Carl's Curse Claims Another Victim: Mario Massillamany - Career Is Now on the Rocks

OBSERVATIONS: So we bet you're asking yourself "what is this Carl's Curse?" Well it just seems that everyone who has spent any amount of time around our good friend Carl " "  Brizzi seems to have a really, really bad case of negative karma. Now we're sure Mario is a nice guy and probably guy, however we also know that up to the time of his arrest he was and probably still is knee deep in Carl's various projects and nefarious financial machinations.  I mean come on, Mario you are the face (with hair) of the Prosecutor's Office whose primary task is to spin news in such a way that you makes silk out of s###.

It will be interesting to see who if anyone comes to his defense and how this will be handled by the Democrats here in Marion County.  Personally we're wondering who was he drinking with and more importantly why didn't they offer to drive the poor lad home. We overheard one elected official (Republican) remark that "It's like the Prosecutor's Office in Marion County has turned into one big frat house"...Without the togas.

ANALYSIS:

UP: TCUR $135

DOWN: MMAS $85

With Two Wins Under His Belt Tom John Announces Youth Movement In Marion County GOP!...Clearasil Stock Surges with Announcement

OBESERVATIONS:  We observed two differrent takes on an article appearing in today Star. Ironically and probably to Chairman Tom John's dismay both Paul (OGPL) and Terry (ITIM) come to the same conclusion. Victors in a precint committeemen election do not a movement make. 

Francesca dear, please tell us that you didn't just rely on a sources that Tom provided. If you ever want to be a real journalist you have got to increase the depth and width of your sources. Angel has the experience of a newborn puppy when it comes to Marion County politics and for his sake we hope he's a quick learner otherwise he's roadkill. As for Thomas John well let's just say that some of us who have been around a while have bras older than Tom - and they provide a lot better for support for our boobs  than he has for his. That being said we will give Tom a pass on this as we know most people are no longer drinking his flavor of kool-aide. No more freebies after this one Tom...

 
ANALYSIS:

UP:  OGPL $180; ITIM $110; TOJO $15

DOWN: 

Washington Township Trustee Frank "Short" On Common Sense Has Earned Him A Spot On the IPSE Exchange

OBSERVATION:  As a general rule we've decided a while ago not to include Trustees on the Exchange because most of their activities are transactional in nature and for the most part wouldn't generate enough attention to boost stock interest. Of course we forgot to factor in good ole' Frank "from da' Region" Short into the mix.  Frank Short, former councilman who abandoned his southside disrict to run for Trustee in Washington Township, is showing why having a law degree is not an clear indicator of intelligence (no offense to all of you attorneys out there - we have two on our IPSE team).

In a nutshell Trustee Short has decided to spend $20,000 of taxpayer dollars (almost 50% of his 45k per year salary) for a case worth $758 in poverty aid for a single mother and student.

In what is not only bescribed as a bonehead move during a time when local taxpayers are losing thier jobs and homes, it should be an embarrassment to other 1,007 trustees who are facing the real possibility that in the next years their offices will only reside within the annals of history.  Perhaps this is Frank's only way of making partner at Ice Miller, if this is the case we have a question for the chair of the partnership committee "Do you really want a guy who can't grasp the simple concept of "Return On Investment" ?

ANALYSIS:

UP:  MDAN $180

DOWN: FSHO $80

Brian Williams Letter Shows Leaks On Backroom Water Deal, Melina Kennedy Forced To Find A Mop

OBSERVATIONS:  In a splash of local news Mayoral hopeful Democrat Brian Williams (BWMS) take on  Mayor Greg Ballard's first public policy announcement that didn't involve a trip overseas.  We're not going to get into the detail of the letter but you can read it for yourself here courtesy of (ITIM).  It would be very easy to overlook this letter as a squabble about the minutiae unless of course you set it aside to see who is doing the negoatiating...that is where the story really gets interesting.





ANALYSIS:

UP: BWMS $120; ITIM $100

DOWN:  GBAL $125; MKEN $110

Ed Coleman Challenges Former Marine Greg Ballard To Gun Dual In Park

OBSERVATION:  Former Republican turned Liberarian Ed Coleman has offered a resolution supporting Attorney General Greg Zoeller in a case that has drawn national attention. Paul Ogden (OGPL) has the details on the case, for us it was a chance to see what Ed is up to as he wages a two front war between his natural adversaries on the far left and his former allies on the not-so-far left (i think that's about right for Marion County Repbublicans).






ANALYSIS:

UP:  ECOL $110; OGPL $175

DOWN:

Latest Brizzi Bungle Proves that All Partners Are Equal, Just That Some Are More Equal Than Others.

OBSERVATIONS:  Paul Ogden (OGPL)offers his opinion on this piece from IBJ, detailing a diabetic coma inducing sweetheart deal from  a law firm right across the street from Carl's office - how convienent. At the risk of being redundant we cannot help but wonder how Prosecutor Brizzi could ever believe this could be in any way ethical. 

His remaining months in office are nothing short of a gift for Marion County Democrats and provides GOP candidate for Prosecutor Mark Massa (MMAS) all the benefits one could get from having ACORN listed as your last employer.  Nevertheless as Brizzi the "poor man Trump" continues his painful and embarrassing political death (or perp) walk to the political graveyard, we want to offer suggestion for his next career move that could satisfy his yearing for being in the public eye and put a few legitimate dollars back into his own pocket.

ANALYSIS:

UP:  TCUR $130; OGPL $170

DOWN: MMAS $90

Lincoln's Lessons Learned....

OBSERVATIONS:  Well in what turns out to that former councilman and IMPD member Lincoln Plowman gets our nod for the 2010 Award for Worst Reason to Trash One's Career and Reputation. Don't believe us? Read for yourself.  When this is all said and done we would offer this advice to our local politicans.

1) If you are going to call yourself a consultant at least be an expert in your chosen field.

2) Never negotiate with the middleman without meeting his boss.

3) Never accept cash in an envelope.

4) If you are going to be "on the take" at least believe in yourself enough to ask for six figures.

5) Never do business in a hotel room (unless of course you are a prosititute).

No anaylsis on this story as we have already de-listed Mr. Plowman.

Council Is Demanding Deputy Mayor Olgen William's "Peace On the Streets" to Cease.

OBSERVATION: In what is clearly an indication of the waining influence of former "Mayor of Haughville" Deputy Mayor (of Indianapolis) Olgen Williams is taking a public smackdown by both Republican and Democrats on the council as they make plans to de-fund his baby "Peace in the Streets (PITS)".  Now you need to keep this in mind PITS was the vehicle that led him to the 25th floor.  Some have suggested that this has also helped his son Aaron Williams past at-large candidate develop his first public persona.

We can't help but wonder if this is payback for Deputy Mayor Williams refusal to keep his son from running for the highly contested at-large seat and if so who is behind this public rebuke?  We also wonder Mayor Ballard throw his "main man" (his words not ours) publically under the bus? By all accounts this will not bode well for Olgen's standing in the community or dealing with district councilors moving forward.  So while we sit here with breathless anticipation on the outcome of this proposal we can't see any way that this action will have a positively impact on the Ballard adminstration unless this has his tactile approval. We guess time will tell.

UP:

DOWN: GBAL $130, OWMS $80

Gary Welsh Blows Gasket (And Stock Value) Over Crime Prevention Funding To Local NFP, Ballard Continues Upward Climb.

OBSERVATIONS:  Well like March Madness signals basketball mania every time you mention funding for not-for-profits you trigger a response from blogger Gary Welsh (ADIN) . This time it has to do with the perennial funding of local not-for-profits for crime prevention programs. Now while his postion may have merit we took a glance at the list as well and found it odd that Gary only targeted the African-American programs for his castigation.  Like it or not mayor Greg Ballard (GBAL) is only continuing what his predecessor started and perhaps just as importantly a deft (and rare for this mayor) political move that provides little opportunity for aspiring Democratic mayoral candidates to play the "Republicans don't care" card to grassroots activist.  Not a bad plan if we do say so ourseleves.

All things being equal, Ballard gets a bump and we feel we must dial down Welsh's stock for being a bit disengenious on his selective vitriol towards minority grant recipients.  And Gary no offense but keep in mind that the ole' "hate speech" thingy is a two edge sword and you just nicked yourself pulling it out. 

ANALYSIS: 

UP: GBAL $145

DOWN: ADIN $105

IPSE Announces New IPO: Carmel Mayor Jim Brainard!

OBSERVATION:  After receiving several request from readers from the HC (that's Hamilton County for you folks who shop at Wal-Mart) we are adding a new stock to the board in today - Please put your hands together and welcome  Mayor Jim Brainard of Carmel. 

It appears that he has quite a following (friends and foe) in the City of Carmel and here in Indy who think he deserves our attention.  From today on we'll start watching the blogs and news sites for information on our latest addition to the daily winners and losers of Hoosier politics. Welcome aboard Mayor!

Carl's Stock Reaches Up to Touch Bottom On Latest Exposure of Brizzi's Briefs

OBSERVATIONS:  Paul Ogden (OGPL) has an interesting post commenting on the lastest Brizzi Brief from the IBJ.  Honestly we really don't know how much more the public (and our stock market) can take of this constant ooze of information from the Prosecutor Carl Brizzi (CBRZ).  We can't think of any set of circumstances that would shield local Republican candidates running in 2010 from this stop-motion train wreck.  Without some distancing and/or defining statements from the GOP candidates,  at some point we will be forced to start the slow painful devaulation of countywide candidates' stock as Carilto sway Marion County voters away from the GOP brand.

ANALYSIS:

UP: OGPL $160; TCUR $125

DOWN: CBRZ $10

GOP Investors Wonder If County Chairman Tom John Is Running A Shell Corp for Marion County Democrats. You Decide.

OBSERVATIONS:  We've held this posting for a while because quite quite frankly we couldn't believe it. So what is it?

Well apparently a few GOP foot soldiers feel that Chairman Tom John (TOJO) has deliberately decided not to field any candidates for township races in Pike Township in the northwest portion of the County and even skipped a few offices in Washington and Warren Township as well.

In frustration they are wondering how can the Republican Party mount a successful countywide race Mark Massa-(MMAS) for Prosecutor and Dennis Fishburn-(DFISH) for Sheriff without creating grassroots synergy that comes from local slating candidates that could support at least tangentially, their GOP countywide cohorts. Conversely, this leaves Democrat candidates in Pike Township without opponents and allows them to turn their volunteers and monetary resources toward their countywide candidates.  We are forced to agree with our reader that Tom's decision provides a great boost for Democrats running for countywide offices and as a Chairman have some questioning his judgement and/or loyalty to the Party and even Massa's campaign.

Now maybe Chairman John has a brilliant masterplan that will totally confound and confuse his counterpart Ed Treacy (ETRY). We have no idea, however we believe that the lack of a full compliment of candidates for the upcoming general election in a county that each year trends more and more Democratic just doesn't make any sense and should raise eyebrows. 

According to a our sources democrats couldn't be more pleased at this outcome as Pike Township while certainly Democrat friendly has its share of Independent voters who now only have one choice and Republicans none.  Perhaps its just a fundamental aspect of one Party playing to win instead of not to lose. So is the local party merely a shell company for the Democrats? We'll let you decide.

Below is an unaltered copy of the slated GOP candidates taken from the county website.

COUNTYWIDE
Mark Massa – Prosecutor
Dennis Fishburn – Sheriff
Joe Hecko – Auditor
Jana Scott – Clerk
Becky Williams – Assessor

CONGRESSIONAL
Carlos May – Congressional District 7

INDIANA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Kurt Webber – 86
Cindy Noe – 87
Brian Bosma – 88
Cindy Kirchhofer – 89
Mike Speedy – 90
Bob Behning – 91
Phil Hinkle – 92
David Frizzell – 93
David Dessauer – 96
Wes Robinson – 97
David Blank – 99
Jeff Miller – 100

INDIANA SENATE
Mike Delph – 29
Jim Merritt – 31
CENTER TOWNSHIP
Terry Dove – Trustee
DECATUR TOWNSHIP
Darrell McGaha – Constable
William Fisher, Jr. – Small Claims Court Judge
Stephen Rink – Trustee
FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP
Jerry Young – Constable
John Kitley, Jr. – Small Claims Court Judge
Ross Hughes – Trustee
LAWRENCE TOWNSHIP
Brian Bulger – Constable
Jim Joven – Small Claims Court Judge
Dino Batalis – Trustee
PERRY TOWNSHIP
David Taylor – Constable
Bob Spear – Small Claims Court Judge
Dan Moriarty – Trustee
WARREN TOWNSHIP
Paul Scott – Constable
Amy Jones – Small Claims Court Judge
WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP
Jon Sturgill – Small Claims Court Judge
WAYNE TOWNSHIP
Alan Driver – Constable
Daniel Vaughn – Small Claims Court Judge
Andy Harris – Trustee

ANALYSIS:

UP:  ETRY  $120, JLAY $130, TCUR $120

DOWN:  MMAS $100, DFISH $100, TOJO $20 

IPSE Suggest A "Hold" On Ballard Stock, The Real Question Is "Will It Be Billions Or Bust?".

OBSERVATIONS: We're back! And while it may take a few posts to get up to date but let's start with Mayor Ballard's first major policy initiative.  After reviewing all the blogs and thier positions we came to the conclusion that it was a wash politically so we went do the dark recessess of our collective memories to find other articles written on this topic. And we came up with this, this and this.

When its all said and done we've decided to leave his stock as is until the proceeds of the sale are moved to significant infrastructure improvement (streets, sidewalks, pools etc..) or it fails as a results of mismanagement or scandal. In the end this is a tempest in a warm teapot. 

Translation: This is the biggest non-announcement we can remember in Indy's political history. Sadly we're not sure if that is a reflection on the mayor or the fact that pundits are so desperate for something to latch on to with this adminstration good or bad.

We would also encourage our left-leaning bloggers to keep in mind that in most cases former Mayor Peterson embraced many aspects of privitization and when he did rework many of the water treatment and supply contracts early in his first term he put this political insider on his negotiating the team. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

ANALYSIS:

UP:  $135

DOWN: -

IPSE Commerical Break: Yes You Too Can Trade On Indy's Political Stock Exchange

We have taken a lot of email related to trading stock on this blog especially around the subject of who can trade and when they can trade.  While we don't mind answering your questions we thought it would be more efficient to just write a post specifically for you.  Yes you are that important to us.


On Who Can Trade:  While you must be a follower to participate in future trading, it does not mean you need to be a blogger. You can become a follower of this blog without becoming a regular blogger and here's how you do it. 

Just as we've stated previously we think having a minimum of 10 regular traders benefits participants from knowing their competitors and it provides us with a set of constants so that we can test this model.  For  more information on the basics of future trading just check out the page links at the top of page.

Thanks again and now back to your regular programming.

IPSE Special Announcement: Bart Peterson Makes A Return Visit To City Hall!

Yes the former mayor is back. Quiet, distinguished and with an air of rockhard resolve he stands guard day and night with his predecessors. Mayor Bart Peterson was the first two-term Democrat Mayor in 40 years has finally made it to Indianapolis' Hall of Fame joining the busts of former mayors Richard Lugar, William Hudnut III and Stephen Goldsmith on the main floor of City Hall- (west wing).  

Of course it would be a good post without a little scuttlebutt...Apparently shortly after his arrival the Mayor borrowed a former staffer's cell phone and he placed a call into Councillor Jonanne Sanders to see if she would sponsor an ordinance to merge all the pedestals into one to save money and achieve overall visual efficiency. 

We have no word yet if there will be any bi-partisan support of this ordinance but we will keep you posted.

Congrats Mayor Peterson and welcome back.

Say Hey to Jose! Another Democrat Enters 2011 Race for Mayor!

OBSERVATIONS:  Well like an old frathouse party with no invitations required another guest has arrived and the party has just started. Jose Evans in the second year of his first term as CCC District 1 councillor has been a vocal critic of the mayor preferring press releases to storming the 25th floor which might get you noticed by party insiders but won't move independent numbers.

We aren't quite sure why the field is so crowed at this point as Mayor Ballard (GBAL) hasn't done anything to upset the electorate or provide an impetus for the unbridled enthusiasm in the Democrat party to go mano-y-mano with the former Marine.  Maybe they know something we don't (of course since we represent both sides we doubt it) regardless we are gonna' sit back and watch the fur fly, the logs roll, and...well you get the picture.

What makes Jose Evans such an interesting candidate is that unlike Ron Gibson, he has the ability to garner a significant portion of the minority vote without alienating independents with a memory beyond a five year-olds.  Can he win the general? Not unless he starts rasing his name ID like yesterday, but woe to the insiders who dismiss him as a neophyte. There's a lot that can happen between now and the 2011 primaries as today's front-runner is tomorrow's "not on your life"

All in all we feel that Councillor Evans has just as good a chance as anyone else listed and for those who feel like Indy is not ready for an African-American mayor, remember they also said the same thing before Nov. 4th 2008. 


ANALYSIS:

UP: JEVN $110

DOWN: RGIB $90

Abdul and Angela Walk Down Memory Lane, Her Stock Loss Becomes His Stock Gain

OBSERVATIONS:  Just when it looked like District 2 Councillor Angela Mansfield's (AMAN) stock was poised for a rally, inconveinent history reared its got in the way with this posting on Indiana Barrister (INBR).  Several critical points were made that were used to determine who gained and loss during htis exchange of ideas. We couldn't help but notice that Mansfield silence was deafening on this issue, and this issue and even more recently this one. 

Now we realize that these cases were different based on the evidence presented to the public however we found it a bit sanctimonious of Ms. Manfield to chastise Plowman when she failed to utter one word or right a single sentence condeming members of her own party even when presented with overwhelming evidence. That being said she's still in the game and we expect her stock to be very active during the smoking ban redux for 2010.

ANALYSIS:

UP: INBR $135

DOWN: AMAN $105

While Lincoln Plowman Has Been De-listed, Angela Mansfield Weighs In As the Saga Continues

OBSERVATIONS:  Conventional wisdom would suggest that after de-listing Lincoln Plowman's (LPLO) stock that this story would end.

Au contraire mon frere as  Paul Ogden (OGPL) and Chris Worden (IPOP) both have added a little drama to the story.  And as a result we have introduced City-County Councillor Angela Mansfield (AMAN) to the board.  Because he is an employee of the City we must factor in this info into Mayor Ballard's (GBAL) stock value the donor issue to the County GOP also cannot be ignore therefore TOJO stock will also be impacted.

We aren't sure how much is speculation on the part of the reader however we do believe there's more to this story than meets the eye. In the meantime here's the info you've been waiting for.

ANALYSIS:

UP: AMAN $110;  IPOP; $150 OGPL $155;

DOWN: GBAL $135; TOJO $50

Bart McAtee Fights David Brooks' Authority And Wins!...First Round

OBSERVATIONS:  Paul Ogden (OGPL) was the first blogger to post on this little squirmish from yesterday between the unslated Republican candidate Bart McAtee (BMAC) and Marion COunty Chairman Tom John's (TOJO) right hand man David Brooks (DBRK) as the two battled it out in a hearing conducted by Marion County Election Board (which is dominated by the Democrats).  At the end of the day Bart McAtee is still in the race and Dennis Fishburn (DFISH) the GOP slated candidate still has a primary opponent.

What we find ironic about this issue is that the last McAtee (Joe) to fight the slate fought against everyone's favorite GOP shot-caller and someone fairly easy to vilify was a very nasty and brutal campaign. When it was all said and done Joe while losing the battle won the Party war by maintaining his law enforcement presence in Marion County and securing his son Bart on the short list for possible consideration after the 2002 general election.

Will the GOP primary voters see Fishburn as an extension of the party leadership? Can a party with little money in the bank facing a primary challenger ultimately win against a well funded unchallenged Democrat in the fall?  How does the GOP maintain the Prosecutor's Office which could cost up to $1 million or more and capture the Sheriff's Office in the same election cycle? And how does the chairman chastise the primary challenger without bringing attention to his subterfuge activities of 2007?  This should make for some very interesting trading once the market opens.

While you guys ponder those questions and others here's our analysis:

ANALYSIS:

UP:  BMAC $110; OGPL $155; JLAY $120

DOWN: DBRK $60; TOJO $60; DFISH $100   

IPSE Announcement: Lincoln Resigns From Council and IMPD. Stock De-Listed

OBSERVATIONS: In late-breaking news Lincoln Plowman (LPLO) has announced his abrupt immediate resignation from the City-County Council and the IMPD. We'll wait until we get a little more information before we post an analysis.

Frowns to the Left of Him, Stokers to the Right, Ballard's Stock Caught In the Middle Will Lose

OBESERVATIONS:  Well it is certainly a rarity when bloggers from both sides of the politcal spectrum (OGPL and ITIM) target the same individual at the same time. In this case it could mean thatMayor Greg Ballard ( GBAL) is either doing something really, really great or something is going horribly wrong.

Both pundits raise some interesting questions for taxpayers to ponder and we guess if the mayor can point to the number of jobs that were created (or saved) or even agreements signed he could ride this one out. 

In the meantime Mayor at some point in time you've gotta' show the people something more than the photos of you and the first lady on the beach.

ANALYSIS:

UP: OGPL $145; ITIM $90

DOWN:  GBAL $145

In the Spirit of Bi-Partisanship...An Oldie But Goodie...

