#have their own military. so they fostered their media sector instead

[mekatrio]

damn what a coincidence i was literally just researching lolicon phenomenon this week and now theres a kpop controversy abt it

[riichardwilson]

Building Reputation and Relationships When We Can’t Be Face-to-Face

May 15, 2020 8 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Chemistry. Charisma. Character. Collaboration. So much of what builds personal brands and reputations focuses on human connection and interaction. But how can we maintain relationships when we’re apart?

The coronavirus pandemic hit us all, in every corner of the world, in real and unexpected ways. Previously, we built engagement with others through eye contact, image, conversation and relationship. Now we find ourselves isolated and conversing with our cats, dogs and children instead of prospective clients, networking contacts, students, audiences and co-workers.

Building or maintaining reputation without in-person interaction

Today, it is still critical to be concerned with our reputation and brand as we navigate the new normal. These six tips can help.

1. Virtual meetings. We are all undoubtedly familiar with the virtual meeting tools available today. Are you using them? Seeing a human face gives us an additional layer of connectedness over a phone call or email. We get to see the person’s eyes and get a glimpse of their environment. We can read tonality in their voice differently than without these visual cues. I’ve recommended to my clients that have remote teams that they do a daily “stand up” check-in by video. Each morning, they do a quick group meeting to facilitate conversation and engagement as they discuss what they’re working on, call out any roadblocks they’re facing and focus on goals for the day. This keeps continuity in the team and ensures everyone feels supported. I’ve heard of groups doing virtual coffee meetings, virtual happy hours and more. We can’t forget the power of a smiling face, even if we can’t physically be in the same room.

For virtual meetings, ensure your video presence represents your presence accurately. Will you take the video call from a bedroom, garage, kitchen table or home office? Check the background of your environment — not to sterilize and depersonalize it, but rather to ensure there is nothing inappropriate or distracting. One case I heard of involves a sales professional who began taking video calls with international clients and forgot to remove several pinup posters in the background. He was speaking with a very conservative client and the client was disturbed by the posters in the background. Another IT specialist did video calls with a client in a bikini top, as she was grounded at her beach house. These are simple steps you can take to ensure your visual reputation is intact.

Related: 9 Ways COVID-19 Is Like Running a Marathon

2. Voice calls. Similarly, if given the option of an email or a phone call, try calling. It’s likely the person you’re attempting to reach is at home, maybe at their desk or managing their children’s schoolwork (if they are suddenly home schooling). A phone call — even a short one — gives us human connection. Warmth, compassion and empathy can be communicated differently on a call than an email.

3. Social media. The online space offers us a compelling place to gather, albeit not in person. The flow of information and insight is constant and global. While it will never replace in person human interaction, social media offers some unique ways we can leverage our strengths, help others and come together as a global community.

Related: When Your Business Runs Out of Your Home, How Do You Restore Work-Life Balance?

4. Share your resources. Do you have skills, talents, experience or work you can share online? There’s a mathematics professor in California offering to tutor college students online for free. A musician in Nashville offers free concerts to lift spirits and entertain. A neighbor posts an offer to run to the pharmacy for her neighbors. Personally, I reached out to former and current executive coaching clients offering free sessions if they need it to help them manage their businesses. Many of us are mentoring military veterans who are trying to transition to a civilian career in a completely chaotic civilian work sector.

As you share your resources, consider connecting your offer to your “why” — your values. Personal branding and reputation are anchored in values, and without them, offers are meaningless. The neighbor who says she’ll run to the store for neighbors adds, “I believe it’s important to help those who are at risk.” The professor offering tutoring services adds, “Without learning, we are nothing as a society.” And the musician who performs concerts on live-streamed platforms says, “We come together as a world through music. And I was gifted with the ability to help, so I am.” Adding your value statement to your offer creates greater meaning, without depreciating the offer. Authenticity is key here — the value must be real and not opportunistic. Values, after all, are your moral operating system.

5. Share your humanness. What are you feeling and experiencing? We all see the posts of individuals scared and lonely. We also images of empty (or fully stocked) shelves and the meanings those images are meant to imply. In all of the ways we share content online, we are sharing our humanness and insight into what we believe and value. Some people offer continuous posts of meaningful scripture to remind their followers that the Bible shows the way out of this situation. Others use humor and levity to help their online community release some stress and smile for a moment.

However you share, remember that human beings are sharing human thoughts and emotions, and other humans are reading them. Consider how you’ve presented yourself online in the past and whether it’s appropriate and necessary for you to post more authentic, heartfelt messages at this time.

For example, a client of mine is a mental health specialist. She works with a specific population who regard her as strong, competent and knowledgeable. In the past, this reputation has empowered her to give hearty and meaningful advice meant to help her community navigate their unique circumstances. She’s rarely shared her own feelings or fears. Today, as her small audience blends into the larger community of people struggling with broader mental health issues, she finds herself speaking differently. We’ve broadened her messaging to ensure she’s not professing academic advice and protocols, but rather is sharing her feelings and concerns, along with real recommendations for those listening. This step took a lot of faith for her to do: She was reluctant to speak about herself for fear it could dispel her credibility. In fact, as she has shared more, and pulled other colleagues into the conversation with her, she’s found her clients and audiences grow and appreciate the trust she placed in them to share her story. Her personal brand stands on helping others. In these times, she is helping others by sharing her vulnerability and enlisting the support of others to grow strength in her community.

Related: 4 Ways to Find Opportunity in a Crisis

6. Share carefully. I’ve noticed several colleagues sharing inflammatory information, and while I have to believe their intent is good, the message can be harmful. In some cases, the information is later proved untrue. Or the information upsets followers who are trying to remain calm. Social media has become a news source and a respite from daily life (especially when we get a lens into the lives of famous people, access to concerts, museums, and other art forms we otherwise couldn’t visit, and can hear from leaders who might otherwise stay quiet). Social media offers access to information and inspiration to help keep us grounded and proactive in our own response to current situations. Online posts that gaslight panic are not helpful, and it could be argued that when we find our new normal after the pandemic has resolved, reputations of those who stoked the flames of these fires could be negatively impacted, if they aren’t already.

Your reputation is about more than you

What do you care about? If you are moved to action during this time, consider sharing your ideas online so others can be inspired to do the same, or can help you. Many people are struggling to find ways to support and help and protect others. If you have ideas, consider it your obligation to share those. From fostering shelter animals to donating blood to offering free coaching, how can you help? The goal is not to get gold stars for your efforts, but rather to inspire, influence and impact others to help as well. That is the greatest way to build reputational equity and help the world at the same time. Win-win.

Website Design & SEO Delray Beach by DBL07.co

Delray Beach SEO

source http://www.scpie.org/building-reputation-and-relationships-when-we-cant-be-face-to-face/ source https://scpie.tumblr.com/post/618224361342648320

[laurelkrugerr]

Building Reputation and Relationships When We Can’t Be Face-to-Face

May 15, 2020 8 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Chemistry. Charisma. Character. Collaboration. So much of what builds personal brands and reputations focuses on human connection and interaction. But how can we maintain relationships when we’re apart?

The coronavirus pandemic hit us all, in every corner of the world, in real and unexpected ways. Previously, we built engagement with others through eye contact, image, conversation and relationship. Now we find ourselves isolated and conversing with our cats, dogs and children instead of prospective clients, networking contacts, students, audiences and co-workers.

Building or maintaining reputation without in-person interaction

Today, it is still critical to be concerned with our reputation and brand as we navigate the new normal. These six tips can help.

1. Virtual meetings. We are all undoubtedly familiar with the virtual meeting tools available today. Are you using them? Seeing a human face gives us an additional layer of connectedness over a phone call or email. We get to see the person’s eyes and get a glimpse of their environment. We can read tonality in their voice differently than without these visual cues. I’ve recommended to my clients that have remote teams that they do a daily “stand up” check-in by video. Each morning, they do a quick group meeting to facilitate conversation and engagement as they discuss what they’re working on, call out any roadblocks they’re facing and focus on goals for the day. This keeps continuity in the team and ensures everyone feels supported. I’ve heard of groups doing virtual coffee meetings, virtual happy hours and more. We can’t forget the power of a smiling face, even if we can’t physically be in the same room.

For virtual meetings, ensure your video presence represents your presence accurately. Will you take the video call from a bedroom, garage, kitchen table or home office? Check the background of your environment — not to sterilize and depersonalize it, but rather to ensure there is nothing inappropriate or distracting. One case I heard of involves a sales professional who began taking video calls with international clients and forgot to remove several pinup posters in the background. He was speaking with a very conservative client and the client was disturbed by the posters in the background. Another IT specialist did video calls with a client in a bikini top, as she was grounded at her beach house. These are simple steps you can take to ensure your visual reputation is intact.

Related: 9 Ways COVID-19 Is Like Running a Marathon

2. Voice calls. Similarly, if given the option of an email or a phone call, try calling. It’s likely the person you’re attempting to reach is at home, maybe at their desk or managing their children’s schoolwork (if they are suddenly home schooling). A phone call — even a short one — gives us human connection. Warmth, compassion and empathy can be communicated differently on a call than an email.

3. Social media. The online space offers us a compelling place to gather, albeit not in person. The flow of information and insight is constant and global. While it will never replace in person human interaction, social media offers some unique ways we can leverage our strengths, help others and come together as a global community.

Related: When Your Business Runs Out of Your Home, How Do You Restore Work-Life Balance?

4. Share your resources. Do you have skills, talents, experience or work you can share online? There’s a mathematics professor in California offering to tutor college students online for free. A musician in Nashville offers free concerts to lift spirits and entertain. A neighbor posts an offer to run to the pharmacy for her neighbors. Personally, I reached out to former and current executive coaching clients offering free sessions if they need it to help them manage their businesses. Many of us are mentoring military veterans who are trying to transition to a civilian career in a completely chaotic civilian work sector.

As you share your resources, consider connecting your offer to your “why” — your values. Personal branding and reputation are anchored in values, and without them, offers are meaningless. The neighbor who says she’ll run to the store for neighbors adds, “I believe it’s important to help those who are at risk.” The professor offering tutoring services adds, “Without learning, we are nothing as a society.” And the musician who performs concerts on live-streamed platforms says, “We come together as a world through music. And I was gifted with the ability to help, so I am.” Adding your value statement to your offer creates greater meaning, without depreciating the offer. Authenticity is key here — the value must be real and not opportunistic. Values, after all, are your moral operating system.

5. Share your humanness. What are you feeling and experiencing? We all see the posts of individuals scared and lonely. We also images of empty (or fully stocked) shelves and the meanings those images are meant to imply. In all of the ways we share content online, we are sharing our humanness and insight into what we believe and value. Some people offer continuous posts of meaningful scripture to remind their followers that the Bible shows the way out of this situation. Others use humor and levity to help their online community release some stress and smile for a moment.

However you share, remember that human beings are sharing human thoughts and emotions, and other humans are reading them. Consider how you’ve presented yourself online in the past and whether it’s appropriate and necessary for you to post more authentic, heartfelt messages at this time.

For example, a client of mine is a mental health specialist. She works with a specific population who regard her as strong, competent and knowledgeable. In the past, this reputation has empowered her to give hearty and meaningful advice meant to help her community navigate their unique circumstances. She’s rarely shared her own feelings or fears. Today, as her small audience blends into the larger community of people struggling with broader mental health issues, she finds herself speaking differently. We’ve broadened her messaging to ensure she’s not professing academic advice and protocols, but rather is sharing her feelings and concerns, along with real recommendations for those listening. This step took a lot of faith for her to do: She was reluctant to speak about herself for fear it could dispel her credibility. In fact, as she has shared more, and pulled other colleagues into the conversation with her, she’s found her clients and audiences grow and appreciate the trust she placed in them to share her story. Her personal brand stands on helping others. In these times, she is helping others by sharing her vulnerability and enlisting the support of others to grow strength in her community.

Related: 4 Ways to Find Opportunity in a Crisis

6. Share carefully. I’ve noticed several colleagues sharing inflammatory information, and while I have to believe their intent is good, the message can be harmful. In some cases, the information is later proved untrue. Or the information upsets followers who are trying to remain calm. Social media has become a news source and a respite from daily life (especially when we get a lens into the lives of famous people, access to concerts, museums, and other art forms we otherwise couldn’t visit, and can hear from leaders who might otherwise stay quiet). Social media offers access to information and inspiration to help keep us grounded and proactive in our own response to current situations. Online posts that gaslight panic are not helpful, and it could be argued that when we find our new normal after the pandemic has resolved, reputations of those who stoked the flames of these fires could be negatively impacted, if they aren’t already.

Your reputation is about more than you

What do you care about? If you are moved to action during this time, consider sharing your ideas online so others can be inspired to do the same, or can help you. Many people are struggling to find ways to support and help and protect others. If you have ideas, consider it your obligation to share those. From fostering shelter animals to donating blood to offering free coaching, how can you help? The goal is not to get gold stars for your efforts, but rather to inspire, influence and impact others to help as well. That is the greatest way to build reputational equity and help the world at the same time. Win-win.

Website Design & SEO Delray Beach by DBL07.co

Delray Beach SEO

source http://www.scpie.org/building-reputation-and-relationships-when-we-cant-be-face-to-face/ source https://scpie1.blogspot.com/2020/05/building-reputation-and-relationships.html

[scpie]

Building Reputation and Relationships When We Can’t Be Face-to-Face

May 15, 2020 8 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Chemistry. Charisma. Character. Collaboration. So much of what builds personal brands and reputations focuses on human connection and interaction. But how can we maintain relationships when we’re apart?

The coronavirus pandemic hit us all, in every corner of the world, in real and unexpected ways. Previously, we built engagement with others through eye contact, image, conversation and relationship. Now we find ourselves isolated and conversing with our cats, dogs and children instead of prospective clients, networking contacts, students, audiences and co-workers.

Building or maintaining reputation without in-person interaction

Today, it is still critical to be concerned with our reputation and brand as we navigate the new normal. These six tips can help.

