Teaching an old dog new tricks

"Why would William Barr take this job? The answer should alarm Trump, "  Dana Milbank , The Washington Post, 15th Jan 2019.

"It was William P. Barr's  confirmation hearing . But it was Robert S. Mueller III's affirmation hearing ... President Trump had nominated Barr to be his new attorney general to shield him from Mueller's hoax of a  rigged witch hunt . But Barr spent much of his seven-hour confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday lavishing praise on his future boss's tormentor. And Republicans, for the most part, did not defend Trump - and occasionally joined in the Mueller veneration.

"Barr's appearance seemed to have a calming effect on the panel so recently shredded by the Brett M. Kavanaugh Supreme Court confirmation. It was as though the appearance of the 68-year-old Barr, confirmed by the same committee 27 years ago to serve the same role in President George HW Bush's administration, had transported the lawmakers to a kinder, gentler time. Instead of trading barbs, Democrats and Republicans took turns talking about the nominee's grandson. (The 8-year-old's "Dear Grandpa" note to the nominee mid-hearing was a hit.) "

[Can 68-year-old Barr learn new tricks? Or is it even necessary?]

"The rule of law, Barr  said , 'is the heartbeat of this country,' and he vowed to 'protect the independence and the reputation of the department.' Trump's treatment of subordinates 'might give me pause if I was 45 or 50 years old, but it does not give me pause right now,' Barr continued. He added, 'I will not be bullied into doing anything I think is wrong.' 

"Barr spent decades building his reputation. Why would he throw it away now by becoming the guy who buried the Mueller report? "

The US is a 242-year-old experiment in democracy. And to declare that the rule of law is its heartbeat is not a surprise. On the other hand, the UK is a much longer one:  "The Magna Carta [of 1215] still forms an important symbol of liberty today, often cited by politicians and campaigners, and is held in great respect by the British and American legal communities ,  Lord Denning  describing it as 'the greatest constitutional document of all times - the foundation of the freedom of the individual against the arbitrary authority of the despot.' "[Wikipedia]

These two front-page news in The New York Times would then seem incongruous: (a) The Brexit fiasco seems to be forcing a tectonic shift in how Britain is governed; (b) Here's where things stand in the fourth week of the [US] government shutdown.

It's the singer not the song. 

How does that relate to Juan de la Cruz? If he is to right the ship we call the Philippines, Juan de la Cruz must first right himself. The buck stops here!

But does Juan de la Cruz mirror Trump? Does he take personal responsibility for the predicament of PH? And how can he shift paradigms if he has a fixed mindset? Consider: In the 21st century, a growth mindset is imperative because change has accelerated and warp speed given the genius of man. And here's the question we must keep asking: Why are we the regional laggard?

The do's and don'ts can be intellectualized but a hardy mindset [or "chest"] comes with character and manifested whenever we step up to the plate and take ownership, as in personal responsibility. Because we do not want to be the country that has gone to the dogs. Consider: "How can we bring in more tourist arrivals in our country if our gateways are being run this way?"

"We are all for the development of Clark Airport as the new and promising national gateway that could in the future replace the hopelessly congested Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA). But questionable bidding shortcuts and shenanigans should stop.

"Speaking of NAIA, six flights were reportedly diverted again to Clark Airport last Friday night and inconvenienced several hundred passengers, both Filipinos and foreigners, due to runway repair. From what we've heard, the passengers were locked inside and made to wait at Clark Airport Terminal until flights resumed the next morning to fly back to NAIA. "[How not to run airports,  Marichu A. Villanueva , COMMONSENSE , The Philippine Star , 16th Jan 2019]

The wife and writer were about to go through the security check at JFK Terminal 4 when they read the posted advisory for all to see: " Department of Homeland Security Issues Travel Advisory to the Republic of the Philippines; Release Date: December 26, 2018.

"The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) today announced the determination that aviation security at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (MNL), which serves as a last-point-of-departure airport for flights to the United States, does not maintain and carry out effective security consistent with the security standards established by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). This determination was based on assessments by a team of security experts from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). " 

What to do? "Questionable bidding shortcuts and shenanigans [and incompetence, the mirror image of corruption ... and our culture of impunity] should stop."

And what is our response? "Solon wants 'storytelling' to promote PH tourism," Filane Mikee Cervantes, Philippine News Agency, 16th Jan 2019.

