Earning a Degree in High School -- An Idea Whose Time Has Come

Bravo to Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson for approving a charter for the Lawrence Early College High School for Science and Technologies, an early-college high school in Indiana. The curriculum at the school will be a combination of both high school and college courses, enabling some students simultaneously to earn a high school diploma and an associate's degree.

This is an exciting opportunity for teens who excel in school to knock out many of those boring and unchallenging first and second year college courses without paying excessive tuition and essentially wasting those early college semesters, giving those that go on to bachelors programs a head start and those that don't a degree that will give them a leg up in getting an entry level job out of school.

There are some questions, however. While a high school education is required to be given at no charge according to the state constitution, college courses do not fall under that provision. Will the State end up footing the bill for the students' tuition, ie. property taxes? Will the state and federal governments' financial aid programs be accessible? Will the students pay for the college portion directly? Will the college portion of the program be subject to federal and state standards, like high schools?

Let's hope the feds and the State stay out of the way on this one. In order to work, this program is going to have to have the ability to change quickly and without governmental interference. This is a good idea. Let's make sure it succeeds.

Is the Indiana Lottery Far Behind?

If there was any doubt as to whether the sale of Indiana's toll road was a partisan issue, any question has been resolved.  During the ramrodding of HB 1008 there was a feeling that Republicans would vote for its passage and Democrats would vote against, and the votes in both chambers did, indeed, follow party lines.  Common sense would tell you that looking at the issue objectively, there would be some people for the sale and some against and that doubts on either side would be present within both the Republican and the Democratic ranks, and if we had a General Assembly that was concerned about the residents of Indiana rather than retaining power, those doubts would have been reflected in the vote on the bill.  We would have had Republicans voting for and some against and we would have had some Democrats voting for and others against.  That's common sense.  But we're talking government here, so prudence is not a virtue we expect.  

In Illinois, the governor, a Democrat, has proposed "leasing" the state lottery.  Substantially the same set of facts we had with the toll road issue here in Indiana.  And Democrats can't wait to get in line behind him to show their support for the idea.  Republicans, on the other hand, can't get to the press fast enough to voice their opinion that it's a bad idea and other options should be looked at.  Sound familiar?

It really matters not at all whether a Republican or a Democrat proposes an idea.  In today's party-line government (and I realize that partisanship is nothing new), whether the idea is good is not an issue.  We are essentially guaranteed that the members of the party who proposed the idea are going to vote for it, and the the other major party's members will vote against it, regardless of the party's tenents. 

So once Governor Daniels proposes "leasing" the Indiana lottery, we can surely expect the Republican General Assembly to push it through without thought.

Is that really the right way to govern?

Why Did Indiana Suddenly Change the Fireworks Law?

Was it a rare bout of rationality that caused a change in the nonsensical fireworks law that allowed their purchase but forbid their use? No. Note this from today's Indianapolis Star:

The law allows fireworks to be used only on the user's property, and they can only be purchased by someone 18 and older, state officials said. Homeland security and fire department officials said the biggest change is the age restriction. The law also adds a 5 percent safety fee on all fireworks sales beginning June 1 to benefit public safety programs like firefighter training.

Yes, the change in the law was just a smoke screen (ahem) to implement a new tax. Our money-hungry Republican legislature and governor are now allowing us to purchase the same fireworks we bought last year, but with a 5% surcharge. Once again, this shows that any perceived difference between the Democrats and the Republicans is not real. Well, maybe the Dems would have made it a 10% tax and required each purchase be accompanied by a pair of goggles...

Reps and Dems Blow Reporting Deadline

In at least two Indiana counties the major parties have let the campaign finance reporting deadline pass without filing their reports. This would be a big no-no for one of the other parties and would warrant a heavy fine. Let's see what happens here.

How can we continue to trust the Republicans and Democrats to get our elections right when they can't follow their own rules -- the rules implemented to throw hurdles in front of third parties and to keep power concentrated in the status quo? How about opening a seat on the county, and state, election boards up to an Independent? The monopoly the Reps and Dems have on the election system needs to be checked, and absent a third party gaining major party status, putting a non-partisan on the election board will help.