Signs of federal bail out hard to see in Muncie area

By Keith Roysdon, Star Press

kroysdon@muncie.gannett.com

MUNCIE -- The local effects of the nation's economic bailout are apparently a lot like then-Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart's explanation of obscenity: They know it when they see it.

And some local economy watchers are still waiting to see it.

As lawmakers in Washington, D.C., continue to debate the $700 billion bailout package for the nation's economy -- how much to spend on bad mortgages, how much to give to banks, whether to include Detroit automakers -- local experts say that while recovery is far away, some business trends seem to be moving upward.

How much can be attributed to the bailout and how much can be chalked up to reassurances provided solely by talk of the bailout is uncertain.