Has NAFTA Been Good for America? Michael A. Fletcher, Staff Writer for the Washington Post, recently wrote an article that addressed the issue of whether NAFTA was responsible for the economic downturn in America. Below is an excerpt from his article: The North … Read more

We feel very strongly that rural development is crucial to the overall prosperity of this country. We wish to pass along the following article by Matthew Chase, Executive Director of the National Association of Development Organizations. Rural development matters! Rural Development Left Behind … Read more

Have You Noticed? Food price inflation in 2007 rose twice as fast as overall inflation. On an annual basis, 2007 retail food prices rose 4 percent above 2006 levels, outpacing the 2.3 percent gains in core consumer price inflation, a measure that excludes … Read more

Disturbing News on Graduation Rates The news last week out of Washington, D.C. was not encouraging in regards to high school graduation rates. In fact, seventeen of the nation’s 50 largest cities have high school graduation rates lower than 50%. In Detroit’s public … Read more

Press Release Jack Schultz, founder and CEO of Agracel, Inc., a company specializing in rural industrial development, was recently invited to speak at the National Lieutenant Governors Association’s Winter Meeting in Washington D.C. on March 13, 2008. The session is entitled “Making Rural … Read more

March Madness – It’s Happening Again! Well, it’s that time of year again. No, not spring. It’s NCAA Tournament time, which means 70% of our office has taken time, undoubtedly, work time, to select teams to complete their tournament brackets. How much is … Read more

Time again for some good news.. We look forward to the semi-annual “Happy Talk”, a feature by Jeff Thredgold, President, of Thredgold Economic Associates. Jeff writes a weekly ezine called the Tea Leaf. Following are excerpts from his most recent Tea Leaf. The … Read more

Responses to Leadership Agurban We had some great responses to our Agurban on Leadership From the Top Down. As you may recall, last week we wrote about Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour and Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels. Read on about other states’ leadership, or … Read more

Leadership – From the Top Down If you have read my blogs, then you know that I am a big fan of Mississippi Governor Hailey Barbour. Governor Barbour was elected in 2003, and reelected in 2007. During the Barbour Administration, Mississippi has seen … Read more

Giving Back – In a Big Way! This is one of the best “feel good” stories we have come across in a while.  Generations of Norman Asbjornson’s family had lived in Winifred, MT, and continue to make it their home today. Norman grew … Read more