Category: Tactical

Good Governance: Getting ‘Out of the Way’ of Local Economic Empowerment

Posted on October 29, 2018 in Ethos, Government, Industries, Tactical

Go Lean Commentary

“I am from the Government and I am here to help” – Ronald Reagan tongue-in-cheek Campaign Attack against excessive government regulation; 1980.

When it comes to government regulations, there could be too much … and too little.

Good Government is the art-and-science of finding the “just right” balance – remember Goldilocks. In some countries this is a big challenge as there are so many different levels of government; think the US where there is the federal government (plus regulations), State, County (a subset of the State) and local city. In the Caribbean, on the other hand, for many member-states, there is only one level of administration, the National government.

All in all, finding the right mix of stewardship is a reflection of best-practices. This is because of one basic fact:

Smart people have a tendency to think that they are the only smart people. – Dunning-Kruger Effect – See Appendix A

If only we can weed-out this bad trend and assume that local people may bring some value to the governing equations for their communities. This conclusion is hard-wrought, a product of research and study by noted economists; who actually won a Nobel Prize for this effort. This is relayed in the book Go Lean…Caribbean within the advocacy of Better Managing Natural Resources. The book (Page 183) states:

The Bottom Line on Common Pool Resources
The 2009 Nobel Prize winning economist Elinor Ostrom (1933 – 2012), a Political Science Professor at Indiana University, received the award for her landmark work on the management of common pool resources. Her analysis of economic governance, especially the commons, showed how groups work together to manage common resources such as water supplies, fish and lobster stocks, and pastures through collective property rights. She showed that common pool resources can be effectively managed collectively, even without government or private control, as long as those using the resource are physically close to it and have a relationship with each other. Because outsiders and government agencies don’t understand local conditions or norms, and lack relationships with the community, they may manage common resources poorly. By contrast, insiders who are given a say in resource management will self-police to insure that all participants follow the community’s rules.

So outsiders and remote government agencies may not fully understand local conditions or norms so their oversight may be prone to error. This may not reflect Good Governance. We have seen this manifested many times. Remember overseas masters making decisions about local conditions – think tropical hurricane building standards in the Caribbean being decided by stakeholders in Northern Europe. That was the dreaded history of colonialism!

It is obvious and self-evident that Good Governance must reflect shepherding and oversight with an eye towards local needs. Imagine the imagery of a “Watchman in a high tower in an medieval walled city”, scanning and monitoring the threats that face his community. While such a concern may be security-minded, the other spheres of society – think economics – must also be addressed for local versus national deliberations:

  • Can economic empowerment efforts be spurred locally, or must they always originate in the Capitol?
  • Should Direct Foreign Investors all be vetted by the Foreign Affairs Office (State Department, etc.)?
  • Can a local farmer increase his yield by plowing addition plots of land?
  • Can a local fisherman add additional boats and “hands on deck”?
  • Can a local chicken farmer add additional coops?

These are important questions, as communities struggle with the challenge of growth. This brings to mind the strategy of whether growth must be Top-Down or can it be Bottoms-up.

  • Pull yourself up by the bootstrap…
  • Give me a job … or create my own job …

This is not just an academic discussion; there are real world implications. In one drama, in the Bahamas, friends and enemies are choosing sides right now, as a local project by the global media and hospitality conglomerate Walt Disney Company (Disney Cruise Lines) is being debated.

Actually, the debate is over, but the fall-out and “weeping-gnashing of teeth” continues. See the full news story and VIDEO in the Appendices B & C below.

This commentary continues this discussion on Good Governance. If Good Governance is to be the norm in Caribbean society, we must decide – in advance – how we want to grow our economies and what role local economic empowerment will have in the equation to transform society. In the foregoing Bahamian drama, the locals want the job multipliers from the Disney project while the opposition, remote people in metropolitan Nassau, do not want any projects that may impact the environment.

This is a familiar consideration for the book Go Lean…Caribbean – available to download for free. The book asserts that the problems of the Caribbean are too big for any one member-state to assuage alone; so there must be cooperation, collaboration and confederation. But does this mean that we must confer on everything, big and small? No! Just the opposite.

Surely, everyone can be expected “to take care of their own business” … first.

This is a mark of maturity, that we can provide for our own basic needs: food, clothing and shelter.

In fact, the Go Lean movement posits that for reform to succeed in the region, we must start by transforming neighborhoods, then elevate cities, then for whole member-states and lastly for the entire region. In fact, the book asserts the tactic of a Separation-of-Powers, in which certain duties-responsibilities are expected to be addressed locally while others will be within scope for a federal government.

The purpose of the Go Lean book is the introduction and implementation of that federal government, the Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU). The book serves as a roadmap for a new technocratic regime for Good Governance. Notice these statements in the opening Declaration of Interdependence (Pages 10 – 12):

viii. Whereas the population size is too small to foster good negotiations for products and commodities from international vendors, the Federation must allow the unification of the region as one purchasing agent, thereby garnering better terms and discounts.

xi. Whereas all men are entitled to the benefits of good governance in a free society, “new guards” must be enacted to dissuade the emergence of incompetence, corruption, nepotism and cronyism at the peril of the people’s best interest. The Federation must guarantee the executions of a social contract between government and the governed.

xii. Whereas the legacy in recent times in individual states may be that of ineffectual governance with no redress to higher authority, the accedence of this Federation will ensure accountability and escalation of the human and civil rights of the people for good governance, justice assurances, due process and the rule of law. As such, any threats of a “failed state” status for any member state must enact emergency measures on behalf of the Federation to protect the human, civil and property rights of the citizens, residents, allies, trading partners, and visitors of the affected member state and the Federation as a whole.

xxiii. Whereas many countries in our region are dependent Overseas Territory of imperial powers, the systems of governance can be instituted on a regional and local basis, rather than requiring oversight or accountability from distant masters far removed from their subjects of administration. The Federation must facilitate success in autonomous rule by sharing tools, systems and teamwork within the geographical region.

This commentary is the fourth of this 5-part series – 4 of 5 – from the movement behind the Go Lean book in consideration of the Good Governance needs for a new Caribbean regime. The other commentaries in the series are cataloged as follows:

  1. Good Governance: … Versus Partisan Politics
  2. Good Governance: Stepping Up in an Emergency
  3. Good Governance: The Kind of Society We Want
  4. Good Governance: Getting ‘Out of the Way’ of Local Economic Empowerment
  5. Good Governance: Good Corporate Compliance

No doubt there is the need for Good Governance for the Caribbean; we need better stewardship and shepherding of the 30 member-states to ensure that we do not repeat the mistakes of the past. We need to value independence, resiliency and vigilance, not stymie progress because it may not have originated in some Capitol. This is the lesson from the opening anecdote about Common Pool Resources.

The best chance for success is for those who work with a local resource to participate in managing the local resource. So at times, we may need national government – or even federal governments – to get ‘Out of the Way’ and allow local economic empowerments.

In fact, the Go Lean roadmap introduces the concept of Self-Government Entities (SGE), an ideal concept for a job-creation engine, with its exclusive federal regulation/promotion activities. Imagine bordered campuses – exclusive resorts, industrial labs, educational facilities, R&D parks – with separate (local) arrangements to provision basic needs. This local empowerment accelerates the job multiplier factor – how certain industries are better than others for generating multiple indirect jobs down the line (off-campus) for each direct job on the SGE’s payroll.

This is how the Go Lean roadmap seeks to reform or transform the societal engines for all the Caribbean. This is our quest, our prime directive, as related in the following statements:

  • Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion & create 2.2 million new jobs.
  • Establishment of a security apparatus to ensure public safety and protect the resultant economic engines.
  • Improvement of Caribbean governance to support these engines, including a separation-of-powers between the member-states and CU federal agencies.

Good Governance based on best-practices, especially as recognized by a Nobel Prize, is a good starting point to transform a society. This is why Common Pool Resources are so frequently highlighted in the Go Lean book. Within the 370-pages of the book are details of Common Pool Resource management, urged for adoption within the new Caribbean regime. Here is a sample of the references to Common Pool Resources and how it relates to Good Governance through-out the book:

Tactical – Separation of Powers

F – Interior Department
The CU initiates its charter with a petition to the United Nations for a designation of an Exclusive Economic Zone for the spaces (seas) between the islands. This Department manages the oversight of this “common” territory. In addition, this Agency will have to work with foreign entities in the management of common pool resources, like water rights, river ecosystems in Guyana, Suriname and Belize where they are bordered by other (bigger) countries.

 Page 82
Tactical – Separation of Powers

J – Agriculture and Fisheries Department
This Department in the Executive Branch coordinates the region efforts in agriculture, agri-business and fisheries. … this office is to be managed like a Project Management Office, coordinating one region-wide project after another. This department will also oversee the common pool resources for the region. This will include fish stock and common grazing lands. This effort will have to be coordinated and collaborated with the Department of the Interior agencies and resources.

 Page 88
Advocacy – 10 Lessons from the American West

# 5 – Common Pool Resources: Water / Public Works

There were many environmental deterrents to conquering the West. There is actually a continental divide in North America in which minimal rain falls west of that divide; the western states were not sustainable for large populations.

Over the years, the US Army Corps of Engineers created canals, dams, reservoirs, irrigation, water pipelines and other measures, in multi-state compacts. The CU must also engineer multi-state public works projects to improve economies.

 Page 142
Advocacy – 10 Ways to Better Manage Natural Resources
# 2 – Lean in for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU) treaty.
This treaty allows for the unification of the region into one market, thereby integrating to a single economy of 30 member-states, 42 million people and GDP of over $800 Billion in (2010). The region needs joint management of the common pool of natural resources, and this one of the foremost reasons for confederating the CU. First it garners international support for the UN petition for an Exclusive Economic Zone in and near the Caribbean Seas. The CU’s representation of a single market allows for effective negotiations with foreign parties – the islands will no longer be viewed as inconsequential. The CU’s separation of powers mandate is germane for managing the local needs of the region’s common resources; it allows for closer oversight of local regulators, but with CU principles.		 Page 183
Advocacy – 10 Ways to Improve Fisheries
# 3 – Common Pool Resources (Lobster, Conch, Grouper, Flying Fish)
Though the waters between the islands may be uninhabited, their resources can still be depleted. The CU will govern the common pool resources to promote the sustainability of fish stock. Fishing for lobster, conch, grouper, “flying fish” and other species must be controlled, with limited harvesting seasons, otherwise there will be none for future generations.		 Page 210
Advocacy – 10 Ways to Impact Rural Living
# 3 – Common Pool Resources Oversight and Management
The CU will exercise eminent domain to buy a lot of “crown” land, and the Exclusive Economic Zone, to promote as common pool resources (farming, fishing, and mining). This ownership allows for the implementation of proper oversight rules, with local coordination, and best practices. This is the “golden rule” – the one with the “gold”, makes the rule!		 Page 235
Advocacy – 10 Ways to Impact The Guianas
# 1 – Lean in for the Caribbean Single Market & Economy
The CU will allow for the unification of the region into one market, thereby creating a single economy of 30 member-states for 42 million, including the independent states of Guyana and Suriname. Other territories that made up The Guianas region include French Guiana, Spanish Guiana (today, the Guayana Region comprises three of the federal States of Venezuela: Amazonas, Bolívar, Delta Amacuro), and Portuguese Guiana (Brazil’s State of Amapa). On the CU roadmap, annexations will be explored in Year 5; French Guiana is ideal candidate, but not the Venezuelan and Brazilian regions. But there is the immediate need for foreign policy synchronizations with these other states for common pool resources and regional threats.		 Page 241

Consider how this vision of a rebooted economic landscape – with the technocratic management of Common Pool Resources – have been portrayed in these previous blog-commentaries; see this sample:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15359 Industrial Reboot – Fisheries 101
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15907 Industrial Reboot – Navy Pier 101
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=14911 Would Less People Mean More Resources For the Remnant? No!
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=12724 Lessons from Colorado: Water Management Arts & Sciences
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=1092 Managing the Airwaves as a Common Pool Resource

The Go Lean book was very clear in its conclusion, the problem with the Caribbean is not the land/sea – it is the greatest address on the planet – it is not the people – we have a unique mix of African, Amer-Indian, Asian and European cultures, it is the stewardship. We must abandon bad ineffectual governing practices and embrace best-practices anew. We need to employ good ideas, even if they do not come from the Capitol. So we must be willing to accept local economic empowerment initiatives.

Our past roads are littered with failure; let’s do better going forward. Let’s embrace Good Governance. Let’s start aright with the strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies as prescribed in the book Go Lean…Caribbean. We urge everyone to lean-in to this roadmap. This is how we can make our homeland better places to live, work and play. 🙂

Download the free e-Book of Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

Sign the petition to lean-in for this roadmap for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation.

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Appendix A – What Is the Dunning-Kruger Effect?

The Dunning-Kruger effect is a type of cognitive bias in which people believe that they are smarter and more capable than they really are. …

The term lends a scientific name and explanation to a problem that many people immediately recognize—that fools are blind to their own foolishness. …

An Overview of the Dunning-Kruger Effect

This phenomenon is something you have likely experienced in real life, perhaps around the dinner table at a holiday family gathering. Throughout the course of the meal, a member of your extended family begins spouting off on a topic at length, boldly proclaiming that he is correct and that everyone else’s opinion is stupid, uninformed, and just plain wrong. It may be plainly evident to everyone in the room that this person has no idea what he is talking about, yet he prattles on, blithely oblivious to his own ignorance.

The effect is named after researchers David Dunning and Justin Kruger, the two social psychologists who first described it. …

A Little Knowledge Can Lead to Overconfidence

Another contributing factor is that sometimes a tiny bit of knowledge on a subject can lead people to mistakenly believe that they know all there is to know about it. As the old saying goes, a little bit of knowledge can be a dangerous thing. A person might have the slimmest bit of awareness about a subject, yet thanks to the Dunning-Kruger effect, believe that he or she is an expert. …

See the remaining article here …

Source: Posted April 9, 2018; retrieved October 29, 2018 from: https://www.verywellmind.com/an-overview-of-the-dunning-kruger-effect-4160740

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Appendix B – Title: Disney’s Lighthouse Point: Bahamian Government Approves Sale of Lighthouse Point to Disney Cruise Line

Disney is one step closer to calling Lighthouse Point, Disney’s Lighthouse Point after Bahamian Prime Minister announced the government is choosing The Walt Disney Company’s proposal. Today’s approval gives Disney Cruise Line a green light to move ahead plans to purchase the 700 to 800-acre Lighthouse Point property at the tip of South Eleuthera for a second private cruise destination. EyeWitness News reported the decision just before the 3 o’clock hour.

Below is a copy of the press statement issued by The Bahamas Cabinet:

Press Statement
Cabinet Office
19 October 2018

The Lighthouse Point Development has been the subject of considerable public discussion, particularly in recent months.

The National Economic Council considered the matter today, 19 October, and approved the proposal submitted by Disney Cruise Line Island Development Ltd.

Negotiations will now begin on a Heads of Agreement, which will detail the scope of the project, the obligations of the Disney Cruise Lines Island Development Ltd. and the obligations of the Government of The Bahamas.

The negotiation of the Heads of Agreement will commence immediately. When concluded, it will be presented to Parliament in keeping with the government’s commitment to transparency and accountability.

The Cabinet Office wishes to emphasize that the land which is the subject of the proposal is privately owned. It has been on the real estate market for a long period.

The land is not Crown Land and is not owned by the Government of The Bahamas.

The Disney Cruise Lines Development Ltd. has a sales agreement with the land owner to purchase the land.

The Cabinet Office notes that both the Disney Cruise Lines Island Development Ltd. and the One Eleuthera Foundation and its partners have been publicly noting their plans for the development of Lighthouse Point.

It is also noted that recent polling revealed that more than 60 percent of Bahamians “very much” or “somewhat” support Disney’s proposal for Lighthouse Point, Eleuthera.

The Cabinet Office is also aware of meetings held in the communities of Central and South Eleuthera by respective groups, and live radio broadcasts, which have allowed individuals to express their views.

During one of his regular town hall meetings, this one held at the Green Castle Primary School on 10 October 2018, the Prime Minister informed the people of Central and South Eleuthera of the Government’s plans for the nation and listened to their concerns.

During this meeting overwhelming support was expressed for the Disney Cruise Lines Development Ltd. proposal.

The Cabinet Office notes that prior to that town meeting, the One Eleuthera Foundation and its partners held several community meetings in Central and South Eleuthera to promote their proposal.

This included meetings at Wemyss Bight on 27 July, Deep Creek on 10 August, Tarpum Bay on 17 August, Rock Sound on 31 August and Bannerman Town on 7 September 2018.

Some of the core elements of the Disney Cruise Lines Island Development Ltd. proposal which are of fundamental importance and to which Disney is committed, include: low density development and sustainable design, public access, and the restoration of various historical and cultural sites.

The development will create approximately 150 new jobs and an array of entrepreneurial opportunities for residents of Eleuthera and Bahamians in general.

Disney will convey approximately 190 acres of the land purchased from the private seller to the Government of The Bahamas for conservation and a national park.

Other elements of the project include: the integration of Bahamian cultural and artistic expression into the design of the site and experiences offered, and partnership with the community to develop training and professional development programs.

The Disney Cruise Lines began its cruises to The Bahamas in 1998.

Since that time, the economic impact on the Bahamian economy has been significant. With the development of the Eleuthera project an increase in port calls to Nassau is also projected.

The Government notes Disney’s record of environmental stewardship and will ensure that the project is implemented in a manner which safeguards our environment and the interests of the people of The Bahamas.

The Government of The Bahamas having taken into consideration the views of the majority of the people of Central and South Eleuthera is satisfied that it has made the best decision in the interest of the Bahamian people, a sustainable future for the people of Central and South Eleuthera and the economic development of the country.

I think one of the key factors in the Cabinet’s decision aside from the revenue stream that will be generated by Disney Cruise Line is that the Lighthouse Point property is privately owned. The property has been on the market for a long period. The land is not Crown Land, therefore, is not owned by the Government of The Bahamas. Disney Cruise Line has a sales agreement with the land owner to purchase the land.

