Identifying Local
Opportunities – Week 3
Opportunity Knocks #1
Title: Beyond the Classroom: Money, sex and school?
More than a Necessity
Synopsis: The article was a
recap of the last ¾ of a century’s sex education in America and the
effectiveness of school-based sex education programs. Although we have spent
the last 75-plus years with some type of sex-education in the schools, the U.S.
still leads the developed world in teen pregnancies. Of course, there is always
a cause and effect, and in this case, excessive, unprotected teen sexual
activity has produced a disparate number of sexually transmitted diseases (STI’s).
Moreover, the mere topic of sex-education in the public schools is polarizing –
most acknowledge the importance of sex-education, yet the pendulum swings from
those who feel the schools need to teach sexuality education to those who believe
such a comprehensive topic should be taught in the home.
Problem: Teens in the U.S. are
far more likely to give birth than in any other industrialized country in the world
and sex education in the schools is vital to combat the ever-growing epidemic.
Who Has
the Problem: All
of us feel the reverberations of teen pregnancies. Not only is it a colossal
cost to taxpayers, the high rate of teen births has an impact on the future
workforce as well as enormous economic consequences.
Opportunity Knocks #2
Title: $9.2 million Tree Program in Orange Aims to
Spruce Up Roads
Synopsis: This article recounts
the endeavors and future plans of Orange County’s $9 million project that will
change the aesthetics of almost 100 miles of roadway. It doesn’t mention in
this article that there is any ecological benefit to planting the trees, just that
they think it will make them look more inviting. It would also seem by the
article that this idea has been volleyed around to many entities, but at last,
the county is going to bite the bullet and foot the bill.
Problem: Who will bear the cost
of this multi-million dollar project?
Who Has
the Problem: While
it is true both residents and visitors would benefit from a beautification of
the roadways and it adds value to the land, the only ones who have a real
problem are the county commissioners.
Opportunity Knocks #3
Title: Disney Bypassing Courts with Time-share
Foreclosures
Synopsis: Winner and losers –
sounds a little like a country song, but in this article it is the end result
of the Walt Disney Company’s timeshare foreclosures. This article is specifically
telling how Disney is bypassing the foreclosure court and expediting the
process. It is a system of convenience for Disney and is billed as having features
that favor both parties.
Problem: New systems for
handling Disney’s timeshares gives more control to Disney and makes it tough
for bidders at auctions who want to win deeds and flip them.
Who Has
the Problem: I
personally don’t see Disney as having a problem at all – just an inconvenience
of a judicial foreclosure. However, the more control Disney has, the more
impact it has on those wanting to bid for the properties. The underlying
problem to me is the hundreds of deeds that go into foreclosure each year. But,
that’s for another post.
Opportunity Knocks #4
Title: Port Tampa Bay Focused on Growing Cargo,
Sharing Business Growth with Port Manatee
Synopsis: Port Tampa has an
unwavering commitment to growing its cargo trade as well as investing in the
future potential international shipping customers. The CEO have promised to build expand the facilities in order
to accommodate more international cargo. The article paints a clear picture of
the company’s vision to embrace trade with Cuba, once the long-awaited trade
embargo has lifted. Moreover, their plans to take full advantage of the
expanded canal sets them up to reap the rewards of effective planning for
future growth, sustainable.
Problem: While aggressive growth
is key to surviving downturns in the economy, and Port Tampa appears to have a
roadmap for future success, I would be cautious in expansion based on trade
with Cuba – which may not come as swiftly as they would like. Moreover, it
sounds good that the two ports can work in tandem to create mutual success for
everyone, competition is the heartbeat of capitalism and as long as they can
keep it in perspective, they may be a good combination. In biology, if two
mouse species tries to occupy the same niche in a meadow, they would be in
conflict and one would win and the other would die off.
Who Has
the Problem:
In biology, if two mouse species tries to occupy the same niche in a meadow,
they would be in conflict and one would win and the other would die off. The
reason one brand fails and another wins is that which separates one from the
other. In this article, there could be a
lot of winners - port constituents, domestic and international shipping
customers, as well as both business entities. The loser would be the one who
does not understand what it takes to grow their brand.
Opportunity Knocks #5
Title: Once Again, Hillary is Playing the Wrong
Role
Synopsis: The article listed
above is in essence a strategist’s view of the media image and persona
Presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton, should be creating for herself. It is
an interesting article on how Hillary is marketing herself as a ‘groundbreaking
granny’ and other metaphors to describe how women are so different than men yet,
at the very time voters are looking for strength and courage. Moreover, the
article gives the impression that Hillary, while wanting to be seen as the only
qualified candidate for the POTUS, is acting like a sad, little victim crying
about misogynistic comments. The overarching message from this article is you that
don’t Hillary is running the wrong race – when the nation is looking to embrace
a candidate that is authentic and accountable.
Problem: Hillary is the problem.
By that I mean the author feels she has flip-flopped from her 2008 Presidential
bid, to garner the support of the liberal voters.
Who Has
the Problem:
Hillary Clinton has the problem; however, it makes voters wonder if she will say
anything and act any way to get elected - which then has an effect on all of us.
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