Recent Commentaries

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Textbook Corporate Integrity
In August 2001, I interviewed Johnson & Johnson Chairman James Burke for my book, What Do You Stand For? In the wake of the poor decision-making and crisis management from Boeing CEO, Dennis Muilenburg, it’s worth recalling the time when, in the fall of 1982, Burke and Johnson & Johnson were confronted with a nightmare scenario. Seven people in the...
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May 15, 2019
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They Knew
On October 29, 2018, Lion Air Flight 610 took off from Jakarta, Indonesia in a brand-new Boeing 737 Max 8. Within moments, without a cloud in the sky, the plane “repeatedly bucked downward,” The New York Times reported (Mar. 20). Lion Air 610 crashed into the Java Sea, losing all on board. According to The Times report, the plane “should...
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May 13, 2019
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Maximum Challenge
“I tried to handle this in a nice, quiet way, and I didn’t think there was enough said about the trip our horse had. Now, given some of the recent comments, I’m pissed off.” That’s War of Will trainer Mark Casse in an interview with The Louisville Courier Journal (May 8), in response to Gary West, owner of Maximum Security,...
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May 9, 2019
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Now for A Little Inspiration
While I am still decompressing from reading the Mueller report, I thought it was time to turn a corner — 180 degrees to be precise — and revisit some past commentaries that have, according to Google Analytics, received renewed interest. Heroes are hard to come by. When Lt. General Hal Moore (co-author, We Were Soldiers Once… and Young), passed in...
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May 6, 2019
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The Mueller Report, Conclusion
An ABC News/Washington Post poll on the Mueller report (Apr. 26), found that 58 percent of those polled believe that Trump did not tell the truth about the investigation. A slimmer margin, (47 percent vs. 41 percent), believe the President obstructed justice. And 56 percent believe that Congress should not begin impeachment proceedings. Nonetheless, 31 percent believe the report “Cleared...
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May 1, 2019
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The Mueller Report, Part 2
On the Sunday CBS News show, Face the Nation, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham called Democrats talk about  President Trump’s attempts to obstruct justice when the President ordered White House Counsel Don McGahn to fire Special Counsel Robert Mueller, “absurd.” “It doesn’t matter what [Trump] said to Don McGahn — it is what he did,” Graham said. I’ll come back to this.  » Read...
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April 29, 2019
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The Mueller Report, Part 1
“There is in every one of us, even those who seem to be most moderate, a type of desire that is terrible, wild, and lawless.” ― Plato, The Republic Republican Senator Mitt Romney summarizes my disposition after reading the Mueller report: “I am sickened at the extent and pervasiveness of dishonesty and misdirection by individuals in the highest office of...
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April 26, 2019
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The Trouble with Barr
“Ethics is knowing the difference between what you have right to do and what is right to do.” – U.S. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart When Attorney General William Barr issued a four-page summary of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report, the first thought I had was, “why not just release the report and let Congress and the public read it...
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April 24, 2019
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Paradise Found!
Not long after the Camp Fire devastated the little town of Paradise, California, displacing thousands of residents, help came in many forms. This is one story. While the Paradise Adventist Academy in Northern California volleyball team had made it to the state semi-finals, many of the players had lost everything in the fire. “ ‘There were two or three (girls)...
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April 22, 2019
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History Lesson: Immigration
President Trump tweeted his latest “strategy” for dealing with immigrants, both illegal and asylum-seekers. Just out: The USA has the absolute legal right to have apprehended illegal immigrants transferred to Sanctuary Cities. We hereby demand that they be taken care of at the highest level, especially by the State of California, which is well known or its poor management &...
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April 19, 2019