1. Virtual meetings. We are all undoubtedly familiar with the virtual meeting tools available today. Are you using them? Seeing a human face gives us an additional layer of connectedness over a phone call or email. We get to see the person’s eyes and get a glimpse of their environment. We can read tonality in their voice differently than without these visual cues. I’ve recommended to my clients that have remote teams that they do a daily “stand up” check-in by video. Each morning, they do a quick group meeting to facilitate conversation and engagement as they discuss what they’re working on, call out any roadblocks they’re facing and focus on goals for the day. This keeps continuity in the team and ensures everyone feels supported. I’ve heard of groups doing virtual coffee meetings, virtual happy hours and more. We can’t forget the power of a smiling face, even if we can’t physically be in the same room.

For virtual meetings, ensure your video presence represents your presence accurately. Will you take the video call from a bedroom, garage, kitchen table or home office? Check the background of your environment — not to sterilize and depersonalize it, but rather to ensure there is nothing inappropriate or distracting. One case I heard of involves a sales professional who began taking video calls with international clients and forgot to remove several pinup posters in the background. He was speaking with a very conservative client and the client was disturbed by the posters in the background. Another IT specialist did video calls with a client in a bikini top, as she was grounded at her beach house. These are simple steps you can take to ensure your visual reputation is intact.

Related: 9 Ways COVID-19 Is Like Running a Marathon

2. Voice calls. Similarly, if given the option of an email or a phone call, try calling. It’s likely the person you’re attempting to reach is at home, maybe at their desk or managing their children’s schoolwork (if they are suddenly home schooling). A phone call — even a short one — gives us human connection. Warmth, compassion and empathy can be communicated differently on a call than an email.

3. Social media. The online space offers us a compelling place to gather, albeit not in person. The flow of information and insight is constant and global. While it will never replace in person human interaction, social media offers some unique ways we can leverage our strengths, help others and come together as a global community.

Related: When Your Business Runs Out of Your Home, How Do You Restore Work-Life Balance?

4. Share your resources. Do you have skills, talents, experience or work you can share online? There’s a mathematics professor in California offering to tutor college students online for free. A musician in Nashville offers free concerts to lift spirits and entertain. A neighbor posts an offer to run to the pharmacy for her neighbors. Personally, I reached out to former and current executive coaching clients offering free sessions if they need it to help them manage their businesses. Many of us are mentoring military veterans who are trying to transition to a civilian career in a completely chaotic civilian work sector.

As you share your resources, consider connecting your offer to your “why” — your values. Personal branding and reputation are anchored in values, and without them, offers are meaningless. The neighbor who says she’ll run to the store for neighbors adds, “I believe it’s important to help those who are at risk.” The professor offering tutoring services adds, “Without learning, we are nothing as a society.” And the musician who performs concerts on live-streamed platforms says, “We come together as a world through music. And I was gifted with the ability to help, so I am.” Adding your value statement to your offer creates greater meaning, without depreciating the offer. Authenticity is key here — the value must be real and not opportunistic. Values, after all, are your moral operating system.

5. Share your humanness. What are you feeling and experiencing? We all see the posts of individuals scared and lonely. We also images of empty (or fully stocked) shelves and the meanings those images are meant to imply. In all of the ways we share content online, we are sharing our humanness and insight into what we believe and value. Some people offer continuous posts of meaningful scripture to remind their followers that the Bible shows the way out of this situation. Others use humor and levity to help their online community release some stress and smile for a moment.

However you share, remember that human beings are sharing human thoughts and emotions, and other humans are reading them. Consider how you’ve presented yourself online in the past and whether it’s appropriate and necessary for you to post more authentic, heartfelt messages at this time.

For example, a client of mine is a mental health specialist. She works with a specific population who regard her as strong, competent and knowledgeable. In the past, this reputation has empowered her to give hearty and meaningful advice meant to help her community navigate their unique circumstances. She’s rarely shared her own feelings or fears. Today, as her small audience blends into the larger community of people struggling with broader mental health issues, she finds herself speaking differently. We’ve broadened her messaging to ensure she’s not professing academic advice and protocols, but rather is sharing her feelings and concerns, along with real recommendations for those listening. This step took a lot of faith for her to do: She was reluctant to speak about herself for fear it could dispel her credibility. In fact, as she has shared more, and pulled other colleagues into the conversation with her, she’s found her clients and audiences grow and appreciate the trust she placed in them to share her story. Her personal brand stands on helping others. In these times, she is helping others by sharing her vulnerability and enlisting the support of others to grow strength in her community.

Related: 4 Ways to Find Opportunity in a Crisis

6. Share carefully. I’ve noticed several colleagues sharing inflammatory information, and while I have to believe their intent is good, the message can be harmful. In some cases, the information is later proved untrue. Or the information upsets followers who are trying to remain calm. Social media has become a news source and a respite from daily life (especially when we get a lens into the lives of famous people, access to concerts, museums, and other art forms we otherwise couldn’t visit, and can hear from leaders who might otherwise stay quiet). Social media offers access to information and inspiration to help keep us grounded and proactive in our own response to current situations. Online posts that gaslight panic are not helpful, and it could be argued that when we find our new normal after the pandemic has resolved, reputations of those who stoked the flames of these fires could be negatively impacted, if they aren’t already.

Your reputation is about more than you

What do you care about? If you are moved to action during this time, consider sharing your ideas online so others can be inspired to do the same, or can help you. Many people are struggling to find ways to support and help and protect others. If you have ideas, consider it your obligation to share those. From fostering shelter animals to donating blood to offering free coaching, how can you help? The goal is not to get gold stars for your efforts, but rather to inspire, influence and impact others to help as well. That is the greatest way to build reputational equity and help the world at the same time. Win-win.

Website Design & SEO Delray Beach by DBL07.co

Delray Beach SEO

source http://www.scpie.org/building-reputation-and-relationships-when-we-cant-be-face-to-face/

[96thdayofrage]

The best thing that can happen in 2020 is for Bernie Sanders to do fantastically in the primaries and be cheated out of the nomination, once again, thus giving millions of leftish Democrats a chance to do something useful with their lives: leave the party.

“Kamala Harris is by far the most dangerous corporate threat to a revival of the Sandernistas.”

Early this century, the oligarchy of filthy-rich white men that rule the United States reached a consensus among themselves on the necessity of maintaining a regime of endless war and austerity. In truth, there was no other policy choice available to the Lords of Capital. The financial oligarchy’s success in consolidating virtually all political and economic power in an ever-shrinking cabal of the super-wealthy has all but eliminated the last refuges and hideaways of democracy in the U.S., while condemning most of the population to eternal insecurity amidst falling living standards. Late stage western capitalism has nothing to offer its own citizens but austerity, and no way to compete with the dynamic societies of Asia except through war. Yet, the rulers must maintain the charade of domestic social progress and mass upward mobility, although no such possibilities exist under this system.

“The provocateur in the White House shattered the façade of racial harmony that had been carefully cultivated over decades by corporate media.”

