Kevin F. McCarthy

This second collection of short stories once again takes the reader beyond the paths we all walk in our everyday life, to where that thin veil of civilization is torn aside revealing worlds in which the strange and impossible do happen, for better and for worse. *** In the nine tales here we meet; a man who buys a classic car that can do incredible things, things that could change his life forever, even if he'd rather it didn't (The Song Remains the Same). *** A brilliant and nasty research scientist who is hell bent on unlocking the key to immortality both for herself and for mankind, even if it means destroying a few of her colleagues along the way. In the end all she succeeds in doing is to push the boundaries of science too far and create a terrible moral dilemma for those that come after her (Revenge is a Dish Best Served Cold). *** A couple who run out of gas in the desert and stumble across a secret that will change their perception of reality and render obsolete everything they thought they knew about the world they live in (The Grass is Always Greener). *** A group of scientists, politicians and military personnel who must decide, quickly, if first contact with an alien race is something to be welcomed, or avoided at all costs (But We Want to be Alone). *** A mysterious man who brings together a group of brilliant researchers, each with their own special skills, and tasks them with solving some of the most enduring mysteries of our world (Hidden Places). *** A bitter unsuccessful old man who breaks into a long abandoned bar from his past to have a last drink and recall his misspent youth. He's about to discover that the bar isn't as empty as it seems and that he's let himself in for more than just a walk down memory lane (Last Call at JJ's). *** These are just some of the stories in volume two of Tales From Where the Road Ends. Stories that will take you to places you've never been, some wonderful, some frightening, some you may never be able to forget.

Tales from Where the Road Ends II

Mark Hanson

In summer 2006, the Commission on Recovery, Rebuilding, and Renewal asked the RAND Gulf States Policy Institute to describe the state of the pre-Hurricane Katrina housing markets in Mississippi's three coastal counties, to estimate the damage the storm did to their housing markets, to describe the status of the recovery effort, and to identify problems that might inhibit it. This report publishes the findings.

Post-Katrina Recovery of the Housing Market Along the Mississippi Gulf Coast

Elizabeth Heneghan Ondaatje

Jennifer L. Novak

The nonprofit arts currently face an environment that challenges the way the arts have grown and raises the prospect of future consolidation. Cognizant of these problems, William Penn Foundation and the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance asked RAND to examine the condition of Philadelphia's arts and culture sector and recommend actions to ensure its sustainability. The authors identify the sources and characteristics of this new environment and describe the ways local arts communities are responding to the challenges confronting them. In the course of their analysis of eleven metropolitan regions, including Baltimore, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Cleveland, Denver, Detroit, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Phoenix, and Pittsburgh, they introduce two novel ways of examining the local arts sector. First, they focus on the relationship among the three components of communities' "arts ecology": their arts infrastructures; the support systems upon which the arts depend; and the sociodemographic, economic, and the political environment in which they operate. Second, they create a new framework for describing and evaluating the range of support services that communities provide to their arts sectors. They then use this framework to analyze the components of Philadelphia's arts ecology and assess its specific strengths and weaknesses.

Strategies for Sustainability

Arts and Culture in the Metropolis

Arthur Brooks

Laura Zakaras

Elizabeth H. Ondaatje

During the past decade, arts advocates have relied on an instrumental approach to the benefits of the arts in arguing for support of the arts. This report evaluates these arguments and asserts that a new approach is needed. This new approach offers a more comprehensive view of how the arts create private and public value, underscores the importance of the arts?' intrinsic benefits, and links the creation of benefits to arts involvement.

Gifts of the Muse: Reframing the Debate about the Benefits of the Arts

Andras Szanto

The third in a series that examines the state of the arts in America, this analysis shows, in addition to lines around the block for special exhibits, well-paid superstar artists, flourishing university visual arts programs, and a global expansion of collectors, developments in the visual arts also tell a story of rapid, even seismic change, systemic imbalances, and dislocation.

Kevin F. McCarthy

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