Opinion

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The Business Times Contributors THE BUSINESS TIMES February 3-16, 2022JANUARY 15-28, 2015 Opinion Opinion Business BriefsA new year affords Business Peoplea new opportunity to meet local needs Almanac

A new year almost always brings an opportunity for a fresh start and renewed ambition to do things better.

In business, that usually boils down to providing customers better products and services faster and at lower cost than competitors. Part of the process must include listening to customers to determine what they actually need and then meeting that need. After all, it does little good to offer the latest and greatest if nobody actually wants what you’re selling.

Just like the businesses that belong to the group, the Grand Junction Area Chamber of Commerce invariably starts out the new year with a reassessment of the services and resources it provides and how well they match with members needs. Jeff Franklin, the new chairman of the chamber board of directors, personifies this approach in describing what he considers his role for the coming year: listen to members, determine their needs and then meet those needs. It’s a role with which Franklin is familiar as market president of Bank of Colorado.

The process will take on a more structured approach in what the chamber plans as the resumption of a program aptly called Listening to Business. Under the program, business owners participate in in-depth interviews to identify barriers to growth and other problems they encounter.

The new year offers a good time to join the proverbial club.

As an advertiser or reader, what do you need from the Business Times?

While business journals traditionally gather and report the relevant news to readers, communication isn’t necessarily a one-way street. That’s especially true as Web sites and e-mail make the dialogue more convenient than ever.

Good publications don’t exist in a vacuum. They respond to the needs of advertisers and readers. They provide what’s needed.

So what do you need?

Is there additional news coverage that would help keep you informed about local business developments? Are there features that would be interesting or useful? Is there advice that would make your jobs a little easier?

It’s equally important to ask what you don’t need. With limited time to produce content and limited space in which to publish it, would time and space be better devoted to something else?

What’s good? What isn’t? What’s needed? What isn’t?

Let us know. Send us an e-mail. Comment online on the Business Times Web site at www.thebusinesstimes.com. You could even write an old-fashioned letter to the editor if you’d like. Your feedback, both positive and negative, is valued and will be carefully considered.

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It’s a new year. Please help us to do so. ✦ THE BUSINESSTIMES 609 North Ave., Suite 2, Grand Junction, CO 81501

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The Grand Valley Business Times, a subsidiary of Hall Media Group LLC, is published twice monthly and distributed throughout Grand Junction, Fruita and Palisade. Advertising rates and deadlines are available upon request. Opinions expressed in this publication are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, editor, staff or advertisers.

Copyright © 2015 — All rights reserved.

It’s that time of year when resolutions and prognostications abound. My favorite saying applied to New Year’s resolutions is in saying they’re basically a bunch of promises to break the first week of January. And while I won’t predict a whole lot, I can pretty much accurately nail a few things that without question will make the news. You will see these are pretty, well, predictable: ■ Prediction one: There will be some sort of weather event, natural disaster or heinous occurrence where someone will be interviewed and say the following: “I’ve never seen anything like that in my lifetime.” It’s as if this person is a required attendee at every news reporting event. While I understand most people’s perspective can indeed be limited by, or contained within, their own personal experiences, it is too much to ask to consult some historical perspective before saying such a thing? Yes, this response can apply to some events. But when it comes to weather and natural disasters, I’m pretty sure this is simply history repeating itself. Same as it has for millions and millions of years. More important, the planet made it! What didn’t were certain species. How’s that for perspective? ■ Prediction two: When it comes to a crime or something that occurs between humans, the other required attendee at all news reporting events is the person who says this: “They we’re just the nicest people, and in no way did I see something like this coming.” Exactly. No one does most of the time when it comes to neighbors and acquaintances. People should be surprised at what goes on from time to time in their neighborhoods, towns and with people they know because people are good. And for the times that they shouldn’t be shocked — like with politicians, repeat offenders and terrorists — where’s the interview that says, “This doesn’t surprise me in the least.” ■ Prediction three: Something good will happen economically, and the government will take credit for it. The most recent example is gas prices, where people ask me why I won’t credit the president for low gas prices. My answer is simple: Government never makes the price of something go down and simply takes credit for good news. Gas pricing is subject to many global factors. Now there are government answers to addressing some of them to keep prices stable for Americans, but our government has none of them in place. The only things it has in place in the

