Dear Same-Sex Wedding Participants in Red States: If you live in one of the 14 states that have to suddenly grant marriage licenses to same sex couples, you may be tightening your tie and singing Old Fashioned Wedding on your way to city hall. I’d like to help you…
Wells Fargo Business Plan Center
May 25, 2015
Here’s a story of noble work done by a big bank: Wells Fargo has rolled out an invaluable tool for business owners – a business planning tool. It’s available to anyone – not just bank customers – free of charge. Business plans are mysterious things. Few people know how to…
Your browser does not support the audio tag. Try updating your browser or downloading Google Chrome or Firefox. Read the transcript: Today, you’re going to hear my interview with Lynn Stout. Now, Lynn Stout is a rock star, and I’m not saying that…you know, everybody calls people rock stars…she…
The Case Against Rahm
April 3, 2015
I wish I could be with Rahm and feel Chicago is in the hands of a tough, capable leader. But I’ve come to understand that our great city is about to re-elect a guy just as bad or worse than Rod Blagojevich. I wish I were exaggerating. If this…
What You’ve Heard About Net Neutrality is Wrong
March 24, 2015
Forget everything you’ve heard about Net Neutrality. Net Neutrality is not about content, it’s about poles. Your city is so dotted with utility poles you probably even don’t notice them. Those poles are the real reason why the FCC needed to change the rules around the Internet. To understand…
Net Neutrality Summary: What the FCC Did
March 24, 2015
Net Neutrality has many definitions floating through the ether. For starters, though, here is our take on what the FCC did. If you want the quick and dirty, below is a bare summary of the rules, or you can read all 400 pages here. Included mobile broadband in the…
Making Money from Mass Incarceration
February 27, 2015
Please understand this: there is a whole business model where people denounce taxes and government, and then simultaneously make millions on government contracts. So, the question is never how much government should spend, because government will always spend a lot. The question is, who gets to participate in opportunities…
Mandatory Drug Testing Means Big Money for Big Pharma
February 26, 2015
Another opportunity for craven profiteers: drug testing. Another state made its hungry pass a drug test before it let them eat (because, apparently, people on drugs don’t deserve food). Turns out, 16,000 people peed in a cup and … 37 of them had drugs in their system. Now, many…
Putting People First is Good for Business
February 5, 2015
One of the major effects of the 40 year political movement waged by big business is that we have learned how to evaluate ideas from their perspective. Think about it. When you hear about paid parental leave, you wonder if it is fair to employers because they’ll have to…
What You Can Learn from Sly Stone’s Mistakes
February 5, 2015
Getting ripped off by your manager is a fundamental and shameful part of Rock ‘n’ Roll history for many musicians. Add Sly Stone to the list. Beginning in 1976, he started signing his rights away to people he trusted. A jury has just decided that several of those trusted…