Is Self Reliance Undermined By Social Policy?

Subject Charles Knighton

Photo Credit: LoopBarbados

Schizophrenic seems the most apt description of so-called socially progressive governments including, of course, Barbados. Not a week passes without some government minister calling for more citizen self-reliance while other ministries continue to foster a dependency on government by broadening and deepening the metaphorical social safety net. Human nature being what it is, originally well intended social safety nets meant to be used as springboards to self-reliance have instead become hammocks of dependency for far too many.

The Advocate’s editorial of Dec. 5, “Positive approach” mentions, inter alia, the important nexus between extracurricular activities and the social fabric, particularly via volunteerism. The editorial further suggests that such volunteerism “can help address many of the disciplinary issues encountered in our schools and the wider society” as volunteering fosters a discipline which “imparts a feeling of accomplishment and engagement as volunteers develop empathy for others and a greater social awareness.”

Government Be Nimble, Government Be Quick

Government Headquarters

In the immediate post-Independence period Barbados was blessed with political leadership which laid the foundation for the social and economic success we are still reaping today.  The Right Excellent Errol Walton Barrow and the late J.M.G. ‘Tom’ Adams are the two who stand head and shoulders above the others  we should credit. Some may argue that the local and global economic environment carried the economic capacity which afforded  Barbados the opportunity to implement social and economic programmes that resulted in ‘Barbados punching above its weight class’.  Regrettably that fertile condition has long disappeared and now more than at any time since adult suffrage, Barbadians will need to lever against the knowledge capital which we should have accumulated as a result of the enormous investment in education.

What we have seen from the political leadership since Barrow and Adams has been a ‘follow-pattern’ approach which has not resulted in any fundamental and strategic policy formulation and planning to ensure Barbados charts its own path; operating in a global economy not withstanding. Even as the world is changing literally by the week Barbados remains stapled to the economic fundamentals which have guided our path striking back to the Barrow and Adams era.

As is our wont given our proclivity for things American, Barbadians have become increasingly divisive on the issues driven by partisan political stripes. Not dissimilar to what the world is witnessing in the USA. Given that neither the Barbados labour Party or the Democratic Labour Party are not philosophical so far apart on the issues, it begs the question why a nation which boasts of a superior education system would allow ‘yardfowlism’ to compromise the greater national interest. More and more Barbadians have become adept at ‘rationalizing’ every problem which manifest itself in Barbados.

What Is A Good Government?

Submitted by Terence Blackett – An analytical excerpt of E. E Abrams’ Government & Rebellion

No citizen looks for an absolutely perfect form of nationality – of law. But we have a right to ask for good government. We have been accustomed to think that it depends more on administration than on principle; and the line of the poet, “that which is best administered, is best,” is a proverb, to the sentiment of which we too freely yield.

No doubt a government with bad statutes and wrong laws may be so administered as to produce a tolerable degree of national comfort and development for a season; while a Constitution perfect in its theories and principles may be so maladministered as to corrupt and distract, impoverish and demoralize a people.

And yet, I agree with an old patriot of the past century who said, “there is no foundation to imagine that the goodness or badness of any government depends solely upon its administration. It must be allowed that the ultimate design of government is to restrain the corruptions of human nature; and, since human nature is the same at all times and in all places, the same form of government which is best for one nation is best for all nations, if they would only agree to adopt it…”

The Westminster Model And The Economy

Submitted by Looking Glass

We seem preoccupied with peripheral issues—everything from transparency to Senatorial non-attendance— and criticism of government while seemingly oblivious to the major problem, the economy. Along the way we blame everyone and everything except ourselves, echoing the utterances of some significant others in the name of wisdom. Could it be that we have but a spurious understanding of the role of the Senate, the government and the economy? Is the attack on Westminster an excuse for the absence of smart thinking? Or are we being purely political? Knowing the problems but not the answers is pointless. It is time the critics present a definitive plan or series of proposals to save the sinking ship.

The Westminster Model has been with us for more than 100 years, I believe since 1865. The fact that it served us well in the post independence era implies that the same was not true in the preceding era. Is that really the case? Post independence success coincided with the Development Decade of the 1960s; a time when banks, corporations, the IMF and World Bank flushed with an overflow of idle capital went in search of investment opportunities. And we like other underdeveloped countries accommodated them.

The Model has little to do with our collapsing economy, your contribution to the collapse, or the need for trained people and or the creation of body of expertise for the sake of productivity. Are trained Senators a prerequisite for productivity? The Senate is not a manufacturing facility.

To Tax Or Not To Tax

Submitted by Looking Glass

Theories like ideology are “rooted in the material conditions of life, but despite what we are led to believe or want to believe there is no unilateral or universal relationship between the…the relations of production and the political and legal superstructure. The structure of society exerts a determinative effect upon the ideas which assume prominence.

Economics like self-interest is not morally neutral. Economic estimates premised on the broad generalizations contained in “rational behaviour” simply cannot account for the plethora of ambiguities inherent in the human species. For this reason estimates could result in over-optimistic conclusions and misguided policies. Some people suggest business tax-cuts, concessions and cuts in personal income tax are needed to resuscitate the economy.

Proponents of tax-cuts, essentially those favouring the supply side economics approach, view them as positive and necessary. Tax-cuts they maintain enable people and business to put in more effort, work harder, save and invest more at home. As the economy grows there will be more income and profits to tax. This would allow government to recoup revenue lost through the initial tax-cuts and facilitate deficit reduction. In addition it would induce people to change their behaviour in ways appropriate and beneficial to the society. But will tax-cuts and concessions lead to economic growth and employment?