We continue to plunge into the abyss.

Thankfully, we are “the happiest people on earth” – we can still take it with a grin.

“I will not attempt to read the president’s mind. He is a more astute politician than many may think and is adept at the magician’s misdirection tactic. One draws the audience’s attention in one direction with something noisy or spectacular. At the same time, the actual moves are out of sight. I’ll leave the reader and political pundits to mull over that.

“Meanwhile, time to grin and ‘-ber’ it all.” [“Running ‘-ber,’” Roberto F. de Ocampo, BUSINESS MATTERS, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 10th Jul 2021]

Seriously now: “This push for Duterte to join the vice-presidential race, according to Monsod, can serve as a ‘backdoor’ for the incumbent Chief Executive to serve another term as president, which goes against the intent of the Constitution.

“This seems like an excuse, a backdoor. Because that vacancy can be created by the president simply resigning, that’s not the intent of the Constitution. Especially if his daughter will become president, then told to ‘Resign, I’ll take over the presidency.’

“Under the Constitution, a President can only serve one six-year term and is no longer eligible for any reelection. ‘That provision is to prohibit a president occupying the office for more than six years,’ Monsod pointed out.

“It’s clear that the plan is to enter the backdoor to the presidency. If this happens, the constitutional provisions on social justice and anti-political dynasties are ‘meaningless.’

“The purpose of social justice is to defuse wealth and political power for the common good equitably.” [“No to the backdoor presidency: Monsod willing to file complaint vs. Duterte’s VP run,” Christia Marie Ramos, INQUIRER.net, 8th Jul 2021]

Indeed, we continue to plunge into the abyss.

Let’s pause right there – and ponder.

I am not surprised if we have taken the blog’s continual reference to our instincts with a grain of salt. Sadly, what it has said repeatedly for over a dozen years has been with us, except that denial – if not ignorance – is bliss: We are parochial and insular. We value hierarchy and paternalism and rely on political patronage and oligarchy that ours is a culture of impunity.

Sadly, this culture of impunity no longer shocks. If you can’t fight tyranny, submit to it.

And that explains why we can’t figure out “our place in the sun.” 

How many ever speaks to Rizal’s admonition? Let’s submit to tyranny — because, in our value system, hierarchy and paternalism are primordial?

How do we define our national interest, for example? It must be principled — beyond transactional.

Sadly, we can’t see beyond our poverty that “our reason for being” deserts us — i.e., Juan de la Cruz must attain prosperity. That is way beyond the 4Ps. The 4Ps are a tangible expression of paternalism — given our failure to “traverse poverty to prosperity.”

That is not a western concept because even our neighbors sought and successfully attained it. It is our reason for being. Organisms, including humankind, develop. 

How does that apply to foreign relations? Again, our neighbors demonstrated how. We don’t have to go very far. Beg for foreign money and technology. And why? Because we must traverse poverty to prosperity. Sadly, parochialism and insularity took us down the abyss.

How can we then value the efforts of freedom-loving nations to come together and commit personal responsibility for the common good when we don’t own up to our predicament: the regional laggard — and the pariah, the price we pay for EJKs? 

How can we define the common good in the first place when a culture of impunity consumes us? 

How can we recognize that to thrive in this universe demands a multifaceted response? Take dynamism and interdependence.

Gising bayan!

“So much remains to be done to address the crisis that young Filipinos, the much-vaunted future of this country, face.

“What the country could do without are officials quick to tend to their feelings over the hard facts and urgent problems faced by the next generation.

“More than 80 percent of students in the Philippines ‘do not meet the standards expected for their grade level.’ That, the WB said, constituted a ‘crisis in the country’s educational system ‘which started pre-COVID but will have been made worse’ by the pandemic. That is nothing new. The data released were gleaned from previously released international assessments in 2016, 2018, and 2019. Old, yes, but not ancient or obsolete, and still relevant today. Filipino students, these studies found, performed poorly in the essential elements of learning: reading, writing, comprehension, and ability to understand and do even the most basic math functions.” [“Feelings over facts,” EDITORIAL, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 10th Jul 2021]

In other words, “pwede na ‘yan” will not cut it. And that goes for what the private sector is proud to trumpet. “In the Philippines, the private sector is frequently obliged to provide by default. An outstanding example in education is the non-profit organization founded in 2006 by top CEOs, the Philippine Business for Education (PBS). This NGO is the business community’s response to the need for greater education and economic alignment. Its advocacies include teacher quality and workforce development.” [“Human Side Of Economics,” Bernardo M. Villegas, BusinessWorld, 6th Jul 2021]

The good news, as the blog has discussed, is that we are not alone. When my old MNC-company relocated the family to New York, corporate America also had to step in to deal with the shortcomings of US higher education. And I was involved in the efforts. And the biggest takeaway is that learning is experiential.

Fast-forward to my efforts to assist my Eastern European friends. These people had zero experience in the free-market system. Many of them did not even speak English. I had two translators. The deputy to the owner, who happened to be a Mensa member and spent her junior high school year in Atlanta as an exchange student, would translate for me when speaking to the management team. And my assistant cum translator and driver would do it when I lead a workshop for everyone else.

It was more complicated than it sounds because we had to figure out if they were in the right business. And the exercise had to get to the point where we had the confidence to focus on the correct product categories to define the resources we must pull together. And how do we then execute?

Think of Samsung Vietnam. Recall that The Economist raised the issue of not being in the suitable industries to explain the decline of Europe. And we Filipinos must relate to that given our top companies are no match to one Vietnam enterprise.

Today, my Eastern European friends have a full-blown Human Resources function, including an education and training unit. And among the pillars of the curriculum are the three “dynamics” they are managing: (1) the Marketing mix, to reinforce the product categories that define their business, from product development and innovation up to successfully ensure that they get them to retailers and homes of people; (2) the resource mix that they must assemble, from developing budgets, finding financing to building state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities up to the profile of the people they will hire; (3) the execution mix to ensure that the enterprise is globally competitive, i.e., who will do what, when, where, and how.

For example, they have lots of meeting rooms, especially for small cross-functional teams, so that collaboration is built-in to the way they do things. And the biggest thrill I get is walking into the meeting rooms and getting the sense that people are passionate about problem-solving. The whole idea started when I did the first workshop, and to their surprise, they were not there to sit and listen to me deliver a lecture.

But that is getting ahead. Back at home in suburban New York, the math teacher requested my daughter to tutor classmates falling behind during her high school years. She had her elementary education up to grade 6 at St. Scholastica’s. She speaks Tagalog, not just English, although she would later be fluent in Italian, having spent a year in Bologna.

In other words, the US has the same problems in education, in higher education, and elementary and high school math.

Yet, they have Silicon Valley. As the blog has discussed, the US takes one misstep after another, yet they keep reinventing themselves.

In an earlier posting, the blog asked, “Why can’t we Filipinos problem-solve?”

We must reinvent ourselves. We must figure out how to overcome our instincts. Recall Einstein’s definition of insanity.

Stop. Look. Listen.

For example, because of our caste system, how do we expect to teach the succeeding generations about the “growth mindset” – its absence compounds the challenge of students? And is a recurring theme of the postings.

Our sense of denial comes from a fixed mindset. See above re our instincts.

The caste system inhibits our ability to collaborate or work across disciplines. Of course, we are all “special.” But we can even be more if we see through the limitations of our instincts.

Recall that “collaboration” is one of the requisite skills – or the 4 C’s – of the 21st century.

“Collaboration is the practice of working together to achieve a common goal. It is important because whether students realize it or not, they’ll probably work with other people for the rest of their lives.

“Virtually every job requires us to work with another – even if it’s for something simple as what to get for lunch. Practicing collaboration and teamwork helps students understand how to address a problem, pitch solutions, and decide the best course.

“It’s also helpful for them to learn that other people don’t always have the same ideas that they do. As students practice collaboration more and more, they’ll know that they have almost none of the same ‘ideas’ that others do.

“This can affect students in one of two ways. First, it could discourage them since nobody seems to agree with them that often. Second, it could embolden them because they realize they’re bringing something unique to every conversation. As a teacher, it’s crucial that you encourage students to look at themselves through that second lens. That way, students learn that they should speak up when they have an idea.

“They may not be on the money 100% of the time — and some of their peers may have strong, opinionated reactions — but it’ll teach them to speak up when they’re working with others.” [“What Are the 4 C's of 21st Century Skills (?),” Bri Stauffer, Applied Educational Systems, 7th May 2020]

Do we wonder why “innovation” isn’t in our quiver? Recall the “Innovator’s DNA.”

“Dyer, of Brigham Young University; Gregersen, of Insead; and Christensen, of Harvard Business School, reveal how innovative entrepreneurs differ from typical executives. Their study demonstrates that five ‘discovery skills’ distinguish the most creative executives: Associating helps them discover new directions by making connections among seemingly unrelated questions, problems, or ideas. Questioning allows innovators to break out of the status quo and consider new ideas through observing; innovators carefully and consistently seek small behavioral details—in the activities of customers, suppliers, and other companies—to gain insights about new ways of doing things. In experimenting, they relentlessly try on new experiences and explore the world. And through networking with diverse individuals from an array of backgrounds, they gain radically different perspectives.” [“The Innovator’s DNA” by Jeffrey H. Dyer, Hal Gregersen, and Clayton M. Christensen; Harvard Business Review, December 2009]

We also must move beyond analysis into analytics.

Let’s pause right there.

To be able to move beyond analysis, we must recognize that the real world is not one-dimensional. It is multifaceted and multidisciplinary. Moreover, it demands forward- and lateral thinking.

That explains why despite our confidence in our fiscal and monetary interventions, we still cannot match the success of the Asian Tigers, and more recently, Vietnam.

Let’s push the envelope. 

There are guidelines multilateral lenders follow, yet even “the IMF is urging the Philippines to boost spending capacity during this pandemic crisis, i.e., to strike the appropriate balance between recovery needs and fiscal prudence.”

Put another way, developing countries like the Philippines don’t mirror the economic rebound of a wealthy economy, as the US demonstrates. For example, the vaccination rate is still way too low to tame the pandemic, and thus the Philippines won’t see an economic uptick soon.

Moreover, our challenges are multifaceted. They are beyond education, our response to the pandemic, why we lag in infrastructure development, industrialization, innovation, and global competitiveness.

For example, “The sheer amount and variety of existing and new data generated in the world today are unprecedented. As this growth continues, so do the opportunities for organizations to use their data to create ‘change that matters.’ [Mc Kinsey Analytics]

“Data analytics is a multidisciplinary field. There are extensive computer skills, mathematics, statistics, descriptive techniques, and predictive models to gain valuable knowledge from data through analytics.

“The insights from data are used to recommend action or guide decision-making rooted in the business context. Thus, analytics is not so much concerned with individual analyses or analysis steps, but with the entire methodology.” [Wikipedia]

In other words, analytics is multidisciplinary and rooted in the business context.

Recall that the blog often speaks to the modern math concept of sets and subsets because the character of creation and the universe is one of dynamism and interdependence. Human endeavors aren’t standalone. They are subsets of larger sets.

For example, the debate on climate change is unresolved because humankind takes the universe’s character for granted. Even in the Philippines, we can’t step up to the plate: We denuded our forests. That’s why the blog often references Sweden’s efficient forest industry.

One more time with feeling: Human endeavors are multifaceted and subsumed by a larger context.

And that is a pretty stumbling block we must hurdle. 

For example, we are looking at Central Luzon as an industrial zone, yet we are not meshing it with the challenge we face in agribusiness. We are not tracing the food chain to connect the dots. 

