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• Why We Shouldn’t Be Cutting Higher Ed
• Posted By: Mark Funkhouser |   June 4, 2012
• Reducing our investments in public colleges and universities — one of our great engines of economic development — may cost more than it saves.
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• 3 Comments

• Human Services and Our Obsession with Fraud
• Posted By: Mark Funkhouser |   May 31, 2012
• Sometimes it seems as if all we care about in delivering benefits is making sure the wrong people don’t get them. There are more important things to worry about.
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• 5 Comments

• The Real Costs of Infrastructure
• Posted By: Mark Funkhouser |   May 24, 2012
• It’s hard to find trillions of dollars to fix our infrastructure. But not fixing our roads and bridges and ports is also expensive — and not just in dollars.
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• 4 Comments

• When Citizens Understand the Cost of Government
• Posted By: Mark Funkhouser |   May 21, 2012
• There’s more to engaging the public in governance — making them part of decisions about paying for the services they value — than simply ‘educating’ them.
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• 11 Comments

• Random Idiots and Useless Blowhard Gasbags
• Posted By: Mark Funkhouser |   May 17, 2012
• Bad things happen, and the media amplifies them. But they are not the indicators of the decline of our culture that some would have us believe.
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• 4 Comments

• Why We Shouldn’t Fear a Shrinking Labor Force
• Posted By: Mark Funkhouser |   May 14, 2012
• It’s good for our communities when toiling for a paycheck isn’t the only thing people do.
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• 8 Comments

• Public Service in an Age of Corrosive Cynicism
• Posted By: Mark Funkhouser |   May 10, 2012
• As disdain for government grows, it’s more important than ever to recognize those who do outstanding work.
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• 3 Comments

• Counties and the Revenue Crisis that Won’t Go Away
• Posted By: Mark Funkhouser |   May 7, 2012
• Saddled with antiquated revenue structures, county governments don’t have the flexibility they need to meet modern expectations for service delivery.
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• 1 Comments

• One City’s Comeback from the Fiscal Brink
• Posted By: Mark Funkhouser |   May 3, 2012
• The Kansas community of Junction City got itself into serious financial trouble. Now, without emergency managers or threats of bankruptcy, it’s getting itself out.
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• 3 Comments

• How We’re Losing the War on Corruption
• Posted By: Mark Funkhouser |   April 30, 2012
• Increasingly, we’re trivializing ethics and falling short on financial accountability. The citizens deserve better.
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• 7 Comments