PARTISAN DIVISIONS: HOW THEY AFFECT THE ELECTORATE

           Published by El Nuevo Herald on December 06, 2015

"Careful who you step to climb because maybe you find it going down."  This is a popular saying and based on that axiom which says "the world takes many turns." 

And it applies to various fields; less intense in the student area, medium scale in the labor force and stronger in political parties.

Indeed, in political activism we see how the power struggle is of great proportions. Particularly in the United States this issue has reached a considerable height.

A recent Hollywood movie, Our Brand is Crisis, with which we contribute in its premiere in Miami, tells us about the harshness of political campaigns. Based on true events, the film was shot in Bolivia and tells us how a presidential candidate with 10% in the polls, hire a team of American campaign that leads to victory, after a fierce slaughter. The film shows how political campaigns are stark in the United States, where the only goal is to win at any cost.

It turns out that in the daily happenings of political activism, we can see some frankly incomprehensible attitudes: Suddenly, we see someone close to us stops taking our phone calls. For no apparent reason, someone avoids us or denies our greeting at a meeting. Inexplicably, somebody prohibit us to take the microphone at an event where we were supposed to talk.

Indeed, many fear that those who are  coming up, make them shade, surpassing and subtracting their  opportunities or prestige.

Sometimes, this is due to a purely political competition, how is happening now in a tight battle for the Republican presidential nomination.

Other times, it is due to requests from friends. This is "Stopped Him".

And sometimes it is because of old grudges.

Certainly, all of this leads to partisan divisions as they begin to form different groups within the party. It seems to be a skill the fact of creating a group of party supporters. In other words, the more domestic political support you have, the more you brake the competitors, even though they are better than you in many ways.

It happens that there are people who lose elections, not only for themselves, but make them lose their party also. These people are usually divisive and expressly hinder any other candidate from his own party. Simply, they not tolerate another victory in a similar position as it makes them look weak.

But amid his ambition, he hurt his party and the country since in many cases, the best candidate is not the one who finally comes to elections.

And even if he reaches elections, there we can see incredibly sectors within his own party, interested in his defeat.

In the workplace, many fear telling their real experience. It turns out that the interviewer is also fearful of hiring "knife to his throat." Similarly, it often happens that the boss has his own candidate, usually friends or recommended.

Of course, the aggrieved in this case is the hiring company, who stopping using the services of a qualified staff due to external or internal pressures that in nothing help the business.

The same is true in politics, but in this field there are many affected; voters, who are prevented from choosing the best candidate due to the fact there are varied and intertwined factors involved in their nomination, namely: money, individualism, manipulation, ambition and power.

How to choose the best candidates? There are two viable ways: 1) limiting spending on election campaigns; for example, depending on position, they could buy only TV spaces to $ 100,000. 2) Conceiving bipartisan vote in the primaries of both parties; for example, in the Democratic primary, vote both Republicans and Democrats, and vice versa.

With these measures, the beneficiary is the voter, who in this way is closer to a less prefabricated candidate.

BENJAMIN F. DeYURRE

Economist and journalist.

Follow on Twitter:  DeYURRE

UNITED STATES: THE MIRROR OF THE WORLD

                                         Published by El Nuevo Herald on Nov. 25, 2015





A popular saying goes: "When America is cold, the other countries have pneumonia." 

This applies not only in the most acute economic crisis that the world has known, as are those generated under the leadership of Presidents Herbert Hoover in 1929 and George W. Bush in 2008, it also applies to situations such as terrorism and immigration, where what happens in the US seems to be reflected as a mirror image to other countries.

Indeed, the crisis known as the crash of 1929 was in global scale. The lack of production, widespread shortages, the explosion of unemployment, mass bankruptcy of large factories and the disappearance of famous trademarks were the main features of the crisis.

USA being the main producer and exporter, expected that global trade would decline significantly, and thus economic activity in general.

So, an improvement of Economy, framed in theories of John Maynard Keynes English, were necessary to steer the market activity in the world again.

These theories simply justified the intervention in monetary and fiscal policy in the US, which came expressed in different measures taken by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, known as the "New Deal" and among them were the creation of Social Security and the establishment of the minimum wage, that over the years have served as an example for many countries.

In situations of international terrorism, attacks in other parts of the world have increased, after the US has suffered a similar action. The slaughter of the Twin Towers in 2001, known as 9/11, seems to have generated a shock wave around the world.

After many aftershocks followed, for example, the night club in Bali, Indonesia, 2002, 202 people; Madrid train, 2004, 191 people; London Underground, 2005, 52 deaths; attacks in Mumbai-India, 2008, 164 dead, and a few days ago, the attacks in Paris, 129 dead.

9/11 genocide was painful to an entire nation, seems to have woken up in a macabre sadism in  terrorists to attack public places with large public attendance.

In turn, 9/11 caused a dramatic change in security measures around the world. New technologies made their appearance and inspection at ports and airports reached new levels.

Also, the immigration problem in the United States has had its foreign repercussions.

In recent years it has been emphasizing formalize a comprehensive immigration reform that would contemplate a solution, not only for those who have come to the US, but for those who have yet to do so.

The United Nations defines as migrants who for more than a year have lived outside their country of origin; Under this concept, in 2013, 232 million international migrants were recorded.

Of that number, nearly half have migrated only to ten countries, although the US is the favorite with 46 million registered.

US immigrants have doubled from 1990 to 2013. That meant other countries have followed US doubling its foreign population in the same period, including Germany, UK, Canada, Australia, Spain and the UAE.

