Standing around the patio fireplace here at the country inn, we talked about the terrible events in Japan and how the world’s economies are affected by the tragedies there, as well as by the social upheaval in north Africa and Arab countries recently. The conclusion one must reach is that economic interdependency is tighter than ever, the web stretched so taught around the world that a pluck of one line causes reverberations to sing across the entire span of the web. Global trade and economic specialization has reached a point that we cannot find peace and prosperity in one part of the world unless it exists significantly in most of the world. Continue reading
Do you talk to your pants?
It’s that time of year. I’m sitting down with my tax accountant, spreading out the papers. This mess is a little messier than usual. I can’t find my “organizer” that Thor had so thoughtfully sent in advance. So he asks a staff member to print it out for us. Jill comes into the conference room a few minutes later and hands us each a copy, hot off the printer. Continue reading
Street economics
It has been interesting and educational to live these last 10 years or so in an urban environment, compared to the pastoral solitude of raising a family in Ramona. Noisier, certainly. But more interconnected. Everyone has a place in the eco-system. Including the homeless. Continue reading
Organizational inflammation
Alice looked at the email from Brent and shook her head, thinking “Every time I ask him for information, it’s a fight. Doesn’t he know that he has an obligation to provide finance with his updated projections each quarter? Without those projections, we can’t estimate expense rates and arrange for the appropriate draw down on our line of credit!” Continue reading