by - November 3, 2013 3:09 pm
Face first in the public trough
When Republican candidate Mark Darr of Rogers burst onto the political scene in 2010, few thought the 37-year old former insurance agent and Pizza parlor owner had a chance to…
Opinion
by - October 27, 2013 5:51 pm
Fairness, adequacy and tax cuts
As 2013 was undoubtedly proclaimed “the Year of the Republican” in the Arkansas House and Senate, campaign 2014 might be defined as the year of talking about taxes. This past…
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 2:29 pm
Are teachers state employees?
Ask yourself this question: “Are Arkansas school teachers state employees?” Now ask the next five people you meet that same question? Are your informal survey(s) as split evenly as mine? I’ll…
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 16, 2013 2:33 pm
The shutdown is your fault
The 535 members of Congress and the kids over at The White House are gathering a lot of blame for this shutdown thingy and the complete cluster that is our…
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 13, 2013 2:45 pm
The need to swear
“Raise your right hand.” Usually, when one hears those four little words things start to get serious in a court of law. And now, it seems, testifying in front of…
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 - October 6, 2013 11:00 am
A lesson learned from the UA fiasco?
The ongoing saga at the Advancement Division of the state’s flagship University, while still mired in controversy, took a different turn this week. Finally, someone on campus, Dr. John Watkins,…
by - September 29, 2013 7:00 pm
Bloomberg’s second strike
The first time Bloomberg news fouled up a story about Wal-Mart Stores one could simply consider it a surprising and ill-advised report. A one-off, if you will. Even a smart…
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…
by - September 23, 2013 6:47 pm
Campus reflections
On the well-manicured University of Arkansas at Fort Smith campus it was early evening, with the dusk again managing the shift change between day and night. This time of soft…
by - September 22, 2013 11:58 am
Alice and the Rockwells
It’s not often one gets to give a suggestion to a member of the wealthy billionaire Walton Clan of Northwest Arkansas. But here goes. “Dear Ms. Alice: “Please consider buying…
by - September 15, 2013 7:33 pm
It’s a New Day!
A new day is how the U.S Department of Health and Human Services describes Jan. 1, 2014 “for the 19% of Arkansans who don’t have insurance, or Arkansas families and…
by - September 15, 2013 7:14 pm
Rep. Womack’s fashion statement
Ah, that pesky First Amendment. It cuts both ways, or so we learned this week from Arkansas’ 3rd District Congressman Steve Womack, R-Rogers, and a self-proclaimed “Mexican-American” student named Yardley…
by - September 12, 2013 7:56 pm
Arkansas must fight for manufacturing jobs
The last two decades have not been kind to manufacturing, once Arkansas' largest private industry sector. Manufacturing peaked at 247,300 in February 1995, and has shed 93,400 jobs – an unprecedented…
by - September 8, 2013 5:49 pm
A color roadmap to Arkansas politics
It’s still very early, but many people have already made bold predictions about the 2014 election cycle based on early polling data. It’s always important to remember that polls are…
by - September 8, 2013 5:36 pm
Recycling education
While the vocal critics of the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality rage on about the lack of public notices of their various permitting corporate hog farms near the Buffalo River,…