Filed Thursday, December 6. 2007
What other issues do we need to address to get our country focused on a real direction for success? Last week’s column on broadband as a national issue, which should be on the tip of every tongue in the presidential debates, elicited some great feedback. Others are starting to question the value that the presidential debates (from both parties) are providing the voters.
Filed Thursday, December 6. 2007
Major cities that have held the Olympics also have casinos. If Chicago is serious about having the Olympics in 2016, should it also get serious about having a world-class casino? While there are many positive and negative opinions about casinos, let’s start looking at the facts.
Filed Thursday, November 22. 2007
Where are the hot discussions about broadband deployment and regional economic sustainability in the presidential debates? Where do the frontrunners stand on making the network infrastructure of the United States a top issue in their debates? How come the great journalists asking the questions don’t ask where Barack Obama stands on a national broadband initiative or where Rudy Giuliani thinks we should head with gigabit infrastructures to support regional economic development and sustainability?
Filed Saturday, September 22. 2007
Funding from all government sources (both state and federal) should go to where it will do the most good for the most people. That sounds like a pretty solid approach from a common-sense standpoint. No one would argue that point unless they are a lobbyist for a special interest group.
Filed Friday, September 14. 2007
Dynamic decisions for new network infrastructure are often made by visionaries and decision makers rather than committees or consortiums. Several people have contacted me from very different corners of the market to review a recent article in the Chicago Tribune by Jon Van as well as a later commentary in MuniWireless on what happened to CivicNet in Chicago. Views differ about what’s accomplishable and what isn’t in building new network infrastructure.
Filed Thursday, September 6. 2007
The Metra, Pace and CTA in Illinois need to be closely reviewed before getting more money from state funding. When it comes to wanting more money for operations, the three mass transit providers in the region are always putting out their hands. Do they really use more funding wisely? If you’re a rider of any of these three service providers, how would you rate them?
Filed Thursday, September 6. 2007
Public school systems are not preparing our “future generation” to compete in the global economy. There are too many people trying to hang on to obsolete principles and concepts that date back to the Industrial Age approach of teaching students to assimilate into an Industrial Age job. The bottom line is that students are not coming out knowing too much.
Filed Thursday, August 2. 2007
“Why does a wake-up call to take action have to come at the expense of people’s lives?”
Filed Wednesday, July 18. 2007
“You have heard of product dumping and its negative effects, what about labor dumping?” Are we really in a boom economy if thousands of highly skilled, graduate-degreed people in various disciplines, not just IT, are losing their jobs and having to take on jobs at one-third to one-half the pay? (If they are lucky)
Filed Thursday, June 21. 2007
With Chicago trying to add the Olympics to its list of great accomplishments, the city better include updating its network infrastructure and move beyond just a third-party Wi-Fi agreement. The “city that networks” has to look beyond national Wi-Fi comparisons and into the real competition of global cities that have significant investments in fiber.
Filed Wednesday, June 13. 2007
What do we get in exchange for passing HB 1500 in Illinois? Giving up local municipal negotiating rights for one statewide franchise agreement has to at least rank with the Indians selling off Manhattan for a couple trinkets and beads worth $22. It’s in the category of dumbest deals ever made.
Filed Wednesday, April 11. 2007
Some states, including Illinois, are looking at passing statewide bills that will give AT&T the ability to have one statewide franchise in order to put in Project Lightspeed or U-verse without having to negotiate with each municipality.
Filed Wednesday, September 20. 2006
This week marks the third and fourth hearings on affordable Internet access for all Chicagoans by Mayor Daley’s Advisory Council on Closing the Digital Divide. Hopefully what the council will get out of the testimonies is that Chicago needs to wake up and realize that network infrastructure is as basic to the viability of supporting the city’s growth as transportation infrastructure was 150 years ago and is still today.
Filed Wednesday, September 6. 2006
While “location, location, connectivity” is more and more becoming the new rule of thumb in real estate, it’s not the only measure. There are many areas trying to rush into making their network infrastructure more viable to attract and maintain a higher level of businesses. In a recent study, Silicon Valley comes up short in ranking good technology hubs (even though the area has a lot to offer). Silicon Valley is investing in revitalizing network infrastructure, but as you will read below, network infrastructure is only one piece of the economic development puzzle.
Filed Thursday, August 17. 2006
With all the domestic and global issues going on right now, it could be helpful for tomorrow to understand how the world’s leaders viewed issues in yesterday’s critical moments. They are worth applying to your position in management, education or politics.
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