Author: Michael Tilley

Parameters

At some risk of redundancy, what follows is a repeat of points made in a past essay. The 10 items are a broad set of parameters intended to guide yours…

Brain freight

It was hard to stay focused. The important folks around the table were talking important things about how to greatly improve the way in which businesses and industries ship their…

Garage sale rules

Editor’s note: This column was written by Michael Tilley in January 2005. Link here for the original post. There comes a time to sell stuff long ago tucked away in…

The Mayor says …

Lt. Commander Francis Queeg — played by Humphrey Bogart in the movie, “The Caine Mutiny.”: (Rolling steel balls in his hand while testifying) “Ahh, but the strawberries that’s, that’s where…

Fortunate son

A lot has changed in Mom’s world. The world in 1949, the year of her birth, was a crazy place. Europe was rebuilding its continental economy, the Soviets were rattling…

A few years ago, the Fort Smith Board of Directors rejected a feasible, responsible and appropriate commercial development adjacent to the corporate headquarters complex of Arkansas Best Corporation. Why? Because…

Observations, again

With apologies to Janis. Lord won’t you buy me a new quarterbackmy friends all have Bradys’ leading their pack we work hard in the off-season, but can’t get on trackOh…

Observations

TEA TIMEAt the recent Tea Party event in downtown Fort Smith there was much talk of getting government out of our lives. Lord help me if I said anything other…

C sections

A recent conversation resulted in a challenge to consider and list three big-picture things Fort Smith regional business and civic leaders might do to enhance our strengths, address our weakness,…

Fools rush in …

We briefly considered posting a few stories Wednesday (April 1) containing about three parts Silliness to every two parts Possible. Or some similar concoction of hybrid fiction. But these April…

Comments

Elements of this thing called The City Wire remain experimental. Not that pushing news and information via the Internet is a new thing, but the approach we use and the…

Well-intended

It was just a few months ago that the caller had these well-intended words of wisdom for yours truly: “You’re too damn impatient when it comes to progressive community change….

Legislate this

The deadline for filing new legislation in Arkansas’ 87th General Assembly has come and gone. This welcome calendar event reduces by half the anxiety of Arkansans with an interest in…

A serious matter

There is a serious matter we must address. While we argue and contemplate riverfront development options, express concern and frustration about our regional economy, respectfully attempt to maintain optimism about…

Dear Mayor:

An open letter to Fort Smith Mayor Ray Baker. Dear Mayor Baker: Although there certainly are more important issues with greater long-term positive impacts for city residents we could discuss…

Censored

This essay is nothing more than the Top Ten essay topics proposed by yours truly that were rejected by the powers-that-be at The City Wire. They said it was for…

Go fact yourself

It was Feb. 3 when The City Wire posted the story about the Fort Smith board of directors voting to spend $62,000 to support an “opportunity analysis” of riverfront development….

So Sad

If they ever prove the global-climate-change-warming-apocalypse-crisis is caused by humans, it’s likely one of the top 10 sources will be the electricity consumed by the office of U.S. Sen. Blanche…

Facebook fugitive

Friends and relatives who are old enough to know better are becoming more active on this Facebook thing. One can be guilted into creating a Facebook profile to respond to…

Hoping for a pleasant surprise

Roger Meek says he is pleasantly surprised with the number of people interested in the future of the Fort Smith Regional Chamber of Commerce. Meek, the chairman of the chamber’s…