Going Rogue Again With Jon Talton: PHOENIX How To Measure Being #5

Being Number Five

The Rogue Columnist
"I remember in 2006, when Phoenix passed Philadelphia in a Census estimate to become the nation's fifth most populous city. As a columnist for the Arizona Republic, I accompanied then-Mayor Phil Gordon and a delegation to Philly. The Philadelphians were very gracious. At one event, they talked about visiting Phoenix where City Hall "looked like a building where honest business was being done." The City Hall that the statue of William Penn stands atop had seen its share of big-city corruption. Not knowing Phoenix's abundant history of criminality, they sounded envious.

Even so, it was obvious wandering around Philly, with its great urban bones, energy-filled downtown, corporate headquarters, extensive rail transit and commuter-train system, and world-class cultural and educational institutions, that any comparison with Phoenix was apples to gravel. Still, even though I had begun to assemble powerful enemies writing about the city's reality and pushing verboten projects such as light rail (WBIYB), I felt proud. My hometown was America's fifth-largest city!

You can take the boy out of Phoenix but you can't take Phoenix out of the boy. For much of its existence Phoenix wanted above all to get big. And now it was.
The city fell back to sixth place in the 2010 Census, but with the latest numbers it's back to No. 5, probably to stay. Many dreams and ambitions have been realized over the past near-decade. Downtown is filling in, thanks to the ASU campus. It sports a handsome convention center and new hotels. Roosevelt Row is a destination, not a handful of Resistance members fighting to survive. T-Gen and the biomedical campus are there and growing, although not at the speed I had wished. We built light rail (you bastards) and it will be extended. All this in the face of thuggish opposition by the right and the city's worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.
We can look at this milestone in two ways. One is to backslap and keep on, don't rock the boat, it's sunny and cheap, championship golf, if you don't like it here move somewhere else.
Or we can look deeper. . . it is primarily a suburban city, even within the city limits, based on single-family houses and driving. It is endless real-estate enterprises connected by wide highways called "city streets." Most Phoenicians have suburban values, not urban values. Much of it is soulless cookie-cutter building. . . "
I could go on, but the point is clear.

Phoenix may be No. 5 in population, but it rarely if ever meets that metric in areas of quality.
What gets measured gets done, and for decades the yardsticks for Phoenix have been people and housing starts.
Imagine if Phoenix sought to be No. 5 in the best economic, social, and cultural areas?

That is, of course, a heavy lift.
Large cities have heavy carrying costs and Phoenix consistently punches below its weight. It's not helped by the anti-city Kookocracy at the Capitol. But it's an aspiration worth pursuing.


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WTO Condemns Boeing For Millions In Tax Breaks/Illegal Subsidies > Might Shift Jobs To Arizona

Boeing might shift hundreds of Seattle jobs to Arizona By The Associated Press June 15, 2017 [see below]

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Here's an update:
Boeing Set To Relocate Support Unit To Arizona
By Angela Nhi Nguyen June 15,2017
One of Boeing’s business support units is moving to Mesa, Arizona.
Source: http://nwpr.org/post

From NWPR's post: Boeing’s Shared Services Group is set for complete relocation by 2020.

It currently employs around 3,000 people and has responsibilities like hiring and payroll.
Scott Hamilton is an aerospace analyst with Leeham Company.
His theory is that Boeing wants to move the jobs to the southwest and pay people less.

“I can only assume that this is to reduce costs in Washington state and move the work to a lower cost state,” he said.  
“Why Arizona? I don’t know.”
Here's a hint > might be losing the $800 Millions in "tax breaks" and illegal subsidies given away by Washington State that are being challenged by the World Trade Organization
- see below

SEATTLE — Boeing plans to shift another work group away from the Puget Sound region.

The Seattle Times reported that the company confirmed Wednesday the work shifting to Mesa, Ariz., could involve hundreds ofjobs

The changes will affect Boeing’s Shared Services Group, which employs about 3,000 people and provides support services to Boeing’s corporate and production units.

The unit’s leadership has initiated a review and has started to tell specific groups that their jobs could be moving.

The move is part of Boeing’s drive to cut costs, which is largely responsible for the loss of more than 18,300 Boeing jobs in the state since the most recent employment peak in fall 2012.

Boeing aims to complete the reorganization by 2020.

Source: The Register Guard

WTO upholds ruling against Washington’s tax reduction for Boeing

Originally published June 9, 2017 at 8:13 am Updated June 9, 2017 at 10:14 am

Source: Seattle Times

The World Trade Organization (WTO) reiterated Friday that Washington state’s business tax reduction, worth $800 million to Boeing through 2016, is an illegal subsidy. The U.S. will appeal, a process that will take about a year.

The World Trade Organization (WTO) on Friday ruled that the U.S. has suitably addressed all but one piece of the European Union’s case alleging that Boeing receives illegal subsidies.

