"Our game, our rules"....

Our two-party system is pretty protective of itself. Ballot access laws and election commission requirements contribute to the 96% re-election rate that incumbent elected officials enjoy. Occasionally, a third party tries to throw a wrench into the works.

A couple of weeks ago, Ed Coleman, a member of the Indianapolis City-County Council, resigned from the Republican Party and joined the Libertarian Party, citing the GOP's continued failure in maintaining any sort of fiscal discipline.

This last Monday, Council President Bob Cockrum, Republican Majority Leader Lincoln Plowman, and Democratic Minority Leader Joanne Sanders met in executive session and removed Coleman from all Council Committees. Coleman had been appointed to the Rules and Public Policy Committee, and the Economic Developement Committee at the begining of the year.

Apparently a person who is qualified to serve on one of these committees when they toe party lines, suddenly becomes unqualified when they challenge the status quo.

It's hard to argue that Coleman doesn't have a legitimate beef with the GOP's spending record. It's also hard to argue that the Indianapolis City-County Council is doing anything other than trying to discourage dissent against a firmly entrenched two-party system.

It's also hard to argue that the taxpayers will see any benefit from its action.