Articles

New York City has been in the lead in lots of initiatives that are models for other cities and that are both bold and imaginative. Working to come up with a system -- following London's model -- to restrict traffic is an excellent example. But following Mexico's experience (funded I think by the World Bank) of providing the poor with money for doing everything from passing school tests, to holding a job, to visiting a doctor is a step or two in a very foolish direction. A direction, indeed, guaranteed to be abused and to create more problems than it solves. And, what positive outcomes were to come from this will be very short term.

The democrats are the ones talking most about healthcare reform. Clinton, Edwards and Obama all have their "plans." Each is banking on huge savings to be reaped by preventive care -- testing, screening, non-smoking campaigns, check-ups and the like. They say all of these programs will keep many people from getting seriously ill and will save, in return, the huge costs of treating them. Lower health expenditures on the seriously ill will reduce costs generally, so the thinking goes, and make healthcare available to larger numbers. Sounds good, but misses a whole lot of costs and realities associated with preventive care. They need to go back and rethink all this.

The plot thickens as Patty Hewes continues to spin her web, and Fobisher spins his. Poor first year law associate Ellen Parsons is caught in the middle.

Cisco looks like a massive winner here. Look at their 4th quarter results and guidance.

The MoneyTree report on Venture Capital issued today shows a relatively robust funding environment for many seed and early stage companies, with the Internet being a surprising exception. According to the report venture capital investing volume in Q2 2007 is at its highest level since 2001. The growth is driven by investments in early stage or seed companies across multiple industries.

Ever since TV came on the scene, people have expected radio to bow out. There have been times when it looked as though that was what would happen. But each time, radio has come back. Perhaps because we spend so much time in cars commuting to and from work and because radio talk shows have become increasingly popular, it may never go away, even though the technology is primitive by today’s standards.

China is making huge strides in its economy, but remains very uncomfortable with the internet and other freedoms. This lag-time will haunt the country as it moves into the 21st century and assumes a -- if not the -- major leadership role among nations. Banning Wikipedia is a silly but telling symbol of how stuck China still is between centuries.

No need to fear, incompetent WASPs continue to rule corporate America.

Virtual worlds have received a lot of hype recently. Although I think they are kind of neat, I don't think they're ready for prime time today, if ever.

After a 10 years of hype on how the real-estate market is the safest place to be, the spinmeisters have gone into reverse, saying we're headed for a collapse. Don't believe it. Sure, the real-estate market is correcting but it's not going to collapse and bring the economy down with it. Here's why.

Bernanke has it in his hands to control the spiraling credit crunch by lowering rates (or even indicating that he is seriously thinking of doing so) or to keep credit relatively tight and push the market and the economy into a real danger zone. Greenspan, in the past, made a habit of getting in front of potential shocks to the economy by acting to forestall them. But, Unlike Greenspan, Bernanke -- coming out of the academy and distant from the real world -- is willing to let the market play out on its own. It is a hell of a time to have an academic in this post.