Author Archives: matt ohern

Smithfield getting beat up in costly court cases

Late last Friday, a North Carolina jury again ruled against Smithfield Foods in a nuisance lawsuit. The jury awarded a couple who live over 1/4 mile from the concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO) $25 million for flies, odor and large tractor … Continue reading

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Strong Growth for Express Toll Lanes and Networks

USA Today published a major story on the growth of express toll lanes across the country. Reporter Bart Jansen included a table of 40 projects then in operation, with 13 in Texas, 9 in California, and mostly 1s, 2s, or … Continue reading

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Are Academic Course Requirements Out-of-Date?

Do we take calculus in high school because we need this skill in our future career, or is it what we historically needed to get into prestigious colleges? Continue reading

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My Kingdom for a Razorback Sucker

On the classic game show, “Let’s Make a Deal,” the host Monte Hall walked down the aisle offering ridiculous amounts of cash for people to produce obscure items from their pockets – $500 for a skeleton key, for example. Cash … Continue reading

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Signs Virginia Will Keep Tax Reform Windfall

As of right now all the signs indicate that the Virginia General Assembly and the Northam Administration are going to allow the federal tax reform to generate additional tax revenue for the Commonwealth. Some of what the Congress gave back … Continue reading

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