What’s next? Disney and The Bahamas will negotiate a Heads of Agreement that will then be presented to Parliament. One Eleuthera’s press release claims there will not be an economic impact until at least 2023.

“We are excited to reach this important milestone and look forward to working with Government and the people of The Bahamas to create new economic opportunities while preserving the natural beauty of Lighthouse Point. We are grateful for the warm welcome and support we have received from so many in Eleuthera and look forward to further developing relationships that will endure for many years to come. In the short term, we are focused on reaching an agreement that is mutually beneficial for The Bahamas and our company, as well as moving forward with an environmental impact assessment and environmental management plan. Our team also looks forward to working with local artists, historians and others as we ensure that the stories and culture of The Bahamas shine through when Disney guests and Bahamians alike visit this special place.” — Jeff Vahle

Disney Cruise Line’s Vice President of Public Affairs, Kim Prunty, told Tribune 242 an environmental impact study (EIA) could take months which Disney will work with the government on this effort. The Bahamas Planning and Subdivisions Act from 2010 requires complete EIA for proposed projects such as Disney’s Lighthouse Point development. The required EIA would be submitted to the Department of Physical Planning as part of the proposed development which is either likely to give rise to significant affects on the environment, of national importance, proposed for sensitive lands, significant in terms of size or complexity, of a nature that may have potentially adverse environmental effects or is considered a development of regional impact.

For more, here is a look at Disney Cruise Line’s proposal and plans for Disney’s Lighthouse Point.

Source: Posted on October 19, 2018; retrieved October 28, 2018 from:

https://disneycruiselineblog.com/2018/10/disneys-lighthouse-point-bahamian-government-approves-sale-of-lighthouse-point-to-disney-cruise-line/

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Appendix C VIDEO – DISNEYS PROPOSAL FOR LIGHTHOUSE POINT APPROVED – https://youtu.be/xHlA-AM9HGY

ZNSNetwork

Published on Oct 19, 2018 – Local Bahamas Nightly Newscast

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Good Governance: The Kind of Society We Want

Posted on October 27, 2018 in Ethos, Government, Planning, Tactical

Go Lean Commentary

What kind of society do you want to live in?

This is important to consider. As a democracy – of the people, by the people, for the people – what is done by the government is done on the people’s behalf, in our name.

“This is on us”.

Frankly, I would not want to live in a society where the strong abuses the weak.

To the contrast, I would want to live in a society, where we protect the vulnerable ones among us. This is also a Biblical concept …

The form of worship* that is clean and undefiled from the standpoint of our God and Father is this: to look after orphans+ and widows+ in their tribulation,+ and to keep oneself without spot from the world.+ – James 1:27 NWT

This is a discussion about the modern plague of Human Trafficking.

Modern? Yes, there is “nothing new under the sun”. Human trafficking has always been a plight in the Caribbean; (see Appendix VIDEO below). Surely you recognize the parallels of this old practice of another name:

Slave Trade

Yes, Human Trafficking is the new brand for the old abominable practice of the slave trade. The Caribbean has a sad history with this practice – ancient and modern. Stories continue to emerge of contemporary occurrences. See this one here:

Title: Suspected Human Trafficking Victim Rescued In Castries

Crying young woman

A sixteen year old female, suspected to be a victim of human trafficking, was rescued Sunday in Castries and handed over to Saint Lucia Police, a senior law enforcement source has confirmed.

The teenager, originally from Venezuela but living in neighbouring Martinique for some time, ran to a complete stranger and begged for help, saying that she had been kidnapped and sexually abused, the source said.

According to the source, the young woman was partially naked and was complaining of intense pain.

“She said she was sedated by her captors and brought to Saint Lucia,” the source told St Lucia Times.

The stranger, a woman, to whom the teenager ran for help, took the girl to her home where she was given a meal and some clothing and later handed over to the Criminal Investigations Department of the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force (RSLPF), it was reported.

The law enforcement source told St Lucia Times that it appears that the teenager had been reported missing by officials in Martinique.

Investigations into the matter are continuing.

Source: Posted October 23, 2018; retrieved October 26, 2018 from https://stluciatimes.com/2018/10/23/suspected-human-trafficking-victim-rescued-in-castries/

As related here, this victim originated in Spanish-speaking Venezuela and has since been trafficked in the French Caribbean territory of Martinique and now the Anglophone country of St. Lucia.

This is more than just an academic discussion; this is a defining issue for the Caribbean and all of the New World territories in the Americas: What kind of society do we want to be?

My answer: one with Good Governance; one where we ensure that the strong do not abuse the weak and the vulnerable.

Human trafficking is a clear obvious violation of human rights of a weak subject; see the definition in the Appendix below.

In a previous Go Lean blog-commentary, the reference was made to a higher standard for governments and shepherds of society – the Code of Hammurabi – enacted within the ancient Babylonian Empire Super Power; it featured this statement:

“So that the strong should not harm the weak”
…

There is an obvious “ignorance or negligence of this [Old World] concept” in the New World. …

So the abuse of the “strong against the weak” is clearly an unabashed societal defect in the New World. History teaches that with the emergence of any new economic engines, “bad actors” will also emerge thereafter to exploit the opportunities – the weak – with good, bad and evil intent.

The New World needs to apply this lesson-learned from the “Old World of 1754 BC” to protect the “poor, sick and huddled masses yearning to be free”.

This lesson from history aligns with the book Go Lean…Caribbean, which seeks to reform and transform the 30 member-states of the Caribbean region; the book describes empowerments to target the economic, security and governing engines of society to ensure an adherence to the principle of the Greater Good. While we can observe-and-report on the other countries, we can only effect change here in our Caribbean homeland.

For the strong to protect the weak, the minimum expectation is an assumption of Good Governance. It is expected that someone-somewhere will step-in and step-up to police against human trafficking …

… failing this, we would have a Failed-State.

Unfortunately, according to the foregoing news article, this is the reality and actuality in the Caribbean. A Failed-State emerges when the governmental entities are not able to deliver on the Social Contract as defined here in a previous blog-commentary:

“Citizens surrender some of their freedoms and submit to the authority of the State in exchange for protection of remaining natural and legal rights”.

When a State fails on the delivery of the Social Contract; the most common consequence in society is human flight in search of refuge. This aligns with the societal abandonment reasons of “Push and Pull“:

  • Push – refers to the reasons people who feel compelled to leave, to seek refuge in a foreign land. “Refuge” is an appropriate word; because of societal defects – like the “strong abusing the weak” – many from the Caribbean must leave as refugees – think Disability, Domestic-abuse, Medically-challenged and LGBT – for their life, liberty and pursuit of happiness.
  • Pull – refers to the lure of a more safer life abroad; many times our people are emigrating to communities where there are protections for the “weak against the abusive strong”.

The kind of society we want is one where Human Traffickers do not find safe haven in our communities. We want Good Governance not Failed-States.

This commentary is the third of a 5-part series (3 of 5) from the movement behind the Go Lean book in consideration of the Good Governance needs for a new Caribbean regime. The other commentaries in the series are cataloged as follows:

  1. Good Governance: … Versus Partisan Politics
  2. Good Governance: Stepping Up in an Emergency
  3. Good Governance: The Kind of Society We Want
  4. Good Governance: Getting ‘Out of the Way’ of Local Economic Empowerment
  5. Good Governance: Good Corporate Compliance

This need for Good Governance and a Caribbean Regional Police – CariPol – is embedded in this plan to elevate Caribbean life, the Go Lean book serves as a roadmap for the introduction and implementation of the Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU). The purpose of this roadmap is to transform the region’s societal engines, which includes economics, security and governance. This is stated as the prime directive of the CU/Go Lean roadmap, see here:

  • Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion & create 2.2 million new jobs.
  • Establishment of a regional security apparatus to ensure public safety and protect the resultant economic engines.
  • Improvement of Caribbean governance to support these engines, including a separation-of-powers between the member-states and CU federal agencies.

Good Governance, CariPol and Homeland Security are all part of the Go Lean book’s emphasis on New Guards. Notice these references in the opening Declaration of Interdependence (Pages 11 – 13):

x. Whereas we are surrounded and allied to nations of larger proportions in land mass, populations, and treasuries, elements in their societies may have ill-intent in their pursuits, at the expense of the safety and security of our citizens. We must therefore appoint “new guards” to ensure our public safety and threats against our society, both domestic and foreign. …

xi. Whereas all men are entitled to the benefits of good governance in a free society, “new guards” must be enacted to dissuade the emergence of incompetence, corruption, nepotism and cronyism at the peril of the people’s best interest. The Federation must guarantee the executions of a social contract between government and the governed.

xii. Whereas the legacy in recent times in individual states may be that of ineffectual governance with no redress to higher authority, the accedence of this Federation will ensure accountability and escalation of the human and civil rights of the people for good governance, justice assurances, due process and the rule of law. As such, any threats of a “failed state” status for any member state must enact emergency measures on behalf of the Federation to protect the human, civil and property rights of the citizens, residents, allies, trading partners, and visitors of the affected member state and the Federation as a whole.

xviii. Whereas all citizens in the Federation member-states may not have the same physical abilities, reasonable accommodations must be made so that individuals with physical and mental disabilities can still access public and governmental services so as to foster a satisfactory pursuit of life’s liberties and opportunities for happiness.

These  references to New Guards is a glimpse of a new Caribbean as envisioned in the Go Lean book. The Go Lean book provides 370-pages of turn-by-turn instructions on “how” to adopt new community ethos, plus the strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies to execute so as to reboot, reform and transform the societal engines of Caribbean society. We need to avoid Failed-State statuses. In addition, there is one advocacy in the book for mitigating the downward trend to Failed-State status. This includes considerations for the delivery of the Social Contract. Notice the specific plans, excerpts and headlines from the book on Page 134 entitled:

10 Ways to Improve Failed-State Indices

1 Lean-in for the Caribbean Single Market
This will allow for the unification of the region into one market of 42 million people across 30 member-states, thereby creating an economic zone to protect the interest of the participant trading partner-member-states. The GDP of the region will amount to $800 Billion (circa 2010). In addition, the treaty calls for a collective security agreement of the member states so as to ensure homeland security and assuage against systemic threats. The CU will ensure that law-and-order persist during times of distress. When a member state declares a State of Emergency, due to natural disaster or civil unrest, this triggers an automatic CU response – this is equivalent to the governmental dialing 911.
2 Image and Defamation
3 Local Government and the Social Contract

The Social Contract is the concept that individuals have consented, either explicitly or tacitly, to surrender some of their freedoms and submit to the authority of the State in exchange for protection of their remaining rights (natural and legal). People therefore expect their government (national or municipal) to provide public safety, health, education and other services. The CU will facilitate overhead services for local governments and access to financial markets to fund capital infrastructure investments. The member-states will therefore have more accountability and reporting to CU institutions.
4 Law Enforcement Oversight

The CU will maintain jurisdiction for economic crimes and regional threats. Plus, the CU will collaborate and facilitate

local law enforcement with grants of equipment and training to better fulfill their roles. Lastly, the regional security treaty will grant the CU the audit and compliance responsibility for “use of force” investigations and internal affairs.
5 Military and Political Monitoring

The CU will carefully monitor the activities of the military units (Army, Navy and Coast Guard) – this accountability will be the by-product of increased CU funding. The CU will assume the Judge Advocate General role for military justice affairs. For cross border engagements, the National armed forces will be marshaled by the CU’s Commander-in-Chief.
6 Crime/Homeland Intelligence
The CU will install advanced systems, processes, and personnel for intelligence gathering and analysis to assist public safety institutions. This includes terrestrial and satellite surveillance systems, phone eavesdropping, data mining and predictive modeling. The findings will be used to mitigate risks and threats (gangs, anarchy, and organized crime).
7 Minority and Human Rights

The CU will protect the minority and human rights for the region’s population; this includes ethnic mixes of African, European, Amerindian, and Asian heritage; 4 languages, various religions, and 5 colonial legacies. The CU strategizes this diversity as an asset, rather than a source of contention, to be exploited as cultural exchanges in music, festivals, events, and food services. This will have a positive effect on tourism (foreign & domestic) and media initiatives.
8 Election Outsourcing
9 War Against Poverty
10 Big Data

This Go Lean book presents that the function and responsibility of assuaging Failed-State indices will be a priority on Day One / Step One of the Go Lean/CU roadmap. The point of Failed-State downward spirals has been elaborated on in previous blog-commentaries; consider this sample:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=13391 After Maria, Failed-State Indicators: Destruction and Defection for PR
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=12996 After Irma, Failed-State Indicators: Destruction and Defection
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=12098 Inaction: A Recipe for ‘Failed-State’ Status in Venezuela
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=2547 Miami’s Success versus Caribbean Failure

We want the kind of society that looks after – protects – the vulnerable people in our community. This is what Good Governance should mean to us. So we must reform and transform our Caribbean governing engines to reach this goal. Let’s lean-in to this Go Lean roadmap to accomplish this.

A commitment for Good Governance is a commitment to fully deliver on the Social Contract. Succeeding, or trying to succeed is how to can make the Caribbean a better homeland to live, work and play. 🙂

Download the free e-Book of Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

Sign the petition to lean-in for this roadmap for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation.

—————-

Appendix – Human Trafficking

Human trafficking is the trade of humans for the purpose of forced labour, sexual slavery, or commercial sexual exploitation for the trafficker or others.[1][2] This may encompass providing a spouse in the context of forced marriage,[3][4][5] or the extraction of organs or tissues,[6][7] including for surrogacy and ova removal.[8] Human trafficking can occur within a country or trans-nationally. Human trafficking is a crime against the person because of the violation of the victim’s rights of movement through coercion and because of their commercial exploitation.[9] Human trafficking is the trade in people, especially women and children, and does not necessarily involve the movement of the person from one place to another.[citation needed]

According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), forced labor alone (one component of human trafficking) generates an estimated $150 billion in profits per annum as of 2014.[10] In 2012, the ILO estimated that 21 million victims are trapped in modern-day slavery. Of these, 14.2 million (68%) were exploited for labor, 4.5 million (22%) were sexually exploited, and 2.2 million (10%) were exploited in state-imposed forced labor.[11]

Human trafficking is thought to be one of the fastest-growing activities of trans-national criminal organizations.[12]

Human trafficking is condemned as a violation of human rights by international conventions. In addition, human trafficking is subject to a directive in the European Union.[13] According to a report by the U.S. State Department, Belarus, Iran, Russia, and Turkmenistan remain among the worst countries when it comes to providing protection against human trafficking and forced labor. [14]

…

Revenues

In 2014, the International Labour Organization estimated $150 billion in annual profit is generated from forced labor alone.[10]

The average cost of a human trafficking victim today is USD $90 whereas the average slave in 1800 America cost the equivalent of USD $40,000.[18]

(Human trafficking differs from people smuggling, which involves a person voluntarily requesting or hiring another individual to covertly transport them across an international border, usually because the smuggled person would be denied entry into a country by legal channels. )

Source: Retrieved from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_trafficking

—————–

Appendix VIDEO – Human Trafficking – Short Documentary in the Caribbean – https://youtu.be/Hy0uA-srXig

UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office
Published on Sep 24, 2013 – A short film to inform the public about human trafficking in the Caribbean and to raise awareness of this modern form of slavery.

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Good Governance: Stepping Up in an Emergency

Posted on October 25, 2018 in Ethos, Government, Tactical

Go Lean Commentary

Do you know what SOS stands for?

Of course you know what it infers – “Emergency; Need Help” – but what does the letters stand for? There are a lot of lessons for us to learn with this encyclopedic consideration, here:

SOS
noun: SOS; plural noun: SOSs

  1. an international code signal of extreme distress, used especially by ships at sea.
    • an urgent appeal for help.
    • BRITISH: a message broadcast to an untraceable person in an emergency.
      i.e.: “here is an SOS message for Mr. Arthur Brown about his brother, who is dangerously ill”

Origin
Early 20th century (1905): letters chosen as being easily transmitted and recognized in Morse code; by folk etymology an abbreviation of “Save Our Souls“.
Translated to Morse code, SOS looks like this:

“. . . – – – . . .”

Source: Retrieved October 25, 2018 from: 1. https://www.google.com/search?q=Dictionary#dobs=SOS 2. https://www.rd.com/culture/sos-meaning/

SOS, plus 911 and other emergency outreach numbers, are all calls for help. In modern society, it is expected that someone-somewhere will respond.

That expectation is within the assumption of Good Governance. It is expected that someone-somewhere will step-up in the time of emergencies …

… failing this, we would have a Failed-State.

Unfortunately, this is the reality and actuality in the Caribbean. Consider these recent examples:

  • In January 2010, a 7.0 Magnitude Earthquake flattened large swaths of urban communities in Haiti. After 8 years, the people are still calling out for help. Some relief organizations – i.e. American Red Cross – that responded, fleeced the people more so than helped them.
  • In September 2017, Hurricane Irma devastated the twin island nation of Antigua & Barbuda. Rather than recovery and rebuilding on Barbuda, the government has just removed the people and made it a Ghost Town.
  • Later in September 2017, there was Hurricane Maria that devastated some Caribbean islands, Puerto Rico included. Power was out for parts of the island for 9 months; the PR government try to assert that the number of deaths were 64 people; and yet demographers and other social scientists counted the mortality rate for 4th Quarter 2017 and the 4th Quarters in previous years and the real [death] count is more like: 4600+.

  • In October 2018, there were heavy rains – not associated with a hurricane – over Trinidad & Tobago. The islands experienced severe flooding, at record levels. As days went by, conditions on the ground got worse and worse.

    See the VIDEO presentation of this news story in the Appendix below.

What is common about these true scenarios in recent history, is that the people sent out an SOS and it appears that no one responded – or too little response too late. Or worse still, only “pirates” responded and further exploited the victims.

Where is the expectation that someone-somewhere would step-up in these times of emergency? Someone honest, responsible, integral and accountable …

The Caribbean member-states are failing in their delivery of the implied Social Contract; defined in a previous blog-commentary, as follows:

“citizens surrender some of their freedoms and submit to the authority of the State in exchange for protection of remaining natural and legal rights”.

