Politics and other nightmares

Way too early, I know, but everybody else is talking about the presidential race, so we should probably peek in occasionally. Whatever else might be said, it is certainly true that we will have competing visions:

The big three Democratic presidential candidates have religion or, to be precise, "faith," which, as described in this article, seems like some internal, generic pep-talk button they push when gloomy. This is intriguing:

It's becoming pretty clear the immigration "reform" crowd is going to push this monstrosity through, no matter what the American people think. In fact, they will delude themselves into thinking everybody but a few cranky, conservative racists is coming around to the right way of thinking:

The Lafayette Journal & Courier has an editorial on the state of taxes in Indiana:

Compared to the rest of the United States, Indiana's tax burden is about average. And the property tax, as part of that burden, is also about average.

The toughest smoking ban in the state starts here tomorrow, and the only question remaining is whether it will hurt the businesses of bars and restaurants. I wonder if we have enough information to predict that. Some say "studies have shown" that there is no negative impact from bans elsewhere. Others contend that, while the number of customers might increase (there being more non-smokers than smokers), those customers will spend less, because they won't linger as long.

Hillary Clinton at her anti-individual, pro-group, government-activism, business bashing, redistributionist best:

Now, we have seen for more than a century that fairness doesn't just happen. It requires the right government policies. And no one should be surprised, human nature being what it is, people will go as far as they possibly can get away with.

Now that Fred Thompson is all but in the presidential race, it seems fair to start with his voting record, especially as it compares to the Republicans already running. The New York Times describes it as "decidedly but not exclusively conservative," which sounds about right.:

The Indiana blogosphere has a lot to say on the matter of Matt Kelty's campaign-finance-disclosure problem. Some, such as Fort Wayne Libertarian Mike Sylvester, think the Kelty for Mayor campaign just made a mistake in reporting, and it's too bad the filing laws are so complex that a lawyer is needed to understand them.

Congressional Quarterly reports that Democrats want to add Mark Souder to their list of Hoosier takedowns. On the down side, he has supported President Bush in a war that is increasingly unpopular even in his heavily Republican district. But Andy Downs sounds a cautionary note: