Eric Basinger

• Jobs are out there for those with specific sets of skills

  With all of the people who are looking for jobs locally and nationwide, it's ironic that Manatee County employers are struggling to fill key positions. "Despite the high unemployment rate, businesses in our READ MORE

• Manatee County has been on winning side of some big deals

  In the high-stakes world of economic development, some communities win and some lose. That has been especially true during the recession, as businesses have down-sized, trimmed costs and consolidated operations READ MORE

More by Eric...

• Valentines from businesses

Ernest 'Doc' Werlin

• Billionaire must start spending on Sears and Kmart stores

  "Have you been to a Kmart lately? It's not the nicest place to shop." – Martha Stewart After years of weak sales and no turnaround in sight, retail analysts believe Sears Holding, the nation's third- READ MORE

• Oil prices are ramping up again

  For those who can remember the oil shocks of the 1970s, it all seems eerily familiar. During that decade, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries employed stratagems to increase prices from about READ MORE

More by 'Doc'...

• Ballooning U.S. budget deficit a serious obstacle to recovery

Harold Bubil

• In real estate stories, a market for distrust

  When it comes to stories in the media about real estate, readers have developed a level of mistrust. This is understandable, particularly when the people quoted in those articles are real estate brokers or READ MORE

• 

  Taylor Morrison adds to Lakewood Ranch's housing menu

  For the first time, the master-planned community has an active-adult lifestyle component READ MORE

More by Harold...

• Nevada victory gives Romney two in a row
• Romney notches a win in Nevada
• Price for parking may be the problem
• Green grant criteria panned

J. Robert Parkinson

• Presidential debates showcase image's effect on perceptions

  'He wasn't at the top of his game tonight." "She seemed insecure." "He was tense answering the questions." "He wasn't very comfortable with some of the topics." These were just some of the comments READ MORE

• In expense accounts, as in life, never think you are entitled

  Years ago, I worked for a company that was extremely successful -- and generous with its employees. All travel was first class, expense accounts and reimbursements were seldom questioned. It would have been easy READ MORE

More by J. Robert...

• How businesses insult people: Let us count the many ways
• Will 2012 be a truly new year, or just a recycled year for you?
• For managers, gifts that can't be miscontrued, even by IRS
• Telling the difference between goals and wishful thinking

Jack McCabe

• Data portend another tough year for Florida's economy

  Forecasting what's ahead for Florida's economic future in 2012 requires understanding current key data points. While the pseudo-unemployment rate is no longer in double digits and Florida's population increased READ MORE

• National Realtors 'fess up to dirty data secrets ... sort of

  On Dec. 21, at a time when most Americans are enjoying the holidays with family and paying less attention to the news, the National Association of Realtors quietly dropped a bomb. Along with the release of READ MORE

More by Jack...

• The gifts Americans need for a prosperous new year
• Facts needed to counteract 'hopium' and its pushers
• The Jack McCabe American Dream Recovery Program
• Mr. President, you still don't get it: Fixing the housing market is Job One

Jerry Chautin

• Advice on successfully investing in commercial real estate

  Inexperienced real estate investors often pay too much for income-producing real estate. That is because they lack detailed market data of similar transactions and have not yet learned how to analyze the numbers READ MORE

• Governments need to stop the 'payola' luring jobs away from each other

  No one likes them. Every one hates them. Yet states and municipalities continue to offer monetary incentives to seduce companies to choose their communities over others. And, of course, we, the taxpayers, pick up READ MORE

More by Jerry...

• Rule No. 1 of franchising: Independence is bad
• Restaurant survival requires food, service – and pickles?
• Got an invention? Don't get scammed
• Dismantling Fannie and Freddie a bad idea

John Hielscher

• Investors have their own reason to cheer for the Giants

  Stock market bulls are cheering for the New York Giants in Super Bowl XLVI. Why? Because a win by the Giants should signal an up market in 2012, says Sarasota's Robert Stovall, a widely quoted market analyst. READ MORE

• S&P downgrades Raymond James over its Morgan Keegan purchase

  Raymond James Financial's bold deal to buy broker Morgan Keegan got a quick reaction from Standard & Poor's Rating Services. S&P placed St. Petersburg-based Raymond James on CreditWatch "with negative READ MORE

More by John...