And we look at the economic managers to drive the economy when the challenge is nation-building. Our caste system puts us in pigeon-holes, and we are proud to get our expertise ahead of everyone else.

That is why the blog often raises the GPS model: (1) Where are we; (2) Where do we want to be; (3) How do we get there. It demands forward- and lateral-thinking. It is beyond logical and incremental thinking.

Sadly, neuroscience is not in our comfort zone. But then again, we are not alone. De Bono and Kahneman weren’t household names even when they pioneered the science of “thinking.”

See above re the IMF is urging the Philippines to boost spending capacity during this pandemic crisis. 

Recall that the blog often speaks to the spectrum of binary to relative thinking in cognitive development. And it applies even in theology. Despite the instincts of conservative US bishops, they won’t withhold the Eucharist from abortion rights supporters.

If learning is experiential, my interest in the subject grew from realizing that in the global arena founded on democratic values, rank — including the corporate headquarters — doesn't guarantee privileges. There is always the effort to get buy-in from the worldwide organization.

For example, while plans and budgets are rolled up and approved by the HQ by Thanksgiving, execution is monitored. That is why typically, in the January and February timeframe, corporate folks travel the world. And that allows local units to argue a case if they have one. And course correction follows. It is a case of continual rethinking — and reinvention — if the predicate is fragile.

Recall that the postings have been critical of the 50 or so industry road maps we have been pursuing.

Consider: What is the object of the exercise, the context? We want to leapfrog industrialization, but not only.

We must get the biggest bang for the buck and why we must prioritize our most significant export categories responsible for over 64% of export revenues.

And given that the 21st century demands innovation and global competitiveness, we can’t go it alone. We need foreign money and technology. Think of Samsung Vietnam.

So, how must we write the IRR for CREATE and SIPP? Beyond its generic principles, it must be based on the imperative to rapidly raise our GDP by $200 billion and leapfrog the neighbors’ economic output – which is why they were able to put poverty behind them.

Our challenges are daunting. We cannot stick to our instincts. They have turned us into the laughingstock of the region to the detriment of Juan de la Cruz, i.e., abject poverty.

And we in the Philippine elite class can show the way by reinventing ourselves and toss our value of hierarchy. It is “collaboration” we need – and “critical thinking” too and creativity, as in lateral, beyond logical and linear thinking.

Indeed, we continue to plunge into the abyss.

Let’s pause right there – and ponder.

I am not surprised if we have taken the blog’s continual reference to our instincts with a grain of salt. Sadly, what it has said repeatedly for over a dozen years has been with us, except that denial – if not ignorance – is bliss: We are parochial and insular. We value hierarchy and paternalism and rely on political patronage and oligarchy that ours is a culture of impunity.

Gising bayan!

Why can’t we problem-solve?

Here is a hypothesis: We can’t problem solve because we are blind to figure out “where we are.”

We keep learning about how we continue to plunge the abyss – i.e., how many of us have Mongolia on our bucket list? It is the only neighbor left that can leave us in the dust.

What more – what crisis – are we waiting to fall upon Juan de la Cruz?

Let us pause right there – and ponder.

Gising bayan!

Consider: “Over the years, it has become evident that more than economic reforms — many good ones of which are now in place — it is political and electoral reform that this country direly needs. Article II, Section 26 of the Philippine Constitution lays down the guiding policy on this: ‘The State shall guarantee equal access to opportunities for public service and prohibit political dynasties as may be defined by law.’” [“The reform we need,” Cielito F. Habito, NO FREE LUNCH, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 6th Jul 2021]

With due respect to Ciel, we need more than reform. We must reinvent ourselves.

For example, there are good elements in our Constitution. However, we know that it has restraining features – particularly the economic provisions – and that is why there have been endless talks to amend the Constitution.

Moreover, “It is obvious that the Philippine Government is struggling to comply with the constitutional mandate that the State is obliged to provide free quality education at the basic education level for all Filipino children and youth. The inadequacies of the State are either due to limited funds or poor governance or both.” [“Human Side Of Economics,” Bernardo M. Villegas, BusinessWorld, 6th Jul 2021]

What is the prescription, then? “In the Philippines, the private sector is frequently obliged to provide by default. An outstanding example in education is the non-profit organization founded in 2006 by top CEOs, the Philippine Business for Education (PBS). This NGO is the business community’s response to the need for greater education and economic alignment. Its advocacies include teacher quality and workforce development.” [Villegas, op. cit.]

The good news is that we are not alone. Even in the US, the private sector has had to take the bull by the horns.

However, we are not the United States. They take one misstep after another, yet they have the means and the capability to keep reinventing themselves. That is why they call their brand of democracy an experiment – and not cast in stone. 

For example, “Alaska and Maine and over 20 cities, the latest being New York, have adopted ranked-choice voting to overcome the federal system that is rigid — you can only ever vote for one candidate for one position at a time. The system allows voters to choose candidates in the order of their preference, to yield a winner who most appeals to the most people.” It is not necessarily a perfect system, but the referenced states and cities chose to experiment.

That is not surprising, given that innovations are a product of experimentation, not a claim of perfection. And that holds for the American brand of democracy and free-market systems.

On the other hand, we Filipinos, given our instincts, are not predisposed to reinvention. Why? Because rank has its privileges, we in the Philippine elite class won’t see how ruinous a caste system is. It goes against the grain and the character of creation and the universe. That is why the blog continually speaks to dynamism and interdependence.

Note that the blog, which has been saying the same thing repeatedly through more than a dozen years, carries the title “Philippine Economy: Reinventing Ourselves.”

Why? Consider our instincts: We are parochial and insular. So, we value hierarchy paternalism and rely on political patronage and oligarchy that ours is a culture of impunity.

Unsurprisingly, two top Philippine economists raised the challenges of political dynasties and good governance.