Failures in the delivery of the Social Contract is part-and-parcel of the crises afflicting the Caribbean. We suffer from an alarming societal abandonment rate because of the following 2 reasons:

  • Push – Deficient response, recovery and rebuilding after natural disasters have caused Caribbean people to seek refuge abroad; i.e. Puerto Rico may have lost 14% of their population after Hurricane Maria in 2017.
  • Pull – The perception is that other lands (North America and Europe) do better at delivering the basic needs – economics, security and governance – for their people.

All in all, other people do better in delivering on the Social Contract and responding to pleas of SOS. Assuaging this deficiency is the quest of the book Go Lean…Caribbean, to introduce and implement the Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU), to do better at addressing our Homeland Security needs. It is past time for someone to step-up in response to emergencies. The book asserts this on its opening page (Page 3):

The economy of the Caribbean is inextricably linked to the security of the region. Therefore the CU treaty includes a security pact to implement the mechanisms to ensure greater homeland security. These efforts will monitor and mitigate against economic crimes, systemic threats and also facilitate natural disaster planning and response agencies.

So when a Caribbean community puts out an SOS – on land, at sea or in the air – there will be someone there to respond.

When 911 calls 911, the CU responds … through its aligning agencies and institutions.

This is Good Governance. As reported in the previous submission in this series, Puerto Rico may have lost 470,000 people – 14% of the population – since Hurricanes Maria and Irma in September 2017 – Source posted February 20, 2018. We need to do better with our regional stewardship in the future.

This commentary is the second of a 5-part series (2 of 5) from the movement behind the Go Lean book in consideration of the Good Governance needs for a new Caribbean regime. The other commentaries in the series are cataloged as follows:

  1. Good Governance: … Versus Partisan Politics
  2. Good Governance: Stepping Up in an Emergency
  3. Good Governance: The Kind of Society We Want
  4. Good Governance: Getting ‘Out of the Way’ of Local Economic Empowerment
  5. Good Governance: Good Corporate Compliance

This need for Good Governance is embedded in this plan to elevate Caribbean life. There is the need to reboot, reform and transform all societal engines including: economics, security and governance. The member-state governments is the only security offering in this region, notwithstanding Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO’s). We need to do better at coordinating all of these facets of Caribbean life. This is the prime directive of this CU/Go Lean roadmap, as declared in these statements:

  • Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion & create 2.2 million new jobs.
  • Establishment of a security apparatus to ensure public safety and protect the resultant economic engines.
  • Improvement of Caribbean governance to support these engines, including a separation-of-powers between the member-states and CU federal agencies.

Good Governance … Emergency Operations … Homeland Security …

These are all part of the Go Lean book’s emphasis on New Guards. Notice these references in the opening Declaration of Interdependence (Pages 11 – 12):

iii. Whereas the natural formation of the landmass for our society is that of an archipelago of islands, inherent to this nature is the limitation of terrain and the natural resources there in. We must therefore provide “new guards” and protections to ensure the efficient and effective management of these resources.

x. Whereas we are surrounded and allied to nations of larger proportions in land mass, populations, and treasuries, elements in their societies may have ill-intent in their pursuits, at the expense of the safety and security of our citizens. We must therefore appoint “new guards” to ensure our public safety and threats against our society, both domestic and foreign. …

xi. Whereas all men are entitled to the benefits of good governance in a free society, “new guards” must be enacted to dissuade the emergence of incompetence, corruption, nepotism and cronyism at the peril of the people’s best interest. The Federation must guarantee the executions of a social contract between government and the governed.

xii. Whereas the legacy in recent times in individual states may be that of ineffectual governance with no redress to higher authority, the accedence of this Federation will ensure accountability and escalation of the human and civil rights of the people for good governance, justice assurances, due process and the rule of law. As such, any threats of a “failed state” status for any member state must enact emergency measures on behalf of the Federation to protect the human, civil and property rights of the citizens, residents, allies, trading partners, and visitors of the affected member state and the Federation as a whole.

These statements provide a glimpse of a new Caribbean that is ready for these New Guards. These are not foreigners. These are fellow Caribbean brothers and sisters, representing the 30 member-states in the region. They have the desire to help; they only need Good Governance … (Good Governance fulfillment will allow for more funding).

The CU structure allows for an Emergency Management functionality within the Homeland Security Department. The CU‘s version is modeled after the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in the US. That agency’s emergency response is based on small, decentralized teams trained in such areas as the National Disaster Medical System (NDMS), Urban Search and Rescue (USAR), Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Team (DMORT), Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT), and Mobile Emergency Response Support (MERS).

The Go Lean book provides 370-pages of turn-by-turn instructions on “how” to adopt new community ethos, plus the strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies to execute so as to reboot, reform and transform the societal engines of Caribbean society. We need to be better at responding to the SOS calls in our region. In fact, the Go Lean roadmap proposes (Page 76) “the best practice of electronic notification for Emergency Management. This includes an Emergency Broadcasting-Alert system for TV & radio, plus advances in contact center technologies like Reverse 911, Automated-Robo calls to every active phone in a location – and text message blasting to every cell phone”.

In addition, there is one advocacy in the book for fostering a better Emergency Management eco-system. This includes Disaster Planning, Response & Recovery. Consider the specific plans, excerpts and headlines from the book on Page 196 entitled:

10 Ways to Improve Emergency Management

1 Lean-in for the Caribbean Single Market
This treaty allows for the unification of the region into one market, thereby expanding to an economy of 30 countries, 42 million people and a GDP of over $800 Billion (according to 2010 metrics). This treaty calls for a collective security agreement for the Caribbean member-states so as to prepare-respond to natural disasters, emergency incidents and assuage against systemic threats against the homeland. The CU employs the professional arts and sciences of Emergency Management to spread the costs, risks and premium base across the entire region and refers to more  than  just medical scenarios, but rather any field of discipline that can impact the continuity of a community or an individual. The CU also has the direct responsibility for emergencies in the Exclusive Economic Zone and Self Governing Entities.
2 Trauma Centers
3 Airlift / Sealift – Getting there by Helicopters, Airplanes and Boats

In addition to Air Ambulances (helicopters & airplanes), the CU will deploy Water Ambulances to quickly convey the injured to trauma centers among the islands. The vessels will all be equipped with certified and trauma-trained EMTs.
4 Mobile Surgical Centers and Tele-Medicine

The CU will deploy specialized trailers that function as surgical operating theaters, recovery rooms and diagnostic laboratories. The mobile hospitals will include attendant functions for pharmaceuticals, power, and communications. The communications allow for tele-medicine tactics to engage specialized clinicians that may be remote. These trailers can be positioned at sites of emergency events to better respond after disasters or when normal infrastructure is compromised.
5 Epidemiology – Viral & Bacterial Rapid Response

Due to the systemic threat, epidemic response and disease control will be coordinated at the CU Cabinet level, by the Department of Health. In the event of an outbreak, the CU will assume jurisdiction of the emergency “event” with the authority to commandeer local resources, quarantine populations and blockade transport to/from the affected area.
6 Mobile Command Centers
The CU will deploy specialized trailers equipped as mobile command centers for marshaling the on-site response for emergency “events”. The cutting-edge trailers will feature advanced communications, monitoring and power sources. The trailers can be positioned strategically in advance, re-located at the outset of “events”, or rolled-out in response.
7 Intelligence Gathering & Analysis
8 Casualty Insurance Plans – Reinsurance “Sidecars”
9 Volunteer Fire – Rescue Brigades

A lot of the residential areas in the Caribbean region are sparsely populated and hard to justify for permanent Fire-

Rescue installations, so the CU will facilitate Volunteer Fire-Rescue brigades and supply the necessary training, tools, and support services. Even the surgeons, nurses and EMTs for the trauma centers may be structured as part-timers.
10 ITIL – Information Technology Infrastructure Library

This Go Lean book presents that the roll-out of the Emergency Management apparatus will be Day One / Step One of the Go Lean/CU roadmap. Many more highlights have been detailed in previous blog-commentaries; consider this sample:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15886 Industrial Reboot – Reinsurance 101
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15543 Ross University Saga – No Caribbean Unity in Disaster Response
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15310 Industrial Reboot with Trauma Centers
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=13746 Failure to Launch – Security: Caribbean Basin Security Dreams
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=13251 Funding Caribbean Risk
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=13155 Industrial Reboot – Pipelines 101 – Strategy for Quick Recovery
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=12994 The Science of ‘Power Restoration’
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=12949 Charity Management: Grow Up Already!
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=10771 Logical Addresses – ‘Life or Death’ Consequences
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=10566 Funding the Caribbean Security Pact
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=7896 The Logistics of Disaster Relief
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=7449 ‘Crap Happens’ – So What Now?
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=4308 911 – Emergency Response: System in Crisis

We want Good Governance. So we must reform and transform our Caribbean governing engines and Homeland Security apparatus. We must be able to better respond-rebuild-recover from emergencies.

This commitment should be in our delivery of the Social Contract. This is how we can make the Caribbean a better homeland to live, work and play.

The people and institutions of the region are hereby urged to lean-in to this Go Lean roadmap; this plan is conceivable, believable and achievable. 🙂

Download the free e-Book of Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

Sign the petition to lean-in for this roadmap for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation.

———————-

Appendix VIDEO – Kelly Village and Trinidad and Tobago witness the biggest floods in their history – https://youtu.be/ywQaCK4vu04

KellyVillageTV
Published on Oct 20, 2018 – It was a depressing scene walking amongst the villagers today. The camera truly couldn’t capture the devastation and shock in the area. The one emergency center is full and the people are begging for assistance tonight. #KVTV #Trinidad #Flood

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Good Governance: … vs Partisan Politics

Posted on October 24, 2018 in Ethos, Government, Tactical

Go Lean Commentary

A Traffic Light is a simple instrument for controlling transport; it ensures order and security for the public. This is an issue of governance, not politics.

There must be an orderly arrangement for society to function. If a driver does not obey the commands of a Traffic Light he/she would be considered a Bad Actor. This is Good Governance.

Even if its midnight and no other traffic is on the road, if a person waits at a RED traffic light, their compliance would be considered normal; a violation of this norm – even with no traffic at midnight – would be inexcusable and indefensible.

Good Governance is expected to be the norm in any society.

This was the declaration in the book Go Lean…Caribbean – available to download for free. The purpose of the Go Lean book is the introduction and implementation of the Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU), as a technocratic federal government for the 30 member-states of the political Caribbean. The Go Lean book serves as a roadmap for this new regime in governance; this mandate is for Good Governance. Notice these statements in the opening Declaration of Interdependence (Pages 10 – 12):

Preamble: … while our rights to exercise good governance and promote a more perfect society are the natural assumptions among the powers of the earth, no one other than ourselves can be held accountable for our failure to succeed if we do not try to promote the opportunities that a democratic society fosters.

xi. Whereas all men are entitled to the benefits of good governance in a free society, “new guards” must be enacted to dissuade the emergence of incompetence, corruption, nepotism and cronyism at the peril of the people’s best interest. The Federation must guarantee the executions of a social contract between government and the governed.

xii. Whereas the legacy in recent times in individual states may be that of ineffectual governance with no redress to higher authority, the accedence of this Federation will ensure accountability and escalation of the human and civil rights of the people for good governance, justice assurances, due process and the rule of law. As such, any threats of a “failed state” status for any member state must enact emergency measures on behalf of the Federation to protect the human, civil and property rights of the citizens, residents, allies, trading partners, and visitors of the affected member state and the Federation as a whole.

There is a contrast to Good Governance; no doubt “Partisan Politics” fits in that contrast. This refers to the trend of prioritizing and conforming to the whims of a political party over the needs of a government. Imagine shutting down a government because a stakeholder wants their “pet” project funded. This happened; this was a recent threat in the US for President Donald Trump and his desire for a border wall over the passage of the federal government’s annual budget.  See summary of the news story here:

Title: Trump may choose to shut down the government this weekend over his border wall demands

  • President Trump could decide to veto a spending bill and allow parts of the government to shut down.
  • The House is set to pass spending legislation as early as Wednesday, and funding for large parts of the government lapses on Sunday at midnight.
  • Trump has expressed frustration that the bill does not fund his proposed border wall.

By: Jacob Pramuk | @jacobpramuk

Published 12:48 PM ET Wed, 26 Sept 2018; retrieved from:
Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/26/trump-may-force-government-shutdown-over-border-wall-spending.html 

See VIDEO presentation of this news story in the Appendix below.

Obviously Good Governance and “Partisan Politics” do no equate. Consider that traffic light analogy from the outset of this commentary. While the need for law-and-order may not be in dispute, where a community chooses to put a traffic light, or a road or highway for that matter, may be politically motivated, with a lot of party dynamics, and Crony-Capitalistic influences.

This is not just an American drama; this is very much alive and well in the Caribbean region. Consider this example from Barbados; they must reboot a lot of their government financing because of excessive debt; will they now follow a path of Good Governance or “Partisan Politics”? See the news story here:

Title: Former Saint Lucia PM Confident Barbados Will Return to Glory Days
Barbados Today:–  St Lucia’s former prime minister Dr Kenny Anthony has described Barbados’ economic restructuring as necessary and unavoidable.

But Dr Anthony told Barbados TODAY he was confident the country would return to its glory days, while calling on the Government to continue communicating with citizens during the adjustment process.

“I think the policy measures of the Government are necessary and unavoidable because they have inherited a very difficult and complex situation,” he said as he reacted to Government’s ongoing debt restructuring exercise.

Pointing out that Barbados had gone through several “painful adjustments” in the past, Anthony said it meant [be] that there were some continued structural deformities.

“But I believe the sacrifice that has to be made at this time is essential to the recovery of Barbados. I think the good thing is that the people of Barbados understand that despite what may have happened in the past, that they do have to make adjustments, that they have to endure some pain before the problems in the economy is resolved,” he said.
…

See the full article at: https://stluciatimes.com/2018/10/14/former-saint-lucia-pm-confident-barbados-will-return-to-glory-days/

As related here, economic restructuring may be “necessary and unavoidable“. This could be a product of a new commitment to Good Governance going forward. But surely, there is no doubt that the lack of Good Governance adherence in the past form a part of the problem. Amazing too, is the observation of one former Head of Government (St. Lucia) about the activities in the government of another member-state (Barbados).

The lack of and need for Good Governance is obviously a regional concern.

This commentary is the first of a 5-part series from the movement behind the Go Lean book in consideration of the Good Governance needs for a new Caribbean regime. The other commentaries in the series are cataloged as follows:

  1. Good Governance: … Versus Partisan Politics
  2. Good Governance: Stepping Up in an Emergency
  3. Good Governance: The Kind of Society We Want
  4. Good Governance: Getting ‘Out of the Way’ of Local Economic Empowerment
  5. Good Governance: Good Corporate Compliance

No doubt there is the need for Good Governance for the Caribbean; we need better stewardship and shepherding of the 30 member-states – all the island states, plus the 2 South American countries (Guyana and Suriname) and the Central American country of Belize – to ensure that we do not repeat the mistakes of the past and can forge a new future for our children. No future is assured otherwise.

While the focus of this series is on governance, there is the need now to reboot, reform or transform all societal engines including: economics and security. But for this region, the governments are the largest employers and the only security offering. So this is it! To change Caribbean society, our focus must start here with government. Transforming the homeland is our quest, our prime directive. This intent has been proclaimed with the following statements:

  • Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion & create 2.2 million new jobs.
  • Establishment of a security apparatus to ensure public safety and protect the resultant economic engines.
  • Improvement of Caribbean governance to support these engines, including a separation-of-powers between the member-states and CU federal agencies.

There is no doubt that the operations of government is necessary for a functioning society.

As related in a previous blog-commentary, there is an implied Social Contract that states “that citizens surrender some of their freedoms and submit to the authority of the State in exchange for protection of remaining natural and legal rights”. The more efficient a State is in delivering its obligations to its citizens, the better for that State, and its citizens. For when there is failure in this delivery, people complain, protest and … leave (or flee)!

Puerto Rico High Resolution Population Concept

This flight or societal abandonment is among the most distressing challenges for Caribbean society today.

Remember the foregoing story on Barbados, imagine their finances. Imagine bonds and debt authorized with the expectation of future payments as a factor of economic activity from the population – pennies on the dollar as in Sales Tax or Value-Added Tax (VAT) – but the population has decreased … due to abandonment and defection. This story is being repeated in one Caribbean member-state after another – i.e. Puerto Rico may have lost 470,000 people – 14% of the population – since Hurricanes Maria and Irma in September 2018 – Source posted February 20, 2018.

These previous Go Lean commentaries on Defection related this sad actuality:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=13391 After Maria, Destruction and Defection for Puerto Rico
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=12996 After Irma, Destruction and Defection in the Eastern Caribbean
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=12977 After Irma, Barbuda Becomes a ‘Ghost Town’
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=10470 More ‘Bad News’, More Defections for Freeport, Bahamas
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5759 Model: Pressed by Debt Crisis, Doctors Defect from Greece in Droves

It is the assertion of the Go Lean book that Good Governance is a deterrence to defection. This is the lesson learned from so many other communities that have endured this plight; consider again, the Doctors in the Greece crisis. We must simply do better with delivering on the Social Contract. The book calls for this delivery responsibility to be split between the CU federal agencies and the existing member-states. This is referred to as a Separation of Powers.

Within the 370-pages of the Go Lean book are details of the Good Governance requirement for the new Caribbean. Here is a sample of references to the eco-system of Good Governance through-out the Go Lean book:

Tactical – Separation of Powers

C – Justice Department | C1 – District Attorneys
In accordance with the CU‘s mandate for “Good Governance“, the District Attorneys will spearhead any investigations and prosecutions for crimes of Public Integrity; this covers corruption of elected and appointed constitutional officers. The CU … [treaty is vested with] the litigation powers for the Justice Department must be granted by member-states as Special Prosecutors or Commissions of Inquiries, as allowed by existing laws.

