Excellent Lake County Visit

Monday Night Football and a political roundtable with pizza and drinks. What could be better? Well, the football game wasn't very good, but we hardly noticed anyhow.

Big thanks to Jim O'Gallagher and Bert Bell for putting the event together. Also to the Lake County Libertarians, who invited curious friends who have voted for other parties in the past. I think we may have a few converts. The manager at Zuni's took our "Overtaxed Small Business Owner" bumper sticker and small business pamphlet before I left.

The most important things to come out of the conversations:

1. The Woody Allen Rule. It states, "90% of success is merely showing up". This is so true, especially as our state has become so dominated by one party in most counties. Lake is certainly no exception. Because the #2 party is such a distant second in most places, there is effective one-party rule in the vast majority of our counties. By simply showing up, Libertarian candidates make a big difference. When we are on the ballot in Lake and other such counties, the elections are no longer over at the May primary. Candidates keep talking issues until November's general election. In a Democratic-dominated county like Lake, it may seem pointless to talk about smaller government and lower taxes. If the Republicans aren't showing up, Libertarians get all the votes Republicans might have gotten, plus the independents, plus their base. That's enough to make incumbent Democrats nervous.

2. Comfort Zones. While it may be perceived that because Lake is so dominated by Democrats that it is pointless to talk limited government, the flip side to that is that maybe with the absense of active Republicans, there is a significant portion of the population that does believe in limited government, but they stay home on election day because nobody speaks their language. Be undaunted in speaking limited government! Many people will support you and vote for you if you champion them where it matters most. Being a candidate can be uncomfortable business. People want to poke holes in your positions, say you have no chance, etc. That goes with the territory. But it is when we stray beyond our comfort zones that we begin to reap the greatest rewards.

3. Small Business. Even in a heavily unionized area like Lake County, there are still entrepreneurs, and the major parites do not speak for them. This is the Libertarian Party's natural constituency, but like the tree falling in the deep forest, the message isn't heard if it isn't broadcast. It isn't necessary to do expensive advertising. Rather, letters of invitation can be sent to business owners to attend a Small Business Forum. Ask entrepreneurs to tell you where government makes their lives more difficult and more expensive. They sure will tell you, but more importantly, they will understand that you were interested. When was the last time a government agency, or a Republican or Democrat actually asked about how their policy proposals affect them?

Visiting Lake County Monday

While I work hard in my home county, I do frequently hit the road on the campaign trail. On Monday night, I will be visiting Lake County in a fundraiser thrown for me by the good people in the Libertarian Party of Lake County.

The event will be held at Zuni's in Lowell. Event starts at 7:30pm. $10 donation is requested, with pizza and two drinks offered in exchange. We'll be taking in the Monday Night Football game, but most certainly talking about the important issues affecting people in northwest Indiana and around the state.

Zuni's is located at 149 West Commercial Ave (SR 2) in downtown Lowell. Zuni's is 6.5 miles westOf I-65 and 2 miles east of US Rt 41.

Folks from Porter, Jasper, and Newton Counties, and even Illionois are encouraged to drop by for a fun evening.

Lake will the 17th Indiana county I have visited. I am energized when I travel throughout the state to speak with my fellow Hoosiers. If you would like me to visit your county, please contact campaign scheduler Jenn Bradshaw by email at jennbshaw@hotmail.com.

Huge thanks to District 1 Rep. Jim O'Gallagher for his persistence in putting this event together, to Bert Bell for picking up the tab for the pizza and drinks, and to anyone else who assisted. It is deeply appreciated.

Fishers Dog & Pony Show Tonight

The Town of Fishers, obviously wracked with an imminent sense of failure in its attempt to annex the Geist neighborhoods, is hosting an open house tonight at the Town Hall from 6:30-8:00pm.

The Noblesville Daily Times printed my letter in today's edition, expanding on the embarrassment that is this Council effort. It is as follows:

The Town of Fishers' attempt to forcibly annex the Geist-area neighborhoods is frustrating, both as a Fishers resident and as someone who believes in the right to self-determination, smaller government and lower taxes.

It is frustrating because the residents of Geist were not asking to be annexed and are actively forming resistance to the forced annexation. It concerns me that my town councilors would initiate force upon those it wants as its citizens. This isn't exactly the best way to roll out the “welcome” mat.

It is frustrating because the town is quite obviously seeking to inflate its population numbers, its tax base, and its bonding capacity. You don't do these things in municipal government unless a spending spree is in mind. As a fiscal conservative, I want my town councilors to always be looking for ways to reduce the per capita budget and the overall scope of government, not ways to best mask growing it.

It is very embarrassing that the Town Council is reduced to hosting a dog and pony show designed to show Geist residents that being swallowed into the town won't be so bad. Sales jobs aren't required when the customer wants to buy and when the approach is halfway friendlier than a hostile takeover. It wouldn't happen if the council was strictly focused on the core functions of government in the area within the current town limits. If we had Libertarians on the council, we would have a more fiscally conservative and sensitive approach.

Alas.

The town council is very fond of patting itself on the back for the high rating issued to Fishers by Money magazine. What they should come to terms with is the fact that the town has that ranking despite the council, not because of it. Quality of life isn't only determined by household incomes and assessed value. It is often judged by whether local government makes residents' lives easier or harder. The council is making all of our lives less productive by wasting the resources of the existing tax base in this vain pursuit, and in particular, is wasting the time, energy, and money of the Geist residents who are left to fight this unwanted action. A council that unnecessarily creates hard feelings doesn't deserve the accolades.

The all-Republican council should drop this initiative immediately, issue apologies to the residents and business owners of Geist and look into more productive enterprises that would make our lives easier, such as reducing permit fees or shrinking government such that an addition to the Town Hall would be unnecessary.

Mike Kole, Fishers

Mike Kole is the former chair of the Libertarian Party of Hamilton County.

A Message To Geist Residents

Thank you for visiting my blog. I appreciate the time you will spend reading my thoughts.

I know that many of you would have something other than politics on your mind right now if it weren't for the Town of Fishers' attempt to forcibly annex you and your neighbors into the Town. The Holidays are upon us, and we would all rather think of our families first. But politics matters most when it hits close to home, and there is nothing closer to home than your home itself.

It has always been my position, and the Libertarian Party's position, that forced annexations are wrong. This was my position when Carmel was trying to forcibly annex Southwest Clay and Home Place. Voluntary annexations are perfectly acceptable, and there is no reason that the Town of Fishers could not have made overtures directly to Geist residents to ask if they wouldn't like to be annexed. If the people wanted to be a part of Fishers, there would be no need for a fight. So, it is distressing that my Town went straight for a hostile takeover approach.

I support your right to self-determination. The Town Councilors do not appear to respect that right.

Most of the effort in fighting a forced annexation has to happen from within the community defending itself. Outsiders cannot legally carry the petitions, for instance. However, you can count on me to do everything within my power to defend the people of Geist, and to assist their efforts towards self-determination.

I will assist when you are petitioning by running hot coffee and cocoa to the petitioners. I will make sure you have meeting places for before and after "door-to-door" days, with refreshments for the petitioners. I will be sure that rides are provided for those who need them, to get to meetings or other activities.

One important thing I offer is political pressure. It is important that I am a Libertarian candidate for office, because I can provide a consistent voice of political support.

Keep in mind that one of the Town Councilors is Charlie White, the Republican County Chair. It is a political risk for any of the Town Councilors to take a position contrary to his, so you cannot expect them to do so. Likewise, your Township Trustee, who should be very much on you side, might be be reluctant to oppose the County Chair who signs the papers that allows them to run for that position. The threat of the unelection of the Trustee and replacement with a Libertarian who backs the residents of Geist, who are Fall Creek Township residents and voters, can be key in breaking the uniform Republican position.

As we all know, it's all about money. So, if you want to put pressure directly on the Republican County Chair, you could make a statement he could really understand by transferring your local political support from the Republican Party to the Libertarian Party. See if he doesn't become more receptive to your point of view.

I am a reluctant politician. In a better world, it wouldn't be necessary to try to bring public policy back to where our nation's Founding Fathers began, where the consent of the governed was an unquestioned American guiding principle. The two major parties, and the Republican Party here at home, have strayed far from principles such as self-determination, smaller government, and lower taxes. But they have strayed, so I am a Libertarian, and I am a candidate for office.

I have supported the residents of Geist from the beginning. I will be with you throughout your effort to resist forced annexation, until a successful conclusion. You can count on me.

