Many years ago, a legislator told me it was “country bankers” who killed Indiana banking. They and their lawmakers carried the day in the 1970s and 1980s with regulations against buying banks across county lines. The big Indianapolis banks were thus held in check.
Over the past two decades, Indianapolis has become a vibrant metropolitan area, powering growth throughout Indiana. The next phase for the Indy region requires not just statewide progress, but global integration.
There have been many heartfelt and thoughtful positions both in support of and in opposition to same-sex marriage. I have friends who are equally passionate and respectful on both sides of the same-sex marriage debate.
Among the more mystifying arguments against a constitutional amendment defining marriage as one man and one woman is the claim that having such a conversation creates an intolerant tone that hurts Indiana’s business climate. It’s mystifying because as we have respectfully debated this issue, Indiana’s economy improved remarkably.
Renewable or reliable? That is the unavoidable choice when debating energy policy. For Indiana, you can have one, but not the other.
We have seen what this city can do when it pulls together, focuses on a big goal, and works hard to make it happen.
If you’re a natural-gas customer in Indiana, the Indiana Supreme Court last week delivered a costly blow to your pocketbook.
The fatwa on gay marriage must end. The state Constitution is no toy for the disengaged to manipulate real love. I’m hoping the Legislature does the right thing: reverse the hatred and disinformation that makes us appear like Iran on an evil day.
Most Hoosiers probably didn’t know too much about the European Union until the crisis that broke in the euro zone in 2009. The worries sparked by that crisis were a double-edged sword: They made more of us aware of the EU, but the news we heard was mainly bad.
When I was growing up, like most kids, I worked a summer job. During that time, I used to think if everyone had to work in the restaurant industry, the world would be a better place. I was wrong.
Apparently, it’s no longer possible to undertake a project in Broad Ripple Village without its being labeled “controversial.”
Last month’s government shutdown wasted a lot of time. Now that it’s over, it’s time for our elected officials to get down to the business of the people, and the people want manufacturing jobs.
As we all know, the Great Recession that began in 2008 was the worst economic disaster to hit America and the global economy since the Great Depression. While the Great Recession is technically over as measured by economists, millions of Americans are still out of work or have stopped searching for work, and some sectors of the economy have not recovered.
For many, the bankruptcy filing of Lehman Brothers in September 2008 was the formal commencement of the Great Recession. Within days, we learned that American International Group and Merrill Lynch would be next in line.
I recently overheard two business leaders saying the slow pace of economic recovery would impede their quarterly results. I concur with their assessment, but focusing on the rate of economic recovery is similar to looking at an iceberg; only 10 percent is visible. The other 90 percent is hidden below the surface.
Over beers and dinners, I hear complaints that innovation is dead in the United States, and that most of the “real” innovation comes from southeast Asia, and the university skunk works of Western and Northern Europe.
While the meaning of the term “the skills gap” might always be debated, a new report finds that middle-skill attainment makes up the real gap for Indiana’s economy.
In recent years, our city’s civic and business leaders have put much effort into attracting and retaining young professionals, those young singles who prefer city life, dining out and environmental causes.
As a legislator, I know from experience that some policy topics are more fun to discuss than others. I’ve served a variety of roles in the Senate, and all of them have had their own share of debate and consideration.
Indianapolis has largely reinvented itself over the last four decades. Most of our modern skyline—the major office towers and hotels that define downtown—came about in the last 20 years. The IUPUI campus took shape in the early 1970s and has continued to grow. The sports venues that helped put us on the map, the vast convention center, our impressive new airport terminal—all built within a generation.
