M&Ms and the American Dream
Entrepreneurs helped make America great. Many of the "big businesses" we know today started in the imaginations of immigrants who came to America, the land of opportunity - a place of boundless possibilities where your station in life didn't matter, a land where hard work, innovation and perseverance held the …
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 1 MONTH AGO
Cost of new medications could bankrupt health care
The good news is we are developing new life-saving medications every day. The bad news is they are very expensive and paying for them could bankrupt our health care system.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 1 MONTH AGO
Is an all-green energy strategy worth the cost?
What if we could peer into the future and see the consequences of the decisions we make today? In a way, we can.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 1 MONTH AGO
Labor Day epilogue: partnering for success
Over the Labor Day weekend, former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee gave a compelling commentary on the need for employers and employees to set aside their differences and partner.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 2 MONTHS AGO
Boeing 777 may replace Air Force One
It's about time to replace Air Force One, the president's plane; however, the new version may not be a Boeing 747. It may be a 777.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 2 MONTHS AGO
Pity the poor streamers
Every day, birds flying near a certain spot on the California-Nevada border are incinerated in midair. They're called "streamers" for the puff of smoke that appears as they ignite and plummet to the ground. Federal wildlife investigators estimate there's one "streamer" every two minutes.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 2 MONTHS AGO
Strong state employment but warning lights are flashing
The good news is Washington is separating itself from the national jobless rate. In July, an average 6.2 percent of Americans were looking for work, while Washington State's unemployment rate dropped to 5.6 percent.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 2 MONTHS AGO
Bathtubs, smokestacks and a five-star resort: Lessons from Kohler, Wisconsin
Today, there is a tendency to look with distain at manufacturing facilities, especially those located on working waterfronts. Historically, those factories were sited there because the raw materials and finished products could be transported only by water.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 3 MONTHS AGO
Hands-off attitudes cause economic and environmental damage
Today's news is filled with images of the massive wildfires roaring through the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest in central Washington.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 3 MONTHS AGO
It's not easy being green
Reducing mankind's carbon footprint has become the defining issue of our time and rightly so. Virtually every level of government has policies to reduce greenhouse gases by regulating everything from industrial CO2 emissions to cow flatulence.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 3 MONTHS AGO
Jobs abound in the Dakotas
If you are looking for a family-wage job these days, there is no better place to look than the Dakotas, but for entirely different reasons.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 4 MONTHS AGO
The U.S. should not be more like France
President Obama thinks the United States should be more like France. He made the comment recently while pushing for mandatory paid family leave. "France has worked this out, why can't we?"
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 4 MONTHS AGO
Trucks, trains, ships and pipelines
All too often our network of highways, pipelines, railroads, barges, ship terminals and airports goes unnoticed unless there is an accident.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 4 MONTHS AGO
America's independence means reducing foreign dependence
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 4 MONTHS AGO
Quit piling on regulations; there is a better way
President Obama is expected to announce a new set of regulations to limit carbon emissions from coal-powered power plants - the nation's single largest source of affordable electricity. The impact won't hit just coal; these regulations will affect every energy user, including you.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 5 MONTHS AGO
Online university is an unconventional success story
Imagine 350 college grads walking across the stage to receive their degrees in a ceremony with no valedictorian and no student honors. That is exactly what the 2014 graduating class looked like when WGU Washington held its third graduation ceremony earlier this month.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 5 MONTHS AGO
The great leaders who forged the future of Washington's forests and fish
Billy Frank, Jr. and Stu Bledsoe came from very different backgrounds, yet their friendship and determination laid the groundwork for what today is known as Washington's historic Forests and Fish agreement. Those accords paved the way to revitalized wild salmon habitats, cleaner water and better forest management.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 5 MONTHS AGO
Catching up with Mike
These days, too much of our politics is agenda-driven, with little regard for the impact on "real people." Politicians proclaim their concern for the little guy, but they hang around with rich folks, celebrities and power brokers.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 6 MONTHS AGO
The princess and the pea
Let's face it. We're spoiled.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 6 MONTHS AGO
Is it too easy to rip off taxpayers?
Steal $200,000 from a bank and you'll go to prison. Steal $200,000 from the taxpayers and you'll probably get a slap on the wrist.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 6 MONTHS AGO
Skilled trade jobs go unfilled in our slow economy
Millions of unemployed college graduates are back where they started, living with their parents. Upon receiving their diploma, they find themselves saddled with crushing student loan debt and unable to find a job. More than 36 percent of those who have found jobs aren't working in their chosen profession and …
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 7 MONTHS AGO
What we didn't see at Sochi
During the Winter Olympics, viewers around the world marveled at the pristine snow-capped mountains surrounding Sochi, Russia's Black Sea resort city.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 7 MONTHS AGO
Hawaii and the electric cow
Normally, you wouldn't think the cost of electricity would clobber ranchers, but in Hawaii, high power rates are the central competitiveness issue. In fact, the owners of the mammoth Parker Ranch on Hawaii's big island have calculated their "per cow" electricity costs.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 8 MONTHS AGO
Is California a glimpse into our future?
It’s not often we get a chance to peer into the future to see the consequences of our actions. California has given us that opportunity.
COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD | UPDATED 10 YEARS, 8 MONTHS AGO
