Long Island Association - Talking Points

A Veteran's Day Thank You

nospam@example.com (Long Island Association) — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 09:48:00 -0500

I (Tiffany Hansen, LIA Communications/Gov't. Affairs) am embarrassed to say that when I was younger and stupidly naïve, Veteran’s Day, to me, was a day off. No work, schools closed. I would meet up with friends and take advantage of the Veteran’s Day sales to prep for the Holidays or some self-serving activity that had nothing at all to do with the meaning of the day. Just re-reading that makes me feel very foolish, but I’m being honest with you. Would I buy a poppy from a kind old man decked out in his uniform outside the grocery store? Absolutely. But did I really, truly know why I was buying it? No, not really.

Unfortunately, today things are much more different. Not only am I continually reminded everyday of the number of men and women who serve, fight, and give everything they have for our country, but some of them I know, some are my age, and some are much, much younger. You see the families on the television and through their words you feel their pride as well as their pain.

A co-worker of mine has a nephew in Baghdad and had received this email that his mother forwarded on to her. She shared it with me and it touched me in such a way - words can’t begin to describe. I don’t know how many of you have ever read a letter from a soldier in the midst of war. This is the first one I’ve ever read and will never be able to forget.

“What’s up mom? How is everything going back there? I hope well - everything here is all messed up. It's gotten so hard to function over here it is unimaginable. I have the worst dreams, and panic attacks... just totally worn down you know... so tired, and depressed... I have no motivation anymore. It is so much worse over here now that it has gotten hot… people are dying everyday. I don't know... I know that I'm done though... I've had enough of this type of life. Too much for me, I just want come home or at least to the states and just relax. How are the kids enjoying their summer? Must be nice. I sometimes wish that I could go back to those days... compared to now those times seem so carefree. I didn't know and hadn't seen the things I have today. You know, I thought it wouldn't be that big of an issue, but it really does get to you. So, how is Chris doing? I sent him a letter the other day so he should be getting that pretty soon... that should make him pretty happy - I think. It’s so hard to talk to you guys now because of everybody dying. They shut the phones and stuff off. Last month we had the phones shut off for 20 days out of the month due to incidents where somebody lost their life... 20 DAYS. Five more months though, and I'll be on my way back to the states - so close, but with the events of every passing day - so far away. Well, I'm not going to keep you and I got things to do anyhow. I LOVE YOU MOM, and I miss you lots. Tell everybody at home the same and I'll try to write again when I have a chance. I'll call to because it would be great to hear your voice and I'm sure you want to hear mine. I Love you! - James”

If you didn’t get a sensation of a chill or a pang in your heart reading this, I urge you to read it again. There are parts of it that might strike people differently. Maybe it’s the amount of times he mentions death, or how in all caps he writes "I LOVE YOU MOM." For me it was how he longed for the days of summer and of being a kid. James is only 26 years old. For someone so young to be longing for his youth just really got me. Twenty-six years old, do you remember what you were doing when you were 26? I do.

So today when you see the kind old gentlemen outside the grocery store, take a good look into his eyes and see the boy in the uniform standing before you. And maybe as you hand him your dollar bill say, “Thank you - thank you for all you’ve done for me.”

The National Conference on the Creative Economy

nospam@example.com (Long Island Association) — Sun, 28 Oct 2007 17:11:54 -0400

This past week, five Long Islanders, including me (Matthew T. Crosson, LIA president), attended the first National Conference on the Creative Economy in Fairfax County, Virginia. A lot was said there that was important to Long Island's future, and I will be blogging about it for days. Maybe weeks. It was that important.

An early sample. The first speaker was Dr. Richard Florida, now of the University of Toronto, Florida wrote the book, "The Rise of the Creative Class," that gave the name "creative" to the new way of looking at regional economic development that has taken hold in so many places around the country. Except New York. We five from Long Island were the only New Yorkers there.

Florida explained that his new perspective on economic development was the result of one of those "scales falling from your eyes" moments of insight. Prior to that moment, Florida was what he described as an economic development scholar who accepted the same recipe followed nationally about how to build a region's economy. Start with government incentives, keep taxes as low as possible, add regulatory control, mix it all with some personal attention from a Governor or mayor, and presto, you've got companies and jobs heading your way. And then Lycos, the internet firm, decided to move to Boston.

Boston was a high cost area, with a reputation for a pretty intrusive regulatory process. And the Governor of Massachusetts offered no financial incentives. Zero. Lycos' move was exactly contrary to normal corporate behavior and the norms of economic development nationwide. Why did Lycos move, Florida wondered.

The reason was straightforward. Lycos wanted the rich talent pool that already existed in Boston. Talent was more important to Lycos that taxes or incentives. Instead of waiting for the talent to move to its area, Lycos was moving to the talent.

