Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi is the only Indian who has a statue erected in his honour in Washington, a town of splendid memorials. While the Mahatma is a constant spiritual presence in the US capital — there is also a Gandhi Memorial Center— fiscally, it is the footprints of another Gujarati and Gandhi that is everywhere in the city: of the retiring District of Columbia chief financial officer (CFO) Natwar Gandhi. During Nat Gandhi’s 12-year tenure as the independent CFO, the city made an epic … [Read more...]
Articles
Frank blogs regularly for the Huffington Post and writes occasional columns and articles for publications such as the International Business Times and The Economic Times of India.
Frank writes on a wide variety of topics that are critical to shaping the future of America and the American dream and to making the United States and the world a better place. These include: Business; education; poverty and inequality; politics and public policy; immigration; manufacturing; innovation; leadership; citizenship; and social commentary.
Frank’s most recent blogs are highlighted on this page. To read other blogs or articles by Frank, click on the categories or publications links on the left.
National Service Not Military Service
A debate has erupted over the past year or so regarding reinstating the military draft. Representative Charles Rangel (D-NY) has introduced a bill for this purpose. Proponents of the reinstatement include Thomas Ricks, a fellow at the Center for New American Security, and Lawrence Korb, a former assistant secretary of defense in the Reagan administration. Their primary arguments center on the points a draft would cause greater deliberation before entering a conflict, shorten the length of … [Read more...]
Need to Start the Small Business Engines
Historically, American small businesses have been strong engines for job creation. Since the Great Recession, those engines have either been turned off or idling. We need to start those engines again if we want to get on the road to meaningful economic growth and recovery. Given the current attitude and the performance of the small business community over the past few years, however, that will not be an easy proposition. Two polls released recently reveal the extent of the problem. The January … [Read more...]
The Audacity of Jobs
President Obama used his State of the Union address to shift the legislative and national focus from austerity (the debt and deficit) to audacity (growth and economic development). Some pundits assert that in doing so he was taking his eye off the ball. We would argue quite the contrary. Putting jobs and wages in the direct line of sight is exactly what needs to be done to move the economy forward in a manner that benefits the middle class and average Americans. We made that argument last … [Read more...]
The Key to Prosperity: Manufacturing American Jobs
In his recent major speech at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA 7th District) called for Republicans to "focus our attention really on what lies beyond the fiscal debates" and to create "conditions for health, happiness and prosperity." It appears that the national conversation may be about to pivot from an almost obsessive concentration on big government and expense reduction to a concern for the well-being of the individual citizen and revenue … [Read more...]
Budget And Beyond: What India Needs To Do
For a while now, the performance of the Indian economy has been driving supporters of India worldwide to the sort of frustration that is often experienced by parents and teachers of a gifted teenager whose behavioral issues come in the way of fulfilling his or her enormous promise. Once the poster child of growth, the Indian economy has been having a bumpy ride in the past few years, with growth slowing down and investor confidence taking a major hit. In fact, in the past couple of years, the … [Read more...]
Gun Control vs. Mind Control
The tragic shootings at the Sandy Hook Elementary School have unleashed a torrent of public discussion and legislative proposals on gun control. Nationally, however, unless this debate can be framed as more than a fight about gun rights, it seems unlikely that this will result in much meaningful change. That's because, given the state of our American psyche today, mind control trumps gun control. That's not true just for gun lovers. It's also true for the general public as well. A poll … [Read more...]
Hands On, Hands Up, Hands Off: Our Necessary Social Contract Debate
America used to be a land where we took care of our own. Times are changing. Today, some would have the weakest and most vulnerable among us tighten their belts, lower their expectations, and take care of themselves. President Obama called the question on those individuals and on the shape and size of the nation's safety net in his inaugural address. A debate has been requested and it is an essential one for the future of our democracy and the American dream. For far too long, as the … [Read more...]
Manufacturing America’s Future
Once upon a time, America was the world's factory. That time will never come again. But, recent results and research indicate that factories and products will and must play a pivotal role in manufacturing America's future. Even with its relative decline as a contributor to GDP as an employer of American workers, the manufacturing sector remains a powerful force. Bruce Stokes notes in a 2011 posting published by the New America Foundation: The United States is the world's mightiest … [Read more...]
Two India-related inaugural balls and plenty of star power
For the first time in the rich and varied history of the US presidential inauguration balls, there will be two India-related balls. An Indian-American ball, sponsored by the non-profit group Indiaspora, and a Yoga Ball, hosted by Washington's Yoga community, are among the dozens of events that will celebrate the commencement of President Obama's second term. The Indiaspora Ball, scheduled to be held at the Mandarin Oriental hotel near Capitol Hill on Saturday night, has attracted … [Read more...]