by - December 20, 2012 5:11 pm
Ready to serve
It was only two days after the election when The City Wire asked me to write a guest commentary. I quickly agreed, thinking December was a long time away, but…
Guest Commentary
by - December 18, 2012 6:28 pm
When will the cows come home? Part III
Previous articles (Parts 1 and 2) have discussed several challenges and opportunities related to the how and where of rebuilding the U.S. cattle herd. This article discusses the most important…
by - December 12, 2012 12:03 pm
The State of Tourism in the Natural State
In order to give an analysis of the state of tourism in Arkansas, it’s almost imperative to look back and see how far we’ve come in the last forty or…
by - December 10, 2012 11:16 am
Will the cows come home? Part II
A dramatic jump in demand for corn, which began in late 2006, has resulted in sharply higher prices for all crops in the U.S. A simple average across the eight…
by - December 9, 2012 2:44 pm
A cab driver’s smirk
I was riding in a taxicab last Tuesday night in Manhattan after seeing the Broadway musical "Wicked." My wife, her sister, and a friend were riding in the back seat,…
by - December 6, 2012 12:33 pm
Will the cows come home? Part 1
Can we rebuild the beef cow herd? That was the question posed to me by a producer in response to my recent article suggesting that two years of drought liquidation,…
by - December 3, 2012 10:55 am
The benefits of ‘Vendorville’
Years from now when they write the story of Northwest Arkansas’s economic boom, research will show that it was ignited by folks we have come to know as “the vendors.” Consumer…
by - November 25, 2012 2:58 pm
A professional shell game
Let me apologize up front for writing a somewhat technical article. However I’ve been watching journalists and commentators for most of 2012 reporting on the battle over tax policy between…
by - November 11, 2012 4:56 pm
Of elections and heritage
A couple of major events happened last week. The one event everybody knows about is that President Obama was re-elected. The other event that nobody cares about but me is…
by - October 31, 2012 12:39 pm
The Wal-Mart supplier game is changing
By 2025 anyone born between 1980 and 2000 (Millennial generation) will make up 75% of the U.S. workforce and yes, Vendorville. Millennials will be the most educated generation in history…
by - October 28, 2012 2:17 pm
Opportunity cost
I can’t refer to any particular survey or study to verify my hunch, but I’m sure by far that Economics is one of the most popular and in-demand classes on…
by - October 14, 2012 11:57 am
Honor every threat
Last Friday night I was walking into the kitchen to get a Triple Double Oreo Neapolitan cookie. The kitchen TV was on CNN. Anderson Cooper was interviewing Paul Begala about…
by - October 11, 2012 1:09 pm
Minimizing risk
Arkansas leaders know that the continued competition between our state and others for job prospects will always be a big business slugfest. Sometimes we’ll win. Often, we’ll lose. Those are…
by - October 7, 2012 5:54 pm
Community health
Many people in our community ask me a common question: “How is business?” Usually I give a very simple response: “OK.” However, I’ve begun to realize the reason I am…
by - September 30, 2012 1:43 pm
Debunking the ‘Job magnet plan’
Kindly allow me, City Council member and Democratic Candidate Adella Gray, to accept my invitation to respond to a well-written guest commentary from my opponent, Republican Representative Charlie Collins of…
by - September 27, 2012 5:27 pm
System pressures and opportunities
American higher education is at a crossroads. Federal and state funding cuts, rising student loan debt, an increased demand for graduates and competition from for-profit online institutions are challenging the…
by - September 23, 2012 3:41 pm
How stupid are you?
This past Friday morning I turned on the television in time to see a discussion between CNBC’s Squawk Box hosts and Harvard Business School professor Michael Porter and the school’s…
by - September 18, 2012 3:27 pm
More time for low rates?
After waffling on how long low mortgage rates are expected to stick around, some analysts have called for rates to not rise significantly through next year. Honestly, that’s about as…
by - September 9, 2012 4:36 pm
Passion pursuit
I wonder what the word count would be if you took all the negative and discouraging words spoken in, about, and around the Republican and Democratic National Conventions the past…
by - August 31, 2012 12:56 pm
Job magnet plan
Arkansans count on their elected officials to help improve the quality of life here, a worthy goal. Yet, numerous studies have concluded that we rank between 42nd and 48th among…