We here at the newspaper support the city having an ordinance which, either by requiring or encouraging, leads to a greener Vincennes.
With two teenage sons, I think often about what fatherhood will be like for them and other men of their generation. This is not an idle worry. Our nation, along with most other developed nations, has experienced more turbulence in family structure over the past 50 years than in the previous …
We are living in a time when the limits of American power are being severely tested. Our adversaries are watching closely. They see us withdrawing from our longstanding leadership role. Eager to fill the vacuum, they are looking for ways to gain leverage, to challenge our strengths and explo…
Jim Bobe and Jerry Brocksmith are likely shaking their heads over what's transpired since their time as county commissioners.
The federal Employment Situation Summary, published on May 5, caused quite a firestorm. The reason is a data irregularity, perhaps a miscoding of survey data that had the official unemployment rate drop to 13.3%. Every economist, including myself, expected the rate to rise, not fall. There i…
These are uncertain, divided times for our nation. Unemployment is at mind-boggling levels, a virus we still don’t fully understand is stifling the course of ordinary life, many businesses are struggling, nationwide protests continue against systemic and deep-seated racism, and local policy …
As an early supporter of plans to bring a solar-energy park to Knox County, we're just glad to see local officials finally getting in gear on the writing of whatever kind of local ordinance is necessary.
The interesting and turbulent age we inhabit urges us think about the lasting impact of current events. For an economist, chief among the questions to ask is how will the agents of change we now experience affect the location of economic activity. I don’t have answers, but offer a way to thi…
Discouraging news surrounds us. It’s hard to hide from. It’s in the newspapers, on television and radio, and on the internet.
The past several months ushered in unprecedented changes in economic activity. By the end of May, roughly one in four workers were unemployed and many sectors of American commerce ground to a virtual stop. The previous high of unemployment was registered at 25.5% in the summer of 1933, the d…
The sunshine, warm temperatures and blooming scenery look the same. It is that enticing transformation of spring into summer.
The People’s Republic of China is a deeply evil enterprise. Right now, they have more people in concentration camps than did Hitler at the height of his powers. Their government scoffs at the value of the individual, and they export a malicious presence across Asia and Africa.
There has been much talk about the need for local residents to travel beyond the county line with great caution, given the rates at which those in surrounding counties have caught the coronavirus.
I am writing to respectfully comment on two particular items contained in Councilman Lough’s recommended revisions to the city’s landscape ordinance as reported in the May 13 edition of the Sun-Commercial.
Enough already. The economy is bad. This is the sharpest, deepest recession in 80 years. We get that. Let’s talk about something else. Like, how does the economy recover?
Like most Americans, I have always considered the United States an exceptional country. We possess a political system built on checks and balances, an ideal of giving voice to ordinary people across a diverse land, and a Constitution that favors finding common ground among them.
The mayor made the right call in deciding to delay the opening of the Rainbow Beach Aquatic Center rather than go ahead with the public pool's traditional Memorial Day weekend opening
Pierre the cat was a once-in-a-lifetime pet, and some of you will know exactly what I mean.
In times like these, economists and many others watch the employment and economic growth numbers. The latter of these is typically the annualized change in Gross Domestic Product over the last quarter. Not surprisingly, these most recent data were ugly, reporting that GDP dropped by 4.8% at …
As we understand it, the goal of the city's landscape ordinance is to improve the “curb appeal” of municipal streets by requiring commercial properties to add some type of green space to the character of their sites.
Not long ago I was asked by several students for my thoughts on the outstanding characteristics of good politicians. What follows is my response:
We discovering that some right now are low wage
Vincennes/Knox County have been hit hard with the recent 80 mile per hour storm and the local economic downturn caused by COVID-19.
Knox County's rate for the coronavirus continues its steady decline, almost down to 5% as we write, among the lowest rates in the state.
We’ve seen plenty of evidence lately of the deep polarization in this country. Even in the midst of this crisis, national politicians, the political parties, and their adherents are finding plenty to fight over — even as, for the most part, ordinary Americans have been remarkably united and …
As the governor contemplates easing some restrictions, it would be useful to know whether these rules saved lives, and how much they altered our economy.
