Arts – Page 5 – Go Lean…Caribbean

Tag: Arts

The Movie ‘Hidden Figures’ – Art Imitating Life

Posted on August 16, 2016 in Ethos, Social

#GoLeanCommentary

** August 26, 2016 **

This day is the 98th birthday for “Katherine Johnson”.

Who is Katherine Johnson? And why is she important in the discussion of Caribbean empowerment?

Katherine Johnson (1918 – ) was a rocket scientist, physicist, and mathematician before there were rocket scientists. Why is this important? It is as 19th century Essayist Oscar Wilde dubbed it:

“Life imitates Art far more than Art imitates Life”.

The focus here is on the “Art imitating Life”; no, even further than “art” is the “science”. The “art” in this case is the movie “Hidden Figures”. The “science” is the mathematics associated with rockets and trajectory: Rocket Science.

The movie HIDDEN FIGURES is the incredible untold story of Katherine Johnson (Taraji P. Henson), Dorothy Vaughn (Octavia Spencer) and Mary Jackson (Janelle Monáe)—brilliant African-American women working at NASA, who served as the brains behind one of the greatest operations in history: the launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit, a stunning achievement that restored the nation’s confidence, turned around the Space Race, and galvanized the world. The visionary trio crossed all gender and race lines to inspire generations to dream big. – 20 Century Fox Studio

This is the power associated with film. It’s an art that can promote a science. This is in harmony with a previous blog/commentary – by the Go Lean … Caribbean movement – regarding Caribbean Diaspora member and Hollywood great, Sidney Poitier, it was declared that …

… “Movies are an amazing business model. People give money to spend a couple of hours watching someone else’s creation and then leave the theater with nothing to show for the investment; except perhaps a different perspective”.

The untold story of Katherine Johnson is not so “unfamiliar” to the African-American experience. There has been millions of similar tales, where those with genius-qualifying abilities had to languish in a world where they were considered “less than“. (See the Appendix VIDEO below).

Oh, how wrong that world was!

Today, we tell the tale of Katherine Johnson. We celebrate her for her accomplishments and inspiration she provides to future generations of scientists, mathematicians, African-descendents and women. She is the definition of “Shero”; she is all of that! See how this is portrayed in the new film here, opening in January 2017:

VIDEO: Movie Trailer ‘Hidden Figures’ – https://youtu.be/RK8xHq6dfAo

Published on August 14, 2016 – Watch the new trailer for [the movie] #HiddenFigures, based on the incredible untold true story. Starring Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer & Janelle Monáe. In theaters this January [2017].

Why is this discussion of Katherine Johnson important in the discussion of Caribbean empowerment?

This is a story of one person making a difference! Her accomplishments required a resolve, determination and conviction to not buckle under the acute pressure to maintain the status quo. Her efforts and life’s pursuits helped to forge change in her homeland for her and all others that followed. The book Go Lean … Caribbean identified subjects like this as advocates; relating that their successful completion of their advocacy tend to benefit more than just them but the whole world (Page 122).

The story of Katherine Johnson is now being told as a movie. Movies can be effective for the goal of displaying a better view of people … and the community failings they have had to overcome. Previous Go Lean commentaries presented details of other movies that had the potential of reflecting and effecting change in society. See this sample here:

‘Concussion’ – The Movie; The Cause

Lesson from ‘Star Wars’ – ‘Heroes can return’

The Movie ‘Good Hair’ and the Strong Black Woman

Movie ‘Tomorrowland’ – Feed the Right Wolf

Documentary Movie: ‘Merchants of Doubt’ – Scary Proposition

Movie Lesson: ‘Only at the precipice, do they change’

The heroism of Katherine Johnson is against the backdrop of America’s segregation past. There is no way to justify America’s days of racial separation and oppression. Good riddance!

Surely, today our communities reflect a more inclusive environment. Surely?

Unfortunately, no!

America, still, and the Caribbean more, is plagued with a “climate of hate” in too many places. Far too often, in our own backyards, a class of people is oppressed, repressed and suppressed just because …

… the reasons do not even matter. It is just plain wrong and unwise and unproductive for our mission to retain our local geniuses.

Our community needs all hands on deck, with everybody contributing: all races, all genders, all ages, all classes of people. This point has also been conveyed in previous Go Lean commentaries; consider this sample here:

Respect for Minorities: Climate of Hate

Gender Equality Referendum Outcome: Impact on the ‘Brain Drain’

The Plea for Women in Politics

A Lesson in Civil War History – Compromising Human Rights

Socio-Economic Change: The Demographic Theory of Elderly Suicide

LGBT & Buggery in Jamaica – ‘Say It Ain’t So’!

The ‘Luck of the Irish’ – Past, Present and Future Lessons

10 Things We Don’t Want from the US: #7 Discrimination of Immigrants

The book Go Lean…Caribbean (and subsequent blog/commentaries) relates that we must do better than the American history. We have a problem now with societal abandonment for “push and pull” reasons. In order to encourage people to stay home and impact their homeland, we need to protect and promote those with genius qualifiers. There is a lot at stake.

This Go Lean book serves as a roadmap for the introduction and implementation of the technocratic Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU). Fostering genius is very important to this movement. The book states (Page 27):

The CU assumes a mission of working with educational and youth agencies to identify and foster “genius” in our society, as early as possible. Geniuses are different from everyone else, although they maybe fairly easy to spot, defining exactly what makes one person a genius is a little trickier. Some researchers & theorists argue that the concept of genius is too limiting and doesn’t really give a full view of intelligence; they feel that intelligence is a combination of many factors; thereby concluding that genius can be found in many different abilities and endeavors. The CU posits that any one person can make a difference and positively impact their society; so the community ethos of investment in this specially identified group, geniuses, would always be a worthwhile endeavor.

Fostering STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) careers is integral to the Go Lean/CU roadmap. The goal is to identify students early with high aptitude in STEM areas, then develop them through academies and science fairs. The CU will even fund free tuition for these ones at local colleges/universities or forgive-able loans for those wishing to matriculate abroad. This is a matter of community ethos, defined as in the book as the fundamental spirit of a culture that drives the beliefs, customs and practices of a society. The book refers to this spirit motivating our Focus on the Future. This spirit would be embedded in every aspect of the Go Lean/CU roadmap. See here how the prime directives reflects this:

Optimization the economic engines of the Caribbean to elevate the regional economy to grow to $800 Billion and create 2.2 million new (direct & indirect) jobs, including STEM-related industries with a projection of 40,000 Research & Development direct jobs and 20,000 Technology direct jobs.
Establishment of a security apparatus to protect the people and economic engines.
Improvement of Caribbean governance to support these economic and security engines.

The Go Lean roadmap provides turn-by-turn directions on how to reform Caribbean STEM education initiatives – also the economic and governance aspects as a whole. The roadmap opens with a Declaration of Interdependence, pronouncing the approach of regional integration (Page 13 & 14) as a viable solution to elevate the region’s educational opportunities:

xix. Whereas our legacy in recent times is one of societal abandonment, it is imperative that incentives and encouragement be put in place to first dissuade the human flight, and then entice and welcome the return of our Diaspora back to our shores …

xxi. Whereas the preparation of our labor force can foster opportunities and dictate economic progress for current and future generations, the Federation must ensure that educational and job training opportunities are fully optimized for all residents of all member-states, with no partiality towards any gender or ethnic group. The Federation must recognize and facilitate excellence in many different fields of endeavor, including sciences, languages, arts, music and sports. This responsibility should be executed without incurring the risks of further human flight, as has been the past history.

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 envisions the CU – a confederation of the 30 member-states of the Caribbean chartered to do the heavy-lifting of empowering and elevating the Caribbean economy. The mission is to mitigate further brain drain of Caribbean citizens with STEM abilities. The book details the economic principles and community ethos to adopt, plus the executions of strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies to optimize STEM initiatives in the Caribbean region:

Community Ethos – Deferred Gratification	Page 21
Community Ethos – Economic Systems Influence Choices & Incentives	Page 21
Community Ethos – Job Multiplier – Indirect Jobs from Direct Ones	Page 22
Community Ethos – Anti-Bullying and Mitigation	Page 23
Community Ethos – Minority Equalization	Page 24
Community Ethos – Return on Investments	Page 24
Community Ethos – Ways to Impact the Future – Foster a Future Focus	Page 27
Community Ethos – Ways to Foster Genius – For STEM & other fields	Page 26
Community Ethos – Ways to Help Entrepreneurship	Page 28
Community Ethos – Promote Intellectual Property	Page 29
Community Ethos – Ways to Impact Research & Development	Page 30
Community Ethos – Ways to Close the Digital Divide	Page 31
Community Ethos – Ways to Impact the Greater Good	Page 37
Anecdote – Valedictorian and Caribbean Diaspora Member	Page 38
Strategy – Customers – Citizens, Business Community & Diaspora	Page 47
Strategy – Meeting Region’s Needs Today, Preparing For Future	Page 58
Tactical – Separation of Powers – Patent, Standards, & Copyrights	Page 78
Tactical – Separation of Powers – Education Department	Page 85
Implementation – Assemble all Super-Regional Governing Entities	Page 96
Implementation – Trends in Implementing Data Centers	Page 106
Implementation – Ways to Deliver	Page 109
Implementation – Better Manage Debt – Better Student Loans Dynamics	Page 114
Planning – Ways to Improve Trade	Page 128
Planning – Ways to Make the Caribbean Better	Page 131
Advocacy – Ways to Grow the Economy	Page 151
Advocacy – Ways to Create Jobs	Page 152
Advocacy – Ways to Improve Education	Page 159
Advocacy – Ways to Impact Student Loans – Forgivable Provisions	Page 160
Advocacy – Ways to Foster Empowering Immigration – STEM Professionals	Page 174
Advocacy – Ways to Foster Technology	Page 197
Advocacy – Ways to Impact the Diaspora	Page 217

The Go Lean movement celebrates Katherine Johnson today as a role model in STEM. (Though she is an African-American with no Caribbean connection). She is recognized worldwide – just wait until the movie is released – as a woman of accomplishment – in 2015 she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom:

“So if you think your job is pressure-packed, hers meant that forgetting to carry the one might send somebody floating off into the solar system.” – US President Barack Obama said in honoring Katherine Johnson on November 24, 2015.

This day – August 26 – is also Women’s Equality Day – commemorating women being granted the right to vote in the US on August 26, 1920.

So we celebrate all women that strive to achieve; there are those that do a lot; there are also women that choose to do little, or nothing. We celebrate them too. That is their equal right!

Yes, we can all do better than the past experiences from our communities. The Caribbean can be better!

Now is the time for all of the Caribbean, women and men, to lean-in for the empowerments described in the book Go Lean … Caribbean. This roadmap will result in more positive socio-economic changes throughout the region; it will make the Caribbean a better place to live, work and play. 🙂

Download the book Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

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Appendix VIDEO: Celebrating Katherine Johnson’s Great Mind – Human Computer – https://youtu.be/Bdr9QBRcPEk

Published on Sep 1, 2015 – In the early days of spaceflight, if NASA needed to plot a rocket’s path or confirm a computer’s calculations, they knew who to ask: Katherine Johnson.

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Arts, Civil Rights, Gender, History

This Day In History: Jamaican Innovation for Hip Hop

Posted on August 11, 2016 in Ethos, Implementation, Social

#GoLeanCommentary

This day – August 11 – in 1973 …

… a member of the Caribbean Diaspora – Jamaica – may have changed the world … for Hip Hop. On this day in 1973, Clive Campbell – better known to history as DJ Kool Herc – helped out his sister by “DJ-ing” her birthday party in a recreation room in The Bronx. History shows that he used his inspiration and influence from his Caribbean musical roots to innovate a music style and performance that would subsequently change the world … for good …

… or bad.

It’s music; you be the judge.

Musical taste is like “beauty” … in the “eye of the beholder”. The main thing is that the music made you listen and maybe learned something about the urban experience of America … and now the world.

See the story of Clive Campbell aka DJ Kool Herc here:

Title: This Day In History: 1973 – Hip Hop is born at a birthday party in the Bronx

Like any style of music, hip hop has roots in other forms, and its evolution was shaped by many different artists, but there’s a case to be made that it came to life precisely on this day in 1973, at a birthday party in the recreation room of an apartment building in the west Bronx, New York City. The location of that birthplace was 1520 Sedgwick Avenue, and the man who presided over that historic party was the birthday girl’s brother, Clive Campbell—better known to history as DJ Kool Herc, founding father of hip hop.

Born and raised to the age of 10 in Kingston, Jamaica, DJ Kool Herc began spinning records at parties and between sets his father’s band played while he was a teenager in the Bronx in the early 1970s. Herc often emulated the style of Jamaican “selectors” (DJs) by “toasting” (i.e., talking) over the records he spun, but his historical significance has nothing to do with rapping. Kool Herc’s contribution to hip hop was even more fundamental.

DJ Kool Herc’s signature innovation came from observing how the crowds would react to different parts of whatever record he happened to be playing: “I was noticing people used to wait for particular parts of the record to dance, maybe [to] do their specialty move.” Those moments tended to occur at the drum breaks—the moments in a record when the vocals and other instruments would drop out completely for a measure or two of pure rhythm. What Kool Herc decided to do was to use the two turntables in a typical DJ setup not as a way to make a smooth transition between two records, but as a way to switch back and forth repeatedly between two copies of the same record, extending the short drum break that the crowd most wanted to hear. He called his trick the Merry Go-Round. Today, it is known as the “break beat.” [(See Appendix VIDEO below).]

By the summer of 1973, DJ Kool Herc had been using and refining his break-beat style for the better part of a year. His sister’s party on August 11, however, put him before his biggest crowd ever and with the most powerful sound system he’d ever worked. It was the success of that party that would begin a grassroots musical revolution, fully six years before the term “hip hop” even entered the popular vocabulary.
Source: History Channel – This Day In History – Posted & Retrieved August 11, 2016 from: http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/hip-hop-is-born-at-a-birthday-party-in-the-bronx

Can we – in the Caribbean and from the Caribbean – change the world again?

Yes, we can!

This consideration is in line with the book Go Lean … Caribbean. It serves as a roadmap for the introduction and implementation of the technocratic Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU). This CU strives to advance Caribbean culture with 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.
Establishment of a security apparatus to protect the resultant economic engines.
Improve Caribbean governance.

This will not be the first time a Caribbean personality has changed the world through music (and hopefully not the last). Previously, this blog-commentary detailed the influence of music icon Bob Marley. Today, his name is synonymous with Reggae and socially-conscious music. RIP Bob Marley (1945 – 1981).

The Go Lean book identifies, in total, 169 different musical/national combinations of genres throughout the Caribbean. From these styles, Hip Hop has had its origins and roots. And then the transformation continued, with more inspiration back to the Caribbean sounds and more social messaging (classic of Reggae) going back to the Hip Hop sound.

