Sign in Subscribe

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.

CAPTCHA won't last long, as Monroe County gets new web host, new domain name

CAPTCHA won't last long, as Monroe County gets new web host, new domain name

People who wanted to visit the Monroe County government website over the last few weeks might have first been challenged to prove they were humans, by completing a CAPTCHA—which made them pick all the chairs (or clocks) in a grid of images. The acronym stands for Completely Automated Public

Sunday Funnies: Hawk v. Fish

Sunday Funnies: Hawk v. Fish

The origin story for the image might make the cartoon a little funnier, if you're a reader who does not instantly recognize the fish. On top of the historic Monroe County courthouse there is a weathervane featuring a metal fish crafted by blacksmith Austin Seward, which is called

Bloomington's 50501 protest organized as canned food drive

Bloomington's 50501 protest organized as canned food drive

Bloomington's edition of the 50501 Movement's national day of protests kicked off at noon on Saturday (April 19) at the city's traditional venue for such demonstrations, the southeast corner of the historic Monroe County courthouse. An estimated 500 people heard speeches, sang songs, chanted,

Duke Energy's plan to build $3B gas-fired plant called 'insane and immoral' at Bloomington field hearing

Duke Energy's plan to build $3B gas-fired plant called 'insane and immoral' at Bloomington field hearing

On Thursday, around 50 people gathered at the Bloomington Convention Center to give testimony at a field hearing about a proposal from Duke Energy that would increase electric bills to help pay for its planned construction of a new natural gas-fired plant. The new plant would be located at its

Growth: Fallacy or imperative? More than 200 parcels downzoned on 2–1 vote by Monroe County commissioners

Growth: Fallacy or imperative? More than 200 parcels downzoned on 2–1 vote by Monroe County commissioners

More than 200 parcels in the unincorporated area of Monroe County have been downzoned on two separate 2–1 votes of the county commissioners. The vote came at this week's regular Thursday morning meeting of the commissioners. Dissenting was Jody Madeira. Forming the two-person majority were Lee Jones

April 17, 2025: Electric rate increase, Todd Young in Bloomington, big downzone up for final vote

Today's big event Rate increase to fund two new gas-fired electric plants. A field hearing for Duke Energy's new proposed rate increase takes place on Thursday from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Bloomington Convention Center. Duke filed a petition in February with

Bloomington allocates almost $800,000 in Community Development Block Grants

Bloomington allocates almost $800,000 in Community Development Block Grants

At its Wednesday meeting, Bloomington's city council approved $795,743 in federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds for 2025, allocating resources across social services, physical improvements, and administrative costs. The funding comes from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which calculates allocations using metrics