IS IT TRUE my name is Joe Wallace and I am a truthaholic?…most of my career prior to attempting to make Evansville a home was spent as an entrepreneur and controls system engineer in Silicon Valley based businesses?…the foundation of controls systems is known as a negative feedback loop designed to detect how far one is from a goal and correct for that error as fast as possible?…the only way to accurately improve electronic devices, youth sports teams, the economy, or even local government is through honest and accurate assessment of where a situation is with respect to a goal and applying corrective measures in a stable way to correct for the errors keeping one’s goal from being attained?…any system without the benefit of negative feedback is inherently unstable so the City County Observer became a natural outlet for me to apply those skills in hopes of seeing Evansville, Indiana improve its performance in the world economy?

IS IT TRUE my name is Joe Wallace and I love Ron Cosby like a brother?…as many of you know but some of you do not fully understand, I also love greater Evansville and have spent much time crafting words in this column for the purpose of seeing Evansville become a better place through pointing out areas that need improvement?…I am especially fond of the University of Evansville, where I gained the educational platform that enabled me to be accepted into the graduate school of engineering at Stanford University, which was and is the #1 mechanical engineering program in the world?…settling for mediocrity has never been in this writer’s vocabulary and it never will be?…to see choices that compromise a chance for long-term excellence to coddle cronies and pursue short-term pleasures by local governance has been something that just drives me crazy?

IS IT TRUE my name is Joe Wallace and I was the founder of GAGE which was founded to create an atmosphere of excellence in which entrepreneurs could have a little piece of Silicon Valley in downtown Evansville?…at the time of the founding this was the dream job of my life with the opportunity to give back to a place and people who I love through the same economic transformation that I had experienced in my own life in my first stint in California?…within months of taking on that challenge, I learned that the words of some local government officials were not worth spit?…in spite of carefully getting commitments written into the minutes of meetings so there was an audit trail of commitment for things like a business loan fund, the Crane technology transfer agreement, and an angel network, those words of commitment were broken in a most deceitful way?…the short term “feel good” needs of the day in the form of the Freedom Festival destroyed the GAGE that was designed for entrepreneurship?…that is what lead to my departure from what I once thought was a dream job?…it is also what drove me to the opportunity to continue to try to do some good through writing for the CCO?

IS IT TRUE my name is Joe Wallace and I am now forever a Californian?…the dreams that I had for Evansville are being realized and recognized in Palm Springs, California?…with full financial support for the Innovation Hub our programs have created created 30 companies with a combined value of over $100 Million in just three years?…the direct job creation numbers are now at 123 (real jobs with names and not projections from a nonsense algorithm) and a world renowned economist has projected our 20 year economic impact to be over $12 Billion?…we have been honored with the Spirit of Entrepreneurship Award, the Clean Air Award, and are now a finalist for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award for 2015?…there is not a day that goes by that I do not wonder what could have been in Evansville, if the cabal called local government had the courage to think long term and stay the course?

IS IT TRUE my name is Joe Wallace and one of the things that I fought for as a private citizen in Evansville was a comprehensive smoking ban just like the one passed in California in 1988?…your elected officials have failed to do so and even prioritized what is in the big picture a paltry sum of money over public health with that failure?…I have always supported the freedom of people to marry who they choose and more than half the country now has yet your state legislature has not taken the initiative to grant what should be a fundamental right to the LGBT community?…I have furthermore always supported a woman’s right to choose what to do with her own body?…despite these long term beliefs, some people still call me a right winger because I do not believe in forcing one person to pay for the wants of another?…I have found my place in California, which believe it or not after years of letting emotions dictate policy is now coming to grips with financial reality and becoming more practical with money?…I think Indiana can get it right the first time if you can elect both local and state officials who have the good sense to grant fundamental rights as they should be granted and the financial acumen to stay away from robbing one citizen to pay for the wants of another?…I shall be watching but seriously doubt that there is much fight left in River City to pursue things that require taking much personal risk?

IS IT TRUE my name is Joe Wallace and this is my last CCO IS IT TRUE column…it has been a privilege to have played a role in   the CCO’s founder’s dream and I shall miss awakening at 5 am to put together a series of words to send a message to the people of Evansville?…I am proud to have assisted with the analysis and the words that have saved the taxpayers of Evansville so much money?…in spite of that I am feeling melancholy about seeing this column  possibly going dark…the end of IS IT TRUE will create a vacuum and I hope it is filled by someone with a pure objective and not with political malfeasance?…I wish all of those who have supported or even honestly criticized my words well and encourage you to keep up the fight for positive growth and rational thinking?…I look forward to your comments?…my private email is jjw0729@aol.com if any of you should wish to send a private message?…if you happen to see me in town this weekend feel free to come up and say hello?