"According to the World Bank, the Philippines only had 5.361 million foreign tourist arrivals in 2017 compared to Thailand's 29.923 million; Malaysia's 25.721 million; Singapore's 12.051 million; Indonesia's 10.407 million; and Vietnam's 7.944 million.

"Compared to Bali, our own Boracay and other lesser known beaches in the country like those in the province of Aurora are far more beautiful. However, it seems that we lack stories that tell so ... [while] Indonesia's marketing promotions tell compelling stories that drive tourist traffic. "

Can we appreciate - and how do we distinguish - our worldview versus that of the outside world?

The blog has discussed Vietnam in recent postings because it is supposed to be within our reach, the Asian Tigers having long left us behind. Or is it only in tourist arrivals that we come close? PH = 5.361 million; Vietnam = 7.944 million. While on poverty: PH = 21.6%; Vietnam = 8%. But since this is more embarrassing than NAIA, we can choose to be in denial to protect our self-esteem?

And ... Vietnam's exports are 4.5 times more than ours. See above: It is the answer to the question, Why are we the regional laggard? We must replicate what our neighbors have done, toss crab mentality and keep our eye on this ball - not conflate the problems of the world. Throwing euphemisms like inclusive is just rhetoric and does not get to the root of our dilemma. Because until we cover such gargantuan gap in export revenues, we can only indulge in empty talks, reinforcing our state of insanity. And why (a) foreign direct investment and (b) our big players rapidly learning to be global players ... are key to the enterprise. In other words, agriculture and MSMEs combined given their trifling outputs can not be the answer.

Insanity? How long have we been focused on addressing poverty right at the core, ie, rural farmers? Consider: These are livelihood undertakings and can not drive the economy of a nation with over 100 million people. It comes down to our perceptive judgment. Subsistence farmers are poor so we must give them land - and more. It is called incremental and linear thinking. It misses the magic of synergy which is what economic tigers are able to achieve. And why Vietnam's poverty is down to 8% versus our 21.6%.

Should we be surprised that Vietnam is already sounding the alarm on foreign direct investment? Or are they in fact demonstrating foresight, and want to be proactive?

"Vietnam's foreign investment attraction down in 2018. HANOI, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) - Vietnam has attracted foreign investment of nearly 35.5 billion US dollars so far this year, posting a year-on-year decrease of 1.2 percent, its Foreign Investment Agency said on Wednesday. "[ Http: // www. xinhuanet.com/english/2018-12/26/c_137699826.htm ]

And where do we stand? "The latest Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) data, meanwhile, showed actual FDI inflows jumped 31 percent to $ 7.4 billion as of August, such that economic managers were expecting this year's haul to breach the record $ 10 billion posted last year.

"But the Asean Investment Report 2018 report showed that actual FDI inflows to the Philippines in 2017 were dwarfed by Singapore's $ 62 billion, Indonesia's $ 23.1 billion, as well as Vietnam's $ 14.1 billion." [PH still lagging behind peers in attracting foreign investments,  Ben O de Vera , Philippine Daily Inquirer, 8th Dec 2018]

And what is our response? It is just as well because it isolates us from the vagaries of the global economy. Yes, it isolates those of us in the elite class - while we take our eyes away from the ball, ie, we're still the regional laggard with a poverty rate equal to the population of Australia. Does "pwede an 'yan" then reveal a lack of foresight?

At the end of the day, is Juan de la Cruz overwhelmed by the challenge he faces? Consider the yardsticks: (a) is personal responsibility which presupposes a hardy mindset then (b) a growth mindset that demands overcoming a fixed mindset in order to shift paradigms and (c) foresight or the ability to conquer insanity, to look forward beyond horizon, imagine and visualize prosperity while pulling and connecting the dots of nation building and (d) learning from others which requires shedding parochialism and insularity and patronage and not be beholden to hierarchy while respecting the hierarchy of human needs.

How did Vietnam overtake PH despite the Vietnam war - being more recent than WWII? Vietnam has come a long way since the writer first visited the country to pursue an acquisition for his old MNC-company. Of course it is not China, very tiny in comparison. And if it took the writer 8 months of negotiations in China to get a deal sealed, Vietnam was a cakewalk.

He still recalls being woken up by a phone call from his NY HQ and the question was simply: Can we commit to investing in Vietnam? President Clinton, very new to the White House, invited scores of Fortune 500 CEOs to encourage them to invest in Vietnam. Because the US was sponsoring their entry into the WTO. And the rest, as they say, is history.

