Opinion

Riff Raff: A fortunate, and still grateful, son

Editor’s note: This essay was first posted May 10, 2009. Happy Mother’s Day! A lot has changed in Mom’s world. The world in 1949, the year of her birth, was…

Car tags and carbon

And miles to go … Is it too soon? Too soon for what, you might ask. Too soon to be thinking about the November 2020 elections, of course. If it…

Why does tobacco cessation matter?

Reducing tobacco use in Arkansas would save lives, reduce the cost of public benefits and improve the health of all Arkansans. Legislatively, Arkansas has made great strides in reducing smoking…

Don’t let 206 miles divide us

The now completed 2019 Arkansas General Assembly session was historic for Arkansas roads and bridges as lawmakers passed a funding package that will exceed $400 million annually if voters agree…

Events, remote work create career opportunities in rural locales

In early April, events professionals around the world observed Global Meetings Industry Day (GMID), an annual celebration focusing on the impact of business meetings, conventions and trade shows on events,…

The coaching-style leadership

International Coaching Week is celebrated April 29-May 5. Professional coaching has gained additional exposure over the years and continued growth is estimated to be a $2 billion global industry. The…

Daisy Bates, Johnny Cash give Arkansas history a fresh face

After three months of hard work that produced historic and much-needed legislation, the 92nd General Assembly has adjourned. Together, we cut taxes. We raised teacher pay. We funded roads and…

What is the customer experience?

The term “experience” is a word you hear more and more these days in the business world. Trying to define what it means and understanding it from a customer’s point…

What are the odds?

Let the games begin on April 1 at the state’s two race tracks, decreed the Arkansas Racing Commission last month. The two, as anybody who’s been around here even a…

Riff Raff: The ‘good vibe’ in downtown Van Buren

Mass and velocity help determine momentum. Learned years ago from Miss Ada Mills over in Johnson County that pressure and time were keys to success in politics and civic projects….

Solar energy can power Arkansas’ economy

“Solar energy means more jobs in Arkansas,” Senator Dave Wallace of Leachville recently told his Senate colleagues. Speaking from the well of the Arkansas Senate chamber on a March afternoon,…

Gender equity in the workforce, economic gains for all Arkansans

In order to move the needle and to be strategic in their work, many organizations focus on certain areas of intervention to improve the lives of their clients. At the…

A new mortgage type for a new type of homebuyer

In case you haven’t heard, there’s a new homebuyer on the block. Millennials, individuals born from 1977 to 1995 according to Nielsen, have showed up in force as homebuyers, and…

Agriculture offers field of opportunity for new grads

It’s a known fact for lifelong Arkansans that agriculture is the top industry in our state. The Natural State boasts more than 13 million acres of farmland, which is about…

Notes on a high-performing Delta county

A long-standing goal of Arkansas policymakers has been achieving 100% income parity with the U.S. average. A release this week from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis shows how far…

It’s easier than you think

While housing market headlines can warn of inventory shortages, harder access to financing and higher mortgage rates, the opportunities are still plentiful for Northwest Arkansans. In fact, the most recent…

Riff Raff: The company you keep …

One might credit the crushing defeat of a sales tax funding the U.S. Marshals Museum to an impressive grassroots opposition. Also easy would be claiming a broad anti-tax sentiment for…

Arkansas needs to advance telemedicine to improve access, lower costs

Health care is a pressing issue that continues to challenge every size of business, whether it employs 10 or 10,000. The problems are two-fold: cost and access. The Arkansas General…

Encouraging our employees to explore Arkansas

For 40 years, CJRW has been honored to be the marketing and communications partner for the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism. Through the decades, we’ve told many stories of…

‘Stump Dump’ fire just beginning

Putting out the underground fire still smoldering at the property in Bella Vista known as the “Stump Dump” could be the easiest part of resolving a situation that has concerned…