Hoosier lore

This is the kind of story that gets a lot of mileage (Chicago Tribune, Boston Globe, Indy Star, USA Today, for goodness sake) because it has a cute hook and a memorable line that the person quoted probably regretted uttering the minute she saw it in print. ("I'm not running a squirrel condominium here," attributed to library director Judy Hamilton.) But if you look at what's really going on, it's about a public institution trying to deal as best it can with a difficult employee.

Indiana University basketball coach Mike Davis won his 100th basketball game, and the media seem to be totally buying the I.U. PR line that he's the "second-fastest in school history" to reach that milestone. Steve Straiger explains why the claim is nonsense.

Lots of talk today about the decision by a federal judge who sided with the Indiana Civil Liberties Union and told the Indiana House of Representatives it could open its sessions with prayer, but not sectarian prayer. (Hat tip to the Indiana Blog Review for all the links.)

Mitch Daniels is exercising his prerogative as governor to tell the federal Department of Transportation his opinion of proposed time-zone changes. But DOT spokesman Robert Johnson puts the issue in perspective (or Daniels in his place, depending on your view):

Happy 80th birthday to the Grand Ole Opry, an American institution with a bigger Indiana connection than you might realize. Still a lot of good country music out there, even if it has drifted too far from its hillbilly roots and become another part of the corporate music culture. The good news -- a lot of country stars are starting their own labels; maybe that will re-energize the music.

Columnist George Will notices Mitch Daniels and Mike Pence and wonders if Indiana represents the wave of the future:

There is more to limited government than limiting its spending, but there will be nothing limited about government unless its spending is strenuously limited.

Oh, please, stop it, stop it, stop it. This is not:

What began as an attempt to make time in Indiana a little less confusing has done the exact opposite, Hoosiers on both sides of the issue said Monday at the last of four federal time zone hearings.

This is just Hoosiers being Hoosiers. It will pass. Or not.

Do we unfairly treat male sex offenders more harshly than female ones? Advance Indiana, citing a case from Hamilton County, thinks so:

That teen-agers are having sex with one another is no surprise. That one of the teen-agers can be charged with a felony and, if found guilty, sentenced to jail time and required to register as a sex offender, may come as a surprise to many.

Just in case you thought Indiana was the only state with court-mandated property tax changes:

The Texas Supreme Court declared Tuesday that the property tax system that supports the state's public schools is unconstitutional, and it gave the Legislature until June 1 to come up with a new way to pay for education.

Can't say I agree totally with this Indianapolis Star editorial:

Gone are the days when Indiana legislators could afford to think of the every-other-year short session as a chance merely to tweak past decisions.

Given the state's multiple challenges, lawmakers need a boldness and sense of urgency that usually are missing from nonbudget-writing sessions.