Think Republicans Are Different Than Democrats?

Interestingly, Carmel Mayor Jim Brainard will be addressing the Hamilton County Democrat Club next Wednesday. Noblesville Ledger report.

I suspect that the first blush reaction is that a talk given by the Republican mayor to the Democrats would be a recipe for fireworks. However, Brainard will be speaking about public transportation and the Carmel cultural arts initiative, and I have to believe that there will be a majority of Democrats nodding their heads in approval as he speaks. Brainard has previously spoken in favor of broadening the tax dollar sucking mass transit, and has used copious amounts of tax dollars to fund the arts initiative.

Great Varvel Cartoon

Indy Star cartoonist Gary Varvel posted a real winner recently. Link. (I'd copy the image here, but don't wish to run afoul of the Star, or of copyright laws.)

It features a gigantic turkey on the dinner table stuffed with US currency and "$200 million tax amnesty" stamped on the bird. Governor Daniels leads eager diners wearing business suits in prayer- "Thank you for this bounty we are about to receive".

Varvel nailed it. There are two ways to balance budgets. To cut spending or increase tax receipts. Lacking the stomach to even cut the budget a measly 1%, the tax amnesty program was hatched. Now, gleeful Indiana Reps and Senators can proceed with plans for spending without having to worry about pesky cuts.

Bottom line: Republicans won't cut the budget in any meaningful way- not even 1%. Libertarians would be delighted to do the job.

Meeting For Geist Residents

The residents of the Geist area are working quickly to get organized. There will be a meeting Tuesday evening at Fall Creek Elementary School, at 6:30pm in the school cafeteria. Item on the At Geist website. The school is located at 12131 Olio Road. Mapquest link.

This meeting is an excellent first step for concerned citizens to begin networking with one another. If they are to oppose Fishers' attempt to forcibly annex their communities, they will gain strength in working together.

I will attend this meeting, and will look forward to meeting more Geist residents. I was delighted to be so warmly received by so many of them at the Fishers Town Council meeting tonight. The room was overwhelmingly opposed to a forced annexation, and expressed gratitude to me for my letter to the Noblesville Daily Times and Fishers Weekly.

I support the right to self-determination. The residents should choose and chart their own course, not the Town. To that end, it was exciting to hear some talk about the possibility of forming their own municipality- Geist, IN. Whatever Geist residents choose, it is that choice that matters most.

Meeting Times

While Carmel entertains a second reading of an ordinance to restrict the rights of business owners setting their own policy regarding patron smoking, the Town of Fishers will entertain the first reading of four ordinances that would provide for the forced annexation of neighborhoods in the Geist Reservoir area. Both meetings, tonight, at 7pm. Carmel meeting info. Fishers meeting info. The Carmel meeting features the opportunity for public comment.

I really love Fishers' divide and conquer approach. It's as though they learned something from Carmel, which tried to devour all of Southwest Clay in one big gulp. No, Fishers breaks it down into four ordinances that correspond to four neighborhood regions. Great strategy! If one or two of those neighborhood regions have strong oppositional leadership but the others don't, the chances are that at least some of these annexations will pass. Strong leadership over the whole process could defeat the whole thing, don't you know. I'm glad to see our elected officials are putting their energies into such productive endeavors. If only we could get them to think about reducing the size of government and shrinking empire. Alas. Map of proposed annexation area.

I will be at the meeting to network with residents and business property owners who oppose the annexation. This can be defeated.

In the meantime, if you would like to leave feedback for the Town of Fishers on forced annexation, follow this link.

Update: The Noblesville Daily Times printed my letter on Geist annexation, in Saturday's edition.

Annexation is all about money
By Mike Kole

The all-Republican Fishers Town Council has just reinforced what we learned from the all-Republican Carmel City Council: it's all about grabbing tax dollars.

It is clear that the Town Council would benefit from the addition of the affluent addresses, the higher assessed value and the greater population numbers. It all results in more money for them to spend. But because Geist residents currently have less expensive Fall Creek Township fire protection, county sheriff protection and county highway service, it is unclear how these residents and business owners would benefit from more expensive town services and why they would want them. They certainly haven't been filing petitions asking to be annexed. They knew what they were doing when they chose township government.

The burden is on the Town Council to show Geist residents that there is something more awaiting them than a higher tax bill. Better yet, the burden is on local Republican officials to show that there is more to their thinking than entertaining schemes for raising taxes and bonding capability.

Annexation of residents who want it is fine and dandy, but the Libertarian Party will be glad to assist Geist residents and business owners who aren't interested in being annexed for the pleasure of paying higher taxes in exchange for no real benefit to themselves.

Kole, of Fishers, is a Libertarian Party candidate for Secretary of State.

Excellent Small Business Conference

I was delighted to speak to a gathering of Libertarian leaders and strategists yesterday in Fort Wayne, on the invitation of Allen County Chair Mike Sylvester.

Simply put, the Libertarian Party's "Small Business Initiative" is brilliant. The LP has long lacked a core constituency akin to the ones the Republicans and Democrats have. Consider:

Abortion foes will vote Republican no matter what policies the GOP advances in other areas, because so many anti-abortion voters are single-issue voters, the GOP gets these votes.

Where is our single-issue voter? The small business owner.

Conference speakers. From left: Jason Shelley, Indiana Executive Director of the National Federation of Independent Businesses; Mike Kole; Ron Reinking from Indiana Policy Review; Mark Schreiber, former Marketing Director of the National Libertarian Party, and developer of the LP's Small Business Initiative.

While the Democrats champion big labor and the Republicans claim big business, the small business owner is devoid of high-dollar lobbyists. They're busy plowing profits back into the business. They can't afford to pay lobbyists $150,000/year to represent them in Washington or in state capitols. So, policy works against them.

Readers of this blog are familiar with how my campaign has been an implemetation of the Small Business Initiative. I have reached out to business owners in the hospitality industry in particular, showing them how the other two parties are killing them, while only the Libertarian Party speaks up consistently in defense of them, against higher taxes, and in favor of their property rights.

Explaining how championing small business owners helped defeat a tax in Fishers.

I have every confidence that this program will begin to spread rapidly throughout the region, to the great benefit of the state affiliates that pick it up. Libertarian representatives from Ohio, Kentucky, and Missouri were in attendance.

I urge our County Chairs here in Indiana to get on board, and to always look for small business owners to defend and to promote. After all, issues devide, but constituencies unite.

Sometimes, There's Just No Winning

Three guys are in a jail cell. They start to talking and find out that they're all gas station owners.

The first one says, "I set my prices at a couple of cents higher than my competitors. I'm in here for price-gouging."

The second one says "I set my prices at a couple of cents lower than my competitors. I'm in here for predatory practices."

The third one says "I set my prices at the same price as my competitors. I'm in here for collusion!"

The difference between these decisions being legal and illegal is the difference between capitalism and the mixed-economy fascism were are now saddled with in this country.

Thanks to Kevin Fleming for passing this one along, via The Agitator.

Calling Geist Residents!

If you reside in Fall Creek Township in the Geist area, or own business property there, you will probably discuss the Town of Fishers' attempts to forcibly annex you into the Town more than the weather or the latest Colts game.

Many Geist residents and business owners will want to oppose this forced annexation. The Libertaian Party will be pleased to assist you in maintaining your autonomy and self-determination.

Check this site, your newspapers, and your mailbox soon. The Libertarian Party will be setting up a meeting that will give opponents the tools, the insights, and the networking necessary to defeat this hostile takeover.

With this move, the all-Republican Fishers Town Council has just reinforced what we learned from the all-Republican Carmel City Council: it's all about grabbing tax dollars.

It is clear that the Town Council would benefit from the addition of the affluent addresses, the higher assessed value, and the greater population numbers. It all results in more money for them to spend.

But as Geist residents, you currently have less expensive Fall Creek Township fire protection, County Sheriff protection, and County Highway service. Therefore, it is unclear how you would benefit from more expensive Town services, and why you would want them. You certainly haven't been filing petitions asking to be annexed. I have little doubt that you knew what you were doing when you chose Township government.

Place the burden is on the Town Council to show Geist residents that there is something more awaiting them than a higher tax bill, or the ability to cast a fairly meaningless Council vote. Politically, the burden is on local Republican officials to show that there is more to their thinking than entertaining schemes for raising taxes and bonding capability.