• Bank failures down in 2011; taxpayers get two extra days
• Bank holding company set to buy small Tampa lender
• R. Allen Stanford's victims sue agency for repayment
• Florida must have real estate credit, economist says

Kathy Baylis

• Nurturing a local network of tech-savvy entrepreneurs

  Bobbie Ayers realized her business needed more than a make-over. The person she hired to run her business in Missouri had fallen short, and the technological times were changing, affecting her CD-ROM-based product READ MORE

• Much changed in 40 years, and will in the next 40, too

  WHEN I FIRST MOVED TO Sarasota County almost 40 years ago, I lived on the island of Venice. In those days, we celebrated the arrival of the first McDonald's restaurant in town and went to drive-in theaters where READ MORE

More by Kathy...

• Kathy Baylis: Now available: expert advice from economic gardeners
• Kathy Baylis: Sarasota County working to transform economy now
• International reach growing for Sarasota County business

Lauren Rudd

• Doubters have driven down shares of this worthy company

  Lauren Rudd's column is appearing today instead of Friday because of an editor's error. It will continue to appear on Fridays. Between the meetings in Davos, Switzerland, and the frenzy over Wall Street READ MORE

• Intrinsic value: A first step

  With earnings season in full swing, many of you are going to be re-evaluating current or potential investments. Therefore, let me once again address the issue of selecting potential investment candidates and then READ MORE

More by Lauren...

• A balm for those battered by wild claims of brokers: Abbott
• Two stocks likely to take flight in the coming year, and why
• Calvin and Hobbes were right: It is a world full of possibilities
• Give a gift that keeps on giving: an early interest in investing

Mark Huey

• Who's more important, entrepreneurs or innovators?

  What do Wayne Huizenga, Ted Turner and Meg Whitman have in common? They all launched highly successful businesses -- Waste Management, CNN, eBay -- and, according to author Jim Clifton, they all did so based on READ MORE

• Businesses' wisdom, wealth and workers build community

  If you have lived in or visited Sarasota County for any length of time, you know this community offers a rare combination of assets. Lots of coastal communities have nice beaches (though arguably not as nice as READ MORE

More by Mark...

• What to do: Help companies grow or bring in new ones?
• Film industry means millions for Sarasota County economy
• Businesses, like people, need and deserve to be appreciated
• For county to succeed, many small steps and one long-sustained focus

Matt Sauer

• Southwest gets low marks for communications

  Southwest Airlines always been known for its cheap flights. It also apparently goes cheap on its marketing and public relations. I get to observe a fair amount of that kind of work from this vantage point and READ MORE

• Maybe the rich aren't so different from you and me

  PNC Wealth Management tapped a thorny topic last week and put the best spin it could on it. The PNC survey was entitled "Responsibility and Money: How the Wealthy View Their Role in Society." A news release READ MORE

More by Matt...

• Looking at 2012 and boldly predicting ... some improvement
• Taking 2011's measure, and hoping 2012 will be better
• What a Tim Tebow example can show us about business
• In search of: Buffett staffer; Found: Manatee EDC leader

Robert Stepleman

• Suggested 2012 benchmark allocation for moderate investors

  While not quite one for the record books, the U.S market in 2011 set investors' heads spinning and hearts pounding as the number of days with three-digit moves in the Dow Jones Industrials was well above average. READ MORE

• 2011 proved to be a year the stock market forgot

  For many investors' portfolios of U.S. stocks, 2011 was the year that didn't happen. The S&P 500 index was flat in price, though ahead 2.1 percent with dividends. The Dow Jones U.S. Total Market Index behaved READ MORE

More by Robert...

• There's risk and then there's so much risk it's like a lottery
• Sleeping Soundly Portfolio does its job well in 2011
• Will 2012 also be bleak for economy and markets?
• Longterm economic trends affecting securities' returns

Sean Snaith

• Those conducting European fiscal policy must act fast

  The initial rumblings of the European Union's debt earthquake occurred in early 2010, when we first heard about Greece's excessive spending. No longer just tiny tremors, this financial crisis is shaking the READ MORE

• Snaith: Cloud over Penn State

  If God isn't a Penn State Fan, then why is the sky blue and white? This phrase frequently seen on bumper stickers on vehicles in Central Pennsylvania and this simple show of support for the Nittany Lions was one READ MORE

More by Sean...