Music does not stand still; it evolves. An excellent example of this cross-meshing is the musical genre of Reggaeton:

Reggaetón is a genre of music characterized by its repetitive beat rhythm that originated in Puerto Rico. Its roots can be traced back to the “underground” music of the island during the late 90’s, when music borrowing elements of reggae, rap, and hip-hop was being performed (in Spanish) in small, unofficial venues. Bootleg recordings and word of mouth were the means of distribution for this music until 1997. In 1998 eventually that music coalesced into what today is known as Reggaeton. The music’s popularity skyrocketed in the early 2000s as it spread to North American, European, Asian, and African audiences.^[1] Source: Retrieved 08/11/2016 from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reggaeton.

See sample Reggaetón song here: https://youtu.be/uHgnebZ_jYo

The movement behind the Go Lean book asserts that “one person can make a difference”. So just like Bob Marley, Clive Campbell aka DJ Kool Herc, should be recognized for his contributions to music, culture and Caribbean identity. This one Caribbean character has made a difference while residing as an alien in a foreign land. He has forge an example and a sample of how other Caribbean stakeholders can do more in the arts and impact the world – we can build a city on “rock-and-roll”.

Too bad he made this impact after leaving his Caribbean home of Jamaica.

Alas, we now bring the quest for change to Jamaica and all of the rest of the Caribbean. And that quest includes music and the arts. Early in the Go Lean book, the contributions that music can make is pronounced as an community ethos for the entire region to embrace, (Declaration of Interdependence – Page 15) with these statements:

xxxii. Whereas the cultural arts and music of the region are germane to the quality of Caribbean life, and the international appreciation of Caribbean life, the Federation must implement the support systems to teach, encourage, incentivize, monetize and promote the related industries for arts and music in domestic and foreign markets. These endeavors will make the Caribbean a better place to live, work and play.

This Go Lean/CU roadmap recognizes that a prerequisite for advancing society is a change in the community ethos – the fundamental spirit of a culture that drives the beliefs, customs and practices – in that society. Music should be appreciated for the truth of its power; it “can soothe the savage beast”. It can communicate culture and impact the economics for a people. One person, or a group of people can do this, can make a difference.

The following list from the Go Lean book details the community ethos, strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies to foster the next generation of artist:

Community Ethos – Ways to Foster Genius	Page 27
Community Ethos – Promote Intellectual Property	Page 29
Community Ethos – Ways to Promote Happiness	Page 36
Community Ethos – Impact the Greater Good	Page 37
Strategy – Vision – Unified CaribbeanSingle Market	Page 45
Tactical – Separation of Powers – Patents & Copyrights	Page 78
Tactical – Separation of Powers – Culture Administration	Page 81
Implementation – Ways to Impact Social Media	Page 111
Advocacy – Ways to Make the Caribbean Better	Page 131
Advocacy – Ways to Impact Hollywood	Page 203
Advocacy – Ways to Promote Music	Page 231
Advocacy – Ways to Re-boot Jamaica	Page 239

Thank you Clive Campbell aka DJ Kool Herc; see Appendix VIDEO below.

Thank you for setting the pathway for success for new generations of talented, inspirational and influential artists – musical geniuses of Caribbean heritage – who are sure to follow. These artists, too will “rock the world”.

We are hereby “banking” on it here in the Caribbean, as communicated further in that Declaration of Interdependence – Page 13:

xxi. Whereas the preparation of our labor force can foster opportunities and dictate economic progress for current and future generations, the Federation must ensure that educational and job training opportunities are fully optimized for all residents of all member-states, with no partiality towards any gender or ethnic group. The Federation must recognize and facilitate excellence in many different fields of endeavor, including sciences, languages, arts, music and sports. This responsibility should be executed without incurring the risks of further human flight, as has been the past history.

The Go Lean book posits “a change is going to come” to the Caribbean. The people, institutions and governance of region are all urged to “lean-in” to this roadmap for change and empowerment. Let’s do this … and make our homeland – all of the Caribbean – a better place to live, work and play.

🙂

Download the book Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

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

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Appendix VIDEO – Kool DJ Herc, Merry Go Round – https://youtu.be/Hw4H2FZjfpo

Uploaded on Oct 26, 2009 – Kool DJ Herc describing how he invented the idea of playing two breakbeats together.

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Arts, History, Image, Jamaica, Model, Music, Play, Transform

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ENCORE: Role Model Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight – RIP

Posted on June 4, 2016 in Ethos, Social

“Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth.” – Muhammad Ali.

The world now mourns the passing of this great role model; boxing legend Muhammad Ali is dead!

We all knew it would happen; he was frail, gaunt and semi-immobile; all of this combined with his muted speech – due to his end-stage Parkinson’s Disease. But the manifestation of the inevitable is still painful, grievous and depressing.

What a loss for the modern world! This is not just this writers view, but an opinion shared by many in the world. See sample tributes/quotes and a news VIDEO in the Appendices below.

The full measure of the man Muhammad Ali is now gone – he would go on to become known as “The Greatest,” and at his peak in the 1970s was among the most recognizable faces on Earth – but his undeniable impact on society continues. This legacy includes more than just the boxing ring or sports world, as his greatest fight was not in the ring, but rather the social injustice in the United States and in the US Supreme Court. The commitment, sacrifice and success of that fight make him a role model for advocates around the world, including those in the Caribbean, or wanting to elevate the Caribbean.

This most impactful “battle/fight” for Ali was detailed in a previous blog-commentary from March 21, 2014; it is being re-distributed here in the aftermath of Ali’s death on June 3, 2016. This blog highlighted another “actor” in the Ali-Supreme Court drama, someone behind the scenes but still able to make a huge impact on the case and this legacy, Kevin Connolly, a Clerk for one of the Supreme Court Judges.

The blog ENCORE follows:

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Go Lean Commentary

This story-line is retrieved from the movie “Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight” (2013). See the summary here:

In 1964, world champion boxer Muhammad Ali requested exemption from the military draft based on his religious beliefs. His request was denied and when he subsequently refused induction into the army, he was convicted and sentenced to 5 years imprisonment. His case eventually works itself up the Supreme Court. In their first conference after the case is presented, the justices decide by majority vote (5 to 3) to uphold the conviction and Justice John Harlan is tasked with preparing the majority opinion. He assigns one of his clerks, Kevin Connolly, to prepare a first draft but try as he might [Mr. Connolly] believes that the decision is wrong. His draft argues for overturning the conviction… eventually Justice Harlan agrees with him. The Justice must now find a way to convince his colleagues.
Source: IMDB – http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2061756/?ref_=nv_sr_2

The review of this movie – The Atlantic Magazine – adds great insight and perspective. Consider here:

In 1960 Cassius Clay burst onto the scene – and burst is about the only word to describe it – he was an 18-year-old amateur boxer who lit up the Summer Olympics in Rome with his brashness and youthful exuberance, to say nothing of his breathtaking ability. (He easily captured the light heavyweight gold medal.) Clay turned pro a few months after the Olympics, and within two years, he became more of a media star than the reigning heavyweight champion, Floyd Patterson, or Patterson’s successor, Sonny Liston. From the beginning he transcended boxing, making bold predictions – usually correct – about what round he would stop his opponents in; his hilarious doggerel poetry was recited by school kids who had never seen a boxing match. He cut a record (a cover of Ben E. King’s “Stand By Me”), appeared in a movie (as a heavyweight contender who knocks out Anthony Quinn in the opening moments of Requiem for a Heavyweight) and, in February of 1964, shocked everyone but himself by whipping the fearsome Sonny Liston, a 7-1 favorite for the heavyweight title. Within days of his victory, though, he created an even bigger shock when he announced that he had become a Black Muslim and changed his name to Muhammad Ali. And that was just the beginning.

In 1965, he failed a mental aptitude test for the draft. But early in 1966 the war in Vietnam was escalating and resistance to it was gathering momentum, so the standards for induction were lowered and Ali was classified as eligible for the draft. His lawyer presented a letter to the draft board requesting deferment as a conscientious objector. Three days later, the request was denied, and in 1967 he was arrested, convicted of draft evasion, and stripped of his heavyweight title by New York and other powerful state athletic commissions. In 1971, his appeal was heard by the U.S. Supreme Court. Opinion polls at the time (1971) indicated that the vast majority of older whites believed Ali should have been sent to jail, while an overwhelming number of blacks and younger white college students, many of whom had gone to see Ali on one of his campus appearances, vehemently supported his anti-war stance. Public sentiment about Ali pretty much followed the same lines as public opinion on the war in Vietnam, and as more people turned against the war, more supporters flocked to Ali’s corner.

The Justices reviewing this matter included Thurgood Marshall, as the only black justice on the court at the time. But Justice Marshall recused himself from the case, having been the Solicitor General on Ali’s earlier conviction. [(The Solicitor General is required to argue in front of the court on behalf of “The People”)]. Justice Harlan, the responsible party for communicating the majority decision, delegated this task to Kevin Connolly, his chief clerk; [(the Justices are allowed up to 4 Clerks to do the heavy-lifting of researching and composing opinions on before of their legal “masters”)]. Mr. Connolly was convincingly idealistic in this case; his dogged pursuit of justice helped turn the Court’s decision around.

At the time Justice Harlan, who was dying of cancer and would resign from the Court later that year, became finally convinced of the sincerity of Ali’s religious and anti-war beliefs and, against the wishes of his close friend Chief Justice Burger, shifted his vote to even the balance at 4 to 4. [(There was no further testimony from Ali or supporters, just the ruminated logic of the clerk Connolly and the appeal of a better nature)]. He eventually made such a convincing argument to the other conservatives on the court that the decision became unanimous (8 to 0, with an abstaining Justice Marshall).
Source: Extractions from Allen Barra, The Atlantic Magazine. Posted October 4, 2013; retrieved February 14, 2014 from: http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2013/10/muhammad-alis-most-formidable-opponent-was-the-us-supreme-court/280280/

The advocate in this drama is Kevin Connolly, the chief clerk for Supreme Court Justice John Harland. His steadfast commitment to justice prevailed, in the end. He saw the miscarriage of justice in the un-balanced application of the law for religious/conscientious objections for White ministers as opposed to Black Muslim adherents of faith. He wielded his influence on his boss, Justice Harland, who then influenced the remaining court – one man made a difference on this court, and eventually the world.

The book Go Lean … Caribbean serves as a roadmap for the introduction and implementation of the Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU). The book posits that one person can make a difference in the Caribbean; that there are many opportunities where one champion can elevate society. In fact the book is a collection of 144 different advocacies, so there is inspiration for the Kevin Connolly’s and Muhammad Ali’s of the region to make their mark in many different fields of endeavor. The roadmap specifically encourages the region to foster the genius potential (Page 27) in their communities, forge leadership skills (Page 171) and pursue the Greater Good (Page 37). With the participation of many advocates on many different paths for progress, the Caribbean can truly become a better place to live, work and play.

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

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Appendix A – Quotes from around the world about the death of three-time heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali
(Source: Retrieved June 4, 2016 from: https://www.yahoo.com/news/reaction-death-greatest-muhammad-ali-100712903.html?ref=gs)

“He’s the most transforming figure of my time, certainly. He did more to change race relations and the views of people than even Martin Luther King. It was a privilege and an honor for me to know him and associate with him.” — Bob Arum, who promoted 26 of Ali’s fights.

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Ali, Frazier & Foreman we were 1 guy. A part of me slipped away, “The greatest piece” — tweet by George Foreman, Ali’s opponent in the “Rumble in the Jungle”

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“Muhammad Ali is a legend and one of the world’s most celebrated athletes, the fighter who ushered in the golden era of boxing and put the sport on the map. He paved the way for professional fighters, including myself, elevating boxing to become a sport watched in millions of households around the world” — Boxer Oscar De La Hoya, who won titles at six different weight classes.

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“We lost a giant today. Boxing benefited from Muhammad Ali’s talents but not nearly as much as mankind benefited from his humanity. Our hearts and prayers go out to the Ali family. May God bless them.” — Boxer Manny Pacquiao, a champion in eight weight classes.

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“Passing the Olympic torch to Muhammad to light the cauldron at the Atlanta Games in 1996 was the defining moment of my career, and a memory I will treasure forever, as much as any of the medals I won. As Olympians, our role is to inspire others to achieve their dreams, and no person has ever lived that role more than Muhammad Ali.” — swimmer Janet Evans.

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“Without question his legacy is one that he defied the odds because he stood up for what he believed in and when he was put to the test he took personal harm rather than go against his beliefs and what he stood for.” — Don King, promoter of “Rumble in the Jungle” and “Thrilla in Manilla.”

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“We are proud to call Ali not only a member of Team USA, but an Olympic champion. With unparalleled grit and determination, he left a legacy that will continue to inspire generations of Americans for years to come.” — Scott Blackmun, CEO of the U.S. Olympic Committee.

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“Hillary and I are saddened by the passing of Muhammad Ali. From the day he claimed the Olympic gold medal in 1960, boxing fans across the world knew they were seeing a blend of beauty and grace, speed and strength that may never be matched again. We watched him grow from the brash self-confidence of youth and success into a manhood full of religious and political convictions that led him to make tough choices and live with the consequences. Along the way we saw him courageous in the ring, inspiring to the young, compassionate to those in need, and strong and good-humored in bearing the burden of his own health challenges. I was honored to award him the Presidential Citizens Medal at the White House, to watch him light the Olympic flame, and to forge a friendship with a man who, through triumph and trials, became even greater than his legend. Our hearts go out to Lonnie, his children, and his entire family.” — President Bill Clinton.

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“He was an athlete who touched the hearts of people across the globe, an athlete who was engaged beyond sport, an athlete who had the courage to give hope to so many suffering illness by lighting the Olympic cauldron and not hiding his own affliction. He was an athlete who fought for peace and tolerance – he was a true Olympian. Meeting him in person was an inspiration. He was a man who at the same time was so proud and yet so humble.” — IOC President Thomas Bach.

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“Muhammad Ali was not just a champion in the ring – he was a champion of civil rights, and a role model for so many people.” — tweet by British Prime Minister David Cameron.

——-

“Rip the greatest of all times in many different ways” — tweet by world heavyweight champion Tyson Fury.

——-

“He sacrificed the heart of his career and money and glory for his religious beliefs about a war he thought unnecessary and unjust. His memory and legacy lingers on until eternity. He scarified, the nation benefited. He was a champion in the ring, but, more than that, a hero beyond the ring. When champions win, people carry them off the field on their shoulders. When heroes win, people ride on their shoulders. We rode on Muhammad Ali’s shoulders.” — Rev. Jesse Jackson, founder and president of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, and longtime friend of Ali.

——-

“HBO is honored to have known Muhammad Ali as a fighter of beauty and a man of principle. We experienced the joy of working with him in support of initiatives he passionately cared about including, most importantly, his never-ending desire to teach tolerance and understanding of others to all people.” — HBO Sports.

——-

“Muhammad Ali transcended sports with his outsized personality and dedication to civil rights and social justice. He was an inspirational presence at several major NBA events and was deeply admired by so many throughout the league. While we are deeply saddened by his loss, Muhammad Ali’s legacy lives on in every athlete who takes a stand for what he or she believes.” — NBA Commissioner Adam Silver.

——-

“Muhammad Ali has not only been a sports legend but also an outstanding man, whose values transcend his fantastic boxing career. We will always remember him also for his full commitment for the values of equity and brotherhood. We’re proud he started his unique sports career winning the Olympic gold medal in Rome 1960, a story that still emotions me very much. He’ll be forever ‘The Greatest’ to all of us.” — Rome 2024 bid President Luca di Montezemolo.

——-

“Ali was not afraid of anything. He made up his own rules inside the ring and out, and he told the world that is how he acted even (if) they didn’t like it … He was suspended for political reasons, he was arrested, he lost, he once boxed 12 rounds with a broken jaw, but he always came back. We learned from him that victory is the ability to stay on your feet after everyone else has raised their hands and given up.” Yair Lapid, head of Israel’s centrist Yesh Atid party and a former amateur boxer.

————–

Appendix B VIDEO – Muhammad Ali Dead at 74 – https://youtu.be/G9JRWAkUn7E

Published on Jun 3, 2016 – Boxing legend Muhammad Ali has died. The 74-year-old had been increasingly frail after being hospitalized several times, most recently for respiratory issues.

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Joy. Pain. Sunshine. Rain.

Posted on March 20, 2016 in Ethos, Social, Tactical

Go Lean Commentary

The movement behind the book Go Lean…Caribbean strives to make the Caribbean a better place to live, work and play. Having success in this quest would mean more joy (happiness) for the stakeholders (residents and visitors alike) of the tropical sunshine. We also try to soften the pain of day-to-day life, for “in every life, a little rain must fall”.

“Joy, Pain, Sunshine and Rain” – Sounds familiar, right? It is the title and chorus of a popular Rhythm & Blues song by the Grammy Award winning band Frankie Beverly and Maze; see the VIDEO-AUDIO here:

VIDEO-AUDIO: Frankie Beverly And Maze – Joy And Pain – https://youtu.be/KNuKMPeOdfM

Uploaded on Oct 31, 2011 – {DISCLAIMER}
No Copyright Intended. This Song Belongs To It Respective Owners.
Please Support The Artist By Buying Their Songs/Album – “Joy and Pain” by Maze Listen ad-free with YouTube Red

Art imitates life and life imitates art …

Music is a viable approach for forging change in society. Consider these popular quotations:

“Music soothes the savage beast”.

“A great song can change the world”.

There are a lot of famous quotes alluding to the power of music, but here’s an old favorite:

“Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and charm and gaiety to life and to everything.” — Plato

Consider this list where music (songs & concerts) has changed the world in past campaigns:

1
Bob Dylan: Times They Are A-Changin’ – 1960’s Civil Rights Anthem

2
Hope for Haiti Now: A Global Benefit for Earthquake Relief – Telethon on Jan 22, 2010

3
“Sun City” – 1985 Anti-Apartheid Group Song and Album

4
Bob Marley and the Wailers: “Them Belly Full (But We Hungry)” – 1975 song

5
K’naan: “Wavin’ Flag” – 2010 Soccer World Cup anthem advocating rights for refugees

6
Live Aid – 1985 “simul”-concerts in London & Philadelphia for famine relief in Ethiopia

7
46664 Concerts – (Mandela’s Prison #) – 2003 advocacy against HIV/AIDS in South Africa

8
John Lennon: “Imagine” – 1971 iconic song for world peace

9
Tsunami Aid: Concert of Hope – 2004 Benefit for Indian Ocean Earthquake & Tsunami

10
The Concert for Bangladesh – 1971 Benefit for refugees from (then) East Pakistan

11
Live 8 – 2005 series of concerts in the G8 member-states for foreign aid to poorest countries

12
Patti Smith: “People Have the Power” – 1988 song condemning war and human rights abuses

13
Farm Aid – Annual concerts starting in 1985 advocating Family Farms

14
Marvin Gaye: “What’s Going On” – 1971 album against the Vietnam war, drugs and poverty

15
Concert in celebration of “It Takes Two” – 2014 effort tackling high teenage pregnancy in Uganda

16
Joni Mitchell: “Big Yellow Taxi” – 1970 hit song addresses environmental concerns

[17]
[“We Are the World” – 1985 super-group (most famous music artists) song by USA for Africa]

Source: https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/music-that-has-changed-the-world/ by Christina Nuñez on July 27, 2015. The [] represent this blog’s addition – Number 17 – to the list.

The Go Lean book identifies the art and science of the music business among the strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies of the roadmap to elevate the Caribbean’s societal engines. The book serves as a roadmap for the introduction and implementation of the Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU), an initiative to elevate and empower the region, to make the homelands better and happier. From the outset, the book recognized the significance of music and happiness in this roadmap with these statements in the opening Declaration of Interdependence (Page 12 & 14):

Preamble. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness …

xxi. Whereas the preparation of our labor force can foster opportunities and dictate economic progress for current and future generations, the Federation must ensure that educational and job training opportunities are fully optimized for all residents of all member-states, with no partiality towards any gender or ethnic group. The Federation must recognize and facilitate excellence in many different fields of endeavor, including sciences, languages, arts, music and sports. This responsibility should be executed without incurring the risks of further human flight, as has been the past history.

xxxii. Whereas the cultural arts and music of the region are germane to the quality of Caribbean life, and the international appreciation of Caribbean life, the Federation must implement the support systems to teach, encourage, incentivize, monetize and promote the related industries for arts and music in domestic and foreign markets. These endeavors will make the Caribbean a better place to live, work and play.

The purpose of the Go Lean roadmap is not music, but rather to make the Caribbean region a better homeland, a happier place to live, work and play. Music can be an effective tool for campaigns … to convey the important message of happiness, to pronounce that “Joy, Pain, Sunshine and Rain” is part-and-parcel of any happiness advocacy.

This Go Lean roadmap calls for heavy-lifting in shepherding important aspects of Caribbean life. In fact, the empowerment roadmap has 3 prime directives that are critical for forging a happy society; they are identified as follows:

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 protect the resultant economic engines.
Improve Caribbean governance to support these engines.

The book describes the CU as a hallmark of a technocracy, with a commitment to efficiency and effectiveness in these societal engines, while still not ignoring principles of fun such as music, arts, heritage and overall happiness. In fact, one of the 144 different missions of the Go Lean/CU roadmap is to promote happiness (10 Ways to Promote Happiness – Page 36).

Happiness is the focus of this commentary…

… thousands of people all around the world took action to support the International Day of Happiness on March 20, 2016. (This is celebrated in March every year). See a related alternate commentary of this year’s advocacy in the Appendix below.

What more can we do?

First, we encourage all to take this “Action for Happiness” pledge:

“I will try to create more happiness in the world around me”.

… this Go Lean/CU effort is “our” attempt to do more … for the Caribbean. The Go Lean/CU roadmap was constructed with the community ethos in mind to make the region more happy, plus the execution of related strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies to forge permanent happiness. The following is a sample of these specific details of the roadmap from the book:

Community Ethos – Deferred Gratification	Page 21
Community Ethos – Economic Principles – People Choose	Page 21
Community Ethos – Economic Principles – People Respond to Incentives in Predictable Ways	Page 21
Community Ethos – Economic Principles – The Consequences of Choices Lie in the Future	Page 21
Community Ethos – Governing Principles – Lean Operations	Page 24
Community Ethos – Ways to Impact the Future	Page 26
Community Ethos – Ways to Foster Genius	Page 27
Community Ethos – Ways to Promote Intellectual Property	Page 29
Community Ethos – Ways to Impact Research & Development	Page 30
Community Ethos – Ways to Bridge the Digital Divide	Page 31
Community Ethos – Ways to Impact Turn-Around	Page 33
Community Ethos – Ways to Promote Happiness	Page 36
Community Ethos – Ways to Impact the Greater Good	Page 37
Strategy – Vision – Confederate 30 Member-States	Page 45
Strategy – Mission – Celebrate the Music, Sports, Art, People and Culture of the Caribbean	Page 46
Tactical – Confederating a Permanent Union	Page 63
Tactical – Fostering a Technocracy	Page 64
Implementation – Ways to Pay for Change	Page 101
Implementation – Ways to Deliver	Page 109
Planning – 10 Big Ideas for the Caribbean Region – Cyber-Caribbean	Page 127
Planning – Ways to Make the Caribbean Better	Page 136
Planning – Reasons Why the CU Will Succeed	Page 137
Advocacy – Ways to Grow the Economy	Page 151
Advocacy – Ways to Create Jobs	Page 152
Advocacy – Ways to Improve Communications	Page 186
Advocacy – Ways to Preserve Caribbean Heritage	Page 218
Advocacy – Ways to Improve the Arts	Page 230
Advocacy – Ways to Promote Music	Page 231
Appendix – Case Study Managing Copyright Infringements	Page 351

The Go Lean/CU roadmap is optimistic, but it is realistic and pragmatic too. There is the acknowledgement that while music is powerful, the music business on the other hand, not so much. This industry has changed in the light of modern dynamics (technology and globalization), particularly due to Internet & Communications Technologies. The industry needs to adapt accordingly – we need a fully functional music industry. To spur more development in the industrial dimensions of the music business, this roadmap seeks to secure the economic, security and governing engines of the Caribbean region. This point was detailed in these previous Go Lean blog/commentaries:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=6310	Farewell to ‘Sábado Gigante’
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5648	Taylor Swift withholds Album from Apple Music
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5251	Post-Mortem of Inaugural Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=3641	‘We Built This City …’
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=2415	How ‘The Lion King’ productions roared into history
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=1909	Music Role Model Berry Gordy – Reflecting & Effecting Change

We need a fully functional music industry because we need music, and the effects of music: the power to reach, soothe and move people. This point was previously detailed in other Go Lean blog/commentaries; a sample follows:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=7628	‘A Change Is Gonna Come’
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=3568	Forging Change: Music Moves People
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=2291	Forging Change: The Fun Theory
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=866	Music Man Bob Marley: The legend lives on!

This quest to elevate the Caribbean region is heavy-lifting; more is involved than just saying “Don’t Worry Be Happy“. It is more complex than just playing or listening to music. Though this is serious, it should also be fun; it should be “Joy, Pain, Sunshine and Rain”.

Let’s create a happier world together; a happy world filled with laughter and music – “Joy, Pain, Sunshine and Rain”. And if not the world, then maybe just the Caribbean. 🙂

Download the book Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

————

Appendix – Title: The best habits to practice to feel happy every day
By: Dr. Christine Brown
Source: http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/health/mind/the-best-habits-to-practice-to-feel-happy-every-day/news-story/bd7d414a2b5da7f6f0bd138f0af2c7fc . Posted and retrieved March 20, 2016.

HAPPY International Day of Happiness!

I have a question for you: How often do you feel like a ‘room without a roof’? According to Pharrell Williams, this “space without limit” feeling is universally achievable. But for many of us, limitless happiness takes a little work. So, what are some of the best habits to practice for feeling happy every day?

MANAGE THE DOWN DAYS

You know the days. Those days when you’re telling yourself the ‘I’m not good enough’ story (which we all have, by the way). The days where things seem to go from bad to worse.

It’s very easy to get trapped at this point because many of us start feeling bad for feeling bad. There are enough external pressures to always be ‘up’ and cheerful, without applying internal pressure too. Acknowledge you’re feeling suboptimal, and do a quick stocktake.

If you can change things, take action. If not, do something that helps to calm you, comfort you or cheer you up (even a little bit).

Be gentle with yourself and don’t splatter your down day over your bystanders. Remember, no-one can ‘make’ you feel anything. You have all the controls. Which reminds me …

DON’T BELIEVE EVERYTHING YOU THINK

Much unhappiness is caused by paying way too much attention to our thoughts. Our minds are constantly telling us stories to explain the world around us. Many times these stories are accurate, but unfortunately, whenever we don’t have enough data, our mind just fills in the gaps.

Let’s face it, we really don’t know why they didn’t say hello to us this morning. We really don’t.

As soon as we hear our minds saying things like, “They ALWAYS let me down” or “She NEVER keeps her promises” we need to reach for the metaphorical handbrake.

Get in the habit of asking yourself if that’s strictly true. Remember it’s just a story you’re telling yourself. You can even give the story a name: “Oh, it’s the ‘I do everything around here’ story”. It is very unlikely that things NEVER or ALWAYS happen. There are always exceptions. Remembering to look for (and recognise) the exceptions means much happier states of mind.

KEEP WHAT ‘SPARKS JOY’

In her book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, Marie Kondo recommends a (once-off) festival of tidying where you gather categories of belongings into ginormous piles, pick items up one-by-one and ask a simple question: “Does it spark joy?”

If it does, you keep it. If it doesn’t, you can let it go.

Just imagine how it would be if every item around you had a happy association. Out would go that hideous fondue set from Aunt Bertha or those pyjamas from your ex. Because, according to Marie Kondo, a gift has done its job once it’s received. The freedom!

Oh, and on a side note, this totally applies to the humans in your life too.

EVERYONE’S DOING BETTER THAN ME

The International Day of Happiness website has a great downloadable resource containing 10 keys to happier living. Each key strategy has been inspired by the latest scientific happiness research and there are some excellent quotes.

The one that I recognised most from working with many different clients is “Don’t compare your insides with other people’s outsides”. This is easy to do.

I remember consulting at a very high-end corporate where everyone was incredibly polished and successful looking. One by one, they would come in and say, “Everyone else is doing okay, but I’m falling apart”.

The thing is, you can’t know what is going on inside someone else, especially if you only have their outside as your guide. Chances are, if you’re finding something difficult or challenging, other people are too. I’m talking work, parenting, studying, teaching, being single, being in a relationship …

WHAT WENT WELL?

One of the pioneers of positive psychology, Martin Seligman, outlines some quick and easy strategies that raise your wellbeing and lower your depression in his book, Flourish.

A simple exercise to do in the 10 minutes before you go to sleep every night is the ‘what-went-well’ exercise. Every night, you write down three things that went well and why they went well (e.g. I finished most of my important tasks today because I took time to plan in the morning or I didn’t yell at my partner this morning because I got up a little earlier and made sure I ate breakfast). This will greatly improve your mood over time.

ROOFLESS ROOMS

According to Sonja Lyubomirsky in The How of Happiness, up to 40 per cent of our happiness is within our power to change.

Being grateful, taking responsibility, blaming less, learning to forgive and yes, even practising random acts of kindness, all predictably increase our happiness.

Have a happy day and go well everyone!

———-

Dr. Christine Brown is an Inventiologist, Psychologist and Executive Coach.

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ENCORE: How Sidney Poitier changed cinema by demanding and deserving a difference

Posted on February 26, 2016 in Ethos, Industries, Social

Its time for the Oscars (Academy Awards) … again.

… and again, no Black (or Brown) nominees for any of the major awards. This is exactly what this commentary related last year. We can just publish an ENCORE of the same blog-commentary: Sir Sidney Poitier – ‘Breaking New Ground’. So here we go … again.

But last year’s blog was not just a commentary on the Oscars, but also a tribute to movie icon and Caribbean role model, Sidney Poitier. His accomplishments were remembered in contrast to the White-Out at the Oscars last year. His tribute is also appropriate for an ENCORE, especially as it was just announced that Sir Sidney Poitier is now being honored by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Fellowship Award, a sort of a Lifetime Achievement Award. This too is richly deserved.