It is a ruling class political dilemma made far more complex by the disruption wreaked on the two-capitalist party system by Donald Trump, the orange-tinted huckster and mega-opportunist. Trump captured the Republican Party apparatus by throwing red racist meat to the hordes of white supremacists that are still the most decisive force in the U.S. electorate. The polite White Man’s Party of Nixon, Reagan and the Bushes was suddenly stripped to the waist and showing its Aryan tattoos. The provocateur in the White House shattered the façade of racial harmony that had been carefully cultivated over decades by corporate media, while at the same time calling into question the corporate consensus on so-called “free trade,” “humanitarian” military intervention (regime change) and increasing hostility to capitalist Russia.

The bulk of the ruling class and their operatives in the national security services and media sprang into (often hysterical) action to neutralize and expunge Trump, the disruptive element. In the mad process, however, they have done incalculable damage to the very national institutions that give legitimacy to the bourgeois political order -- that is, the institutions that justify the rule of the rich in a supposedly democratic state. When the CIA, the FBI, the corporate media and most of the Democratic Party are howling that the occupant of the White House is illegitimate, they strip the office, itself, and the electoral process for achieving that office, of its legitimacy. And when they claim that a few Russians with a hundred thousand dollars were able to set Americans at each others’ throats and decisively swing a national election, they paint a picture of extreme instability and political fragility -- not a superpower, but a weak society on the brink of disaster and dissolution.

“Sanders’ proposals on health care, livable wages and free college education awakened expectations and thirst for a better life among masses of Americans.”

The legitimacy of the corporate regime was simultaneously challenged from leftish quarters, by Bernie Sanders, whose 2016 primary campaign failed to stop the warmongering corporatist Hillary Clinton, but succeeded in proving that super-majorities of Americans (including Republicans) want Medicare for All. Sanders’ proposals on health care, livable wages and free college education awakened expectations and thirst for a better life among masses of Americans. Sanders’ proposals are not transformative, revolutionary or “socialist.” However, the mere raising of expectations among the masses of people is dangerously destabilizing in a society where the corporate rulers have decreed endless austerity and war.

The oligarchy cannot tolerate or accommodate a New Deal, Green or otherwise. Their model of development is embodied in Jeff Bezos’ demand that New York City fork over billions for the pleasure of his corporate presence. Austerity is not really a policy at all, but a recognition that late stage capitalism is incapable of investing in productive enterprises that create good jobs for masses of people, or to provide security and adequate social services for the rearing of healthy, happy families. Instead, capital exports jobs to the Global South, where workers can be super-exploited; feasts on the bones of the public sector in the home country, privatizing every public good that holds the prospect of private profit; gorges on war production and diverts trillions to the virtual casinos of the derivatives markets.

“Austerity is not really a policy at all, but a recognition that late stage capitalism is incapable of investing in productive enterprises that create good jobs for masses of people.”

Similarly, endless war is less a policy than an acknowledgement that the U.S. cannot compete with China in fostering infrastructure development in Africa, Latin America and Asia -- for the same reason that the U.S. cannot connect its own cities with high-speed rail: the system is moribund and cannibalistic, and has already stripped the home country of productive capacity. War is the only game the oligarchy thinks it can win.

In the years following 9/11, both corporate parties began to speak of the “War on Terror” as a “twilight” struggle that would last “generations.” The message to U.S. society was: this is wartime forever; lower your expectations; don’t demand upward mobility under these perpetual martial circumstances -- it’s unpatriotic.

Trump’s racialist coup in the Republican Party and Bernie Sanders’ breakout among the Democrats threatened to disrupt the “twilight” predations of the Lords of Capital. Trump told white workers the lie, that he would claw back the jobs that were exported to China and elsewhere, while Bernie evoked a revived New Deal. The ruling class blitzkrieg against Trump is now entering its third year, and has spawned a New Cold War that is methodically targeting dissent on the internet. The Democratic half of the rich man’s duopoly has moved frantically to pre-empt a second Sanders bid for the party’s presidential nomination, deploying reliable corporate chameleons like Cory Booker and Kamala Harris to nail down the all-important Black vote and subvert ”New Deal” sentiment from the inside by pretending to be Medicare for All supporters.

“The system is moribund and cannibalistic, and has already stripped the home country of productive capacity.”

The corporate media -- the same folks that buttressed Trump’s campaign with billions in free air time, in expectation that Hillary would knock him flat like a straw man on Election Day – are busy constructing a whole roster of corporate alternatives to Sanders, hoping to head off the kind of popular movement-style politics that Bernie thrived on in 2016. Kamala Harris is by far the most dangerous corporate threat to a revival of the Sandernistas, for obvious reasons of race and gender. However, as a career prosecutor, Harris is a lifelong operative in the mass incarceration machine. She is so wedded to the beast, she opposed compliance with a court order to dramatically reduce California prison overcrowding, because it would shrink the number of inmates available for work in the prison system. Harris can be effectively neutralized from the Left, as being even more pro-mass Black incarceration than Hillary Clinton, who never personally put anyone in prison.

It is critical that mass incarceration loom large in the unfolding campaign season. Austerity means freezing unequal and oppressive social relationships in place, and policing the resultant misery, anger and frustration. Therefore, an austerity regime requires the revving up of the state coercive and carceral machinery. In the Age of Austerity, the Lords of Capital need a Jailer in the White House. A Black female jailer like Harris is ideal for the ruling class.

“As a career prosecutor, Harris is a lifelong operative in the mass incarceration machine.”

Most importantly, the rulers need to give people something to feel good about -- the illusion that progress is being made, despite their own frozen or worsening economic realities. The trick is to promote racial and gender “firsts” and market them as socially transformative, in the midst of actual social and economic decay. Kamala Harris fits the bill, perfectly – which is why she is the most dangerous to a Sanders project, and why Sanders should jump into the race right away, before the corporate media declare a “front-runner” and otherwise make him appear irrelevant.

You don’t have to be a Democrat to root for Sanders in the primaries. What there is of a mass Left – and virtually all Black political activity -- is locked up in the Democratic half of the corporate duopoly. The tens of millions of social democrats that are effectively neutered within the Democratic Party must leave, if there is to be a mass resistance to late capitalist austerity, war and mass incarceration. Although Bernie Sanders is probably the most popular politician in the nation, with the most favored political program, the billionaires that control the Democratic Party will move heaven and earth to prevent him from getting the nomination -- as was done in 2016. The best scenario for the Left is for Sanders to do so well in the primaries that corporate party leadership is forced to resort to dirty tricks and transparently undemocratic means to steal the nomination from him in the clear light of day. At that point, progressives would have yet another chance to escape their subordination, humiliation and ultimate irrelevance in a corporate-owned party, and to create or join a social democratic formation.

“The tens of millions of social democrats that are effectively neutered within the Democratic Party must leave, if there is to be a mass resistance to late capitalist austerity, war and mass incarceration.”

People of the Left like me, who are not social democrats, would cheer an exodus from the Democratic Party as a huge historical development in itself, freeing millions from the corporate political machine -- a kind of emancipation.

So, start running again, Bernie -- and force the Party’s corporate operatives to rig the game, like last time. In righteous defeat, you could change the course of history.

