Recent Articles

I still think you are discounting the power of the EPA...

Bottom line, suppliers and their representatives likely need more attention than you are giving them if you want to take advantage of what they have to offer you.  And it is a two way street—they will move mountains for you if you are in trouble, if you have treated them with respect. If you haven’t, you will not have that phone number you need at two in the morning...

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Travis asks, "What are there just 2 of in the entire Fibonacci sequence?"

We're doing pretty good...

Will a pulp and paper science student in the United States today interested in pulping processes (not papermaking) be able to complete a normal, 40-year career in the pulping sector in the United States? I think the answer is a resounding, “No.”

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Travis asks, "Who wins the 'biggest brain' contest?"

Unprofessional HR departments abound....

While we have developed and acquired all sorts of gadgets and techniques to improve maintenance, primarily by reducing downtime, especially emergency downtime, we still haven’t done all that well...

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Travis asks, "What in the U.S. is over 187 miles long?"

If you've never had the simple pleasure of participating in one of these polls, I can tell you that there's often a method to the madness. If you listen closely, you'll pick up on it soon enough...

How dare their president disregard the Constitution!

 ‘The medium is the message’

Many politicians – most notably the ones in office – have no reservations whatsoever about asking you for your money. In fact, many of them don't even beat around the bush about it...

Middle-income America hardly knew you...

For any Washington politician (or president) to suggest to Harold Hamm, "You didn't build that," it's painfully obvious to those who prefer truth to power, that the Oklahoma oilman did, in fact, build his own empire. We should be thankful to live in a nation where he had that opportunity. Let's hope we do not lose that opportunity due to increasingly extortionate federal obstacles.

Patent reform process leads to speculation

Many times, we have grown accustomed to looking at the new fiscal year with the same economic assumptions as the current and previous years. Don't do this.

'The military is one of the few remaining institutions producing the caliber of men and women needed to restore this nation to the greatness that our Founding Fathers envisioned.'

As business owners, it would behoove you to implore your employees to avoid or at least show some restraint in personal observations that may be related to or posted on their workplace media. One simple rule that I like to employ is akin to that of Occam's razor: An explanation needs no more assumptions than necessary. In other words, keep it simple...

If there's one thing that the two major political parties despise more than each other, it's the possibility of any third-party candidate removing them from political office...

From my perspective, the world of paper, containerboard and plastic is a safe one for the foreseeable future...

With 2014 mid-term elections about a year away, we’ll soon see how Americans really feel. After all, the only poll that matters is the voters’ poll. Here’s a fearless prediction: As Obamacare kicks in and the nation adds trillions in new debt, inflation will rise as will interest rates. Welcome to 1980 redux, America. (Thank you, Jimmy Carter.)