Mind Over Money

Sometimes we choose by not choosing. Behavioral economists have long recognized our tendency to avoid making decisions. The more difficult the decision, the more we avoid the question all together. Thaler and Sunstein wrote a book called “Nudge.” In it, they cite all kinds of instances of this tendency to avoid choosing. Of course, the [...]

I love reading letters to the editor from all over the country. A recent local letter was titled “Entitlements making America collapse.” The author said “entitlements is a dirty word,” and reported that 50 percent of Americans are receiving some form of entitlement. He was convinced these were all a bunch of deadbeats. In 1950, [...]

The retail season started with a bang, as traditional retailers added 6.6 percent to their sales from last year. Online retailers are picking up steam that is fueled not just by improvements in economic trends. More and more, we are shopping from our computers. While the big shopping day for traditional retailers is Friday, the [...]

Thanksgiving week found us traveling through the Arizona desert. My dad had been wanting to take a trip to the Grand Canyon. At 83, he needed our help to make the journey. We had never seen the canyon, so this seemed like a good family trip. We flew into Phoenix and rented a car for [...]

I was recently speaking with an international graduate student about his impending graduation. As we talked about job possibilities, he told me that he would really like to work for himself. I asked if he had friends or relatives who would be willing to give him money to invest and manage. He hesitated. He smiled. [...]

Why isn’t Greg Davis in jail? >> POLL QUESTION: Should Southaven Mayor Greg Davis be arrested for using city money for personal trips, clothes and entertainment? This current mayor of Southaven, former state representative serving on the appropriations committee, and former Republican nominee for Congress has blurred the line between public and private with his [...]

I love to walk through new houses. The smell of new wood, the clean, shiny surfaces, the perfect landscaping. All hold a promise for a perfect home, one where we can raise children in idyllic settings, dine with friends around a gloriously set table, and share rich, intimate moments with our spouses. Ahh, home. The [...]

Gotta love competition! The new fees on debit cards have had me hot under the collar. The financial reform bill set limits on bank debit card fees. Many lawmakers decried this change. How dare we interfere with the fine citizens of Wall Street in their pursuit of profit? It was downright un-American, and they warned [...]

I’ve been watching Ken Burns’ show “Prohibition” on PBS. It details how activism gets translated into policy and is a fascinating story. In the 1880s, women fueled the temperance movement. They were concerned about the effect of strong drink on their husbands. These women organized and gathered in front of saloons, kneeling and praying for [...]

Cellular South recently changed its name to C Spire. I’m sure they paid a marketing firm a lot of money for that name. And I’m sure the marketing firm paid a lot of focus group people to sit around and rate various names. But, for the life of me, I can’t understand how they landed [...]