Archived News

Relief in New Orleans, punishment in Baton Rouge

The path of Hurricane Gustav offered New Orleans a reprieve, but 80 miles away where utilities say the devastation was the worst they have ever seen, the storm offered nothing but punishment.

Underground FEMA fuel tanks could leak

In the 1960s, at height of the Cold War, the United States placed diesel fuel tanks around the country to fuel generators in the event of a nuclear attack. Unfortunately, these metal tanks have begun to rust and now there's a real threat of fuel leaks, and if diesel leaks into the drinking water, affected populations face a higher risk of cancel, kidney damage, and nervous system disorders. FEMA has located most of these tanks and is determining what they should do with them on a case by case basis.

Congratulations Wai Kin Khoong

MLC’s is proud to announce that business systems analyst Wai Kin Khoong passed Level I of the CFA examination in 2008.

Tropical Storm Edouard heads for Texas-La. Coast

Tropical Storm Edouard is heading toward Texas’ Gulf Coast and is expected to gain near-hurricane strength and speed as it travels over the warm Gulf waters. Although, Edouard is not forecasted to be a strong as Hurricane Dolly, which brought 100mph winds on July 23, emergency teams have been activated and residents begin to brace themselves. Companies like Shell Oil Co. have already evacuated some of their employees, but are hopeful that the oncoming hurricane does not halt their production.

A New Clue in Predicting Earthquakes

Researchers, while studying underground changes caused by shifts in barometric pressure, noticed that there were increases in subterranean pressure preceding earthquakes along the San Andreas Fault. They noted that the subterranean pressure changes as much as 10 hours before an earthquake. Seismologists are hopeful that further research into these finding will provide people with a few more hours to find a safe place prior to an earthquake.

Moderate California Earthquake a Drill for the "Big One"

A magnitude-5.4 earthquake rocked the Southern California region on Tuesday, July 29, 2008. The quake caused only minor damage and a few injuries, but served as a reminder of the devastating Northridge earthquake (magnitude-6.7) and the “Big One” yet to come. Scientists calculated that California has a 99.7 percent chance of facing a magnitude-6.7 quake or larger in the next 30 years, and will be holding a earthquake drill in the fall.

6 Signs You Don't Care About Workers

Do organizations’ truly see their employee’s as their greatest assets? If so, where do they place their Human Resources leaders relative to their executive vice-presidents and chief officers and how do they treat their recruits? If organizations rank their HR leaders below their vice presidents and chief officers and treat their recruits like cattle, they may not actually value their talent as much as they say.

Consumers Change Buying Habits, But Will it Last?

According to a recent survey, 63% of consumers are cutting their spending. Shoppers are buying store brand food, cutting coupons, and eating out less, and stores have shifted to meet their needs. The quality of store brand goods has shifted to a point that has left retailers, marketers, and investors curios as to whether consumers will return to department stores and high-end goods when the economy recovers.

Intriguing Population Trends

In a modest reversal, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Diego and some of the nation’s other older cities registered small gains in population in the year ending July 2007, while others slowed their declines, according to census figures released Thursday.

Fires in Big Sur

With more than 2,800 homes at risk, 2,200 firefighters, 19 helicopters, and six air tankers continue to battle the 71,000-acre blaze in the Northern California coastal town of Big Sur this past weekend. Weather forecasts will further complicate their efforts, with temperatures possibly exceeding 105 degrees on Tuesday.

Grim Job Figures

Since May, when the unemployment rate jumped to 5.5%, the greatest one month increase in two decades, the unemployment rate has been fairly steady. Unfortunately, this has cost the economy 73,000 jobs a month, opposed to the creation of 100,000 jobs needed to keep pace with population increases.

Energy's Easiest Fix

According to the Alliance to Save Energy, driving 5% less, slowing down, and inflating your tires will reduce the US oil consumption by 1.3 million barrels a day. This is nearly twice the estimated amount oil that can be attained from drilling in Alaska’s Arctic Nation Wildlife Refuge. All the while, Saudi Arabia is producing an additional 200,000 barrels a day, and Congress has raised fuel-efficiency standards, requiring cars to get 35 miles a gallon by 2020.

Rising Corn Prices

With an estimated demand for corn of 12.5 billion bushels in the coming year, analysts fear that the floods in the Midwest may reduce corn production to approximately 11 billion bushels. Corn prices in turn rose to a near $8 a bushel Monday, adding further to the growing cost of food. The price for essential commodities, such as feed for cattle, sweetener for soda, and ethanol may also rise. An increasing competition has forced some farmers out of the market and caused others reduce their output. The remaining farmers desperately plant as much as they can, but fear that the soil is just too wet.

Floods Force 36,000 to Evacuate

Hydrologists float 17 feet above county roads on the Cedar River in Iowa measuring the direction, depth, and speed of the water. The flood has evacuated 36,000 people, who now wait anxiously in checkpoints lines to survey the damage to their homes.

MLC Principals Travel to India

Mary Carrido and Bob Takemura have just returned from a trip to India to explore business opportunities and attend the wedding of a past associate. They learned a great deal and found the people to be very friendly and gracious. The wedding was an absolutely beautiful affair lasting three days. It included a great deal of music, dancing, and ritual indicative of the rich and ancient cultural roots of India. Of course Bob took many, many photos that captured the contrasting life styles of the various social segments as well as famous historical sites such as the Taj Mahal.

MLC Asked to Perform CPM Assessment

A mid-sized manufacturer has asked MLC to conduct an assessment of the processes, technology, and people factors impacting their financial performance. As a result of the assessment, the MLC team will be recommending a suite of changes including management dashboards and analytical tools built on the Cognos platform as well as process improvements and more effective management practices.

Published Work By Dr. Saracco

An MLC Principal is the author of a chapter in two books aimed at Security Professionals. There is a chapter by Dr. Don Saracco related to the assessment of organizational culture in each of the following:

Information Security Handbook, Sixth Edition, Vol 2
Harold Tipton and Micki Krause

CISO Leadership: Essential Principles for Success
Todd Fitzgerald and Micki Krause

Both books are available from Amazon.com

MLC asked to participate in Community Planning

We have been invited to join a group of planning professionals and community leaders to help develop an Economic Recovery Group for the City of Tacoma, WA. At first blush this organization appears to be a version of the Disaster Recovery Business Alliance that MLC developed for the city of Evansville, Indiana some years ago. The Tacoma effort involves Emergency Planning professionals from the city, county, and state as well as representatives from private sector organizations located in the Pierce County area.

Honorable Mention

A member of the MLC & Associates, Inc. staff has met the requirements for certification in the field of security. Edwin (Tad) F. Boyd IV passed the comprehensive written exam on his first attempt and will receive the designation of Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) upon final filing of documents. Please join us in congratulating Tad on this significant accomplishment.

Two New Associates

Jonathan DiBennedetto graduated from Boston University with a BS in Business Administration where he studied issues related to Business Continuity as well as general business subjects. While a student, he started a business that gave him hands-on experience with owning and operating a sole proprietorship. He also worked for a time in residential real estate leasing business. Jonathan served an internship with MLC a number of years ago, and we are very pleased to have him join us on a permanent basis.

Congratulations to Dr. Saracco

Auerbach has published a new book by Todd Fitzgerald and Micki Krause that features a chapter by Dr. Don Saracco of MLC & Associates, Inc. The chapter is entitled, "Why and How Assessment of Organization Culture Should Shape Security Strategies."