 Page 77
Advocacy – 10 Ways to Improve Governance

# 1 – Lean-in for the Caribbean Single Market & Economy
The CU will adopt a “Right to Good Governance” in its charter; thereby bringing accountability beyond state borders. The CU’s initiatives allow for more effective governance by separating many duties that are now managed on a national level to a federal level within the CU. So national governments will perform less services, and with the dividends from the CU, more revenues to control. But with these benefits come greater fiscal accountability.

 Page 168
Advocacy – 10 Ways to Impact Wall Street
# 2 – Ensure Corporate Governance
The CU adoption of a “Good Governance” principle in its charter extends to its oversight of corporations and other publicly-held institutions. The CU regulatory agencies will oversee under a laissez-faire policy (minimum governmental interference in the economic affairs of individuals and society), yet be vigilant against systemic risks to the monetary and economic engines. So provisions like full disclosure, certifiable accounting integrity and risk-best-practices will maintain public confidence. The CU’s initiatives allows for more separating of duties versus the state regulators.		 Page 200
Advocacy – 10 Ways to Impact the Prison Industrial Complex
# 10 – Learn from Peonage Past and Ensure Corporate Governance
The CU adopts a “Good Governance” principle in its oversight of the public penal industry, and private Bounty Hunters to enforce bail violations. The CU regulation in this industry will not apply a “laissez-faire” policy but rather extra vigilance against abuses in these industries. Provisos will be in place for accountability and recourse for any innocent citizens.		 Page 211
Advocacy – 10 Ways to Promote Contact Centers
# 2 – Laissez-fare Utility Regulations
With the CU Trade Federation as the cross-national communications and media regulator, the policy should be to promote open competition and choice in this industry space. There is always the government leaning to promote monopolies and oligopolies for communications utilities, but for the CU to advance this industry and remain on the cutting edge, the free market must be allowed to flourish. The regulators should focus more on ensuring good governance, transparencies and anti-trust compliance. When necessity dictates only one “cable” provider, then an infrastructure-versus-application “wall” should be erected to ensure “net neutrality”.		 Page 212

This is the vision of an efficient governing regime for the Caribbean region. This is a transformation for how and where a new societal eco-system can be introduced and engineered here.

Yes, we can …

The CU will also launch the www.myCaribbean.gov website on Day One/Step One of this confederation roadmap. This Government portal, is part of the Social Contract delivery. This portal resembles a social media site, accessible from computers and smart-phones, allowing citizens to interact with their government from the palm of their hands. Consider how this vision – e-Government and e-Delivery – have been portrayed in these previous blog-commentaries; see this sample:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15947 Climate Change Catastrophe: 12 Year Countdown for new Governance
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15923 Industrial Reboot from Government Payment Cards
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15479 ‘Lean Is’ as ‘Lean Does’ – Good Project Management in Government
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15245 Righting a Wrong: Re-thinking the Regional Governance of CSME
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15126 States and Governments must have ‘population increases’
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15075 e-Government 3.0
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=13991 Free European Money – To Start at Top for Good Governance
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=13524 Future Focused – e-Government Portal 101
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=7991 Transformations: Caribbean Postal Union – Delivering the Future
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=888 How to Re-invent Government in a Digital Image – Book Review

We must reform and transform our Caribbean governing engines. We want Good Governance, not “Partisan Politics”. While it may be heavy-lifting to weed out the corrupting influence of “Partisan Politics” from existing member-state governments, it is easier to start aright with the new federal government: the CU Trade Federation.

“Abandonment and Defection” is a Caribbean reality due to inefficiencies in the delivery of the Social Contract. Let’s put that reality in our “rearview mirror” and move forward in building a better homeland to live, work and play. 🙂

Download the free e-Book of Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

Sign the petition to lean-in for this roadmap for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation.

——————

Appendix VIDEO – Trump could shut down parts of government over border wall funding – https://www.cnbc.com/video/2018/09/26/trump-could-shut-down-parts-of-government-over-border-wall-funding.html

Trump could shut down parts of government over border wall funding from CNBC.

Published on September 26, 2018 – While the Government was not shutdown before the 2018 Mid-Term elections; this threat shows the preponderance for “Partisan Politics” over Good Governance … in the US.

Is there a need for a Border Wall? Then build it – that’s Good Governance.

Don’t hold back to protect the Party’s Political prospects.

If there is no money for a wall – or no need? Then let it go.

Do not shutdown the government to make a political point!

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Industrial Reboot – Navy Pier 101

Posted on October 9, 2018 in Economics, Government, Industries, Strategy, Tactical

Go Lean Commentary

From small investments (seedlings) come big harvests. Remember the “mustard seed” …

“… like a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field; which indeed is smaller than all seeds. But when it is grown, it is greater than the herbs, and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in its branches.” — Matthew 13:31–32, World English Bible

Imagine an industrial reboot that can take a small investment – seed money – but grow into huge returns for the community.

Yes, we can!

The book Go Lean…Caribbean related a community investment that should be made in each Caribbean member-state, that of Navy Piers, and described how BIG returns can be gathered from the resultant infrastructure. The book describes that such an implementation can impact many of the societal engines – think: economy, security and governance.

What is a Navy Pier?

In short, it’s a dock … and “then some”. The most famous one, and name sake is in Chicago, Illinois; see historic details here:

Navy Pier is a 3,300-foot-long (1,010 m) pier on the Chicago shoreline of Lake Michigan. It is located in the Streeterville neighborhood of the Near North Side community area. The Navy Pier currently encompasses more than fifty acres of parks, gardens, shops, restaurants, family attractions and exhibition facilities and is the top leisure destination in the Midwestern United States (“Midwest”), drawing nearly nine million visitors annually.[2] It is one of the most visited attractions in the entire Midwest and is Chicago’s number one tourist attraction.[3]
…
The Navy Pier opened to the public on July 15, 1916.[4] … Its original purpose was to serve as a dock for freights, passenger traffic, and indoor and outdoor recreation; events like expositions and pageants were held there.

In the summer of 1918 the pier was also used as a jail for draft dodgers. In 1927, the pier was renamed Navy Pier to honor the naval veterans who served in World War I.

In 1941, during World War II, the pier became a training center for the U.S. Navy; about 10,000 people worked, trained, and lived there. The pier contained a 2,500-seat theater, gym, 12-chair barber shop, tailor, cobbler shops, soda fountain and a vast kitchen and hospital.[6]
…
In 1989, the City of Chicago had the Urban Land Institute (ULI) reimagine uses for the pier. The Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority (MPEA) was created; its responsibility was to manage and operate Navy Pier as well as McCormick Place. The MPEA undertook the redevelopment, incorporating some of ULI’s recommendations.[8]

In 1995, Navy Pier was redesigned and introduced to the public as a mixed-use venue incorporating retail, dining, entertainment, and cultural spaces.

Starting in 2014, the redevelopment plan called The Centennial Vision was implemented. The purpose of this plan is to fulfill the mission to keep Navy Pier as a world-class public space and to renovate the pier so it will have more evening and year-round entertainment and more compelling landscape and design features.[9] The Centennial Vision was completed in summer 2016.
Source: Retrieved October 8, 2018 from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Navy_Pier

VIDEO – Navy Pier Ferris Wheel in Chicago – https://youtu.be/YVFx0FIb82g

Published on Nov 15, 2016 – Navy Pier’s ferris wheel, an iconic part of Chicago’s skyline, received a makeover this year for the pier’s 100th anniversary. Soaring nearly 200-feet high, the ferris wheel offers 360-degree views of the Windy City and is now taller and faster than ever.

The upgrades to the Navy Pier Ferris Wheel, AKA the Centennial Wheel, are part of a larger project to revitalize the pier, giving it a more modern, sophisticated feel. …

The new wheel is 50 feet taller than its predecessor. Each ride lasts about 13 minutes and rotates three times. A ride on the old ferris wheel was only seven minutes and rotated once. DAY/NIGHT; SUMMER/WINTER The new gondolas have air conditioning and heating systems. This improvement allows you to comfortably ride the Centennial Wheel in Chicago’s painfully cold winters and hot summers. The wheel operates during the day at after dark, offering two distinct experiences.

So where there is a coastline, there is an opportunity for a connecting pier. There are 3 types of piers that are common in the modern world: Working piers, Pleasure piers and Fishing piers. These do not need a lot of land; they are normally created as land-less structures into bodies of water. See this encyclopedic definition here:

A pier is a raised structure in a body of water, typically supported by well-spaced piles or pillars. Bridges, buildings, and walkways may all be supported by piers. Their open structure allows tides and currents to flow relatively unhindered, whereas the more solid foundations of a quay or the closely spaced piles of a wharf can act as a breakwater, and are consequently more liable to silting. Piers can range in size and complexity from a simple lightweight wooden structure to major structures extended over 1600 metres.

Coastlines abound throughout the Caribbean, as each of the 30 member-states is either an island or a coastal state (Belize, Guyana or Suriname). So this concept of a Navy Pier will be both a strategic and tactical implementation for the roadmap presented by the Go Lean book for the introduction and implementation of the technocratic Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU). Consider the prime directives of the roadmap and how a Navy Pier can impact those directives:

  • Economics – The CU seeks to optimize the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion and to create 2.2 million new jobs. Piers can be structured as event-entertainment destinations, even amusement parks abound. So a pier strategy can greatly impact tourism and recreation spending. Imagine new cruise ports-of-call.
  • Security – Navy Piers were originally designed for the Navy, an entity for national defense. Within the Go Lean roadmap, there is the plan for a comprehensive Homeland Security and Emergency Management apparatus to ensure public safety and protect the resultant economic engines. Imagine the quick roll-out of a floating pier after a hurricane for relief, recovery and restoration.
  • Governance – The CU seeks to improve Caribbean governance to support the above engines. This include a separation-of-powers between the member-states and CU federal agencies. Since ships can also be tendered at Navy Piers, many deliveries of the Social Contract can be built on these structures – imagine ferry access ramps, “pop-up” medical clinics, agencies for special administrative processing and kiosks. The CU plan for Self-Governing Entities allows for the piers themselves and any aligning easements to be a separate federal territory.

The Caribbean’s industrial landscape is in crisis. It must reboot! A Navy Pier can help … in every member-state. In fact the CU/Go Lean roadmap calls for a CU federal agency to build and operate – serve as landlord – the piers. Accordingly, the CU will facilitate this eco-system as Self-Governing Entities (SGE), an ideal concept for ports and piers, with its exclusive federal regulation/promotion activities. Imagine the construction equipment – dam walls, earth-moving machinery, dredging barges, etc – being used again and again as new Navy Piers are deployed through the region. Imagine the jobs …

Within the 370-pages of the Go Lean book are details of the job multiplier principle; this is how certain industries and infrastructures are better than others for generating multiple indirect jobs down the line for each direct job on a company’s payroll.

Here is a sample of references to the eco-system of piers through-out the Go Lean book:

Implementation – 10 Ways to Re-boot [Sample City] Freeport

# 7 – Cruise Ship Pier in Lucaya or Smith Point
Currently, cruise ships have to dock at the Freeport Harbor and the passengers transported to more amiable destinations, quite often the destination was the International Bazaar in the middle of a pine forest. By establishing a docking pier in the Port Lucaya vicinity, the cruise ship tourist destination will be all-encompassing in one geographic area and more value can be offered to the visitors. Cultural festivities (Gombay, Junkanoo, rake-n-scrape bands, etc.) can be a daily highlight; This would be modeling Walt Disney World’s 4 Parks and their afternoon character parades.

 Page 112
Advocacy – 10 Ways to Impact Public Works

# 2 – Union Atlantic Turnpike
The Union Atlantic Turnpike is a big initiative of the CU to logistically connect all member-states for easier transport of goods and passengers. There are many transportation arteries and facilities envisioned for the Turnpike: Toll Roads, Railroads, Ferry Piers, and Navy Piers. …

 Page 175
Advocacy – 10 Ways to Improve Homeland Security
# 4 – Naval Authority
Since any defense of the island and coastal states must be naval first, the Homeland Security efforts must work in conjunction with Naval operations. … The CU will build separate Navy Piers in the appropriate markets, aside from Cruise Ship docks.		 Page 180
Advocacy – 10 Ways to Promote Fairgrounds
# 9 – Transit Consideration – Turnpike – Navy Piers
The Union Atlantic Turnpike initiative fits ideally into the fairgrounds business plan, as passengers and cargo can move efficiently from island to island along rail lines, toll highways, tunnels & causeways and over-the-seas ferries. The CU facilitation of Navy Piers can accommodate naval vessel shore leaves and even cruise ship traffic. …		 Page 192
Advocacy – 10 Ways to Improve Fisheries
# 2 – Cooperatives
Fishery cooperatives allow fishermen and industry players to pool their resources in certain (non-competitive) areas of activity. This strategy is vital for sharing the cost and expense of installing piers/docks, locating systems (Loran-C & GPS), canaries, refrigerated warehouses and transportation solutions.		 Page 210

This is the vision of an industrial reboot! A transformation for how and where a new societal eco-system can be introduced and engineered.

This Go Lean book projects the roll-out of the Union Atlantic Turnpike and accompanying Navy Piers as Day One / Step One of the Go Lean/CU roadmap. Over the 5-year implementation for this roadmap, more and more of the features of piers will be deployed and their effect on the region will be undeniable: they will help to make the whole Caribbean a better place to live, work and play.

The Go Lean book stresses that reforming and transforming Caribbean engines must be a regional pursuit. These piers need to be  installed everywhere, every member-state, island and coastal state. But this effort is truly too big for any one member-state alone. This rationale, the need for interdependence, is the reason for the Caribbean Union. This interdependence was an early motivation for this roadmap; see these statements in the opening Declaration of Interdependence (Pages 12 – 13):

xvi. Whereas security of our homeland is inextricably linked to prosperity of the homeland, the economic and security interest of the region needs to be aligned under the same governance. Since economic crimes … can imperil the functioning of the wheels of commerce for all the citizenry, the accedence of this Federation must equip the security apparatus with the tools and techniques for predictive and proactive interdictions.

xxiv.  Whereas a free market economy can be induced and spurred for continuous progress, the Federation must install the controls to better manage aspects of the economy: jobs, inflation, savings rate, investments and other economic principles. Thereby attracting direct foreign investment because of the stability and vibrancy of our economy.

xxvi.  Whereas the Caribbean region must have new jobs to empower the engines of the economy and create the income sources for prosperity, and encourage the next generation to forge their dreams right at home, the Federation must therefore foster the development of new industries… . In addition, the Federation must invigorate the enterprises related to existing industries … – impacting the region with more jobs.

Installing Navy Piers will mean rebooting the industrial landscape of the Caribbean. This is not a new subject for this Go Lean roadmap; this commentary has previously identified a number of industrial initiatives to launch a reboot in the region. See the list of previous submissions on Industrial Reboots here:

  1. Industrial Reboots – Ferries 101 – Published June 27, 2017
  2. Industrial Reboots – Prisons 101 – Published October 4, 2017
  3. Industrial Reboots – Pipeline 101 – Published October 5, 2017
  4. Industrial Reboots – Frozen Foods 101 – Published October 6, 2017
  5. Industrial Reboots – Call Centers 101 – Published July 2, 2018
  6. Industrial Reboots – Prefab Housing 101 – Published July 14, 2018
  7. Industrial Reboots – Trauma 101 – Published July 18, 2018
  8. Industrial Reboots – Auto-making 101 – Published July 19, 2018
  9. Industrial Reboots – Shipbuilding 101 – Published July 20, 2018
  10. Industrial Reboots – Fisheries 101 – Published July 23, 2018
  11. Industrial Reboots – Lottery 101 – Published July 24, 2018
  12. Industrial Reboots – Culture 101 – Published July 25, 2018
  13. Industrial Reboots – Tourism 2.0 – Published July 27, 2018
  14. Industrial Reboots – Cruise Tourism 2.0 – Published July 27, 2018
  15. Industrial Reboots – Reinsurance Sidecars 101 – Published October 2, 2018
  16. Industrial Reboots – Navy Piers 101 – Published Today – October 9, 2018

In summary, our Caribbean region needs a better industrial landscape to improve our economics, security and governance. We can make small investments – think mustard seeds – that can yield huge returns. This is too appealing to ignore.

Let’s get going!

We urge all Caribbean stakeholders to lean-in to this roadmap for industrial reboots, to make our region better islands and coastal states to live, work and play. 🙂

Download the free e-Book of Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

Sign the petition to lean-in for this roadmap for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation.

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Industrial Reboot – Reinsurance 101

Posted on October 2, 2018 in Economics, Industries, Tactical

Go Lean Commentary

Continuity of Business (CoB) …

It’s a simple concept; it asserts that if there are any extraordinary events – i.e. emergencies and natural disasters – that the tools and techniques are in place to pick-up and continue for business-as-usual. For some companies, this field is so formalized that they have stakeholders (team) with the responsibilities to ensure that “no stone is left un-turned”. These companies have a C-level executive with this responsibility, i.e. …

  • VP of Risk [Management]
  • Director of Disaster Recovery

One popular risk mitigation strategy is to buy “insurance“. Yet the Caribbean is in crisis! Due to Climate Change realities, there are fewer and fewer “Property & Casualty” insurance products available to Caribbean stakeholders.

This is Sad!

Yes, it is that simple: insurance is a protection to ensure the continuation of business operations, and is expected  for all modern business operations. This theme was addressed in a previous blog-commentary by the movement behind the book Go Lean…Caribbean, in relation to the need to ensure the continuation of a community in the wake of Caribbean natural disasters. That submission presents this quotation:

… an insurance strategy could be even smarter for rainy days or catastrophes; it allows the hedging of risks by leveraging across a wider pool; more people – savers – put-in and only a few … or just one withdraws. This is also the approach of the thoughtful Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Fund (CCRIF).

It is very sad when communities are not able to save or insure a “Rainy Day” fund for when it rains, especially in the tropical region where it doesn’t just rain, but pours and storms.

