Hoosier lore

The Indiana Chamber of Commerce wants everybody in state government to just get along:

The Indiana Chamber of Commerce advocated bipartisanship Tuesday in the last of eight policy letters to the candidates for governor.

If you're going to do something pedestrian-friendly, it won't do to have drivers unclear on the concept:

Irene Stroh, 24, 1520 W. Ashland Ave., was walking across Riverside after the Scramble Light changed when she was hit by a 2002 Ford F-150 pickup driven by Brian A. Johnson, 37, Selma.

Now that Evan Bayh is sinking back into the obscurity of being Indiana's junior senator, perhaps you can handle the 10 things you didn't now about him. This is my favorite:

As a child Bayh had a sleep-over in the Lincoln Bedroom during the Johnson Administration during which he was awed by the television remote control — rare at the time.

Who says we don't have classy entertainment in Indiana:

Vigo County Parks held an unusual competition Saturday at Dobbs Parks.

It's called the Buffalo Chip Throwing Contest.  Saturday's competition marks the 13th year for the event.

Contestants wear rubber gloves and select their favorite buffalo chip, a piece of dried buffalo feces trucked in from a farm near Ellettsville.  

You have to give attorney Alan Wilson credit for having nerve:

The teenage sniper who killed a New Albany man driving on Interstate 65 near Seymour in 2006 should serve his 42-year sentence for voluntary manslaughter, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled last week.

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What in the world is going on with the Indianapolis Police Department? Ten officers have been charged, jailed or investigated for alleged wrongdoing this year. Now there is this case: 

An incident that led to an Indianapolis police officer being charged with rape Thursday began, prosecutors say, with a proposition.

Three lumber companies have bid more than $360,000 for the right to harvest timber from the Morgan-Monroe State Forest, and members of the some people aren't happy about it:

Members of the activist group Indiana Forest Alliance attended the timber sale and said the trees would have more benefits to the economy if they were not cut down.

I guess I've had a naive idea about what "work release" involves. An offender isn't violent and is a good risk, so they let him ot of jail to work -- still getting a paycheck, perhaps even repaying whomever he victimized -- and he comes back to jail every night until his sentence is served. But why leave it at that when a bunch of government geniuses can improve on the concept?

The public can see the new Hendricks County work release center Friday.

Let's see. You get out of jail after serving your time on an auto-theft charge. Do you: A) Thank your lucky stars the ordeal is over and vow to go straight? Or, B) Hide from your friends and family for a few days because you're so ashamed? Or, C) Go into a deep depression and seek counseling?

Then, there is always D:

A Sullivan County man found himself back in jail Wednesday morning after about 12 hours of freedom, during which he allegedly stole a car and some beer and led police on a high-speed chase.

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Family and Social Services Administration Secretary Mitch Roob searches his vocabulary for just the right word and almost finds it:

A  new rule, which still must cross several hurdles before being adopted, would require food stamp applicants to submit documents within 30 days — instead of 60 — or risk having to start the application process all over again, Roob said.