As the years-long legal process enters its final chapters, the lingering trouble lies in the biggest slice of Washington state’s aerospace tax incentives.
A WTO panel adjudicating U.S. compliance with previous rulings found that, while all other Boeing subsidies have been remedied, the state’s aerospace business tax rate reduction — worth about $800 million to Boeing since 2004 through last year — remains illegal and must still be fixed

 

WTO condemns Boeing's non-compliance and new subsidies

Published on ASDNews: Jun 9, 2017

• WTO: U.S. failed to comply with rulings on massive illegal subsidies provided to Boeing
• Today's WTO compliance panel report finds Boeing subsidies causing Airbus to lose hundreds of aircraft sales with an estimated value of US$ 15-20 billion
• Illegal subsidies to Boeing have, over time, resulted in over US$100 billion in total lost sales for Airbus
• Harm to Airbus will only increase if dispute is pushed out further, in case of likely U.S. appeal

Today, the EU prevailed in demonstrating the continuing existence of a number of illegal subsidies, including R&D support provided by NASA and the Department of Defense (DoD), and the multi-billion dollar tax breaks from Washington State. The EU has also prevailed in demonstrating continuing adverse effects caused by some of those subsidies...
After the original ruling was published in 2012, the U.S. further increased their subsidies to Boeing, with measures such as the provision of incentives for the production of the 787 in South Carolina, U.S. Federal Aviation Administration funded R&D programmes, increased tax reductions from Washington State, and the award of additional NASA and DOD R&D funding and support. Today, the Panel agreed with the EU that it was correct for these additional measures to be included within the scope of the proceedings.
Source : Airbus, an EADS N.V. company (Paris: EAD.PA) - view original press release     
      





s release

 

 

 

‘It’s never too late’: Serbia sues NATO over 1999 bombing

Justice delayed is NOT Justice denied

Published on Jun 13, 2017

Serbia is launching a lawsuit against NATO over the 1999 bombing. According to the Serbian legal team, it used depleted uranium munitions - causing a spike in cancer-related illnesses in the country over the last two decades.

RT LIVE http://rt.com/on-air

How To Be A Good Listener

Published on Jun 14, 2017

Views: 39,141

Listening is something we’re very reluctant to do, not because we’re lazy, but because we have never actually been taught how to do it properly, in a way that can be interesting and rewarding for us. If you like our films, take a look at our shop (we ship worldwide): https://goo.gl/DQIzx5
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FURTHER READING
“Many of us probably have a nagging feeling that we don’t listen enough to other people. Here we’re not going to make the guilt worse by telling you that listening is a good thing, worthy but in fact rather dull.

We’re going to show you that listening to others is first and foremost an interesting thing to do, something that could be as pleasurable for you as it is for your speaking companion....”

You can read more on this and other subjects on our blog, here: http://www.thebookoflife.org/theartof...

2nd Extinction Level Event?? Nibiru Crossed the Asteroid Belt

Published on Jun 13, 2017

Views: 18,287

New Info shows that Nibiru/Jupiter crashed into the inner solar system causing chaos around our planet and a second extinction level event as it passed back though on it outward journey being pulled by Saturn. Our Website. http://www.BPEarthWatch.Com

Former Google Exec: Key To Politely Fire An Employee

How does she know?

Published on Jun 13, 2017

Views: 3,257

For many people, firing someone is the worst part of being a manager. No matter how many times you do it, it is never easy. In her book "Radical Candor: Be A Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity," Kim Scott explores finding the sweet spot in management, somewhere between obnoxiously aggressive and ruinously empathetic. She explains the most diplomatic way to fire an employee. Following is a transcript of the video.

The most important thing never to do when firing someone is to go in with the mentality that you're firing them because they suck. The mentality to go into that conversation with – and it's one of the worst conversations you'll ever have in your life. It's really hard. I don't know anyone who doesn't wake up with an upset stomach on a day you have to fire somebody.

So, I think the most important thing you can do is to go in with the mentality that this is a great person, this is a great job but this is a terrible job for that person, right? This is a job that sucks for that person. And one thing that I have found really helpful to go into the conversation with a sense of compassion is to think about a job that I've sucked at. To think about a job that I've hated. And what a relief to was not to be doing that job anymore.

And the second thing that I try to think about before firing somebody is I try to imagine a job where this person would really flourish. And in fact if I can I'll even make an introduction to that person to help them find a job that is – where they can really be great.

I think those two sort of mental exercises before firing somebody are incredibly helpful. When you're firing somebody this is not the moment to be giving tons and tons and tons of feedback because that makes the conversation backward looking. You want to get the person and yourself moving forward to a better place.

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City Manager Chris Brady Doing His News > Mesa Now??

Highest-paid City Exec can't get enough of himself or what????......Mebbe all the mainstream media go-to reporters are gagging on all the "spoon-fed" news ??
Published on Jun 12, 2017
Views: 16
Duration: Way too Long!