What is sadder is when the heavy-lifting of “savings” or insurance is done, but the dollar amount is not enough; because a “penny saved is only just a penny”.

The Caribbean’s industrial landscape is in crisis. It must reboot; we do not have adequate “Property & Casualty” offerings. The identified CCRIF Catastrophe Fund, though it’s too-little-too-late, is for member-states governments, by the member-states governments. Individuals and companies need not apply; yet still, there is the need. Individuals, institutions and enterprises need the protection of a viable CoB solution. This glaring need is so obvious, right now on the heels of Tropical Storm Kirk. Though not a major storm, it brought major destruction to one particular business. See the full story here:

Title: Poultry farmer loses 2000 chickens during storm

Poultry farmer Linus Bernadine suffered a major setback Thursday night, when high winds associated with Tropical Storm Kirk destroyed his chicken houses at Babonneau.

Bernadine told St Lucia Times it resulted in the loss of 2000 broiler chicks.

He explained that the loss has impacted significantly on his livelihood.

“This is what I am expecting to put bread on my table,”  Bernadine stated.

He estimated that his losses are in the region of some $90,000.

Bernadine said he does not know how he will recover from the calamity.

“Right now I am just on the farm demolishing things,” he said.

“What happened is that these birds, I just got them on Wednesday last week and the storm was Thursday night,” Bernadine disclosed.

The poultry farmer recalled having left his home for Vieux Fort to pick up the chicks.

“I got back home about ten past nine in the night, I put the birds down and that was it,” he stated.

“Friday morning I had no choice but to bury them,” he told St Lucia Times, adding that both of the chicken pens on his property had been destroyed by the storm and the chicks that were in them died.

“I am flat down – everything is just gone,” Bernadine lamented.

“I have a capacity of about 7000 birds and all of that is flat down,” he said.

Source: St Lucia Times Daily Newspaper – Posted September 30th, 2018; retrieved October 2, 2018 from: https://stluciatimes.com/2018/09/30/poultry-farmer-loses-2000-chickens-during-storm/

Needless to say, the underlying problem in the foregoing story is “money”, the lack of money in Caribbean communities for restoring business operations in the wake of disasters.

The lack of money is the root of all evil” – Pejorative Pun credited to “Rev. Ike”

There is not enough money in the St. Lucia pool. The Go Lean book simply declares that there needs to be a Bigger pool, one that individuals, institutions and enterprises can participate in. The Go Lean book proposed the solution of Reinsurance Sidecars, related in the book on Page 101 as follows:

Hurricane Insurance Fund
The risk pool for a 42-million population is so much lower than each member-state’s sole mitigation efforts. The CU will establish (contract with a service provider) reinsurance funds (& sidecars) from Day One, and glean the excess premiums-over-claims as profit.

So this is the solution that is proposed in the Go Lean book, to allow for Reinsurance Sidecars in the regional Capital Markets. This way more liquidity will be brought to the marketplace and investors can share in the risk … and profit. See a fuller definition of Sidecars here:

Reinsurance Sidecars, conventionally referred to as “sidecars”, are financial structures that are created to allow investors to take on the risk and return of a group of insurance policies (a “book of business”) written by an insurer or reinsurer (henceforth re/insurer) and earn the risk and return that arises from that business. A re/insurer will only pay (“cede”) the premiums associated with a book of business to such an entity if the investors place sufficient funds in the vehicle to ensure that it can meet claims if they arise. Typically, the liability of investors is limited to these funds. These structures have become quite prominent in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina as a vehicle for re/insurers to add risk-bearing capacity, and for investors to participate in the potential profits resulting from sharp price increases in re/insurance over the four quarters following Katrina. An earlier and smaller generation of sidecars were created after 9/11 for the same purpose. …
Source: Retrieved October 13, 2017 from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reinsurance_sidecar

The introduction of Reinsurance Sidecars will reboot the entire industrial landscape in the Caribbean. With this product, businesses will have the Property & Casualty insurance products to provide some assurances; also banks will be able to compel their loan clients to maintain these coverages. This is the whole definition of “Escrows”, that of banks requiring Property & Casualty insurance for their loan customers:

In layman’s terms, this means an escrow service is basically a middleman between a buyer and a seller, or in the case of a mortgage, a middleman between a homeowner and the county (for property taxes), insurance companies, and anyone else who the homeowner designates to pay with funds from the escrow account.

1. Imagine the effect of sidecars on bank escrow processing departments.

2. Imagine the effect of sidecars on the insurance retail and wholesale markets.

3. Imagine the effect of business insurance on businesses.

4. Imagine the effect of business continuity on community continuity.

5. Imagine the effect of an industrial reboot on Caribbean life and our day-to-day reality.

So the goal here is to better explore the industrialization of Reinsurance Sidecar products and escrow processing. We must pursue this reboot of our industrial landscape; we need to foster the many new opportunities (jobs, entrepreneurism and industrial development). This is the declaration of the book Go Lean…Caribbean – available to download for free; it serves as a roadmap for the introduction and implementation of the technocratic Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU); this is a confederation of all 30 member-states – the larger pool – to execute a reboot of the Caribbean economic eco-system. This CU/Go Lean roadmap has these 3 prime directives:

  • Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion & create 2.2 million new jobs.
  • Establishment of a Homeland Security and Emergency Management apparatus to ensure public safety and protect the resultant economic engines.
  • Improvement of Caribbean governance to support these engines, including a separation-of-powers between the member-states and CU federal agencies.

The Go Lean book stresses that reforming and transforming the Caribbean economic engines must be a regional pursuit – always remember the reality of a larger pool. This was an early motivation for the roadmap, as pronounced in the opening Declaration of Interdependence (Pages 11 – 13):

i. Whereas the earth’s climate has undeniably changed resulting in more severe tropical weather storms, it is necessary to prepare to insure the safety and security of life, property and systems of commerce in our geographical region. As nature recognizes no borders in the target of its destruction, we also must set aside border considerations in the preparation and response to these weather challenges.

xvi. Whereas security of our homeland is inextricably linked to prosperity of the homeland, the economic and security interest of the region needs to be aligned under the same governance. Since economic crimes … can imperil the functioning of the wheels of commerce for all the citizenry, the accedence of this Federation must equip the security apparatus with the tools and techniques for predictive and proactive interdictions.

xxiv. Whereas a free market economy can be induced and spurred for continuous progress, the Federation must install the controls to better manage aspects of the economy: jobs, inflation, savings rate, investments and other economic principles. Thereby attracting direct foreign investment because of the stability and vibrancy of our economy.

xxvi. Whereas the Caribbean region must have new jobs to empower the engines of the economy and create the income sources for prosperity, and encourage the next generation to forge their dreams right at home, the Federation must therefore foster the development of new industries… . In addition, the Federation must invigorate the enterprises related to existing industries … – impacting the region with more jobs.

This is the vision of an industrial reboot! This transformation is where and how the economic eco-system is reinforced, re-engaged and re-engineered. With this reboot in the Caribbean, new jobs can be created, companies started and industries optimized.

Despite the references to “industrial”, there are benefits to individuals as well.

Mortgages and houses will have protections, this means the Caribbean home will be more secure. This fits the quest of the Go Lean movement, to make the Caribbean a better homeland to live, work and play.

The foregoing news article related the agri-business of a Chicken Farm. Have you eaten chicken lately?

Probably! For some people it’s everyday!

So the out-workings of this industrial reboot will also have an effect on consumer goods. That’s food and shelter, part of the pantheon of basic needs: food, clothing and shelter.

The Go Lean book provides 370-pages of turn-by-turn instructions on “how” to adopt new community ethos, plus the strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies to execute so as to reboot, reform and transform the societal engines of Caribbean society. One advocacy in rebooting the industrial landscape is to work to improve the delivery systems for our food supply. All Caribbean islands and coastal states should have chicken farms. It is unconscionable that ALL CHICKENS may be imported from abroad. Surely, we can provide the industrial landscape so that every community have their own chicken farms.

Surely …

This will mean that we will have to manage and mitigate the risks of storms and natural disasters; remember Climate Change.

Consider these specific excerpts and headlines from the book on Page 162 entitled:

10 Ways to Better Manage Food Consumption

1 Lean-in for the Caribbean Single Market
The CU will allow for the unification of the region into one market, thereby creating a single economy of 30 member-states, 42 million people and a GDP of over $800 Billion – the CU will take the lead in facilitating the food supply and distribution systems to ensure the region can feed itself, more from local production and less from trade. Though the cost savings of imports should never be ignored, some CU countries (Greater Antilles, Belize, Guyana & Suriname) have a low opportunity cost for increasing food production for the regional market. Thus a mission of the CU is to streamline the systems, processes, logistics, funding, training, and market promotions so that the Caribbean can fulfill this basic need.
2 Public Health Dynamics – Produce Deserts & Farmers Market
3 “Nouvelle” Caribbean Cuisine
4 Agri-Business
Many of the member-states get 90% (or more) of their food supplies from imports; even fish is imported from Alaska, despite the 1,063,000 square miles of harvestable waters of the Caribbean Sea. The CU will implement agri-business (and aqua-culture) investments to generate more regional options for food production: cooperatives (co-ops), farm credit, common grazing lands, fisheries oversight, canaries, aqua-culture endeavors, etc.
5 Logistics for the Food Supply
6 Fresh Frozen
7 Food Labeling
8 Export – Help Regional Businesses Find Foreign Markets
9 Media Industrial Complex
10 Food Tourism

Rebooting the industrial landscape of the Caribbean is not a new subject for this Go Lean roadmap. In fact, this commentary has previously identified a number of different industries that can be rebooted under this roadmap. See the list of previous submissions on Industrial Reboots here:

  1. Industrial Reboots – Ferries 101 – Published June 27, 2017
  2. Industrial Reboots – Prisons 101 – Published October 4, 2017
  3. Industrial Reboots – Pipeline 101 – Published October 5, 2017
  4. Industrial Reboots – Frozen Foods 101 – Published October 6, 2017
  5. Industrial Reboots – Call Centers 101 – Published July 2, 2018
  6. Industrial Reboots – Prefab Housing 101 – Published July 14, 2018
  7. Industrial Reboots – Trauma 101 – Published July 18, 2018
  8. Industrial Reboots – Auto-making 101 – Published – July 19, 2018
  9. Industrial Reboots – Shipbuilding 101 – Published – July 20, 2018
  10. Industrial Reboots – Fisheries 101 – Published – July 23, 2018
  11. Industrial Reboots – Lottery 101 – Published – July 24, 2018
  12. Industrial Reboots – Culture 101 – Published – July 25, 2018
  13. Industrial Reboots – Tourism 2.0 – Published – July 27, 2018
  14. Industrial Reboots – Cruise Tourism 2.0 – Published – July 27, 2018
  15. Industrial Reboots – Reinsurance Sidecars 101 – Published Today – October 2, 2018

Reinsurance Sidecars – remember the name. While these, and other derivative products, are not commonly known in the Caribbean today, they will be. They are too important for our future.

Don’t ever forget, as this fact often gets overlooked, they are also vastly profitable investment products. See the VIDEO‘s in the Appendices for more details on Reinsurance Sidecar derivatives as investment products.

In summary, our Caribbean region needs a better industrial landscape so as to make our homeland better. In fact, one of the reasons why so many Caribbean citizens have emigrated away from the homeland is the lack of the ability to quickly recover after natural disasters. This is why Homeland Security – preparation and response of emergencies – is coupled with economic policies for rebooting the societal engines in the region. So creating a new economic landscape will require rebooting the industrial landscape.

So as an enterprise, an institution or an individual, we need good insurance options – a Continuity of Business. A bigger-better regional risk pool is paramount for a better Caribbean. This is how we can make our region a better homeland to live, work and play.  We urge all Caribbean stakeholders to lean-in to this roadmap for industrial reboots, security enhancements and economic empowerments. 🙂

Download the free e-Book of Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

Sign the petition to lean-in for this roadmap for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation.

————-

Appendix A VIDEO – What is REINSURANCE? What does REINSURANCE mean? REINSURANCE meaning, definition & explanation – https://youtu.be/7Qe4-Ei2PHY


The Audiopedia

Published on May 17, 2017 – What is REINSURANCE? What doe REINSURANCE mean? REINSURANCE meaning – REINSURANCE pronunciation – REINSURANCE definition – REINSURANCE explanation – How to pronounce REINSURANCE?
Source: Wikipedia.org article, adapted under https://creativecommons.org/licenses/… license.

  • Category: Education
  • License: Creative Commons Attribution license (reuse allowed)

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Appendix B VIDEO – What Is Financial Reinsurance? – https://youtu.be/W45REh7Pt7I


ehowfinance

Published on May 25, 2015 – What Is Financial Reinsurance?. Part of the series: Small Business Tips. Financial reinsurance is a key component to any successful business. Learn about financial reinsurance with help from a business consultant and marketing expert in this free video clip. Read more: http://www.ehow.com/video_12214988_fi…

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Appendix C VIDEO – Reinsurance the perfect Hedge Fund Strategy to Diversify a Portfolio – https://youtu.be/rfp2gRsFD2M


BGN – Blockchain Global News

Published on Mar 2, 2016 – Jane King interviews Don Steinbrugge, Managing Director, Agecroft Partners. For more information please visit http://www.agecroftpartners.com

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‘Freedom of Speech’ has consequences

Posted on September 5, 2018 in Government, Industries, Tactical

Go Lean Commentary

Freedom of Speech is not so absolute!

There are consequences to speech – think: defamation, libel and slander – and so there is the need for some curtailment. One cannot just say anything they want about a person or product and not expect some consequences. There is the classic “Fire in a Crowded Theater” scenario.

The intent is the key.

If one says “fire”, knowing full well that there is no fire, he-she may only want to rile people up and make them stampede; then there may be legal consequences. One can be charged with inciting a riot, willful disregard to safety, depraved indifference or manslaughter.

This is serious … in the physical world.

How about the virtual world?

Same rules … and consequences apply. Now we have medical doctors and clinicians on guard about negative comments-reviews-ratings from patients and customers. See the VIDEO & news story of this threat here:

VIDEO – Surgeon: Online posts were part of patient’s ‘obsession over 10 years’ – https://www.usatoday.com/videos/news/health/2018/07/16/surgeon-online-posts-were-part-patients-obsession-over-10-years/788794002/

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Title: Doctors, hospitals sue patients who post negative comments, reviews on social media

By: Jayne O’Donnell and Ken Alltucker

CLEVELAND – Retired Air Force Colonel David Antoon agreed to pay $100 to settle what were felony charges for emailing his former Cleveland Clinic surgeon articles the doctor found threatening and posting a list on Yelp of all the surgeries the urologist had scheduled at the same time as the one that left Antoon incontinent and impotent a decade ago.

He faced up to a year in prison.

Antoon’s 10-year crusade against the Cleveland Clinic and his urologist is unusual for its length and intensity, as is the extent to which Cleveland Clinic urologist Jihad Kaouk was able to convince police and prosecutors to advocate on his behalf.

Antoon’s plea deal last week came as others in the medical community aggressively combat negative social media posts, casting a pall over one of the few ways prospective patients can get unvarnished opinions of doctors.

Among recent cases:

  • Cleveland physician Bahman Guyuron sued a former patient for defamation for posting negative reviews on Yelp and other sites about her nose job. Guyuron’s attorney Steve Friedman says that although the First Amendment protects patients’ rights to post their opinions, “our position is she did far beyond that (and) deliberately made false factual statements.”  A settlement mediation is slated for early August, and a trial is set for late August if no agreement is reached.
  • Jazz singer Sherry Petta used her own website and doctor-rating sites to criticize a Scottsdale, Arizona, medical practice over her nasal tip surgery, laser treatment and other procedures. Her doctors, Albert Carlotti and Michelle Cabret-Carlotti, successfully sued for defamation. They won a $12 million jury award that was vacated on appeal. Petta claimed the court judgment forced her to sell a house and file bankruptcy. The parties would not discuss the case and jointly asked for it to be dismissed in 2016 but declined to explain why.
  • A Michigan hospital sued an elderly patient’s two daughters and a granddaughter over a Facebook post and for picketing in front of the hospital they said mistreated the late Eleanor Pound. The operator of Kalkaska Memorial Health Center sued Aliza Morse, Carol Pound and Diane Pound for defamation, tortious interference and invasion of privacy.

Petta’s attorney, Ryan Lorenz, says consumers need to know there can be consequences if they post factually incorrect information. Lorenz, who has represented both consumers and businesses on cases involving online comments, says consumers are allowed to offer opinions that do not address factual points.

“Make sure what you are saying is true – it has to be truthful,” he says.

“It would be great if the regulators of hospitals and doctors were more diligent about responding to harm to patients, but they’re not, so people have turned to other people,” says Lisa McGiffert, former head of Consumer Reports’ Safe Patient Project. “This is what happens when your system of oversight is failing patients.”

As doctors and hospitals throw their considerable resources behind legal fights, some patients face huge legal bills for posting critiques and other consumers face their own challenges trying to get a straight story.

Experts say doctors take on extra risk when they resort to suing a patient.

Doctors typically can’t successfully sue third-party websites such as Yelp that allow consumer comments, but they can sue patients over reviews.

Even so, “you can win (a case) and still not win,” says Eric Goldman, a professor at Santa Clara University’s law school.

Goldman, who has tracked about two dozen cases of doctors suing patients over online reviews, says physicians rarely win the cases and sometimes must pay the patients’ legal fees.

Physician-patient confidentiality rules complicate options for doctors, Goldman says, but they can respond to factually incorrect reviews if the patient agrees to waive confidentiality and publicly discuss the case.

The comments challenged legally are typically those that were left online. Many medical review sites will remove posts they deem offensive or threatening to doctors, as many of Antoon’s or other Kaouk patients’ were. Yelp removes reviews only if they violate the consumer website’s terms of service.

Patients should first bring up complaints directly to the doctor or other medical provider, says Edward Hopkins, an attorney who represented Carlotti, Cabret-Carlotti and their medical practice for part of the case. Other options could include reporting a doctor to state oversight agencies, consulting with an attorney or filing complaints with a state attorneys’ general office.