• The many ways Greek crisis influences Florida's economy
• Housing and labor: conjoined twins of Florida's economy
• Bin Laden's death welcome but no solution to problems
• Race to the 'tax bottom' won't help Florida progress

Sharon Hillstrom

• Manatee quickly becoming magnet for athletic events

  How can a relatively small community like Manatee County hope to compete with the world for businesses and jobs in any field? One way is to ferret out the next growth industry, preferably one in which the READ MORE

More by Sharon...

Tom Bayles

• Tom Bayles: Lakewood Ranch resurgence

  Little but bad news came from Lakewood Ranch during the depths of the housing bust, but not much other than good stuff about the 8,500-acre community has been landing on my desk for more than a year. Last summer, READ MORE

• Tom Bayles: Housing data provider says Realtor group twisted data

  THERE IS A WAR OF SORTS brewing between the National Association of Realtors and housing data provider CoreLogic about the NAR's reporting of home sales. CoreLogic contends that the NAR inflated sales READ MORE

More by Tom...

• Ways to find a perfect match – you and your dream Realtor

Virginia Haley

• Part official greeter, part concierge, your visitor center

  Your vacation starts here. The Sarasota Visitor Information Center and History Center Museum is located in the heart of the cultural district at U.S. 41 and Boulevard of the Arts in downtown Sarasota, and is a READ MORE

• What the coming year holds for hospitality

  Nearing the end of the year, I'm always asked by our partners in the hospitality industry how things are looking for the coming year. We've been busy offering marketing outlook sessions for our partners, and I READ MORE

More by Virginia

• The many ways we attract interest of meeting planners
• Working with the media to get the word out about Sarasota County
• Sarasota County wooing world, one niche at a time
• Sports marketing becomes increasingly important

Eric Ernst

• Ernst: Orioles' promise of youth facility looks hollow

  It turns out that all the talk about the synergy to be created between the Orioles and Sarasota County's youth was just that, too. Talk. READ MORE

• Ernst: Art is a respite for seniors with dementia

  Weekly gatherings stimulate cognitive skills for Alzheimer's patients through physical activities, socializing, bingo, art and music READ MORE

More by Eric...

• Ernst: County's vanishing emails raise questions
• Ernst: Gardener's project moved and helping others
• Ernst: Experts agree that Sarasota's fertilizer law is good
• Ernst: Changing the law won't prevent DUI deaths

Jim Brown

• Brown: Longboat's policy shift is a major mistake

  No question the resignation of Bruce St. Denis as Longboat Key's town manager will be a hot topic on this island for months to come. But as the discussion starts I'd like to make one thing clear: Town commissioners READ MORE

• Brown: Do Longboat Key's leaders put people second?

  Word on the street is that Bruce St. Denis — who's been the only town manager most Longboat Key residents have ever known — is about to be fired. Some say it will come at Thursday's 1 p.m. Town READ MORE

More by Jim...

• Brown: Base new Publix center on St. Armands Circle
• Brown: Intriguing idea to help seniors who no longer drive
• Brown: For elderly, what's the alternative to driving?
• Brown: It's time we learned from our mistakes

Rich Brooks

More by Rich...

Tom Lyons

• Lyons: Bar's ethics opinion little chill to foreclosures

  A year ago, the Florida Bar issued an ethics opinion that was a warning for every mortgage lawyer who helps lenders foreclose on Florida homes. It must have made many of them squirm a bit, but maybe not enough. READ MORE

• 

  Lyons: Parking meter foes have reason to gloat

  Actual use of paid parking in downtown Sarasota is far, far below projections READ MORE

More by Tom...