But let's get back to PH. Do we still wonder why we're the regional laggard? But can we in fact shift paradigms? How relevant is this article to our reality? For example, should we or should not we think out of the box? "THINKING out of the box" is a catch phrase for change and transformation, usually of the radical kind. The exhortation to throw out existing rules and let the imagination go bungee jumping is a common opener for strategy sessions held out of town. "[Thinking out of the box, Tony Samson, BusinessWorld, 14th Jan 2019]

Where is our paradigm coming from? Think ... ponder ... how our hierarchical instincts have stunted our foresight - from infrastructure development to industrialization to innovation to global competition - and why we have not traversed the road from poverty to prosperity.

Think ecosystem and the imperative of connecting the dots, which is how Steve Jobs defined creativity. And why the blog discussed China's efforts behind the Pearl River Delta economic zone. And how it pumped-prime industrialization and attracted record-breaking FDIs. But are we predisposed to stealing China or Vietnam's idea shamelessly or are simply out to do the same thing over and over again - and expect a different outcome?

See above re Clark Airport, which is supposed to be part of the Central Luzon development initiative. As the blog has raised, we need a development model beyond that of Makati and BGC - and exploit the scale and momentum of the region from Hacienda Luisita down to Calabarzon. It is beyond livable cities, for example. Because without an industrial anchor, the economic impact of urban planning will be limited.

Consider: Did we not know that the Rockwell Bridge was a stop-gap measure? That at some point we will pay the price? Ditto for OFW remittances and re-electing trapos, among others. It's called insanity! And why the blog has called out media. The news and editorial cycles are as predictable as night follows day. See below re the exhortation from Homobono Adaza.

Surprise, surprise! Our success model has been defined by patronage. And so rent-seeking - as in franchises and monopolies in utilities and infrastructure projects - represents our largest enterprises. And for the smaller players, franchises of foreign brands are popular.

What is their common denominator? They are less risky than truly creative endeavors. And given today's global market, we believe we're being wise and smart to recognize that risk management demands the ability to do business beyond one's home market. And we're from poor Philippines - and we value and respect hierarchy? - and can not be in the game.

And why the blog often speaks about the writer's Eastern European friends - from the poorest country in Europe. And why the writer accepted the invitation to be a development worker. And they have no free-enterprise heritage being a former Soviet-satellite state.

To be in the game they did a very simple chemistry exercise: They developed a liquid detergent that the local brewery can use to clean beer bottles. It was a very small cottage enterprise that turned sour after year-one when the brewery was bought by a Western company, that then stopped buying their product. 

What to do? With Western products and brands arriving to the local market, they branded their liquid dishwashing detergent but priced them very low for retailers to try. And for 8 years they were not making money. Their question to the writer when he arrived was simply: How do we move up to the next level? Today, 16 years later, they have over a dozen brands and counting and the overseas business is larger than that of the home market ... giving Western global behemoths a run for their money.

What is the moral of the story? To learn from and value their mistakes. The road to nirvana is not paved with gold. There is no free lunch. Seek the high road. And in the lingo of the 21st century, treat innovation and global competition as existential threats that must be overcome 24/7. Because the universe is a dynamic 24/7 phenomenon. 

What about PH? Recall Steve Jobs telling his audience that he has made more mistakes than most and has the scars to prove it. Not a surprise, he was fired from the company he founded. But for his swan song he made it the first trillion-dollar enterprise. 

Not everyone is a Steve Jobs. But our neighbors especially the Asia Tigers and more recently Vietnam knew they had to embrace foreign money and technology to keep up with the pace of change, including technology. While we never accepted the imperative to learn from others. And never understood what benchmarking is about - given Pinoy parochialism and insularity.

If it is not obvious yet, over the ten years of its existence, the blog has talked about the writer's old MNC-company - that had to right its ship when in the late 70's it was a takeover target ... and they can shed their growth mindset at their peril - and his Eastern European friends. What is their common denominator? Both are MNCs although one is 200 years old and covers 200+ countries and territories and the other just 16 years young and with a lesser coverage. And neither is a franchise of the rent-seeking kind or of a foreign brand. And both develop, create and market their own brands. Both are creative endeavors. 

