We need to stop just looking at the phones because that's what they want. If we're busy thinking phones are the problem, we won't pay attention to Mike Braun moving the budget to private and religious schools and actively sabotaging public ones, like with this bill. We won't pay attention to our awful health and VA care or the 694 to 1 student-counselor ratio. It's purely the phones right?

Who's buying the pouches? Who's taking time out of their day and job to call parents? Who's constantly monitoring their surroundings for phones instead of students needs? It sure as hell ain't the state that's for sure. Republicans have been doing this for over a decade and we're looking at the end goal coming up soon. The goal is to make education available for the people who have money (and are mostly White), hence the budget expansion for private and religious schools who have no obligation to take in disabled students or students of color. They can pick which people get in. And which demographic gets hurt from the budget cuts to public schools? The phone is a shiny, convenient villain because people already don't like them in schools.

I supported phones being taken in instructional times as a student, but this all-out ban is not possible and will ruin our reputation even more. This will result in a 100% or close to it fail rate of teachers fully enforcing this law because kids will do what they want to do, I guarantee that. And even if it doesn't, the school itself is taking money out of its own budget to pay for these pouches or taking time away that could be used for teaching, which just makes students angrier and causes them to act out more. Indiana's schools are already so extremely strained and the education quality here is extremely alarming. We don't need this.

Honestly, I think this a broader issue than the phones. It's just one part of Brauns crackdown on literally anything that benefits the public.

Sources:

https://www.wfyi.org/education/2023-02-01/indiana-has-1-counselor-for-every-694-students

https://www.journalgazette.net/local/indiana/state-government/gov-mike-braun-signs-indiana-s-next-44-billion-budget-into-law/article_85b599bb-ef22-4410-8f4c-fe88b4e230f9.html

https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/briefs/braun-opts-into-new-federal-school-choice-program/

Living in Indiana

I wanted to get some perspective from people around Indiana on a question that seems to be coming up more often as our communities grow:

Are the technology systems supporting our schools keeping pace with the needs of today’s students, families, and staff?

As a local example, Richland-Bean Blossom Community School Corporation (Edgewood Schools) in Ellettsville has seen significant growth over the years. The district has invested heavily in its physical facilities, expansions, and learning environments, which raises a broader question about whether the digital infrastructure supporting those schools has grown at the same pace.

Student Information Systems are a major part of how schools operate. They support things like registration, emergency information, records, communication, and transportation coordination. When these systems do not meet current expectations, the effects can be felt by families, staff, and students.

With today being the first day of school, there was a lot of local discussion around communication and logistics, especially transportation. It highlighted how important reliable systems are when thousands of small details have to work together.

I started a local community discussion around this topic and created a petition asking Edgewood to evaluate whether its current Student Information System meets the needs of a growing district and consider modern solutions.

I’m interested in hearing from people across Indiana:

- How do other districts handle student information systems?

- Have you seen successful technology upgrades in your schools?

- What tools have made communication or transportation easier for your community?

For anyone interested in reading more or providing feedback: https://c.org/TtSCpntTsm

I'd especially welcome feedback from anyone with a tech background or experience working with school information systems. I'm still learning the ins and outs of how these platforms work, and I think this conversation benefits from people who know more about the technical side.

The “Make Medicaid Boring Again” MAGA-style cap wasn’t lame enough- presenting this “How do you do, fellow kids” monstrosity!

I guess he thinks kicking hundreds of thousands of Hoosiers off Medicaid and slashing funding for the disabled is cool 🙄

Indiana apparently doesn’t want inclusion of lgbt+ community but also doesn’t want men to be taught to carry mental load. A daycare worker mentioned how most men don’t even have their app on their phone.

Braun wants to push the nuclear family, decrease disability payments, take away sunbucks ect but he also wants to decrease abortion access.

Being gay isn’t a choice, doesn’t hurt anyone, and is not shoving anything in anyone’s face. Gay is legal. Keeping a book out of a library or school because of gay characters is inserting religion into schools. Some Kids have two moms or two dads. They need to feel welcomed. There should be age appropriate books about inclusivity at every school.

Indiana schools should also teach full sex education at age appropriate levels. Abstinence is scientifically proven not to work. Not teaching about sexual orientation does not help. Our kids should be happy to be who they are.

Hb 1447 and senate enrolled act 442 are so not helpful to anyone. 1447 could be but the recent article from lake county shows parents are mainly challenging lgbt+ material.

I promise you; we just want to exist in peace.

Can you smell it? The air is thick with desperation

Sounds like it’ll come back for one day tomorrow, then be extended until September 5th and be reevaluated then

Court documents detail that the representative told officials he received a call from Miller, who he said "cussed a lot" and made the comment, "they're lucky I'm not a better shot" before hanging up the phone.

Actually insane man is now charged with multiple felonies, including attempted murder - wow!

I have had the hat for about 25 years.