[mbb-60]

The Ibibios are the fourth largest ethnic group in Nigeria. They are also the dominant ethnic group in the state that contributes substantial part of Nigeria oil revenues. Their numerical and other advantages over other ethnic groups within the state is palpable. As a result they control the tempo of socioeconomic as well as political development of the state. Therefore irrespective of who is at the saddle - where the Ibibios lead, the state follows.

From early childhood I have come to respect the Ibibios whom I see more like their Ibo brothers in terms of hardwork, entrepreneurism, inventiveness and dynamism. My years in banking particularly in consumer banking sector as well as my later years in microfinance exposed me to the resilience and ingenuity of the average Ibibios. I can recall Mr. Inua Essien whom I met in Lagos and started out with a facility of N40,000 trading on custard and allied products; he graduated into enjoying a facility of over N30m within a few years producing his own custard brand. There were many others that made me proud in terms of mercantilism which is matchless in the South South region. In fact I call them the Chinese of South South. The Ibibios have also made giant strides in education and recorded remarkable progress in the military, medicine, law and other professions. Like the Ibos, Ibibios are quite ubiquitous with strong adaptations to any environment they find themselves. A typical Ibibio business man carries out his trade with high sense of integrity which has necessitated a long historical trade and supplier-credit relationships with their Ibo counterparts in Aba, Onitsha and Lagos.

When the state was created in 1987 with the Ibibios as the dominant group, many were hopeful that the new state would advance very quickly because of this great people. In all fairness some progress have been made.

But there is a dangerous phenomenon growing among them which (if not checked) might threaten the progress of not only the Ibibios but the state in general.

It is widely observed that the Ibibios go to great lengths at tearing each other down instead of helping to build each other. Although the sage Professor Ayandele, one time VC of University of Calabar pointed this out several years ago, the situation seemed heightened since 2014. I'm not talking about Internal competition which is common among people of every race and it is healthy to drive a system. I am not talking about healthy criticism which points out areas of weaknesses of a system or decisions with a view to foster improvement. I'm referring to bitterness that characterize the relationship between sections of the Ibibio race and manifest itself in offices, gatherings - even outside the country as it happened at Atlanta Georgia 2017, and social media etc etc.

Gloria Esurua in her recent article titled "Crab In The Bucket" captured what is happening among our Ibibio brothers using the crab analogy. She explained thus:

"Crabs put in a bucket, pot or basket, engage in a useless “king of the hill” competition. In this useless competition, each crab in the bucket, pot or basket has a very good chance of escaping, instead they grab at each other, preventing any individual crab who is attempting escape to do so; thereby ensuring the eventual collective demise of all crabs in that container. But here is the person who really gains from this pointless competition – the person who put the crabs in the bucket in the first place. Hold that thought!

The comparison (according to her) in human behavior to the syndrome described above is when a group of people or members of a group attempt to negate or diminish the importance of any member who achieves success beyond the others, out of envy, spite, conspiracy or competitive feelings, to halt their progress".

She inferred that this characteristic is associated with Ibibios who seemed constantly pulling down on each other.

Succinct as this sounds, the situation is not as simple as this analogy portrays. For instance, what can one adduce as the reason for the group of Akwa Ibom indigenes that conspired to front Barr Leo Ekpenyong to petition EFCC with spurious claims of embezzlement of the equivalent of $290m (N108b) by Sen Akpabio? Even when they know it is not true. Would it be spite? Envy? Or part of the inclination to shoot down any rising star from the state?

What would one give as explanation for why some federal appointees of Akwa Ibom extraction, whose appointments should have been a plus and avenue to drive development to the state rather see their positions as a launching pad to launch several vituperative arsenals against their home state government?

What is the explanation for the sustained vituperative acrimonies carried out against each other social media as well as in the papers- especially the local papers (which Akwa Ibom has the highest number in the country)? Sometimes I marvel at the kind of materials Ibibio sons and daughters write against each other, more worrisomely against their leaders with impunity.

In other climes the likes of Gov Udom Emmanuel is celebrated, jealously guarded and positioned for higher responsibilities. The likes of Fashola, Fayemi and Aminu Tambuwal etc didn't do what Udom is doing today but their people appreciated them and shouted their praises, the world listened. But just go through writings by some writers against the person of Gov Udom Emmanuel; take time and flip through the responses if on social media. You find out that 80% of the worst responses would be from Ibibios. What is the problem?

As I write Mr. Udom Emmanuel is steadily running a free education program in a recession. Even if he did nothing else, the dexterity to sustain this program at this time without suspending it for paucity of funds should be a great plus. Education is the greatest foundation for development. He is also steadily carrying out one of the most ambitious but technically auspicious programs of any Nigerian leader. The industrialization program which is the policy thrust of his government seek to move the state from civil service and oil dependent to self sustenance. It is on course. We are not in an "Akwa Ibom Got Talent Show" where one is expected to climb the stage and demonstrate some magical feats based on illusion. We are in the real world where foundations have to be laid on tough economic soils, studies have to be done to foster decisions and implementation have to be coordinated and carried out based on reality within available resources.  This is graciously ongoing. While this is on there is also huge spending on basic infrastructures like roads, energy etc. Salaries are being paid. Gradually the industrialization is yielding fruits. Factories are opening for operations. Take note that these Factories are not standing on some leased existing physical structures; no, they are built from the scratch sometimes including connecting roads. This takes time. I expect our Ibibio brothers - most of whom are well positioned- to be scheming on how to buy off those industries and run them, or go into partnerships etc. But rather they deploy their resources to hire online charlatans and masquerades to de-market the program, poison the people's minds and subsequently future channels and markets. They also go to great lengths to demean the person of the governor- their son. Who gains?

Take a look at the national space where are we? Who speaks for us out there? When we sling ourselves with so much muds, outsiders view us with through the muddy picture, who gains?

I've discovered that this pull-him-down phenomenon is not in strict sense the characteristics of the Ibibios as a people. It is associated with the elites who see the success of each other as a threat rather than ethnic advantages. This problem has greatly affected the state over the years as leaders upon leaders have been fought to a standstill at home. Sen Akpabio only managed to escape but it seemed they are not yet done. I suspect they won't give up.

The contemporaries of Gen Akpan, Grp Capt. Idongesit Nkanga, Ewang, Nsikak Eduok and many others who made it in the military like David Mark are still relevant in the national scene but where are our own? Obong Victor Attah's contemporaries are in the National Assembly to use their influence and experience to speak for their people. The Yorubas have found a replacement for their leader Chief Obafemi Awolowo in person of Bola Tinubu. It is not because Tinubu is a saint, he is a man of like passion like many of our own but where are our own? We want to vilify them, pull them down, destroy them and as new leaders emerge - the likes of Udom we repeat the same process. As long as this process continues the state will be the loser because as a dominant group, the leadership to move the state forward must come from the Ibibios otherwise the state is doomed like the crab.

For the crab has a strong shelled body. It has the most powerful claws among its crustaceans family. Crab is amphibious - which means it can live both in water and on land. But despite this advantages the crab is one of the most unsuccessful member of the ecosystem. In fact it is facing extinction. The reason is simple. The crab simply has an active body but no head. Even its eyes are placed on his shoulders. Without a head to coordinate the body the crab is doomed.