Still, are they missing something? If, indeed, we want to amend the Constitution because of its restrictive economic provisions, what can we do about it? What have been the most significant barriers to the effort? It is an oligarchy – represented by our tycoons and the top slice of the private sector – and Juan de la Cruz himself because of our value system. See above re our instincts.

Given our value system, how do we expect to figure out “where we are” as a nation – and economy?

For example, should our economic managers and top economists wrestle with the question, “How did Vietnam – replicating the experience of the Asian Tigers – lure Samsung to make them the regional manufacturing hub of their smartphones? Moreover, to add insult to injury, they contribute far greater to their economy than our top eight companies – combined – to ours.

On the other hand, we have been working on 50 or so industry road maps and have no tangible outcome to show that will come close to what the Vietnamese have done — and why they put poverty in their rear-view mirror. 

But we play a different game than Vietnam. We said that when the Asian Tigers orchestrated the exact export-driven model. We don’t have the resources and expertise to win in the export arena. That is our parochial and insular self, speaking — because the neighbors aren’t different from us.

That’s why the blog often speaks to the real world. Is this universe characterized by dynamism and interdependence — too farfetched for Juan de la Cruz?

Recall too that the blog often questions our inability to prioritize – i.e., that we frequently fall into the trap of a classroom exercise — if not the crab mentality. 

Furthermore, it reflects logical and linear – and incremental – thinking. Again, unsurprising because the brain’s chamber that does creative and lateral thinking is not well-developed due to infrequent use by humankind. In short, day-to-day life demands logical and incremental thinking, not creative or lateral thinking.

Nevertheless, given the static “state” we embrace reflective of our caste system, how do we even begin to question our inability to problem-solve?

Moreover, stagnation will only magnify our shortcomings given the demands of the 21st century, i.e., innovation and global competitiveness – and thus the requisite skills of (1) Critical thinking, (2) Creativity, (3) Collaboration, (4) Communication.

Here is a quote from an earlier posting: “But what is critical thinking? It is the practice of solving problems, among other qualities. In addition to working through issues, solving puzzles, and similar activities, critical thinking also includes an element of skepticism.

“This is important in the 21st century because it is more complicated than ever to verify accurate information (primary thanks to the Internet).

“Critical thinking empowers students to discover the truth in assertions, especially when it comes to separating fact from opinion.

“With critical thinking, students do not just learn a set of facts or figures. Instead, they know how to discover the facts and figures for themselves.

“They ask questions. They become engaged in the world around them. They help others think critically, too.

“That might be the most crucial part of critical thinking. Once one student has it mastered, it quickly spreads to their peers.

“Whether they learn how to think critically from spending time online or simply asking ‘Why?’ in everyday life, this skill prepares students for a life of independence and purposeful thought.

“Still, critical thinking is just one of the four C’s in 21st Century skills.” [“What Are the 4 C’s of 21st Century Skills (?),” Bri Stauffer, Applied Educational Systems, 7th May 2020]

Are we surprise why we cannot problem-solve?

Of course, we disagree. Question: If we are that good, see above; Samsung Vietnam contributes far greater to their economy than our top eight companies – combined – to ours.

Still, we like to lionize our tycoons given our value system.

We can’t problem solve because we are blind to figure out “where we are.”

We keep learning about how we continue to plunge the abyss – i.e., how many of us have Mongolia on our bucket list? It is the only neighbor left that can leave us in the dust.

What more – what crisis – are we waiting to fall upon Juan de la Cruz?

Let us pause right there – and ponder.

Gising bayan!

Why do we struggle to thrive in this universe?

Can we internalize “dynamism and interdependence”? Let’s pause right there – and ponder.

Consider: Amongst our neighbors, only Mongolia is less competitive than we are. And Juan de la Cruz pays a heavy price – abject poverty.

But the word “competitive” bothers us because it smacks of insensitivity – and a lack of compassion. We are Asians, and we value harmony.

And that’s precisely the point. We are stuck in our particular perspective, reflective of where we are in the cognitive development scale – of dualistic to relative thinking. And in more ways than one, it is because of our lack of experience in development.

Every time we visit Singapore or KL, or even Bangkok, our eyes go green with envy. The evidence? In our heart of hearts: we know we are the regional laggard.

That is why the blog often speaks to the character of creation and the universe. They are about dynamism and interdependence – as in the photosynthesis phenomenon. It is not static nor permanent. And Darwin codified it via his treatise on the “survival of the fittest.”

Yet, our instincts presuppose static and permanence – as in our caste system: We are parochial and insular. So, we value hierarchy and paternalism and rely on political patronage and oligarchy that ours is a culture of impunity.

That’s why the blog never tires of reminding us that we are the present-day Padre Damaso. We are more catholic than the pope.

Here’s a quote from an earlier posting: “Even the conservative US bishops did not follow through with their instincts. They won't withhold Communion from politicians. Days after a vote triggered a tsunami of Catholic debate about Communion and politics, leading US Catholic bishops working on an upcoming pronouncement about the sacrament are now deemphasizing confrontation with President Biden or other Catholic politicians who support abortion rights.

“A public document on the Eucharist is very appropriate. But it must focus on ‘How do we attract people and make the beauty of what it means to us more evident to our young people and for them to understand why it’s so significant, instead of being focused on who can and who cannot receive.’” [The Washington Post, 25th May 2021]

Recall that the blog always speaks to the Philippine Constitution as an expression of our instincts. In other words, systems or institutions are a human construct. They are not cast in stone given the demands of this universe, i.e., dynamism and interdependence.

But then again, we in the Philippine elite class are predisposed to speak in absolutes – as in binary or dualistic thinking. And it is not surprising given rank has its privileges.

The evidence? We created a Marcos and a Duterte. Yet, given our reactive than proactive nature, we are raising issues against Duterte now, but not before. Why before? What he did in Davao explains why EJKs have become our reality – and why we are the pariah to the rest of the world.

But then again, that goes back to our caste system, our instincts.