Advocacy or obsession?

By the time he was arrested last December, Antoon had tried most every option with very little success.

Along the way, Antoon became a patient advocate – volunteering with Consumer Reports’ Safe Patient Project and HealthWatch USA – and advising others who say they were harmed by Kaouk and the Cleveland Clinic.

Cleveland Clinic, one of the top-rated hospitals in the country, has an aggressive legal department. Kaouk and the clinic prevailed in malpractice and fraud cases filed by Antoon and other patients who claimed they were harmed.

Matthew Donnelly, Cleveland Clinic’s deputy chief legal officer, attended Antoon’s criminal hearing in November.

To Kaouk, a decade of negative reviews on social media led to what he considered an escalation when Antoon sent him several emails, including one with a link to an article about a Chinese crackdown on research fraud that could include the death penalty if people were injured or killed.

The day before Antoon posted on Yelp in November, Kaouk was granted a civil stalking protective order against Antoon, which barred him from contacting the doctor.

“What would be next – showing up at my door?” Kaouk said in court. “That’s what we feared.”

In his posts and emails, Antoon documented alleged issues, including Kaouk and the urology department’s lack of credentials to use the robotic device in his surgery. He sent records to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), claiming they showed Kaouk was not present in the operating room during his surgery despite his insistence that only Kaouk could perform the surgery.

The Ohio Medical Board closed its investigation into Kaouk after five years without reprimanding him in any way. Antoon’s complaints to CMS temporarily put the hospital’s $1 billion annual Medicare reimbursement at risk.

Antoon’s claims were rejected, and Kaouk was not held liable for the surgery that left Antoon impotent and incontinent.

Along with more than $40,000 defending himself against the criminal charges, Antoon spent almost two days in jail. He had to post $50,000 bond in Shaker Heights and again in Cleveland’s Cuyahoga County after the case was transferred there.

It’s common “for someone in a position of wealth, power and money to go after someone like David to silence critics,” says Antoon’s attorney, Don Malarcik. “That happens often and it happened here.”

Hospitals, including the Cleveland Clinic, combat negative comments with their own rating systems, which let them “control their message,” McGiffert says.

Some comments posted by Antoon and Dan Galliano, another patient who claimed he was injured, disappeared from the websites RateMDs and Vitals, as shown in screenshots Antoon took right after they were posted.

Cleveland Clinic spokeswoman Eileen Sheil says it posts all the government-required satisfaction survey responses patients fill out about doctors on its ratings site, once at least 30 are received. Comments aren’t edited.

Sheil says Cleveland Clinic will request comments to be removed from other sites when they violate the sites’ terms of service.

RateMDs did not respond to requests for comment. Vitals spokeswoman Rosie Mattio says the site has a care team that will investigate reviews it is contacted about.

“While we will not pull down a necessarily negative review, we will remove the review if we find that it violates our terms and includes material that is threatening, racist or vulgar,” Mattio says.

Navigating Yelp

On Yelp, business owners can flag a review to be removed for violation of Yelp’s terms of services. Yelp reviews flagged comments and removes those that include hate speech or a conflict of interest or that are not based on a commenter’s firsthand experience.

The website doesn’t intervene over factual disputes, Yelp spokeswoman Hannah Cheesman says. Instead, it classifies consumer reviews as “recommended” or “not currently recommended” based on an automated software review.

If Yelp’s software detects multiple reviews from the same IP address or biased reviews from a competitor or disgruntled employee, it puts the comment in the not-recommended category. Consumers can still view such reviews by clicking on another page, but those comments are not factors in Yelp’s five-star rating system.

McGiffert has long advocated for a federal database where people could report medical errors and infections. Unless that happens, online review sites – including hospitals’ own and ones that will remove some reviews doctors object to – are among the only places patients can find physician reviews.

Doctors such as Kaouk suggest they are the ones who are disadvantaged.

“It is something that if anybody would look just by Googling my name online, you would see what he has written about me,”  Kaouk says of Antoon.

O’Donnell reported from Cleveland and McLean, Virginia. Alltucker reported from McLean.
Source: USA Today Daily Newspaper – Published July 18, 2018; Retrieved September 5, 2018
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/07/18/doctors-hospitals-sue-patients-posting-negative-online-comments/763981002/ 

Can they – medical doctors and clinicians who shun negative comments-reviews-ratings – or should they regulate other people’s opinions? This is a BIG deal to contend with, as this issue reflects the current state of Internet Communications Technologies (ICT).

This is the world of New Media; the internet has supplanted all Old Media options, we need to settle this debate sooner, rather than later. While the debate in the foregoing article may be an American drama, the issue is with the World Wide Web.

This is a familiar theme for the movement behind the book Go Lean…Caribbean – available to download for free. Previously this site has presented blog-commentaries that highlight the need for better Internet Stewardship in the Caribbean Cloud. Those submissions presented some comprehensive ideas. See here:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=14811 “Loose Lips Sink Ships” – Leaders Undermine College Enrollment

Freedom of Speech exercised wrongly could result in less economic activity. This is what is happening in the US, under President Trump, fewer international students are considering, applying and attending American universities. This is a lesson learn for the dangers of Hate Speech.
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=11224 “Loose Lips Sink Ships” – Leaders Undermine Tourism

Freedom of Speech exercised wrongly could result in less tourism. If leaders make Hate Speech, then fewer people may want to come visit. This is what is happening in the US, under President Trump.
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=10052 Fake News? Welcome to America

With tabloid journalism and Fake News, the American eco-system features Freedom of False Speech; so mis-information is easily spread. This distortion of truth is not the model for us in the Caribbean.
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5435 China Internet Policing – Model for Caribbean

Someone needs to be watching the e-Store. China’s approach is that they actually “police” the internet within their borders. A bridge too far? Perhaps, but there is no debate that there is some need to regulate speech on the internet. It cannot just be the Wild Wild West.
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5353 POTUS and the Internet
The President of the United States started using the internet as a freeform communications to his citizens – this turned ugly fast; hate speech proceeded immediately towards Obama.
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=4793 Truth in Commerce – Learning from Yelp

The e-Commerce site for rating retailers, Yelp, has often been hijacked by Bad Actors to undermine businesses for their own nefarious motives or just out of depraved indifference.
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=4673 Review “Merchants of Doubt” Documentary

There is a professional industry whose purpose is to conduct disinformation campaigns, plant seeds of doubt and even declare outright lies as dissenting views. These are Bad Actors.

The Go Lean book serves as a roadmap for the introduction and implementation of the technocratic Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU), for the elevation of Caribbean society – for all member-states. Internet & Communications Technology is expected to be a major factor in this roadmap – ‘the great equalizer’. This CU/Go Lean roadmap has these 3 prime directives:

  • Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion and create 2.2 million new jobs. ICT strategies, tactics and implementations are paramount in delivering economic empowerments.
  • Establishment of a security apparatus to ensure public safety, ensure justice institutions and protect the resultant economic engines. ICT strategies, tactics and implementations are important in optimizing security provisions, imagine intelligence gathering and analyzing systems.
  • Improve Caribbean governance to support these engines, including a separation-of-powers between the member-states and CU federal agencies. E-Government will be the hallmark of the CU technocracy, so ICT strategies, tactics and implementations are paramount in delivering better governance.

The requisite investments to deploy the latest-greatest strategies, tactics and implementations in the art and science of ICT are too big for any one Caribbean member-state alone. So the Go Lean book stresses that reforming and transforming the Caribbean societal engines must be a regional pursuit. This was an early motivation for the roadmap, as pronounced in the opening Declaration of Interdependence (Pages 12 – 14):

xi. Whereas all men are entitled to the benefits of good governance in a free society, “new guards” must be enacted to dissuade the emergence of incompetence, corruption, nepotism and cronyism at the peril of the people’s best interest. The Federation must guarantee the executions of a social contract between government and the governed.

xvi. Whereas security of our homeland is inextricably linked to prosperity of the homeland, the economic and security interest of the region needs to be aligned under the same governance. Since economic crimes … can imperil the functioning of the wheels of commerce for all the citizenry, the accedence of this Federation must equip the security apparatus with the tools and techniques for predictive and proactive interdictions.

xxiv. Whereas a free market economy can be induced and spurred for continuous progress, the Federation must install the controls to better manage aspects of the economy: jobs, inflation, savings rate, investments and other economic principles. Thereby attracting direct foreign investment because of the stability and vibrancy of our economy.

xxvii. Whereas the region has endured a spectator status during the Industrial Revolution, we cannot stand on the sidelines of this new economy, the Information Revolution. Rather, the Federation must embrace all the tenets of Internet Communications Technology (ICT) to serve as an equalizing element in competition with the rest of the world. The Federation must bridge the digital divide and promote the community ethos that research-development is valuable and must be promoted and incentivized for adoption.

The Go Lean book provides 370-pages of turn-by-turn instructions on “how” to adopt new community ethos, plus the strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies to execute so as to reboot, reform and transform the societal engines of Caribbean society. One advocacy presented in the book – 10 Ways to Improve Communications (Page 186) – focuses on the “art and science” of media (communications). The following tidbits are retrieved from that page:

# 3 – Media Industrial Complex
The CU will oversee the radio spectrum used for radio, television and satellite communications. The radio spectrum must be regulated on a regional level, because the islands are so close to each other and foreign states, that there must be coordination of the common resource pool – the spectrum is limited. This FCC-style (USA) oversight will also extend to internet broadband (wireless & wire-line) governance. With the CU’s financial reforms, the emergence of card-based and e-payment systems will allow for the full exploitation of the media business models. Also, the CU, through licensing, can mandate a certain amount of programming of the educational, inspirational and public service variety.

The Bottom Line on Old Media versus New Media
The internet and mobile communications has changed the modern world; many industries that once flourished (music retailers, travel agencies, book sales, line telephone companies), now flounder. Media distribution via the internet or mobile devices are referred to as “new media”, while old distribution channels like newspapers, magazines, TV and radio are referred to as “old media”. The mainstream (“old”) media is pivotal for “freedom of the press” as they are effective at standing up to big institutions like governments and corporations. The art of “good” journalism requires the deeper pockets that mainstream media bring to the market, but old media is dying financially. New media, on the other hand, is an aggregation of mainstream media. With the ubiquity of new media devices, people have freer, easier access and more options to news and information. On the plus side, there is now a greater diversity of ideas and viewpoints, on the minus side, with too many options, people tend to isolate their news consumption to only the views they want to hear. As new media matures, it is expected that it will take over the social responsibilities of old media, adopt the best practices of journalism, like fact checking (with the ease of information retrieval online), and finally return the industry to financial viability.

In summary, there are 2 Take-aways from this commentary:

(1) While there is  “Freedom of Speech”, there is no freedom from the consequences of speech.

(2) While there is “Freedom of the Press”, if the press is profit-oriented then popularity may be a greater priority than truth.

These dictate that there must be a stronger need for accuracy, integrity and professionalism in the age of New Media – disinformation can cause a lot of harm, fast.

There are lessons for the Caribbean to learn from other lands – America, China, and others. China is heavy-handed with their policing of media outlets, including online. This is definitely a bridge too far … for us in the Caribbean! India, though has a great model of a Chief Grievance Officer.

The Caribbean, sitting on the border with the United States of America allows us to look-listen-learn from the American experience. Our conclusion: We do not want to be America … we want to be better.

Yes, we can … get this right, and make our homeland a better place to live, work and play. 🙂

Sign the petition to lean-in for this roadmap for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation.

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Caribbean Unity? What a Joke – Tourism Missteps

Posted on August 23, 2018 in Government, Strategy, Tactical

Go Lean Commentary

A house divided against itself, cannot stand. – 16th US President Abraham Lincoln

This Dead President – the Savior of the American Union – is right! A homeland cannot have unity, harmony or leverage if it is divided.

Being divided, things go from “bad to worse”.

For the Caribbean, despite the 30 different member-states, it is really just one house; we are all in the “same boat”, so then, we can think of it as the same “house boat”. 🙂

As a region, we are divided!

Why are we so dysfunctional in this regard?

One clue: Lack of war.

Wait, what?!

Yes, the opening comment by President Lincoln was uttered in the build-up to that country’s Civil War. In addition, the model that the Caribbean should be emulating, that of the European Union, was only possible after all the devastation and losses of World War II. Yes, this is a human reality:

Only at the precipice do people change.

This commentary declares that despite a lack of war, our Caribbean region is at “the precipice”. We have already suffered disasters, abandonment, insolvency and corruption. The only thing we have been spared, compared to other communities that were forced to unite, is the “blood on the streets”. (Though there are some that assess our uncontrollable crime problem as “blood on the streets”). So why have we not succeeded in any unification movement?

We have tried, but we only have failure to show for our efforts.

This is the focus of this series of commentaries on Caribbean unity – make that disunity. This first one – entry 1 of 4 in this series from the movement behind the book Go Lean … Caribbean – is in consideration of the “misstep” in our societal attitudes – defects – that prevents us from collaborating and partnering together. We do not reform nor transform like other communities; we do not confederate nor consolidate; we somehow think that we are better than our neighbors and can survive alone – “Its Better in … ”

The commentaries in the series are cataloged as follows:

  1. Caribbean Unity? What a joke – Tourism Missteps
  2. Caribbean Unity? – Ross University Saga
  3. Caribbean Unity? – No Freedom of Movement in/out of French Antilles
  4. Caribbean Unity? – Religion’s Role: False Friend

All of these commentaries relate to “how” the stewards for a new Caribbean can shepherd unity in this region. But first we must accept that Caribbean Unity is a joke.

Ask anyone! Most people do not even realize that the full Caribbean region is 42 million people. Why is this surprising?

There is no unity!

Our primary outreach to the world – tourism – is a competition among the islands, rather than a collaboration. The fastest growing segment of Caribbean tourism is the cruise industry; and they are banking on our disunity, playing one port-of-call against another – to our peril. This charge of disunity is not just our movement’s complaint alone; no, even many government leaders lament this actuality. Consider here, this news article which asserts the same premise:

Title: Tourism can bring Caribbean together
Press Release:–  Tourism has enormous potential to promote Caribbean regional integration. So said Jamaica’s Tourism Minister, Edmund Bartlett who, at the time, was addressing the 54th annual general meeting of the St. Lucia Hotel & Tourism Association, which was held Friday (June 20) at Harbour Club St. Lucia. He was the featured guest speaker at the AGM.

“The Caribbean is the most tourism-dependent region in the world,” said Bartlett, adding, “The sector generates investments and jobs for all the islands and supports overall economic growth through critical sectoral linkages. The tourism sector, by its very nature, also promotes some of the main values of regional integration as tourism involves the close contact and interaction of millions of individuals from diverse cultural, ethnic, racial, socio-economic and national backgrounds working together for mutually-beneficial exchanges.’

Describing the tourism sector in the Caribbean as “cutting across many spheres, sectors and boundaries,” Bartlett characterized the sector as “a shared model of development for the region,” and one that shares a special place among Caribbean states.

“The sector thus provides considerable scope for collaboration and cooperation among many stakeholders at the regional level in a wide range of areas including; investment and product development, human resource development, tourism awareness, research and statistics, access and transportation, regional facilitation, environmental and cultural sustainability, marketing, communications and addressing crime that involves visitors,” said Jamaica’s tourism minister.

Bartlett buttressed his assertion by noting that CARICOM leaders attending the 29th Inter-Sessional Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM held at Port-au-Prince, Haiti in February 2018 had acknowledged tourism as the Caribbean’s largest economic sector and declared that it needs to be “stimulated urgently and sustainably for the region’s long-term development prospects.”

Bartlett further noted that at the 39th CARICOM Heads of Government meeting held in Jamaica July 2, the regional leaders in attendance reaffirmed their commitment to the effective implementation of the CSME, which is aimed at facilitating the expansion of investment and trade in goods and services, and the free movement of people across the region.

“Tourism is also a catalyst for promoting the successful implementation of the Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) framework which has been the leading initiative developed by CARICOM to promote regional integration,” he added.

Moreover, tourism could become a catalyst for increased intra-regional travel and a value-added component to diversify the region’s tourism product and spread the benefits of tourism across the region, said Bartlett. “Intra-regional tourism provides vast economic exchange and opportunities for the regional economy that would have otherwise gone to countries such as the USA, Canada and England. This form of inward-looking tourism is also a very practical approach to reversing the over-dependence of the region’s tourism sector on international markets,” Bartlett added.

Citing the recent signing of the Multi-lateral Air Services Agreement (MASA) by CARICOM heads as one of the region’s most noted successes in the promotion of intra-regional tourism, Bartlett said it could help to make travelling within and beyond the Caribbean much easier. The MASA is aimed at creating a liberalized environment that is consistent with emerging WTO aviation policies.

“It is anticipated that the full implementation of MASA will improve connectivity and facilitate increased trade in goods and services, including tourism. MASA has been expanded to include the conditions for a single security check for direct transit passengers on multi-stop intra-Community flights,” said Bartlett.

In addition, he said the Caribbean Tourism Organization’s (CTO) aviation task force is currently working with intra-Caribbean carriers to ensure hassle-free movement and to boost connectivity around the region.

These include legal and regulatory concerns, safety and security issues, taxation and the high cost of airline tickets and the passenger’s experience, which involves persons requiring a visa to travel,” said Bartlett.

He suggested the development of a regional tourism rating or classification scheme as yet another way of deepening regional integration through tourism and enhancing the visitor experience, provided common standards and criteria could be agreed upon and the scheme is furnished with adequate resources and managed effectively and impartially

“Such a scheme could ensure a level of quality assurance for visitors and stimulate product and service quality improvement through the objective benchmarking of visitor facilities and service standards,” said Bartlett.

Bartlett also envisions the “economic convergence between complimentary economies” in the Caribbean through tourism as another way of deepening regional economic integration, citing this as an emergent perspective in the region.

“The suggestion was that there were better opportunities for growth through a more rational approach to economic integration between geographically proximate, complementary economies linked to much-improved transport infrastructure. This was not meant to replace CARICOM but to be a new route to economic convergence in the Caribbean basin.”

