by - March 6, 2014 5:26 pm
Pryor, Cotton message development
“Tom Cotton: Wrong for Arkansas” read a blaring headline of a blog on U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor’s campaign website on Aug. 6, 2013, as Pryor’s campaign anticipated U.S. Rep. Tom…
Guest Commentary
by - March 2, 2014 4:22 pm
Planning notes from Superintendent Gooden
The concerns relative to the emerging plans for an additional high school are reasonable in view of the long-term impact such a project can have on the Fort Smith Public…
by - February 23, 2014 11:59 am
The importance of innovation
Steve Jobs said innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower. Michael Porter said innovation is the central issue in economic prosperity. Both ideas describe the importance of innovative thinking…
by - February 2, 2014 8:32 pm
The death of Fort Smith’s prosperity
“Unreasonable.” “Vindictive!” “They read too many books.” “They avoid common sense.” “Fort Smith is the laughing stock of the state.” Above is a sampling of the comments I heard from…
by - January 20, 2014 3:40 pm
The ‘Private Option’ push
The members of the Arkansas General Assembly return to the Capitol in February for the 2014 Fiscal Session. This will be the third such session since voters changed the Arkansas…
by - January 19, 2014 5:35 pm
The real battle for healthcare
The success of Obamacare depends on my son and those in his demographic, or we have been told. He is a healthy male in his 20’s whose health insurance premium…
by - January 5, 2014 8:21 pm
Game pieces and tough questions
I received a call from Fort Smith Mayor Sandy Sanders a few weeks ago, kind of. It was an automated call. If you live within the city limits of Fort…
by - December 22, 2013 4:33 pm
Resolutions, gratitude and saying ‘no’
What is it about the human species that compels us at the beginning of each year to make New Year’s resolutions? Everybody means well but within a few weeks resolutions…
by - December 8, 2013 5:09 pm
Looking for a Fort Smith renaissance
Last month my article “We have arrived” focused on a conversation about Fort Smith compared to Pine Bluff and was provoked by a “top ten list” ranking Fort Smith as…
by - November 29, 2013 10:23 am
The megasite message
Arkansas must use every available tool at our disposal to highlight our state's economic advantages in a competitive global marketplace. Companies looking to call Arkansas home need and want easy…
by - November 24, 2013 5:35 pm
What a difference a year makes
This time last year the political rhetoric and conversation around coffee was about the expiration of the Bush “tax cuts.” Most provisions lowering federal income taxes after President Bush had…
by - November 17, 2013 6:42 pm
Can Hillary win Arkansas in 2016?
There’s a friendly debate among Arkansas politicos these days: If Hillary Clinton is the Democratic nominee in 2016, will she be able to win our state’s six electoral votes? And…
by - November 12, 2013 10:09 am
The education-jobs link
Students in the Bentonville, Fayetteville and Greenwood School districts, in four consecutive annual reports (2005-08) produced by our economic think tank earned 'A' grades for their performance on standardized national…
by - November 11, 2013 4:33 pm
We have arrived
For years I have been saying in jest that if Fort Smith isn’t careful we will become the next Pine Bluff. We’ve arrived, at least in one ranking. The website…
by - October 27, 2013 5:32 pm
The value of goodwill
Almost every homeowner understands the concept of home equity. Home equity is the money you would expect to be left over after you sold your house and paid off the…
by - October 20, 2013 12:48 pm
Beebe: More work needed on teacher insurance
For only the second time as governor, I have called legislators to the State Capitol for a special session. These sessions are meant to be narrow in focus and efficient…
by - October 13, 2013 5:17 pm
The need to control costs
The power of compound interest is one of the first subjects a person is taught when learning about personal finance. Compound interest uses the leverage of time and returns (interest,…
by - October 8, 2013 4:54 pm
Energized in Oklahoma
This week, energy leaders, environmental experts, education professionals and a host of other industry specialists will gather in Tulsa for the Third Annual Oklahoma Governor’s Energy Conference. The conference, which…
by - October 6, 2013 8:57 pm
Elections have consequences
As a kid, one of my favorite things every Saturday morning was watching Mid-South Wrestling. It was always filled with theatrics, high drama, and a lot of bad acting. Every…
by - September 29, 2013 6:34 pm
Premium assistance
Tuesday is the big day, the opening of the American Health Benefit Exchanges, more commonly referred to simply as the state insurance exchanges. You can expect a lot of chatter…