People Make the Difference

YOU'VE PROBABLY heard the expression “Six degrees of separation” but do you know how it came about, or who came up with the theory? Well, shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, Tom Still gave an answer to those questions in a newspaper column. At the time, he was associate editor of the Wisconsin State Journal in Madison. Today, Still is president of the Wisconsin Technology Council.

He wrote: “Some 30 years ago (about 1970), American psychologist Stanley Milgram set out to prove our world is much smaller than we imagine.

“He recruited people in different states and sent each of them a package, together with

FOR YEARS, as a young man, columnist Sydney J. Harris said he could never understand the meaning of the old saw, “Nothing succeeds like success.” He went on to explain, “What it means, of course, is that success carries an impetus of its own, quite apart from the talent involved.”

Harris wrote in a column in 1982:

“There is a story, well attested to, that Charlie Chaplin once entered a Charlie Chaplin look-alike contest and came in third. Also, that Heifetz, in the days of his fame, played

By Byron McNutt

WE MAY NEED an intervention in Washington. In the next two months, Congress and the White House will be faced with three major “cliff” issues and all indications point to contentious standoffs filled with rancor, acrimony and brinksmanship.

Americans want, and are looking for, leadership, but not getting it. A USA Today/Gallup Poll taken in

By Byron McNutt

WE ARE constantly reminded that there is a fundamental difference between the citizens of our country and the politicians who run it. With that in mind, you might enjoy this story titled “The Haircut.” It wouldn’t be so funny if it wasn’t true.

The theme throughout this story is “blessed are those that can give without remembering, and take

By Byron McNutt

A REPORT IS circulating around town about a charity event held recently at an area casino. It was a big celebration and it was a very memorable event for at least two attendees.

This was a masked ball and the wife of one local bigwig went out to get costumes for herself and her husband. When it was time to go to the gala event, she came down with a doozy of a migraine that was the worst ever.

“You go alone, honey,” she said. “I’m going to turn in. You shouldn’t miss this opportunity to have fun with our friends.”

ALBERT EINSTEIN once observed: “The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science.”
In the aftermath of the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy in Newtown, Conn. Dec. 14, we’re reminded that in every life there are good times and bad times. To survive those ups and downs, we all need a strong support team.

IT’S THE HOLIDAY season. Along with the joy and anticipation comes a considerable amount of stress and, for some, depression. We just don’t have the time and money to do everything we want to do.

A colleague, John Reiniger of Lawrenceburg, Ind., was at a seminar seven years ago when the presenter, when explaining stress management, raised a glass of water and asked, “How heavy is this glass of water?”

By Byron McNutt

THE DATE OF this issue of the paper is Dec. 12, 2012, which must mean something? Until we figure that out, here are a few news items I came across the past few weeks that caught my attention. Last week CNBC Closing Bell anchor Maria Bartiromo interviewed Starwood Capital honcho Barry Sternlicht about the fiscal cliff negotiations now going on in Washington, and they came to this conclusion.

In some areas of the country a family making $250,000 a year, with three kids in school, and an average home mortgage, is probably living paycheck-to-paycheck. How do they relate to families living in middle America who have a home mortgage and three kids in school, with an annual income of $70,000?

By Byron McNutt

A COMMUNITY IS more than a group of people looking for the best deal; it’s a group of people looking out for each other. Everyone wins when we do business locally.

When small businesses close because big-box wholesalers have made the interstate the new Main Street, we are looking at more than a business trend; we are looking at a societal event that says something troubling about what we mean to each other.

Like the story of the Bouncing Buck that was left behind at a little gift store on Wall Street in Eagle River last week. The people he belonged to decided to trade him in for a Christmas gift for their grandson.

By Byron McNutt

IT IS NEVER too early or too late to get your Christmas shopping done. This year there are 32 days between Thanksgiving and Christmas, the most possible, and that included Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

According to ShopperTrak, Black Friday was the “busiest” shopping day, but that didn’t make it the “best” day to shop. One-third of the holiday sales will be rung up the week prior to Christmas. The pre-Christmas weekend will be huge for both retailers and shoppers.