Bartlett acknowledged, however, that there are a number of obstacles that must be overcome in the quest to establish a sustainable regional tourism sector.

“It is no secret that there remain several impediments to the development of a sustainable regional tourism sector, including: the general lack of emphasis and promotion of intra-regional tourism at national levels, the prohibitive cost of intra-regional travel, continued restrictions to free movement and insufficient harmonization and coordination in the area of disaster risk management.”

The Caribbean’s vulnerability to climate change constitute another of the threats” to the region’s tourism sector, said Bartlett, stressing that these issues necessitate sophisticated resilience mechanisms and crisis management systems.

“Indeed, it was this spirit of regional cooperation that led to the recent conceptualization of the Caribbean Disaster Resilience Centre, the first of its kind in the region, which will be established at the University of the West Indies Mona,” he added.

Bartlett concluded by urging the Caribbean states to work together in order to take full advantage of tourism’s vast untapped potential to promote the sustainable development of the region.

“We must thus find common ground on a number of issues and strengthen our cooperation in a number of shared areas to ensure that tourism development truly brings us together,” he added.

Several government officials attended the SLHTA AGM, including Prime Minister Allen Chastanet, Minister for Tourism, Dominic Fedee, Minister for Agriculture, Ezechiel Joseph, Minister for Infrastructure, Stephenson King, Minister for Home Affairs, Hermangild Francis, and Minister for Health and Wellness Mary Isaac. Also present were Mayor of Castries, Peterson Francis, Parliamentary Representative for Castries South, Ernest Hilaire, several private sector executives and members of the diplomatic corps.

— END Press Release

About the Saint Lucia Hotel and Tourism Association (SLHTA) 
The Saint Lucia Hotel and Tourism Association (SLHTA) is a private non-profit membership organization [that provides sound and dynamic leadership for its members; it functions as the principal intermediary for tourism service providers and an influential lobby for tourism development issues].

Source: Posted July 31, 2018; retrieved August 22, 2018 from: https://stluciatimes.com/2018/07/31/tourism-can-bring-caribbean-together/

As related in the foregoing, these words by the Jamaica Tourism Minister ring loud:

“The tourism sector … promotes some of the main values of regional integration”

What a joke!

Don’t get it twisted! There is no Caribbean integration. We all think there should be; but we all acknowledge that such a construct does not exist. This fact has been proclaimed time and again by the movement behind the book Go Lean…Caribbean – available to download for free. Just recently, this previous blog-commentary asserted the need to unite after natural disasters:

… this is a matter of image and geographic misconceptions, more so than it is about disasters or even tourism. The world is telling the Caribbean: Better band together to assuage your challenges. We are united in affliction, we might as well be united in solutions. Yes, it is no longer optional for our region to confederate as a Single Market.

Confederation is not a bad thing!
…

Tourism is the current dominant industry; the goal is to “stand on the shoulders” of previous accomplishments, add infrastructure not possible by just one member-state alone and then reap the benefits. Imagine this manifestation in just this one new strategy: inter-island ferries that connect all islands for people, cars and goods.

The movement behind the book Go Lean … Caribbean seeks to reboot the economic engines of the Caribbean member-states. So while tourism is the region’s primary economic driver, the status quo is inadequate for providing the needs of the people in the region, and inadequate for dealing with the challenges of nation-building. We must do better! We must collaborate and not compete.

The Go Lean book serves as a roadmap for the introduction and implementation of the Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU). The CU is designed to be a technocratic intergovernmental entity that shepherds economic growth for the full Caribbean region and mitigate against related security challenges. The goal is to use this new regional focus to reboot and optimize the region’s commerce or economics; plus the aligning security and governing engines.

The Go Lean/CU roadmap will employ strategies, tactics and implementations to impact its prime directives; identified with the following 3 statements:

The Go Lean book provides 370-pages of turn-by-turn instructions on “how” to adopt new community ethos, plus the strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies to execute so as to elevate the Caribbean’s tourism product, across the full region. The book features anecdotes and Case Studies assessing the integration among Caribbean member-states, or the lack there of. One anecdote introduces the non-government organization (NGO), the Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association and their plea for integration strategies. See this except from that anecdote in the book (Page 60):

Anecdote # 9 – Caribbean Strategy: Hotel & Tourism Association

Hotel Association urges Caribbean governments to take action…
By Caribbean News Now – Published on August 31, 2010 MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica — Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association President Josef Forstmayr has called for urgent action by all Caribbean governments for a sustainable cooperative marketing and promotion fund and regional integration and removal of barriers for intra-Caribbean travel. …..Forstmayr also quoted Robert Crandall, former Chairman of American Airlines, who remarked at the annual Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Investment Conference (CHTIC) in May [2010] with, “The Caribbean is uniquely dependent on tourism. Everyone involved in travel and tourism knows that our industry is immensely important to the world economy, generating and supporting – either directly or indirectly – about one in eleven jobs worldwide.”

.

Here in the Caribbean, it is even more important. On a number of islands, travel and tourism accounts for more than 50% of all employment, and on some islands for more than 75%. Overall, about 20% of Caribbean employment is travel and tourism dependent – something on the order of 2.5 million jobs.”

.

Crandall also urged that “travel and tourism should be at the center of our collective consciousness since the Caribbean is more dependent on travel and tourism than almost any other region. Of the 10 countries in the world most dependent on tourism, seven are in the Caribbean.” …

.
[Forstmayr] noted that American Airlines’ Robert Crandall “told us that 18 years ago in 1992, at a meeting held in Kingston, the Caribbean heads of government agreed to collaborate in a partnership with the private sector to organize and sustain – the key word is sustain – a regional marketing fund. However, despite substantial private sector contributions from CHTA and our members in 1993 which resulted in a regional advertising program and a 10.4% increase in visitor traffic to the Caribbean, governments cannot agree on a sustainable funding mechanism for a regional marketing program now.”

A tactic the book seeks to optimize is the promotion of the regional tourism product – think; island hopping (see Appendix), universal customs clearance, foreign gateway airports – by enabling such a promotion-administration role-responsibility into a Cabinet level department. This is described in the book as follows on Page 88 with the section title:

D. Commerce Department

D1 – Tourism and Film Promotion and Administration
This department will work in conjunction with the Tourism Promotion arms of each member states (not exclusive); the same too with film, video, and media productions. There is the opportunity to exploit regional tourism efforts like cruise ships, conventions, island hopping, foreign gateway airports, and excess inventory marketing. This agency will also spearhead a Regional Language Translation 24-hour Call Center to accommodate the needs for any foreign visitors in the region.

Imagine island hopping like this – see Appendix VIDEO …

… flying into one Caribbean airport – i.e. St. Martin in the Leeward Islands or Montego Bay in Jamaica – and receiving a “Customs Clearing” for all 30 Caribbean member-states. Wow! This is Free Movement of People, a benefit of a Single Market.

The Go Lean book explains that there is the need for better stewardship of the economic engines on these touristic islands. There are obvious challenges to being on an island – it is what it is! Optimizing island life was an original intent of the Go Lean roadmap. The opening Declaration of Interdependence stresses this (Page 11) with these pronouncements:

iii. Whereas the natural formation of the landmass for our society is that of an archipelago of islands, inherent to this nature is the limitation of terrain and the natural resources there in. We must therefore provide “new guards” and protections to ensure the efficient and effective management of these resources.

iv. Whereas the natural formation of the landmass is in a tropical region, the flora and fauna allows for an inherent beauty that is enviable to peoples near and far. The structures must be strenuously guarded to protect and promote sustainable systems of commerce paramount to this reality.

vi. Whereas the finite nature of the landmass of our lands limits the populations and markets of commerce, by extending the bonds of brotherhood to our geographic neighbors allows for extended opportunities and better execution of the kinetics of our economies through trade. This regional focus must foster and promote diverse economic stimuli.

The Go Lean movement has previously detailed many related issues and advocacies for regional tourism promotion and administration. Consider this sample of previous blog-commentaries:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15380 Industrial Reboot – Cruise Tourism 2.0 – Offering a Glimpse
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15378 Industrial Reboot – Regional Tourism 2.0 – Middle Markets Targets
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15376 Industrial Reboot – Culture 101 – Tourism & Culture “Together”
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15374 Industrial Reboot – Lottery 101 – A local Raffle could be Win-Win!
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15059 Regional Tourism Coordination – No Longer Optional
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=14989 Regional Tourism Plan: Attract more Snowbirds
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=14767 The Need for Better Stewardship for Caribbean Air Travel
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=13700 Increasing Tourism Market Share
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=12668 Lessons from Colorado: Common Sense of Eco-Tourism
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=11224 Loose Lips Sink Ships – The Dangers to Tourism from Hate Speech
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=6341 What’s Next for Tourism Stewardship
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5307 Being On Guard for Violent Threats to Tourists
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5210 Cruise Ship Commerce – Getting Ready for Change
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=2750 Disney World – A Role Model for Touristic Self-Governing Entities
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=2571 Preparing for the Sharing Economy –vs- Hotel Rooms
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=235 Tourism’s Changing Profile

The Caribbean has a problem. So many of our people flee their beloved homelands. The reasons they leave are defined as both “push” and “pull”. Pull refers to the perception that there are better economic opportunities abroad, so our citizens are lured or pulled to make a living elsewhere.

The reasons people leave is not just because “they are pulled”. Sometimes, they are pushed as well. This refers to our people fleeing in search of refuge. Economic refuge is perhaps the largest reasons why our citizens have abandoned their beloved homelands – a 70 percent brain drain rate has been reported among the professional classes. Since the economics of the region is principally based on tourism, we understand this cause-and-effect. Yes, for a primary industry, we sure do have a lot of defects in our business model. We have a “divided house” and the divisions are evident and obvious.

We must do better! We must start by working together … with our fellow Caribbean neighbors. We must collaborate and cooperate, not just compete. This is our only hope for future survival. Plus, we have role models in history to emulate; (US Civil War & Post-WWII Europe).

So we must reform and transform the Caribbean’s societal engines so as to elevate our tourism product. The simple functions of a regional tourist packages/customs clearance is not “a bridge too far”. Yes, we can!

This is the quest of the Go Lean roadmap. These practical measures are conceivable, believable and achievable.

All Caribbean stakeholders – governments and citizens alike – are urged to lean-in to this roadmap for change … and empowerment. We can make our region a better place to live work and play. 🙂

Download the e-Book of Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

Sign the petition to lean-in for this roadmap for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation.

——————–

Appendix VIDEO – Island Hopping the Caribbean Islands: Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao Adventures – https://youtu.be/erlk8h4txV8

Marko Roth // World Traveller
Published on Jul 8, 2016 – Explore the mind blowing beauty of the Caribbean! The crystal clear waters with dolphins and turtles, the island hopping to Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao in small airplanes and the friendly locals made our time in the Caribbean worthwhile. We went scuba diving with dolphins, went sailing in the blue ocean and explored stunning caves. Read the full story on http://www.markoroth.com/caribbean-ab…

Check out all the details of our adventure on http://www.forthatmoment.de/2016/04/2…

Category: Travel & Events

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August 6 – A Day which will ‘Live in Infamy’ – ENCORE

Posted on August 6, 2018 in Government, Tactical

“A Day which will ‘Live in Infamy'” – US President Franklin D. Roosevelt, December 8, 1941, Declaration of War at the Joint Session of Congress lamenting the December 7, 1941 Japanese Attack on Pearl Harbor.

While the US President was referring to December 7, August 6 has become an even BIGGER ‘Day of Infamy’. This is the date in 1945 that the Atomic Bomb was detonated on Hiroshima, Japan. At that point only the USA had any Atomic/Hydrogen/Nuclear bombs. Today that number is 10, with fears that more “Rogue Nations” can get their hands on one.

This is the “Sum of All Our Fears”!

This fear was communicated in a previous blog-commentary from August 6, 2015. This is still a current fear, especially on the heels of Iran and North Korea Nuclear ambitions that are prominent in the news today.

Today, August 6, is a perfect time to Encore that previous blog-commentary as it is the 73rd Anniversary of the Hiroshima blast. See that Encore here-now:

————————————–

Go Lean Commentary – Sum of All Fears – ‘On Guard’ Against Deadly Threats

It’s time for some serious talk:

There are people out there that would like to kill us, and destroy our way of life.

Doubtful? Consider ISIS, Al Qaeda or Boko Haram!

These groups are Terrorist organizations, and they are committed, even at the risk of their own lives to carry out what they consider “a sacred service to their God”. (This aligns with the Bible at John 16:2  – “the time cometh that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service” – KJV).

From the Caribbean perspective, this is a scary proposition. This also considers that the people, institutions of the Caribbean may not be the Terrorists’ target; they are really at enmity with the United States, not the Caribbean.

The US has a massive security apparatus, with huge budgets, systems, hardware (ships, submarines, fighter jets, satellites, etc.) and military personnel; the largest in the world. These enemies may not be able to get to their ideal target, the American homeland, but will settle with successful attacks against its bordering neighbors, allies and defenseless island territories (Puerto Rico, and/or the US Virgin Islands).

God forbid, they may get their hands on nuclear materials and detonate a “dirty bomb” on our Caribbean homeland.

This is the sum of all our fears!

CU Blog - Sum of All Fears - Photo 2

This title, “Sum of All Fears”, comes from a quote by the late British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, quoted as follows:

Why, you may take the most gallant sailor, the most intrepid airman or the most audacious soldier, put them at a table together – what do you get? The sum of their fears.

In the modern lexicon however, the title draws reference to the movie based on the novel of the same name. These works of fiction portray a scenario where a nuclear bomb is exploded on US soil at a celebrated American football game. The movie truly depicted an ominous scenario. See the movie trailer here:

VIDEO – Sum of All Fears (2002) – Movie Trailer  – https://youtu.be/p4Y-0Pun2Eg

Published on Feb 22, 2013 – CIA analyst Jack Ryan must thwart the plans of a terrorist faction that threatens to induce a catastrophic conflict between the United States and Russia’s newly elected president by detonating a nuclear weapon at a football game in Baltimore.
Alternate Synopsis: When the president of Russia suddenly dies, a man whose politics are virtually unknown succeeds him. The change in political leaders sparks paranoia among American CIA officials, so CIA director Bill Cabot recruits a young analyst to supply insight and advice on the situation. Then the unthinkable happens: a nuclear bomb explodes in a U.S. city, and America is quick to blame the Russians.

Life imitating art; art imitating life.

Atomic bombs have been detonated before … twice, in World War II against Japan on the cities of  Hiroshima and Nagasaki. (Today, August 6, is the exact 70th Anniversary of the Hiroshima detonation).

CU Blog - Sum of All Fears - Photo 1

No one can therefore claim that this fear of an atomic, hydrogen or nuclear bomb is far-fetched.

This consideration is presented in conjunction to mitigations and remediation for protecting the Caribbean homeland. The assertion in the book Go Lean … Caribbean (Page 23) is that with the emergence of new economic engines, “bad actors” will also emerge thereafter to exploit the opportunities, with good, bad and evil intent. The book warns that this “bad actor” emergence is a historical fact; it is not inconceivable that it can be repeated, even on the Caribbean homeland.

This is the sum of our fears!

This point is pronounced early in the book with the Declaration of Interdependence (Page 12) that claims:

x.   Whereas we are surrounded and allied to nations of larger proportions in land mass, populations, and treasuries, elements in their societies may have ill-intent in their pursuits, at the expense of the safety and security of our citizens. We must therefore appoint “new guards” to ensure our public safety and threats against our society, both domestic and foreign. The Federation must employ the latest advances and best practices … to assuage continuous threats against public safety.

xii. Whereas the legacy in recent times in individual states may be that of ineffectual governance with no redress to higher authority, the accedence of this Federation will ensure accountability and escalation of the human and civil rights of the people for good governance, justice assurances, due process and the rule of law. As such, any threats of a “failed state” status for any member state must enact emergency measures on behalf of the Federation to protect the human, civil and property rights of the citizens, residents, allies, trading partners, and visitors of the affected member state and the Federation as a whole.

xvi. Whereas security of our homeland is inextricably linked to prosperity of the homeland, the economic and security interest of the region needs to be aligned under the same governance. Since economic crimes, including piracy and other forms of terrorism, can imperil the functioning of the wheels of commerce for all the citizenry, the accedence of this Federation must equip the security apparatus with the tools and techniques for predictive and proactive interdictions.

The Go Lean book serves as a roadmap for the introduction and implementation of the technocratic Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU). The branding Trade connotes economics, but the roadmap also addresses Homeland Security. Thusly, ascending the CU treaty would also enact a Defense Pact for the region’s security interest. Therefore the Go Lean roadmap has these 3 prime directives:

  • Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy and create new jobs.
  • Establishment of a security apparatus to protect the resultant economic engines and the Caribbean homeland.
  • Improvement of Caribbean governance to support these engines.

This structure heeds the pleas of the foregoing Declaration of Interdependence. The Caribbean appointing “new guards”, or a security pact to ensure public safety includes many strategies, tactics and implementations considered “best-practices”. We must be on a constant vigil against the eventual emergence of a “bad actor” that would be the “sum of our fears”. This indicates being pro-active in monitoring, mitigating and managing risks. The Go Lean book describes an organization structure with Intelligence Gathering and Analysis, a robust Emergency Management functionality, plus the Unified Command and Control for Caribbean Disaster Response, anti-crime and military preparedness.

This type of initiative was attempted before. Some Caribbean region member-states came together, starting in 1982, to establish the Regional Security System (RSS); it is an international accord for the defense and security of the eastern Caribbean region. The CU/Go Lean roadmap “stands on the shoulders” of that nascent beginning and extends the vision further with a Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) embedded in the treaty to create the CU Trade Federation. It is past time now for some real assurances. The world has become a scarier place. The threat of an unknown, non-state-sponsored enemy, terrorism is real. The World Trade Center/Pentagon attack on September 11, 2001 was an undeniable game-changer. But in a recent blog/commentary, it was reported that 17 recent terrorist attacks against the American homeland was cited for this decade alone, since 2010.

