Okay, I freely admit this will probably be the most bizarre thing you guys have ever read me post. But trust me, it will be the most fun.

I was on the phone with a city hall source the other day and I asked them about the recent crackdowns on illegal gambling in Indianapolis this week. I asked why the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police department went after the poker club on the east side and the pea-shake house/car wash at 38th and Capitol. My source told me the city is simply tired of this illegal activity and is cracking down. They also told me that as much as I complain about crime, I should be happy. I was also told to expect more raids because the powers that be were tired of foolishness and nonsense.

I didn’t connect the dots at first, but one thing that has kept the city from cracking down on the pea shake houses has been being afraid of being called racist, because the pea shakes are in predominately low-income, black neighborhoods. Also, it’s no big secret the pea shakes have been rumored for years to have ties to a number of Black elected officials in Marion County. Everyone knows the Monroe Gray, Tony Duncan story. If not you can find it here. No white politician could attack a pea shake house without getting white sheets thrown at him.

However it’s much easier to go after pea shake houses as part of a greater crackdown on gambling, thus the raid over at the poker club on the eat side. Now think about this and let’s connect some more dots. Who stands to benefit the most with pea shakes shut down? Of course the neighborhood residents, but go a step further. Marion County is, for now, a one’party county with Democrats in charge, so if there is any political competition it’s different factions inside the party fighting for control, like Hamilton County.

So if pea shakes are notoriously rumored to have close ties to one faction of the current political party in charge in Marion County, it stands to reason another faction in Marion County would want to get rid of them. Cut off the pea shakes and you cut off the funding. Cut off the funding, you get rid of people in your party who embarrass you. And who has been the most embarrassed by the actions of some members of their own party? Who has the authority to order the actual raids? Who’s said recently the council hasn’t origniated a new idea in forever? Who has no real competition in the upcoming municipal election so they can turn their attention to cleaning up their own house? It’s a conspiracy my friends. A c-o-n-spiracy!

I told you this was going to be a bizarre entry.

To paraphrase an old saying, “if ignorance is bliss, some people in Warren Township must be the happiest on the planet.” I write that in response to the many of the comments made at Tuesday night’s PTA meeting over a reported sex scandal at Raymond Park Middle School.

As has been already reported, the District found out two students engaged in sexual activity in an Industrial Arts class and later expelled them. The incident occurred in December 2006 but the school didn’t find out about it until January. Once it made the news the story took on a life of its own and made national headlines. I did a Google search shortly after the story broke and found more than a hundred entries. One even reached Australia.

The administration, as well as many parents, took the tone that this negative publicity was the fault of the media. Us in the media (yours truly and Sandra Chapman at WTHR-TV to be specific) were the ones truly to blame. The way some people at the meeting spoke, had it not been for the media, none of this would have ever have happened. I respectfully disagree.

The media did not force the children to engage in sex. The media did not contradict itself by offering alternate stories of how the two kids were caught. In one version, the teacher discovered the students. In a later version, the a student who acted as a lookout told a teacher while serving detention. The media did not say “no comment.” In fact we went through painstaking efforts to make sure the children’s identities were protected. It was the school district dropped the ball on this one, plain and simple. As soon as they found out about this, they should have gotten together and mapped out a strategy and then went forward and told as much as they could have, keeping full consideration of the students’ privacy concerns. I understand these are not easy matters to discuss. No school district wants to be known as the one where students have sex behind a computer desk. But consider the alternative.

Beating up on the press solves nothing. Instead of taking ownership and blaming the press the school district and it supporters are not teaching children to take responsibility. They are teaching them to pass buck. You would think people who are supposed to be in education would be smarter than this.

If the Warren Township School District learned anything from this, I would hope they learned two things. First, get in front of issues instead of letting the issues get in front of you. Second, you should never pick a fight with someone who buys ink by the barrel or has a broadcast tower because they will always get the last word.

I know I usually write about state and local issues here, but one thing I can’t stand is blatant discrimination. The only discrimination I have ever believed in should be based on merit and ability. This is why I take issue with recent statements by the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

In a recent interview with my hometown paper, The Chicago Tribune, General Peter Pace said homosexuality was immoral and he likened it to adultery. He said he based his views on his upbringing and supported the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.

Having grown up in a military environment, I have always respected the belief that people should be judged on their merits, not who they are. This is why the General’s comments are disappointing. But what makes matters worse is that while the army has dismissed more than 10,000 troops, including more than 50 specialists in Arabic, because of the policy, it’s granted “moral waivers” to recruits with criminal pasts.