Here is the announcement:

Title: How Sidney Poitier changed cinema by demanding and deserving a difference

By: Tim Stanley, The Telegraph | February 23, 2016 1:51 PM ET

In 1964, Sidney Poitier won an Oscar for his performance in Lillies of the Field. Ann Bancroft, presenting him the award, gave him a peck on the cheek. Racial conservatives were outraged. Interracial marriage was still widely outlawed and civil rights workers were being killed. Poitier’s Oscar was a symbol that things were changing. Even now, a lot remains the same.

Last week, the British Academy of Film and Television Arts granted Sidney Poitier its highest honour, the BAFTA Fellowship. It’s richly deserved — for many years, Poitier was black cinema. Yet his story began a long way from Hollywood. …

Read the entire article here: http://news.nationalpost.com/arts/movies/how-sidney-poitier-changed-cinema-by-demanding-and-deserving-a-difference

Here is the ENCORE of the Go Lean commentary …

Go Lean Commentary

Movies are an amazing business model. People give money to spend a couple of hours watching someone else’s creation and then leave the theater with nothing to show for the investment; except perhaps a different perspective. That is all!

But no one wants to live in a world without this art-form, without movies. Those few hours can entertain, engage and transform; sometimes even “break new ground” and change the world. So movies and movie stars can be extremely influential in modern society. This is the power of the arts, and this art-form in particular.

The book Go Lean…Caribbean stresses the arts as equally as it does the sciences, for empowering and transforming Caribbean society. While the Caribbean may not have any Nobel Prize winning scientist, we do have an Academy Award winning artist/actor, Sidney Poitier from the Bahamas. He has been able to capitalize on the influence of this art-form for over 65 years and pursued the Greater Good. So his accomplishments transcend the movie screen and impacts real-life.

For this accomplishment, he has been honored and knighted by British Monarch Queen Elizabeth II as a “Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE)”. We thusly refer to him now as Sir Sidney Poitier.

He has also received a similar accolade from the US President, the highest civilian honor: the Presidential Medal of Freedom*.

He has received many more honors and awards; see Appendix A for a sample list of Top Honors.

In focus for this commentary is his 1964 Oscar win for the 1963 movie Lilies of the Field. This was a big deal for Sir Sidney and the entire African Diaspora – people of color. Or as the BBC reported then: “he broke new ground”.

No new ground is being broken in Hollywood this year. The biggest stunner of the 2015 Academy Award nominations for films released in 2014 was that not a single actor of color or female director was included, sparking immediate criticism about Hollywood’s failure to include minorities in its most elite ranks. While this is a valid criticism, Hollywood may actually mirror society in general, where minority participation may be lacking in so many attendant functions – senior positions – of this business eco-system.

(Click on the Photo to Enlarge)

While there may be some catch-up that this industry must still make, there are times when the movie-business will “boldly go where no one has gone before”. The Sir Sidney 1964 break-through was one such moment.

With a date-of-birth of February 20, 1927 (age 88 on his next birthday), what does this screen legend do on his downtime? In addition to serving as patriarch of his family of 6 daughters and 6 granddaughters, he summons world leaders to him for consultation. (Sir Sidney serves as the Bahamas non-residential Ambassador to Japan). See this VIDEO here of his entertaining the Prime Minister of the Bahamas in a recent visit.

VIDEO – Downtime with Sir Sidney Poitier – http://youtu.be/xYv5QUT_zKI

Published on Jan 21, 2015 – In a special interview with ZNS News, legendary actor Sir Sidney Poitier challenged Bahamian political leaders to take the country to the next level.

The publishers of the book Go Lean…Caribbean recognizes the life contributions of Sir Sidney as an role model for excellence in the arts and also as an advocate of civil rights and social justice. He definitely demonstrates a love for his Caribbean (Bahamas) homeland and seeks to impact its development on the world scene. Though not a direct quotation, he has called for the elevation of Caribbean life and culture. This book serves as a roadmap for the introduction and implementation of the technocratic Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU) to help the region become a better place to live, work and play. There is a role for the arts (including film-making) in this empowerment roadmap.

Unlike the current dread of “Black and Brown” among the Oscar nominees, the Go Lean roadmap seeks to put Caribbean people in a place of better command-and-control of their circumstances, to develop the community ethos of assisting each other to advance in our own lives, in our individual communities and in the Caribbean as a whole. The book posits that a unified Caribbean Single Market of 42 million people and a GDP of $800 Billion can foster a “domestic” film industry, much like the formations of Bollywood in India (Page 346) and Nollywood in Nigeria. Deeper exploration of this amazing business model (movies/show-business) can create jobs and garner local returns from the necessary investments.

These previous blog/commentaries drilled deeper on this quest to better foster show-business; below are some examples:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=3641	‘We Built This City …’ on Music and Show-business
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=3568	Forging Change: Music Moves People
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=3292	Art Basel Miami – a Testament to the Spread of Culture
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=3078	Bill Cosby – Sir Sidney’s Frequent Co-Star – Accusations abound
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=2726	Caribbean Role Model for the Arts/Fashion – Oscar De La Renta: RIP
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=2415	How ‘The Lion King’ roared into history
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=1909	Role Model Berry Gordy – No Town Like Motown
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=1037	Humanities Advocate – Maya Angelou: RIP
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=866	Caribbean Music Man: Bob Marley – The legend lives on!

The quest is to elevate Caribbean society with many industrial developments, including the arts. This was stressed in the opening Declaration of Interdependence (Page 13) with this statement:

xxi. Whereas the preparation of our labor force can foster opportunities and dictate economic progress for current and future generations, the Federation must ensure that educational and job training opportunities are fully optimized for all residents of all member-states, with no partiality towards any gender or ethnic group. The Federation must recognize and facilitate excellence in many different fields of endeavor, including sciences, languages, arts, music and sports. This responsibility should be executed without incurring the risks of further human flight, as has been the past history.

This impact and overall benefit of this roadmap is pronounced in the CU‘s prime directives, identified with these 3 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 protect the resultant economic engines.
Improvement of Caribbean governance to support these engines.

The roadmap specifically encourages the region, to lean-in and foster the next generation of Sidney Poitier’s with these specific community ethos, strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies:

Community Ethos – Consequences of Choices Lie in the Future	Page 24
Community Ethos – Minority Equalization	Page 24
Community Ethos – Cooperatives	Page 25
Community Ethos – Ways to Foster Genius	Page 27
Community Ethos – Ways to Promote Intellectual Property	Page 31
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 – Celebrate the arts, people and culture of the Caribbean	Page 46
Tactical – Separation-of-Powers – Tourism and Film Promotion & Administration	Page 78
Implementation – Integration of Region in Single Market of 42 million people	Page 95
Anatomy of Advocacies – Ability to Change the World	Page 122
Planning – 10 Big Ideas – Caribbean Single Market	Page 127
Planning – Ways to Better Manage Image	Page 129
Advocacy – Ways to Improve Education – Foster Performing Arts	Page 159
Advocacy – Ways to Foster Cooperatives	Page 176
Advocacy – Ways to Impact Justice	Page 177
Advocacy – Ways to Impact Hollywood	Page 203
Advocacy – Ways to Preserve Caribbean Heritage	Page 222
Advocacy – Ways to Impact Youth	Page 225
Advocacy – Ways to Improve the Arts	Page 230
Appendix – A Summary of Bollywood Movies	Page 346

The Go Lean posits that the CU should foster the genius potential in Caribbean artists and incubate the related industries of show-business. The roadmap pronounces that with the participation of many advocates on many different paths for progress, the Caribbean can truly become a better place to live, work and play. We, along with the whole world, owe a debt to Sir Sidney for leading us along this path.

Yes, Hollywood must change and acknowledge more diversity; but this is out-of-scope for this roadmap. The Caribbean must change … to adapt to a changing world. This is within our scope. While no Caribbean member-state may be able to compete and excel alone, together and collaboratively, we can stand up proud and present the world the beautiful contributions of Caribbean people and art. 🙂

———

APPENDIX A – Sidney Poitier Honors & Awards

1958 British Academy Film Award for Best Foreign Actor for The Defiant Ones
1958 Silver Bear for Best Actor (8^th Berlin Film Festival) for The Defiant Ones^[39]
1963 Academy Award (Oscar) for Best Actor in a Leading Role for Lilies of the Field
1963 Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Drama for Lilies of the Field
1963 Silver Bear for Best Actor (13^th Berlin Film Festival) for Lilies of the Field ^[40]
1974 Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE)
1982 Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award ^[41]
1992 AFI Life Achievement Award
1995 Kennedy Center Honors
1997 Appointed non-resident Bahamian Ambassador to Japan
1999 SAG Life Achievement Award
2000 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special for The Simple Life of Noah Dearborn
2001 NAACP Image Award – Hall of Fame Award
2001 Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album – Rick Harris, John Runnette (producers) and Sidney Poitier for The Measure of a Man
2002 Honorary Oscar – “For his extraordinary performances and unique presence on the screen and for representing the industry with dignity, style and intelligence”
2009 Presidential Medal of Freedom^[42]
2011 Film Society of Lincoln Center Gala Tribute^[43] honoring his life and careers

——–

APPENDIX B – * Presidential Medal of Freedom

This award is bestowed by the President of the United States and is — along with the comparable Congressional Gold Medal, bestowed by an act of U.S. Congress—the highest civilian award of the United States. It recognizes those individuals who have made “an especially meritorious contribution to the security or national interests of the United States, world peace, cultural or other significant public or private endeavors”.^[3] (Source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presidential_Medal_of_Freedom)

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ENCORE: Concussion – The Movie; The Cause

Posted on December 28, 2015 in Economics, Ethos, Industries, Social

Nassau, Bahamas – This is a re-distribution of the blog-commentary published on August 31, 2015, now that the movie has been released on Christmas Day. The movie is in fact all that it purported to be.

Go Lean Commentary

“Are you ready for some football?” – Promotional song by Hank Williams, Jr. for Monday Night Football on ABC & ESPN networks for 22 years (1989 – 2011).

This iconic song (see Appendix) and catch-phrase is reflective of exactly how popular the National Football League (NFL) is in the US:

“They own an entire day of the week”.

So says the new movie ‘Concussions’, starring Will Smith, referring to the media domination of NFL Football on Sundays during the Autumn season. The movie’s script is along a line that resonates well in Hollywood’s Academy Award balloting: “David versus Goliath”; “a small man speaking truth to power”.

In the case of the NFL, it is not just about power, it is about money, prestige and protecting the status quo; the NFL is responsible for the livelihood of so many people. The book Go Lean … Caribbean recognized the importance of the NFL in the American lexicon of “live, work and play”; it featured a case study (Page 32) of the NFL and it’s collective bargaining successes (and failures) in 2011. An excerpt from the book is quoted as follows:

Football is big business in the US, $9 billion in revenue, and more than a business; emotions – civic pride, rivalries, and fanaticism – run high on both sides.

Previous Go Lean commentaries presents the socio-economic realities of much of the American football eco-system. Consider a sample here:

Socio-Economic Impact Analysis of [Football] Sports Stadiums

Watch the Super Bowl … Commercials

Levi’s® NFL Stadium: A Team Effort

Sports Role Model – College Football – Playing For Pride … And More

Sports Role Model – Turn On the SEC Network

Collegiate Sports in the Caribbean – Model of NCAA

10 Things We Want from the US: #10 – Sports Professionalism

10 Things We Don’t Want from the US: #10 – ‘Win At All Costs’ Ethos

While football plays a big role in American life, so do movies. Their role is more unique; they are able to change society. In a previous blog / commentary regarding Caribbean Diaspora member and Hollywood great, Sidney Poitier, it was declared that …

“Movies are an amazing business model. People give money to spend a couple of hours watching someone else’s creation and then leave the theater with nothing to show for the investment; except perhaps a different perspective”.

Yes, movies help us to glean a better view of ourselves … and our failings; and many times, show us a way-forward.

These descriptors actually describe the latest production from Hollywood icon Will Smith (the former Fresh Prince of Bel-Air). This movie, the film “Concussion”, in the following news article, relates the real life drama of one man, Dr. Bennet Omalu, a Nigerian-born medical doctor – a pathologist – who prepared autopsies of former players that suffered from football-related concussions. He did not buckle under the acute pressure to maintain the status quo, and now, he is celebrated for forging change in his adopted homeland. This one man made a difference. (The NFL is now credited for a Concussion awareness and prevention protocol so advanced that other levels of the sport – college, high schools and Youth – are being urged to emulate).

See news article here on the release of the movie:

Title: ‘Concussion’: 5 Take-a-ways From Will Smith’s New Film

Will Smith, 46, is definitely going to get a ton of Oscar buzz portraying Dr. Bennet Omalu in the new film “Concussion.” NFL columnist Peter King of Sports Illustrated got an exclusive first peek at the trailer and it has been widely shared on social media since. And it’s very chilling.

Here are five take-aways and background you need to know before checking out the clip:

1 – It’s Based on a True Story

Omalu is the forensic pathologist and neuropathologist who discovered chronic traumatic encephalopathy in football players who got hit in the head over and over again, according to the Washington Post.

In the clip, he says repetitive “head trauma chokes the brain.”

Omalu was one of the founding members of the Brain Injury Research Institute in 2002. He conducted the autopsy of Pittsburgh Steelers center Mike Webster, played by David Morse in the film, which led to this discovery.

2 – Smith’s Version of Omalu’s Accent Is Spot On

Omalu is from Nigeria and Smith has been known to transform completely for a role. He was nominated for an Oscar for 2011’s “Ali,” playing the legendary Muhammad Ali.

For comparison, here’s Omalu’s PBS interview from 2013.

3 – Smith Is a Reluctant Hero

“If you don’t speak for them, who will,” Gugu Mbatha-Raw, who plays Prema Mutiso in the film, tells Smith’s character.

He admits he idolized America growing up and “was the wrong person to have discovered this.”

4 – Alec Baldwin and Luke Wilson

“Concussion” brought in some heavyweights for this movie. Baldwin plays Dr. Julian Bailes, who advises Omalu, and Wilson, who will reportedly play NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, according to IMDB. There’s no official word on this. He’s seen at a podium in the trailer, but doesn’t speak.

5 – “Tell the Truth”

Smith captures Omalu’s passion to have the truth told about this injury and disease.

“I was afraid of letting Mike [Webster] down. I was afraid. I don’t know. I was afraid I was going to fail,” Omalu told PBS a couple years back.

———-

VIDEO Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3322364/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Will Smith stars in the incredible true David vs. Goliath story of Dr. Bennet Omalu, the brilliant forensic neuropathologist who made the first discovery of CTE, a football-related brain trauma, in a pro player.

The subject of concussions is serious – life and death. Just a few weeks ago (August 8), an NFL Hall-of-Fame inductee was honored for his play on the field during his 20-year professional career, but his family, his daughter in particular, is the one that made his acceptance / induction speech. He had died, in 2012; he committed suicide after apparently suffering from a brain disorder – chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a type of chronic brain damage that has also been found in other deceased former NFL players^[4] – sustained from his years of brutal head contacts in organized football in high school, college and in his NFL career. This player was Junior Seau.

Why would there be a need for “David versus Goliath”; “a small man speaking truth to power”? Is not the actuality of an acclaimed football player committing suicide in this manner – he shot himself in the chest so as to preserve his brain for research – telling enough to drive home the message for reform?

