Comments by chatterer

Written on Once turkey is consumed, join the family in building a gingerbread house:

Are there dimension limits for each category? It seems like there was a size limit for every category except over-the-top in past years.


Written on Eateries see mixed success since smoking ban:

I'd never heard of Rosie's Diner until a friend took me mid-summer.

I greatly enjoyed their giant breakfast special (the Dogwood, if I remember right). It reminded me of my grandma's big farm-style breakfasts.

Written on Dems ply Mourdock comments:

No matter which side of the abortion debate you are on- Mourdock's comments remind us that


This means a WOMAN WHO CHOOSES TO KEEP AND RAISE HER CHILD can be sued (and forced to give) custody and visitation rights to a CONVICTED VIOLENT CRIMINAL.

Could we all spend some of this energy trying to protect mothers who choose to keep their children from violent crime and those very children from fathers convicted for sexual violence?

As long as a woman has to choose between giving up her child versus risking her own and her child's safety from a known sexual offender, the system is broken.


It's a shame Dick Lugar got booted in the primaries by Tea Party interests.

Written on 11th annual Islamic Food Festival promotes unity:

Yum, yum, yum. One of the Tri-state's best food opportunities of the year!

Written on LETTER: Court ruling may alter relationships:

in response to Up_North:

I'm just tossing out a guess here, but I bet that we're not going to see an influx of heterosexual people pairing with other heterosexual people under the implcation that they are gay, just to get the tax benefit. With the level of intolerance in society towards homosexuals, I doubt that anyone would willingly imply that they are gay when they are not.

It always amazes me how much people care about other people's relationships. Can you give me one reason why another person's marital status affects me or my marriage at all? Everyone always talks about gay marriage affecting the sanctity of heterosexual relationships, but nobody can ever tell me how this happens. Perhaps today, someone will be able to.

Yeah, it'll be like all those heterosexual people who marry just for the tax benefits. Like, um, you know... all those people.

Okay, I can't think of any. Zero. None.

How exactly would it be easier to have a fake gay marriage than a fake straight one?

Written on Fall Festival booth catches fire:

I heard that Harwood's booth had just been refurbished too because someone trashed it while it was in storage.

It's really sad to think that they purchased all that food to sell and now have no way to get their outlay returned.

Written on Dorm room decorating 101 :

XL twin sheets are more myth than reality. Most universities have a few XL mattresses per dorm, but none that I know of use solely XL mattresses.

Tall students should ask around about an XL mattress and try to trade with someone who doesn't want one. Most students (especially those of average height or less) do not need those XL sheets. Call your university's housing office and ask if every mattress is XL in the specific residence hall- or leave the XL sheets packaged and hang on to the receipt until you've first tried a standard sheet.

Written on [img/photos/2012/08/09/Mars_Curiosity_Reyn_.jpg]:

Are we the only two people to notice this?


Written on Warrick school officials promise heightened security after threat of shooting at Castle High | PDF:

Some horrible, cowardly people love seeing fear in others.

This material threat of violence should be handed over to the FBI who will investigate the threat's credibility, the suspect's mental state and the suspect's household's access to weapons.

A metal detector at the door is merely theater (2009 Holocaust museum shooting) especially in a building so sprawling as Castle High School.

We shouldn't treat every dumb comment by any 14-year-old as a credible threat. People said stupid things like this back in the 80s (the movie Heathers), but they didn't inspire the fear that they have post-Columbine.

Our country has a long and storied history of school shootings dating back as far as 1764 (look up school shootings on Wikipedia), but they've gotten far worse (in numbers of casualties) as we've increased civilian fire power and now cower in the face of even the least credible threats.

We could see a crazed shooter on any day at any local school, business, public place or even religious institution- and we have (1981 Crescent Plastics, 2008 Atlantis manufacturing in Henderson). We cannot create safe zones where everyone is sane, reasonable, and unarmed.

Any discussion of increasing public safety leads to old arguments (enter Courier & Press comments trolls) about gun control and mental health care in the United States.

I'm mystified that we're working to ban Buckyballs that injured "dozens" of kids over a period of many years, but we're all fine with about 3,000 kids dying from guns annually (and around 17,000 more being injured).