According to the New York Times, the military has increased the number of waivers by 65 percent in the last three years in an effort to expand its diminishing recruitment pool. While some of the waivers have been for minor drug offenses and traffic offenses, but they have also been for more serious crimes such as aggravated assault, burglary, robbery and vehicular homicide. The number of waivers for felony convictions has also increased. Also to meet its recruitment goals, the military has offered cash bonuses, allowed applicants with low aptitude scores and loosed age and weight restrictions.

I think it’s sad that the institution that is supposed to defend the American ideals of equality for all, would still engage in a policy that is remnant of our archaic past. And it’s even more sad that some who is gay and speaks fluent Arabic who can help this country win the war on terror is less desirable to serve his country than someone who is an older, overweight, high school dropout with a criminal background.

State Senator Vi Simpson (D-Bloomington) says she will not run for Governor in 2008. Simpson says she can better serve the citizens in Indiana by staying in the Senate.

Just so you know, my son finally came home from the hospital yesterday. He had surgery to remove a growth that was attached to his lung. He’s weak, but in good spirits and the doctors say he will be fine after his recovery. He (along with his Dad) sends thanks to all of you who wished him well.

Although the next election for Marion County Sheriff won’t occur until 2010, a primary race could already be shaping up. Current Deputy Kerry Forestall is already running for the spot currently occupied by Frank Anderson. However, Forestall could find a primary opponent in IMPD Officer and current City-County Council Member Sherron Franklin. Franklin has expressed an interest in running for Sheriff in three years. Both she and Forestall are experienced law enforcement officials with comparable backgrounds, however such a contest would definitely bring the dynamics of race and sex into the mix as Franklin is an African-American female and Forestall is a white male. At least one Republican sheriff’s deputy has also expressed an interest in running as well.

I’ve come across more information on the Warren Township School District controversy.

School officials are going to use a previously scheduled PTA meeting at Raymond Middle School Tuesday to address community regarding the reported sex incident between two 6th graders occurred in November of last year.

I’ve also learned that the District did not find out about the act until they returned January from Christmas break.

Sources say the District found out about the incident through a student who acted as one of the lookouts. The student, who is reported to frequently get into trouble at the Middle School, was being disciplined for an incident that occurred last month and in an attempt to “plea bargain” his discipline; he let the administrators know about the other two students having sex. An investigation was launched and the two students who engaged in the sex act were reportedly expelled for a year, sources say.

The student who acted as one of the lookouts who informed the school was transferred for disciplinary reasons.

Sources say some administrators wanted to speak out about the matter but were advised by their attorneys not to do so. Meanwhile, morale inside Raymond Park Middle School is considered to be very low right now.

Your favorite pundit was on The O’Reilly Factor last night talking about two middle school students in Indianapolis who were caught having sex in an Industrial Arts classroom and school district has been stonewalling the public about the matter. It was a lot of fun and already up on You Tube. Happy watching.

Contrary to what some of you my think, I really do like Indianapolis. It’s a great town with diverse neighborhoods and a good mix of city and suburbia. I could easily go back to Illinois, but for now I’m content to hang out here.

I say this because, some of us in the media have been accused of being negative about the city and going overboard on the issue of crime and not focusing enough on what’s positive about Indianapolis.

I don’t think we write and talk about the issues that face this city because we want it to look bad. We write and comment on these issues because we care about this community. We want the streets to be safe. We want good schools. We want people to have a decent quality of life. I have no vested interest in working in a place that’s not safe.

The people the voters elect have a primary duty to keep the city safe and when we (pundits) don’t think they’re doing their job, it’s our job to point it out. Do I think the Mayor, Sheriff or Police Chief are bad people? Of course not! I think they do care about the city, I just tend to think that they are focusing on the wrong aspect of law enforcement, by not focusing on the immediate need of putting more officers on the street. I think they need to be more visible and use their bully pulpits as a platform to rally the community to get a handle on this problem before we have a repeat of last year.

The City-County Council has introduced a propsal that’s intended to help Indianapolis land Super Bowl XLV, but instead I think it’s going to result in the multi-million-screw job on the taxpayers. Under proposal the city would agree to “agree to provide all governmental services and support necessary to the success of Super Bowl XLV and related official events.” The city will do this at no cost or liability to the NFL or its teams, whether the services “are below, equal to or beyond the normal level and range of governmental services usually provided for events.”

If the NFL won’t pick up any of these costs, then who will? I’ll tell you who, the taxpayers! Not only will you have to foot the bill for the activities, but also you won’t be allowed anywhere near the festivities. I know the NFL drives a hard bargain when it comes to negotiations, but could someone down at city hall at least pretend to have vertebrae.

I mean if we are going to get the screw job, at least make the NFL buy us dinner first, or at least get an appetizer and a glass of water.