|
APRIL
2001 Archive
APRIL
30, 2001
Frequent
Flier Miles Turn 20 — May 1 is the 20th anniversary
of American Airlines starting the first frequent fliers
mileage program. Today, 70 million people are enrolled in
these kinds of programs. They have a heavy influence on
how we choose credit cards, airlines, and even how we book
our trips. A whole industry was changed by this perk. Talk
to travelers about how much miles mean to them, how they
guard, collect, and use them. They are like currency.
When
government pays for trips, who gets the miles? Who should
get them? Here are the federal guidelines: http://policyworks.gov/org/main/mt/homepage/mtt/FAQFFPT.HTML.
Is anybody following them? Do local and state governments
have similar policies that do NOT allow the individual to
keep the miles?
I
wonder how often people travel on more expensive airlines
to get mileage on the airline they want mileage from the
most. How much does this cost business and government (taxpayers)?
Ask travel agents and government auditors. See websites
dedicated to the topic:
http://www.flyertalk.com/,
a bulletin board that posts more than 1500 posts a day about
frequent flier miles.
http://www.milepoint.com/
lets you buy stuff using points.
Lesson
on choosing a program, program ratings, how programs work:
http://frequentflier.com/
Vanity
Plates — I have noticed a heck of a lot of specialty/vanity
license tags recently. The state of Washington, for example,
sold 84,000 of these in 1999. If that is any indication,
these program involve millions of dollars in many states.
Do the causes that are named on those plates really get
the money or is anybody paying attention? How much do they
bring in for the causes — everything from wildlife
(38 states) to adoption (Florida), anti-violence programs
(Illinois.), square dancing (Rhode Island) and Scouting.
Many vanity plates are used to express religious views:
http://www.seacoastonline.com/news/2_18_sb2.htm.
In
Florida, a 2000 state audit showed that over the past 13
years, the state has created 50 specialty license plates
to raise money for popular causes — from preserving
the Florida panther to saving the manatee to preventing
juvenile delinquency. The audit of the specialty-plate program
turned up a host of problems including a discovery that
millions of dollars from some tag sales went to other than
the intended causes. The audit said that money earned from
the sale of "Save the Manatee" plates or "Save
the Panther" plates often was spent on things that
had nothing to do with those animals.
Saving
Trees — How serious is your community about saving
trees? How stringently are arbor laws enforced? If construction
projects remove trees, how do they replace them? What happens
if they don't? Urban sprawl is costing trees. The result
will be higher utility bills because of less shade, soil
erosion, and a loss of natural habitat in communities. Who
regulates trees in your community? It may be a beautification
commission, arbor office, or zoning commission. Chances
are they are overworked, understaffed, and trees are not
their highest priority. Yet nothing stirs citizens up more
than when an old tree gets cut down by a developer. See:
Trees
fight sprawl — http://www.americanforests.org/trees
_cities_sprawl/sprawl/index.html.
The
benefits of urban trees — http://www.dnr.state.md.us/forests/publications/urban.html.
American
forests — http://www.americanforests.org/.
What
are the most noteworthy and historic trees in your community?
Gettysburg, Pa, has the Gettysburg honey locust that Lincoln
stood under while delivering the Gettysburg address. Jacksonville,
Fla., has a Live Oak that was a meeting place for European
settlers and Indians.
APRIL
27, 2001
Voices from
Vietnam
— The
Senator Kerrey
story is a tough one for Vietnam Era vets to hear.
It will certainly ignite old emotions about what they experienced,
did or saw. I suspect many are being forced to have conversations
and answer questions from friends ands family that they
thought they would not answer again. There is also a good
lesson here about the casualties of all wars. Innocent people
always get hurt in war. It was true in the Persian Gulf
War, Korea, and the Civil War. New York Times story: http://www.nytimes.com/images/2001/
04/25/national/mag_010425_KERREY_00.html.
Find
a Vietnam vets group that will help you think through this
story. Look up Vietnam Medal of Honor winners for your state
or city-by using the site search:
http://www.mishalov.com/Citations.html
A
Vietnam Vets resource/links page:
http://www.vietnamvets.com/links.htm. How do you know
if someone you interviewed really served? Check their record:
http://www.nara.gov/regional/mpr.html
FTC
follow-up
-- The FTC finds the music industry still markets explicit
songs to kids through magazines, television shows, and such
even while movies and video games have toned it down. See
the report: http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2001/04/youthviol.htm.
Back
to Today's Morning Meeting -- http://www.poynter.org/morningmeeting/index.htm
Share
your great ideas. Send
Al a few sentences and hot links.
|