Check out the websites of the Clay Township residents who fought Carmel's forced annexation. You will see that the process is indeed hostile. Southwest Clay NOAX. Concerned Citizens For Home Place. You will also see that the residents and business owners can get together and defeat a forced annexation (Home Place), or negotiate to make it more palatable (Southwest Clay).

Carmel Has A New Rival

OK, Fishers and Carmel have been rivals for the last several years, each looking for the bragging rights however they may come- bigger population, higher rankings in magazines, etc. I'm thinking about the Abdul In The Morning show on WXNT, where they play the theme from Hogan's Heroes every time Carmel is mentioned, and Abdul makes cracks about Home Place being the Sudetenland, because it was targeted by Carmel for forced annexation.

Abdul, you'll have to play that theme for Fishers now. The Town of Fishers just held a press conference to announce that the Council wishes to annex neighborhoods in the Geist Reservor area. From the Indy Star report:

FISHERS, Ind. -- Town leaders here plan to annex hundreds of high-end homes that line Geist Reservoir, one of the metro area's premier addresses.

Town Council president Scott Faultless and Town Manager Gary Huff announced in a news conference this morning that Fishers plans to annex 2,050 properties along the reservoir. The annexation would be large enough to increase the town's number of households by about 10 percent.

"We're going to make Fishers a little bit better by starting to annex parts of the community that are technically not within the town boundaries. The first area we're going to start to annex is our biggest area -- around Geist," Faultless told a news conference this morning.

I'll translate for Mr. Faultless: "We're going to broaden the Town's tax base while offering nothing of substance to these people who currently live under Township government." Given this real-life translation, his closing statement in the article is hilarious:

Faultless said he expects the annexation plan to be well received by property owners.

Really? Why? Annexations were certainly not well received by the residents of the similarly affluent Southwest Clay area, nor by Home Place residents.

I would fully expect these well-to-do Fall Creek Township residents to see through Faultless' bluster and identify the annexation for what it is- an attempt to grab tax dollars, to make the Town's assessed valuation figures look better, and to make the population figure larger.

Here's the challenge to the Town: Make the case. What on earth are you offering these people? The ability to vote for Town Councilors? Big deal. Give me substance.

Looking For Clean Campaigns

I recently received an email from an organization seeking pledges from candidates to keep their campaigns clean. I chuckled. Clearly, they hadn't gotten a hold of the Republican and Democrats in New Jersey.

I got my second chuckle at the name by which this organization goes by: Republicans & Democrats for Positive & Issue Oriented Politics. I can only presume that it has such a name because it is well known that Libertarians run clean campaigns. Anyhow, their pledge is a worthy one, although I doubt many will sign on to it. Observe:

By attaching myself to both this organization and document, I vow to abide by an exemplary standard of conduct. During this campaign, I also promise to confine my criticism to my opponent’s records. For I feel that personal attacks are unworthy, undignified, and unbecoming of myself.

With this pledge, I solemnly declare that I will refrain from inciting, inflammatory, or misleading statements. In avoiding these practices, I hope to serve as an example for both my state and this great nation.

Excellent Fair Tax Presentation

While the tornados in the region, heavy rain, and high winds kept some people away, others came to Barley Island in Noblesville from as far as Lafayette, Fort Wayne, and Hagerstown for the presentation and Q&A on the Fair Tax, as hosted by the Libertarian Party of Hamilton County.

Americans For Fair Taxation Executive Director Tom Wright makes a point. Tom is flanked by Ron Reinking (left) and Abdul Hakim-Shabazz.

WXNT's Abdul Hakim-Shabazz was the MC and threw several typical objections you hear from folks when discussing the Fair Tax. Wright and Fort Wayne CPA Ron Reinking answered the challenges with plain explanations, and each time, I found myself concluding that the proposal could only be good.

From left: Ron Reinking, Tom Wright, Abdul Hakim-Shabazz, Mike Kole

Many, many thanks to Michael Jarrell, who put the event together and then made me take credit for doing so. Michael hatched the idea and did the work. Michael is the Secretary of the Libertarian Party of Hamilton County

Fair Tax Presentation Tonight

Come on out tonight to hear a presentation and participate in Q&A on the Fair Tax proposal. The event starts at 7pm at Barley Island, in downtown Noblesville, and is free of charge. The Noblesville Ledger ran a news brief on the event in today's edition:

Fair tax proposal is topic for free program tonight

NOBLESVILLE -- Tom Wright, executive director of Americans for Fair Taxation, will speak at 7 p.m. today at Barley Island Brewing Co., 639 Conner St. The Hamilton County Libertarian Party is sponsoring the talk, part of A Fair Tax Evening.

Joining Wright will be Ball State University economist Cecil Bohannon; Ron Ranking, a certified public accountant affiliated with the Indiana Policy Review; and Abdul Hakim-Shabazz, host of WXNT 1430's "Abdul in the Morning" Show.

The Americans for Fair Taxation group has released its plan to put control of taxation back into the hands of Americans. With the recent release of "The Fair Tax Book" by nationally syndicated talk-show host Neal Boortz and Rep. John Linder, R-Ga., the fair tax has become a topic of wide conversation.

The fair tax would eliminate federal income taxes, Social Security taxes and sales taxes. It also would eliminate the Internal Revenue Service, according to the news release from the Libertarian Party.

Well, they got that part about eliminating sales taxes wrong. The sales tax would actually replace all of the other taxes. Everything else and more, tonight!

I'll introduce the event promptly at 7:00. Make sure and say hello!

Stunning Defeat For Merger

I was positively shocked to learn that one Indianapolis City-County Councilor broke ranks with her party to ensure defeat for the otherwise partisan vote on the merger of IPD and the Marion County Sheriff's Office. From the Indy Star report:

A lone Democrat crossed party lines late Monday to defeat a merger between city and county police forces, leaving Mayor Bart Peterson to find another way to pay for public safety with dwindling resources.

City-County Councilwoman Sherron Franklin, a police officer, joined 14 Republicans to defeat the proposed consolidation 15-14, handing Peterson a significant political defeat on one of his most ambitious plans in two terms in office.

Franklin was placed in a trick-bag. She is a member of the FOP, which lobbied hard against the proposal. Her choices were: a) vote with her party and alienate her professional brethren, or b) vote with IPD and alienate her party. Lose your future backing from your party, or the endorsement of FOP? Not exactly a friendly set of choices.

When the vote registered on the Assembly Room board, a crowd made up largely of police officers from IPD and the Sheriff's Department broke into applause. Ron Gibson, a Democratic council member, said he was "shocked" by the outcome because his party has a majority in the council.

After the vote, Franklin said: "They asked me to vote against my family. I've been a police officer for 15 years and a council member for two."

I'm thinking this term will be Franklin's last term, if her party has anything to say about it. I'm looking for the Democrats to slate someone who will toe party line next time around.

Mayor Peterson put an awful lot of energy into this proposal. I liked how he took responsibility for the defeat.

"I didn't do enough to sell this proposal," he said. "We'll have to sit down in the morning and pick up the pieces and find what's best for public safety and how we can stretch public safety dollars as far as we can."

The merger would have created a single 1,500-officer department with the sheriff in charge, starting in 2007. Peterson said the merger would have saved an estimated $9 million. Without the merger, officials say enough funds will not be available for both departments, and by 2009 there would be a $40 million budget shortfall.

Now we have a problem. You can't tell me that it is impossible to fund the police and Sheriff fully. These are real-life priorities in government. Public safety always comes first. The task now before the Mayor and the Council is to trim non-safety fat and pet projects and plow that money into fully funding the police and Sheriff.

If the Mayor and the Council can't find the way to take available funding and spend it on a priority basis, stand aside and let Libertarians do it.

Fair Tax Event Tuesday

Here's another reminder that the Libertarian Party of Hamilton County will be hosting a Fair Tax event this Tuesday at 7pm, at Barley Island in downtown Noblesville.

Tom Wright, Executive Director of Americans for Fair Taxation will be speaking, along with Abdul Hakim-Shabazz from WXNT 1430-am, Ball State Economist Cecil Bohannon, and Ron Ranking, CPA of the Indiana Policy Review. I'll also speak, starting the evening off with a welcome.

Go if you are a supporter of the Fair Tax. Go if you are skeptical about it. Go if you just want to hang out with fiscal conservatives and supporters of limited government. Just make sure to go!

Where's The Courage?

Although I did not write this morning's short Indy Star editorial, I could have:

No guts in Congress to make needed cuts

Our position: Failure to vote on spending cuts is another sad reminder of Congress' lack of courage.

