Prominent Economists Convene at Simonâ€™s Rock for Panel Discussion

10:50AM / Thursday, November 06, 2008Print Story | Email Story

GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass —The election may be over, but the economic crisis remains. Bard College at Simon’s Rock brings prominent economist and President of the Levy Economics Institute of Bard College, Dimitri B. Papadimitriou, and associate professor of economics and Levy Institute research scholar, Rania Antonopoulos to campus for an economic panel discussion on Wednesday, November 19, 2008, at 5:00 p.m. Moderated by economics faculty member Fatma Gül Ünal, panelists will offer expert insight into the financial crisis and the future of the economy. The event takes place in the McConnell Theater in the College’s Daniel Arts Center. It is free and open to the public.

Papadimitriou is president of the Levy Institute, executive vice president and Jerome Levy Professor of Economics at Bard College. He has testified on a number of occasions in hearings of Senate and House of Representatives Committees of the U.S. Congress, was vice-chairman of the Trade Deficit Review Commission of the U.S. Congress (2000–01) and was a member of the Competitiveness Policy Council's Subcouncil on Capital Allocation. Papadimitriou heads the Levy Institute's macroeconomic modeling team studying and simulating the U.S. and world economies. In addition, he has authored and coauthored studies relating to Federal Reserve policy, fiscal policy, employment growth, and Social Security reform.

Antonopoulos specializes in gender and economics, as well as international competition and globalization. She has been a consultant for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and, since 2002, a principal investigator and coordinator of the GEM-IWG Knowledge Networking Program on Engendering Macroeconomics and International Economics. In 2007, Antonopoulos oversaw the launch of an interactive website as groundwork for the knowledge-sharing initiative Economists for Full Employment. EFE seeks to link and mobilize a global community of economists, academics, public policy advocates, and nongovernmental organizations, with the principal objective of placing job creation at the center of development and macroeconomic strategies. She more recently headed up a team of Levy Institute researchers studying the impact of public employment guarantee schemes (EGS).

Moderating the discussion is Simon’s Rock economics faculty member, Gul Ünal’s. Ünal has received fellowships to participate in scholarly workshops on development economics, inequality, poverty, and gender. She is also a staff economist for the Center for Popular Economics (CPE) at University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and has taught economic courses for numerous non-profit organizations. Ünal has also presented her research at many national and international conferences.

For more information, visit www.simons-rock.edu/newsroom.

Bard College at Simon’s Rock is the nation’s first and only college designed expressly to educate bright and motivated students after the tenth or eleventh grade. Founded in 1966, Simon’s Rock later joined the Bard College system in 1979. It maintains its own campus in Great Barrington, Massachusetts and unique identity as a supportive intellectual home for early college students. Bard College at Simon’s Rock enrolls approximately 450 full-time students, and grants both Associate of Arts and Bachelor of Arts degrees in more than 40 academic concentrations.

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1. Sam Walton had it right. All employees should have stock in the company they work for. The problem Sam had is that when an employee had a need for funds, Sam had no way to prevent the employee from selling his or her stock, thus Employee owners were reverting back in-fact and more importantly in mind-set, to just an hourly worker. Sam's idea, had it worked as well for the employees as it has for the overall Walmart Corporation, would have moved thousands of workers well up into the middle class. Some of the first employees who did not sell their stock became firmly established in the upper middle class, if not wealthy. Social Security is facing a deadline for providing future retirement income now that the baby boomers are entering the picture. Our resources are not going to be able to meet these demands without just printing more and more paper debt. If the government can guarantee certain savings in bank accounts through the F.D.I.C., why not establish a program that would require that every employee own a regulated block of stock (Retirement Account) made up of stock in the company the employee works for and, so the employee will not have all his retirement eggs in one basket, include in this retirement basket high rated stocks from other non-competing companies. It seems to me the government could guarantee these programs as they do through the F.D.I.C regulated plans. This surely would be less expensive to taxpayers than trying to overhaul and fund social security. Most young people I talk with NOW, state they donâ€™t think Social Security will be available when they retire. Just as we provide student loans to help provide a college education, once the student graduates we should consider providing employment loans that would start the employee ownership package rolling. The employee would pay for the start up plan through a regulated payroll deduction. When the startup package is paid for, it would be mandatory that the deductions continue and the employees startup/retirement package would continue to grow untill retirement. If the employeeâ€™s is terminated prior to retirement, the government could establish policy for an escrow holding account pending re-establishing or tranferring the fund with a new employer. Including cases of no employment available or disability. Provisions could also be made in the G I Bill program earmarking a part of the package to provide the funds for the purchase of the employee's start up stock package for those leaving the military in search of employment. Think about the effect this would have on startup businesses, where each employee hired is bringing not just his or her skills, but also bringing investment capital. Think how customers would be treated by employee owners, and the respect customers would have for employees when they know this person actually does own the company. Why would a corporation want outside investors electing CEOâ€™s and board members? I feel all corporations should have at least 51% employee ownership. 2, The Peter Principle is the principle that "In a Hierarchy Every Employee Tends to Rise to His Level of Incompetence." This now seems to apply to Corporations more so than employees. The bigger the Corporation the harder they fall. One way to reduce the devastating effects of a giant corporate failure would be to break it down into smaller component production ficilities. In the automotive field, this would be the perfect time. Rethinking the industry is ongoing due to the high cost of energy. More fuel efficent vehicles, alternative power source and hybreds are the future. Retooling will be required whether the production facilities are the same central mega factories or smaller compact units spread out across the country. Why not construct and locate mini assembly and fabrication units close to the local Dealerships. Engine production could be spread out all across the country in units such as , Piston plants, crankshaft plants, every part a mini production facility. I believe the reduction in labor cost alone could cover the cost of constructing the mini ficillities. The technology is available to monitor and supervise each facility remotely from a central location.If the treasury is going to bailout these corporations anyway. I say attach the funds to employee loans and let the employee owners bring in investment capital to help put it all together. This way we are putting people to work, not just paying out to professional investors. 3. Vegas & Wallstreet. Wall Street is the BIG APPLE CASINO. Vegas has been ahead of Wall Street gamblers (Traders) for along time. For instance, if youâ€™re a card counter ( a system that gives the player an advantage over the house ) playing Black Jack in a Vegas casino, even though card counting is legal (like selling short or certain other stock and option trading is legal), when the pitt boss catches on to you, the casino has the right to ask you to leave and even ban you from coming back. Why canâ€™t Wall Street take the same position with their trading (gambling) When it is determined that any spicific type of trading action, legal or illegal is detrimental to the overall health of the stock market, it could and should be stoped. 4. Fiduciary responsibility & Golden parachutes, Itâ€™s a well known fact that institutional and private fund investors, by virtue of the scale of their collective investments, have enormous influence over financial markets and the global economy as a whole. In 1999 United States public pension funds alone had assets representing 46 percent of the gross domestic product and 33 percent of the New York Stock Exchangeâ€™s capitalization. Additional holdings by religious, educational and public institutions, unions and foundations further increase these numbers. As a result, these institutionsâ€™ financial decisions have a huge impact on society. The collective power of these institutions could be limited to 10 to 30% holding in any one corporation thus reducing their power to control the election of CEOs and board members along with their outragous contracts that include multi-million dollar bonuses and golden parachutes.This action would tend to secure the short and long term interests of employee owners beneficiaries, and other shareholders and stakeholders alike. The realities of the 21st century require fiduciaries to be concerned with the impact of financial, social and environmental factors on the performance of their company to fulfill their legal obligations and maximize shareholder value. In addition, as employee owners, fiduciaries have the duty and the opportunity to promote good corporate governance to protect the assets under their care, and because the corporation is at least 51% employee owned the focus of the CEO and board is not just the bottom line, The employee owner concept asserts that the integration of prudent financial management practices with principles of environmental stewardship, concern for community, labor and human rights, and corporate accountability to employee shareholders and stakeholders â€“ which in the present are not considered relevant by the financial decision-making process of the botton lined focused professional investers. These outside investors with no other relationship to the company or employee, other than ownership of its stock, tends to constitute in-fact a single bottom line concept. In order to guarantee long term sustainability, to minimize long and short term financial risk, the definition of fiduciary responsibility has to evolve to a more comprehensive view of all aspects concerning the true value of a corporation. NOT JUST THE BOTTOM LINE. Thank you for your time. Any comments may be sent to Wylie Axford propawn@otelco.net
from: Wylie Axford	on: 11-19-2008 12:00AM I Agree (0) - I Disagree (0)