This afternoon the governor is expected to make recommendations regarding the “re-opening” of the state economy, possibly relaxing his stay-at-home order that's now been in effect since March 25.
We are living in a difficult time. Our country and its communities are deeply polarized; many Americans distrust one another as well as the government and other institutions. The novel coronavirus has deepened our problems in a way none of us imagined.
Braggadocio is one of those words most often associated today with professional athletes and pompous politicians, but the word sprang to mind when reading the report about the number of local COVID-19 cases still active in the community.
One silver lining to our COVID-19 response is a forced re-evaluation of the value of our economic development dollars and the organizations they support. This is especially relevant for groups that receive public dollars because of the deep budget squeeze we will face for the two coming years.
If you feel like Congress has become less productive, less functional, and more partisan ... you’re right. I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how it’s changed over the years since I served there in the ‘60s to the ‘90s, and several issues help explain why it often struggles to get things done.
It is too soon, way too soon, we believe, to say we've suffered the worst, that we've “broken the back” of the coronavirus pandemic.
Precautionary steps to stop the spread of the coronavirus have obviously affected the world’s economy. I use the term "affected" instead of "hurt" because this is a policy choice between two bad options. I think it is clear we chose the least damaging option.
The toughest issue in foreign policy is when, where and how to intervene in the affairs of other countries — and when to walk away. Given America’s role as a global leader, the question arises for U.S. leaders again and again.
No one originally involved with the “Duke deal” ever envisioned an expansion of the Economic Development Area, or that any “extra” TIF monies would be put to another use but would flow back into their normal channels — the treasuries of the appropriate taxing districts.
Last week, Dr. Fauci, a man who no longer requires introduction, predicted 100,000 to 200,000 deaths from COVID-19. This eye-popping figure accounts for the extreme measures now being taken in many parts of the nation. Business as usual would’ve likely resulted in a tenfold loss of life. Fac…
One of the intriguing features of the coronavirus pandemic is how sharply it has illuminated the importance of effective political leadership. Wherever we stand on the political spectrum, we’re looking to elected officials to help steer us through this crisis.
Though anticipated, the news last weekend of the arrival of the coronavirus in Knox County nonetheless came as a shock, as if, somehow, we’d be spared from exposure to it.
No individual human life is possessed of infinite value. At least, none of us actually behave as if it does. No matter how fully each of us wish to live, we inevitably take risks. We ride in automobiles, eat food prepared by unknown hands, trust in medicines and home appliances tested by sci…
This recent offer by the Barmeses may be the last hope for the old county poor farm — not the last best hope (to borrow from Lincoln), but the last hope, period.
This is the third column I’ve written this week. The first two were overcome by fast-changing events. So, I will surrender to the deadline and pen a few words about how to think about COVID-19 over the longer term. This should help us formulate and accept the challenges of the coming months.
Maybe that day will come in fall.
By passing Senate Bill 340, the Indiana legislature sided with landlords, tipping state law in their favor and against the interests of tenants.
The unfolding response to the COVID-19 disease is helpful in clarifying both the limits to government and the wisdom of our federal system. What most of us are now learning is that our most useful governments are local. The farther away government gets from us, the less useful it becomes in …
The coronavirus is a world tragedy. Millions will get sick and too many will die. All of us will worry about family and friends. All of us will miss important events in our lives.
The world economy has been decelerating since 2018, and without stimulus we would probably be in a modest global downturn. That is changing for the worse.
City council members are spending the two weeks between regular meetings reviewing proposed changes to the landscape ordinance, and if readers are getting a déjà vu feeling about all this that's perfectly understandable.
Trash is something that all of us have in common regardless of our race, heritage, earned income, intelligence level or political leanings. It’s our common denominator, routinely dragged to the curb of our concerns each week for tidy disposal.
Leaving the city council meeting Monday evening we spoke with a taxpayer who admitted to confusion about what he'd just heard.
NIMBY is the acronym for “not in my back yard,” a phrase that arose back in the early 1980s to describe landowners' opposition to the siting of a nuclear-waste dump near their neighborhood.
INDIANAPOLIS — The tweet to The Indianapolis Star from someone with the handle “VelociraptorOfLove” was full of outrage.
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