Most observers thought the General Assembly would be so consumed with passing a balanced two-year budget in the midst of a recession that no other substantive issues would be addressed. Guess all those cynics will now have to eat crow, or, er, well, something else:
The Indiana State Senate this afternoon passed a resolution urging that the sugar cream pie be named the state's official pie.
We are the Borg. Resistance is futile. No kidding -- zoom all the way to the end and check it out if you can't bear to watch the whole thing.
At what point, I wonder, will the wretched excess become so awful that even Obama's more adult, halfway rational supporters will start to feel embarrassed?
Here's a takeoff on the video.
(Via The
Is this one of those cases in which a public official lets down his guard and accidentally blurts out the truth? Because of people wanting to vote early or file for tax extensions, the city-county parking garage took in about $30,000 in October, about $10,000 more than the monthly average. But the 932-space garage had only an average December, and January is expected to be sub-par, so the facility is going to be a money-loser again this year, which is a continuing concern to one official:
Some Hoosier lawmakers discover an economic-development incentive:
State Reps. Jackie Walorski (R-Jimtown) and Wes Culver (R-Goshen) want cargo trailers sold to out-of-state consumers to be exempt from Indiana's gross retail tax.
[. . .]
Indiana has public access laws that say we have the right to attend most government meetings and see most government information, since it is, you know, our government and our information. But officials don't always obey the law, because there are no real penalties. Maybe that will change now:
Rats. Obama and Roberts re-did the oath, so now we won't have four years of "he's not really president, so nothing counts" hysteria the way we did after the Supreme Court "stole the election" for Bush in 2000.
After a flawless recitation that included no Bible and took 25 seconds, Roberts smiled and said, "Congratulations, again."
Today is the 36th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, one of the worst Supreme Court decisions in history. Why would even "right to choose" advocates celebrate such an abomination? But NOW apparently is. The headline on this AP story is a little misleading -- "U.S. abortion debate altered by Obama presidency" -- but the story itself gets it right:
Moving is one of the worst experiences of human existence. Everything you've spent years accumulating and arranging to perfection suddenly has to be packed up and hauled away. It's a process that consumes weeks, and often you have to think so much about the new place -- how can I possibly fit this couch in that living room, and didn't there seem to be more cupboard space when we signed the papers? -- that any semblance of a normal life in the old place is impossible.
Larry DeBoer, Purdue University professor of agricultural economics, explains to Clark County officials that the "circuit breaker" system of property tax caps now in play in Indiana means officials in all taxing districts of a county are going to have to work together:
The portable TV next to my computer terminal is tuned to the Inaugural. Three quick thoughts:
1. The announcer sounds like one of those guys telling us about the daredevil races: "Be sure to come to the track this Sunday, SUNday, SUNDAY, for THRILLS, SPILLS and CHILLS." When the vice president-elect came down, I almost expected to hear: "Biden, BiDEN, BIDEN."
2. They chickened out on "Barack Hussein Obama" and went with Barack H. Obama.
3. No hats, again. Sorry, haberdashers.