I don't understand why I have to insure my car against the bodily injury of others, but no one needs to insure firearms. It makes even less sense that pseudoephederin purchases can be tracked while someone can legally buy thousands upon thousands of rounds of ammunition in just a couple months. We live in a nation of incredible contradictions and we expect the schools to be some lovely incubator free of our larger cultural issues. It's delusional.


The choices in this poll are terribly written. There Yes options don't reflect the idea that kids don't get much play time during school and summer provides a lot of opportunity for them to recreate (regardless of travel). Similarly, the No options don't reflect how a lot of parents have a hard time arranging summer child care when they work.

I hope no one on local school boards will consider this poll a good measure of the issues or local sentiment.

Written on Lone Star Steakhouse in Evansville to close Tuesday:

I'm sorry for the Lone Star staff to have two such sad events so close together.

We have had some great meals and fun times at Lone Star. Thanks.

Written on Schools out, but many students return to cafeteria for lunch:

C&P staff

Typo- CAZE misspelled as CAKE (sounds yummy, eh?)

Written on LETTER: Prosecute both crimes:

in response to bharris:

Here is what I would love to know: Why did they choose his home??? He lived way out in the country. These individuals were from inside Evansville. While I do believe that they probably drove out to his home during the daytime to see where Ira lived, why did they choose his home and why did they think that he had a safe full of money? While I do support Ira's right to self-defense. I do wonder why they chose his home?

Have you really read so little about the case and you've already written a letter defending Beumer?

Beumer and Jenkins knew each other from Beumer's East side night club Icon. Last time I checked, night clubs had a history of attracting trouble.

Written on LETTER: Prosecute both crimes:

in response to armstrongres:

At that time of the night there is no "innocent"
bystander out here in the county. Unless they are walking for help with car problem, (cell phones eliminates this) they are up to no good!

I feel this is a B/W issue being pushed. Had this been a W/W, B/B, or white doing the robbing, this would not be a big issue as this is.

I hope you're not seriously suggesting that everyone on Highway 65 at 2:30 AM deserves to be caught up in a violent high speed chase.

Have you never had a job that ended after midnight or a friend or family member who worked in medicine or emergency services?

There are loads of law-abiding folks out on the county roads night (not a small number of whom have been looking out for the public good). I can't believe you will discount their value for the sake of an argument.

Written on Rockport woman pleads guilty to giving false information to buy guns:

7th paragraph: site not sight ("Internet dating sight")

Written on Allied Waste locks out union employees:

Unions are an important part of our history and our future. The union members who work for Allied Waste have stood firm for excellent medical benefits- which helps everyone in the community.

By lowering their wages to minimum pay and benefits, more responsibility would fall on the public.

This union protects us all by caring about its workers' present and future well-being.


Who pays the bills?






The boys aren't paying the bills, honey- we are.


Written on Are Indiana high schools shortchanging girls' sports?:

Sports don't actually PAY THE BILLS. Admission simply offsets program costs (travel, facilities, additional insurance, supplies, uniforms, training, referees, etc.).

Only a handful of college teams (football & basketball actually draw a profit (and those do it solely through selling broadcast rights to major networks).

High school sports (and most college sports) are absolutely subsidized by taxpayer dollars (even the private schools here use public playing facilities).

If this is an ACADEMIC budget, Quigley has a point. If you agree with NewDem that there's more to school than just the basics and sports add important social learning, then there should be greater gender.

Female athletes are statistically *much* better students than their male counterparts. More girls attend (and complete) high school in general.

Female student athletes practice as long and hard as their male counterparts. Why shouldn't they have equal access to facilities (the tiny gym in my high school was called the "girls' gym" because the girls' teams practiced there) and time slots?

People argue that sports enrich academics, but then they give the best perks to the team that have the absolute lowest levels of academic achievement.

Quigley's solution- no sports in schools- is the most fiscally cost-effective. It may cut too deep into social learning benefits, but it's no reason to get personal.

For reasons of disclosure, I didn't play sports in high school and I'm gawky as all get-out, but I worked with college athletes and NCAA issues for years.

Written on UPDATE: Serious injury reported in Lynch/U.S. 41 wreck:

Dangerous bit of road. Small & hard to see transport. Awful for everyone.

