Not exactly a trend to be glad about:
The latest index of economic freedom shows America falling fast, being ranked for the first time as "mostly free." We've fallen behind Canada, and it's look out below.
Our accelerating descent into a command-and-control economy with government pulling the strings is taking its toll.
Sometimes the cleverest remarks come from people who blurt out their frustrations at things not going their way. In an Indianapolis Star story on legislation still alive in the General Assembly at the halfway point of the session, a lawmaker who voted against a ban on texting while driving vents a little:
I guess I understand where John McCain is coming from in his opposition to repealing the Don't Ask Don't Tell policy for gays in the military:
In response, the Arizona senator declared himself "disappointed" in the testimony. "At this moment of immense hardship for our armed services, we should not be seeking to overturn the 'don't ask, don't tell' policy," McCain said bluntly, before describing it as "imperfect but effective."
Because of budget difficulties, the Muncie Animal Shelter has announced it will no longer accept unwanted pets. But that might not be effective in the long run, because many of those unwanted and turned away pets might become the very stray animals that the shelter is required to pick up:
Pet owners must figure out what to do with their animals, shelter Supt. Linda Bir-Conn said.
First he'll quit, then he won't, then he might again. Mark Souder is the Bret Favre of politics:
Congressman Mark Souder has filed to run for a 9th term in Congress.
Souder told us Monday this may be his final term but he wants to see a number of projects through including the VA Hospital.
"May be" his last term. Believe it when I see it.
So let's follow up the last post about good government spending with one about a program I hate seeing federal dollars spent on:
I've written several times that space exploration is one of those government programs I don't mind paying for. The public sector has funded the human need to expand our horizons since the time of Columbus. So I was dismayed when I heard Persident Obama might be cutting the money for a return to the moon, especially since it sounded like one of those tired, typical "Why should we waste billions on such extravagances when there are so many problems in our back yard?" arguments. Instead of going to the moon, NASA would be funded to . . . more closely monitor global warming.
Is "high hopes" like wishful thinking?
President Obama announced Thursday which states get part of $8 billion in high speed rail grants.
Of that money, Indiana received about $71.3 million to use for improvements in rail systems in the northwestern part of the state. While Fort Wayne is not seeing federal funding right now, supporters of a high speed rail system in the Summit City remain optimistic.
School bells might stay silent before Labor Day in Indiana under a bill endorsed by the Senate's education committee Wednesday.
The legislation, written by Sen. Mike Delph, R-Carmel, would prohibit public schools and accredited nonpublic schools from starting classes before Labor Day.
The connection between political fortunes and material concerns is not exactly a revelation. A sour economy is what torpedoed Jimmy Carter in 1980 and George H.W. Bush in 1992. It's also the primary reason that the Republicans lost in 2008 to Obama—not his eloquence or policy positions.