Republicans in the U.S. House aren't listening.

With the federal government's expenses soaring, in part because of the billions of extra dollars needed to rebuild the Gulf Coast in the wake of three powerful hurricanes, Republicans who control the House by a healthy majority have put off voting on much-needed budget cuts. Majority Leader Roy Blount hopes to round up enough support in his caucus next week to finally stage a vote.

But there's clearly little appetite in Congress for making hard decisions when it comes to the budget. In the summer Congress passed a highway bill loaded with waste, including giveaways to private enterprises like The Children's Museum in Indianapolis. Despite widespread appeals, congressional leaders have steadfastly refused to reopen the bill and shift money to more pressing and appropriate needs.

The federal government simply can't afford to do it all. Sadly, the folks running Congress show little evidence that they have the courage needed to make the choices.

Well, the GOP has gotten to enjoy throwing pork to people back home - the bridge to nowhere in Alaska is the quintessential case-in-point - because unfortunately, throwing pork buys votes.

The Star should have put Indiana state government on par with the Congress, though. Just as the Federal government features a Republican chief executive and Republican domination of both houses, so goes Indiana. Did we even cut the Indiana budget by a measly 1%?

No. Where's the courage, indeed.

Only one party has the appetite for cutting budgets- the Libertarian Party. If you want smaller government, the Libertarian Party is your only real choice.

Indiana Wesleyan Libertarians

I met with another excellent College Libertarian group last night, in Grant County, on the campus of Indiana Wesleyan University. It was my distinct pleasure to speak with them about my campaign, the role of the state party in beginning to be a player in shaping public policy, and strategies to win constituents.

This group will raise the bar. They recently had a National Debt Party, which was designed to show their fellow students how serious the debt problem is. Their preseident, Derek Reimenschneider, declared the event a mediocre one. After all- they only had 160 students visit, and of that, merely 60 took the World's Smallest Political Quiz.














Indiana Wesleyan University Libertarians surround me

Yeah- I want "failure" of this magnitude! By the way, the event was held on campus, on a Friday night. I remember my own college days. No student organization staged events on Friday nights unless it involved bands and/or copious amounts of beer. This crew did it on the strength of the content alone. Hats' off!

Let us hope that Libertarian economic policies begin to shape Indiana sooner rather than later. I want these students to make Indiana their home upon graduation. It would be a pity to lose them to the Brain Drain that afflicts our state thanks to the economic policies of Democrats and Republicans.

Another Day, Another Smoking Ban

Today, it's West Lafayette. This one comes to us from the Department of Redundancy Department, courtesy of an AP story in the Indy Star:

The City Council gave preliminary approval to a ban on smoking in most workplaces.

Council members voted 6-1 to approve the ordinance on its first reading Monday as about 100 people packed the council chambers.

"This ordinance will do no harm," resident Marshall Crawford said. "The most it will do is inconvenience smokers."

No harm? As a minor side note, could we please consider that it will further erode property rights, as business owners are increasingly told that they cannot set their own policies in their own establishments, as a matter of law? Is that too much to ask? In America?

I am very interested in working with the Libertarian Party of Tippecanoe County to reach out to business owners to let them know that somebody out there is interested in defending their property rights.

Blogcritics Pick Of The Week

I am honored that Blogcritics, an excellent dynamic blog site I contribute to, has chosen one of my recent entries as a Pick of the Week in their Politics category. The item is a re-cap on the trials and tribulations of speaking my mind off-topic on my blog while as a candidate for public office.

Follow this link to the entry on Blogcritics

Follow this link to the Blogcritics Picks of the Week page.

I have linked Blogcritics on my own blog nearly since I launched it. If you want to know what bloggers across the political spectrum are writing about, there's no better place to check in than Blogcritics.

Trail Schedule Notes

I'll be on the trail throughout November, and have four event dates to pass along to you:

Tuesday, 11/8, 8pm: Non-Election Night Party. Celebrate the fact that no Democrats or Republicans were elected in Indiana this year, at Bearno's in downtown Indy. I'll probably speak, but we can certainly enjoy good pizza and talk politics! RSVPs to Allison McGuire by email: maguire_ar@hotmail.com, or by phone: 317-372-6436.

Thursday, 11/10, 9:30pm: Business meeting of the Indiana Wesleyan University Libertarians. I'll speak about my campaign and the role the Libertarian Party has in shaping policy statewide.

Tuesday, 11/15, 7pm: Fair Tax Event at Barley Island, in Noblesville. I'll speak briefly and introduce speakers. Open to all, especially if skeptical or if you have questions. Sponsored by the Libertarian Party of Hamilton County.

Satuday, 11/19, 11-4pm: Small Business Forum, sponsored by the Libertarian Party of Allen County. I'll speak at 3pm on Libertarian successes in defeating taxes in Fishers and making very restrictive laws affecting business policy and smoking less restrictive. The event is at Don Hall's Guest House and Conference Center in Fort Wayne. Follow this link for more info.







It's not too late to host a TV party for Monday Night Football, when the Colts finally defeat the New England Patriots. Invite 10-15 friends, family, and co-workers. Introduce me at halftime and I'll speak on my campaign and libertarian principles for 3-5 minutes. Contact me for more details: mikekole@msn.com

Free Speech On Blogs Is Toast

This is some bewildering stuff. First, let me say that I have never had any use for the so-called campaign finance 'reform' hogwash out there. I don't care if you are talking about Shays-Meehan or McCain-Feingold, it's all bunk that purports to try to take the effect of big money out of politics. In fact, both laws have the effect of empowering big money, as only the biggest campaigns and political parties can easily the management of the regulations and paperwork created by those bills and still have plenty of money left to get the message out. Most smaller campaigns decide not to raise any money at all, so as to not be troubled by the paperwork nightmare. So, as you see, it is in fact the little guy's voice that get squashed, not big money's.

Today, the House of Representatives considered a bill, HR 1606, that would have exempted blogs like this one from being treated as campaign contributions. In the near future, any blog- left, right, or center; Democrat, Republican, or Libertarian- will be treated not as mere political speech, but as a campaign contribution.

A majority was in favor of passing the exemptions, but the bill was defeated, because infuriatingly, the majority was less than the required 2/3rds needed for passage. From CBS News:

Online political expression should not be exempt from campaign finance law, the House decided Wednesday as lawmakers warned that the Internet has opened up a new loophole for uncontrolled spending on elections.

The House voted 225-182 for a bill that would have excluded blogs, e-mails and other Internet communications from regulation by the Federal Election Commission. That was 47 votes short of the two-thirds majority needed under a procedure that limited debate time and allowed no amendments.

The vote in effect clears the way for the FEC to move ahead with court-mandated rule-making to govern political speech and campaign spending on the Internet.

Fortunately, some in the House still get free speech and the First Amendment. Sadly, not enough.

The bill's sponsor, Rep. Jeb Hensarling, R-Texas, said the federal government should encourage, rather than fetter, a phenomenon that was bringing more Americans into the political process."

The newest battlefield in the fight to protect the First Amendment is the Internet," he said. "The Internet is the new town square, and campaign finance regulations are not appropriate there."

Without his legislation, Hensarling said, "I fear that bloggers one day could be fined for improperly linking to a campaign Web site, or merely forwarding a candidate's press release to an e-mail list."

I do hope and pray for a strong backlash from across the political spectrum in response. Unfortunately, the response to Shays-Meehan and McCain-Feingold was somewhat muted, as the forces on the left especially found that restricting campaign money was a good thing. Now, hopefully, they are seeing more and more how it affects the smallest political voices, and especially their own.

But regardless of political leanings, any blogger is affected, no matter what candidate you may wish to speak freely about. Posting a link on your blog may be a crime. In America!

Update: Reason Hit & Run has an entry with several comments already. The best comes from Stephen Macklin:

We already have an "Online Freedom of Speech Act." We call it the First Amendment.

Brad Moves On

My friend Brad Klopfenstien is moving to a new challenge. He leaves the Libertarian Party of Indiana as Executive Director to take a similar position with the Indiana Licensed Beverage Association.














Brad Klopfenstein filling in on 'Abdul In The Morning' on WXNT 1430-am

Brad's move has gotten a fair amount of media attention, which is gratifying. He has done great things to elevate the state party from fringe party status to respected third party player. He built great relationships with the media, and also in the Statehouse.