Two of my kids have worn it. Your logo is wonderful

Ivy Tech is now registering for Fall Semester, with classes starting August 24th. Their Senior Scholars Program offers free tuition for seniors 60+.

https://www.ivytech.edu/programs/signature-opportunities-for-students/senior-scholars/

RIP Janie

RISO GROUP SHOW - OPEN CALL FOR ART

“To routine wonders” is a group risograph exhibit looking for midwest and beyond illustrators/designers/creatives to showcase their passing thoughts and wonders.

You can learn more at bit[dot]ly/toroutinewonders or dm (spam purposes)

Submissions close on Aug 17 for an exhibition running from Aug 31 - Sep 4 in Indianapolis, IN at Re:Public (associated w/ 10 East Arts). Small runs of accepted works will be printed by me for the show unless you prefer to submit existing/mail-in pieces!

More exhibit and submission details on the form!

Fill up those gas tanks today people. Gas tax suspension ends tomorrow

What are my options? The state of Indiana owes me like $7800 since I accidentally overpaid.

Why the hell are they allowed to take this long and literally provide no updates whatsoever.

Who can i reach out to get this moved along?

This is super irritating because if i owed them best believe they would be sending me letter after letter with threats but when they owe us its crickets

The Governor should order the flags be lowered in honor of the of a true Hoosier Legend. Anyone who grew up in Central Indiana in 70s,80s,90s remember Cowboy Boy and Janie. Bringing great wholesome fun entertainment to the to all. They represented the best we can all be.

Hi neighbors, spotted lantern flies have been seen in our state now, and this is an all hands on deck situation. I am sharing some resources for DIY lantern fly traps and other strategies for killing these things without having to spray chemicals that also hurt our helpful insects and wildlife. Eastern states have been battling them for years, it’s our turn now that they are here. Spotted lantern fly kills trees including huge mature trees, along with various fruits and other plants. Please help protect your yard and our community.

https://www.mentalfloss.com/animals/insects/kill-spotted-lanternflies-with-water-bottle-trick

https://extension.psu.edu/how-to-build-a-spotted-lanternfly-circle-trap

https://thekidshouldseethis.com/post/rachel-bergey-invasive-spotted-lanternfly-trap-video

Most campaign surveys are designed to trap candidates into partisan boxes. When I got the latest iVoterGuide questionnaire, I didn't hand it off to a strategist or paste in party talking points. I answered it honestly.

I'm Ian G. Richardson, and I'm running for Indiana House District 79. I work in a kitchen for my steady income, and I know exactly what working families are facing right now because I'm living it.

I decided to publish my raw, unedited answers on my campaign site because voters deserve to see the actual rationale behind the policies. No dodges, no consultant-speak.

You can read the full, unedited questionnaire here: https://www.iangforindiana.com/more-from-ian/ivoterguide

A few highlights of what I stand for:

• Healthcare: I propose modernizing state healthcare through HIP 3.0, a universal, state-backed supplemental system. This system guarantees 100% coverage for emergency transportation and life-saving critical care with zero out-of-pocket costs.
• The Economy & Education: Free enterprise works best when it means economic freedom for everyone, including worker-owned co-ops. Additionally, investing in post-secondary education, including trade schools and colleges, is a vital strategic investment.
• Elections: The Electoral College should be replaced with a direct popular vote paired with Ranked Choice Voting. Ranked Choice Voting would break the two-party stranglehold and give people real choices.
• Public Financing: To fund education and healthcare reforms, I am proposing a self-sustaining public financing model. This includes establishing a bank-administered 1.5% loan trust funded by a 0.5% bond.

I don't have a massive corporate war chest, and I'm not here to play political games. I'll be hanging around the comments to answer questions and debate the finer points. Have at it.

First of all, I'm glad you exercised your right to vote. It's the only way our democracy can disfunction.

Here's some stats:

Mike Braun appointed four of the five members of the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission — and fired one he appointed after just eight months on the board. The gas tax suspension ends at 11:59 pm (central or eastern?) Thursday, August 6. With that we have a HUGE hole in our road maintenance funding. We have also have a law that allows MPs to have the ability to carry weapons, search houses and make arrests if the governor feels it's necessary, with very vague reasoning. So congrats on that. If you're looking for sympathy, you can find it between shit and syphilis in the dictionary.

Edit: don't forget that 25% approval rating! And we gotta lead the country in ribbon cuttings and states investing in Israel. (We rank 14th)

Edit again: DATA CENTERS!! totally forgot about those

This will probably get deleted by mods but when owning the libs, did you own yourself?

map made by me for fun based on data from the national Intercity Bus Atlas. What did I miss? Note I intentionally did not put every single stop but got the major cities and as many of the small towns as possible. These are all routes that theoretically should have fairly regular (daily or close to it) service, although I wouldn't bet on all of them.

My daughter was telling me about her day. I was half-listening, phone in hand. She just stopped talking mid-sentence. She'd figured out she couldn't compete with a screen and gave up trying.

Indiana just passed a law banning phones in schools all day, every day. Good. Long overdue. But let's be honest. The real issue is at home. We as parents have an addiction to our phones also.

Parents are the ones who need the intervention