I hate seeing kids on these (and other small transports) who have no awareness that they need to drive defensively.

Even if you have right of way in a tiny vehicle (including cars), self-preserving drivers don't take any additional risks. I want everyone on the road to have a healthy sense of self-preservation.

I'd like to see an operator's license for tiny motor vehicles. That would keep the very young kids off the streets and then everyone would have an awareness of the rules of the road.

As for the whole DUI use, I would far rather see someone with a suspended driver's license on one of these than illegally behind the wheel of an actual car. They pose a much smaller threat with a scooter, and they're assuming most of the physical risk.

Written on Ohio Township tax problems bring call for resignation :

I was so disappointed when the people of Ohio Township chose to RE-ELECT her last Fall due to partisan voting. It's Durham with the parties reversed, but we had awareness of this Trustee's problems BEFORE the most recent election.

Come on, Ohio Township. We need to show up at the meeting and demand some resignations.

Written on Indiana ending low-cost shots for insured children :

in response to OldSkeptic:

I don't know how in the world we ever managed to do it, but back in the old days my wife and I somehow managed to get all of our kid's shots without ever once going to the health department.

Nowadays practically all such shots seem to be given at our local health department at little to no cost.

I guess Santa Clause pays for them!


Yes, go teachers!

Arithmetic, History, and Health (among others)

In the good old days there were fewer vaccines and they were given in fewer doses because we didn't understand booster shots like we do today.

In the 40s there were two vaccines covering 4 diseases. In the 50s they added polio bringing it to 3 shots/5 diseases. The 60s ushered in measles, mumps, & rubella (6 vaccines/8 diseases). The 70s reduced the number of vaccines with the combo MMR shot (3 vaccines/8 diseases). In the 80s we added HIB (4 vaccines/9 diseases). 1994 brought with it Hep B (5 vaccines/10).

I'll not tax you with the changes of the last decade, but we're up to 10 vaccines for 14 diseases. Excluding the annual influenza vaccine, they are administered in 9 different office visits between birth and age 11. Ten of these appointments are in the first two years. There are 25 doses involved altogether (still excluding annual influenza which would add 12 more doses before age 12).

A single visit for a 6 month old

Vaccine schedule history:

The cost for just one first year appointment (4 doses) can easily be $500 after negotiated health insurance discounts.

For families whose employers offer only high deductible insurance (small businesses), not one cent is paid until the family (who may be paying high monthly premiums) meets the annual deductible with eligible costs. Those annual deductibles can be in the range of $1500 or $5000.

This effects workers at smaller firms the most and single earner families (including the traditional stay-at-home mom/working dad format).

If we had Canada's prescription medicine cost control, this might be a moot argument, but we're not talking about the few & cheap vaccines of the 70s.

As with most practical math, health care is not simple arithmetic, it's all story problems.

Written on Indiana ending low-cost shots for insured children :

in response to Ice_Cube:

(This comment was removed by the site staff.)

They've not only taken over my block- they've claimed my house as their own and they're trashing it.

Written on Friends remember Isabella Fine as true Renaissance woman:

Isabella was stupendous: funny, gracious, and caring. Like many others, I will miss her.

Written on Third-graders celebrate royal wedding with tea and scones:


...and there was even the last space shuttle launch ever scheduled on Friday (it got delayed however so maybe the kids will see it at home tomorrow).

Written on A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum :

Mike01: $18 for adults unless they are senior citizens or students elsewhere- then $16.

Written on Warrick schools to offer full-day kindergarten starting this fall:

The "teach them yourself" attitude in these comments seems to miss the fact that teachers are skilled professionals with broad experience in teaching. While I have the preparation to teach much older learners, I don't have the talent of a preschool or elementary teacher for knowing what really appeals and makes sense to little kids. We specialize in so many other areas of life from transmission autoshops to oral surgeons to cardiologists to molecular biologists.

Parental involvement can still play a huge role in educational outcome, but specialized professionals give every kid a solid base of knowledge.

Public education is the cornerstone of successful democracy.

Written on All safe after two-alarm fire damages Newburgh apartment building | PHOTOS, VIDEO:

We appreciate the volunteer firefighters throughout this community. From German Township to Newburgh and beyond, I've found these volunteers brave, conscientious, and generous folks.

