Waldtaube.org

Preparation for interactions with ICE: In the moment, but only then, the person with the gun and the badge is always right

My first post of the new year is now live at https://www.waldtaube.org/starting-off-2026-in-optimism/

The Quarryland Men’s Chorus gave its first offering of the 2025 winter concert Saturday night at 7:30 pm at the First United Church of Bloomington, located at 2420 E. 3rd Street (right near the IU Credit Union building).

I will cut to the chase here: if you love beautiful music, or if you love the holiday season, or if you love both, get ye to this church on Sunday, December 7, by 3:00 pm, to hear the second offering of this concert. (That is, this afternoon as I write this). Do this especially if your response to the title “Stay Gold” is anything close to my initial puzzled reaction. Finding out is a joy and a comfort.

This was a superbly crafted suite of songs, delivered with great musicianship and emotion by the Quarryland Men’s Chorus and led by Artistic Director Mitch Serslev. Here are just a few comments on highlights of the concert:

• The program kicked off with two songs by Stephen Schwartz, starting with a lovely rendition of “Morning Glow.” Then “The Chanukah Song (We Are Lights).” This is a wonderful piece that captures the essence of the holiday spirit. This piece was where the Quarryland gift for a bit of stage theater shone through most brightly. And here, perhaps more than anywhere else, the combined gifts of Claudia Santana Núñez (piano) and Jody Brinegar (percussion) had the most impact. Their sensitive playing – along with Tim Lerzak on guitar for some songs – was a key part of the musicality of the entire concert.
• Then ‘Stay Gold.’ This song was introduced by Doug Bauder – one of the founding members of Quarryland who remains active today and a legend in his own right. He talked about how he in particular struggled with the meaning of the words, and he decided for him it meant to stay positive in dark and challenging times. There was plenty of applause this evening, but the applause after Doug’s remarks was particularly long and warm. And the song? This is one of the pieces on the program that I did not know, and it touched me deeply. But fair warning: if you go to the show this afternoon with someone, bring two handkerchiefs, one for each of you. I brought only one and was deprived of it by my wife for much of this song. 
• The first half of the program ended with a wonderful singalong, participation in which you will enjoy deeply.
• The second half of the program opened with a solo by Rex Hinkle in the beautiful and haunting  “Wassail the Trees.” This song in particular took great advantage of the wonderful chapel of the First United Church and how it was decorated for the season and the concert.
• Near the end of the program came two of the biggest musical highlights. The Quarryland Men’s Chorus participated in the world premiere of two madrigals composed by IU alum Eric Knechtges. These new pieces were commissioned by Quarryland and two other men’s choruses. They are challenging, with some wonderful but complex chord progressions. During the first of the two, there were moments when one could sense that Chorus was dealing with a new piece being interpreted from the written score for the first time ever. And yet during it there were also striking moments of pure and innovative beauty. The Chorus really leaned in to the a cappella singing with full voice and complete comfort in the second of the two pieces. It was musically one of the most interesting pieces of the night and my favorite of these two.
• Then the Beatles classic, “Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight,” featuring Adrian Ghandtchi as soloist. Adrian’s emotional range with his voice is remarkable and this song brought the house down. Artistic Director Mitch Serslev was speechless for just a moment, and then simply said, “I am blessed. Are we all not blessed?”

At the end of the program, Quarryland Board of Directors President Constance Cook Glen acknowledged and thanked the many supporters of this fine organization.

Tickets cost $20 per person. If you were not at the Saturday evening performance, there is nothing more important and nothing more enjoyable and nothing more hopeful that you can do this afternoon than attend the Quarryland Men’s Chorus second and last performance of its winter program –  3 pm at United Church in Bloomington.

Those of us who believe love and compassion constitute first principles are living in a social darkness deeper than any we have seen in decades. In this time of physical and spiritual darkness the Quarryland Men’s Chorus brings us light and says to all of us: we are here, we have always been here, and we are staying here. As always, Quarry soothes that which ails in each of us as they sing with musicality and love. 

I am still not entirely sure what to make of the title “Staying Gold,” but Doug Bauder’s explanation and another wonderful interpretation by Joachim Ladwig helped.  I’m going to go with stay positive and hold hands and hearts together to continue shining our own light. The darkness around us will fade, in part thanks to fine singing and dedicated musicians such as the Quarryland Men’s Chorus. 

This year’s Jacobs School of Music opera season ended with a bang – a stellar performance of Bizet’s Carmen – on April 26. It was a night to savor and remember for many reasons. Read a review of this wonderful performance at https://www.waldtaube.org/review-of-carmen-by-the-jacobs-school-of-music-april-26-2025/

What happens to the Indiana economy if Senate Bill 202 (SB202) passes in its current form?

Last year, Indiana University received $772 million in new grants and contracts. Purdue University received $613 million. That money comes predominantly from outside Indiana, contributing significantly to Indiana’s economy. The US Bureau of Economic Analysis’s Regional Impact Multipliers System (RIMS II) is widely used to estimate the impact of investments in a state on that state’s economy. The RIMSII data for Indiana suggest that grants and contracts to IU and Purdue add over $2 billion in direct and indirect value to Indiana’s economy annually (assuming 20% of funding is subcontracted out of state; exact figures on this are not publicly available). This amount of funding supports an estimated 14,000 full-time jobs annually.

Most tenured faculty could make more money outside of academia. World-class experts are attracted to academia to make a difference: to spend a career pursuing research, scholarship, creative activities, and teaching. They receive the assurance of such a career once they have proved their merit through the tenure process. That is the deal in almost all other states. It has been the deal in Indiana in the past, but SB202 would end that here. Faculty of all political perspectives have objected. For example, Purdue University’s Faculty Senate voted 81–5 to oppose SB202. If SB202 is enacted into law, Indiana’s very best faculty members will leave to go to other states.

Losing our best faculty will have many negative economic impacts. Our universities will become less competitive for grants and contracts. Vacated faculty positions can be filled with other PhD holders—but these replacements will be much less qualified than current faculty. For most grant proposals, an important evaluation criterion is a faculty member’s ability to complete the work. SB202 calls that into question, further damaging the competitiveness of Indiana faculty. If SB202 passes as currently written, much less grant and contract money will come into the state of Indiana.

If grant and contract income to IU and Purdue drop to 25% of current levels, the Indiana economy will lose $1.5 billion in total economic activity. More than 10,000 jobs will disappear, following grant money to other states. Competition for grant funding is already intense. The percentage of proposals submitted to granting agencies that are rejected can be as high as 95% to 98% of those submitted. A reduction of grant and contract funding to 25% of current levels seems plausible.

Indiana would suffer other economic impacts as well. If the best faculty members flee, Indiana’s public universities will have lower rankings and may lose accreditation in some specialties, meaning fewer out-of-state students. Losing the higher tuition these students pay (which also subsidizes tuition for Hoosier students) would mean further financial losses for Indiana.

If SB202 is enacted as currently written, pharmaceutical, defense, and high-tech firms in Indiana will lose the existing pipeline of excellent students from our state’s leading universities. Native Hoosiers will miss out on the great opportunity for high-quality jobs available through this pipeline. Indiana will no longer keep the many bright young people who come here to get a university degree and stay here to work in Indiana’s leading tech firms. Pharmaceutical companies will also have far fewer opportunities for local research collaborations that accelerate the development of new, needed, and sometimes lifesaving medical treatments for Hoosiers, their pets, and their agricultural animals.  

Representative Deery cited survey data showing a sharp decrease in confidence in higher education among Republicans as a key reason for authoring SB202. This decrease in confidence should be a grave concern for all. But neither the speed pursued by the right nor the dramatics of the left will provide a good long-term solution. Indiana’s public universities exist because of laws enacted by past elected leaders. Current elected leaders must pursue a future in which every Hoosier child grows up knowing that Indiana’s higher educational system has a place for them where they will be welcomed. Hoosiers also deserve to continue to be able to study at some of the best universities in the world, right here in Indiana.

The current situation took years to create. It will take years to correct. SB202 in its current form will hurt all Hoosiers. Indiana legislators and Governor Holcomb: please, for the sake of all Hoosiers, slow down; don’t try to solve one problem in a rush and create new, potentially worse problems in the process.

Dr. Craig A. Stewart is a PhD biologist and an adopted Hoosier of more than four decades’ standing. He recently retired from a career in advanced research computing and has extensive experience in grant-funded research and analysis of the economic value of scientific research.

The US Bureau of Economic Analysis RIMSII data used in calculations cited above are available online (RIMS II Higher Ed Summary Table – http://www.waldtaube.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Higher-Ed-SummaryTable35.pdf and RIMS II Technical Services Summary Table – http://www.waldtaube.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Prof-Tech-Services-SummaryTable35.pdf). An image of the spreadsheet showing calculations of economic impact of Purdue University and Indiana University grants and contracts is online at http://www.waldtaube.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Economic-Impact-Spreadsheet-Image.png). The spreadsheet itself may be downloaded from http://www.waldtaube.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/IU-and-Purdue-CG-Economic-Impact-2024_feb_24.xlsx . Stewart’s cv showing more than 80 peer reviewed technical and scientific publications overall and more than 10 publications regarding economic evaluation of investment in science (highlighted in yellow) along with information on his involvement in more than 1/3 of a Billion dollars of contract and grant awards is at: http://www.waldtaube.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Stewart-CV-2023_jan_31.pdf

For details see my new blog post!

Last year I wrote a post about the need for buying out Tom Allen’s contract and finding a new football coach. That note from last December is still relevant, partly because it identifies some of the challenges as well as the opportunities. At $20M buying Coach Tom Allen out this very day would seem a decent option. There are plenty of challenges, including the chronic difficult of attracting good coaches. In the opportunity category is speed with which a team can be refurbished in the course of a single offseason, as a result of the new transfer rules. The University of Colorado Buffaloes are a good example. Ready to compete with Ohio State? Probably not. Interesting? Without question.

Never have I seen a more down-in-the mouth homecoming football game at IU than yesterday. The only team that I can remember that was as consistently unable to execute as this year’s team was the one season of Sam Wyche’s tenure as head coach. Other teams may have been worse overall, but this team is distinctive in its lack of exciting high points in any aspect of the game. Whether it’s the coaches, the players, or both I do not have the expertise to judge. IU Football is not interesting to watch, unless you are a fan of the other team or you attend games to watch the Marching Hundred. Or you know someone with a killer tailgating party. A post I wrote last December seems if anything more on target than it was at the end of 2022. http://www.waldtaube.org/iu-and-its-football-coaching-woes/

October 12, 2023

Hi everyone! I have been largely inactive of late. In general it just hasn’t been clear to me that adding more to the din would do any good. Now, however, I feel the tug to post something now and again – hopefully without doing to much screaming into the void (since the void won’t scream back). Some of what I post will be in German, most in English.

I have put together an index to my old posts and commentaries on Waldtaube.org from the start a bit more than three years ago to October 1 of 2023. The categories are: Fun, Cancer, Religion and spirituality, and Social issues and politics. Posts within each category are listed by category and in reverse chronological order. That makes sense in most cases although my posts on cancer are likely best read bottom up (oldest first).

waldtaube.org/index-of-old-posts-from-january-2020-to-october-2023/

Read the full post at http://www.waldtaube.org/my-first-fathers-day-as-a-father-was-40-years-ago-today/