From South Bend Tribune:

The Libertarian Party of Indiana will enter the crucial election year of 2006 with new leadership, the party said Thursday.

Executive Director Brad Klopfenstein will resign next month to accept a lobbying job and will be replaced by interim director Daniel Drexler.

From Indy Star:

A rumor spread last week: The executive director of one of Indiana's major political parties had quit. One lawmaker asked: Was it the Democratic Party's Mike Edmondson, or the Republican Party's Luke Messer? Neither. It was the
Libertarians' Brad Klopfenstein.

From Nuvo:

On Nov. 4, Brad Klopfenstein is stepping down as the executive director of the Libertarian Party of Indiana to take a similar position with the Indiana Licensed Beverage Association. Klopfenstein has served longer (five-plus years) than any previous Indiana state director and during his tenure the party set new highs for both votes and percentages of votes; saw seven Libertarian candidates elected to local offices and eight more appointed to boards and commissions; and in 2002, the Indiana Libertarians hosted the party’s national convention.
...
NUVO: The party hit some new highs under your leadership. What did you do differently?
BK: I think the two things that I did differently were, from day one, I went around and made sure that everyone in the media knew who I was and who the Libertarians were. We made it clear that the party had viable candidates and that we should be a part of their political coverage. Secondly, we changed our message. Previously, too many Libertarian candidates got caught up in the philosophies of the parties, which are important, but we encouraged our candidates to take the next step and use those philosophies to develop solutions to address the problems affecting their local constituencies.

We also did a detailed analysis of who our natural constituents should be. What we found was that small business owners were being ignored by both the Republicans and Democrats and we began actively courting those individuals. We felt that they were a natural fit for our party.

It was my pleasure to serve Brad as his Campaign Manager for his 2003 bid for City-County Council. In truth, there is very little managing I could do for the guy who managed the whole party. It was astonishing to watch him zero in on his home precinct in an overwhelmingly Democrat district. His Democratic opponent won with about 83% of the vote, but Brad took nearly 40% at home. He showed me what could be done with a plan, determination, and a small budget, when coupled with good libertarian ideas.

A Butterknife, Property Taxes, and a Doctor's Legacy Lost

Rob Beck has really been sharpening his pen knife in his blog "Shall Not Perish". His latest entry is excellent in its scathing challenge to Republicans to honor the memory of Doc Bowen, who capped property taxes when governor. Bowen stands in contrast to Mitch Daniels, who may be known as 'The Blade' in reputation, but to Beck, is merely 'The Butterknife'.

Doc Bowen is a revered figure in the Party. A stately old gentleman who really felt like the kindly family Doctor you visited or your grandfather, Bowen was a great and classy governor. He saw Indiana through its earliest attempts to step out of its long-standing rural image and develop a more diverse economic base. He also seemed to genuinely care about the plight of Hoosiers, seeing that the role of government should be limited, but encouraging.

This sort of thinking spits on his legacy. The Republicans should hang their heads in shame. There's a strong chance that if asked, Bowen would identify ideologically more with Libertarians than our current Republican Party. Daniels, of course, sees room to justify the cut in the citizen's relief.

Fiscal conservatives- had enough yet? Get on board with the Libertarians once you have. After all, as regards trusting Republicans to cut the size of government: fool me once...

Another Day, Another Smoking Ban

This time, it was Greenfield. All the characteristics remain the same: a largely Republican governing body proposed a ban on smoking in private places of public accommodation, without consulting with affected business owners or employees as to the effect a ban might have on them, in disregard of property rights. Link to Greenfield Daily Reporter report.

Today's GOP: Anti-small business. Anti-property rights.

Who is pro-small business and pro-property rights? The Libertarian Party.

The LP of Hancock County appeared before the City Council meeting wearing blue to counter the pro-ban forces who were wearing red. The Libertarians met with affected business owners to offer support for their right to run their business their way.

I spoke with Ann Tomey before the meeting. She owns Annie's Restaurant, and she permits smoking in a section separated from a no-smoke section. She's just devestated by this ordinance. Her job is to serve her customers. Some of them smoke, some of them don't, so she tries to accomodate them all. She's concerned that her smoking patrons will dine out in Greenfield less upon the passage of this law.



Observe some of her comments from the Greenfield Daily Recorder article that preceded the vote.

Tomey said today has been especially difficult because, not only could the city vote the proposed ordinance into law, it is the anniversary of her husband’s death. He died of cancer.

“I don’t want people to have sympathy for me, I want them to support that I’m a business owner and I have a free choice,” she said on the verge of tears. “I fight every day to stay in business and make a living and these people are looking at the smoking issues, but there are worse things then this.

“Cigarettes are legal; the government hasn’t made them illegal. This is what (ticks) me off.”

Tomey said if the city is concerned about health issues and wants to ban smoking perhaps they should also prohibit the sale of cigarettes.

“Then tell all the taxpayers they have to pick up the bill for all the taxes raised by cigarettes,” she said. “They need to stop and think about a lot of things. It’s not just the smoking.

“I’ll stand here and yell about it until the day I die, and I’ll probably die of cancer because it runs in my family. But I invest my life in my business and this is my life they are talking about.”

Tomey said prior to owning her restaurant she and her husband had owned a construction company, but her heart wasn’t in it.

“This is a fight and it shouldn’t be,” she said. “I could have done anything, but this was my dream. I’m fighting a losing battle where I can’t even run my own restaurant.

So, in order to pass a feel-good ordinance, the Republican-dominated Greenfield City Council makes Ann's life harder. She invests her life in her business, and she is treated like a criminal.














Annie: Over-taxed, and now, over-regulated.

Let's be clear on this. I do not smoke. In fact, I don't like second-hand smoke. But, I'm an adult with enough common sense that when I walk into a restaurant or bar that is too smoky for my liking, I turn around and head for the exit. Let the smokers have it, I'll go elsewhere. Why is it that so many people perceive that can only get what they want by imposing their will on others forcibly?

This is the shame of our nation and the demise of our freedom.

The Lessons Continue

Why do political campaign advisors urge against having an active blog or engaging in dialogue with opposition? Because it's bad enough to have negative linkage to one of your blog entries, but worse if they start hammering you with repetition. Most advisors will tell the candidate- dump the blog and ignore the blogger.

Consider the dialogue. I said I thought his analysis was too literal, extracting a few words at the expense of the spirit of the commentary. He turned that around to suggest that I should therefore never be taken literally, on anything, especially on policy issues. His third post willfully ignores the fact that my comments were on a radio network, which is an interest of mine, and tied it to my candidacy. It's a ridiculous stretch, but that's what opponents will do, which is why you shut up; stick to the talking points; be an empty suit; and if you're going to blog at all, keep it to tales from the trail and pictures with farmers, auto workers, and retirees.

Oh well, I guess it's just not my style. For one thing, I tend to agree with the Oscar Wilde wisdom on being talked about or not. I have faith that many of the readers of his blog will read what I've said and not find it a reason to actively campaign against me. True, others won't be so open minded, but that being the case, I probably never would win them over anyway.

Really, if anyone wants to put my picture and name in a prominent place on their blog, all I ask is that you link back to this blog or my campaign site and spell the name correctly: K-O-L-E. I'd be delighted if a 1,000 bloggers assailed my comments on Air America within the next three days. Or, perhaps Daily Kos could. That would be delightful!

Lesson For A Candidate?

Quite a few people have advised me to kill this blog, or at least turn it into milquetoast, such as most other candidates have.

I don't especially like that advice. I'm not most candidates. I don't like their empty suit presentations that are long on smiling pictures and anecdotes about places they've been, and very short on what they think. I have a wide variety of interests, and I like to talk about them. I like to talk about social and cultural trends, too. What's the harm? Must I only offer safe, boring fare, devoid of taking a position? Must I always and only speak on-message, and in soundbites?

I found out today why candidates do avoid speaking freely:

• The more you say, the better the chance someone will disagree with you.
• Many people will dismiss you on just one area of disagreement.
• Some will even dismiss you despite 99% agreement elsewhere.

A blogger found one article I penned on Air America, found my source biased, and dismissed me out of hand. (There was irony in the dismissal of my right-wing source, while touting left-wing Al Franken's new book in the same entry.)

What about the several hundred other articles I've written? Nevermind that. There's this one area of disagreement.

The lesson most candidates will learn from an experience such as this is to shut down the blog, to shut up as regards innocuous topics, and speak only on message.