That’s why the blog never fails to raise our struggles with foreign and trade relations.

See above; systems and institutions are a human construct – and dynamism and interdependence reflect the character of creation and the universe.

Moreover, democracy is the mirror image of Christianity, i.e., the imperative of personal responsibility for the common good.

Recall the poverty in China – as there was in every one of our neighbors, if not every country. Then think of how Lee and Mahathir advised Deng Xiaoping to “beg for Western money and technology.”

In other words, even the communist system is a human construct. And so, Deng committed China to be a “good neighbor” to the rest of the world. And he did. And ever since, for example, the US has invested over a trillion dollars in China. What did China do in return? They have invested in US treasuries to the tune of over a trillion dollars. It is a classic case of interdependence.

If the communist system is a human construct, so are democratic and market systems. In other words, they are also dynamic, i.e., not cast in stone. That’s why they come in different shapes and colors.

Recall that the blog always raises that despite their imperfections, freedom-loving nations come together and commit personal responsibility for the common good.

But then again, perfection is not of this world. There will be despots and autocracies – and they are a culture of impunity. Unsurprisingly, we remain unsettled about foreign and trade relations.

In other words, because we created a Marcos and a Duterte, we can’t just toss a culture of impunity. Because it comes from our instincts – expressed in our caste system.

Consider: Do we wonder why despite the adventurism of Russia and China that the United States and its allies have not resorted to the 21st century “D-Day” or rehash Hiroshima and Nagasaki? The world has learned its lessons, and that's why interdependence, as demonstrated by nature, is valued – especially by freedom-loving nations.

For the recent Fourth of July celebration, France loaned a mini ‘Statue of Liberty’ to join the original in the New York harbor, to remind freedom-loving nations to uphold democratic ideals and values.

Sadly, given the enormous challenges Juan de la Cruz faces, we can’t find relevance in such ideals and values. For example, beyond military power is soft power. Recall how Kennedy turned around the Cuban missile crisis and averted what could have been WWIII. 

And I can speak to soft power given the almost two decades I’ve assisted my Eastern European friends. And in recognition, they offered me citizenship. How many more Belarus would we have today if the West did not deploy soft power post the fall of the Soviet empire? 

As the blog has discussed, despite Trump’s appeal to the far-right wing of the GOP, the majority of Americans won’t submit to tyranny. 

In other words, even among Americans, the nuances inherent in cognitive development aren't a given precisely because binary thinking molds the instincts of specific sectors within any shared universe.

For example, what I’ve done in Eastern Europe, while beneficial to these people, created a competition for Western enterprises, including Americans. That is how Trump attacked globalization, i.e., America first.

But if American exceptionalism is to flourish and for freedom-loving people to uphold democratic ideals and values, the US can’t be static. It must represent dynamism and demonstrate interdependence and be the best practice model. And that’s why I called out The Economist article that I sensed wavered from the imperative of “dynamism and interdependence.”

Consider: How did the US overcome Japan Inc.? By moving the world from the analog age to digital. In other words, this universe is dynamic, and the US has no business being the hegemon if it can’t survive by being the fittest,

Let’s get to trade relations.

We cannot overcome being the regional laggard until we internalize dynamism and interdependence – because we will be victims of Darwin’s “survival of the fittest.”

Think of the Asian Tigers, and then China, and now Vietnam – i.e., they have cornered FDIs because they embraced dynamism and interdependence.

Many of us, myself included, are involved in teaching, if not educating others – or those following us. And because of our value of hierarchy, we can’t instinctively walk in another’s shoes.

Consider: I assisted my Eastern European friends in elevating an MSME to be a global player in the industry, respected by Western behemoths. They were born and raised as socialists under communist rule and required hours and hours of workshops – beyond lectures, i.e., to generate the best ideas – and installing systems and processes beyond physical facilities.

That’s why while they asked me to organize and develop a regional and then global sales organization, I stepped aside after two years because learning is experiential. They must learn how to swim or sink.

And today, they have attained state-of-the-art in many areas but haven’t morphed into complacency. They reflect dynamism to a T. Moreover, they have internalized interdependence. For example, in partnership with third-party providers from the West, they are the leading edge in three of their brands – and the journey continues.

In other words, interdependence is not limited to the global supply chain familiar to the Philippines. Many postings ago, the blog discussed how Steve Jobs tapped a Japanese technology, a hard disk the size of a dollar coin, in developing the iPod.

And the model extends to the chips technology and manufacturing. “A massive machine sold by a Dutch company has emerged as a critical lever for policymakers — and illustrates how any country’s hopes of building an utterly self-sufficient supply chain in semiconductor technology are unrealistic.

“ASML Holding, based in the Netherlands, makes the machine. Its system uses a different kind of light to define ultrasmall circuitry on chips, packing more performance into the small slices of silicon. The tool, which took decades to develop and introduced for high-volume manufacturing in 2017, costs more than $150 million. Shipping it to customers requires 40 shipping containers, 20 trucks, and three Boeing 747s.

“The complex machine is widely acknowledged as necessary for making the most advanced chips, an ability with geopolitical implications. The Trump administration successfully lobbied the Dutch government to block shipments of such a machine to China in 2019, and the Biden administration has shown no signs of reversing that stance.

“Manufacturers can’t produce leading-edge chips without the system that the Dutch firm ASML only makes. It would take China at least a decade to build its similar equipment. From China’s perspective, that is a frustrating thing.

“ASML’s machine has effectively turned into a choke point in the supply chain for chips, which act as the brains of computers and other digital devices. The tool’s three-continent development and production entailed expertise and parts from Japan, the United States, and Germany.  It is also a reminder of just how global that supply chain is, providing a reality check for any country that wants to leap ahead – in semiconductor development – by itself.” [“The Tech Cold War’s ‘Most Complicated Machine’ That’s Out of China’s reach,” Don Clark, The New York Times, 4th Jul 2021]

In other words, even among the big guys, parochialism and insularity are out of place in the 21st century. Sadly, that is too way beyond our instincts.

