Gary Welsh at Advance Indiana is writing about me (again)  this morning.   Gary must not remember that I’m a big media whore (whores get paid, sluts do it for free) and love the publicity.  It doesn’t bother me though because that’s just another thing that Welsh doesn’t know and he makes it clear by writing about it.

I think I have officially seen it all today.  Instead of debating real issues such as Iraq, health care, the slow meltdown of the American economy, the blogosphere is ripe with stories about Republican Jon Elrod’s sexual orientation and  Democrat Andre Carson’s religion.

It’s ironic that individuals who want to be treated with the same deference as mainstream media are clearly demonstrating they are as about as far out of the mainstream as possible. 

As one of the premiere bloggers in this state I can solve their issues for them right now.  Andre Carson is not a member of the Nation of Islam and is not a follower of Louis Farrakhan.   Jon Elrod is not gay.  He is a single man who is straight and takes the institution of marriage seriously and has a “live and let live” attitude.

Now that I’ve settled that,  perhaps we can back to a real conversation.  Or if not, leave the race to the grown ups.

There are 12 days left before lawmakers are set to adjourn.  I’m going to try to have daily updates from the legislature for your reading enjoyment.

The conference committee met today on HB 1001 and of course nothing was decided.  There was some information distributed on how local governments could use local option income taxes to mitigate the impact of property tax caps.  I thought it was interesting that according to Senator Luke Kenley, 70-percent of the impact on tax caps would be felt in three counties; Marion, St. Joseph and Lake.  Go figure.

Kenley was adamant about caps put into the Indiana Constitution in order to ensure permanent relief, something House Democrats oppose vehemently.

Also at the Statehouse, Jill Long Thompson, the Democratic candidate for Governor left the door open to terminating the lease of the Indiana Toll Road.  Thompson, who is skeptical of privatization, says she would reexamine the $3.8 billion deal and do what was “in the best interests of Hoosiers.”  She did not outline where she would find the replacement revenue from the lease if it were revoked.  However she did say the state might be able to cut a better deal. Thompson made her comments while outlining her plan for Indiana’s economy.

Let me ask you a simple question.  If you made a mistake at your job which cost your company $4 billion, how long do you think you would be able to keep it?

I don’t know if you seen Indy Star Gary Varel’s cartoon this morning.  But you might want to check it out.  Your favorite pundit might have a new future.

For the past couple weeks, Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard’s ethics proposal has been circulating around city hall. It hasn’t been formally introduced as the Mayor has been soliciting input from both Democrats and Republicans on the Council. I managed to get a copy of a summary sheet and here are some of the highlights.

Unless as provided by law, city and county employees would be banned from serving on the boards that govern them. It also prohibits City-County Councilors from working for the same city/county agency that they govern, except as provided by law. Indiana law allows police and firefighters to serve on the same boards that govern them.

Lobbyists would have to register annually with the city, currently there is no requirement. The ethics guidelines would not only apply to city and county employees, but also individuals who do business with the city.

Individuals would be banned from serving on a board that they would have a relationship or interest in.

Gifts are allowed under the new ethics plan, but there are some changes from the current rules. For example, currently there is $250 annual limit on gifts, that would be lowered to $100. Honoraria for speeches would no longer be allowed.

Anyone who has heard me comment knows I have never been a fan of government employees serving on the bodies that govern them. Too much potential is there for undue influence to be put either on the employee, or the employee to put pressure on the supervisor. However until the state law is changed, as recommended by the Kernan-Shepard Reform Commission, these are the rules we have to work with.