And what they confirmed is the reality that wealthy nations do not have the monopoly in the pursuit of innovation and global competition. Recall that innovation starts with human need. And why Maslow is a constant theme of the blog. But we take it as consumerism, as evil - forgetting the story of creation, ie, man is good, says the Creator. And does it explain why ours is a fixed mindset? Only Padre Damaso has a mind of his own?

Disclosure: The writer has worked with marketing and R & D folks, among others, in Eastern Europe over the last 16 years and they've learned and relearned Maslow in the pursuit of innovation. In the Philippines we know it too, ie, we hear the "lifestyle" or "experience" claim from marketers being the unique selling proposition of their product or service offering. They are appealing to a consumer's need for self-actualization. Evil? Think how productive people are today because of technology. Evil was in Eden and in the Temptation of Christ as well as in the Last Supper. We can not run away from evil, but we have the option to overcome them.

Think ... ponder ... how our hierarchical instincts hollowed out whatever innovation reservoir we may have by assigning ranks to people - as in holier-than-thou - instead of respecting the hierarchy of their needs. And figuring out how they traverse the continuum.

Consider: Given our value of hierarchy and paternalism, we think of poverty as destiny. Because social mobility is alien to us. And it explains why our efforts are focused on poverty alleviation, eg, land reform, food security, modernizing the jeepney. What we take for granted is the lack of foresight ... in development. Juan de la Cruz is not destined to be servile but aspires to be self-actualized. Or why land reform as we know it is a moral hazard. Think of throwing candies to appease a child. 

In other words, to develop our sense of foresight, we must imagine and visualize a developed, wealthy, first-world nation - not a third-world, underdeveloped, poverty-gripped nation.

The bottom line: Given: (a) our failure to develop a growth mindset and (b) the lack of foresight to pursue development ... we must keep our economy restrictive. And we know who benefits - and it's not Juan de la Cruz, who pays the price! Because rank has its privileges.

But let's get back to the US and the UK. Can we teach old dogs new tricks? The US and the UK are not new in the democratic experiment. They may be floundering if we go by The New York Times reports but they both know that the rule of law is the heartbeat of their respective countries.

"[T] he conclusion that can be reached from this research is that you can teach an old dog new tricks, only it'll take longer than it takes a young dog - however, once that old dog has learned he will remember these new things over the long-term. [You Can Teach an Old Dog New Tricks; Old dogs may learn more slowly, however they will remember.  https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/canine-corner/201602/you-can-teach-old-dog-new-tricks ]

Finally, we come down to a consistent theme of the blog, that change is the only thing constant. And it is best expounded by Dr. Carol Dweck's work on the growth mindset versus the fixed mindset. And why the blog often references Darwin - adapt or perish.

And yes, we can teach old dogs new tricks. The US and the UK must find their respective bearings. What about Juan de la Cruz?

"Why independence, if the slaves of today will be the tyrants of tomorrow? And that they will be such is not to be doubted, for he who submits to tyranny loves it. "[We are ruled by Rizal's 'tyrants of tomorrow,' Editorial, The Manila Times, 29th Dec 2015]

" Now I know why Paul dared to speak of 'the curse of the law' (Galatians 3:13). Law reigns and discernment is unnecessary, which means there is little growth or change in such people. When you do not grow, you remain an infant. "[Faith and Science, Open to Change, Richard Rohr's Daily Meditation, 23rd Oct 2017]

"As a major component for the education and reorientation of our people, mainstream media - their reporters, writers, photographers, columnists and editors - have an obligation to this country. . . "[Era of documented irrelevance: Mainstream media, critics and protesters, Homobono A. Adaza, The Manila Times, 25th Nov 2015]

"National prosperity is created, not inherited. It does not grow out of a country's natural endowments, its labor pool, its interest rates, or its currency's value, as classical economics insists. . . A nation's competitiveness depends on the capacity of its industry to innovate and upgrade. "[The Competitive Advantage of Nations,  Michael E. Porter , Harvard Business Review, March-April 1990]

"Learning and innovation go hand in hand. The arrogance of success is to think that what you did yesterday will be sufficient for tomorrow. "[William Pollard, 1911-1989, physicist-priest, Manhattan Project]

"Development [is informed by a people's] worldview, cognitive capacity, values, moral development, self-identity, spirituality, and leadership. . . "[Frederic Laloux, Reinventing organizations, Nelson Parker, 2014]