Getting Back on Track in the Gulf

Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Written by Cherry Fisher May

It’s time to resume drilling, safely and swiftly.

My husband Steve and I just returned from an extended trip through Turkey, Croatia and Italy, part business and part vacation. Given the disaster in the Gulf, it was a difficult time to be away, but we were able to follow the story via the Internet (including our own daily coverage on theind.com), international broadcast and print news sources. From tiny villages to big cities, we were heartened as people everywhere expressed their concern for the plight of our region, speaking mostly of endangered fishermen and wildlife. Here at home, we know the impact is even deeper and broader, as much a result of the reaction in Washington as it is of BP’s problems at the well...

The Business Model

Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Written by Cherry Fisher May

Can we really run government like a business?

When it comes to education, the answer is yes, but it’s up to us as shareholders to make it happen.

When the mantra that we should run our government the way we run our businesses first entered popular political parlance many years ago, it struck me as an odd notion. After all, businesses are free-wheeling enterprises...

Cool Tool

Lafayette’s vaunted fiber optic network is nearing completion. Now what?

What makes Lafayette a cool town? Last week’s cover story in The Independent Weekly explored that question from many different angles. It included a timeline of events that were turning points in our city’s evolving cool vibe, many setting the course for Lafayette’s business development. For example, in 1836 local voters passed a bond issue to build roads to outlying towns in neighboring parishes, establishing Lafayette as the Hub City of Acadiana. In 1883, the railroad came to town, a seminal event for any community of that era but especially for Lafayette, where the Vermilion River was not navigable for major commerce. ...

Time To PAC It In

The Greater Lafayette Chamber of Commerce is moving into a new era of political activism at a pivotal point in the community’s future development.

Dave Welch, the incoming chairman for the Greater Lafayette Chamber of Commerce, is a neighbor of mine. The soft-spoken CEO of Stone Energy lives down the street, next door to 2005 chamber Chairman Tyron Picard. The two share more than property lines and chamber leadership roles; they also love to tend their own lawns. One day last spring, a little old lady was driving through the neighborhood and inquired of Tyron, do-rag donned and wielding a weed-eater, whether he was taking on more yard work. As Dave and I chuckled over that story a few days later, he quipped: “Wonder if Tyron saved her name, because if the price of natural gas doesn’t go up soon, I may be looking to make some extra money.”

Going for the Goal in Lafayette Parish Public Schools

A new education stakeholders’ coalition in the parish combined with updated, easy-to-understand state accountability standards could provide the opportunity for a fresh start with local business leaders. But performance expectations will — and should — remain high.