• Lyons: A scene that isn't funny because it's real
• Lyons: Crowd makes Gingrich campaign rally an experience
• Lyons: Charging Kenney in hypnosis case is unfair
• Lyons: Proposal could make reporting crime a crime

Bill Herald

• Clark wins 700-plus tourney

  Fourth-seeded Dylan Clark romped to victory in four consecutive matches in the stepladder finals of last Sunday's 700+ tournament singles at AMF Gulf Gate Lanes. Just three days prior to his 19th birthday, Clark READ MORE

• Bruno, Cavis shine in junior tourney

  Nicholas Bruno and Hannah Cavis were three-time winners in the Sarasota-Manatee County Youth Championships, held at Sarasota lanes last weekend. Bruno, competing in the boys' 160-175 average division, won the READ MORE

More by Bill...

Chris Anderson

• Detra fights to regain form after cancer treatment

  The lump was the size of a quarter, and it was visible for two months. Not that Austin Detra was worried. Surely it would disappear on its own. Swimmers like Detra don't get cancer, especially swimmers who have READ MORE

More by Chris...

Doug Fernandes

• For Riverview grad Baas, a once-in-a-lifetime game

  This Giant is acutely aware of the Giant stage he is about to ascend. "It's a huge game," David Baas said, "a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, so I want to make the most of it." The Riverview High graduate READ MORE

• Hargrove not defensive about his life’s direction

  Perhaps you've heard, the NFL is staging a quiet, understated event called the Super Bowl next Sunday in Indianapolis. The New York Giants versus the New England Patriots. Pigskin, pomp and pageantry. Regarding READ MORE

More by Doug...

• Does anybody want the Buccaneers job?
• X’s and O’s of Carson’s life now in the Hall
• Couple of old Sailors steer course for home
• Pat Carter added to Shrine game staff

Mic Huber

• USTA makes it more kid friendly

  My grandson, Dominic Murphy, celebrated his first birthday shortly before Christmas. Therefore, to me, it seemed obvious that one of his Christmas gifts had to be a tennis racket and a couple of those big foam READ MORE

• Sarasota Open may add event for women

  The tennis landscape is dotted with a few events that bring together both men and women at professional tournaments. There are the four Grand Slam events, of course. There are also major tournaments, like the READ MORE

More by Mic...

• Off the court and on, success helps define Sarasota player Peschke
• Mistakes, turnovers, penalties it was bad
• Orange will continue to suit Dickson just fine at Miami
• Was Stout’s tennis trip to Turkey cursed?

David Grimes

• Grimes: Gators lookin' for love

  May is Alligator Mating Month, an occasion we Floridians celebrate by eating deep-fried gator balls and declaring that they taste just like chicken. (The fact that humans eat gator balls goes a long way toward READ MORE

• David Grimes: Mother's Day miscues

  Today is Mother's Day and, to all you guys out there, I hope you put more thought into this year's gift selection than you did last year. This is not to say I have not been guilty of a few "miscues" in my day. READ MORE

More by David...

• Florida's lovebugs: What's not to love?
• Legend of Sam Fuld continues
• Egypt, here is what you can expect
• Watching TV can kill you!

Jay Handelman

• 

  REVIEW: 'Big River' flows a little too slowly

  It's a long journey down the Mississippi for Huck and Jim in the Venice Theatre's production of “Big River.” The show staged by Brad Wages READ MORE

• 

  'Billy' daunting to theaters

  Each time a new musical becomes a hit on Broadway, it probably catches the attention of the directors of countless community theaters around the country. READ MORE

More by Jay...

• FST starts talk about 'Race'
• Symposium celebrates theater

Susan Rife

• Before vampires, 'The Host'

  Far be it from me to stand in judgment of others' tastes in books, but the allure of the whole Twilight Saga by Stephenie Meyer has eluded me. In fact, the whole obsession over all things vampire eludes me. But, READ MORE

• 

  'Crafts' book is puzzling

  Honestly, I don't know what to make of Amy Sedaris's new audio book, "Simple Times: Crafts for Poor People," which falls under the "crafts & hobbies" READ MORE

More by Susan...

Tom Becnel

• 

  Hidden Sarasota: 3 parks reveal a secret world

  The most beautiful bike path in Sarasota County winds through a former landfill. READ MORE

  Video

More by Tom...

Jeremy Wallace

• 

  Wallace: Sarasota and Manatee may share one district

  The Florida Legislature has reached a major compromise on redistricting that could put Sarasota and Manatee counties almost entirely together in one READ MORE

• Wallace: Sarasota beckons to First Lady and GOP hopefuls

  Republican presidential candidates will have to share the political stage in Sarasota with First Lady Michelle Obama this week. In between rallies for Republican presidential candidates Newt Gingrich on Tuesday READ MORE

More by Jeremy...

