State of Union Address that Could’ve Been by David Morris Institute for Local Self-Reliance January 26, 1999 – published in St. Paul Pioneer Press Something I’d liked to have heard in President Clinton’s State of the Union Address Distinguished Members of Congress, Three years ago I stood in this spot and declared “the era of big … Read More
State Should Seize Chance to Exploit an Asset – its Wind by David Morris Institute for Local Self-Reliance January 12, 1999 – published in St. Paul Pioneer Press Dear Jesse, In the next few days a decision will be made by the executive branch in your name, or more precisely in the name of the people … Read More
Inthe next two years, New Yorkers will spend nearly $50 million dollars to build two stadiums for minor league teams in order to lure away short-season, class A ball clubs from other communities. And in ten years? New Yorkers may well have to consider building bigger stadiums for those same teams so they don’t threaten to move as the Yankees are now doing. A better idea: For the same amount of taxpayer money, New Yorkers can create–and own–a minor league comprised of several good ball clubs and still have money left over to put toward stadiums. And New Yorkers can–for years to come–root for teams that are truly rooted in their own community.
The Place Matters Conference, held on November 12, 1998 in St. Paul, Minnesota, drew together a mix of businesses, organizations and individuals who, by their very nature, believe that place does indeed matter. These participants were all firmly anchored in their communities, representing small businesses, financial institutions, community-based nonprofits, farmers, and local governments in Minnesota. They were a mix of people who did not normally interact, yet had much in common. They shared a remarkably similar recent history: economic and public policy trends that had made their long-term viability much more tenuous and uncertain.… Read More
Thisspeech by David Morris was originally presented at a conference of the Environmental Grantmakers Association 1998 Retreat in Houston, Texas, on October 28, 1998. Letme begin with what I hope is a relatively uncontroversial proposition. Rules Matter. Some of you may have a visceral reaction to the word"rules", for it conjures up notions of meddling and government bureaucracies. But the reality is that human societies always have and always will make rules that channel scientific genius, and investment capital and entrepreneurial energy in certain directions. We make the rules, and to a large extent, the rules make us.… Read More
The Curse of Bigness by David Morris Institute for Local Self-Reliance October 6, 1998 – published in St. Paul Pioneer Press At the beginning of this century, American leaders railed against what Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis called the “curse of bigness”. Presidents, Senators, commentators all decried the pernicious effects concentrated economic power has on small … Read More
Capital Punishment for Corporations? by David Morris Institute for Local Self-Reliance September 22, 1998 – published in St. Paul Pioneer Press No one should be above the law, our politicians insist. If the President is lying, he should be stripped of office. Drug users should be stripped of their possessions and their livelihoods. Murderers should suffer … Read More
Onthe last Sunday in January, an elated John Elway stood on the gridiron where his Denver Broncos had just beaten the Green Bay Packers 31-24, and announced to millions of worldwide television viewers that the best part about finally winning the Super Bowl was how much it meant to his longtime fans, the people of Denver.
Will Free Software Be the Foundation of the Information Economy? by David Morris Institute for Local Self-Reliance August 11, 1998 – published in St. Paul Pioneer Press The vast majority of the 46 million households with computers depend on an operating system–Windows–that is owned by Microsoft. No one is allowed to alter that system, which constitutes … Read More
