Go Lean Commentary
“Do what you have always done…get what you always got”.
This Old Adage is consistent with so many other wise proverbs:
“A fool does the same thing over again and again expecting a different result”.
“One cannot get blood out of stone”.
“Whatever one sows, that will he also reap.” – Galatians 6:7
“Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.” – 2 Corinthians 9:6
Those last two are from the Bible. That reference source should give these proverbs, and this line of reasoning some validity and a claim to authority.
The book Go Lean … Caribbean – available to download for free – asserts a similar position, that the Caribbean is in crisis, due to a continuation of the same bad values, practices and vision. It is high time now for a new vision and new values.
“A crisis is a terrible thing to waste” – Go Lean book Page 8.
This crisis can be used to reform and transform the region.
This commentary in support of the Go Lean book is a milestone; this is blog-commentary # 500.
All of these previous commentaries and the underlying book posits that the Caribbean is in crisis; that the region of 42 million people in the 30 member-states is dysfunctional … to the point of flirting with Failed-State status. There is a need for reform.
Failed-States? How do we measure failure?
For one, our region has an atrocious societal abandonment rate, one of the worst in the world, according to the World Bank. Our failing brain drain rate is reported as 70 percent of our tertiary-educated citizens having fled the homeland for foreign shores; some lands report as high as 89%.
70% … this is no way to nation-build. Why did they leave? For “push and pull” reasons. This has been communicated to the governments and leaders of the region and yet still, the problem persists. They have not taken action to curb the problem. There is thusly, the need for a new vision…
VISION
The Go Lean book serves as a roadmap for the technocratic Caribbean Union Trade Federation (CU). The CU constitutes a new vision for the Caribbean; a confederation of the 30 member-states into a Single Market. This technocratic structure allows for the execution of the following prime directive:
- Optimization of the economic engines in order to grow the regional economy to $800 Billion & create 2.2 million new jobs.
- Establishment of a security apparatus to ensure public safety and protect the resultant economic engines.
- Improvement of Caribbean governance to support these engines.
This is a different vision than anything the Caribbean region has seen manifested before. But there was a previous dream of an integrated Caribbean entity, the ill-fated West Indies Federation of 1958 – 1962. That previous plan only considered the British colonies at that time. This new vision, the CU, is a roadmap for all regional neighbors, despite their colonial legacies. So the 30 member-states include all British, French, Dutch and American territories, plus the independent states (including Spanish-speaking.
The previous 499 blogs identified, qualified and proposed details of this new vision; see a sample as follows:
Why will this new vision succeed while the old plans failed? For one…
VALUES
… new values in particular.
These new values are presented in the Go Lean book as community ethos. This is defined as …
… the fundamental spirit of a culture; the underlying sentiment that informs the beliefs, customs, or practices of a society.
Unfortunately, the old community ethos were part-and-parcel of the societal defects in the Caribbean. Many members of the Diaspora left the region because they were “pushed” by the bad values. Now after assimilating the culture and values of the more advanced economy countries, they see the need to reform and transform their original homeland. Consider this example:
In a recent Facebook (FB) Survey, this one question was asked of the Diaspora and FB Friends in different Caribbean countries:
If an undocumented women is a victim of domestic violence, should she be offered protective services from the police and courts? Capturing 100 responses, the Yes/No answers were as follows:
- Diaspora: 100% Yes
- Bahamas: 60% Yes
- Jamaica: 85% Yes
- Barbados: 90% Yes
- Turks and Caicos Islands: 92% Yes
Consider this reality, civil and human rights should not be conditional on immigration status; right is right. The woman is a victim, in need of protection; this is the tenants of any “Social Contract“; defined as the implied covenant where citizens surrender some of their freedoms and submit to the authority of the State in exchange for protection of remaining natural and legal rights. – Go Lean book, Page 170.
This above drama depicts the need for new community ethos.
The previous 499 blogs identified, qualified and proposed details of new values the region needs to adapt; see a sample here:
The Go Lean…Caribbean book is a 370-page publication that presents the solutions for all of the Caribbean region, all the 4 language groups (Dutch, English, French and Spanish) by describing 144 different missions to elevate the economic, security and governing engines of the region. This is a serious answer to a serious crisis.
This book is published by a community development foundation made up of mostly Caribbean Diaspora. These ones left their beloved homeland, but didn’t leave their love for the homeland. They long to return! But not to the same lands they left; but rather they want the Caribbean to reform and transform.
For this goal, they are willing to devote their time, talents and treasuries. But they need help; they cannot do it all themselves. They need the other stakeholders (residents, governments, tourists and trading partners) to wake up and join this movement, this quest to elevate the Caribbean to a better place to live, work and play.
Wake Up … all you people.
Sounds familiar?
This was a familiar cry in the 1975 song – embedded here; (see the lyrics in the Appendix below). This song promotes a new vision and new values for society. See the AUDIO-VIDEO here:
AUDIO-VIDEO – Wake Up Everybody – Original Version (Teddy Pendergrass, Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes) – https://youtu.be/-TDfPgd3Kyc
Uploaded on Sep 23, 2011 – The original full-length song recorded in 1975. It’s a classic.
- Category: Music
- License: Standard YouTube License
- Music: “Wake Up Everybody” by Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes Listen ad-free with YouTube Red
The Caribbean Diaspora – living abroad in the US, Canada, the UK and Western Europe – were always taught that the Caribbean is the greatest address on the planet, and yet it was essential that they leave to forge their existence elsewhere. They left for “push and pull” reasons.
“Push and pull” is tied to vision and values.
Many of this Diaspora have endured, flourished and thrived in these foreign lands, but it is not home; they are still only alien residents. They need, want and deserve their homeland, but as a better destination, as a “New” Caribbean.
The Go Lean book assert that this quest – to make the Caribbean a better place to live, work and play – is conceivable, believable and achievable; providing that we bring the new vision and new values.
Wake Up …. everybody!
🙂
Download the book Go Lean … Caribbean – now!
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Appendix – Lyrics: Wake Up Everybody” by Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes
Wake up everybody no more sleepin’ in bed
No more backward thinkin’ time for thinkin’ ahead
The world has changed so very much
From what it used to be
There is so much hatred war an’ poverty
Wake up all the teachers time to teach a new way
Maybe then they’ll listen to whatcha have to say
‘Cause they’re the ones who’s coming up and the world is in their hands
When you teach the children teach em the very best you can
The world won’t get no better if we just let it be
The world won’t get no better we gotta change it yeah, just you and me
Wake up all the doctors make the ol’ people well
They’re the ones who suffer an’ who catch all the hell
But they don’t have so very long before the Judgment Day
So won’t cha make them happy before they pass away
Wake up all the builders time to build a new land
I know we can do it if we all lend a hand
The only thing we have to do is put it in our mind
Surely things will work out they do it every time
The world won’t get no better if we just let it be
The world won’t get no better we gotta change it yeah, just you and me
Change it yeah, change it yeah, just you and me
Change it yeah, change it yeah
Can’t do it alone, need some help y’all
Can’t do it alone
Can’t do it alone yeah, yeah
Wake up everybody, wake up everybody
Need a little help y’all
Need a little help
Need some help y’all
Change the world
What it used to be
Can’t do it alone, need some help
Wake up everybody
Get up , get up, get up, get up
Wake up, come on, come on
Wake up everybody
Songwriters: Jonathan Howsman Davis, James Christian Shaffer, David Randall Silveria, Reginald Arvizu, Brian Welch
Source: Retrieved November 2, 2016 from: http://www.metrolyrics.com/wake-up-everybody-lyrics-harold-melvin-the-blue-notes.html