Small Business Week constitutes the one point on the calendar to celebrate and appreciate entrepreneurs, small businesses and their employees and all they accomplish in terms of innovation, job creation and economic growth. It’s also an appropriate time to take an updated look at the state of entrepreneurship and small businesses in the U.S. economy. […]
Erica Witherspoon personifies what could become an important trend for economic development in the Grand Valley: tech-savvy entrepreneurs who want to live in a place where they also can pursue their passions for outdoor recreation. Witherspoon — a technology consultant who worked for Amazon, Microsoft and Nintendo in the Seattle area — settled in the […]
In my last column, we ended with government slipping its nose into the insurance tent under the guise of “committees” and “commissions” on how to best manage the solutions hospitals, doctors and other providers came up with to attract customers and receive payments for services that came as a result of the Great Depression. (Please […]
Entrepreneurship long has been viewed as part of the American dream, a component of the DNA of Americans and embedded in our culture. Moreover, entrepreneurship has offered a key competitive advantage for the United States in the global economy. But are things changing — for the worse? There are serious questions, according to various measures […]
It’s been said nobody’s life, liberty or property are safe while the legislature is in session. That’s not entirely facetious here in Colorado given the sausage making that sometimes occurs under the golden dome in Denver. Still, no less an expert critic than Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper proclaimed the latest legislative session as one of […]
At the end of my last column I mentioned a big factor in the growth of health insurance in the United States was a result of wage and price controls set by the federal government during the Great Depression. While other factors existed, something I didn’t note previously was the fact health insurance in one […]
Young adults and parents have been buzzing with mixed reviews about “13 Reasons Why,” the new Netflix show in which a young girl commits suicide. The stated intention of the show is to start a dialogue about suicide. But its intensity and messaging are extremely concerning. This comes at a time when our Western Slope […]
One of the best things about working at a business newspaper is the opportunity to talk with entrepreneurs about their ventures. But it’s especially rewarding — as well as refreshing and reassuring — to meet with young entrepreneurs. Congratulations are in order for the students who graduated from the latest class of the Young Entrepreneurs […]
The latest indicators offer an opportunity to once again attempt to connect the dots and, hopefully, complete a picture of the Grand Valley economy. For the most part, that picture is more encouraging. Additional information is available elsewhere in this issue of the Business Times, but a quick review here is in order: One of […]
But what the heck, it’s what I do. And since I’m doing it, it might take several installments to get through this topic. To accomplish what’s in the headline, why not address health care issues in this country? After all, if our former president can’t stop talking about it, why should we? I know Barack […]