Monthly Archives: September 2010

Sports fascinate in part because games are a microcosm of life. Reflect on two sports that command our attention each autumn – the baseball season just concluding, and the football season just cranking up. The two sports differ in several … Continue reading →

You can and should be forgiven if you can’t hearken back to the August 17th post, “We’re Earthlings, till death do us part.” That was an eternity ago, in blog years! The post ended with the following line of thought: … Continue reading →

Want to bring down the cost of future disasters? As we tackle the problem, instead of showing off, let’s use that hand we’ve kept tied behind our back all these years. Specifically, instead of relying on public-sector leadership alone, we … Continue reading →

Late last week a colleague who had just started reading this blog and noted the passing reference to Hurricane Earl sent me an e-mail. He said he was thinking about Pakistan – the magnitude of the flooding and the real … Continue reading →

In the early 1900’s, my grandfather faced a challenge at work. Though only a teenager, he was foreman in a foundry making cast-iron bathtubs in Chattanooga, Tennessee. His company was struggling. A large number of the bathtubs they produced were … Continue reading →

“Mistakes are a fact of life. It is the response to error that counts.” – Dag  Hammarskjold In this post, we’re still observing the fifth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, and examining new policies, or shifts in policy, that would reduce … Continue reading →

 “First, do no harm.” The origin of the precise phrase hasn’t been traced, but the sentiment of nonmaleficence (what a wonderful word!) is embodied in the Hippocratic oath and is the starting point for medical ethics. It is often invoked … Continue reading →

Think back to the last time you were terrified by the weather. No, not one of those times that the thunderstorms came through after dark and the flashes of lightning never stopped and the noise of the thunderclaps was deafening. … Continue reading →