As I said, I don't like that lesson. I want well-rounded candidates. Do you?

Don't you want well-rounded candidates? Aren't you completely underwhelmed by soundbite speak and empty suits that try to limit their entire dialogue to three talking points vetted by polling data? I know I am.

This isn't unrealistic, is it? I don't expect to get total agreement from people. My own experience is that I've never met a single person I held complete, 100% agreement with. Should I shut them down because of the differences? Isn't it better to build bridges on the areas of agreement?

I say 'YES' to that latter question, but the reality is that most people zero in on disagreements with candidates for office. This blog entry helps illustrate the point.

Because I am committed to being the best candidate I can be, I really have little choice but to seriously consider my presentation. I have to consider streamlining my subject matter and my words, lest I unnecessarily alienate potential supporters and voters.

I am very interested in public comments on this. Please chime in!

What Does Your Team Stand For?

Several months ago, I was repeated observing that the two major political parties were ignoring the wishes of their bases, and crossing over to the other side. The main point was that when you vote, you give 100% of that vote to whomever it is cast. If you give $100 to a candidate, they got 100% of that money. Are you getting 100% value in return?

OK, politics is a game of compromise. So, are you getting 50% value in return? Remember, you still gave 100% on your end. If you are a Republican, keep in mind that I penned this column prior to the Bush nomination of Harriet Miers, and prior to all of the smoking bans that have been proposed for imposition on Hoosier businesses.


You Have To Know What Team To Root For

The beauty of being a sports fan is that it is always easy to root for your team. Whether you pull for Purdue, IU, or Notre Dame, for the Pacers, the Colts, or the Komets, you’ll root for the team wearing the right colors, no matter what players are wearing them.

That’s important, because players come and go. College teams completely turn over every four years. Colts fans have been pretty lucky in that the high-flying offensive nucleus of Peyton Manning, Reggie Harrison, and Edgerrin James has been powering an exciting team together for six seasons.

Five years down the road, the blue and white could become a defensive juggernaut. A problem for Colts fans? No way- they will be thrilled and will cheer the Colts, hopefully to a Super Bowl victory.

It doesn’t matter who is on the team or how the game is played. As long as your team wins, you’re happy.

That’s a fair summation of Hoosier politics these days, too.

For 16 years, faithful Hoosier Republicans have been pulling for their team in the hopes of an electoral Super Bowl victory. For 16 years, the Democrats retained the governor’s office, even while slowly losing their grip on the legislature. Finally, this past November, the GOP won all the trophies, with Mitch Daniels elected governor, and a Republican majority in both statehouse chambers.

Republicans were ecstatic- at first. But, just eight days after his inaugural, Daniels used the platform of the State of the State address to announce his support for a temporary tax hike on Hoosiers earning $100,000 or more. Republicans in the club seating were stunned by the move.

While there is nothing quite so permanent as a temporary tax increase, they swallowed hard and cheered, but because they support their team, and their team is in charge!

The Indiana Constitution requires the state’s budget to be balanced. This posed the new governor with a challenge, as the outgoing government left Daniels with a $600 million deficit. The quickest way to erase a deficit is to cut spending, and with Daniels earning the nickname ‘The Blade’ while on President Bush’s staff, this seemed like a lock. However, Daniels’ budget would have spent $1 billion more than with the previous budget. The two highest percentage increase items? Teacher retirement up 73%, and something called ‘general government’ up 29%.

Hmm. Well, Daniels is just the quarterback, and he’s a rookie. Why dwell on him when the Republicans have a whole team of players on this winning team to idolize?

Early in the legislative session, Senator Beverly Gard (R-Greenfield) authored a tax on food and beverages. Not to be outdone, Representatives Tom Saunders (R-Lewisville) and Matt Whetstone (R-Brownsburg) co-authored two bills that would tax food and beverages. Republicans leaving their seats thought about heading for the concession stand after the first quarter, but then chose to mill around the hallway instead.

Representative Timothy Brown (R-Crawfordsville) authored a bill giving the green light to counties to raise taxes on gasoline from 4 to 8 cents per gallon. Jeff Espich (R-Uniondale) introduced another gas tax bill, but with a tax per mile formula that makes the tax specific to your vehicle. Senator John Waterman (R-Shelburn) has even written a bill that would forbid retailers from selling gasoline at below cost. If someone wants to sell gasoline at a loss right now, I want to declare him a hero, not send the Attorney General after him. Can we go back to the huddle?

Politics and sports goes together so well that Peyton Manning stopped by the Statehouse and threw passes to the lawmakers. Soon afterwards, several Republican lawmakers forwarded a game plan of tax packages in support a new stadium for the Colts.

Reps Luke Messer (R-Shelbyville), Michael Murphy (R-Indianapolis), and Ways and Means Chairman Espich all issued plans that combined taxes and gambling. Senator Luke Kenley (R-Noblesville) offered yet another plan, minus the gambling, but including taxes on most service industries in Marion County. Not one of them thought of leadership as using the prestige of their office to bring prospective investors together to create a private investment. All went straight for tax packages.

When the fiscal conservative looks at the GOP team in their uniforms, they will see that the familiar elephant logo is there, but the Gipper’s government-off-my-back players are on the sidelines. Those are the Libertarians.

Governing is not sports. When governing, the policy is far more important that the colors the winning team is wearing. If you are a fiscal conservative, what is the point in continuing to back the Republican Party? The GOP has run the ball to the wrong end zone and scored a safety for the Democrats.

Learning From Others

Some are complaining that Tom DeLay's mug shot is too upbeat, glib, or stinking happy to befit the occasion of his booking.



















Let's just assume that Mr. DeLay has taken the opportunity to learn a lesson from others who have found themselves in the unfortunate position of having their mug shot taken.




















Lesson: Just because you are the Senate majority leader, you shouldn't lose sight of presentation just because you've been indicted on money laundering charges. The day in court means the opportunity to debate what the meaning of the word 'is' is, so the charges may or may not stick. The mug shot, however, is forever.

Interesting Perspectives on Sewers

There is a word I would not choose to describe Mayor Peterson's sewer initiative: timely. The the letters to the Indy Star are full of praise for the mayor, despite the fact that this is an ages-old problem. I'll take just one of the recent ones, a glowing letter of praise from today's Star:

Improving Kids' Environment commends Mayor Bart Peterson for taking a crucial step toward reducing the threat to Indianapolis' children posed by overflows in the city sewer system. His plan would provide resources, through increased sewer fees, to pay for much-needed upgrades.

The streams in our neighborhoods often contain human waste where the bacteria count can be more than 100 times the standard and kids are exposed to raw sewage. Whenever there's more than 0.1-inch of rain, these overflows of human waste threaten kids as well as the integrity of our neighborhoods. That's not what we want for our city or our children. You're doing the right thing, Mr. Mayor!

Janet G. McCabe
Executive director
Improving Kids' Environment
Indianapolis

True enough, the Mayor is doing the right thing. But, how long has he been Mayor? Since taking office on January 1, 2000. Five-and-three-quarters years is a long time to go between starting the job and identifying a major problem that affects the entire Central Indiana region.

Of course, the Peterson Administration shouldn't have had to deal with this at all. It should have been tackled by at least the two prior administrations- of Mayors Goldsmith and Hudnut. All this means is that no matter if we're talking Republicans or Democrats, we're talking about a lack of diligence in identifying and solving major problems.

The Libertarian Party had been talking about the third-world condition regarding Indianapolis sewers whereby any time more than a quarter-inch of rain fell over a short time span, the sanitary system would overflow and discharge raw sewage into the White River.

Although many Libertarian candidates made this an issue over the past several years, major media ignored them, as did mayors and city-county councilors.

So finally, Mayor Bart Peterson announced an initiative to fix the sewers, once his top priority- the Indianapolis Colts- was satisfied. Great, but let this be the start of a new day where actual priorities are identified and tackled first, not last.

Another Intrusion

I generally don't have a problem with carrying a picture ID. I am who I say I am, and am not affronted by proving it occasionally.

I am affronted by the idea that anybody can get ahold of my info. Hence my indignation at the ability of anyone to take a peek at my driver's license.

I just searched for it and there it was.. . picture and all!! Fortunately, you can remove yours from the searchable archives. I certainly did. Link to remove.

Just enter your name, city and state to see if yours is on file. After your license comes on the screen, click the box marked "Please Remove". This will remove it from public viewing, but not from law enforcement.

