Tag Archives: Grand Rapids

Missed Connection

You: An elderly African American gentleman in cream colored windbreaker and a read Marine Corps baseball cap, nearly hit in the head by my infant son’s sippy cup. Me: A doughy, over-apologetic, middle-aged white guy in faded black jeans and a t-shirt with a drawing of myself as Snow White… We chatted briefly about our […]

Posted in Mark's Life, Uncategorized | Also tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

Having won the title of World’s Best Comic Book Store, Ann Arbor’s Vault of Midnight plots global domination

After years of shopping at Ann Arbor’s much-beloved comic book shop Vault of Midnight, I finally had the occasion a few weeks ago, at an event hosted by Concentrate Media, to meet the store’s founder Curtis Sullivan. What started as a friendly conversation on the current state of Ann Arbor retail quickly escalated into an […]

Posted in Ann Arbor, Art and Culture, Local Business, Locally Owned Business, Pop Culture, Retail, Uncategorized | Also tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 21 Comments

Ted McClelland on fleeing “Michissippi” and why we’ll never be able to keep our brightest young people from Chicago

Here on the site last week, I twice invoked an article that had appeared on Salon.con entitled Right-to-work bill: Michigan just gives up. Well, the second time I did so, the author of the piece, Ted McClelland, left a comment. And, from there, a short email exchange ensued, resulting in the following interview. I hope […]

Posted in Michigan, Observations, Uncategorized | Also tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 26 Comments

Grand Rapids shows us how economic development is done right… home-grown food entrepreneurship over dollar stores

A few months ago, when I was in Grand Rapids, attending the annual BALLE (Business Alliance for Local Living Economies) conference, I had the occasion to hear a speech given by the city’s Mayor, George Heartwell. I can’t find my notes at the moment, but I seem to recall that, buried somewhere in the long […]

Posted in Economics, entrepreneurism, Environment, Michigan, Sustainability, Uncategorized, Ypsilanti | Also tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 42 Comments

Ben Cohen on Occupy, independent business networks, and defacing currency to save our Democracy

I had the opportunity yesterday, at the BALLE conference, to hear ice cream magnate Ben Cohen, of Ben and Jerry’s fame, talking about the point of intersection where the local business movement, Occupy Wall Street and the campaign to “get the money out of politics” converge. Here’s video of his presentation, during which he unveils […]

Posted in Economics, entrepreneurism, Marketing, Uncategorized | Also tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

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