It’s not often that Memphis has the chance to be a trend setter, but one of the least understood proposals before the Memphis Charter Commission would give us just such a chance.It’s Instant Runoff Voting, a proposal submitted...
Read MoreThe reelection of Memphis Mayor Willie W. Herenton moves with an inevitability these days that belies the need that exists for a serious discussion about the future of our city. If nothing shakes up the campaign for mayor, he...
Read MoreThe Bear Revolution is upon us. So says Jonathan Taplin, a long-time innovator in the entertainment field and Adjunct Professor at the Annenberg School of Communication where his areas of specialization are in International...
Read MoreWe can only be grateful that Memphis Mayor Willie W. Herenton believes that his legacy is based on downtown Memphis. With four decades of experience in the downtown core, we’ve never seen it with more trash, more poorly...
Read MoreFederal officials sent former Tennessee Senator John Ford an emphatic message yesterday, and they postmarked it Anthony, Texas.That’s where one of the state’s former power brokers will serve his five and half year term for...
Read MoreI had a heretical thought last night.After work, I drove to Nashville to attend a Dylan concert at the Ryman. Over the 41 years that I’ve been attending these regular rituals of aging, I’ve learned the one constant is there is...
Read MoreHow much more confirmation do we need that Memphis is poor and undereducated?Now, what to do about it?1) Aggressive availability of birth control – not abstinence lessons which don’t work. Focus on women, not men....
Read MoreOur question of the week (asked last Thursday but still open for your comment), is:Knowing that small advantages can become huge economic advantage, what should Memphis be keying on?Several answers so far focus on creativity. In...
Read MoreIt could be called the Memphis Surcharge.It’s the extra taxes Memphians pay as a result of the disproportionate percentage of children who live here.It’s largely the reason that the tax rate in Memphis and Shelby County is so...
Read MoreOur topic this week is urban innovation but on two very different subjects. In his forthcoming book, Engaging Art: The Next Great Transformation of America’s Cultural Life, Steven Tepper calls on urban and arts leaders to...
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by Bill Day. Memphian Bill Day is two-time winner of the RFK Journalism Award in Cartooning. His cartoons are syndicated internationally by Cagle Cartoons. Cartoons Archive →