Talent. That's what the future is all about. Florida's insight into the Lycos mover led him to an entirely fresh perspective on the development of regional economies in the future. Only, the future is already here. 10 years ago, McKinsey and Co. published "The War for Talent," its groundbreaking work on talent management that also had the effect of ringing an alarm bell about the effect of the Baby Boomer retirement phase. Two weeks ago, the first Baby Boomer filed for Social Security. The retirement of the Baby Boomers will begin in volume in just a few years. The War for Talent is well engaged.

But has Long Island even heard the alarm bell?

More to come. A lot more.

Matt Crosson

Questions for the Questioners

nospam@example.com (Long Island Association) — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 11:18:33 -0400

This Friday, I will have the pleasure of moderating a discussion with Jim Lehrer (called the "Dean of Moderators"), Bob Schieffer (moderator of "Face the Nation" on CBS), and George Stephanopoulos (moderator of "This Week" on ABC). Moderating a discussion of highly experienced moderators will be something of a challenge; questioning the questioners, so to speak. So, I am looking for suggestions on what to discuss with them.

All ideas are welcome, but don't be upset if I don't wind up using your ideas. When I moderate a group discussion, I go with the flow of the discussion as much as possible, nudging it in the right direction when necessary. Your ideas may go in the right direction when the time, comes or they might not.

So, give me your ideas, and let all LIA bloggers see them, too. Click Comments (afer you've signed in) and put in your idea. If you don't have a User Name and password yet, go to "Members Only" in the center of the Home Page under The Connection Point and click on the link. The assignment of User Names and passwords is automatic.

Hope to see you Friday.

Matt Crosson

Talking to James Baker

nospam@example.com (Long Island Association) — Wed, 28 Feb 2007 14:54:16 -0500

Well, the Annual Meeting Luncheon has concluded, with James Baker as the keynote speaker. Mr. Baker was a delightful man to spend time with, and a riveting speaker. His formal remarks dealt with how America should conduct its foreign policy, obviously a subject of central importance right now. Mr. Baker's perspective on that subject comes from his tenure as Secretary of State, as well as two stints as White House Chief of Staff, and a variety of assignments for several Presidents and the U.N. Secretary General. He described a 10 point approach to foreign policy that he defined as "pragmatic idealism". It was a fascinating talk.

I like to begin the "conversation" portion of these events with some personal insight into figures such as James Baker. I have found that people often are in such awe of a man with Mr. Baker's experience that they forget that he's human. When we had Alan Greenspan as our speaker last September, I began by talking about the fact that as a young man he played the saxophone, and took lessons with Stan Getz, who turned out to be one of the great sax players ever. With James Baker, I decided to focus on his days at Princeton. Good trial lawyers learn that it's better to know the answer to a question before you ask it, and in this case I knew that at Princeton, James Baker was a pretty wild young man. I knew that from his book, "Work Hard, Study.....and Keep Out of Poilitics." His description of his days at Princeton, I hope, reminded the audience that here was a regular guy, who used his native intelligence and experience to rise to great heights in public service.

After that, we discussed politics, presidential and otherwise, dealing with radical Islamic fundamentalism, the national economy, yesterday's drop in the stock market, and issues relating to Iraq. Several members of the audience asked very good questions as well.

It was a good event. If you missed it, too bad. Don't miss the next one.

How to Talk to James A. Baker III

nospam@example.com (Long Island Association) — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 09:45:00 -0500

February 28th, the launch date for LIAonline.org, the LIA’s new, powerful website, is also the date of our 2007 Annual Meeting. The LIA is a not-for-profit corporation under the laws of New York, so we are required to have an annual meeting at which the members elect the new slate of directors. More about that later, including a brief profile of the directors who are joining the LIA board this year.

But one of the things that happens each year at our Annual Meeting is a luncheon at which we have a nationally prominent speaker. We’ve had former Presidents Bush and Clinton, General Colin Powell, and former General Electric Chairman and CEO Jack Welch, among many others. This year our speaker is James A. Baker III, former Secretary of State, Secretary of the Treasury, White House Chief of Staff, and recently co-chair of the Iraq Study Group.

Part of Secretary Baker’s appearance will involves a conversation between Mr. Baker and me, with audience participation. So, I have been thunjking about what to ask him. James Baker has a breadth of experience that you rarely see. He has wide experience in international relations, the workings of the Federal government, and economics, among many other things. So, there's a lot that I could ask him.

It also turns out that Mr. Baker is a pretty controversial figure in some circles, notably very liberal circles and the circles that conspiracy theorists run around in. That stuff may be interesting to the readers of the tabloids, but I'm not sure it's what LIA members want to hear. I could talk to James Baker for hours, of course, and our members could listen and learn for that long, easily. But the time we will have is short, so I'll need to use it well.

Come back to the LIA Blog tomorrow and I'll tell you what I decided to ask and how Mr. Baker responded. I'll also give you some behind the scenes views of the Annual Meeting.

Matt Crosson