Do I need to recount the advantages Akwa Ibom has over many other states? Geographical, educational, economics etc? But where would the state go without proper leadership from the leading ethnic group?

Little Ifiok, a primary 3 pupil asked his teacher:

Excuse me ma, if you mix Omo and Klin, will there be foam?

Teacher responded: Yes of course, why ask such a stupid question at the beginning of the term, are you going to pass this class at all?

Little Ifiok laughed and whispered to the other kids, what  a dumb teacher! He said, how can you get foam when you mix Omo & Klin without adding water, are we going to know anything at all with this teacher?

How would the state get the required leadership from our ibibio brothers if they don't add water of love, tolerance, forgiveness, concession and work together even after any side loses to the other politically?

As the state attends the mature age of 30 today this writer calls for cease fire. We have faith in the capacity of the Ibibios to provide leadership to this state. Barring a few greedy ones and power mongers, the Ibibios remain a loving nation. They are one of the few ethnic nationals (apart from Yorubas and Ibos) that practiced mentorship and generational transfer of skills among themselves long before and after independence. There was also a strong culture of succession among the elites even the political class. Evidence abound in those days when you met them in Federal Ministries or multinational organizations where any Ibibio had discretionary powers. All these were attributes of people who would rather lift each other than pull down each other. In the spirit of the state's birthday, let the love and unity of purpose that bound this great people return. Akwa Ibom Isongho!

Signed: James Abang R828

Atte-Okiuso Village, Urueoffong/Oruko LGA, AKS.

[spanlish-blog]

Why the Trump-Putin Bromance Could Be in Serious Trouble

Donald Trump, the same president so often referred to by liberal bloggers as "Putin's puppet," is expected to sign a new batch of sanctions targeting Russia any day now. And with the Pentagon mulling the possibility of providing arms to anti-separatist forces in Ukraine—something Barack Obama opposed—it's increasingly hard to make a simplistic case that Trump is prioritizing Moscow's interests.

Just in case, the sanctions bill recently passed by Congress features language that makes it almost impossible for Trump, whose inner circle remains under federal investigation for possible collusion with the Kremlin, to withdraw the measures. This president normally broadcasts his emotions to any Twitter user who wants to read them but has been mostly quiet about the bill. That may be because he's effectively powerless to push back: The sanctions passed by such an overwhelming, bipartisan majority that if Trump vetoed them, Congress would almost certainly override him and pass them into law anyway.

Vice President Mike Pence, for his part, spoke supportively of the bill on Tuesday in Tbilisi, Georgia, arguing that if Russia wants reconciliation, it "has to change its behavior."

Meanwhile, Russian president Vladimir Putin isn't hiding the fact that he's furious. On Friday, his government announced plans to seize two pieces of US diplomatic property in and near Moscow. And on Sunday, the former KGB agent personally announced US diplomatic employees working in Russia will need to find new jobs. "Over 1,000 employees—diplomats and technical workers—worked and continue to work today in Russia; 755 will have to stop this activity," Putin told local media. (Russia had telegraphed that it was considering these actions back in mid-July.)

That might not be the full extent of Moscow's retaliation, either. In the lead-up to the White House announcement that Trump would sign the sanctions, Konstantin Kosachev, the Russian lawmaker who heads the country's Foreign Affairs Committee, warned the US that "the future degradation of bilateral cooperation is becoming inevitable." He added that Russia plans to come back with a response that won't "symmetrical" but instead "one that is painful for the Americans."

We tried Putin's favorite form of martial arts:

For a sense of why these pending sanctions are making the Russians blow their collective lid so completely, and to learn a little bit about what other kinds of trouble may be on the horizon, I got in touch with Eugene Chausovsky, senior Eurasia analyst at the military intelligence firm Stratfor. He explained what, exactly, the sanctions do, and helped me try to forecast how this saga will play out.

VICE: Are these sanctions—which mostly go after Russia but also target Iran and North Korea—going to hurt Putin directly, or really dent Russian economic power? Or is Putin just mad because he doesn't like being messed with? Eugene Chausovsky: Well, as far as hurting Putin, they'll certainly tighten the restrictions that the US already had in place against Russia, particularly in the energy sphere. When you're dealing with things like offshore, deep-water, or shale projects, that's going to be significantly restricted in terms of US persons or companies operating within these kinds of projects.

What does sanctioning Russia's energy and oil sector mean? Is that like stopping those projects from being financed, or stopping Russia from physically getting the oil? It's actually both. There are the financial sanctions on certain energy companies that will certainly limit US personnel or companies from dealing in certain maturities of debt issued. That has been changed to all debt with a maturity of over 60 days [making it harder for sanctioned companies and people to obtain short-term loans]. Then, as far as the [restrictions on] participation [by energy companies], that refers to operations in any new offshore deep-water or shale projects globally, where Russian companies have either a controlling stake or a substantial minority stake of 33 percent or higher.

Does any of this have a negative impact on average, workaday Russians? These sanctions are not completely new. They're tightening sanctions that are already in place, particularly targeting the energy sector. Certainly the average Russian has been hurting in recent years, but I would argue that that's more in line with Russia's economic weakness as a result of low oil prices than from the sanctions. So the answer, I guess, is, yes, it certainly doesn't help. But I don't think it has as dramatic of an impact on the Russian economy—and on individual Russians—as the broader macroeconomic conditions in Russia.

You mentioned these sanctions aren't entirely new. What parts are novel? It's basically just ratcheting up the economic sanctions that were already put in place [under the Obama administration]. Some of these are optional, for example the sanctions on firms that help develop Russian energy export pipelines. That's where the Nord Stream 2 controversy comes in. But that's optional [Trump has to decide whether or not to apply this measure].

I hear Germany's pissed off about that part. What's going on there? [Nord Stream 2] isn't about increasing Germany's imports of Russian gas. It would basically be giving them another avenue [through] which to import Russian gas, [rather] than going around to more risky mainland European pipelines—which go through countries like Ukraine, for example. So the reason Germany is opposed to this is because they don't want the US to have a say in their own pipeline projects, whereas other countries, like the Baltic countries, are less worried. And actually that's what's going to prevent EU unity from overriding or really challenging the US on this.

So the EU is divided here? When you're talking about upsetting the "EU," you have to keep in mind that the EU is a group of 20 member states, so it's not acting in one monolithic manner. That's actually something Russia tries to exploit by manipulating and trying to create divisions between the EU member states. Nord Stream 2 is the perfect example of this, because Germany certainly has commercial interests in a pipeline like this. [Then] you have countries that aren't thinking only in a commercial perspective—they're also speaking in geopolitical terms.

Which countries are we talking about here? The borderland countries in between Germany and Russia, the Baltic States, and also Poland. These are the kinds of energy projects that Russia uses to try to manipulate divisions within Europe—that's why the projects have been so controversial. But this is also the reason why it's not going to be possible to get complete unanimity from this from within the EU.