Thank you, fire volunteers, for caring for our community!

Written on Motorcyclist killed in West Side accident involving EVSC bus | MAP:

Condolences to Mr. Jones' family.

My heart goes out to everyone involved (drivers, passengers, first-responders, & witnesses).

Thank you to the bus driver for having the presence of mind to care for the kids in the midst of trauma.

Written on BONNIE ERBE: Science of equality:

in response to JohnT:

Although I agree with the premise of the editorial, I think there's more to it. Not only are women less likely to devote themselves 100% to career advancement as noted, I believe women tend to have personalities (not intellectual ability!)less suited for working in the sciences than men.

I've hired many engineers in my career, both women and men, and it seems that even among those who are well-suited for a technical job, women are far more likely than their male counterparts to seek out jobs that are less technical. Planning, compliance etc. tend to be staffed by women.

I don't claim to know if that is a product of gender, societal expectations, schools or subtle workplace bias by men, but that is my observation.

I do believe that the number of capable and well-suited female engineers has increased over the last 30+ years, which implies that there is more to it than inherent gender difference.

As an anecdote, our janitorial crew got a new type of ride-on floor cleaner a few months ago. The women in the lab, including a couple with graduate degrees in mechanical engineering were discussing whether they could get one small enough for their houses. The men were discussing painting lines on the floor for automated guidance of the cleaners and trying to figure out how it maintained contact with an uneven floor to vacuum up the water.

JohnT: Your ride-on floor cleaner anecdote just tells you who actually cleans the floors at home.

Written on Police: Woman, 20, arrested for drunken driving, again:

in response to CourierReader:

This is how Terry Sharp was killed on Christmas Day a couple of years ago. The man had a family with money and he kept getting back in a car after many previous convictions! This woman will kill someone if she gets her license back

I hope her family realizes this and withdraws legal assistance before she wounds or kills someone.

Written on UPDATE: Accident sends vehicle crashing into Newburgh Lic's:

People drive just fine- they just hate milkshakes.

Written on English-language bill advancing despite questions:

Why make the environment as hostile as possible for foreign nationals bringing their businesses to our state?

This short-sighted xenophobia can only hurt us in attracting new international industry.

I am ashamed of this legislation.

Written on LETTER: It's too expensive to even exercise:

The YMCA offers financial assistance to people on limited income, so those quoted rates do not represent the sliding scale of membership fees:

An additional option is the YWCA's group exercise classes (water and/or 50+ aerobics):

Written on Indiana bill would allow 'Don't Tread on Me' license plate | READ THE BILL:


I don't understand. Does:

"Under the proposal, the license plate wouldn't cost any more than traditional Indiana license plates."

mean that the vanity plates will be issued at no extra charge (like the "In God We Trust") or that they will be issued with additional fees (like traditional vanity plates)?

In my opinion, only the standard plates should be issued for free and EVERY OTHER PLATE should have AT LEAST an administrative cost (as they require special effort and create extra work).

I'd much rather see a $15 administrative charge on the "In God We Trust" plates than another ENTITLEMENT program for vanity plates.

Written on Cell phones pose menace in Indiana corrections system:

in response to Noshadesofgrey:

Why don't they have a localized jammer for cell phones at the prison? The guards could use VHF radios with a secured frequency with encryption to thwart monitoring. No one needs to use a cell phone on prison property, and with jamming, they can't.

This is exactly what I was thinking.


At least 13 bottles of alcohol for 14 people AND mixed drinks?

Who drove these stellar citizens home? I don't see how they were under the legal limit

Written on UPDATE: Two removed from pickup after crash with semi on U.S. 41:

This intersection (and the one at Inglefield Road) are dangerous because of high volume, high speed traffic. Growing up in this part of the county, I saw way too many wrecks there to advance into the intersection without double-checking traffic from all directions. The traffic has only increased as more retail and commercial businesses join the intersection. Drivers treat this intersection with the casualness they would a typical suburban interchange and try to outrun changing lights and oncoming traffic. This intersection (like many high traffic junctions on the outskirts of metro areas) is prone to high speed collisions.

Please exercise caution here and teach new drivers that this is no place for inattention or taking chances.

I hope everyone involved in today's accident recovers quickly in body and spirit.

Written on Gunman robs Washington Ave. Pita Pan | MAP:

in response to m11:

You are dead wrong. It's estimated that TWO MILLION incidents of armed self-defense occur annually in the United States.
Guns are used ALL THE TIME to prevent crime. I had a friend years ago driving on Boeke when 4 thugs stopped in front of him (blocking him) got out wearing ski-masks and walked back toward his vehicle. My friend drew his Glock and leveled it at them. They promptly turned around, got back in their car, and sped off. He didn't call the police (despite my recommendation) - incidents like these happen all the time where crime is stopped dead in it's tracks by armed citizens.

I call shenanigans. A "my friend" story is just BS. If you have friends who tell you about such heroics that don't mesh with ANY of the local news, you might seek out a better class of friend.

Written on Gunman robs Washington Ave. Pita Pan | MAP:

I'm sad to see this happen to such a friendly and fabulous restaurant. There are few local meals that rival Pita Pan's delicious offerings and the owners and staff are always so nice to my family when we visit.

The employee who ran out showed excellent judgment. The people advocating an armed showdown seem to be missing the point that the person was physically unharmed. By producing a second weapon, it seems inevitable that someone would have been hurt and/or killed- and the armed robber already had the advantage of producing a weapon first. Life isn't an action movie (which is why we rarely ever hear of "protection" weapons being used to "save the day").

I'm really sorry this happened (especially to such nice people).


When the Nov 2005 tornado hit, it was impossible to get cell phone calls in the affected areas for weeks. It was hard to get onto a tower as they were overloaded with traffic (in part due to all the extra people who were helping in the area). Our landline was never interrupted (we have at least one phone that doesn't require electricity). It was our lifeline for communicating with contractors and insurance.

Cell towers run normally around 85-95% capacity, so it's really easy to overload the systems when disaster strikes (there are lots of people calling into the region as well as many trying to call out).

Also, if you have dependents (children or elderly) who need other caregivers when you are out, without a landline you're depending on that caregiver's phone to work and that the caregiver will be able to tell 911 where your home is even during a crisis. I am comforted knowing that a babysitter or even a preschool child can pick up our landline, dial 911, and receive help even if they can't describe our location or even clearly describe what is happening.

While cell phone only is cheaper, it's not a complete replacement of the landline system.

Written on EVSC seeking to extend contract of Superintendent Vincent Bertram:

School board, what's the rush? While Bertram is making wide-sweeping changes, there's no evidence that those changes are GOOD for local academics.

The "defective" laptop situation alone may end up costing the corporation greatly in legal and late fees as Bertram's administration cavalierly breached contracts and stiffed suppliers. If the administration made the wrong call at the first sign of laptop failures, this will turn out to be a very expensive decision. There's no evidence that laptops increase learning or test scores.

Why do you keep hiring bozos that need enticements and assurances to stick around? It seems like no recent superintendent has really been committed to this community or building a real legacy of academic excellence. These narcissistic careerists who flutter from offer to offer are a BIG part of what's wrong with the EVSC.

Ask the man to wait for his next contract just like you do the teachers. If he chooses to fly the nest ASAP then the community is better off without him.

Written on River City Ramblers start square dance lessons in January:

We love these classes. They're a great date (and a bargain) and good exercise.

Classmates and club members assisting the class build a great sense of community through the series (the classes continue through late Spring). It's refreshing and fun to work together to succeed.

No prior experience is necessary- just a good attitude and comfortable footwear.

Written on Fire breaks out in West Side church before Sunday services | MAP | PHOTOS:

in response to jeanie1966:

I hope they don't have All State Insurance. They are the #2 leader of bad practices according to But I speak from our own experience. The company denied our claim, we now pay mortgage on a burnt home we can't live in and rent for a place to live. They then received $2100.00 + for renewing our annual policy and increased the value of our burnt home! And we are claim free to boot. So it is not a company any church, business, homeowner, car owner, or life insurance anyone should purchase. They do not honor their contract as evidenced by the manner they denied our claim. Let me make you laugh really good now. All our things of value were stolen after they had our things removed so they would be safe and possibly cleaned and repaired. Never happened and not one thing was replaced by All State. Yet if we did not sign allowing them to have it done we would not be compliant with the terms of the policy. So we were blackmailed under duress and they commited "Theft by deception" as well as "Consumer Fraud" and the "Good Hands" is false advertising. Yet no one will do anything about all the laws they are breaking. I never heard back from our WONDERFUL ATTORNEY GENERAL. How would you feel if you were in our shoes. I am furious and depressed. And we have lived in this nightmare since August 26, 2009. Unless we can dig up $10K we won't even be able to get an attorney to take them on. After replacing everything we had to for our family our selves there is nothing left. So please spread the word so no other business or family has to go through what we have endured.


Contact the Indiana Department of Insurance (it's an insurance-specific agency related to the AG's office that handles consumer issues in Indiana). They were of great of assistance to many in this community when insurance companies were practicing dirty tricks after the Nov. 6 tornado.

Their web site:

It's also a great place for people choosing insurance to check out a company's track record of complaints in Indiana BEFORE buying.

As someone who struggled with an insurance company, I am truly sorry for the added grief you've faced. Wishing you a speedy resolution.

Written on COMMUNITY COMMENT: Raising teacher standards will raise performance:

Asian countries tend to place a much higher importance on education in the family as well as the community in South Korea and Singapore.

Here we tend to value the trappings of our school systems more than academics themselves. We're much quicker to open our wallets for sports programs than we are science labs and recognition of academic achievement falls far behind that of athletic achievement.

Here parents defend their pupils' disrespect of authority and will plead/harass teachers for grades their students have not earned.

Every family wants their child to be labeled gifted. No one wants to pay for actual gifted education. Teachers who expect children to work hard at school are criticized by parents and students alike.

We are a culture of lazy students who want top labels without effort. As long as families continue to tolerate (and even demand) lower standards for top achievements, our system will continue to flounder.

Written on Indiana sees whooping cough infections on rise:

These infant deaths are tragically preventable and completely unnecessary.

Written on Births | Oct. 30 to Nov. 5 | PUBLIC RECORDS:


People can be married and still have different last names.

Written on Class focus runs beyond abstinence, EVSC says:

in response to Virtue:

Of course, you have heard of Uganda, haven't you? They are the one country in Africa that teaches abstinence. They are also the only African country that has a very low AIDS rate. Gee, I guess abstinence can work...and not just for birth control.

African HIV rates are heavily impacted by military conflict and the resulting social disarray.

I doubt sex education makes much of a statistical impact in nations where rape of non-combatants is common in military conflict.

Comparing African culture to US culture is like comparing clams to ukuleles.

Written on Class focus runs beyond abstinence, EVSC says:

in response to JMNSHO:

And another question: Does the "alternative lesson" actually include birth control/family planning and disease prevention? If not, it's not much of an alternative.

Though I cannot speak to this particular scenario, I do know that kids who opt of EVSC programs usually tend to be placed in a separate room (an office study cubby or another classroom) where they are given "study time." Thus opting out of these silly programs often equates lost instructional time. I agree with the earlier commenter who suggested this type of program should be opt in.

To the Courier & Press staff: It would be very helpful to know how this class is funded. My suspicions are the teacher is a volunteer or paid through non-EVSC channels (donations, grants, charitable foundation?) rather than being supported by the EVSC budget, but it would be really illuminating to from what place the financing is coming.

Written on Class focus runs beyond abstinence, EVSC says:

An abstinence based sex ed curriculum that teaches about sexting (even as a negative) but not birth control sounds rather irresponsible and slightly voyeuristic.

Why take some of the media-sensationalized stuff like 'sexting' and present it to 5th through 8th graders who may previously have been unaware of it? The overwhelming emphasis that "You shouldn't do this when EVERYONE ELSE DOES IT" sends a lot of kids the message that that EVERYONE IS DOING IT even when statistics don't back that up.

I'd rather fill kids' heads with truly awesome academic content that keeps their minds occupied toward a long-term goal. Wouldn't this time be better spent readying our kids for college and careers than pandering to the sensationalized fears resulting from some half-baked report on the nightly news?

To me, this is a total waste of already limited academic time.