Bold predictions for 2015 more like not-so-bold repeats long run always hurt consumers. Another fact is that unemployment reaches a certain level based on the economy. And while the government might brag the number is low, it’s more than likely the government did something to cause that number being low — and not in a good way. Conversely, when business picks up, it’s because the people who need to buy widgets who were not buying widgets because the economy was contracting due to natural (or unnatural, government caused) reasons, decided we better buy some widgets. The government had nothing to do with this. ■ Prediction four: In keeping with things the government does, I predict the government will manipulate the numbers to make the claim the economy is getting better because of how hard it is working to help all of us “working Americans.” Now Craig Hall you might say, “Craig, you always say this about President Obama because you don’t like him.” You’re right in a sense. I don’t know the man, but what I know of him and his thinking, I don’t like it or him one iota. Before you go off, however, I didn’t like President Bush and his bailouts, stimulus and his abandoning the free market to save the free market. And I don’t know him either. What the government does, and the only thing it can do, is hurt the economy. Unless it does nothing or put criminals in jail instead of partnering with them, nothing the government does will help. Always look at it this way, whatever the government says it is doing, whatever the name of the law it is passing, or whatever the name or goal of the bureaucracy it is presenting to the people, expect the polar opposite to occur. I guess what I’m saying is that perhaps it’s time to get out of our own perspective. There’s plenty of history books and historical research out there to begin to understand that all of this has happened before. And it will again, whether the topic is people or government. The best recommendation is to find some books or try that whole Google thing. There’s a lot of information on the Great Depression. The truth is it wasn’t even a good one until the government got involved. There’s also plenty of research on the medieval warm period when the planet was much warmer than today with a whole lot less people (and warmer well before man was here at all). And yep, people have been killing other surprised people since history was first written. Maybe some research will help stop all of these trends. Otherwise, we’ll be saying we’ve never seen anything like it in our lives. And not in a good way. Craig Hall is owner and publisher of the Business Times. Reach him at 424-5133 Copyright © 2022 — All rights reserved. or publisher@thebusinesstimes.com. F ✦

Wait, what?

That’s a favorite saying my buddy Clark and I recite. It usually comes out when something obvious is stated that was being ignored or when either of us says or does something completely, well, nonsensical. You’d think calling for New Year’s resolutions in February seems kinda illogical on my part.

But is it?

I’m writing this column on Feb. 1 for the issue scheduled for publication Feb. 2. So that makes Feb. 1 an important date on my calendar as both a deadline AND (for purposes of this column) what should have always been a goal. As I have for the past 20 years, I made deadline. Although as usual, a little too close for comfort for my editor as he sends up the last pages to the printer.

As for my resolutions, this would would normally be a column about how I’ve already blown them up, reverted to my special version of indifference or just plain forgotten them. But oddly in 2022, I’m actually hanging onto a few resolutions — surprisingly and joyfully so.

Let’s face it: Most resolutions are work, and work we despise.

What’s the No. 1 goal for most folks? Get into shape. Pardon the pun, but how’s that working out for you?

That’s why the good folks at health clubs — like our advertiser, Crossroads Fitness — advise doing group classes or working with a personal trainer in an encouraging environment with conveniences like child care and other amenities available to make getting into shape as positive an experience as it can be. As I am sure the good folks at Crossroads will attest, those who make it to Feb. 1 have the best chance to achieve their goals. So, congrats to those who’ve made it this far. And if you need some help, call our advertiser.

That said, it’s difficult to compete in a market where people who need to get into shape are inundated with get-thin-quick, snake oil advertising 24 hours a day on their electronic devices.

You’ve seen the ads. Drink this or take that, and the fat will just melt off and you’ll be in Speedo shape in no time. Let me ask this: Anyone got friends who’ve been taken in by these gimmicks you want to see in an itsy-bitsy-teenie-weenieyellow-polka-dot anything? Yeah, me neither. Here’s what I’ve learned over the past 20 years when my indifference to getting into shape was winning the war:

With news and business, clear messages the best It’s about diet and exercise. Period. And I Time to kick those resolutions into gear .. it’s February, after all learned that indifference in another tried

One of my tasks as editor of a business journal is to revise the news releases and true fashion: Developing the habit that are submitted to fit what I term newspaper style. over 30 days where it’s ingrained into our Sometimes this process involves a proverbial wrecking noggins to become good or bad. In my ball — demolishing a news release and reconstructing it word case, usually bad. by word. Other times, I’m relieved to pull out the equivalent Truth is, the only time I ever really of a polishing cloth. And with just a few light touches, copy is lost weight and got into shape was after ready to appear on the pages of the Business Times as well as my separation. The “divorce 40” took over on the website. my life and I lost, yes, 40 pounds. You Don’t get me wrong. I’m happy to do it. For one thing, know why? With everything going on in it’s my job. For another, I’m grateful for any opportunity to my head, I was doing something I didn’t share local business news with readers. Any opportunity. realize: exercising and eating right. Then The more the better. I didn’t. And now I live with the opposite Phil Castle It’s usually a straightforward matter of editing news releases to include the five Ws of fundamental journalism. You know: “divorce 40” right back where I started. Why am I telling you this? Honestly, who, what, when, where and why. Although I’m sure it’s not I like to say I don’t know, but I kinda do. intentional, you’d be surprised how often the when and where are omitted. Oops. For Because I’m trying and working to extend that matter, the who in the form of who to contact for more information is left out as one of my resolutions of reading a daily well. The what sometimes comes across as more of sales pitch than a story pitch. It also can be a matter of extracting from copy business buzzwords and Craig Hall devotional. And not just glancing over a quick one-pager with an anecdote. I’m corporate jargon. Like a dentist pulling abcessed teeth, it can be a messy and even really striving to spend quality time with painful enterprise. a partner in the “gym” of life. Because

