Myrtle Beach, SC, Orlando, FL April 20, 2015
Prescott Valley, AZ Correspondent-With the record number of Americans and non-citizens receiving government funding, whether it be in the form of welfare, food stamps, Pell grants, unemployment and other assistance, measures should be undertaken to oversee what is being distributed through these various programs. Continue reading
Myrtle Beach, SC, Orlando, FL April 23, 2015
Prescott Valley, AZ Correspondent-Higher education has become just another big business as more and more colleges and universities are graduating students with little to no hope of future employment, and the causes are many. Continue reading
Myrtle Beach, SC, Orlando, FL, April 3, 2015
Asheville, NC Correspondent– Despite the recent publicity surrounding the hiring of a few female executives, the promotion of women to high ranks within companies is relatively rare. In 2014, women comprised less than 15% of executive officers, 8.1% of top earners, and 4.6% of Fortune 500 CEO’s. Only 3% of creative marketing directors are women. Less than 9% of top management positions are held by women across the entire economy. In technology, where these promotions have been most public, women still lag far behind men in rates of promotion. Women hold only 9% of senior management or higher positions. Continue reading
Asheville: On paper, lotteries sound like a dream come true for states struggling with budget problems. They raise considerable revenue, which can be used to fund education, health care, and other budget priorities. They are funded voluntarily by people who choose to gamble, which means they avoid the political pitfalls of increased taxation. They’re popular, they’re fun, and they’re easy. Nothing could go wrong. Continue reading
Raleigh: It is well-known that getting college education in the U.S.A. is an expensive endeavor. While most people strive to get college education because it opens many more doors for them in the future and potentially allows to earn more money compared to counterparts without college education, the very cost of college education is becoming prohibitive. According to the College Board, college cost for an in-state public college for the 2013–2014 academic year was about $22,826, while average yearly cost for a private college was about $44,750. Add to that the cost of living, and the sum can truly be too high to carry for vast majority of American families. Continue reading
Raleigh: The impact of people’s actions on the environment has been at the center of public debate for a long time. Many researchers, scientists and concerned citizens have pointed out that if people do not change their ways, the future of our planet can indeed be dire. One of the biggest factors which negatively affect our environment is the increased volume of transport on our roads. According to IHS Automotive report from 2014, United States has about 253 million cars and trucks on the road with the average age of a car about 11.4 years. What do all these cars do to our environment? Continue reading
Cartwright: It’s really about creating a corporate culture around customer service and creating an environment where the employees are happy and want to come to work. A happy employee provides good customer service. An unhappy employee provides poor customer service. If your corporate culture is bad and you pile on stricter rules, you just alienate the employees and customer service spirals out of control as it gets sucked down the drain. I personally believe that if you take care of your employees then they will take care of you and your business. I’ve found that some of the best customer service comes from small businesses. They have a very family oriented environment with the employees. The bigger the organization gets the more corporate bullshit that gets involved; employees are less happy and this manifests in lower standards of customer service. Continue reading
Cartwright: No. Personally, I feel businesses should pay their workers a good, decent, livable wage. I support an honest day’s pay for an honest day’s work. Not all businesses feel that way. And for a lot of businesses it’s a matter of economics. They simply can’t afford more than minimum wage and still generate a profit. Businesses aren’t non-profits. As part of a capitalist system, they’re in it to make money for the owners or shareholders. If they’re offering minimum wage, you don’t have to work for them. And in the free markets, the market will set the level of wages to attract qualified talent for a business. If you can’t attract good workers at minimum wage to profitably run the business, you’ll have to pay a higher wage. That’s simple economics. Continue reading
Cartwright: Absolutely, you should be rewarded for entrepreneurship. Being an entrepreneur is hard enough as it is. Add the government taxes on top of that and it becomes even more difficult. Wonder why businesses are losing their competitive advantage against foreign businesses? Labor costs and taxes. We have one of the highest corporate tax rates in the world. But let’s look at the reality. Most small businesses are LLC or S-corps that are taxed at the individual level. So, they’re paying self employment taxes and individual income taxes on the profits of the business. It adds up real quick. When you have to factor in the cost of taxes, you may work all year and come up with very little once you pay Uncle Sam who’s going to allow politicians in Washington to squander your hard earned dollars. Continue reading
Cartwright: We’ve discussed this extensively before. I believe we debated it at length at one of the champagne summits back in October. The Republicans had the Democrats and Mr. Obama over the barrel back in October with the government shutdown and they caved in. They got scared that the media was blaming them and that the public was turning against them, so they rolled over and gave in. They could have forced the Democrats and Obama to do whatever they wanted by just keeping the government shutdown. The voters would have forgotten about it all by the time the 2014 mid-term elections came up. But no, they gave in and got nothing for it. In fact, Mr. Obama and the Democrats came out smelling like a rose. Continue reading
Thinking Outside The Boxe 