No. Hardly. As previously discussed, there is too much money at stake.

These stakes bring out the Crony-capitalism in American society.

The book Go Lean…Caribbean (and subsequent blog/commentaries) relates many examples of cronyism in the American eco-system. There is a lot of money at stake. Those who want to preserve the status quo or not invest in the required mitigations to remediate concussions will fight back against any Advocate promoting the Greater Good. The profit motive is powerful. There are doubters and those who want to spurn doubt. “Concussions in Football” is not the first issue these “actors” have promoted doubt on. The efforts to downplay concussion alarmists are from a familiar playbook, used previously by Climate Change deniers, Big Tobacco, Toxic Waste, Acid Rain, and other dangerous chemicals.

This Go Lean book serves as a roadmap for the introduction and implementation of the technocratic Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU). Sports are integral to the Go Lean/CU roadmap. While sports can be good and promote positives in society, even economically, the safety issues must be addressed upfront. This is a matter of community security. Thusly, the prime directives of the CU are described as:

Optimize the economic engines of the Caribbean to elevate the regional economy to grow to $800 Billion and create 2.2 million new jobs, including sports-related industries with a projection of 21,000 direct jobs at Fairgrounds and sports enterprises.
Establish a security apparatus to protect the people and economic engines.
Improvement of Caribbean governance to support these economic and security engines.

The CU/Go Lean sports mission is to harness the individual abilities of athletes to not just elevate their performance, but also to harness the economic impact for their communities. So modern sports endeavors cannot be analyzed without considering the impact on “dollars and cents” for stakeholders. This is a fact and should never be ignored. There is therefore the need to carefully assess and be on guard for crony-capitalistic influences entering the decision-making of sports stakeholders. The Go Lean book posits that with the emergence of new economic engines, “bad actors” will also emerge thereafter to exploit the opportunities, with good, bad and evil intent”. These points were pronounced early in the opening Declaration of Interdependence (Page 12 &14):

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 of criminology and penology to assuage continuous threats against public safety. …

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 interests 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.

xxxi. Whereas sports have been a source of great pride for the Caribbean region, the economic returns from these ventures have not been evenly distributed as in other societies. The Federation must therefore facilitate the eco-systems and vertical industries of sports as a business, recreation, national pastime and even sports tourism …

The Go Lean book envisions the CU – a confederation of the 30 member-states of the Caribbean chartered to do the heavy-lifting of empowering and elevating the Caribbean economy – as the landlord of many sports facilities (within the Self-Governing Entities design), and the regulator for inter-state sport federations. The book details the economic principles and community ethos to adopt, plus the executions of strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies to optimize sports enterprises in the Caribbean:

Community Ethos – Deferred Gratification	Page 21
Economic Principles – People Respond to Incentives in Predictable Ways	Page 21
Economic Principles – Economic Systems Influence Individual Choices / Incentives	Page 21
Economic Principles – The Consequences of Choices Lie in the Future	Page 21
Economic Principles – Job Multiplier	Page 22
Community Ethos – Security Principles – Whistleblower Protection	Page 23
Community Ethos – Security Principles – Light-Up the Dark Places	Page 23
Community Ethos – Security Principles – “Crap” Happens	Page 23
Community Ethos – Governing Principles – Lean Operations	Page 24
Community Ethos – Ways to Impact the Future	Page 26
Community Ethos – Ways to Promote Happiness – Mitigate Suicide Threats	Page 36
Community Ethos – Impact the Greater Good	Page 37
Strategy – Vision – Confederating 30 Member-States into a Single Market	Page 45
Strategy – Vision – Foster Local Economic Engines for Basic Needs	Page 45
Strategy – Mission – Prepare for Natural Disasters	Page 45
Strategic – Staffing – Sporting Events at Fairgrounds	Page 55
Strategy – Agents of Change – Climate Change	Page 57
Strategy – Agents of Change – Globalization	Page 57
Tactical – Confederating a Permanent Union	Page 63
Tactical – Fostering a Technocracy	Page 64
Tactical – Separation of Powers – Sports & Culture Administration	Page 81
Tactical – Separation of Powers – Fairgrounds Administration	Page 83
Tactical – Separation of Powers – Health Department – Disease Management	Page 86
Implementation – Assemble Regional Organs into a Single Market Economy	Page 96
Implementation – Steps to Implement Self-Governing Entities – Sports Stadia	Page 105
Implementation – Security Initiatives at Start-up – Unified Command & Control	Page 103
Implementation – Industrial Policy for CU Self Governing Entities	Page 103
Implementation – Ways to Deliver – Project Management/Accountabilities	Page 109
Anatomy of Advocacies – Examples of Individuals Who Made Impact	Page 122
Planning – Ways to Make the Caribbean Better	Page 131
Advocacy – Ways to Grow the Economy	Page 151
Advocacy – Ways to Create Jobs	Page 152
Advocacy – Ways to Improve Governance	Page 168
Advocacy – Ways to Better Manage the Social Contract	Page 170
Advocacy – Ways to Promote Fairgrounds	Page 192
Advocacy – Ways to Improve Emergency Management – Trauma Arts & Sciences	Page 196
Advocacy – Ways to Improve Sports	Page 229
Advocacy – Ways to Impact Urban Living – Sports Leagues	Page 234

The Go Lean book and accompanying blogs declare that the Caribbean needs to learn lessons from other communities, especially when big money is involved in pursuits like sports. These activities should be beneficial to health, not detrimental. So the admonition is to be “on guard” against the “cronies”; they will always try to sacrifice public policy – the Greater Good – for private gain: profit.

Let’s do better. Yes, the Caribbean can be better than the American experiences.

The design of Self-Governing Entities allow for greater protections from Crony-Capitalistic abuses. While this roadmap is committed to availing the economic opportunities of sports and accompanying infrastructure, as demonstrated in the foregoing movie trailer, sport teams and owners can be plutocratic “animals” in their greed. We must learn to mitigate plutocratic abuses. While an optimized eco-system is good, there is always the need for an Advocate, one person to step up, blow the whistle and transform society. The Go Lean roadmap encourages these role models.

Bravo Dr. Bennet Omalu. Thank you for this example … and for being a role model for all of the Caribbean.

RIP Junior Seau.

Now is the time for all of the Caribbean, the people and governing institutions, to lean-in for the empowerments described in the book Go Lean … Caribbean. This roadmap will result in more positive socio-economic changes throughout the region; it will make the Caribbean a better place to live, work and play. 🙂

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

——-

Appendix VIDEO: Hank Williams Jr. – Are You Ready for Some Football – https://youtu.be/K8LLKO0-PAE

Uploaded on May 28, 2011 – Official Music Video

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Arts, Crony-Capitalism, Model, Play, Power, Sports, Transform

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The Caribbean is Looking for Heroes … ‘to Return’

Posted on December 22, 2015 in Ethos, Planning, Social

Go Lean Commentary

In the Caribbean, we need a hero, we need lots of heroes …

… need a hero
I’m holding out for a hero ’til the end of the night
He’s gotta be strong
And he’s gotta be fast
And he’s gotta be fresh from the fight
I need a hero
I’m holding out for a hero ’til the morning light
He’s gotta be sure
And it’s gotta be soon
And he’s gotta be larger than life
(Song by Bonnie Tyler 1984; see VIDEO & Lyrics at https://youtu.be/OBwS66EBUcY; see Appendix)

We must reform and transform our Caribbean society. We know that one person – a hero – can make a difference, and we need to encourage those contributions.

Heroes are not born, they are forged. According to noted Mythologist Joseph Campbell, hero candidates go through a consistent pattern of a journey to become bona-fide heroes.

Who is Joseph Campbell and why does his opinion matter? He is the inspiration behind the big hit movie franchise Star Wars. All things Star Wars are en vogue right now. According to IMDB.com, this movie which opened just days ago – Star Wars Episode 7 “The Force Awakens”; (see Appendix) – had the biggest US box office opening of any movie … ever. See the box office results here in the photo, retrieved December 22, 2015.

This is an amazing feat, considering that Joseph Campbell has been dead since 1987. But Star Wars creator, George Lucas drew his story-line from Joseph Campbell’s inspirations in the cataloging of the “Hero’s Journey” in his writings. See article here:

Title: Role Model Joseph Campbell
In 1949 Joseph Campbell (1904-1987) made a big splash in the field of mythology with his book The Hero With a Thousand Faces. This book built on the pioneering work of German anthropologist Adolph Bastian (1826-1905), who first proposed the idea that myths from all over the world seem to be built from the same “elementary ideas.” Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung (1875-1961) named these elementary ideas “archetypes,” which he believed to be the building blocks not only of the unconscious mind, but of a collective unconscious. In other words, Jung believed that everyone in the world is born with the same basic subconscious model of what a “hero” is, or a “mentor” or a “quest,” and that’s why people who don’t even speak the same language can enjoy the same stories.

Jung developed his idea of archetypes mostly as a way of finding meaning within the dreams and visions of the mentally ill: if a person believes they are being followed by a giant apple pie, it’s difficult to make sense of how to help them. But if the giant apple pie can be understood to represent that person’s shadow, the embodiment of all their fears, then the psychotherapist can help guide them through that fear, just as Yoda guided Luke on Dagoba. If you think of a person as a computer and our bodies as “hardware,” language and culture seem to be the “software.” Deeper still, and apparently common to all homo sapians, is a sort of built-in “operating system” which interprets the world by sorting people, places, things and experiences into archetypes.

Campbell’s contribution was to take this idea of archetypes and use it to map out the common underlying structure behind religion and myth. He proposed this idea in The Hero With a Thousand Faces, which provides examples from cultures throughout history and all over the world. Campbell eloquently demonstrates that all stories are expressions of the same story-pattern, which he named the “Hero’s Journey,” or the “monomyth.” This sounds like a simple idea, but it suggests an incredible ramification, which Campbell summed up with his adage “All religions are true, but none are literal.” That is, he concluded that all religions are really containers for the same essential truth, and the trick is to avoid mistaking the wrappings for the diamond.

[Star Wars Creator George] Lucas had already written two drafts of Star Wars when he rediscovered Joseph Campbell’s The Hero With a Thousand Faces in 1975 (having read it years before in college). This blueprint for “The Hero’s Journey” gave Lucas the focus he needed to draw his sprawling imaginary universe into a single story.

Note that the Wachowski Brothers’ wonderful film The Matrix is carefully built on the same blueprint:

Campbell

Star Wars

The Matrix

I: Departure

The call to adventure Princess Leia’s message “Follow the white rabbit”

Refusal of the call Must help with the harvest Neo won’t climb out window

Supernatural aid Obi-wan rescues Luke from sandpeople Trinity extracts the “bug” from Neo

Crossing the first threshold Escaping Tatooine Neo is taken out of the Matrix for the first time

The belly of the whale Trash compactor Torture room

II: Initiation

The road of trials Lightsaber practice Sparring with Morpheus

The meeting with the goddess Princess Leia (wears white, in earlier scripts was a “sister” of a mystic order) The Oracle

Temptation away from the true path¹ Luke is tempted by the Dark Side Cypher (the failed messiah) is tempted by the world of comfortable illusions

Atonement with the Father Darth and Luke reconcile Neo rescues and comes to agree (that he’s The One) with his father-figure, Morpheus

Apotheosis (becoming god-like) Luke becomes a Jedi Neo becomes The One

The ultimate boon Death Star destroyed Humanity’s salvation now within reach

III: Return

Refusal of the return “Luke, come on!” Luke wants to stay to avenge Obi-Wan Neo fights agent instead of running

The magic flight Millennium Falcon “Jacking in”

Rescue from without Han saves Luke from Darth Trinity saves Neo from agents

Crossing the return threshold Millennium Falcon destroys pursuing TIE fighters Neo fights Agent Smith

Master of the two worlds Victory ceremony Neo’s declares victory over machines in final phone call

Freedom to live Rebellion is victorious over Empire Humans are victorious over machines

Source: Fan Site for Obscure Star Wars Inspirations; retrieved December 20, 2015 from: http://www.moongadget.com/origins/myth.html

But one can argue, these are just movies, “make believe”; these are not real people nor real life. That would be a true statement of facts (there is no “Luke Skywalker” nor “Neo” as historical characters), but the principles of a “Hero’s Journey” is real, and present in real life. This is just another example of “life imitating art”. In a previous blog-commentary regarding Caribbean Diaspora member and Hollywood great, Sidney Poitier, it was declared that …

“Movies are an amazing business model. People give money to spend a couple of hours watching someone else’s creation and then leave the theater with nothing to show for the investment; except perhaps a different perspective”.

These movies do bring a different perspective. According to the foregoing, there are Three Acts to the “Hero’s Journey”:

I. Departure
II. Initiation
III. Return

The publishers of the book Go Lean…Caribbean recognize the one person can make positive, heroic contributions to his community; and that this role must be forged in society. The book serves as a roadmap for the introduction and implementation of the Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU). The CU seeks to foster the genius qualifiers in Caribbean citizens. Not everyone can be heroes, but society must be structured to allow heroes to soar. Because …

… one man (or woman) can make a difference! Such a person can impact their community, country … and the whole world.

“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing” – Edmund Burke; 1729 – 1797; an Irish statesman, member of British Parliament and supporter of the American Revolution.

The Caribbean has fostered the hero process, but according to the Three Acts established by Joseph Campbell, our heroes stopped at Act II, they do not “Return”.

They make their heroic contributions to other communities and not their homeland. The Caribbean, thusly “fattens frogs for snakes”. Consider the bad consequences of this reality, as in our brain drain among the college-educated population, which is up to a 70% rate within the entire region.

A quest of the Go Lean/CU roadmap is to lower the “Push and Pull” factors that causes so many Caribbean citizens to flee their beloved homeland. In addition, another quest is to incentivize the far-flung Diaspora to return to the Caribbean. Success in these quests will take a “Hero’s Journey”.

The villain in this real-life story is the poor performing Caribbean economy. So the prime directive of the Go Lean book is to elevate Caribbean society, and its societal engines … defined in these declarative statements, as follows:

Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy and create 2.2 million new jobs.
Establishment of a security apparatus to protect the resultant societal engines again foreign and domestic threats.
Improvement Caribbean governance to support these engines.

The Go Lean book posits that one person, despite their field of endeavor, can make a difference in the Caribbean, and its impact on the world; that there are many opportunities where one advocate, one champion, one “hero” can elevate society. In this light, the book features 144 different advocacies, so there is inspiration for the “next hero” to emerge and excel right here at home in the Caribbean.