One more time with feeling: Dynamism and interdependence are inherent in creation and the universe. That systems and institutions are a human construct and are not cast in stone.

Recall that I changed the planning and budgeting system of a 200-year-old Fortune 500. We probably only have one enterprise in the Philippines that is that old. But can we imagine a foreigner from a small, developing country coming over to tell this company to change its planning and budgeting system?

Still, because of our instincts, we miss the import.

I may have already shared it many postings ago, but it’s worth repeating: A couple of times, I objected and argued against the decisions of the president of my old MNC-company.

The first time was when I was a regional manager but still based in the Philippines. Over a senior staff meeting, I stopped the president to the shock of those in the conference room. A few years later, when I was already in New York, a similar subject came to the president’s desk. He called to say, “Why don’t you visit this country manager in Europe and show her the ropes.”

The other one was a policy he had issued to the entire global company. I happened to disagree. We were (soon after) on a business trip to Asia, and on the flight back to New York, we talked about it. “Please rewrite the policy and tell the manager that initiated the original policy to check with you every time they have something of this nature.”

Still, the president who valued the planning and budgeting system I installed in the region asked the CEO to make it a global model that required every manager to take the course designed for the purpose.

I have been outside the Philippines for over three decades and have lots more stories that demonstrate that systems and institutions are a human construct, not cast in stone.

And they explain why we struggle with foreign and trade relations to the detriment of Juan de la Cruz.

Why does Juan de la Cruz struggle to thrive in this world, this universe?

Gising bayan!

Juan de la Cruz has hit rock bottom.

How come our old merry ways still grip us?

It’s not unprecedented if we consider how Venezuela or Brazil, or African countries suffered similar fates.

Sadly, denial is worse than blindness. We in the Philippine elite class, best positioned to upend our fate, are also the prime enablers of this downward spiral because we can use our influence either way.

Let’s start with our values of hierarchy and paternalism. We don’t begin to look at ourselves but those lower in the “hierarchy” – as in poverty and its source, i.e., employment.

Recall the comprehensive agrarian reform – and how we trumpeted it as a triumph of Filipino compassion. And the overseas employment phenomenon. And again, we celebrated it as an expression of “Pinoy abilidad” – and rightly so because over 10 million OFWs to this day are driving the Philippine economy.

And beyond the agrarian reform, we also were proud to champion farms-to-market roads and irrigation initiatives. Moreover, we created the LGUs and felt fulfilled.

Yet, instead of lifting rural folks from poverty and elevating Philippine agriculture, we import rice while Vietnam is exporting them. 

And now, with the education crisis, we want to focus on the rural areas once more – even when our supposed top universities, all located in Metro Manila, have all sank in the global rankings.

Why? Because of our values of hierarchy and paternalism. And they are merely subsets of our value system – as in our instincts: We are parochial and insular. So, we value hierarchy and paternalism and rely on political patronage and oligarchy that ours is a culture of impunity.

And the best example is among us, the Philippine media. That’s why the blog keeps calling us out, us in the Philippine elite class.

Let’s pause right there.

Who are the ones raising the barriers to open the Philippine economy? To be sure, we in the elite class have company, i.e., Juan de la Cruz. He personifies parochialism and insularity – and the rest of our value system.

I laugh every time I come across our focus on MSMEs. Did we ever learn about Pareto? We did, but our values of hierarchy and paternalism get in the way. And Padre Damaso springs to mind. Indeed, we are the present-day Padre Damaso.

I laugh too every time I come across our focus on the rural areas. Did we ever learn about the multiplier effect of investment? We did, but we are the elite class, and we can’t own up to our failings; it has to be somebody else.

Would you please think of how Vietnam put poverty in its rearview mirror? Because Vietnam’s investment already was through the roof as they opened their economy. And it was evident as early as over a dozen years ago when the blog started.

It is not rocket science. All Vietnam did is replicate the efforts of the Asian Tigers.

Let’s stop right there. Can we not figure that out? Why does Singapore attract loads of FDIs? Do foreigners own Singapore? Or Vietnam?

We won’t figure that out because we want to keep to our old merry ways, i.e., we in the Philippine elite class lord it over Juan de la Cruz. And unsurprisingly, Juan de la Cruz pays the price. One Vietnam enterprise, i.e., Samsung Vietnam, delivers far more economic benefits than our eight top companies combined. We have a classic double whammy, yet we like to lionize our tycoons.

If it were not for the dynamism of this universe, I would have given up on our nation. [Recall why I accepted the challenge faced by my then-new friends, the Eastern Europeans. Yet, they turned giant killers, giving Western behemoths a run for their money. “Why are we in this god-forsaken place,” asked the wife.]

We are so unequipped to face the 21st century.

But then again, even empires come and go. And that means nations that are up today won’t be there forever.

And the world is seeing today how China will overtake the US as an economy.

Still, our hurdles as Juan de la Cruz are daunting. Beyond our denial is our inexperience. As our neighbors sustain progress and development, they will keep distancing themselves from us. That’s why despite proudly broadcasting our 6%-7% GDP growth rate, we remain the regional laggard.

And we can relate the said phenomenon to the crisis in Philippine education. We’re still of the old mold.

The good news is, even the US is yet to internalize the skills demanded by the 21st century: (1) Critical Thinking, (2) Creativity, (3) Collaboration, (4) Communication.

Here’s a quote from an earlier posting: “Like many K-12 institutions, Shawnee Mission School District in Kansas has embraced 1:1 technology. But connecting the classroom to the outside world has helped students address real-world problems in new ways.

“During a problem-based learning process called “Genius Hour,” students identify issues they’re interested in exploring and, with the help of their teachers, connect via video with working professionals including engineers, physicians, scientists – even professional athletes. After one classroom of 5th graders at Sunflower Elementary engineered prosthetic tails for injured dolphins, they were able to meet prosthetic developers over a video to communicate about their work.