Another Day, Another Smoking Ban

Debbie Harbeson reports on Clark County's introduction of anti-smoking legislation, and tackles the personal experience method of advocacy used by one Jefferson City Councilor.

As with all laws that would regulate personal behavior, we have to ask how far you want to take this? To it's logical conclusion? From Harbeson's report:

Since she brought her personal experience up as important to her reasoning for promoting more government interference in our lives, we now have to consider how her situation has any relevance to banning smoking in other’s private businesses. If we follow her reasoning, then her proposed law makes no sense whatsoever. She should have introduced an ordinance that a non-smoker cannot marry, or live with, a smoker. Do you think she would have liked to see a law like this in place when she was choosing her mate?

I'd like very much to hear this Councilor's response. I mean, it's a health issue!

Meeting Tonight

The Libertarian Party of Hamilton County will meet tonight at Barley Island in Noblesville, with the honorable Chair Rob Place presiding. Meeting start time is 7pm.

Two topics for discussion tonight: candidacies for 2006, and the proposed smoking ban in Carmel.

Update: Sneaky Carmel is at it again. They've already had the first reading of their smoking ordinance, at yesterday's inconvenient dinner time meeting.

Hat tip, Rob Beck.

What? Revenues Are Down?

This morning's Indy Star report had me laughing out loud. It seems the suburban counties tax haul from the new food & beverage taxes is less than was expected.

No! You're kidding! Combine higher gas prices with higher menu prices and add a flattening housing market, and you just might have people thinking twice about going out to eat as often as they were when the projections were made. Throw in the perception that patrons might not be able to smoke in bars. I said this all along- if you want to grow revenues, you have to create incentives for people to participate in the taxed activity, not disincentives. Well- duh.

But nobody should be given to panic on this. Any time the Colts want to kick in that user fee- the $3/per ticket tax they stubbornly refused to abide by as 'their share'- they can easily replace any revenues not generated by the food & beverage taxes. From the Star:

State finance officials are counting on $3.5 million a year from the new 1 percent restaurant tax in six surrounding counties, or about $300,000 a month, to help pay for the new stadium. But this month, when money was distributed from August restaurant visits, the stadium project netted a little more than half of that, or $164,376.

Remember that we've been told that the ticket tax was unnecessary, that there was plenty of money to go around without it. It was once considered crucial, but then the government's negotiators went weak at the knees, caving in to the Colts on the ticket tax. But, if there is concern, consider this:

The RCA Dome has a seating capacity of 57,890. At $3/seat, revenue of $173,670 would be generated per game. The average month has 2 games, which would mean generating $347,340.

Do the math. The ticket tax could replace the food & beverage tax. It would have been more fair to tax the actual users of the football product, and would have left diners alone. And apparently, donut county restauranteurs need the disincentives removed.

TV Time in Fort Wayne

Big thanks to Doug Horner, Jeanette Jacquish, and Robert Enders for their efforts on producing their Libertarian Perspectives TV show, and for inviting me to return for my second and third appearance on the program.

The shows were taped yesterday, and will air over the next couple of months. The topic on the first show is the Libertarian Party of Indiana's Small Business Initiative, which is being employed in the defense of the owners of small businesses such as restaurants & bars, as shown in the previous two blog entries. The topic of the second was regulation and the construction and development industries, and the labor market.

Watch Libertarian Perspectives in the greater Fort Wayne area on Comcast channel 57, Saturdays at 4:00 pm.














Two shoots require two suits.

The first shot reveals the whole set. It's amazing how the two minutes prior to beginning the programs drag endlessly, as shown in that shot, and yet, the 30-minute program zips by and is complete before you know it. Even though I've always been a radio guy, I really like TV.

I Said, GOP Leads Charge Against Property Rights

Same stuff, different day. This time the Republican Mayor of Carmel, Jim Brainard, shows the way away from Ronald Reagan and towards control and command. From Saturday's Indy Star:

Smoking in many Carmel public establishments might soon be extinguished.

On Monday, the Carmel City Council will introduce an ordinance to impose tighter restrictions on smokers, patterned after the workplace smoking ban approved by the Indianapolis City-County Council in May. The council is expected to vote on the plan next month.

...

Mayor Jim Brainard said it's important for Carmel to be consistent with Indianapolis because they share the 96th Street border, a popular strip for restaurants. Plus, tighter smoking restrictions will save lives and taxpayer dollars, he said.

"All society pays the cost of people who get cancer and other diseases from breathing secondhand smoke," Brainard said. "We just think it's a quality-of-life issue and an economic issue."

John Livengood, president of the Restaurant and Hospitality Association of Indiana, said the proposal is another example of government trying to take away citizens' rights. He fought the Indianapolis ordinance.

"We are against a government-imposed smoking policy," Livengood said. "We think that ought to be left up to the consumer to make up their own decision if they want to patronize that establishment."

That's true, but only if you believe in property rights. Mayor Brainard and the Republicans clearly do not support property rights. Look for the pub crawl soon.

And check out that load of hooey the Mayor tried to pass off as reasoning: Indy does it, so we should too. Say, Carmel residents... Do you want your city to resemble Indianapolis in any way? Many Carmel residents fled Indy to avoid the sort of policy mistakes made there. Why re-invent Marion County in Carmel?

GOP Leads Charge Against Property Rights

Greenfield is the latest Indiana community to advance anti-smoking legislation that would extend into private business establishments. Per today's Indy Star report:

Smoking would be prohibited at virtually all Greenfield businesses under an ordinance that won initial approval Thursday from the City Council.

Despite the 5-2 vote, the ordinance is not a done deal. Council members will have a second chance to discuss, tweak and vote on the measure in the future.

Be sure to note that all seven of the Greenfield City Councilors are Republican. The vote would have been 4-3 had Libertarian Phil Miller been re-elected in 2003. As usual, they bought this as a health issue while ignoring the property rights angle. Business owners, of course, did not miss this assault on them.

But the operator of Zoobie's, a local restaurant and sports bar, disagreed. "It's my right as private enterprise to run my business in the best way I see fit," said Sam McClarnon, 46, a smoker and the restaurant's general manager.

Government regulation is the wrong device for attacking the problem of secondhand smoke or influencing businesses' practices, said Jennifer Bradshaw, a nonsmoker.

Instead, she advocated "voting with your pocketbook, voting with your feet."

Jennifer is a Libertarian, but the paper failed to mention political affiliation throughout the story. I'm not sure why the identifications were deemed unimportant.

Fortunately, there is time for those who advocate the right of business owners to set their own policy to get into action to persuade the Council to reverse itself. A pub crawl that visits Zoobie's and other Greenfield establishments would be an extremely effective way for Libertarians to show that we are on the side of business owners, the rights of property, and the right to choose, while the Republicans are on the side of trampling property rights and eliminating the right to choose.

Marion County's pub crawl got Indianapolis City-County Council Greg Bowes to show up in order to defend his position, and to allow bar owners to see that he had to acknowledge their participation- something he wouldn't have done without the pressure the crawl caused. Hamilton County's crawl was instrumental in helping defeat a food & beverage tax in Fishers, after the Libertarians got front page coverage in the Noblesville Daily Times.

If the Libertarian Party of Hancock County holds a pub crawl, I'll give my support and participate.

Side Note: As usual, the market responds quickly to new laws. A German brewer is developing a beer called NicoShot, which includes nicotine in the brew. That sounds disgusting to me, but I'm a beer snob who insists on beers that satisfy the Bavarian Purity Law of 1516. For others, this allows smokers to stay in the smoke-banned bar to drink the spiked beer to get their nic fit instead of running outside for a few quick puffs.

Meeting With Notre Dame Libertarians

Tuesday's meeting with the Notre Dame Libertarians was quite an exciting evening, as about 20 or so enthusiastic members attended. They allowed me the opportunity to discuss my campaign. Brad Klopfenstein spoke about the state party's recent successes and the opportunities that lie before us. I hope that most of them will remain in Indiana after graduation. These future leaders will be an asset not only to the Libertarian Party, but to the state as a whole.















I am flanked by some of the Notre Dame Libertarians, along with Brad Klopfenstein at the far right.

A summit of Hoosier College Libertarians is in the offing, probably in February of 2006. In the meantime, I will plan to visit other CLs across the state.

Mitch's Reading List

Brian Howey's recent article features Governor Mitch Daniels and his perspective on the new shape of policy. He looks past left-right, and thinks in terms of stasis-dynamism.