Lanesborough Town Meeting to Vote Budget, Bylaws & Vehicle Purchases

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
04:21PM / Monday, June 08, 2026

LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — Tuesday's annual town meeting includes a $14 million operating budget, new short-term rentals, accessory dwelling units and sign bylaws, and free cash article appropriations.

Voters will gather at Lanesborough Elementary School on June 9 at 6 p.m. to decide on 20 warrant articles.

The fiscal 2027 budget is up a little over 10 percent. Some of the main increases are the Mount Greylock Regional School District and McCann Technical School: the McCann assessment is up more than 30 percent based on factors including enrollment and the school renovation project, and Mount Greylock's is up 11 percent.

Article 11 is for the town to vote to approve from free cash the sum of $16,298.48 for the McCann Technical School roof and window replacement project so as not to impact the budget. Article 3 is appropriate $7,586,284 for Mount Greylock Regional School assessment.

Another notable increase was in life and health insurance, showing an increase of about 26 percent.

Ambulance Director Jen Weber is planning 24-hour coverage, which means more staff and a hike in her budget. One of the articles asks the town to appropriate $234,100 to operate the Ambulance Enterprise Fund for salaries and expenses.

Many town departments are looking for new vehicles. The Fire Department is looking to replace its outdated 1996 fire engine. There are two articles related to the truck at a total of $813,366. Article 12 would transfer $225,000 from free cash into the Fire Truck Stabilization Fund; Article 13 would transfer $605,000 from the fund and authorize the borrowing of $208,366.08.

The total includes a $100,000 contingency cost to cover any additional costs if a 2026 model-year chassis cannot be secured before new emissions standards go into effect in 2027.

The board at its last meeting moved the $225,000 transfer to come before the borrowing article, changing the stabilization number. If the $225,000 is not voted on, then they will amend the next article's number on the floor, subtracting the $225,000. This shows the borrowing number significantly lower.

Article 17 asks for the transfer of $80,000 from free cash to replace a police cruiser.

Police Chief Rob Derksen's aim is to replace one vehicle every other year, meaning the oldest vehicle gets replaced about every 10 years.

He stressed that if delayed this year, the town may have to double up in a future year to get back on schedule, and that paying later usually costs more. The article will ask for $80,000 from free cash, the vehicles used to be funded by the BHRD.

Lastly, the Highway Department is looking to replace a 2014 International dump truck that will be a total of $330,000 and will take two to three years to receive.

Money will be used from last year's approval of $250,000 from free cash for the replacement of a 2012 highway front-end loader that was underspent $49,261. Town meeting is being asked to approve a transfer of $53,274.85 from free cash and the use of $227,464 from funds from the Sale of Town Real Estate to fund the balance.

Other free cash proposals include $1,200 to purchase software to support tracking and ongoing maintenance schedules of town-owned vehicles; $42,000 for the replacement of the Highway Department's storage shed roof, $200,000 to reduce the tax levy.

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