And here, at last, I get to my point. I’m not the only one who loathes like Crossroads would confirm, it’s really buzzwords and jargon. As it turns out, a sizable portion of the people who read hard to do it alone. Fact is, I doubt you and hear them in the workplace are similarly disgusted. could find anyone who has with any goal

According to the results of a survey of more than 1,500 American workers, they’ve realized. So yeah, making Feb. 1 one in five disliked the use of buzzwords and jargon in a workplace setting. with Jesus at the wheel is a big thing this

The most frequently used buzzwords? Win-win, company culture and ASAP. year. I’m happy to say I jumped in his ride Company culture also ranked among the top three most annoying buzzwords, this morning, and the ride went great. along with new normal and circle back. Add to the least wanted list the phrases And it’s the ride that’s important. boots on the ground, low-hanging fruit and move the needle. Staying in the lane of good habits —

Ironically — at least to me — there’s a belief using buzzwords makes people which a devotional or workout will look professional. Three out of four of those who responded to the survey thought provide — keeps the bad habits at bay. so. While people said they disliked buzzwords and jargon, seven out of 10 admitted And whether you use one of these or the using them. other — or both — there’s no question

I’d contend as a journalist just the opposite holds true. I’ve never managed a you’ll be in better physical and mental business. But I suspect if I did, I’d argue the same case. shape in the long run. Especially if a

Keep in mind who you’re writing to and what you’re asking them to do. commitment to instilling this as a habit Consider whether or not readers and listeners will understand what you’ve “experts” (actual ones) say takes 30 days. written and said. People who’re adept at what they do sometimes can’t imagine Because the only way to get to March 1 others don’t know what they know. Avoid buzzwords and jargon and use instead from Jan. 1 to get to Feb. 1. Anyone see examples. Above all, keep it simple. I admit I’m tempted to write in a manner that a pattern? Yeah, don’t feel bad. it’s only makes me appear more intelligent when I’d be far better off to eschew obfuscation. taken me 60 years to understand it’s the

One other thing: Keep sending in those releases. I’ll do my best to share your only pattern worth seeing and doing. news. And that’s OK. After all, getting in shape in the gym of life takes work and Phil Castle is editor of the Business Times. Reach him at 424-5133 or commitment. The snake oil salespeople phil@thebusinesstimes.com. aren’t interested in your health, just F their profit. The government? Please don’t get me started. But if you need a confirmation about how it feels about individual health, just look at its messaging during the pandemic about the No. 1 comorbidity related to COVID 19 and how seriously it affects its victims: Not one peep about obesity. And then look at how it treated churches and health clubs during the past two years. Indifferent doesn’t come close. My thoughts on New Year’s resolutions? Faith and fitness with friends. You’ll love how you feel March 1. Craig Hall is owner and publisher of the Business Times. Reach him at 424-5133 or publisher@thebusinesstimes.com.

Taxing burden becomes more and more onerous

Jean Baptiste Colbert, financial minister to Louis XIV, is credited with saying, “The art of taxation consists in so plucking the goose as to obtain the largest amount of feathers with the least amount of hissing.” A tax is defined as a compulsory contribution to state revenue, levied by the government on workers’ income and business profits or added to the cost of some goods, services and transactions.

Phyllis Taxes have been levied for thousands

Hunsinger of years. The Bible refers to tax collectors. The United States Constitution gives Congress the power to “lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises.”

The first federal income tax in the U.S. was enacted in 1861 during the Civil War as a mechanism to finance the war effort. Federal income tax became permanent in February 1913, when the 16th Amendment to the Constitution was ratified, granting Congress the power to tax personal income.

But income tax is just one component of the federal tax system. Many of the taxes imposed today were created in the 1920s and 1930s, including Social Security tax, estate tax and gift tax. Sin taxes are popular with government leaders to tax behaviors not deemed admirable, such as taxes on alcohol, cigarettes and marijuana. A tax on gasoline was implemented in 1932 when President Herbert Hoover declared a need for more revenue to run the government.