“Students get so excited about these professionals taking the time to speak with them.

“Experiential learning is where the power of the technology ties in.” [“Rethinking Teaching: How K-12 and higher education leaders can facilitate collaborative learning with technology”;  https://media.erepublic.com/document/CDE18_BRIEF_Cisco_V.PDF]

The blog often speaks to experiential learning. That’s why it brings up our lack of experience in development.

For example, when I first learned that DTI was working on roughly 50 industry road maps, I would only shake my head. That smacks of a classroom mentality.

And more recently, look at the implementing rules and regulations for CREATE and SIPP. Did we not learn from the early days of the BOI? We continue to write investment priority initiatives as though a dissertation in policymaking. And it is no different from our focus on MSMEs.

Recall that I mentored a Ph.D. candidate and guided her in developing her dissertation. To a practitioner like me, the draft of her outline approved by her professor would not pass muster in the real world. How many dissertations are schoolwork per se? 

“I will only assist you if you commit to utilizing the outcome for a real-world challenge.” Those familiar with the blog will remember today, she’s the global marketing director of one of the world’s most popular brands.

That is not to say academic exercises are wrong. That is why the blog often cites bodies of knowledge. For example, pure math advances science while applied math solves contemporary challenges.

However, applied math does not mean higher math. Even Jeff Bezos admits that driving Amazon’s business requires simple math. For example, AI today generates big data, yet the analytics necessary to leverage them don’t demand higher math but forward-thinking.

And that is why the blog questions why the simple metric of GDP growth rates traps us. Analytics is about forward- and lateral-thinking.

We want a bigger pie, a larger GDP. That’s why the blog offered the hypothesis of raising Philippine GDP by $200 billion. That is to leapfrog the economic output of our neighbors; moreover, it opens the mind to a lateral-thinking exercise. Instead of a narrow path, we unshackle the “mind” to ask: What industries and products must we disproportionately support that will most likely get us sooner than later to an incremental GDP of $200 billion? And which foreign money and technology are they?

Juan de la Cruz has lived in abject poverty despite our 6%-7% growth rates. 

Then consider: We are not the United States that is a highly-developed economy, and fiscal policies will generate incremental outcomes. Think again of the US GDP of over $20 trillion, growing at 6%-7%. That explains why the Philippines, despite similar growth rates, is still the regional laggard.

Sadly, we lack the experience in development that the classroom approach is all we have in our bag of tricks.

On the other hand, we in the chattering classes have written about big data and analytics.

And that is why the blog often speaks to forward-thinking and the GPS model. If we can’t forward-think, we can’t do justice even if we try to define the common good, for example. In other words, big data and analytics aren’t merely “numbers” exercises.

Consider these questions: (1) Where are we? (2) Where do we want to be? (3) How do we get there?

To begin with, because we are in denial, we can’t answer the question: Where are we? And if we can’t answer that, how can we respond to “Where do we want to be?”

And they explain why we keep tripping ourselves as we think through “how do we get to where we want to be?”

That is why we are focused on the rural areas and MSMEs. But none of them can match the economic contributions of Samsung Vietnam, for example. The display of dynamism and interdependence made Vietnam able to lure foreign partners – and overcome poverty.

We are yet to internalize dynamism and interdependence because we can’t overcome parochialism and insularity. And as necessary, to define, pursue, and attain the common good.

Recall that the blog often speaks to democracy being the mirror image of Christianity, i.e., the imperative of personal responsibility for the common good. And if we extend the analogy, it also explains why we struggle with foreign relations. We want to be in bed with China or Russia, or North Korea? Yet, despite their imperfections, freedom-loving nations come together precisely for the said purpose.

But Rizal knew us. We value hierarchy and paternalism and rely on political patronage and oligarchy that ours is a culture of impunity. The converse is: autocratic nations are a culture of impunity. That’s why Trump saw Duterte and Putin, to name just two, as friends.

Let’s get back to the Asian Tigers.

The Asian Tigers did not follow the US model. They became tiger economies by throwing the book out the window. Instead, they begged for Western money and technology. And bingo! Look at how rapidly they moved up from developing to developed.

The universe is dynamic. As we speak, new and innovative initiatives are evolving elsewhere in the world.

But because we are the Philippine elite class, we stick to our values of hierarchy and paternalism.

Aren’t we surprised why beyond being the regional laggard, we lag in education, in infrastructure development, in industrialization, in traversing poverty to prosperity?

Juan de la Cruz has hit rock bottom.

How come our old merry ways still grip us?

Gising bayan!     

A narrow metric traps us.

We smart from being colonized by the West even if physically we are free. But how about our minds? Aren’t we trapped in a narrow metric?

Recall the cognitive development scale that runs the spectrum – from binary or dualistic to relative thinking. Sadly, it is the reality inherent in human development. For example, ours reflect the lack of experience in development. But that touches on a particular chamber of the brain – when there are others (without being technical about it.) And in its absence, humankind relies on the intellect.

In other words, why can’t Juan de la Cruz be dynamic?

Of late, many are up in arms: Because of CREATE, the BIR wants to tax for-profit educational institutions.

Yet, we all know we are not only economic laggards; the Philippines lags the region in education. But education is a humongous test. Beyond taxes, there are also 21st-century skills that impose a much higher hurdle for education.

For example, the challenges we face are (1) money, as in our limited means – because of our mediocre tax revenues than our neighbors – owing to our lower GDP per capita; (2) upending the existing educational system.

The good news is that even a wealthy nation like the US, despite its bloated education budget, must also overcome the shortcomings of its educational system. Recall that when I relocated to my old MNC-company’s New York headquarters, I was involved in figuring out how to deal with higher education challenges.