So Russia has already retaliated by seizing US diplomatic property, and demanding the firing of staffers who had been working in those places. What do you think is next? I think what we should be watching for in terms of the Russian response is [a] quote-unquote "asymmetrical response." That's something Russia has referenced before, and something they've used before. Basically, they respond to what they consider Western aggression in different theaters that don't have direct correlation but are nonetheless intended to wear on the US, or the show the US that it [Moscow] has areas where it can bring the pain.

Where can Russia bring the pain? One [place] is Ukraine. In the conflict in Eastern Ukraine, the negotiations there haven't really produced any significant movement from a political perspective. So I think it's an area where Russia can look to sort of ratchet up tensions. Now that sanctions have not only been extended but increased, that's one area where Russia can try to ramp up—perhaps in a limited but still painful way—against the Ukrainian forces and [in favor of] the separatists that it influences.

Russia also tends to defy the US in North Korea and Syria. and the sanctions passed by Congress have implications for the Middle East and Asia, as well. Can Russia do anything to interfere on those fronts even more? Since Russia has a seat on the UN Security Council, they can look to any sanctions or moves by the US, and veto. They can build up relations they have with the North Korean regime, and try to play a spoiler role there. And [with] Syria, between the US and Russia there was recently the ceasefire agreement in southwestern Syria, that's something Russia can either pull out of, or look to other areas where it can play that spoiler role.

How big of a nuisance will Putin have to be to make his voice heard here? I don't think [Russia's response is] going to be hugely disruptive in terms of affecting the world's order. I just mean, these are irritants essentially that Russia can use on the US. The goal is essentially to get the US back into that negotiating position—back into a conciliatory or compromising position. Right now the opposite is happening.

The New York Times wrote about these sanctions as evidence that Putin's apparent plan to get Trump elected has backfired. Is that your interpretation? There's a couple different ways to look at it. Certainly, what Russia was hoping for was a new US administration that would be more willing to work with them, and have a less confrontational relationship than under the previous administration. Trump, during the election campaign, seemed like he was the candidate more willing to do that. [So] in that sense, you could argue that it has backfired. But [Putin] is a pretty strategic thinker, [and] I think realistically, he knew there would be major constraints, and that it wouldn't be easy for Trump to change all the engrained policies toward Russia.

Barring this dramatic turnaround, what Russia is interested in, if it can't get the policies it wants from the US, then at the very least Trump presents them with someone who can foster their "chaos campaign." It's like, OK, let's at least try to exacerbate the internal divisions within the US, which I would argue we have been seeing to an extent. [In] a certain sense, you could argue it has backfired, but Russia's playing a long game. Putin's not just looking at the next few weeks and months, but also where things are going in the next months or years, so time will tell on that.

If these sanctions resemble current and recent ones so closely, it seems worth asking if those recent sanctions actually worked. Have they? The US is trying to get Russia to implement the Minsk Protocol, an agreement about the future of Ukraine. And we haven't seen any of that happen in terms of Russia pulling back its support for the separatists, Russia stopping its military actions in and around that territory. So the sanctions, if we're looking at them from [a standpoint] of trying to get Russia to be more compliant, so far they have not been effective. But if the goal is to weaken Russia over time, that remains to be seen.

This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.

Follow Mike Pearl on Twitter.

Source: Why the Trump-Putin Bromance Could Be in Serious Trouble Source: Why the Trump-Putin Bromance Could Be in Serious Trouble

[clubofinfo]