Finally, some of you have asked why I haven’t commented on the appointment City-County Councilor Lincoln Plowman to Assistant Commander for Investigations. I haven’t commented because frankly I don’t see what the issue is. If the appointment was a “reward” for his vote to turn IMPD over from the Mayor to the Sheriff, then what about the other 20 City-County Councilor’s (Republicans and Democrats) who voted for the transfer?  No one has shown me evidence that he was unqualified for the job, although he has nearly 20 years of law enforcement and military experience. And any comparisons to Monroe Gray and his antics while Council President, are like comparing Napoleon Bonaparte to Napoleon Dynamite. As long as the law allows for city employees to serve on the same boards which govern them – this is what we get.  And yes, Plowman is a friend.  I freely acknowledge that so you don’t have to bring it up and can attempt to argue the facts for a change.

Here’s the latest bit of info from your favorite political arms dealer which you can use at your discretion…

I hear the Marion County Democratic party is stepping up their get-out-the vote efforts in anticipation of the special election for the 7th Congressional District. They are not worried as much about Republican Jon Elrod as they are fellow Democrats who think Andre Carson was shoved down their throats so they will crossover and vote for Elrod in order to knock Carson out of the box and make him vulnerable in the May primary.

The city of Indianapolis is looking at making panhandlers register and pay a fee before they can solicit money downtown. The plan would be modeled after a similar ordinance on the books in Cincinnati.

The City-County Council ordinance that would suspend the pay of Marion County Coroner Ken Ackles until he gets his state certification would also impact two of Ackles employees; John Martin and Mike Gillepsie. The Criminal Justice Planning Council is also planning to investigate Ackles. A lack of certification can jeopardize pending homicide cases. Ackles withdrew his bid for re-election after his fellow Democrats told him they would not support him because of they way he has run the office.

State Senator Glen Howard continues to suffer from dementia brought on by Alzheimer’s. As once source close to Howard put it, “he doesn’t even know his own name.” Howard and I have always had a spirited relationship when it came to discussing the issues and we wish him the best as he battles his affliction.

Enjoy the rest of your Saturday.

There’s not much I agree with when it comes to NUVO columnist Dave Hoppe, but in his column this week he hits the nail on the head.  He writes about an IUPUI employee who got in trouble for reading a book about the KKK while on break. 

He wasn’t reading “Klan for Dummies” or The KKK in 3 Easy Steps”, but “Notre Dame vs. the Klan: How the Fighting Irish Defeated the Ku Klux Klan” According to Hoppe, Keith John Sampson, the employee, was notified by IUPUI’s Aafirmative Action office that he was being investigated for racially harrassing his fellow employees.

Yes, Sampson was accused of racially harrassing his fellow employees for reading a book about how Catholic students in 1924 took on the KKK.  And the sad part is when he tried to explain to his fellow employees and the school no one would listen to him.  Sampson was told to either not bring the book to the campus or read the book away from his fellow employees.  By the way, he got the book from the library.

I honestly don’t know which is more ridiculous.   Someone complaining or the University officials who launched an investigation over a book that none of them read.

You would think that reading would be promoted at an institution of higher learning;  obviously it has become a lost art along with a few other things on campus.

I have had a string of good news today.  My son’s professional theater career out West is going well.  The love life is going great.  I have money in the bank.  The shakeup at the Metropolitan police department has begun with the long overdue (and extremely welcome) demotion of Keystone cops Scott Robinett and Bart McAtee.  And an ordinance will be introduced at Monday night’s City-County Council meeting to suspend the pay of coroner and chiropractor Dr. Ken Ackles until he passes his mandatory state-certified test.  Life is good.  I’m off for cocktails this evening to celebrate.

Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels says Marion County’s Township Assessors made a $4 billion mistake which helped result in higher property taxes for homeowners.  Daniels said today that the initial reassessment of Marion County’s commerical and industrial property was off by $4 billion. Commercial property was under assessed by $3.8 billion and industrial property was underassessed by more than $206 million.

Because of the reassessment, the Governor argued that residential property owners should see a drop in their tax bills.  Daniels also used the opportunity to reiterate his call for the elimination of township assessors.

Becky Williams, the head of the state township assessors association declined to comment, saying she wanted to take a closer look at the Governor’s figures and would respond accordingly.