As most states have reopened in some fashion, we’re seeing what life dealing with the coronavirus could look like for the foreseeable future. The topic of rebuilding the economy surely will be front and center during the upcoming presidential election. All businesses across the country will be open at some point, but that does not [...]
Missouri Western State University has acted to fill its lone vacancy on the Board of Governors by naming one of its students to the position. The board, which is appointed with input from the university by Gov. Mike Parson, has had seven voting members over the course of the year. After a state of financial [...]
Dr. Frank Kessler laughs when recalling the reasons for his retirement. No, not the recent retirement. The one that came before this last job, which lasted another two decades. A professor of political science, Kessler arrived at Missouri Western State College during its early years as a four-year institution. Everything on the Downs Drive campus [...]
After the recent crash of the stock market with businesses closing and jobs lost, there almost seems nowhere to go but up. In the past several weeks on the New York Stock Exchange, there hasn’t been considerable growth but there also haven’t been the massive losses seen earlier in the pandemic. The stock market is [...]
It’s tough to write a column in advance when you’re dealing with a subject described as a “moving target.” I’m talking, of course, about COVID-19 and its attendant problems. So many things we don’t know, or situations change suddenly: Is there a vaccine for this virus? Should we wear masks? When will we feel comfortable [...]
By Zach Fisher, News-Press NOW, Apr 4, 2020 The current state of the United States and global economy is in limbo. The coronavirus pandemic is causing businesses, big and small, to lay off workers to keep afloat. This past week, a record number of Americans filed for unemployment benefits — 6.6 million, according to the [...]
By Bailey Ketcham, News-Press NOW, Apr 2, 2020 Drivers in St. Joseph can go to a gas station and find gas for as little as $1.69 due to the low demand for oil during the COVID-19 pandemic. Gas prices started to drop when Saudi Arabia announced it would flood the market with extra oil and [...]
By Greg Kozol, News-Press NOW, March 28, 2020 Anyone who visits a grocery store notices barren shelves as COVID-19 fuels panic buying. But a trip to a food-production facility reveals something different. Employee vehicles fill the parking lot, heavy trucks roll in and exhaust pours from the roof. ... Why, then, are there fears of [...]
By Greg Kozol, News-Press NOW, March 14, 2020 ... “This effect on Wall Street is a symptom of a whole bunch of other things,” said Dr. Kara Grant, a professor of economics at Missouri Western State University. “When you have a lot of supply chain disruptions, that could cause inflation and unemployment.” A steep drop [...]
By Ken Newton, News-Press NOW, March 8, 2020 ... Dr. Edwin Taylor, chair of the Department of Economics, Political Science and Sociology at Missouri Western State University, said the primary system works as a party function of selecting nominees, but the eventual governance, laced with partisanship, has been corroded. “That’s the thing that worries me [...]
