March 26, 2009
By John Byrne
Post-Tribune staff writer
INDIANAPOLIS -- By the time Jim Premeske of Hammond took the microphone at the "Revolt at the Statehouse" rally Wednesday morning, some in the crowd had begun to revolt against the rally, drifting away to chat with friends or peruse literature from interest groups in the rotunda.
But Premeske pressed his case for property tax elimination in Indiana on behalf of the Team Hammond taxpayer group to which he belongs.
He took note of Lake County's special place in the theology of Indiana government reform.
"If one were to define Indiana in terms of the book of Genesis, Lake County would be Gomorrah," Premeske said. "South Bend, home to (House Speaker Pat Bauer), might be considered Sodom."
Premeske, who began speaking more than a hour into the event, spoke in favor of Gov. Mitch Daniels' local government reform agenda, which appears dead this legislative session.
He also likened many elected officials to sociopaths, citing serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer and film villain Hannibal Lecter as paradigms of the self-absorbed way politicians enrich themselves to the detriment of their constituents.
"Did you elect a Dahmer or a Hannibal?" Premeske asked.
His speech came near the end of a smorgasbord of complaints by Hoosiers fed up with Indiana government.
Julia Vaughn, policy director for Common Cause Indiana, told the sign-waving crowd of about 200 that big-money lobbyists are hijacking the legislative process with payouts to lawmakers.
"We have to suspend belief to think legislators aren't being influenced by millions of dollars of lunches and dinners and gifts and tickets," Vaughn said.
Attorney Gary Welsh, who publishes the Advance Indiana blog, urged fellow Hoosiers to stand up against requests for more public money by sports teams like the Pacers and the Colts.
Contact John Byrne at 317-631-7400 or jbyrne@post-trib.com.