EYE ON THE PIE: Where to put your money in troubled times

Morton J. Marcus Times Business Columnist

Snail Smith’s real name is Stanley, but his contorted windup and slow pitches gave him the nickname, Snail, during his short baseball career.

EYE ON THE PIE: Treat good news as good news

Morton J. Marcus Times Business Columnist

I like to complain as much as anybody else. In truth, I may do more than my share of finding fault and wagging a finger in warning.

EYE ON THE PIE: Transit proposals are game changers

Morton J. Marcus Times Business columnist

After baseball, my favorite TV watching is the government channel. Here I can see the local government in action or local government inaction.

EYE ON THE PIE: Higher education completion rates questioned

Morton J. Marcus Times Business Columnist

Spring is really here. Baseball is being played, the Cubs are already tragic, and Faye of the Forest reappeared on the back deck. She was parked on the railing as I sat down to write this column.

EYE ON THE PIE: Our anger rests on varied values

Morton J. Marcus Times Business Columnist

The rancor and moral outrage of the left and right over various current issues eats at the very core of civilized discussion.

EYE ON THE PIE: Privatize another state resource

Morton J. Marcus Times Business Columnist

Hortense and I were strolling from our car to the Exposition Hall of the Indiana State Fairgrounds. Our goal was the Indiana Artisan Marketplace, but we had to pass the Southwest Pavilion where they were holding the Midwest Reptile Show.

EYE ON THE PIE: Measuring Indiana’s economic progress

Morton J. Marcus Times Business Columnist

The news recently about Indiana’s economy was a mixed bag. According to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Indiana ranked 16th in growth of personal income among the 50 states. Our 3.7 percent increase over 2011 beat out the national figur…

EYE ON THE PIE: Unemployment data demand attention

Morton J. Marcus Times Business Columnist

“Here’s a fact for you,” said Seymour Semaphore, who knows my interest in statistical realities. “Four of the five Indiana counties with the lowest average unemployment rates over the past 24 years border Indianapolis.”

EYE ON THE PIE: County population changes raise alarms

Morton J. Marcus Times Business Columnist

With all the hoopla about basketball, several important issues are being neglected. But what else can arouse the passions of our citizens?

EYE ON THE PIE: Money flows across county lines

Morton J. Marcus Times Business Columnist

Indiana gains from commuting. More money flows into Indiana than leaves the state from the daily movement of workers. In 2011 the difference between the inflow and the outflow was in excess of $4 billion.

EYE ON THE PIE: GDP, the DNA of MSA economies

Morton J. Marcus Times Business Columnist

The nation’s 366 metropolitan statistical areas, or MSAs, accounted for 89 percent of the $13.3 trillion United States Gross Domestic Product in 2011. After the polluted language we’ve heard from legislators in Washington and Indianapolis, do…

EYE ON THE PIE: Speedway hits the trough

Morton J. Marcus Times Business Columnist

Tim Ptomaine is a quiet fellow not given to hysterics, but the day we met he was agitated.

EYE ON THE PIE: Good signs in the housing market

By Morton J. Marcus Times Business Columnist

The plane was ready to take off, and I could not help noticing the woman sitting next to me. She looked like the national real estate agent of the year. Her iridescent baby blue and muted magenta tweed outfit clung to a body that survived on …

EYE ON THE PIE: Art, music and credit cards

Morton J. Marcus Times Business Columnist

In the past week a suggestion has come forward that Hoosier schoolchildren should be educated in financial matters. Specific mention was given to loans, mortgages and credit cards.

EYE ON THE PIE: Economic development is no mystery

Morton Marcus Times Business Columnist

Local economic development organizations (LEDOs) have been severely challenged in the past few years.

EYE ON THE PIE: A realistic view of Indiana’s economy

Morton Marcus Times Business Columnist

You cannot blame Mike Pence for delivering an upbeat inaugural address. Let’s just hope he has a clear understanding of Indiana’s real economic circumstances.

EYE ON THE PIE: Plain talk about debt and deficits

Morton Marcus Times Business Columnist

For those of you who like to run to the dictionary while reading this column, I apologize for the simplicity and directness of the words I am going to use.

EYE ON THE PIE: A special inflation rate for the elderly

Morton J. Marcus Times Business Columnist

Each year consumers cooperate with the U.S. Bureaus of Labor Statistics and the Census to report how we spend our money. According to the 2011 Survey of Consumer Expenditures, our 122 million households spent $6.1 trillion or nearly $50,000 p…

EYE ON THE PIE: Proud hope for Indiana’s future

Morton Marcus Times Business Columnist

At a time when hope for our governmental system was ebbing during the fiscal cliff crisis, several hundred young Hoosiers gathered at IUPUI in Indianapolis to refute despair.

If you must drink, it's cheaper to do it at home

Morton Marcus Times Columnist

The latest monthly Consumer Price Index offers a guide to life in the year ahead. Of course, as they say on Wall Street, past performance is not a guarantee of future conditions. Use caution in adjusting your life to the materials that follow.

EYE ON THE PIE: End age discrimination in income taxation

Morton Marcus Times Business Columnist

Home during Washington’s fiscal cliff negotiations, Indiana’s third U.S. Senator – Phinneas Pfogghorn – met with me for a late afternoon coffee.

View More Local Offers