Last week we profiled a humorous piece from IDEM tweaking the GOP candidates race for sheriff. Today in the spirit of bipartisanship (and because a supporter sent this to us on a dare) we offer this post! Enjoy.

IPSE Announces IPOs for SOS Democrat Candidates Vop Osili, Tom McKenna. IDEM Gets A Boost!

OBSERVATIONS:  We were hoping someone would profile this race and thanks to Indy Democrat (IDEM) we are have a nice jumping off point to watch the Democrat primary race for the Indiana Secretary of State's race.  We see the battle having an old guard (McKenna-TMCK) versus new guard (Osili-VOSI) flavor.

Each man has impressive credentials and could be very problematic for the sole GOP candidate former Hamilton County Chair Charlie White.  It will be interesting to see how the endorsements flow and to whom. Will the shot callers sit this one out or will they decide to weigh in to put in to motion a the poltical future a Demcrat Governor or Lt. Governor. Regardless of the outcome we're all eager to see how this one plays out. 

ANALYSIS:

UP:  TMCK $100; VOSI $100;  IDEM $130

DOWN:

IPSE Announces New IPO Angel Rivera (ARIV)! Tom John and David Brooks Stocks Jump, Ballard Rules!

OBSERVATIONS:  It took only two rounds for Angel Rivera to lock up the at-large seat previously held by Kent Smith.  Angel Rivera will join the City-County Council as the second Latino (Karen Celestino-Horseman a Democrat was the first) to serve on the Council.  Here's the Indy Star's take on the special election. As an added honor he will also join the IPSE trading board and in the process provide  GOP Chairman Tom John and his right hand man David Brooks a much needed boost.  We recieved a couple of emails during the caucus with some interesting viewpoints from tonight and at least two differennt observers suggested that it was a combined Ballard Tom John push that pushed Angel over the top. 

While it flies in the face of conventional wisdom we are entertaining that fact that whatever supposed rift existed between the Mayor Ballard and Tom John is now well past them. Accepting this premise suggests  that their futures (in terms of stock prices) are now inextricably link from this point forward.  It is at least plausible that whatever Tom John does he does with the approval of the mayor.  This helps Tom immensely as his stock values has hit rock bottom over the last few weeks. Brooks will benefit as well.  As a result of updated twitters from Indiana Barrister (INBR) that complimented the dozen or so emails we received throughout the evening we boosted this stock as well.

ANALYSIS:

UP: TOJO $70; DBRK $70; INBR $125; GBAL $150

DOWN: JCIS $0; AWMS $0;  DHEN $0

Tom John and David Brooks Conducts Seminar On "How Not To Rig An Election." And IPSE Introduces the "Toxic Effect" Syndrome

OBSERVATIONS:  Tom John (TOJO) and David Brooks (DBRK) are tragically comical in their ineptness as their well documented activites here and here remind us of a badly written sitcom.  Come on guys Indianapolis is way too small, you have too little to offer in terms of rewards and your childish punitive actions against dissenters only creates more opposition to your grade school behavior. 

We are now at the point where we have no choice but to recognize the "toxic" effect of their action on their collegues in the GOP, particularly those who are running including but not limited to  Mark Massa (MMAS), Carl May (CMAY) and Dennis Fishburn (DFISH) and in time Mayor Greg Ballard (GBAL). 

We do believe this is a legitimate concept not unlike the "halo effect " (when one candidate's appeal spills over to his/her collegues). We believe that if this continues, GOP foot-soldiers will become more discouraged, Democrats more energized and Independents inching away from legitimate GOP candidates as a result.  Personally we think it's past time We think it's past time for the adults to take step in and take these testosterone hyped-up frat boys out to the wood shed.

As we watch these two we can't help but feel like we're watching a political form of midieval torture - excruciating for the helpless participants and just as painful to casual observers.

UPDATE: From the political twilight zone comes this little gem from Chairman Tom John.  We can't make this stuff up. Keep this in mind as you ponder tonight's vote: This is the man who as Marion County GOP Chairman failed in his attempt to sabotage Mayor Greg Ballard's 50k mayoral campaign.  We've heard that politics makes strange bedfellows we're just wondering who's on top. 

Please stay tuned as this will soon be followed by brief remarks on marriage fidelity by Tiger Woods. 

ANALYSIS:   

UP:  ETRY $110;  TCUR $120;  JLAY $120; OGPL $140

DOWN:  TOJO $10; DBRK $10, GBAL $125; CMAY $100; MMAS $120