Hoosier lore

Thanks to the Reporter-Times of Martinsville for putting the sales-tax increase in terms I can relate to:

Starting Tuesday, that cranberry scone and tall latte at Starbucks is going to cost you five cents more.

Good Lord, no -- shut up about this before it puts an idea in somebody's head:

ATLANTA (AP) -Embattled New York Knicks coach Isiah Thomas sidestepped whether he's interested in talking with Indiana University about its head coaching position.

Want to to know why earmarks will never end? Because when people in a district don't get them, "pork" suddenly becomes "needed projects," and people like Sylvia Smith are there to cheer on their griping:

Like many people, I am ambivalent about earmarks.

Here's a Hillary Clinton speech on "Solutions for the American Economy" from January. I assume what she will say in Fort Wayne won't be substantially different. Here she explains the genesis of her "bold" approach:

OK, go south on I-69, then take the first exit after the bunny . . .

A 45-foot tall, three-dimensional replica of the Nestlé NesQuik rabbit leaning against a 40-foot-tall glass of chocolate milk might be the signature mark of Anderson.

The Anderson Plan Commission approved an ordinance Tuesday that would enable large companies, such as Nestlé, to use icon signage in the city, the Herald-Bulletin reports.

Strange encounter at Butler University:

Evan Strange, a Butler University student who works on the school's newspaper, The Butler Collegian, said he had asked Chelsea Clinton her opinion ''on the criticism of her mother that how she handled the Lewinsky scandal might be a sign of weakness and she might not be a strong enough candidate to be president.''

While we were all talking about property taxes and gay marriage and illegal immigration, the Legislature snuck in a new bill (it escaped my attention, anyway) requring sellers of adult materials to register with the state. The exact effect of the law is being debated. Crtitics say it is too broad and covers anyone that has even one book about sex on the shelves, even if it deals with sex education.

No matter what Dan Dakich brings to the table -- he knows the IU culture and system -- his 3-4 record since taking over for Kelvin Sampson is probably enough to get him passed over:

Now IU has a 10-person search committee, which some call excessive when they're not ripping the Hoosiers' timing in announcing it a few days before last week's one-and-done NCAA tourney debacle.

The state would seem to be in a bind here:

Ahmad Edwards was convicted of attempted murder and other charges in 2005 for a shooting at an Indianapolis store.

He was initially found to be schizophrenic but by 2005, he was judged competent to stand trial.

The state denied Edwards' request to represent himself. Edwards was convicted and sentenced to 30 years in prison. He appealed and the Indiana courts agreed his right to represent himself had been violated.

Kathleen Quilligan, who recently left The News-Sentinel, has landed at The Times of Northwest Indiana with an interesing feature about the coming movie about John Dillinger -- "Public Enemies," starring Johnny Depp -- which will be shot partly in Crown Point: