Posts Tagged privatization
Politics and Propaganda
Posted by Sheila Kennedy in Public Policy and Governance on March 6th, 2011
I opened the Sunday Indianapolis Star to a front-page story about Governor Mitch Daniels’ claim that public employees make more than their private-sector counterparts. The article discussed the issue in the “fair and balanced” way we’ve come to expect from “journalists” today, dutifully reporting on the “he said/she said” dueling studies–without bothering to tell readers [...]
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When Privatizing Met Public Infrastructure
Posted by Sheila Kennedy in Public Policy and Governance on March 1st, 2011
As readers of this blog know, I’m not a “believer” in contracting-out–what we Americans quaintly call “privatization.” I’m not necessarily opposed to contracting, either–it’s a tool that can be appropriate in many circumstances. Call me an agnostic. It’s important to examine claims about privatizing, because contracting is too often a form of patronage–a way of [...]
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What Drives Me Crazy
Posted by Sheila Kennedy in Public Policy and Governance on February 26th, 2011
A couple of days ago, I got my ever-thinner print version of Newsweek, and began leafing through it. I came to an article by one Niall Ferguson (“Niall Ferguson Solves the Debt Crisis”) I don’t know who Ferguson is, although I’ve seen his name here and there, but obviously, if he has a solution to [...]
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Park It
Posted by Sheila Kennedy in Local Government, Random Blogging on September 20th, 2010
Mayor Ballard’s proposal to privatize the city’s parking continues to spark bipartisan concern. Last week, the Sunday Star ran a “point-counterpoint” between Deputy Mayor Michael Huber, the proposal’s architect, and Aaron Renn, a respected urban affairs expert who has criticized it. Star editor Dennis Ryerson noted that many open questions should be answered before the [...]
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Outsourcing The Taxing Power
Posted by Sheila Kennedy in Random Blogging on February 7th, 2010
There is a lively debate currently raging over the apparent intent of the Ballard Administration to sell Indianapolis’ water and sewer utilities. Most of the criticism centers on allegations that the decision-making process has been less than transparent—that whatever the merits of an ultimate deal, the public has been largely shut out of the discussions. [...]
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