Guest Commentary

by The City Wire staff - January 18, 2015 6:03 pm

Gearhart did go home again

A surprise announcement came about this past week when G. David Gearhart, the chancellor of the University of Arkansas, announced he would resign on July 31. A national search for…

by The City Wire staff - January 15, 2015 6:26 pm

Why would we want to do that?

Have you ever heard anyone say that it’s not easy to attract people to move to Fort Smith? Or maybe you’ve heard someone say we need more development along the…

by The City Wire staff - January 15, 2015 3:53 pm

Avoid the mortgage debt scam

Recently I was reading about people around the nation who take out deeds in lieu of foreclosure and wind up getting called about owing debts on their mortgages years after…

by The City Wire staff - January 13, 2015 3:37 pm

Beebe raised the bar

Arkansas’ political heart has recently been beating at the rhythm of Gov.-elect Asa Hutchinson’s appointments of his senior staff and appointments to executive agencies, and at the rhythm of the…

by The City Wire staff - January 12, 2015 6:15 pm

The lottery fix (maybe)

There is always a perceived “prize” or bragging rights for the member of the Arkansas General Assembly filing the biggest and most complex bill every session of the Legislature. Forget…

by The City Wire staff - January 11, 2015 8:04 pm

Burning free speech rights

In a week in which the world tragically learned (again) the dangers of attaching an unwavering loyalty and willingness to kill and be a martyr for a symbol, U.S. Rep….

by The City Wire staff - January 8, 2015 7:14 pm

Reducing lobbyist influence

Back in November, Arkansas voters passed a ballot initiative that caught some people by surprise because of its provision that effectively lengthens term limits. I’m talking, of course, about Issue…

by The City Wire staff - January 6, 2015 9:46 pm

Document retention

Unless you are involved in some criminal activity, January is a good time for a business to review its document retention policy. A well designed document retention policy that is…

by The City Wire staff - January 5, 2015 9:56 pm

Leaky roof politics

There’s an old joke about a man with a leaky roof. When it rained, he said he couldn’t fix the holes because it was raining. When it wasn’t raining he’d…

by The City Wire staff - January 4, 2015 11:43 pm

Hutchinson and a history lesson

As the inauguration of Asa Hutchinson, Arkansas’ 45th Governor, draws near, there are hints of a central theme emerging for the inauguration which may not be new, but may flavor…

by The City Wire staff - December 28, 2014 6:44 pm

The BIG business of bowl games

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, or one of them, anyway. Wall-to-wall college football bowl games for a full month. Of course, we get stuck with some stinkers…

by The City Wire staff - December 28, 2014 6:40 pm

Statewide trauma system kudos

We talk a lot about how Arkansas’s Payment Improvement Initiative and the Private Option have advanced and are stabilizing our health-care infrastructure. However, it was just six years ago that…

by The City Wire staff - December 28, 2014 6:30 pm

Rutledge’s legal stand

It came as no surprise this week that the soon-to-be Attorney General of Arkansas, Leslie Rutledge, has not changed her mind or her campaign mantra. Her personal and legal steadfastness…

by The City Wire staff - December 23, 2014 5:51 pm

A ‘Merry’ note

The last four years of my life have been filled with such civic education, citizen interaction, addressing private and public sector needs, desires and wants, and have been filled with…

by The City Wire staff - December 21, 2014 4:55 pm

Beebe leaving with a stunning image

This week with little fanfare, Gov. Mike Beebe amid a gathering of friends and holiday well-wishers, unveiled his formal portraiture as the 44th Governor of Arkansas. Have you seen it?…