The CU Homeland Security Pact would roll the charters of the RSS and other regional efforts, such as:

… into one consolidated apparatus, the SOFA, thusly creating one entity, under a Commander-in-Chief would be “on guard” 24-7-365 for real or perceived threats.

The CU‘s requirement for the SOFA is “Step One, Day One” in the Go Lean roadmap. The Go Lean book details the series of community ethos, strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies to provide the proactive and reactive public safety/security in the Caribbean region:

Community Ethos – Economic Systems Influence Individual Choices Page 21
Community Ethos – Consequences of Choices Lie in Future Page 21
Community Ethos – Privacy –vs- Public Protection Page 23
Community Ethos – Intelligence Gathering Page 23
Community Ethos – Whistleblower Protection Page 23
Community Ethos – “Crap” Happens Page 23
Community Ethos – Cooperatives Page 25
Community Ethos – Ways to Manage Reconciliations Page 34
Community Ethos – Ways to Improve Sharing Page 35
Community Ethos – Ways to Promote Happiness Page 36
Community Ethos – Ways to Impact the Greater Good Page 37
Strategy – Vision – Confederating a non-sovereign permanent union Page 45
Tactical – Fostering a Technocracy Page 64
Tactical – Separation of Powers – Coast Guard & Naval Authorities Page 75
Tactical – Separation of Powers – Ground Militia Forces Page 75
Tactical – Separation of Powers – Emergency Management Agency Page 76
Tactical – Separation of Powers – CariPol: Marshals & Investigations Page 75
Implementation – Assemble Regional Organs into the CU Page 96
Implementation – Ways to Pay for Change Page 101
Implementation – Start-up Foreign Policy Initiatives Page 102
Implementation – Start-up Security Initiatives Page 103
Implementation – Ways to Foster International Aid – Military Aid Page 115
Planning – 10 Big Ideas – #3: Consolidated Homeland Security Pact Page 130
Planning – Ways to Make the Caribbean Better – Improved Public Safety Page 131
Planning – Ways to Improve Failed-State Indices – Escalation Role Page 134
Planning – Lessons from the American West – Needed Law & Order Page 142
Planning – Lessons from Egypt – Law & Order to not undermine Tourism Page 143
Advocacy – Ways to Grow the Economy – Quick Disaster Recovery Page 151
Advocacy – Ways to Improve Governance Page 168
Advocacy – Ways to Better Manage the Social Contract Page 170
Advocacy – Ways to Impact Justice – Policing the Security Forces Page 177
Advocacy – Ways to Reduce Crime – Regional Security Intelligence Page 178
Advocacy – Ways to Improve Gun Control Page 179
Advocacy – Ways to Improve Homeland Security Page 180
Advocacy – Ways to Mitigate Terrorism Page 181
Advocacy – Ways to Improve Intelligence Gathering & Analysis Page 182
Advocacy – Ways to Improve for Emergency Management Page 196
Advocacy – Ways to Protect Human Rights Page 220

Other subjects related to security and governing empowerments for the region’s defense have been blogged in other Go Lean…Caribbean commentaries, as sampled here:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5840 Computer Glitches – Cyber Attacks Maybe – Disrupt Business As Usual
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5183 A Lesson in History – Cinco De Mayo and Mexico’s Security Lapses
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5002 Managing a ‘Clear and Present Danger’
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=4809 Americans arrest 2 would-be terrorists – Mitigating threats
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=4360 Dreading the ‘Caribbean Basin Security Initiative’
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=3881 Intelligence Agencies to Up Cyber Security Cooperation
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=1965 America’s Navy – 100 Percent – Model for Caribbean
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=1554 Status of Forces Agreement = Security Pact
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=1531 A Lesson in History: 100 Years Ago – Root Causes of World War I
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=1076 Trinidad Muslims travel to Venezuela for Jihadist training
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=960 Lessons from NSA recording all phone calls in Bahamas
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=809 Muslim officials condemn abductions of Nigerian girls
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=535 Remembering and learning from Boston
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=273 10 Things We Want from the US – #4: Pax Americana

The Caribbean is arguably the best address of the planet. The people are kind, and hospitable. History shows that kindness is often disregarded as weakness. So we must project strength, underlying the regional smiles and touristic “welcome mat”.

Unfortunately, there are those out in the “mad-mad” world that will kill … with no qualms. What’s worst, they will overkill.

Overkill? See this Photo here:

CU Blog - Sum of All Fears - Photo 3

Nuclear/Hydrogen/Atomic weapons are overkill.

This is the formation of human society; any opening for exploitation will be explored. Someone must be “on guard” for these risks, threats and abuses.

Help is on the way; here comes the Caribbean Union Trade Federation, to help make the region a better, safer homeland to live, work and play.

Everyone in the Caribbean – citizens, institutions and governments – are hereby urged to lean-in to this Go Lean roadmap. 🙂

Download the free e-Book of Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

Sign the petition to lean-in for this roadmap for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation.

 

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Industrial Reboot – Call Centers 101

Posted on July 2, 2018 in Economics, Industries, Tactical

Go Lean Commentary

There used to be a time … when you called a place:

Call me at home, at work, or the private club.

Now, with mobile and smartphones, you call a person, not a place.

Everything has changed, and with it the business models of organizations that depend on the telephony activity.

Need to ‘Call a cab’?!
Nope, use an app!

For industries that depended on phone calls; they now have to reboot their industrial landscape and business model. This is bad! This is good! As it opens the opportunity for jobs in the Call Center industry.

With modern Internet Communications Technology (ICT) – think Voice-over-IP – a phone call can originate or terminate around the globe, but feel/sound like it is next door. The premise of this business model for the Caribbean is simple: Why not make those calls / answer the phone here in the Caribbean?

Jobs are at stake.

According to the book Go Lean … Caribbean (Page 257) , there could be this many jobs:

Direct and indirect jobs at physical and virtual call centers: 12,000

The Go Lean book prepares the business model of Call Centers for consumption in the Caribbean. Yes, business model refers to jobs, entrepreneurial opportunities, trade transactions, etc. In addition to these industry jobs; there is also the reality of indirect jobs – unrelated service and attendant functions – at a 3.75 multiplier rate would add another 45,000 jobs.

This constitutes an industrial reboot.

There are a number of call center installations currently in the region – see Appendix; but this Industrial Reboot measure is doubling-down on this business model. This is a wise strategy!

Notice the fine experiences being enjoyed right now in the Caribbean country of St. Lucia, with this news article here about one company – KM2 Solutions – that has expanded their Call Center footprint in this island, adding an additional 400 jobs:

Title: KM2 Solutions opens second call center in St Lucia, plans to add 400 new jobs

(PRESS RELEASE VIA SNO) – KM2 Solutions, a leading US-based, contact center services provider has opened a new facility in St. Lucia, expanding their footprint of service locations to 9 centers in 6 countries.

The 12,000 square feet Massade facility opened officially on June 19 in a ceremony graced by the Honourable Prime Minister.

Site Director Marvin Bartholomew said the company’s expansion here is an “exciting one that creates significant opportunities for an additional 400 brilliant and talented Saint Lucians. The spillover effect that the increased employment has on the economy is tremendous, and we are thrilled to be able to contribute to the island’s economic growth”.

KM2 Solutions first introduced its services to Saint Lucia in 2004 and has since continuously operated from its 20,000 square-foot office space, with capacity for 500 agents. Its new facility is about 25 minutes from the original center and is located firmly within the island’s tourism belt and population centre, providing the double positive of being able to attract excellent talent in large numbers while also hosting clients in an area known for beautiful beaches and wonderful hospitality.

Prime Minister of Saint Lucia the Honourable Allen Chastanet, who was present at Tuesday’s ceremony, lauded the investment of KM2 and thanked its principals for having confidence in the island’s economic standing and its talent.

Speaking at the official opening on Tuesday, KM2 President & CEO David Kreiss, said, “This is truly a tremendous occasion and opportunity. Our productivity and quality here is excellent, our clients love the island and are always impressed with our operations and the wonderful agents and management team. To be able to create capacity to do more of that is something we’ve always wanted to do. Naturally we’re thrilled to be able accomplish our goal of exceeding our clients’ expectations while providing an engaging and rewarding career to so many.

KM2 Solutions continues to provide clients with support in the areas of customer service and care, sales, retention, technical support, loan processing (pre-funding, originations, verifications, welcome calls), loan servicing and first-party collections, back-office services, and other functions for clients in a wide range of vertical markets.

The opening ceremony was held in at the new location on Tuesday, June 19th.

Source: Posted June 22, 2018; retrieved July 2, 2018 from: https://www.stlucianewsonline.com/km2-solutions-opens-second-call-center-in-st-lucia-plans-to-add-400-new-jobs/

The book Go Lean…Caribbean – available to download for free – serves as a roadmap for the introduction and implementation of the technocratic Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU); this is a confederation of all 30 member-states to execute a reboot of the Caribbean economic eco-system. This CU/Go Lean roadmap has these 3 prime directives:

  • Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion & create 2.2 million new jobs.
  • Establishment of a security apparatus to ensure public safety and protect the resultant economic engines.
  • Improvement of Caribbean governance to support these engines, including a separation-of-powers between the member-states and CU federal agencies.

The Caribbean economic landscape is in shambles!

The primary driver in the region – Tourism – is under assault; more and more visitors shift from stay-overs to cruise arrivals. This means less economic impact to the local markets. As a region, we must reboot our industrial landscape and add more job-creating options.

This commentary has previously identified a number of different industries that can be rebooted under this Go Lean roadmap. See the list of previous submissions on Industrial Reboots here:

  1. Industrial Reboots – Ferries 101 – Published June 27, 2017
  2. Industrial Reboots – Prisons 101 – Published October 4, 2017
  3. Industrial Reboots – Pipeline 101 – Published October 6, 2017
  4. Industrial Reboots – Frozen Foods 101 – Published October 6, 2017
  5. Industrial Reboots – Call Centers 101– Published Today – July 2, 2018

The Go Lean book stresses that reforming and transforming the Caribbean economic engines must be a regional pursuit. This was an early motivation for the roadmap, as pronounced in the opening Declaration of Interdependence (Pages 12 – 13):

xxiv.  Whereas a free market economy can be induced and spurred for continuous progress, the Federation must install the controls to better manage aspects of the economy: jobs, inflation, savings rate, investments and other economic principles. Thereby attracting direct foreign investment because of the stability and vibrancy of our economy.

xxvi.  Whereas the Caribbean region must have new jobs to empower the engines of the economy and create the income sources for prosperity, and encourage the next generation to forge their dreams right at home, the Federation must therefore foster the development of new industries, like that of … the prison industrial complex. In addition, the Federation must invigorate the enterprises related to existing industries like tourism, fisheries and lotteries – impacting the region with more jobs.

xxvii. Whereas the region has endured a spectator status during the Industrial Revolution, we cannot stand on the sidelines of this new economy, the Information Revolution. Rather, the Federation must embrace all the tenets of Internet Communications Technology (ICT) to serve as an equalizing element in competition with the rest of the world. The Federation must bridge the digital divide and promote the community ethos that research/development is valuable and must be promoted and incentivized for adoption.

Accordingly, the CU will facilitate the eco-system for Self-Governing Entities (SGE), an ideal concept for Call Centers with its exclusive federal regulation/promotion activities. Imagine bordered campuses – with Internet Pop Hubs and backup power generations. The focus for the Go Lean roadmap is on Contact Center, not just Call Center. See the difference definition here:

The Bottom Line on Contact Centers
Contact Center refers to the next step in the evolution of Call Centers. With the advances in Internet and Communications Technologies (ICT), a service provider of tele-services functions can be located anywhere in the world. This is the case with the proliferation of this industry in the Philippines – employing 350,000 people in 2011, and India with 330,000 jobs.  (Jamaica and Antigua have a nascent industry). Contact Centers today do more than just phone calls, but rather business process outsourcing (BPO), including email, IM, web chat, social media and work flow processing on behalf of 3rd party clients.

Contact Centers require art and science! See the best practice described in the Appendix VIDEO below. (Though humorous, the strong point is made: there is an art to “blending in”).

The Go Lean movement (book and blogs) details the principles of SGE’s and job multipliers, how certain industries are better than others for generating multiple indirect jobs down the line (or off-campus) for each direct job on the SGE’s payroll.

This is the vision of an industrial reboot! This transformation is where and how the jobs are to be created.

The Go Lean book provides 370-pages of turn-by-turn instructions on “how” to adopt new community ethos, plus the strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies to execute so as to reboot, reform and transform the societal engines of Caribbean society. One advocacy in rebooting the industrial landscape is to foster the Contact Center industry; consider the  specific plans, excerpts and headlines from the book on Page 212 entitled:

10 Ways to Promote Contact Centers

1 Lean-in for the Caribbean Single Market
Lean-in for the Caribbean Single Market & Economy and the Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU). This will allow for the unification of the region of 30 member-states into one market of 42 million people, thereby creating the economies-of-scale to deploy technological infrastructure like fiber optics wire-line networks, broadband, wireless (WiMax), and satellite capability to generate a recognizable return on investment; this roadmap projects 12,000 new jobs. The CU will embrace e-Delivery for government services thereby becoming one of the Contact Center industry’s biggest clients.
2 Laissez-fare Utility Regulations – in SGE’s
3 Enterprise and Empowerment Zones
The CU will promote Self Governing Entities (SGE) as specific limited geographical areas (Industrial Parks, Corporate Campuses) as Enterprise and Empowerment Zones for this contact center industry. Traditionally, Enterprise Zones allow for certain tax rebates and access to grant monies or low interest loans. (Empowerment Zones go a step further in promoting revitalization of under-privileged and/or blighted areas). A concentration of multiple players in defined and controlled areas will allow for communications bandwidth, secondary power supply systems, parking and commuter express options as viable solutions. There is a realistic consequence of thousands of jobs at the same place/same time.
4 Underwater Cables
5 Outreach
The CU will send trade missions to foreign markets to solicit clients for this industry, in fact the implementation of the federation specifies create Trade Mission Offices in key international cities. This outreach includes participation in Trade Shows and industry events around the world; (similar to “Thailand-branded goods and services” global promotions).
6 Capitalize on Multi-lingual Society
7 Consumer Rights
8 Promote Work-at-Home Options
9 Big Data – Analysis and Business Intelligence
The practice of data analysis must be promoted as a fine art in the region. Certifications and accreditations at the CU level will add value and financial benefits to this skill set for industry participants. Economic incentives (grants, forgive-able loans, tax rebates) will be in place to promote the related industries and spin the wheels of commerce in this area.
10 Presidential Medal of Recognition

Contact Centers are not new for this Go Lean roadmap; there have been a number of previous blog-commentaries by the Go Lean movement that referenced economic opportunities embedded in the Contact Center industry. See a sample list here:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=15075 e-Government 3.0 – Call Centers to engage citizens
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=14191 Scheduling for Call Centers & ‘Gigs’
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=13524 Future Focused – e-Government Portals and Call Centers
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=13321 Making a ‘Pluralistic Democracy’ – Multilingual Realities
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=11184 JPMorganChase spent $10 billion on ‘Fintech’ for 1 year
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=8262 Role Model: UberEverything in Africa

In summary, our Caribbean region need jobs. A better job-creation ability would help us to make our homeland a better place to live, work and play. In fact, one of the reasons why so many Caribbean citizens have emigrated away from the homeland is the job-creation dysfunction. Creating a new economic landscape will require rebooting the industrial landscape.

Yes, we can … reboot our industrial landscape, and create new jobs – and other economic opportunities.

We urge all Caribbean stakeholders to lean-in to this roadmap for economic empowerment. The fact that Call Centers currently exists amplifies the fact that this Go Lean roadmap is viable. Make that conceivable, believable and achievable. 🙂

Download the free e-Book of Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

Sign the petition to lean-in for this roadmap for the Caribbean Union Trade Federation.

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APPENDIX – Company Profile: KM2 Solutions

Company KM² Solutions was founded on the idea that world-class outsourcing services could be conducted close to home.

KM2 Solutions was founded by David Kreiss (K) and Gary Meyers (M) in 2004 with its original facility in St. Lucia.

At the time, few companies were able to offer the diversified services at the competitive rates that KM2 was offering.  New business was quick to follow. By 2007 KM2 had opened facilities in Barbados and Grenada, utilizing the same model that had been so effective in St. Lucia.  As a small but growing company, KM2 Solutions was able to take on outsourcing ventures that the major players dismissed as too small or overly complicated.  The ability to adapt to client-specific needs while still delivering outstanding, industry-leading performance has been the cornerstone of the company’s success.

The Honduras and Dominican Republic sites were added in recent years to provide clients with technically adept, fully bilingual agents.  Today, KM2’s global footprint reaches 6 countries with over 3,000 employees, and continued plans for expansion into new geographic locations and business segments.

KM2 Solutions is privately held, thus eliminating the pressures of meeting shareholder and analyst expectations.  The company’s focus will always be on the client and developing long-term relationships through unparalleled service and attention to detail.

Source: Retrieved July 2, 2018 from: http://www.km2solutions.com/company/

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VIDEO – KM2 Solutions – Exceeding Your Expectations – https://youtu.be/k_7lBshw8IQ

Published on Jun 17, 2015 – About KM² Solutions KM² Solutions is a leading provider of nearshore business process outsourcing (BPO) services, specializing in the finance, telecom, media, and technology industries. With contact centers throughout the Caribbean and Central America (St. Lucia, Barbados, Grenada, Dominican Republic, and Honduras), KM² provides clients with cost-effective, bilingual solutions for customer care, sales and retention, collections, customer support, and back office processing, through voice, chat, mobile, and email.

For further information, please contact: Joe Wester VP Sales at (262) 790-2656 www.km2solutions.com

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Appendix VIDEO – White Voice – https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5688932/videoplayer/vi184531737

Scene from the 2018 movie Sorry to Bother You.
In an alternate present-day version of Oakland (California), telemarketer Cassius Green discovers a magical key to professional success – White Voice – propelling him into a macabre universe.

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