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Dave Askins

Dave Askins

Bloomington, Indiana

Dave Askins is editor and publisher of The B Square Bulletin. A Hoosier native with a background in math and linguistics, he previously co-founded the Ann Arbor Chronicle with his wife, Mary Morgan.

Indiana GOP legislator: Decriminalizing syringe possession could be topic in 2020 session

Indiana GOP legislator: Decriminalizing syringe possession could be topic in 2020 session

Bloomington resident Jean Capler stood at the public podium in city hall last Saturday morning to ask: “Is there ever any talk about decriminalizing syringe possession?” The occasion for Capler’s question was the regular in-session monthly legislative update hosted by the local League of Women Voters. On hand

May 7 Bloomington Primary Election: A Nonpartisan Resource

May 7 Bloomington Primary Election: A Nonpartisan Resource

Twenty-three candidates for 11 city offices are on the ballot for Bloomington voters in the May 7, 2019 primary election – all but one of them Democrats. And this year, all but two of the Democratic Party primary races are competitive. To help voters research their choices for Bloomington mayor,

Square Spots: Tree tapping an annual ritual

Square Spots: Tree tapping an annual ritual

Trees on the grounds of the Monroe County History Center are an early sign of spring this year, because they have been tapped for sap collection. According to staff at the center, located downtown at 6th and Washington streets, the tapping was done by Hinkle-Garton Farmstead as part of

B Square Elsewhere: Bloomington’s clerk weighs in on city council meetings

Bloomington’s city clerk, Nicole Bolden, was quoted on the City Council Chronicles last Sunday describing her first run for the elected office of city clerk: “When I decided to run for city clerk, my family laughed at me. They said, ‘How on Earth are you going to be able

Analysis of Indiana legislative voting patterns: Who’s outside the corral?

Analysis of Indiana legislative voting patterns: Who’s outside the corral?

Analysis of information available on LegiScan—a website that provides robust tools for monitoring and tracking legislation in all 50 states—shows that legislators in the Indiana House and the Senate tend to vote along party lines. Lawmakers voting along party lines is not exactly a revelation. But plotting out

Bloomington Transit bus ridership: Continued slide in 2018 with university affiliated ridership down 8 percent

Bloomington Transit bus ridership: Continued slide in 2018 with university affiliated ridership down 8 percent

Fresh numbers provided by Bloomington Transit show that total bus ridership last year dropped for the fourth year in a row. And the decrease was driven mostly by decreases in ridership by university affiliates—students and faculty. The roughly 3.1 million rides taken on Bloomington public buses in 2018—

Opinion: Bloomington should consider a different approach to stormwater revenue

Opinion: Bloomington should consider a different approach to stormwater revenue

At its regular meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 20, the Bloomington City Council will consider “adjusting stormwater fees.” It’s the second reading of a change to the city’s ordinance on the “stormwater utility.” Of course, a “fee adjustment” generally means an increase of the fee. And Bloomington’s proposed