Browsing Category Off-topic

Off-topic, yet interesting

Are Americans Ready for Smaller Houses?  Time Will Tell.  I, for one, believe that smaller houses are poised for a return to prominence and vogue.  More and more, I have clients asking for utility bills.  Witness the condo boom – good, functional, efficient spaces that are well-located sell well.Sustainable citiesTreehugger roundup: Green Issue, a Green real estate firm, Green business performs well.  Allowing the free market to work will ultimately be far more effective and efficient than top-down governmental regulations.  What good does prohibition do, besides promote dishonesty, sneaking and death?Crazy dangerous physics teachersWhere has our common sense gone?

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Leadership

All business requires leaders – be they technological leaders, moral leaders or those who will lead the fight.  I came across this speech (transcript) from the Citadel’s Commencement service and feel the need to share.  First: Grow where you are planted.Second: Check your moral compass frequentlyThird: Make decisions.Fourth and last, and this is the most basic: Take care of those in your charge….Fundamentally it is true whether you’re in civilian life or the military.  It is easier to get forgiveness than it is to get permission….  That’s why you’re getting paid, that’s why you’re there.  Make decisions.In other words, better to beg forgiveness than ask permission.Thanks to the Southern Conservative for the heads-up about this speech.  The speech is here on the Citadel’s servers.  I have posted it here.

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Links for 04-17-2006

The World is Flat – for those who have forgotten that we live in a global societyWithout experiencing failure, how does one measure success?In those months of walking, I learned a lot….  And I learned a lot about this country; it’s hard not to when you’ve seen so much of it, one step at a time.  But the hardest lesson was — is — failure.Single-sex education in CharlAlbemarle?  This nat be an opportunity for the school systems to be innovative and to merge the Charlottesville and Albemarle school systems….  Honestly, unless you are self-employed, do you have any idea how much you paid in taxes this year?How an Influx of New Homes Could Affect One Family’s LifeBottom line: our home’s value is headed higher, and so are our taxes.  But how to quantify the new development’s impact on our daily lives?Local real estate trends outweigh national trends……  But state numbers don’t matter much, either; and even city numbers are of limited value.  What matters is what happens within a 10-mile radius of where you want to buy.Hence, this blog.

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Friday afternoon …

I was in class all morning, so am in the midst of catching up.  I leave you this Friday with these – (which have interesting headlines, but I haven’t read them all yet)If Michigan Is Looking at Rapid Transit, Can Virginia Be Far Behind?TDRs, a Step in the Right DirectionMedia Hype?  on the emerging buyer’s marketWhy do planners favor automobiles?

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Cheating matters

A sign of good things to come?  “Cheating matters.  It isn’t OK to cork a bat.  Cheaters shouldn’t prosper.”Is this novel concept making its way into big business?  The idealist in me wants to believe that companies such as Home Depot and Bank of America are choosing to make statements about Barry Bonds simply because it’s the right thing to do.  The realist/cynic thinks that they wouldn’t say these things if they didn’t believe that at least a large part of the market would buy into the concept that cheating is wrong.  Maybe UVa students will start to realize that honor includes self-policing.

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