Tag Archives: Birmingham

What’s killing America is killing Birmingham

On August 5, 2011, Standard & Poor lowered the U.S. debt rating saying, “The downgrade reflects our view that the effectiveness, stability, and predictability of American policymaking and political institutions have weakened at a time of ongoing fiscal and economic challenges.”

On November 9, just three months later, our Jefferson County filed the biggest U.S. municipal bankruptcy in history after an agreement among elected officials and investors to refinance $3.1 billion in sewer bonds fell apart. Continue reading What’s killing America is killing Birmingham

This should make the Birmingham haters salivate

When I first started writing these blogs, I was immediately introduced to the Birmingham haters.

You know the Birmingham haters. They are the stars of talk radio and the first to comment on al.com. They hope Birmingham’s annihilated by the Bubonic Plague, that Vulcan suffers from herpes, and that the Mayor gets dandruff. Continue reading This should make the Birmingham haters salivate

Is political corruption rampant here?

Between 2003-2006 five CFO’s of HealthSouth were convicted of fraud.

Would it be appropriate to assume all CFO’s in the Birmingham area are crooked?

I think we can agree there was something in the corporate culture or structure at HealthSouth that created such blatant fraud. Continue reading Is political corruption rampant here?

Birmingham is in the center of my heart

The Hess Camellia Garden at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens

The year 1999 was painful for me and my family.  My wife, Ina-Mae, was diagnosed with breast cancer.  Fortunately the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center is located here in Birmingham.  And I’m absolutely convinced Ina-Mae would not have survived without UAB.

Patients come from all over the world to visit UAB.  When Ina-Mae registered with doctors at Kirklin Clinic, nurses seemed genuinely surprised we lived almost in walking distance. Continue reading Birmingham is in the center of my heart

Convoluted government brings us to our knees

The year was 2002.  Dave Adkisson, the then Birmingham Chamber of Commerce President, and I were in St. Louis jogging early one morning when we struck up a conversation with a local runner.

He asked where we were from and why we were visiting St. Louis.  We told him we were with a group of about 100 business leaders and politicians from Birmingham who had come to St. Louis to learn about his city’s successes.

His response was one of disbelief.  “Why in the world would anyone think there was anything good to learn about St. Louis?” Continue reading Convoluted government brings us to our knees

How can we have UAB and suck?

 

UAB has an annual  economic impact of  $4.6 billion

When our Chamber of Commerce (BBA) visited Charlotte in 2004, we were greeted by the President of the University of North Carolina Charlotte.

Charlotte’s a city on fire, but the first words out the President’s mouth were, “We don’t have anything like UAB.”

Can you believe a great city like Charlotte is jealous of us? Continue reading How can we have UAB and suck?

Does Birmingham have poor corporate leadership?

Alabama Ballet performs Nutcracker--corporate leaders have made Birmingham an arts powerhouse

 

I had the opportunity to talk with a new corporate CEO who moved to Birmingham from Nashville a few years back.

I asked, “So what do you think of Birmingham?”  Then I looked down at my shoes waiting to hear how much Nashville had outpaced Birmingham.

Continue reading Does Birmingham have poor corporate leadership?