19, 2008
If you are someone who is not an elected official, doesn’t work for local government or has a family member who works for local government, make your case against consolidation and Kernan-Shepard, which by the way according to a Ball State study would free up more than $600 million in taxpayer funds...

Is It My Imagination?

Posted on December 18, 2008
A few days ago my fiance asked me to go to the grocery store and pick up a few things.  I really didn’t feel like doing it, but like a good future husband I did what I was told and shut up about it. I got in the car and drove down to the grocery store...

Indiana Consolidated, LLC

Posted on December 18, 2008
Of all the times to have to leave town and go be a comedian tomorrow. Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels will announce Friday plans to move forward with the Kernan-Shepard Government consolidation plan. I would expect him to use the state’s current economic climate as a backdrop, arguing if Hoosiers have to tighten their belts and [...

Don?t Look for the Union Label

Posted on December 17, 2008
The same union mentality that helped caused the demise of the American auto industry is working its way into downtown Indianapolis.   United Here, a hotel workers union, is holding a march this afternoon on Monument Circle in an effort to unionize workers at the Westin and Hyatt Regency in downtown and the Sheraton at Keystone [...

Time to Charter a New Course?

Posted on December 16, 2008
Opponents of charter schools are using a new report out by the Indiana University to argue there is practically no difference between the academic performance of students in charter schools versus those in traditional public schools. The 180-page report evaluates charter school performance at the elementary level and has reached a number of conclusions, including the following… Charter [...

Bad News From Beech Grove

Posted on December 15, 2008
This memo went out this weekend to Beech Grove city employees from Mayor Joe Wright.  Everyone, As I discussed at the employee budget presentations in September and again in my State of the City address in October, 2009 will be a dramatic transition year for the City...

Electoral Day

Posted on December 15, 2008
Although we voted on November 4, today the members of the Electoral College cast their votes.  Indiana has 11 electoral votes and the ballots will be cast this morning at the Statehouse. Barack Obama won the election, 365-173 electoral votes over John McCain and all of Indiana’s 11 electoral votes...

SNL vs. Blago

Posted on December 14, 2008
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Sunday Morning Musings

Posted on December 14, 2008
You guys may recall an earlier post concerning the latest gossip and tidbits I was hearing from around town. I promised more, so here it is. Anderson for Mayor? The names of Democrats who want to be Mayor in 2011 is growing.  I hear Marion County Sheriff Frank Anderson is forming an exploratory committee to run for the [...

Shameless Self-Promotion

Posted on December 13, 2008
I was asked by the Indy Star to pen a guest column on Governor Rod Blagojevich to provide some perspective on his current troubles.  Here’s the link.  Hope you enjoy it.

So What?s Your Plan?

Posted on December 13, 2008
My Democratic friends at Blue Indiana are taking the Governor to task over the latest state revenue forecast. Indiana will face a shortfall of more than $760 million.  They are basically saying that under the current economic climate Indiana is anything but an “island of growth...

Heroes and Hypocrites

Posted on December 12, 2008
Think about this.  Nearly a year ago U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald was vilified by the hard core right (especially the national talk radio crowd) for his prosecution of  Vice-Presidential Chief of Staff Scooter Libby on perjury charges.  Today he’s a hero for filing criminal charges against Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich...

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