Flagstaff’s City Charter requires that any bond issuance demanding a pledged guarantee of city tax revenues must be submitted to public vote. On Nov. 6, a special Bond Authorization Election will decide two important ballot questions. The Core Services Maintenance Facility Bond (Ballot Question 406) will provide for a new site and building for maintaining city vehicles and support of city services such as snow removal and pothole repair. “Don’t think of a garage,” said City Manager Kevin Burke. … [Read more...] about Flagstaff Voters Deciding on Bond Issues
Predictions for the Winter Sport Season
Picture it: Furry forest creatures provisioning for the coming season; amassing stores of nuts and other morsels to ensure their winter feasts. According to Dave Smith, director of sales and marketing at Snowbowl of Arizona, the habits of forest fauna are one indicator of what we can expect for the coming snow season. “The animals have been stocking up,” he said. He says another good indicator is that “it’s been predicted that there will be a weak El Niño, which means an above average winter.” … [Read more...] about Predictions for the Winter Sport Season
Have I Got a Story for You!
The 1982 hit, “I Melt With You,” by Modern English was the kind of fractured love song that appealed to twenty-somethings finding their way in a new millennium. Growing up during the Cold War, having experienced the tumultuous 70s, and bearing the many sorrows of the Vietnam era produced a generation that understood the fragility of life and love. It evoked the kind of desperate passion one might experience hoping – with all the troubles in the world – that its final moments would find you in … [Read more...] about Have I Got a Story for You!
Barcelona’s Crisis Observed
The waiting room at the police station on Nou de la Rambla in Barcelona is full on the day a visiting reporter makes an unwanted detour to help a friend. Barcelona pickpockets are particularly skilled. Stories of wallets and cell phones stolen from right under your nose are fairly common. The station features a 24-hour credit-card hotline to make canceling stolen cards easier. Still, the friendly clerk taking the report says robberies have not increased. Sure, the newly unemployed sometimes try, … [Read more...] about Barcelona’s Crisis Observed
I Have No Clue What I’m Talking About, But Neither Do You
Pre-digested opinions about political matters appear to be the norm, and the persistence of mistaken perceptions (the belief that something is true though all evidence points to the contrary) afflicts many more people than just the late-night hangers-on at Flag Brew. These pernicious human tendencies prove problematic for democratic society whenever important decisions have to be made. But, leading up to an election… well, wouldn’t it be nice if we could put our dearly held (including erroneous) … [Read more...] about I Have No Clue What I’m Talking About, But Neither Do You
Pearls Before Guys
I like practical books. It’s fine to read about the exploits of successful business gurus. But I’m always left wondering if their success might be more a matter of luck than the sure-fire strategies they wave about with so much bravado – starting with the fact that most of them are men. Face it, ladies! We need practical advice. It really is harder for women to succeed – even now when more of us go to college and even though we are apparently much better hedge fund managers than men. That’s … [Read more...] about Pearls Before Guys
Young Russian Entrepreneurs Choose an Ideal Path
Tommy Tuna’s is like any student hang out – cheap food, blaring music, young people flirting, facebooking, and cramming for exams. If you ignore that those young people are speaking Russian and that the menu offers blinis and traditional Russian salad alongside of burgers and fries, you could imagine yourself in any university town, anywhere. Situated across a side street from Ural Federal University, it was the ideal setting for listening to a group of young Russian entrepreneurs lay out their … [Read more...] about Young Russian Entrepreneurs Choose an Ideal Path
Ready, Aim, Reverse
Words are funny. To use them, they have to mean something. But, they often take meaning from the way we use them. Sometimes they change with context. Other times, words seem so stuck to one context that it’s hard to think of them differently. We understand “rational” and “efficient” in limited ways from ideas about economics and business (particularly the American varieties). Similarly, “innovation” seems limited to developments in “rich countries” that “later flowed downhill to the developing … [Read more...] about Ready, Aim, Reverse
Is There an App for Getting My Life Back?
A recent article in The Atlantic states that nearly half of Facebook users aged 18-34 check their Facebook just minutes after waking up; 28 percent even before getting out of bed. An informal survey with my university students finds that it’s the last thing many of them do at night before going to sleep (with a good number also checking in periodically throughout the night). According to late-night comic Jimmy Fallon, Facebook is working on a feature that allows your friends to see your … [Read more...] about Is There an App for Getting My Life Back?
Innovate This!
Have we had enough innovation yet? Probably not. That buzzword still drives a lot of business (and political) thinking. Rod Adner, author of The Wide Lens: A New Strategy for Innovation, points out that every year “vast amounts of money, time, attention, and effort are spent to introduce productive change.” Innovation, these days, is the convenient answer to everything. How can we increase profitable growth? Innovate! How can we become more efficient and reduce waste? Innovate! How can we … [Read more...] about Innovate This!
