How Americans Judge Tax Reform, How Amazon Innovates, Voices from the Bayou

Guest: Stephanie Leiser, Lecturer, Gerald Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan Republicans in Congress exhaled a huge sigh of relief when the packaged tax bill passed at the end of the year – now they’d have something to show voters when they hit the campaign trail for re-election this fall. But tax cuts could be a double-edged sword for them – the biggest beneficiaries of the tax cuts will be corporations and the very wealthy. Also, polls taken just before the final bill passed found most Americans didn’t like it. So, is it a benefit or a liability to Republicans seeking re-election this year?

Guest: Jeff Dyer, PhD, Professor of Strategy, Marriott School of Business, Brigham Young University When Jeff Bezos gave his company the confident name of “Amazon” over 20 years ago, he obviously intended to be more than just an online bookseller. And he was right. Amazon can now deliver just about anything you need to your home or to your screen. It has the Kindle device and the new smart assistant, Alexa. How does Amazon come up with so many successful new ideas?

Guests: Clarence Nero, Professor of Creative Writing, Baton Rouge Community College; DeLisa Brown, Recent Graduate, Baton Rouge Community College The summer of 2016 was traumatic for Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It was there that Alton Sterling, a black man, was fatally shot by a couple of white police officers in a convenience store parking lot. Video of the shooting sparked angry protest locally, and around the country. A few weeks later, a black man shot and killed three police officers and wounded three others at a Baton Rouge shopping mall. And shortly after that, historic flooding inundated the city. The intensity and trauma of that summer for Baton Rouge is at the center of a collection of essays written by students at Baton Rouge Community College. The title of their book is “Voices from the Bayou.”

(Originally aired: Dec. 1, 2015) Guests: Daniel Ferguson, Writer and Director of “Jerusalem”; Jodi Magness, PhD, Archeologist, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill There is ongoing international anger toward the Trump Administration for its plan to endorse Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and move the US embassy there from Tel Aviv. Jerusalem has long been disputed territory, with Jews, Christians and Muslims all laying claim to it as holy land. For that very reason, the initial United Nation’s plan to create Israel and Palestine designated Jerusalem as a neutral “international zone.” National Geographic’s IMAX movie “Jerusalem” gives background to understand these competing religious claims.

(Originally aired: March 8, 2017) Guest: Harry Kraemer, Clinical Professor of Strategy, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University Things move so fast in the modern business world that leaders often have to move quickly and juggle a lot of things at once. Parents can relate to that pressure, too. So this advice will apply to pretty much anyone under the gun to get a lot done at home or at work. Harry Kraemer’s first principle of successful leadership is self-reflection. He says leaders should spend 15 minutes a day quietly reflecting.

(Originally Aired: Sept. 12, 2017) Guest: Neeru Jayanthi, MD, Sports Medicine Physician, Emory University Tiger Woods started golfing at the age of three. Serena Williams picked up her first tennis racket at the age of four and went pro at 14. Swimmer Missy Franklin had won four Olympic gold medals by the age of 17. The message is clear – great athletes start young. But Tiger, Serena and Missy have also all experienced serious injuries related to their sport. Some physicians say the risk seems to be increasing as more and more kids specialize in one sport from an early age.