The roadmap specifically encourages the region to lean-in, to foster heroes and champions with these specific community ethos, strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies:

Community Ethos – Forging Change	Page 20
Community Ethos – People Respond to Incentives in Predictable Ways	Page 21
Community Ethos – Economic Systems Influence Individual Choices	Page 21
Community Ethos – Whistleblower Protection	Page 23
Community Ethos – Anti-Bullying and Mitigation	Page 23
Community Ethos – Minority Equalization	Page 24
Community Ethos – Ways to Foster Genius	Page 27
Community Ethos – Ways to Impact the Greater Good	Page 37
Strategy – Mission – Dissuade Societal Abandonment	Page 45
Strategy – Mission – Incentivize Repatriation	Page 45
Strategy – Mission – Protect Repatriates with heightened Public Safety	Page 45
Anatomy of Advocacies – Examples of Individuals Who Made Impact	Page 122
Planning – Ways to Make the Caribbean Better	Page 131
Advocacy – Ways to Improve Governance	Page 168
Advocacy – Ways to Better Manage the Social Contract	Page 170
Advocacy – Ways to Improve Leadership	Page 171
Advocacy – Ways to Impact Justice	Page 177
Advocacy – Ways to Remediate and Mitigate Crime	Page 178
Advocacy – Ways to Impact Hollywood – Global Box Office – Imitating Life	Page 203
Advocacy – Ways to Preserve Caribbean Heritage	Page 218
Advocacy – Ways to Improve the Arts	Page 230

The Caribbean region wants a more optimized society.

This book posits that “bad actors” – even villains: the “Dark Side of the Force” – will emerge to exploit inefficient economic, security and governing models. Early in the book, the pressing need to streamline protections – for citizens and institutions – was pronounced in the Declaration of Interdependence (Page 12), with these opening statements:

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.

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 … 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 explicitly acknowledges that optimizing society is not easy; it requires strenuous, heroic efforts; heavy-lifting. That is the quest of the CU/Go Lean roadmap. Other subjects related to heroic efforts of role models have been blogged in other Go Lean…Caribbean commentaries, as sampled here:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5964	Movie Review: ‘Tomorrowland’ – ‘Feed the right wolf’ in Society
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5648	Music Role Model Taylor Swift withholds Album from Apple Music
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5506	Role Model: Edward Snowden – One Person Making a Difference
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=3490	How One Entrepreneur Can Rally a Whole Community
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=2726	Caribbean Role Model – Oscar De La Renta – RIP
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=1731	Role Model Warren Buffet – An Ode to Omaha
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=1596	Book Review: ‘Prosper Where You Are Planted’
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=866	Role Model Bob Marley: The Legend Lives On!
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=209	Role Model: Advocate Kevin Connolly

The Go Lean roadmap posits that the CU should foster the genius potential in Caribbean citizens and incubate their potential to maximum production. We should let “heroes be heroes” in their fields of endeavor here at home, no matter how diverse. Many Caribbean Diaspora has done this exactly, abroad in benefiting other communities, while their homelands languish.

They have departed – Act I.
They have initiated as heroes – Act II.
But, they have NOT returned – no Act III.

Enough already!

The roadmap pronounces that we need the participation of many advocates on many different paths for progress. By facilitating, fostering and furthering these initiatives, we can have our heroes return to be heroic at home. Only then, will the Caribbean truly become a better place to live, work and play. 🙂

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

————

Appendix VIDEO – Bonnie Tyler – I Need a Hero (Lyrics) – https://youtu.be/OBwS66EBUcY

————

Appendix VIDEO – Star Wars: The Force Awakens Trailer (Official) – https://youtu.be/sGbxmsDFVnE

Published on Oct 19, 2015 – Watch the official trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens, [opened] in theaters December 18, 2015.

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ENCORE: Art Basel Miami – A Testament to the Spread of Culture

Posted on December 1, 2015 in Economics, Ethos, Social

Go Lean Commentary

This commentary – from December 9, 2014 – is hereby re-distributed on the occasion of the Art Basel Miami 2015. This year’s events are planned for December 3 – 6, with peripheral events starting from December 1.

Bienvenido a Miami!

———

There’s no business like ‘show business’. – Age Old Adage.

There is money in the ‘Arts’. – Go Lean…Caribbean precept.

And now, the subsequent news article posits: “the community rallies around art creating a unique energy. And art ‘dynamises’ the community, in a very unique way”.

The book Go Lean…Caribbean has a simple purpose: enable the Caribbean to be a better place to live, work and play. The book recognizes that the ‘genius qualifier’ is shown in different fields of endeavor, including the arts (fine, visual, performing, music, etc.). While the Go Lean roadmap has a focus on STEM^[1] fields, it is accepted that not everyone possesses STEM skills, and yet many others can still contribute to society. Then when these other skills/talents are “gifted” beyond the extraordinary, they can truly impact their community, and maybe even the world.

The book relates that the arts can have a positive influence on the Caribbean. And that one man, or woman, can make a difference in this quest. We want to foster the next generation of “stars” in the arts and other fields of endeavor.

According to the following news article, the arts can truly ‘dynamise’ the community. The article relates to Art Basel, the movement to stage art shows for Modern and Contemporary works, sited annually in Basel (Switzerland), Hong Kong and Miami Beach. The focus of this article is Miami Beach:

Title: 13th Art Basel Miami Beach (December 4 – 7, 2014), a testament to the spread of culture
By: Jane Wooldridge, and contributed Ricardo Mor

If “more” equals better, the 13th edition of Art Basel Miami Beach and the surrounding art week events may go down as the best ever. More new art fairs and just-to-see shows. More record-breaking sales at Art Basel Miami Beach. More CEOs — from watchmakers Hublot and Omega, luggage brand Rimowa, hotel companies Starwood and Marriott — opening luxury properties. And if not more — who can keep track? — then certainly plenty of celebrities, including actors Leonardo DiCaprio, James Marden and Owen Wilson; musicians Usher, Miley Cyrus, Russell Simmons and Joe Jonas; supermodel Heidi Klum and the world’s fastest man, Usain Bolt.

There was another kind of “more” as well — more spillovers, touch points and art for all manner of South Floridians, from entrepreneurs to pre-teen fashion designers, stretching from Pinecrest to Coconut Grove, Overtown to Fort Lauderdale.

If the aim is “to make art general,” as Knight Foundation President Alberto Ibargüen told attendees Monday at the foundation’s annual announcement of Knight Art Challenge awards, this year’s art week put South Florida well on its way. Proclaimed National Endowment for the Arts chairman Jane Chu on a whiplash art tour to downtown, Miami Beach and Opa-locka, “Art is entwined in Miami’s DNA.”

Even as the Pérez Art Museum Miami celebrated its first year anniversary, a new permanent museum building for the Institute for Contemporary Art Miami was announced for the Design District.

Overtown [historical Black neighborhood] hosted its first Art Africa fair of works created by artists from the African Diaspora. Joining it on the list of first-year events are an impressive exhibition of monumental works in the vast Mana-Miami Wynwood space on NW 23rd Street and Pinta, a fair focusing on Latin American art that moved from New York to Midtown.

The festivities reach far, far beyond the traditional art crowd. On the Mana campus, the Savannah College of Art and Design is presenting “i feel ya,” an exhibition that includes jumpsuits designed by André 3000 for Outkast’s reunion tour. The nearby ArtHaus tent is surrounded by food trucks and a sound program where Beethoven is definitely not on the playlist.

This year, more than a half-dozen student exhibits are on the art agenda. At FusionMIA, student photographs hang near works by masters Rashid Johnson and Al Loving; all were curated by Miami’s N’Namdi Contemporary gallery. A few blocks north, at Wynwood’s House of Art, a dozen students ages 5 to 15 from the DesignLab program showed off their creations at a Friday night “vernissage.”

Among them was 13-year-old Yael Bloom, wearing a flounced party dress she made from shrink wrap. No matter that the first-time event was a little-known spinoff. “Art Basel is pretty hard for adults to get into,” Bloom said. “For kids to get into it is very cool.”

As in years past, free events abound, from performances by Chinese artist Shen Wei at Miami-Dade College and artist Theo Jansen’s Strandbeest demonstrations on the sand to official Art Basel events, including films on the New World Center Wallcast and the Art Public sculptures in Collins Park. New is free Art Week shuttle service between Midtown and Miami Beach — a government cooperative effort — that dovetails with trolley service to art venues on both sides of Biscayne Bay.

In institutional quarters, Art Basel Miami Beach global sponsor UBS announced the creation of a $5 million loan fund for existing Florida small business owners. Sponsor BMW USA announced it would fund an “art journey” open to emerging artists exhibiting at Art Basel Miami Beach. And the City of Miami Beach and Miami-Dade County put out a call to artists, encouraging them to propose projects for the $4.33 million public art program associated with the Miami Beach Convention Center renovation. South Floridians are eligible to apply for all three initiatives.

Clearly, art week isn’t just about aesthetics, personal enrichment and community building. It is also about enterprise — which explains all those luxury CEOs, the ground-breaking of the Zaha Hadid-designed One Thousand Museum, and the announcement at Miami Ironside that designer Ron Arad will create the interiors for the revamped Watergate Hotel in Washington. (And no, there’s no real connection to Miami.)

Said Michael Spring, Miami-Dade’s cultural affairs director, “There’s a certain deepening, a realization not just that the Art Basel event but arts in general have a phenomenal effect on the image and economy of our entire region. We’ve talked about it before, but there seems to be more focus this year. It’s not an interesting footnote anymore; it’s the theme.”

That, says Miami Commissioner Keon Hardemon, was the thinking behind the city’s $50,000 grant supporting the Art Africa fair. “We need to encourage people to come now to Overtown. The cultural aspect helps them realize they can safely come here now. And then maybe they’ll come back later and spend money in the community, in our restaurants and stores,” he said.

In Miami, with commerce inevitably comes glamor, which is proving as glossy as ever. Hennessey V.S.O.P., Dom Perignon, Paper Magazine, Interview and B.E.T. have staged events all around town, at private “locations,” hotels, restaurants, the 1111 Lincoln Road garage and the ICA temporary space in the Moore Building. Developer Alan Faena threw a breezy beachside asado. Jeffrey Deitch, Tommy Hilfiger and V Magazine hosted a glitzy bash at the Raleigh featuring a performance by Miley Cyrus.

In the Design District, developer Craig Robins hosted a dinner honoring architect Peter Marino at a single, 142-yard candlelit table for 380 guests on a closed-off street amid the district’s luxury brand storefronts. Sculptor Jaume Plensa was the guest of honor at another long candlelit table — this one for 60 — in the Coconut Grove sales offices of Park Grove, which recently installed a series of his works along South Bayshore Drive.

Alas, once again, manners were not de rigueur among the glossy set. At some parties, guests of guests turned up with entirely uninvited guests. For other tony soirees, publicists emailed out “disinvitations” to previously invited guests, obliquely sending the message that someone more glamorous would be taking those seats.

Decorous or not, during art week, the energy all emanates from the week’s namesake fair, said Dennis Scholl, VP/Arts at the Knight Foundation. “The most important thing to remember is why this week exists, and that’s Art Basel in the Convention Center. If that wasn’t the core of what’s going on — if it weren’t a world-class event — nobody else would be interested in being involved. It continues to be the raison d’être of this week.”

In the Convention Center, at what Scholl called “the core of the nuclear reactor,” many gallerists were quite happy, thank you very much.

Veteran Art Basel Miami Beach gallerist Sean Kelly said Wednesday was his best first day ever at the fair. Newcomer Michael Jon Gallery also sold almost all of its available work — by rising stars like Sayre Gomez and JPW3 — on the first day.

For most dealers, sales remained lively, day after day. At Galerie Gmurzynska, co-CEO Mathias Rastorfer proclaimed it “successful indeed … . In terms of reception, it was an overwhelmingly enthusiastic response from collectors and colleagues alike. In terms of sales, we did several over $1 million sales and many within the $100,000 to $500,000 range, with a Picasso’s Venus and Love selling at near the asking price of $1.2 million.

Said Art Basel Director Marc Spiegler on Saturday, “I’ve gotten nothing but positive response from galleries,” not only because of strong sales, but also because new hours for VIPs gave gallerists more time to meet new collectors. “A lot of people were here and buying for the first time. Many galleries said they had their best fair ever.”

But like this week’s weather, the upbeat atmosphere suffered from uncharacteristic clouds. In Wynwood, a police car hit and critically injured a street artist. An $87,000 silver plate crafted by Pablo Picasso was reported stolen from the Art Miami satellite fair in Midtown. A partygoer at PAMM’s first anniversary fête on Thursday accidentally damaged an artwork installed on the floor. And Friday night, would-be art goers were stymied by traffic shutdowns into art-centric areas of Wynwood, Midtown and Miami Beach by protests against nationwide police-involved killings.

Though unfortunate and sometimes tragic, Spring said, the unrelated events were “a product of the incredible level of activity.” At Saturday’s annual brunch at the art-rich Sagamore Hotel in Miami Beach, the theft and damaged artwork uniformly were brushed off as inconsequential. Said one art insider, “s–t happens.”

Miami Art Week’s merry-go-round nature is surely born from Miami’s appreciation of a good time. And increasingly, perhaps from something deeper.

Said Miami gallerist Jumaane N’Namdi, “Art Basel has put art on everyone’s mind. Everyone wants to be involved somehow.”

And that’s not just about the parties, said N’Namdi, who had galleries in Chicago, New York and Detroit before opening in Miami. “I don’t think you could find a city that enjoys really looking at the art the way this city does. I came through the airport, and even the TSA guys were talking about it, asking each other if they got their Art Basel posters. Every level of art you want is here.”

Outsiders agree. “Miami is very special for its link between art and the community,” said Axelle de Buffévent, style director at champagne house Martell Mumm Perrier-Jouët. “It goes both ways. The community rallies around art creating a unique energy. And art dynamises the community, in a very unique way.”
Miami Herald – Daily Newspaper – (Posted December 6, 2014) –
http://www.miamiherald.com/entertainment/visual-arts/art-basel/article4313255.html

VIDEO: Art Basel Miami Beach 2014 – http://youtu.be/StkzLiBtDis

Published on Dec 4, 2014
The international art fair Art Basel returns to Miami Beach for its 13th edition, taking place at the Miami Beach Convention Center from December 4 to December 7, 2014. Art Basel Miami Beach 2014 features 267 leading international galleries from 31 countries across North and South America, Europe, Asia and Africa, which present artworks ranging from Modern masters to the latest contemporary art pieces. With this edition, the fair debuts Survey, a new sector dedicated to art-historical projects. In this video, we attend the Private View of Art Basel Miami Beach 2014 at the Miami Beach Convention Center on December 3.

This story aligns with the book Go Lean…Caribbean in stressing the economic impact of artistic endeavors. The book pledges that Caribbean society will be elevated by improving the eco-system to live, work and play; and that “play” covers vast areas of culture.

“Culture” has emerged as a central concept in anthropology, encompassing the range of human phenomena that cannot be directly attributed to genetic inheritance. Specifically, the term “culture” in North American anthropology has two meanings:

the evolved human capacity to classify and represent experiences with symbols, and to act imaginatively and creatively; and
the distinct ways that people, who live differently, classified and represented their experiences, and acted creatively.^[2]

Anthropologist Adamson Hoebel best describes culture as an integrated system of learned behavior patterns which are characteristic of the members of a society and which are not a result of biological inheritance.^[3]

The Go Lean book stresses economic benefits from classic cultural expressions and popular cultural productions, including Caribbean music, paintings/art, sketches, sculptures, books, fashion and food. All the “skilled phenomena” that makes Caribbean life unique and appealing.