• Wallace: Jesse Biter chairs Santorum's Florida campaign from Sarasota
• Wallace: Democrats see hope in 2012
• Wallace: Democrats see hope in 2012
• Wallace: Laura Bush champions Gulf of Mexico

Guest columnist

• Guest: GWIZ for math and science

  By KELLEY LEAR Guest Columnist President Obama recently expressed his focus on supporting and improving STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) education. Regardless of affiliation, I think we all READ MORE

• FDLE defends Intoxilyzer study

  By GERALD M. BAILEY Guest Columnist I am writing in response to inaccuracies and omissions in the Jan. 18 Herald-Tribune article by reporter Todd Ruger, "To test Intoxilyzer, FDLE paid employees to get drunk. READ MORE

More Stories

• Guest: Cruising, with one eye on lifeboats
• Costello: Save rainy-season fertilizer ban
• Guest: Stepping up to the challenges of Parkinson’s
• Airport chief: The real story behind AirTran's departure

Kathy Silverberg

• Silverberg: A long, negative campaign

  After Tuesday's voting in Florida, it is looking more and more like the November election is shaping up to be a Romney vs. Obama contest. Admittedly, the deal is not sealed and stranger things have happened in past READ MORE

• Silverberg: Dying in the arms of dignity

  Much is being said and written these days about aging with dignity, not surprisingly given the increase in the number of older people as life spans increase and the population bubble known as the baby boomer READ MORE

More by Kathy...

• Silverberg: All have a stake in FAMU hazing scandal
• Silverberg: Mementos may be things of the past
• Silverberg: Troubling times for college football but ... Go, LSU!
• Silverberg: Be careful in using the term 'war'

Laura Sperling

• Sperling: The craft of daily news

  It's a new year and the Herald-Tribune has a new owner. But that's not why I'm straightening up my work desk.  I'm tackling the chore because, in the leaning tower of chaos known as my "filing system," I found READ MORE

• Sperling: Holiday shopping extremes

  How Americans choose to allocate their discretionary time and income is none of my beeswax.  If some of my fellow citizens want to spend the late hours of Thanksgiving camped out in a store parking lot instead READ MORE

More by Laura...

• Sperling: City needs park impact fees
• Sperling: Reach out to fight addiction
• Sperling: The mystery of red tide
• Sperling: Government is good for you

Meg Lowman

• Lowman: A good trap for science

  Instructions for living a life: Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it. Mary Oliver, poet The North Carolina Museum of Natural History's new Nature Research Center, opening this spring, will READ MORE

• Meg Lowman: Favorite spots in nature

  "We need the tonic of wildness, to wade sometimes in marshes ... and hear the booming of the snipe ... We can never have enough of nature." — Henry David Thoreau Walden, 1894 READ MORE

More by Meg...

• Lowman: Reliant on rare earth
• Lowman: Military goes green
• Lowman: The most beautiful roof
• Lowman: What Dr. Beach knows

Thomas Tryon

• Tryon: Good strategies to help the homeless and the community

  Robert Marbut, a researcher with real-world experience in helping communities alleviate chronic homelessness, was in Bradenton last week. He was invited by the Community Coalition on Homelessness to participate READ MORE

• Tryon: Terry Lewis' and Gene Witt's common credibility

  Terry Lewis is to Sarasota's county and city governments what Gene Witt was to the school district — the go-to guy in times of transition and even crisis. Last week, as Lewis finished a seven-month gig as READ MORE

More by Thomas

• Tryon: Creating a vibrant Bradenton arts community
• Tryon: Few lessons from Manatee hospital sale apply now
• Tryon: This year will be all about elections
• Tryon: Do you remember S&H Green Stamps?

Waldo Proffitt

• Proffitt: Tea leaves point to Romney

  Let me say right up front, dear reader, that I do not have any more facts than you do about the outcome of the 2012 Florida Republican presidential primary. But, I get paid to peddle opinion, and that sometimes READ MORE

• Proffitt: Voting in money's shadow

  Recent events have proved Florida Republicans made the right decision last year when they moved the state's GOP presidential primary to Jan. 31. They had a tough choice. If they picked that date, under a ruling READ MORE

More by Waldo...

