From time to time I pick on McDonald’s for some of their business practices. However, this week I feel I should give them a shout out as they have taken a very wise step to protect customers from internet pornography at their restaurants.

Most of us have seen news articles about self-driving cars, most notably when they get into a crash. I have written about the impact of driverless vehicles especially relating to the taxi industry.  The other day I ran across an interesting quotation from Mark Fields, President of Ford Motor Company, who said, "Our view is, autonomous vehicles could have just as significant of an impact on society as Ford's moving assembly line did 100 years ago." In my view, Ford Motor Company has long been the best-run US-based auto company. A visionary statement like this should be taken seriously.

Recently, Roger Ailes resigned as Fox News chief under significant pressure based on employee claims of sexual harassment. I have no firsthand knowledge about whether these allegations are correct or not. What is apparent is that some employees made allegations over a number of years claiming harassment. The internal investigation likely revealed some concerns; otherwise Mr. Ailes would not have been pushed out. My perspective is that serious allegations require a genuine investigation. If the allegations prove true, the perpetrator must receive appropriate discipline. If the allegations cannot be supported, they should be aggressively refuted, and management should support the one falsely accused.

You may have seen advertisements for the Christian dating site, Christian Mingle. Recently the state of California ordered the dating site to pay $468,000 to plaintiffs for refusing to carry their advertisements for dating services. In addition the court order specified that Christian Mingle must carry requests for same-sex dating in the future. Under California law, California “business establishments” must offer “full and equal accommodations” to individuals regardless of sexual orientation.  Clearly this places many Christian businesses in a serious quandary. Where does one draw the line?

I have written about the excess rental space in mini malls and strip malls. I’ve shared how this presents a problem for landlords but an opportunity for businesses. We all know that e-commerce is on the increase. Currently it is growing about 15% a year and accounting for 8 % of all retail sales. Contrast this with total retail sales up 3.3% this year and you can see which way the wind is blowing.