Expert: Introduction From their dismal swamps, US academic and financial journal editorialists, the mass media and contemporary ‘Asia experts’, Western progressive and conservative politicians croak in unison about China’s environmental and impending collapse. They have variably proclaimed (1) China’s economy is in decline; (2) the debt is overwhelming; a Chinese real estate bubble is ready to burst; (3) the country is rife with corruption and poisoned with pollution; and (4) Chinese workers are staging paralyzing strikes and protests amid growing repression – the result of exploitation and sharp class inequality. The financial frogs croak about China as an imminent military threat to the security of the US and its Asian partners. Other frogs leap for that fly in the sky – arguing that the Chinese now threatens the entire universe! The ‘China doomsters’ with ‘logs in their own eyes’ have systematically distorted reality, fabricated whimsical tales and paint vision, which, in truth, reflect their own societies. As each false claim is refuted, the frogs alter their tunes: When predictions of imminent collapse fail to materialize, they add a year or even a decade to their crystal ball. When their warnings of negative national social, economic and structural trends instead move in a positive direction, their nimble fingers re-calibrate the scope and depth of the crisis, citing anecdotal ‘revelations’ from some village or town or taxi driver conversation. As long-predicted failures fail to materialize, the experts re-hash the data by questioning the reliability of China’s official statistics. Worst of all, Western ‘Asia’ experts and scholars try ‘role reversal’: While US bases and ships increasingly encircle China, the Chinese become the aggressors and the bellicose US imperialists whine about their victim-hood. Cutting through the swamp of these fabrications, this essay aims to outline an alternative and more objective account of China’s current socio-economic and political realty. China: Fiction and Fact We repeatedly read about China’s ‘cheap wage’ economy and the brutal exploitation of its slaving workers by billionaire oligarchs and corrupt political officials. In fact, the average wage in China’s manufacturing sector has tripled during this decade. China’s labor force receives wages which exceed those of Latin America countries, with one dubious exception. Chinese manufacturing wages now approach those of the downwardly mobile countries in the EU. Meanwhile, the neo-liberal regimes, under EU and US pressure, have halved wages in Greece, and significantly reduced incomes in Brazil, Mexico and Portugal. In China, workers wages now surpass Argentina, Colombia and Thailand. While not high by US-EU standards, China’s 2015 wages stood at $3.60 per hour – improving the living standards of 1.4 billion workers. During the time that China tripled its workers ‘wages, the wages of Indian workers stagnate at $0.70 per hour and South African wages fell from $4.30 to $3.60 per hour. This spectacular increase in Chinese worker’s wages is largely attributed to skyrocketing productivity, resulting from steady improvements in worker health, education and technical training, as well as sustained organized worker pressure and class struggle. President Xi Jinping’s successful campaign for the removal and arrest of hundreds of thousands of corrupt and exploitative officials and factory bosses has boosted worker power. Chinese workers are closing the gap with the US minimum wage. At the current rate of growth, the gap, which had narrowed from one tenth to one half the US wage in ten years, will disappear in the near future. China is no longer merely a low-wage, unskilled, labor intensive, assembly plant and export-oriented economy. Today twenty thousand technical schools graduate millions of skilled workers. High tech factories are incorporating robotics on a massive scale to replace unskilled workers. The service sector is increasing to meet the domestic consumer market. Faced with growing US political and military hostility, China has diversified its export market, turning from the US to Russia, the EU, Asia, Latin America and Africa. Despite these impressive objective advances, the chorus of ‘crooked croakers’ continue to churn out annual predictions of China’s economic decline and decay. Their analyses are not altered by China’s 6.7% GNP growth in 2016; they jump on the 2017 forecast of ‘decline’ to 6.6% as proof of its looming collapse! Not be dissuaded by reality, the chorus of ‘Wall Street croakers’ wildly celebrate when the US announces a GNP increase from 1% to 1.5%! While China has acknowledged its serious environmental problems, it is a leader in committing billions of dollars (2% of GNP) to reduce greenhouse gases – closing factories and mines. Their efforts far exceed those of the US and EU. China, like the rest of Asia, as well as the US, needs to vastly increase investments in rebuilding its decaying or non-existent infrastructure. The Chinese government is alone among nations in keeping up with and even exceeding its growing transportation needs – spending $800 billion a year on high speed railroads, rail lines, seaports, airports subways and bridges. While the US has rejected multi-national trade and investment treaties with eleven Pacific countries, China has promoted and financed global trade and investment treaties with more than fifty Asia-Pacific (minus Japan and the US), as well as African and European states. China’s leadership under President Xi Jinping has launched an effective large-scale anti-corruption campaign leading to the arrest or ouster of over 200,000 business and public officials, including billionaires, and top politburo and Central Committee members. As a result of this national campaign, purchases of luxury items have significantly declined. The practice of using public funds for elaborate 12 course dinners and the ritual of gift giving and taking are on the wane. Meanwhile, despite the political campaigns to ‘drain the swamp’ and successful populist referenda, nothing remotely resembling China’s anti-corruption campaign have taken root in the US and the UK despite daily reports of swindles and fraud involving the hundred leading investment banks in the Anglo-American world. China’s anti-corruption campaign may have succeeded in reducing inequalities. It clearly has earned the overwhelming support of the Chinese workers and farmers. Journalists and academics, who like to parrot the Anglo-American and NATO Generals, warn that China’s military program poses a direct threat to the security of the US, Asia and indeed the rest of world. Historical amnesia infects these most deep diving frogs. Forgotten is how the post WW2 US invaded and destroyed Korea and Indo-China (Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia) killing over nine million inhabitants, both civilian and defenders. The US invaded, colonized and neo-colonized the Philippines at the turn of the 20th century, killing up to one million inhabitants. It continues to build and expand its network of military bases encircling China, It recently moved powerful, nuclear armed THADD missiles to the North Korean border, capable of attacking Chinese and even Russian cities. The US is the world’s largest arms exporter, surpassing the collective production and sale of the next five leading merchants of death. In contrast, China has not unilaterally attacked, invaded or occupied anyone in hundreds of years. It does not place nuclear missiles on the US coast or borders. In fact, it does not have a single overseas military base. Its own military bases, in the South China Sea, are established to protect its vital maritime routes from pirates and the increasingly provocative US naval armada. China’s military budget, scheduled to increase by 7% in 2017, is still less than one-fourth of the US budget. For its part, the US promotes aggressive military alliances, points radar and satellite guided missiles at China, Iran and Russia, and threatens to obliterate North Korea. China’s military program has been and continues to be defensive. Its increase is based on its response to US provocation. China’s foreign imperial thrust is based on a global market strategy while Washington continues to pursue a militarist imperial strategy, designed to impose global domination by force. Conclusion The frogs of the Western intelligentsia have crocked loud and long. They strut and pose as the world’s leading fly catchers – but producing nothing credible in terms of objective analyses. China has serious social, economic and structural problems, but they are systematically confronting them. The Chinese are committed to improving their society, economy and political system on their own terms. They seek to solve immensely challenging problems, while refusing to sacrifice their national sovereignty and the welfare of their people. In confronting China as a world capitalist competitor, the US official policy is to surround China with military bases and threaten to disrupt its economy. As part of this strategy, Western media and so-called ‘experts’ magnify China’s problems and minimize their own. Unlike China, the US is wallowing at less than 2% annual growth. Wages stagnate for decades; real wages and living standards decline. The costs of education and health care skyrocket, while the quality of these vital services decline dramatically. Costs are growing, unemployment is growing and worker suicide and mortality is growing. It is absolutely vital that the West acknowledge China’s impressive advances in order to learn, borrow and foster a similar pattern of positive growth and equity. Co-operation between China and the US is essential for promoting peace and justice in Asia. Unfortunately, the previous US President Obama and the current President Trump have chosen the path of military confrontation and aggression. The two terms of Obama’s administration present a record of failing wars, financial crises, burgeoning prisons and declining domestic living standards. But for all their noise, these frogs, croaking in unison, will not change the real world. http://clubof.info/

[ceomikediamond]

5 WAYS YOU CAN PREVENT CONFLICT IN THE WORKPLACE

Bringing together a talented team often means conflict. Strong, driven, dedicated people have strong, driven personalities. Although this is great for the company, it can be hard on the team. However, if expectations are clear, the team members may relax and make attempts to work together.

1.       CLEARLY DEFINE THE MISSION: Many conflicts occur when different personality types begin to manipulate a team based on their own personality. Joe may be very detail-oriented, and Jim’s creative and relaxed methods may drive him to the brink. Yet, every time these two work together, the results are outstanding. If only you can get Joe to relax a bit so that Jim can work his creative magic. The best way to avoid conflict between Joe and Jim is to follow the sub-steps below that help outline the details.

2.       STATE THE GOALS: Knowing exactly what is expected of each individual on a team is very beneficial. Along with this, you must clear up any misconceptions about the end game, and the final team goal. The members must understand not only their part in the goal but what the end game as a team accomplishment entails. This gives a completely clear picture of expectations. It also gives freedom to each team player to work on their section with the knowledge that it will all come together.

3.       IDENTIFY EVERY PERSON’S CONTRIBUTION: Working with the skill sets brought into the team, align each person’s strengths to their contribution. Introducing each team member and noting their skills may give the others the information needed to draw on each other as necessary for completing their own goals. Suddenly Joe may find Jim’s creativity helpful when he can’t sort out something. Even if this team has worked together ten times, these introductions serve to clarify strengths and capabilities as determined by you.

4.       SET DEADLINES: Once the picture is clear on what is to be accomplished, and by whom, the next step is a clear understanding of when. Whether you set check-ins with certain parts of the project, or simply set an end date, make it transparent to everyone.

5.       STAY INVOLVED: Once you delegate a project, break it down into components, assign them, and set an end date. Don’t disappear. Checking in, asking if everything is moving along as expected, finding out if there are issues, and then resolving them quickly will help the team to work together, foster interdependence and cooperation, and bring the project to a strong finish. Clear leadership and communication removes the need for the team members to police each other and allows them to instead focus on the mission.

As a leader, your job is to manage the people and processes which will lead to the correct and timely completion of your project. Building a team is not impossible. The same team, under two different managers, will have two entirely different outcomes. It is entirely up to you which result you get. By setting up the project correctly and managing the timeline effectively, you can ensure success.

MG (Retired) Mike Diamond is CEO and founder of Diamond Strategy Group. Diamond Strategy Group is a leadership development and consulting company. We focus on improving the quality of leadership within organizations by utilizing the same methods Mike and his consultants have used in both military and civilian sectors. We invite you to stay connected! Visit us online at www.DiamondStrategyGroup.com and connect with Mike Diamond Strategy Group on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, or e-mail us at info@diamondstrategygroup.com!

To request Mike as the keynote speaker for your next event, e-mail MikeDiamondAssistant@gmail.com.

Pre-Order Mike Diamond’s book, The Diamond Process, now at diamondstrategygroup.com/book/.

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