Another tragic consequence of the weak economy:
The city of Fort Wayne will not buy the old Omni Source land north of downtown.
The city had an option to buy the old industrial site for about 18 months hoping to help turn the real estate into a major commercial development.
But the city says it's no longer feasible to spend more than four million dollars to purchase the land because of its tight budget.
There are good reasons to save some old buildings. They might have architectural significance or some strong historical connection. They might still have some use left in them. Being the place where a minor Hollywood star from more than 50 years ago nodded off in study hall isn't one of those good reasons:
Only April, and already we have a strong "typo of the year" candidate:
The result of a vote by Purdue University students should surprise no one. About 54 percent voted in the affirmative on this question:
It asked students if the penalties for marijuana use should be the same as those for alcohol. Currently, students are kicked out of residence halls if they are found using marijuana. Alcohol consumption includes lesser penalties.
Boy, the "this tax won't hurt a bit" crowd is not exactly unpredictable, is it? The state legislature is debating a proposal to save the Capital Improvement Board of Indianapolis that would, among other things, raise the room tax on Circle City hotels by 1 percent.
Despite protests from some in the hotel business, a 1 percentage point increase in the Indianapolis hotel tax would be unlikely to ruin the city's reputation as a low-cost host for conventions and other events.
Omigod, no wonder I just freaked out!
Tuesday morning at 11:45am is the most stressful time of the working week, according to a survey.
Researchers found that nearly half of British workers identified mid-morning on their second working day of the week as the moment when they were most under pressure.
Researchers experimenting with a new drug have been able to erase certain memories. While it might be nice to forget certain traumatic events, what about the ethical implications of, say, removing the memory of a crime?
Please, please, please, don't say it was a mugging. The man wasn't hurt, for goodness sake, so it was just a theft when the mayor of Indianapolis had his cell phone plucked from his pocket by some con artists on his way back to the hotel from the arena where the NCAA finals were played in Detroit. (One man pretended to be having a seizure, then others surrounded the mayor when he stopped to help.)
Iowa has now joined Massachusetts and Connecticut as states that recognize same-sex marriage. Nine states recognize some sort of domestic partnership. Vermont's governor has just vetoed legislation legalizing same-sex marriage, and legislators are looking to override. Voters in California have overturned the state Supreme Court's edict barring enforcement of a same-sex marriage ban. How can this issue not be headed to the U.S. Supreme Court?
Can you believe those selfish business owners in downtown Evansville?
City officials have a downtown site in mind for a new 11,000-seat arena that they hope to start building this summer.
Some business owners now at the two-block area, however, are clear that they want to stay.
Ouch. We all know it's expensive to travel from the Fort Wayne airport. It's still unsettling to see it in black and white. Forbes had an article recently on the country's most expensive airports, ranked by cost per mile traveled. This blogger dug through the article and listed them all. The cheapest tend to be in the 14-16 cent range. Then there are these seven, tied for 11th-worst:
La Crosse Municipal (La Crosse, WI) — $0.36/mile
This stormy General Assembly session must be making our legislators a little punch drunk. Alert Hoosier Barry G. Fox sent to Indiana newspapers a link to an e-mail poll by Republican State Sen. Joe Zakas of the 11th District and asked, sensibly, "What kind of question is this?" Here it is:
Do you support or oppose a statewide smoking ban in restaurants, workplaces, bars and casinos?
- Yes
- No
As Texas contemplates a voter ID law (not as strong as ours), politicians and other analysts there are studying the results in Indiana, one of only two states (Georgia is the other one) that allow no exception at all to the "no photo ID, no vote" rule. The consensus:
Michael Kinsley uses a lot of words to say, "Nobody knows what's going to happen," but he uses them well:
Wars are fought in our names, so we should know as much about them as possible, including being able to see one inevitable result of armed battle. So ending the ban on news coverage of the welcome home for fallen soldiers was a good idea, especially since the families are given the final say on allowing the media to attend or not. Most things the media show up at become circuses, which is the nature of the beast.
Thank God! Congress has voted to spend $5.7 billion on a bill that will triple the number of AmeriCorps participants at a time when they are desperately needed to help Americans in dire circumstances:
A lot of people are mad at Tony Dungy, of all people. The White House has invited him --"another gay rights opponent," as On Top magazine's Web site puts it -- to join its Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhoold Partnerships. Dungy spoke at a fundraiser for the Indiana Family Institute, which apparently is a subversive organization that preaches biblical values and biblical ethics:
Put a big X over April 2 on your calendars to commemorate the start of the Obama adminisration's rewriting of the American compact:
Congressional Democrats overwhelmingly embraced President Obama's ambitious and expensive agenda for the nation yesterday, endorsing a $3.5 trillion spending plan that sets the stage for the president to pursue his most far-reaching priorities.
It was in my mouth as sweet as hone: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter. -- Revelation 10.10:
ELKHART, Ind. (AP) — Police investigators say they found the recipe for making methamphetamine in an odd place: in a Bible on the last page of the Book of Revelation. Officers made discovery as they searched an apartment after arresting two people on methamphetamine possession and manufacturing charges Tuesday night. Police Lt. Ed Windbigler said the recipe was handwritten on the bottom of the page.
Guess everybody prepares for End Times