The book Go Lean…Caribbean serves as a roadmap for the introduction and implementation of the technocratic Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU). There is a lot involved in this vision; the prime directives are stated as follows:

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 protect the resultant economic engines.
Improve Caribbean governance to support these engines.

The foregoing article relates the economic impact that the Greater Miami area is enjoying for hosting the Art Basel event, for the 13^th year now. At this point the benefits have spread throughout the community, (Art Fairs, museums, scholarships, foundations, etc.) not just one venue on Miami Beach. The spin-off benefit of art is a strong point of the Go Lean book, highlighting benefits as long as we keep the talent at home working in/for the community. This point is pronounced early in the following statements in the book’s opening Declaration of Interdependence (Page 14):

xxi. Whereas the preparation of our labor force can foster opportunities and dictate economic progress for current and future generations, the Federation must ensure that educational and job training opportunities are fully optimized for all residents of all member-states, with no partiality towards any gender or ethnic group. The Federation must recognize and facilitate excellence in many different fields of endeavor, including sciences, languages, arts, music and sports. This responsibility should be executed without incurring the risks of further human flight, as has been the past history.

xxxii. Whereas the cultural arts and music of the region are germane to the quality of Caribbean life, and the international appreciation of Caribbean life, the Federation must implement the support systems to teach, encourage, incentivize, monetize and promote the related industries for arts and music in domestic and foreign markets. These endeavors will make the Caribbean a better place to live, work and play.

The economic, cultural and image considerations for “show business” on a society have been well-detailed in these previous Go Lean blogs:

Caribbean Role Model – Oscar De La Renta – RIP

How ‘The Lion King’ roared into history

Forging Change – The Fun Theory

Role Model Berry Gordy – No Town Like Motown

Book Review: ‘Chasing Youth Culture and Getting It Right’

The Music, Art, Culture and Legend of Bob Marley lives on!

The Go Lean roadmap posits that change will come to the Caribbean “show business” (Visual and Performing Arts, Music, Film). This is due mostly to the convergence of a Single Market for the Caribbean region. If “size matters”, then the integration of 42 million people (plus the 10 million Diaspora and 80 million visitors) for the 30 member-states will create the consumer markets to promote and foster Caribbean artistic creations for their full appreciation. The first requirement in this goal is the community ethos of valuing intellectual property; to recognize that other people’s creations are valuable. (Then we can enforce on others to value and appreciate our creations).

This would truly be new for the Caribbean.

The CU is designed to do the heavy-lifting of organizing Caribbean society for the new world of art appreciation and “consumerization”. The following list details the ethos, strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies to foster regional artists and showcase their wares to the world stage:

Community Ethos – Forging Change	Page 20
Community Ethos – Lean Operations	Page 24
Community Ethos – Return on Investments	Page 24
Community Ethos – Ways to Foster Genius	Page 27
Community Ethos – Help Entrepreneurship	Page 28
Community Ethos – Promote Intellectual Property	Page 29
Strategy – Caribbean Vision: Single Market	Page 45
Separation of Powers – Central Bank – Electronic Payment Deployments	Page 73
Tactical – Separation of Powers – Patents – Copyrights	Page 78
Separation of Powers – Culture Administration	Page 81
Planning – Ways to Make the Caribbean Better	Page 131
Planning – Lessons Learned from New York City	Page 137
Advocacy – Ways to Grow the Economy	Page 151
Advocacy – Ways to Create Jobs	Page 152
Advocacy – Education – Performing Arts Schools	Page 159
Advocacy – Ways to Impact Hollywood	Page 203
Advocacy – Ways to Improve the Arts	Page 230
Advocacy – Ways to Promote Music	Page 231
Advocacy – Impact Urban Living – Art & Theaters	Page 234
Appendix – New York / Arts / Theater Jobs	Page 277
Appendix – Taos New Mexico Art Colony	Page 291
Appendix – Caribbean Music Genres	Page 347
Appendix – Protecting Music Copyrights	Page 351

There is BIG money in show business and in the world of the Arts. For the 10^th edition of Art Basel in Miami in 2011, there was a record number of fifty thousand collectors, artists, dealers, curators, critics and art enthusiasts – including 150 museum and institutions from across the globe – participating in the show.^[4]

This event requires a lot of community investments. Every year, Miami’s leading private collections – among them the Rubell Family Collection, Cisneros Fontanals Art Foundation, the De la Cruz Collection Contemporary Art Space, World Class Boxing, the Margulies Collection and the Dacra Collection – open their homes and warehouses to guests of Art Basel. Additionally, the museums of South Florida organize exhibitions including shows at the Miami Art Museum, Bass Museum of Art, Norton Museum, Wolfsonian-FIU and MOCA North Miami.

The community investment has been there for Miami, and so has the returns ^[5].For 2014, the attendance figures were 75,000, with an increase in hotel occupancy of 30,000 rooms on the days the Art Fair is in progress. The conservative estimates are that the Art Fair brings close to $13 million a year in economic impact to the region. (This figure does not include the purchases of artworks, some of which fetch millions of dollars).

The subject of the Miami Metropolitan area is very relevant for a Caribbean empowerment discussion. A previous blog asserted that Miami’s success, in many regards, is attributable to Caribbean’s failures. Many of our populations (including artists) have fled their homelands and have taken refuge in the Miami area. Where at first this disposition was begrudged, eventually it transformed to tolerance, but now it is even celebrated.

Miami has been greatly impacted by both the Caribbean Diaspora and its assimilation of the “Arts”. Whole neighborhoods have been elevated due to this strategy of catering to the arts; (see photo here). This is a great role model for the Caribbean to emulate; our whole society can be elevated.

The Go Lean/CU roadmap represents the empowerment for the Caribbean communities to elevate – we now want to keep our artists at home. The people, institutions and governance of the region are therefore urged to “lean-in” to this roadmap for change. 🙂

Download the book Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

——-

Appendix – Source References:

1. STEM = Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.

2. “What is culture?”. Bodylanguagecards.com. Retreived 2013-03-29.

3. Hoebel, Adamson (1966). Anthropology: Study of Man. McGraw-Hill.

4. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/03/arts/design/art-basel-miami-beach-review.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all

5. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/04/arts/international/art-fair-energizes-economy-of-region.html?_r=0

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Farewell to ‘Sábado Gigante’

Posted on September 14, 2015 in Ethos, Industries, Social

Go Lean Commentary

All good things come to an end!

As for the long-running Variety Show, ‘Sábado Gigante’, on the Spanish-language TV-network Univision, it is not “all good things”, its “Gigante” things.

Yes, the 53-year run is finally coming to an end.

This milestone deserves our consideration, as the Agents of Change for this iconic television show are the same factors identified as Agents of Change for Caribbean life in the book, Go Lean…Caribbean. They are identified as follows:

Technology
Globalization
Aging Diaspora

The Go Lean book serves as a roadmap for the introduction and implementation of the technocratic Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU). While this roadmap’s quest is economic empowerment, it clearly recognizes that music, dance and culture can play a key role in the elevation of any community. The Spanish-speaking Caribbean constitutes 59% of the population of the Caribbean region (see Appendix), and this community has loved ‘Sábado Gigante’, so this consideration is “muy importante”!

See the story here of the upcoming final broadcast of this Latin television mainstay:

Title: Farewell to “Sábado Gigante”
Miami, FL – September 14, 2015 – “Sábado Gigante” is a Spanish language TV phenomenon that has entertained audiences for decades, both in Latin America and here in the United States. This morning, Mo Rocca will show us:

If you like acrobats, animal acts, beautiful dancing girls, Zumba exhibitions, game show contests, talk show tears, and pretty much anything else under sun, “Sábado Gigante” is the show for you. It’s a variety show on steroids

“Sábado Gigante” (Spanish for Gigantic Saturday) airs every Saturday for three hours, and is watched by millions of people in the U.S. and in 40 countries around the world.

Fans wait in lines for hours in the Miami heat to be in the audience of this legendary broadcast. One woman drove four hours to attend. Big fan? “Yeah, we’ve been watching it since we were in diapers!” she laughed.

And the main reason for its gigante success? Don Francisco, the impresario, pitchman and ringleader of the “Sábado” circus. He’s been hosting the show for 53 years (that’s a world record).

In all that time, he’s missed only one Saturday, when his mother died in 1974. There’s never even been a rerun.

Rocca asked, “Who taught you to work so hard?”

“Maybe my father,” said Don Francisco, whose real name is Mario Luis Kreutzberger. He’s a 74-year-old Chilean-born son of refugees from Germany.

“They were German Jews,” he said. “And they fled during the Second World War, during the Holocaust, to Chile. Not because they choose Chile. That was the only option that they had.

“I was a kid in the middle of the war — even in my country, in Chile, half of the population, they were with the Germans. It was not easy to grow up in an environment like this.”

To make friends he’d have to be more like, well, a TV host. “I found an opportunity making jokes, doing shows for the school. And I was soon accepted by the majority.”

But after high school, he was sent by his father, a tailor, to New York City to learn the family trade. “I came in 1959. I was 19 years old. And I had only maybe 20 words in English.”

But it wasn’t the New York fashions that turned his head; it was that new-fangled contraption in his hotel room: The television. “When I put it on, I was amazed. That was a radio that you [were] able to see and to listen at the same time. That was my first contact with television. I said to myself, ‘My father’s wrong; I’m learning something that is before yesterday; this will be the future.'”

He returned to Chile determined, and in 1962 convinced a reluctant station manager to give him one hour of airtime on a Saturday. “Sábado Gigante” ran from 7:00 to 8:00. “Then he gave me from 6:00 to 8:00, 5:00 to 8:00, 4:00 to 8:00, 3:00 to 8:00, 2:00 to 8:00, 1:00 to 9:00. Eight hours, live, during 22 years,” Francisco said.

So, Rocca asked, “When did you go to the bathroom?”

“During the commercials. I was fast at that time, when I went to the bathroom!”

In 1986 Univision, the network that airs “Sábado Gigante,” moved the show’s production to Miami, the gateway to Latin America. And the show itself became a gateway to a mass Latin audience for future superstars like Shakira, Enrique Iglesias, even U.S. presidents — all of them courting an audience that’s muy importante.

This son of German immigrants may be the most recognizable face in all of Latin America. Just take a walk with Don Francisco through Miami’s Bayside Market, where he is mobbed by fans from many countries, and you’ll get a sense of how far his reach extends.

One woman from Cuba asked Francisco why he was leaving “Sábado Gigante.” He replied, “I’m getting old.”

“You are not old!” she retorted. “Don’t leave the program!”

“Sábado Gigante” is ending its run next Saturday. Over the last few seasons the show’s ratings with younger viewers have fallen precipitously.

Still, as Rocca found out as a recent guest on the program, it’s hard not to get caught up in the excitement of the loud, brash, flamboyant “Sábado Gigante”:

Rocca: “¡Cincuenta y tres años! Más que David Letterman. Más que Johnny Carson. Más que Jack Paar. ¡Usted es el rey de entretenimiento!”

Others have been called the King of Entertainment, but none has matched the reign of Don Francisco.

Source: Sunday Morning – CBS News Sunday Magazine; retrieved 09-14-2015 from: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/farewell-to-sabado-gigante/

———

Video Link: http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/the-historic-run-of-sabado-gigante-comes-to-an-end

(VIDEO plays best in Internet Explorer).

This show has never been a paid-program; it has always been on free broadcast TV; (notwithstanding cable/satellite subscribers paying for the utility). It has always been paid for by the advertisers.

But show-business has changed. Television has changed…

… most TV shows are available online; plus there is now time-shifted viewing (DVR) and on-demand platforms offering an alphabetical menu of shows.

This Internet-Communications-Technology (ICT) driven Agent of Change is what impacts ‘Sábado Gigante’, and what impacts the Caribbean. The changing TV landscape affects the Caribbean region as well, or at least it should. The CU roadmap has 3 prime directives:

Optimization of economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion and create 2.2 million new jobs.
Establishment of a security apparatus to protect the resultant economic engines and marshal against economic crimes.
Improvement of Caribbean governance to support these engines.

The ‘Sábado Gigante’ show has only had one host during its 53-year run. Don Francisco (Mario Luis Kreutzberger) is now 74 years old. Much of his audience has aged with him. This refers to the populations in Latin America and the Diaspora population residing in the US. The foregoing article refers to a definite declining youth dynamics of the show. The host has aged; the audience has aged; and there are less of them.

This is a bad formula for ad-supported television. The end has come, as advertisers seek a younger audience.

The CU/Go Lean roadmap recognizes the gravity of Latin music/entertainment to this region; and the dynamics of an emerging youth population. These demographics cannot be ignored by the planners of a new integrated Caribbean; (see Appendix).

The Go Lean book posits that while economics, security and governance are all important for the sustenance of Caribbean life, pursuits like art, culture, music, dance, and beauty are the reasons we want to live. “Work” is important in this roadmap, but so is “Play”. As we say farewell to ‘Sábado Gigante’, we also say farewell to Don Francisco. We salute him for a job – and life course – well done! We recognize him as a promoter of the arts, entrepreneur, industrialist and advocate for Latin culture. Don Francisco is hereby applauded as a role model that the rest of Latin America, the Caribbean, and the Diaspora community can emulate. He has provided a successful track record of forging change, overcoming incredible odds, managing crises to successful conclusions and paying forward to benefit the next generation.

In terms of the future, the Go Lean book asserts that there is plenty of talent in the Caribbean. The genius qualifiers of many Caribbean men and women are already heightened; and there is a built-in audience to consume the appreciation of this talent. The goal now is foster the local eco-system in the homeland so as to optimize the media industries ourselves; for us and by us. If we continue to fail at this endeavor, we would continue to be faced with this harsh reality: those with talent would have to flee the region to garner the business returns on their artistic investments. Thusly, this Go Lean economic empowerment roadmap strategizes to create a Single Media Market to leverage the value of broadcast rights for the entire region, utilizing all the advantages of cutting edge ICT offerings. The result: an audience of 42 million people across 30 member-states and 4 languages, facilitating television, cable, satellite and internet streaming wherever economically viable.

Early in the book, the benefits of media and technology empowerment is pronounced in the Declaration of Interdependence (Page 13 & 14), with these opening statements:

xiii. Whereas the preparation of our labor force can foster opportunities and dictate economic progress for current and future generations, the Federation must ensure that educational and job training opportunities are fully optimized for all residents of all member-states, with no partiality towards any gender or ethnic group. The Federation must recognize and facilitate excellence in many different fields of endeavor, including sciences, languages, arts, music and sports. This responsibility should be executed without incurring the risks of further human flight, as has been the past history.

xiv. 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.

xv. Whereas intellectual property can easily traverse national borders, the rights and privileges of intellectual property must be respected at home and abroad. The Federation must install protections to ensure that no abuse of these rights go with impunity, and to ensure that foreign authorities enforce the rights of the intellectual property registered in our region.

xxii. Whereas the heritage of our lands share the distinction of cultural tutelage from European and American imperialists that forged their tongues upon our consciousness, it is imperative to form a society that is neutral and tolerant of the mother tongue influences of our people to foster efficient and effective communications among our citizens.

xxxii. Whereas the cultural arts and music of the region are germane to the quality of Caribbean life, and the international appreciation of Caribbean life, the Federation must implement the support systems to teach, encourage, incentivize, monetize and promote the related industries for arts and music in domestic and foreign markets. These endeavors will make the Caribbean a better place to live, work and play.

The region has the eco-system of free broadcast television, and the infrastructure for internet streaming. So the issues being considered regarding the ‘Sábado Gigante’ finale have bearing in the execution of this roadmap.

The Go Lean roadmap was constructed with the community ethos in mind to forge change and build up the communities around the music/entertainment industry, plus the execution of related strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies to make the change permanent. The following is a sample of these specific details from the book:

Community Ethos – People Respond to Incentives in Predictable Ways	Page 21
Community Ethos – Return on Investments	Page 24
Community Ethos – Ways to Foster Genius – Abundance of Talent	Page 27
Community Ethos – Promote Intellectual Property	Page 29
Community Ethos – Ways to Promote Happiness – Appreciation of the Arts	Page 36
Community Ethos – Ways to Impact the Greater Good	Page 37
Strategic – Vision – Consolidating All Caribbean Region in to a Single Market	Page 45
Strategic – Staffing – Music/Sporting Events at Fairgrounds	Page 55
Strategy – Agents of Change – Technology	Page 57
Strategy – Agents of Change – Globalization	Page 57
Strategy – Agents of Change – Aging Diaspora	Page 57
Tactical – Fostering a Technocracy	Page 64
Tactical – Separation of Powers – Culture & Sports Administration	Page 81
Tactical – Separation of Powers – Fairgrounds Administration	Page 83
Implementation – Steps to Implement Self-Governing Entities (Fairgrounds)	Page 105
Implementation – Ways to Deliver	Page 109
Planning – 10 Big Ideas – #5 Four Languages in Unison / #8 Cyber Caribbean	Page 127
Planning – Ways to Make the Caribbean Better	Page 131
Advocacy – Ways to Grow the Economy	Page 151
Advocacy – Ways to Create Jobs	Page 152
Advocacy – Ways to Impact Events	Page 191
Advocacy – Ways to Promote Fairgrounds	Page 192
Advocacy – Ways to Foster Technology – Intellectual Property Protections	Page 197
Advocacy – Ways to Impact Hollywood – And the Media Industries	Page 203
Advocacy – Ways to Impact the Diaspora – Media Consumption	Page 217
Advocacy – Ways to Preserve Caribbean Heritage – Media Priorities	Page 218
Advocacy – Ways to Improve the Arts – Respect for Intellectual Property	Page 230
Advocacy – Ways to Promote Music	Page 231
Appendix – Caribbean Musical Genres – 169 in the 30 Member-States	Page 347

This commentary previously featured subjects related to developing the eco-systems of the music/entertainment business, as sampled here:

https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=6022	Music Role Model ‘Ya Tafari’ – Celebrating in the Diaspora
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=5648	Music Role Model Taylor Swift Wields Benevolent Influence
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=4019	Watch the Super Bowl … Commercials
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=3999	Breaking New Ground in the Changing Show-business Eco-System
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=3641	‘We Built This City on ‘ …Show-business
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=3568	Forging Change: Music Moves People
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=3244	Media Role Model – Broadcasting/Internet Streaming: espnW.
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=2171	Sports/Entertainment Role Model – Turn On the SEC Network
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=1092	Aereo – Model for the Future of TV Blending with the Internet
https://goleancaribbean.com/blog/?p=273	10 Things We Want from the US – # 9: Optimized Media Arts

Saturday September 19 will be the final broadcast of the show. ‘Sábado Gigante’ will be “Muy Mas Gigante”. According to the Music/Entertainment industry iconic magazine/e-Zine “Billboard”, major Latin music stars are confirmed for participation:

Title: ‘Sabado Gigante’ Final Episode: Shakira, Enrique Iglesias, Paulina Rubio, Daddy Yankee & More Stars Confirmed
The network confirmed to Billboard and The Hollywood Reporter exclusively that the lineup of talent for the finale includes global superstar Shakira, Spanish heartthrob Enrique Iglesias, Colombian rocker Juanes, Mexican pop diva Paulina Rubio, Italian pop singer Laura Pausini, Latin urban king Daddy Yankee, salsa icon Marc Anthony, regional Mexican acts Espinoza Paz and Intocable, pop balladeer Luis Fonsi, bachata idol Prince Royce and the original crossover queen, Gloria Estefan. Their participation will be a mix of live performances and other surprises, the details of which will be revealed by Univision in the coming days.

The Go Lean book focuses primarily on economic issues, but it recognizes that music, dance and culture (indicative of a Variety Show) can build up a community, nation and region. So the quest to re-build, re-boot and re-tool the Caribbean must include dance, music and variety entertainment. This is remindful of the following movie quotation from V for Vendetta (2005).

Hero Character named “V”: Would you… dance with me?
Evey Hammond (Female Lead Character): Now? On the eve of your revolution?
V: A revolution without dancing is a revolution not worth having!
(Source: V for Vendata 1 of 126 notable quotations).

The Go Lean roadmap describes the heavy-lifting activities for the many people, organizations and governments to accomplish this goal of elevating the Caribbean … through economics … and song-and-dance.

This goal is conceivable, believable and achievable. Yes, we can make the region a better place to live, work and play. 🙂

Download the book Go Lean … Caribbean – now!

——-

Appendix – Population of the Spanish-speaking Caribbean

Cuba*	11,236,444
Dominican Republic	9,523,209
Puerto Rico	3,994,259
Total Spanish Caribbean	24,753,912
All Caribbean Region	42,198,874
Percentile	58.66%

* While broadcast to Cuba may be blocked at present, the status quo of US-Cuban relations is changing daily.

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Arts, Diaspora, ICT, Model, Music, Play, Transform

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‘Concussions’ – The Movie; The Cause

Posted on August 31, 2015 in Economics, Ethos, Industries, Social

Go Lean Commentary

“Are you ready for some football?” – Promotional song by Hank Williams, Jr. for Monday Night Football on ABC & ESPN networks for 22 years (1989 – 2011). See Appendix below.

This iconic song (see Appendix) and catch-phrase is reflective of exactly how popular the National Football League (NFL) is in the US:

“They own an entire day of the week”.

Football is big business in the US, $9 billion in revenue, and more than a business; emotions – civic pride, rivalries, and fanaticism – run high on both sides.

Previous Go Lean commentaries presents the socio-economic realities of much of the American football eco-system. Consider a sample here:

Socio-Economic Impact Analysis of [Football] Sports Stadiums

Watch the Super Bowl … Commercials

Levi’s® NFL Stadium: A Team Effort

Sports Role Model – College Football – Playing For Pride … And More

Sports Role Model – Turn On the SEC Network

Collegiate Sports in the Caribbean – Model of NCAA

10 Things We Want from the US: #10 – Sports Professionalism

10 Things We Don’t Want from the US: #10 – ‘Win At All Costs’ Ethos

“Movies are an amazing business model. People give money to spend a couple of hours watching someone else’s creation and then leave the theater with nothing to show for the investment; except perhaps a different perspective”.

Yes, movies help us to glean a better view of ourselves … and our failings; and many times, show us a way-forward.

See news article here on the release of the movie:

Title: ‘Concussion’: 5 Take-a-ways From Will Smith’s New Film

Will Smith, 46, is definitely going to get a ton of Oscar buzz portraying Dr. Bennet Omalu in the new film “Concussion.” NFL columnist Peter King of Sports Illustrated got an exclusive first peek at the trailer and it has been widely shared on social media since. And it’s very chilling.

Here are five take-aways and background you need to know before checking out the clip:

1 – It’s Based on a True Story

Omalu is the forensic pathologist and neuropathologist who discovered chronic traumatic encephalopathy in football players who got hit in the head over and over again, according to the Washington Post.

In the clip, he says repetitive “head trauma chokes the brain.”

Omalu was one of the founding members of the Brain Injury Research Institute in 2002. He conducted the autopsy of Pittsburgh Steelers center Mike Webster, played by David Morse in the film, which led to this discovery.

2 – Smith’s Version of Omalu’s Accent Is Spot On

Omalu is from Nigeria and Smith has been known to transform completely for a role. He was nominated for an Oscar for 2011’s “Ali,” playing the legendary Muhammad Ali.

For comparison, here’s Omalu’s PBS interview from 2013.

3 – Smith Is a Reluctant Hero

“If you don’t speak for them, who will,” Gugu Mbatha-Raw, who plays Prema Mutiso in the film, tells Smith’s character.

He admits he idolized America growing up and “was the wrong person to have discovered this.”

4 – Alec Baldwin and Luke Wilson

“Concussion” brought in some heavyweights for this movie. Baldwin plays Dr. Julian Bailes, who advises Omalu, and Wilson, who will reportedly play NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, according to IMDB. There’s no official word on this. He’s seen at a podium in the trailer, but doesn’t speak.

5 – “Tell the Truth”

Smith captures Omalu’s passion to have the truth told about this injury and disease.

“I was afraid of letting Mike [Webster] down. I was afraid. I don’t know. I was afraid I was going to fail,” Omalu told PBS a couple years back.

———-

VIDEO Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3322364/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Will Smith stars in the incredible true David vs. Goliath story of Dr. Bennet Omalu, the brilliant forensic neuropathologist who made the first discovery of CTE, a football-related brain trauma, in a pro player.

No. Hardly. As previously discussed, there is too much money at stake.

These stakes bring out the Crony-capitalism in American society.

Optimize the economic engines of the Caribbean to elevate the regional economy to grow to $800 Billion and create 2.2 million new jobs, including sports-related industries with a projection of 21,000 direct jobs at Fairgrounds and sports enterprises.
Establish a security apparatus to protect the people and economic engines.
Improvement of Caribbean governance to support these economic and security engines.

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 of criminology and penology to assuage continuous threats against public safety. …

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 interests 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.

xxxi. Whereas sports have been a source of great pride for the Caribbean region, the economic returns from these ventures have not been evenly distributed as in other societies. The Federation must therefore facilitate the eco-systems and vertical industries of sports as a business, recreation, national pastime and even sports tourism …

The Go Lean book envisions the CU – a confederation of the 30 member-states of the Caribbean chartered to do the heavy-lifting of empowering and elevating the Caribbean economy – as the landlord of many sports facilities (within the Self-Governing Entities design), and the regulator for inter-state sport federations. The book details the economic principles and community ethos to adopt, plus the executions of strategies, tactics, implementations and advocacies to optimize sports enterprises in the Caribbean:

Community Ethos – Deferred Gratification	Page 21
Economic Principles – People Respond to Incentives in Predictable Ways	Page 21
Economic Principles – Economic Systems Influence Individual Choices / Incentives	Page 21
Economic Principles – The Consequences of Choices Lie in the Future	Page 21
Economic Principles – Job Multiplier	Page 22
Community Ethos – Security Principles – Whistleblower Protection	Page 23
Community Ethos – Security Principles – Light-Up the Dark Places	Page 23
Community Ethos – Security Principles – “Crap” Happens	Page 23
Community Ethos – Governing Principles – Lean Operations	Page 24
Community Ethos – Ways to Impact the Future	Page 26
Community Ethos – Ways to Promote Happiness – Mitigate Suicide Threats	Page 36
Community Ethos – Impact the Greater Good	Page 37
Strategy – Vision – Confederating 30 Member-States into a Single Market	Page 45
Strategy – Vision – Foster Local Economic Engines for Basic Needs	Page 45
Strategy – Mission – Prepare for Natural Disasters	Page 45
Strategic – Staffing – Sporting Events at Fairgrounds	Page 55
Strategy – Agents of Change – Climate Change	Page 57
Strategy – Agents of Change – Globalization	Page 57
Tactical – Confederating a Permanent Union	Page 63
Tactical – Fostering a Technocracy	Page 64
Tactical – Separation of Powers – Sports & Culture Administration	Page 81
Tactical – Separation of Powers – Fairgrounds Administration	Page 83
Tactical – Separation of Powers – Health Department – Disease Management	Page 86
Implementation – Assemble Regional Organs into a Single Market Economy	Page 96
Implementation – Steps to Implement Self-Governing Entities – Sports Stadia	Page 105
Implementation – Security Initiatives at Start-up – Unified Command & Control	Page 103
Implementation – Industrial Policy for CU Self Governing Entities	Page 103
Implementation – Ways to Deliver – Project Management/Accountabilities	Page 109
Anatomy of Advocacies – Examples of Individuals Who Made Impact	Page 122
Planning – Ways to Make the Caribbean Better	Page 131
Advocacy – Ways to Grow the Economy	Page 151
Advocacy – Ways to Create Jobs	Page 152
Advocacy – Ways to Improve Governance	Page 168
Advocacy – Ways to Better Manage the Social Contract	Page 170
Advocacy – Ways to Promote Fairgrounds	Page 192
Advocacy – Ways to Improve Emergency Management – Trauma Arts & Sciences	Page 196
Advocacy – Ways to Improve Sports	Page 229
Advocacy – Ways to Impact Urban Living – Sports Leagues	Page 234

Let’s do better. Yes, the Caribbean can be better than the American experiences.

Bravo Dr. Bennet Omalu. Thank you for this example … and for being a role model for all of the Caribbean.

RIP Junior Seau.

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

——-

Appendix VIDEO: Hank Williams Jr. – Are You Ready for Some Football – https://youtu.be/dKPZEMu7Mno

Uploaded on Jan 28, 2019 – Official Music Video

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Arts, Crony-Capitalism, Model, Play, Power, Sports, Transform

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1	Bob Dylan: Times They Are A-Changin’ – 1960’s Civil Rights Anthem
2	Hope for Haiti Now: A Global Benefit for Earthquake Relief – Telethon on Jan 22, 2010
3	“Sun City” – 1985 Anti-Apartheid Group Song and Album
4	Bob Marley and the Wailers: “Them Belly Full (But We Hungry)” – 1975 song
5	K’naan: “Wavin’ Flag” – 2010 Soccer World Cup anthem advocating rights for refugees
6	Live Aid – 1985 “simul”-concerts in London & Philadelphia for famine relief in Ethiopia
7	46664 Concerts – (Mandela’s Prison #) – 2003 advocacy against HIV/AIDS in South Africa
8	John Lennon: “Imagine” – 1971 iconic song for world peace
9	Tsunami Aid: Concert of Hope – 2004 Benefit for Indian Ocean Earthquake & Tsunami
10	The Concert for Bangladesh – 1971 Benefit for refugees from (then) East Pakistan
11	Live 8 – 2005 series of concerts in the G8 member-states for foreign aid to poorest countries
12	Patti Smith: “People Have the Power” – 1988 song condemning war and human rights abuses
13	Farm Aid – Annual concerts starting in 1985 advocating Family Farms
14	Marvin Gaye: “What’s Going On” – 1971 album against the Vietnam war, drugs and poverty
15	Concert in celebration of “It Takes Two” – 2014 effort tackling high teenage pregnancy in Uganda
16	Joni Mitchell: “Big Yellow Taxi” – 1970 hit song addresses environmental concerns
[17]	[“We Are the World” – 1985 super-group (most famous music artists) song by USA for Africa]

Tag: Arts

Title: How Sidney Poitier changed cinema by demanding and deserving a difference