The federal government also taxes investment income. This tax is particularly counterproductive because investment is necessary for economic growth. It’s not a challenging intellectual exercise to realize economic growth results in more tax revenue, but investment income is taxed anyway. Dividends don’t escape the tax bite, either. They’ve been taxed continually since 1954.

The main objective of taxation is to fund government expenditures at the city, county, state and federal levels. Governments have no way to raise money without first taking money from their citizens. City, county and state level governments are equally able to enact clever methods for raising more revenue through taxation. A state income tax was first enacted by Wisconsin in 1911. Today, there are only eight states without state income taxes: Alaska, Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming. A sales tax was first enacted in West Virginia in 1921. Today, Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire and Oregon are the only states without sales taxes. Some cities across the nation will begin taxing disposable plastic shopping bags at convenience, grocery and drug stores. For governments desiring to control citizen behavior, taxing unfavorable activities seems a win-win.

Taxes are often taken from paychecks before people ever see their earnings. They don’t realize how much of their hard-earned money is seized by the government. Once enacted, taxes seldom go away. More often, rates are raised. And each year, the total tax burden becomes more onerous.

President Ronald Reagan said, “We don’t have a trillion dollar debt because we haven’t taxed enough. We have a trillion dollar debt because we spend too much.” Now, the national debt is nearly $30 trillion and growing each minute. That debt translates to each taxpayer owing almost $240,000.

As in the analogy of the goose, unless there’s hissing from citizens coupled with action, governments will continue to tax beyond the ability of people to pay. It’s past time to get involved. Call your congressional representatives. Vote for lawmakers who will work to help individuals keep more of their money.

Phyllis Hunsinger is founder of the Freedom & Responsibility Education Enterprise Foundation in Grand Junction. The FREE Foundation provides resources to students and teachers in Western Colorado to promote the understanding of economics, financial literacy and free enterprise. For more, visit www.free-dom.us.com. Contact Hunsinger at phyllis@free-dom.us.com. F

Health insurance exchange extends enrollment season

In just a month, 2022 has brought a surge of COVID-19 cases due to the omicron variant as well as the Marshall Fire, which destroyed more homes than any wildfire in Colorado history. To state the obvious, these twin emergencies represent real lives that have been affected. If you or a loved one has found yourself without health insurance benefits because of COVID-19’s far-reaching economic effects or the devastation caused by the Marshall Fire, then this message is for you. Our state insurance exchange, Connect for Health Colorado, has opened an emergency special enrollment period for families, individuals or small business owners whose health benefits have been or will be affected by these two emergencies. The new special open enrollment period provides a two-month extension

Ashley to Colorado’s regular season, which ended on Jan. 15, and is now open to those in need until March 16.

Thurow Monument Health is proud to be involved in this offering through a cobranded product we manage across the Western Slope with Rocky Mountain Health Plans. We’re especially proud because it comes at a time when our hard work to disrupt the current system of “sick care” to achieve our mission of better care, healthier communities and reduced costs has resulted in price reductions to our product on the exchange and real savings for Coloradans who need it.

Emergency enrollment ends on March 16. But if you experience a life-changing event — losing your health insurance due to job loss, for example — you can buy health insurance on Connect for Health Colorado within 60 days of that event. Subsidies could be available to you and your family to help cover expenses during this time, making coverage and the peace of mind that comes with it a reasonable possibility.

If you feel overwhelmed hearing this news because you don’t know where to start or how to apply for health insurance benefits, resources are available to help.

Hilltop Community Resources, a nonprofit organization based in Grand Junction, operates a health access office with a team ready to assist you. They can help you determine your eligibility and walk you through the application process. Contact them at (970) 244-0850 or https://hilltopshealthaccess.org.

Working directly with Connect for Health Colorado offers another option. You can review helpful information at https://connectforhealthco.com or take advantage of Connect for Health enrollment centers in Western Colorado. Although they don’t allow walk-ins at this time due to heightened social distancing guidance, you can locate the closest center near you at https://connectforhealthco.com/enrollment-center and call to schedule a virtual appointment.

Contacting a local health insurance broker constitutes yet another great way to learn about your options.

Thanks to statewide leadership and Coloradans committed to helping one another, our state and communities have been nimble and responsive during this uncertain time in our history. Monument Health is proud to be part of the solution.

Ashley Thurow is executive director of Monument Health, a clinically integrated network based in Grand Junction. She’s passionate about improving health care through collaboration and industry disruption and brings 15 years of experience in value-based care models to Monument Health. Reach her at Ashley.Thurow@monumenthealth.net

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