As a taxpaying citizen of Indiana, I am outraged to read in IndyStar that House Roads and Transportation Chair Jim Pressel wants Marion County to address our potholes and maintain the county’s nearly 8,500 lane miles of roads by allowing us to raise taxes to meet funding needs.

Briggs: How Mike Braun can be a good governor (in spite of Micah Beckwith)

Pressel and his fellow rural Republican legislators support a lane-mile funding formula that gives as much money to a one-lane county road as to six lanes for a street such as Keystone Avenue. Our county receives about half the lane-mile funding as most other counties. We also get 11 cents per every dollar our taxpayers generate for the state’s Community Crossings program, while other counties receive $1. Pressel says, “I’m trying to help them help themselves.” He rounds out his subterfuge by saying, “They know they have a problem.”

Yes, we know we have a problem: It’s the Republican-dominated state government with its anti-Indianapolis bias. Don’t they notice the discrepancy when they are in town spending their $196 per-diem staying at our hotels or eating at our restaurants courtesy of corporate lobbyists? Why wouldn’t they want their state’s capital city to thrive and serve as a magnet to attract businesses and new residents to Indiana? Instead, they spend their time trying to dismantle our public school system, put roadblocks in the way of efficient public transportation, prevent us from banning right turns on red, and take our money to prop up their backwoods towns.

When the legislative session is over and Pressel is driving back to Rolling Prairie, let’s hope his mega truck doesn’t hit a pothole, bend a rim and destroy a tire when he hits a pothole within our city limits.

Michael Nolan lives in Indianapolis.

 INDIANAPOLIS — WRTV’s StormTeam is forecasting frigid temperatures that hit rock bottom Wednesday morning.

“Once we get to the single digit marks and certainly below freezing, there is a danger to folks who are exposed to the elements for a long period of time,” Indianapolis EMS Chief Dan O’Donnell said.

Health officials are urging people to take precautions if they must be outside this week.

“I usually recommend layering, trying to wear multiple layers as much as I can,” Dr. Zachary Lundy, from Franciscan Physician Network CityWay Family Medicine, said.

Officials with IEMS say it already has responded to more than 110 cold weather-related emergencies this winter. There were seven on Sunday, and seven more on Monday.

“It’s really a matter of minimizing your time outside as best as you can,” Chief O’Donnell said.

WRTV

The National Weather Service has these tips to protect yourself:

First, stay indoors during the worst part of the extreme cold.

Keep a winter survival kit in your vehicle, including non-perishable food, water, a cellphone with a charger, blankets, and jumper cables.

WRTV

The NWS also says to layer your clothing and make sure to wear a coat, a hat covering your ears, and gloves.

It adds learning how to shut off your water supply in case of potential pipe bursts, check on the elderly, and bring pets inside.

For more information on winter weather safety, view the links below:

The Atlanta Falcons and Indianapolis Colts are interviewing Michigan defensive coordinator Wink Martindale for their defensive coordinator vacancies, per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network.

Martindale, 61, is a highly respected defensive play-caller who just wrapped up his first season in Ann Arbor. The Falcons fired Jimmy Lake after missing out on the postseason in their first year under head coach Raheem Morris. Indianapolis, meanwhile, dismissed Gus Bradley. The Cincinnati Bengals could also have interest in Martindale after Lou Anarumo‘s firing, Pelissero noted.

Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore named Martindale the team’s defensive coordinator last February after Jesse Minter followed Jim Harbaugh to the Los Angeles Chargers. Michigan made him the second-highest paid assistant in college football. Martindale signed a three-year contract with the Wolverines, coming in at an average of $2.5 million over the duration with base salaries of $2.3 million in 2024, $2.5 million in 2025 and $2.7 million in 2026.

Replacing Minter, who helped lead the Wolverines to an undefeated, National Championship-winning season the year prior, is no easy task. Martindale, however, orchestrated one of the best defenses in college football this year.

Wink Martindale back to the NFL?

Michigan finished as the No. 11 defense in the nation, and that unit played its best ball in the second half of the season. From Oct. 26 on, the Wolverines surrendered just 17.3 points per game across six contests. Martindale’s defense saved their best for the final two games of the season. Michigan knocked off rival Ohio State, 13-10, in the 120th edition of “The Game.” A month later, Martindale’s defense held Alabama to 13 points in a 19-13 ReliaQuest Bowl victory.

Martindale has decades of experience in the NFL, making him a natural fit for any team looking for a defensive coordinator. He called plays for the Denver Broncos (2010) and Baltimore Ravens (2018-21) before landing with the New York Giants in 2022. He spent two seasons in New York before the two sides mutually agreed to part ways.