• Proffitt: Hopeful economic signs
• Proffitt: The trouble with caucuses
• Proffitt: Save Sarasota Memorial
• Proffitt: High cost, little gain in Iraq

Charles Krauthammer

• 

  Krauthammer: In Syria, an opportunity

  WASHINGTON Imperial regimes can crack when they are driven out of their major foreign outposts. The fall of the Berlin Wall did not just signal the READ MORE

• 

  Krauthammer: Obama's anemic agenda

  WASHINGTON Once upon a time, small ball was not Barack Obama's game. Tuesday, it was the essence of his State of the Union address. The visionary of 2008 READ MORE

More Stories

• Krauthammer: Self-destructive GOP
• Krauthammer: Ron Paul's gains are the real story
• Krauthammer: Iowa picks a worthy challenger
• Krauthammer: A silent universe

Esther Cepeda

• 

  Cepeda: Don't disrespect president

  CHICAGO It is a stain on our nation's character when even our representatives and heroes can't suck it up and muster a modicum of respect for our READ MORE

• Cepeda: e-disaster in the making?

  CHICAGO As the future's promise of e-textbooks hurtles toward us, let's discuss what will be needed to keep them from becoming mere electronic clutter on the virtual bookshelf. I have about 30 textbooks lying READ MORE

More Stories

• Cepeda: Go tell it in classroom
• Cepeda: Don't let ID laws disenfranchise voters
• Cepeda: Smartphone Armageddon
• Cepeda: Muslim TV show meets reality

Fareed Zakaria

• 

  Zakaria: Global rise, not U.S. decline

  NEW YORK Dear Mitt Romney, Congratulations on Florida. Now that you are again the front-runner, and your campaign focus is returning to President Obama, READ MORE

• 

  Zakaria: Economic lessons for the U.S.

  WASHINGTON Passion is not enough to change the Republican Party. Despite the tea party's massive burst of energy, it looks increasingly likely that the READ MORE

More Stories

• Zakaria: Iran's growing desperation
• Zakaria: America’s investment gap
• Zakaria: Americans have reasons to be optimistic
• Zakaria: America's upward mobility is on the decline

George Will

• 

  George Will: Rescued from the sea of fatherless

  LOS ANGELES The worst day of Sugar Bear's 55 years was one of the days — there have been many of them — when he got out of prison. In the READ MORE

• 

  Will: Pettifogged into silence

  FOUNTAIN HILLS, Ariz. Dina Galassini does not seem to pose a threat to Arizona's civic integrity. But the government of this desert community believes you READ MORE

More Stories

• Will: Onward civilian soldiers
• George Will: Gingrich should scare the GOP
• George Will: A snapshot of our fearful times
• George Will: A can't do nation?

Kathleen Parker

• 

  Parker: Gossip in Yale case no substitute for facts

  WASHINGTON A recent New York Times story that essentially indicted and convicted a 22-year-old star football player on an alleged sexual assault charge by READ MORE

• 

  Parker: ‘Angry' label does disservice to first lady, and all of us

  WASHINGTON I can't speak for Michelle Obama, but call me an angry white woman. If the first lady isn't angry, she certainly has every right to be. Like READ MORE

More Stories

• Parker: The Rubio factor
• Parker: Gingrich as the GOP's death wish
• Parker: Gingrich plan for poor kids: Let them clean toilets
• Kathleen Parker: Ignorance isn't bliss

Ruth Marcus

• 

  Marcus: Arizona going purple?

  PHOENIX Presidential travel, especially in an election year, offers an insight into the favored electoral road map. So it is no surprise that President READ MORE

• Marcus: Romney's diminishing returns

  WASHINGTON How did a campaign as well run as Mitt Romney's so badly botch the issue of his tax returns?  It's no surprise that Romney was forced to back down from his initial position that he would not READ MORE

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• Marcus: Dangerous era of super PAC
• Ruth Marcus: Third-party wild card
• Ruth Marcus: Lost in the marriage gap
• Marcus: Crackdown on Israeli women