The source of this new outlook? Libertarian Virginia Postrel, former editor of Reason magazine, in her book, "The Future and Its Enemies: The Growing Conflict Over Creativity, Enterprise, and Progress." Interestingly, when I was an MBA student in 2001, I gave copies to fellow students and professors. We had lengthy discussions over coffee.

Governor Daniels is apparently deeply influenced by Postrel's book. From the Howey Report:

“In my view, we have a new politics shaping up in this state,” Daniels explained. “The dividing lines, the fault lines, are not quite the ones we are so familiar with for most of our past. They are not the old categories: the party, left-right ideology, even geography. Those things were all deemed important and I think they are a little less important now. The new fault lines in Indiana politics are between the forces of change and the forces of standing still.”

Gov. Daniels turned to the book by Virginia Postel: “The Future and Its Enemies: The Growing Conflict Over Creativity, Enterprise, and Progress.”

Daniels said that Postel identified reactionaries which she called "stasists," people who are wont to keep things as they are, make few if any changes, and "dynamists," those who are comfortable with change, moving forward, finding new solutions.“

She made a very important point,” Daniels continued. “There are two kinds of reactionaries or stasists. One kind are those who are naturally apprehensive and fearful. And that's a very human thing; we're all a little that way.

“There's another sort of stasist and those are the people who know exactly what they are doing,” Daniels said. “The status quo serves them well. They organize and lobby for it. They form special interests. It puts money in their pockets, it puts power in their brief case. And these folks have very, very specific reasons for opposing change of any kind.”

Libertarians are also part of the fracturing of the old fault lines. Fiscal conservatives used to mean Republicans, but no longer. Daniels may have missed a point when opposing the status quo that exists for its' own sake: Change for its' own sake is no better. Creativity and productivity should not be unduly restrained. Government can employ creativity and greater efficiency, and should, but it should also be restrained as well.

More Drumbeat

The ability of true believers to bury their heads in the sand is at once amazing and frightening. Many fiscal conservatives have noticed that the Republicans they have elected are spending like drunken sailors and have begun to react, anywhere from grumbling to fleeing. Other notice and pretend it isn't happening. A check of the Indy Star's message boards reveals a great deal of this latter.

The latest intellectually honest conservative think tank to rat out the GOP is the Heartland Institute. Joe Bast reminds fiscal conservatives of who pays taxes in this country, compares our current tax burden to that which helped spark the American Revolution, and the degree to which the GOP is making things worse- all worthy considerations. From Bast's article:

If government is too big, as Republicans love to chant, why is it growing larger and at a record pace with a Republican president and Republicans in control of both houses of Congress? Why did it grow at a slower rate when Bill Clinton was in the White House?

Meanwhile, state governments have been indulging in their own spending orgy. Between 1990 and 2000, total state spending grew by a staggering $512 billion, or 89 percent. All of that new built-in spending is moving through today's budgets like a pig through a python, causing state politicians to cry about "budget cuts" even as they reap record revenue increases due to the reviving national economy.

Voters need to hold to the fire the feet of elected officials, and especially Republicans who pretend to be pro-taxpayer. Officials who cut taxes and balance budgets need to be rewarded with success at the ballot box, and those who raise taxes and increase spending should be targeted by taxpayer groups and lose elections.

The best way to get what you want is to support the Libertarian Party before the elections. Why?

1. If you are a libertarian philosophically, and believed voting Republican the best route to get your policies enacted, you probably should have been voting Libertarian as a means of empowering those who agree with you more completely.
2. If you aren't a libertarian philosophically, but agree with Libertarian fiscal conservatism, you should use Libertarians as a lever. If the GOP sees its' support drain away from them and over to the Libertarians, they will investigate and figure out why. They will at long last begin to reclaim you and focus on cutting government instead of growing it.

It's all about getting what you want. No matter how you slice it, the Libertarian Party can help. Support us!

Check Your Date Book

If you are a Hoosier Libertarian and looking for something to do, tonight's your night.

Radio talk show host Neal Boortz will be on the north side of Indianapolis signing copies of his Fair Tax book. WXNT 1430-am will host a special reception for Neal with a small number of its listeners. Info.

The LP of LaPorte County and Monroe County host their monthly meetings. The Notre Dame Libertarians are also meeting tonight. LPIN calendar page.

For me, as a candidate, this presents a problem I like to have: so much to choose from that I cannot possibly do it all. Memo to those who want me to appear: Schedule me sooner rather than later. Indiana is jumping with Libertarian activity, even on a year like this when there isn't even a ballot.

Isabel at 4 Months

It's amazing how fast time flies with a newborn. It's only about 120 days, but the development in that time is incredible. She rolls on her side with ease, and sometimes onto her tummy. If you place her on her stomach, she'll do a little push-up, propping her head up.

Here are two pictures of Isabel on her 4-month birthday. She's ready for hockey season, just like her daddy.

Road Trip!

Brad Klopfenstein & I will be heading up north tomorrow to visit the Notre Dame College Libertarians, and then we'll head over to Elkhart, where Rick Bowen is hosting a meet & greet coffee. I am excited for both events.

The College Libertarian groups are becoming amazingly energized across the state. Tomorrow's leaders are coming from these groups. We'll talk strategy for the 2006 cycle. Ultimately, I want to have a statewide CL summit, probably in February. It would be quite a great thing to get the groups from the numerous schools talking to one another and building a statewide team.

The meeting of the Notre Dame College Libertarians is Tuesday at 6:30PM in the McNeil Room of the Lafortune Student Center--directly across from Subway.

Rick's coffee is an excellent outreach tool, and one we should use more frequently. I have personally attended these kinds of events for organizations like PETA and ACLU- not because I have great affinity for the groups, but because friends of mine are deeply involved with these groups, and they asked me to attend their functions, so that I could learn more about them.

I believe that Libertarians have outstanding policy solutions and candidates, and yet, more people get introduced to largely misguided groups like PETA, only because their supporters do a better job than ours do of setting up personal, intimate meetings on the strength of friendship or relationships.

Making Strides

Ame, Isabel, & I... and even our dog Shasta, participated in this morning's annual American Cancer Society Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk, in downtown Indianapolis.














My grandmother, Mary Kole, was afflicted with this disease, as was my good friend and one-time radio co-host Shelly, plus a co-worker. I think my experience is typical. We all have important women in our lives. This disease afflicts too many of them. When you have a wife and a daughter as I do, this hits home for you.

The turn-out was excellent, and I'm confident a lot of money was raised for important research. I urge my fellow Libertarians to participate in future events, including this one next year, and the Susan Komen Race for the Cure, next Spring.

Great Blog Reading

It's not the first time I'll make this recommendation, and probably not the last either: Check out Rob Beck's blog, Shall Not Perish.

As I am a candidate for statewide office, I tend not to get too deeply involved in Federal or international issues. Rob takes care of that for me, and with a subtly biting wit.

Daily Times Letter

The Noblesville Daily Times ran another one of my letters on the GOP and the abandoment of fiscally conservative principles.

Republicans showing they are not fiscal conservatives

There is a drumbeat of discontent with the Republican Party and the performance of its elected official building to a crescendo on the issue of taxes and spending.

Articles in the Noblesville Daily Times by small business guru Raymond Keating and popular radio host Greg Garrison, Republican supporters both, point out the latest spending sprees and express concern for the damage out-of-control spending promises to bring to our economy. The editorial cartoon with the offended drunken sailor pretty well sums it up.

Voters have come to expect that Republican officials will cut spending and taxes. This is not their track record, at any level of office. From President Bush’s failure to use the veto even once, to Governor Daniels recommending a tax hike in his first 10 days, to the all-Republican County and municipal councils in Carmel, Noblesville and Westfield voting for tax increases — it all adds up to dissatisfaction for fiscal conservatives.

Sooner or later, fiscal conservatives have to face the reality of this track record: If you voted Republican because you wanted smaller government, you wasted your vote. In order to get what you want, you have to vote Libertarian.

Mike Kole, Fishers

Mike Kole is a Libertarian candidate for Indiana Secretary of State, and is the former chair of the Libertarian Party of Hamilton County.

The placement was especially nice, with a suck-up column from GOP State Chair Jim Kittle on how conservatives should be thrilled with Bush's latest nomination, right above my letter. It's great because social conservatives are not thrilled, and they're eyes will go from Kittle's column to my letter and they'll be thoroughly aware that they are thoroughly dissatisfied with the Republican Party.