by admin | Jan 5, 2019 | Activism, Blogging, Careers, Education, Gratitude, Personal health, Personal history, Resilience, Urban Planning
Gratitude on Parade #1 Okay, call me a copycat. If an idea is good enough, why not copy it proudly? On New Year’s Day, I read in a Chicago Tribune column by Heidi Stevens about a woman, Jen Kramer, who began a daily effort on Facebook a year ago as #yearoflove....
by admin | Jan 1, 2019 | Activism, Careers, Education, Personal history, Urban Planning, Writing
As a New Year arrives, perhaps it was the gift-giving season and the story of Christmas that prompted this blog post. Or, perhaps, it was simply lurking in my subconscious mind, awaiting the appropriate opportunity to emerge into the light of conscious deliberation....
by admin | Nov 24, 2018 | Books, Careers, Climate, Disaster, Emergency Management, Environment, Natural Hazards, Public health, Public safety, Urban Planning
Just nine days ago, on November 15, I stood in front of two successive audiences of long-term health care practitioners to present workshops at a conference in Wisconsin Dells discussing, of all things, “Fundamentals of Planning for Post-Disaster Recovery.” Where,...
by admin | Aug 25, 2018 | Activism, Blogging, Books, Careers, Government, History, National security, Politics, Public policy, Writing
Like John McCain’s assuredly final book, The Restless Wave, I read Facts and Fears: Hard Truths from a Life in Intelligence, by James R. Clapper, in large part because my wife bought it for me. The usual pathway to my desk for books I discuss in this blog is that they...
by admin | Jun 26, 2018 | Activism, Careers, Floodplain management, Personal history
I confess: I was taken totally by surprise. Most of us, if we have a level head on our shoulders, do not do our work with the thought that we will some day be presented with a major award because of it. Especially those of us in the world of public service and...
by admin | Mar 2, 2018 | Books, Business, Careers, Chicago, Economic development, Economics, Government, Public policy, Transportation, Urban Planning
We often hear from conservatives that the public sector is inherently inefficient, lacking the competitive pressures that drive innovation. A great deal of the evidence seems anecdotal, although it’s not hard to come by. The work of most public agencies is at least...