And at that time, the Western world faced the rapidly rising Japanese competitiveness – aka Japan Inc. – driven by their “quality” culture. And it saw the beginning of the decline in American manufacturing, once the envy of the world.

And if China put the nail on the coffin of US manufacturing, it only confirms the dynamism of this universe – because Japan no longer leads in this arena.

And the history of modern Western industrial development illustrates the said reality. Post-WWII saw the need to rebuild the world, and America had a head start because the war did not physically impair it. Instead, it was riding a momentum – from the manufacturing efforts of wartime armaments.

But manufacturing is one piece of industry and commerce, and there are others. For example, marketing became a challenge as significant manufacturers like General Motors, organized along with the concept of command-and-control lifted from the military, saw the need to move beyond manufacturing. Procter & Gamble, for instance, realized the need to cut through the bureaucracy of a command-and-control environment and pioneered the concept of brand management.

Then finance’s turn came and then legal and then information technology. But how does industry pull these disparate functions and disciplines together? The Japanese quality culture led the way.

But then, this world is dynamic. It had to move from analog to digital. Enter: the tech giants; they started small – in family home garages – and then conquered the world.

That brings us to the 21st-century skills of (1) Critical thinking, (2) Creativity, (3) Collaboration, (4) Communication.

We in the chattering classes have discussed these skills. But talk is cheap.

For example, take critical thinking. If adults don’t own critical thinking, what more of students?

“Like many K-12 institutions, Shawnee Mission School District in Kansas has embraced 1:1 technology. But connecting the classroom to the outside world has helped students address real-world problems in new ways.

“During a problem-based learning process called “Genius Hour,” students identify issues they’re interested in exploring and, with the help of their teachers, connect via video with working professionals including engineers, physicians, scientists – even professional athletes. After one classroom of 5th graders at Sunflower Elementary engineered prosthetic tails for injured dolphins, they were able to meet prosthetic developers over a video to communicate about their work.

“Students get so excited about these professionals taking the time to speak with them.

“Experiential learning is where the power of the technology ties in.” [“Rethinking Teaching: How K-12 and higher education leaders can facilitate collaborative learning with technology”;  https://media.erepublic.com/document/CDE18_BRIEF_Cisco_V.PDF]

But what is critical thinking? “It is the practice of solving problems, among other qualities. In addition to working through issues, solving puzzles, and similar activities, critical thinking also includes an element of skepticism.

“This is important in the 21st century because it’s more complicated than ever to verify accurate information (primary thanks to the Internet).

“Critical thinking empowers students to discover the truth in assertions, especially when it comes to separating fact from opinion.

“With critical thinking, students don’t just learn a set of facts or figures. Instead, they know how to discover the facts and figures for themselves.

“They ask questions. They become engaged in the world around them. They help others think critically, too.

“That might be the most crucial part of critical thinking. Once one student has it mastered, it quickly spreads to their peers.

“Whether they learn how to think critically from spending time online or simply asking ‘Why?’ in everyday life, this skill prepares students for a life of independence and purposeful thought.

“Still, critical thinking is just one of the four C’s in 21st Century skills.” [What Are the 4 C’s of 21st Century Skills (?), Bri Stauffer, Applied Educational Systems, 7th May 2020]

What have I learned from the shortcomings of US higher education? That experiential learning is crucial. And so, instead of lectures, educators must learn to conduct workshops. See above re the “Genius Hour,” which also incorporates technology.

In other words, no one function or discipline can deal with the challenges posed by this century.

“The habits of Steve Jobs, Jeff Bezos, and other innovative CEOs reveal much about the underpinnings of their creative thinking. Research shows that five discovery skills distinguish the most innovative entrepreneurs from other executives.

“Dyer, of Brigham Young University; Gregersen, of Insead; and Christensen, of Harvard Business School, reveal how innovative entrepreneurs differ from typical executives. Their study demonstrates that five ‘discovery skills’ distinguish the most creative executives: Associating helps them discover new directions by making connections among seemingly unrelated questions, problems, or ideas. Questioning allows innovators to break out of the status quo and consider new ideas. Through observing, innovators carefully and consistently look for small behavioral details—in the activities of customers, suppliers, and other companies—to gain insights about new ways of doing things. In experimenting, they relentlessly try on new experiences and explore the world. And through networking with diverse individuals from an array of backgrounds, they gain radically different perspectives.” [“The Innovator’s DNA” by Jeffrey H. Dyer, Hal Gregersen, and Clayton M. Christensen; Harvard Business Review, December 2009]

And then consider our instincts: We are parochial and insular. So, we value hierarchy and paternalism and rely on political patronage and oligarchy that ours is a culture of impunity.

Sadly, our discussions on the Philippine education crisis come from our inward-looking bias. We don’t recognize the imperative of establishing benchmarks whenever we dissect a problem.

And it explains why we all speak from our respective expertise. And that reveals how much the world has left us behind.

Consider: We have a problem with money, as in GDP. We have an education crisis. We again demonstrated our backwardness in our response to the pandemic.

Yet, we can’t go beyond the need to trumpet our good deeds when our best hasn’t proved good enough.

And that’s why the blog keeps raising that “the ball is in our court,” us in the Philippine elite class.

For example, beyond the failure of a GDP growth rate of 6%-7% (that paved the way to raising our credit ratings) to lift us from regional laggard, we like to broadcast that manufacturing has moved up – not just services. But what is our yardstick? Consider: Our top eight companies combined can’t even match the revenues of one Vietnam enterprise, i.e., Samsung Vietnam.

Or course, the Constitution stands in the way. But the Constitution is merely an expression of our instincts. What goes around comes around.

In other words, we cannot measure success against a parochial metric because the 21st century is one of innovation and global competitiveness. Nor can we lionize our tycoons when they are the significant barriers to the opening of the Philippine economy.

Unsurprisingly, we smart from being colonized by the West even if physically we are free. But how about our minds? Aren’t we trapped in a narrow metric?

Gising bayan!