Some "unsightly billboards" are finally going to come down in Indianapolis. I've seen them, and "big and ugly" is the only way to describe them. So I defintely won't miss them. Still, this is a little troubling:
Pinnacle's battle with the city galvanized some Indiana business leaders to side with the billboard company.
I must have read 100 editorials and commentaries about the Indiana voter-ID law being considered by the Supreme Court. They are all depressingly similar -- the "fight fraud" side and the "voters are being disenfranchised" crowd just keep repeating the same mantras, over and over. Here's a typical passage from the "solving a nonexistent problem" camp, in The Boston Globe:
Hoosier criminal genius of the week:
Police in Kokomo, Ind., said a robbery suspect accidentally shot himself in the groin as he put his gun in the waistband of his pants during a holdup.
[. . .]
Welcome to the bar, where you may feel free to kill yourself with alcohol, either the slow way, by sinking slowly into beer- and whisky-induced organ shutdown and/or suicidal depression, or the fast way, by turning your car into a killing machine also likely to take out any number of innocent bystanders.
An Indiana legislator wants to introduce a bill to crack down on employers who hire illegal immigrants. The Indianapolis Star weighs in with an editorial urging the General Assembly to be cautions:
I've written in favor of moving Indiana's primary up, so here's something on the other side, from Rep. Mark Souder:
Souder feels the way things are playing out could give Indiana a bigger chance to have influence than before, that's one reason he and fellow Hoosier Congressman Mike Pence have held off on their endorsements.
When Gov. Daniels announced his proposal to cap residential property taxes, he also talked a lot about restraining local spending. The idea was that, to start getting a handle on taxes, communities would get less money and learn to do with less. But Mayor Henry has a different idea:
If you're going to hold a "public hearing," for God's sake let the members of the public speak first:
About four hours into a meeting Wednesday, Allen County resident Charles Powell and his wife, Marvel, were frustrated.
A landmark bites the dust:
Since the late 1800s, people have stopped at City News in downtown Lafayette to buy a newspaper, snack or cigar.
Customers of the independent business in a legendary location will soon have to find another place to make their purchases.
An inventory reduction sale is underway and City News -- Indiana's oldest continuous newsstand -- will close its doors in a month or two.
I talked with Jill Long Thompson a few times when she was our state representative and liked her. She would be a spirited and engaging challenger against Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels. I know hardly anything about her Democratic primary opponent in the governor's race, Indianapolis businessman Jim Schellinger. Apparently, I'm not alone, as Indianapolis Star columnist Matthew Tully reports:
