CNBC Global CFO Survey-China Poised to Grow and U.S. is Missing Essential Competitive Opportunities

CFO survey indicates that China's economy is likely to increase and rebound faster than the U.S. The U.S. has some ability to start investing in their networks, advanced manufacturing, investment aspects of their cities, and align education to industry to maximize growth and prepare the speeding up of the Information Age. As of yet we haven't been able to get all of the stakeholders to start thinking beyond protecting the U.S. from decline to putting in place strategies that will lead to higher levels of growth that could outstrip that of China's. Our physical manufacturing infrastructure is there but decaying and in need of improvement to reduce business costs. At the same time, we have the basics for an advanced data driven economy but haven't fully pushed it with the type of policy and investments we need to launch ourselves back into competitive stance once COVID ends. There are opportunities to solve multiple problems on multiple fronts but often we think in the box which leads to a stable slow decline. 

$908 Billion COVID-19 Bill-Can We Do More?

The proposal is offered as a bi-partisan initiative to shore up funding support for a prolonged pandemic fall out. The package appears to be designed to be a slimmed down version to gain the support needed to get it passed. We are running out of time before previous packages are coming to a close and a new package would be needed if we are going to take an approach to propping the economy.

We may want to consider a second package focused on building competitive capacity.

What I do see in the information available is that it appears to be a couple of different facets to this basic plan that includes developing some infrastructure capacity, relief to individuals, and business liquidity.  Democrats and Republicans don't appear to get exactly what they want but could possible accept as a compromise.

The package appears to be about helping the economy stay a float and minimize hardship to small business and people. I'm not seeing the package as a method of advancing the economy. There are some components to transportation and Internet access. Appears to be main street and small business focused. 

What I would like to see would be a second package focused more on building our competitive capacity which will pay a return on those investments over the next few decades. Such a package would move more into developing businesses, improving the international investment climate of cities, pushing innovation climate, developing our data and export infrastructure, as well as improving human capital through university-industry partnerships. 

$908 billion proposal includes.... 

$288 billion in small business aid Paycheck Protection Program loans,
$160 billion in state/local government relief,
$180 billion to fund a $300 per week supplemental unemployment benefit lasting until March,
$16 billion into vaccine distribution, testing and contact tracing, funnel
$82 billion into education, $45 Billion Transportation.
$35 billion Healthcare provider relief fund:
$82 billion Education
$4 billion Student loans
$25 billion Housing assistance
$26 billion Nutrition/Agriculture
$10 billion U.S. Postal Service
$10 billion Child care
$10 billion Broadband
$5 billion Opioid treatment

You can take a look HERE at the list.

Pictures of Shelter Island

 Pictures of Shelter Island on coffee run! Get that speed walk in and experience the coastline.

Monolith Found in Utah Desert-Have the Aliens Landed?

Ok a weird monolith was found in Utah. Apparently, not from aliens but from inventive and motivated artist. Kind of cool. 

A couple of funny comments people posted....😂

"It wouldn't be the first time Amazon delivered a monolith to the wrong address."

Oh man, now I should travel to Utah, spend a ton of money, just to see this. Wait a minute...is this a travel ad?

Alien Captain to subordinate crew member: "Did you remember to load the field latrine back on the ship before we left that planet?"

That's the 5 G everyone's talking about. ET can now call home.

History of Polo and the Thrill of the Game!

"The Georgians playing Polo in the Kingdom of Imereti" 

Teramo Castelli, 1640.

The thunder of horses, a sharp SMACK, and the ball goes flying. In the haze of horses chasing a ball it may seem like a cacophony of action, but to a polo player they know exactly what their niche is. Each player was assigned a position with their own role in winning the game for the team, each with the reliance upon the other.

This was the original use of polo by it’s first players, the nomadic tribes of Iran in the 6th century BC, to train cavalrymen and it had spread east and west throughout the world since. There have been records of games played in the past with players numbering up to a hundred horsemen on either side. With so many moving parts, it will take the full attention of the rider, to perceive and be aware of his surroundings and simultaneously attempt to fulfill their role.

It is not a surprise that polo has such a strong continuity. Figures ranging from Saladin, to Emperor Basil the 1st practiced the sport as it found strong ground amongst the upper classes. In the middle ages it could be said the sport spanned from Japan to Constantinople. It would take a long while until it would begin to spread to the west.

The English were the first amongst their western compatriots, adopting polo during their Victorian years. It was in the British Raj that the first English polo clubs began to formulate, such as the Calcutta polo club. By the 1860s, the sport had definitely spread back to Britain; polo clubs would begin to form in mass after official rules were certified. For the British this was in 1874 by it’s governing body, the Herlingham polo association.

From there polo would spread the globe as the “sport of kings”!

Escanaba Polo Mallet Company builds high quality one of a kind polo mallets. This article was written by a young college student. Very nice. We give away much of our profits to charitable causes as they relate to child enrichment, horses, and other worthy causes. https://www.escanabapolomallet.com/

Michigan Board of State Canvassers Certification Meeting

 This should be interesting. Just watching now....so I'm curious on how this is going to turn out and its significance for the general election. 

A Need for Michigan Hate Crime Reform: Opportunities for Republican and Democrat Bi-Partisanship?

Race and disparity have been elevated onto a national platform with protests and civil unrest making headlines. Like other states, Michigan wrestles with how to navigate race, ethnic and religious based criminal acts. From attempts to abduct a sitting governor to local harassment we are stumped by profound questions of what hate means in a country that seeks to position itself at the center of global supply chains. Far Right and Far Left groups have defined the conversation on race and difference in American society while ignoring the practical middle. Taking steps to ensure that discrimination in all its forms is not holding the State of Michigan and the country back requires a level of political bi-partisanship that couldn't come at a better time to restore trust in our system.

Intro of Problem

Rise in radicalism is encouraging some aggressive personalities to commit hate crimes in an effort to mitigate some of their own empty feelings. Without cracking down on radical hate groups we may see a rise in the acceptance of aggressive behavior in other areas of society through mimicking and social learning. Polarization of our social life is creating mammoth divisions that will continue to rear their head into the future unless we are ready to accept change. The consequences low institutional trust, way of live, and our economic health rest on us grasping and overcoming large problems like this. 

Current Michigan (& Federal) Law

We can look a current laws and make a determination if they are adequate. This law seems to help define other laws in context to hate (i.e. harassment law Act 328 of 1931). Other effective laws might need to be reviewed. We may want to look at a penal code directly addressing hate. You can find here THE MICHIGAN PENAL CODE (EXCERPT) Act 328 of 1931

750.147b Ethnic intimidation.

Sec. 147b.

  (1) A person is guilty of ethnic intimidation if that person maliciously, and with specific intent to intimidate or harass another person because of that person's race, color, religion, gender, or national origin, does any of the following:

  (a) Causes physical contact with another person.

  (b) Damages, destroys, or defaces any real or personal property of another person.

  (c) Threatens, by word or act, to do an act described in subdivision (a) or (b), if there is reasonable cause to believe that an act described in subdivision (a) or (b) will occur.

  (2) Ethnic intimidation is a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than 2 years, or by a fine of not more than $5,000.00, or both.

  (3) Regardless of the existence or outcome of any criminal prosecution, a person who suffers injury to his or her person or damage to his or her property as a result of ethnic intimidation may bring a civil cause of action against the person who commits the offense to secure an injunction, actual damages, including damages for emotional distress, or other appropriate relief. A plaintiff who prevails in a civil action brought pursuant to this section may recover both of the following:

  (a) Damages in the amount of 3 times the actual damages described in this subsection or $2,000.00, whichever is greater.

  (b) Reasonable attorney fees and costs.

Are the Laws Currently Working? 

Yes and no! Under "pristine" conditions they are effective enough to handle the more obvious cases but struggle to grasp the other forms of hate beyond physical aggression. Rewriting the laws to better ensure they more accurately reflect the realities of hate across a wider spectrum of social life. If we only focus on a small category of hate we fail to understand its full scope of the problem that is fueling unrest. People who find themselves on the receiving end are often confused on how such behaviors have become the norm in society and may ponder what the next step in human rights development may lay.

Making changes will allow us to move closer to what is called a universal justice system that is needed in a modern world of global markets with diverse participants. Our Manifest Destiny cannot be completed in so long as we grasp old worn out paradigms that hinder the development and reconciliation of our own people. Beyond the economic advantages of eradicating the wet blanket bigotry/racism have on GDP is to also fulfill the mission of our parents, grand parents and forefathers/mothers  had when got off the boat fleeing religious suppression.

When I review the Penal code above I see it focuses primarily on physical aggression which limits is application to non-physical aspects of hate. I'm not an attorney so I'm trying to understand for my interest and others may believe or not believe as they see fit.   You can see this "physicality" intention in the document such as, "Damages, destroys, or defaces any real or personal property of another person".  Yet this "physicality" may be limiting the law's application and effectiveness. 

According to a 2005 study from the Department of Justice there isn't a uniform definition of how and when to prosecute hate crimes (Shively, 2005). This means there are going to be varied responses from state to state and possibly department to department when prosecutors try and determine whether a hate crime has been committed. Some of the legal trends are to expand the definition of hate behavior by increasing penalties, expanding the scope of hate based behaviors, and better statistical reporting. 

The wording of the law limits its capacity in encouraging justice so that the population is free to pursue their own health and development. The essential goal of the basic philosophy of the founders of our country is belief in the ability of people to make choices that lead to the enhancement of themselves and a political/economic structure that supports that individualization. Change is central to any adapting system and if the U.S. is still rooted in same idealistic belief when it started we don't want to miss this opportunity to adjust closer to that end.

Is There a Cost to Bigotry and Inaction?

There is a cost to bigotry in today's society. It doesn't show up on the surface but lays just behind the belief in fair treatment that fosters belief, action and output our country now needs in our competition with China and declining world influence. Treating people as though they are different, or less worthy, in society lowers the national performance and runs counter to basic American principles. Modern societies need a modern legal understanding on how to deal with race, religion and other differences that enhances (not hinders) human performance.

There are serious costs to our economy for not standing up in favor of freedom. According to a Citigroup Study The economy has lost 16 Trillion dollars (approximately 1/20 GDP) over 20 years because of discrimination against Blacks (Peterson & Mann, 2020). It also states that there could be a $5 Trillion boost if we do not discriminate against Blacks over the next 5 years. The report doesn't discuss discrimination against other groups that would likely raise this number substantially. 

Eradicating racism and bigotry in all of its forms might have a much larger economic impact through stronger connections between working and the fruits of that labor (i.e. $30 trillion potential). I haven't seen a number out there but I'm sure there are some projections. If true we would be loosing at least 10% of our productive capacity as a direct result of discrimination and poor policies. That number likely doesn't include the major impact on the economy of not connecting performance to rewards/earnings that underpin effective capitalistic systems.

Discrimination against Blacks is a glaring example of how quickly we willing to judge others on superficial and natural variations. However, there are other groups that may have similar experiences that range from small slights and/or financial targeting all the way over to coordinated aggression . When envisioning future justice we may want to ensure that the the implied meaning of discrimination moves beyond any specific type/group of person/people to ensure relevance multidimensionality that can encompasses the different types of people in our diverse nation. 

Hate and Brain Science?

Hate is like a disease in that it derails rational thought and steals the power of empathy from people. Hate activates the pre-fontal cortex and requires a level of reasoning and rumination that make it particularly dangerous and destructive (Kiger, 2011). When a perpetrator sees (or thinks) about the target their pre-frontal cortex activates and it creates overwhelming feelings of aggression and a need for action (fight and flight). Individuals in an aroused state (process 1: fight or flight) may not be able to think clearly until a more distant state (process 2: rational thought).

Because hate is associated with a distorted image of others it often ends up being justified in the perpetrators head. There is projection of internal emotional distortion onto an incorrect image of other people often leading to one or another form of aggression. Without adjusting our laws we are not accurately reflecting the nature of hate and how it functions within the brain. While physical assault may be prosecuted as a hate crime it appears fairly powerless to deal with the broader conditioning and exhibited behaviors of hate.

 What Happens When We Don't Hold Hate Crimes Accountable?

Trust in our government and its legal infrastructure declines when racism/ bigotry are seen as inherent and widespread but not addressed seriously. As a result of trust declining in our institutions we may also experience increased partisanship and radicalism as the central beliefs that hold us together as a nation are pushed aside. You can see the pillars of society eroding when people begin to cannibalize their own society instead of relying on these institutions to help uphold central American values.

The Pew Research center published a large survey indicating that over the last 20 years trust in others and government has been on the decline. They further indicate that 75% believe that trust in government is declining while another 64% indicate trust in each other is declining (Lee, R. & Perrin, A., 2019). The reasons they cite is corruption, corporations, discrimination, poor management, etc... The good news is that 84% believe we can turn around the distrust of government and 86% believe we can improve distrust in each other if we focus on handling problems in our communities. 

Being a victim of hate crimes is horrific enough but when these crimes happen with particular callousness and the perpetrators are not held to account it furthers those divisions in society. We are not necessarily talking so much about an individual account but series of accounts experienced by a broad section of society. We have the opportunity to understand hate better and use science to guide our legislative practices to align our laws to long term goals that are in the benefit of ALL society. Without evidence based management practices as central to our decisions the loudest voices in the room often lead us down the path of national decline and increased partisan conflict.

How Can a Research Approach the Situation?

If someone were to conduct research into the wording of Michigan hate laws they may want to conduct a review of other successful/unsuccessful legal practices. With any study you will want to grasp current understanding by reviewing as many different sources as possible that relate to this law, how the language impacts its effectiveness and current societal trends to understand how new laws should be applied.

1.) Conduct background/literature search to understand current scientific theories.

2.) Review and categorize the differences.

3.) See what information is available on crime statistics, prosecution rates, state demographics, etc...(whatever seems relevant) and see if any of the information leads to some type of insight into the success or failure of "opening" up the hate crime definition. 

4.) Consider from that search and analysis the best terms to include for effective prosecution of hate crimes. 

5.) Check with leaders of different backgrounds to better assess concerns about adjustments.

6.) Look at the long term economic, social and strategic objectives of the nation and ensure making changes puts us in a stronger place. 

7.) Create proper metrics that raise validity of hate crime statistics. 

We have the Michigan Department of Civil  that investigates hate based crimes.

The FBI also has statistics on Michigan hate crimes.

Resources: 

Federal Bureau of Investigation. (1999). Hate Crime Data Collection Guidelines. 

U.S. Government (2012). https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2011-title18/html/USCODE-2011-title18-partI-chap13-sec249.htm

American Psychological Association (n.d.) The Psychology of Hate Crimes

para 1. Retrieved 11-19-20 https://www.apa.org/advocacy/interpersonal-violence/hate-crimes

Patrick J. Kiger "How Hate Works" 16 May 2011. HowStuffWorks.com. <https://science.howstuffworks.com/life/hate.htm> 18 November 2020

Lee, R. & Perrin, A. (July 22, 2019). Key findings about Americans’ declining trust in government and each other. Pew Research Center. Retrieved November 18, 2020 https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/07/22/key-findings-about-americans-declining-trust-in-government-and-each-other/

Shively, M. (2005). Study of Literature and Legislation on Hate Crime in America (Document No. 210300). U.S. Department of Justice. Retrieved November 21st, 2020 https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/210300.pdf