The theme around immigration reform in the United States was reflected in the increase of migrants crossing the Mediterranean, which grew from 50,000 in 2011 to over 225,000 in 2014. Most of them are from African countries and their destination Home is Italy.

People displaced by the civil war in Syria are almost half the population and have taken refuge in neighboring countries such as Turkey, Lebanon, Iraq and Jordan, although Syria still remain 8 million people homeless.

Still, the most important immigrant corridor in the world remains the border between Mexico and Texas. Indeed, they are currently trying to reach this border over 1,000 Cubans who come from Ecuador in a long journey that has been truncated in Nicaragua, a country that has refused to continue their march that group.

A country has the choice to accept or not to give shelter to refugees, but should not deny a pass to cross its territory. That is inhuman.

As the world mourns for other nationalities, so they should do also for suffered Cubans, who have endured a dictatorship of 56 years, the longest in modern history.

As we see, we have the honor of living in the world's most important country, one that dictates the guidelines then imitated by other countries.

Help him with ideas like creating American civic universities in other countries, which not only offer classes in business and technology, but also give a sample of our way of life in America, our values ​​and our constitutional democracy.

This will also propagate all the positive aspects that the US has to offer and, therefore, would be imitated by those who have not yet done.

Undoubtedly, it is a smart investment.

BENJAMIN F. DeYURRE
Economist and journalist.

POLITICAL MYOPIA IN CONSUMER ABUSE

                                          Published by El Nuevo Herald on Nov 08, 2015

Cable TV company is continuously stalking customers to increase their prices. Customers should call every four months because they find that the price is increasing.

If you fall behind in payment, they charge $ 10 plus $ 6 for an automatic reconnection. Everything is complicated when phoning the company. Ask for the billing department, just do not answer the phone. If you you press the phone extension to change or remove the services, nobody takes the phone.

In other words, it is a real abuse to the consumer, who has to endure such abuse.

Of course, there is the option to choose automatic payments with your credit card or checkbook. But in truth, we have to be insane to provide this information to someone you can not be reached then.

Obviously, there are other providers, including satellite, which will offer promotional prices to 1st customers, but then fall into the same, that is, you do not have salvation.

Another important and very worrying aspect today is the subsidized health market, where many companies traded health insurance. In the last months, Insurance companies are putting many obstacles to the procedures prescribed by specialists.

At first, the request for authorization are finally "received" by insurance 20 days after being sent by the specialist doctor. In many cases denied authorization for the procedure because certain rules patterned themselves were not fulfilled.For example, for a MRI, they claim not to have received the X-rays previously made to the patient. Also, for certain MRI they require a monthly rate of previous physical exercise.

To minimize this negative effect, they offer an appeals process, whose rules you must submit.At the end of that process, if you are still alive, it may be that you see your authorization finally approved.

In other words, it seems that insurance companies are denying medical procedures to patients covered by health market known as Obamacare. It would take only a proper investigation, to discuss government funding they are getting those companies to provide these services.

Because if an insurance company is involved in the open market health, they must provide coverage to patients, given that they are being compensated for their services.

As in all beginnings, there are problems that must be dissipated. Among these problems is the presence of tricksters always seeking to make their fortunes at the expense of human sacrifice.

An internal and external audit of the attached health insurance market regulated by the ACA (Afordable Care Act) is imposed.

The most interesting of the abuses we suffer in the US is the indifference of most politicians; Unfortunately, it happens that many of these traditional and renowned corporations finance political campaigns. And many government ombudsmen, just seem to be myopic and fail to see the abuses committed daily against the majority of the population.

We know and understand how our system works, which we support because by stimulating the entrepreneurial human spirit, put the world in motion, creating jobs and generating welfare works.

But by believing in our system and respect it, that is why we need legislators who just really support the majority, not the minority.

Not only do we worry about our bank accounts grow, and to increase excessive and corporate income indefinitely to achieve higher stock dividends at the end of each fiscal year.

We must also worry because consumers should be received a service honest and rewarding, mainly because they are who maintaining businesses, buying their products and / or services.

So, in this way our Democracy is preserved.

BENJAMIN F. DeYURRE
Economist and journalist.

POPE FRANCISCO AND BILL GATES

Published by El Nuevo Herald on Sept. 27, 2015

In his recent speech on Capitol Hill, the Pope argued, among other things, to combat poverty and disease using all available resources, including technological advances. Bill Gates certainly exercises this humanitarian work for years.

Never another Pontiff had expressed in the same way that the pope Francisco.

He declared himself as an immigrant. This is neither more nor less than an antidote to the poison spread by Donald Trump.

He called for better control of weapons, which end up in the wrong hands with innocent lives.

He said that a golden rule is to monitor and support human life at all stages of their development. This determined its position regarding the death penalty and abortion.

He expressed the urgent need to combat poverty, unsanitary and dangerous climate change.

He emphasized that the entrepreneurial individual must be eligible for aid, because people like them are those that generate employment, improve and change the world.

Entrepreneurs are really the quintessential job creators and effectively validate capitalism as the best known system; Indeed, in those places where capitalism is absent, poverty, repression and widespread crime they are present.

The founder of Microsoft, Bill Gates, exemplifies the successful businessman, concerned about combating poverty, while fighting the endemic scourges using their vast resources, including technology, of course.

Since the United Nations launched its Millennium Development Goals in 2000, Bill Gates has been a determining factor in the successful achievement of the same, namely: in the last 15 years extreme poverty has been halved; two billion people have clean water; 43 million go to school; AIDS infection has decreased by 40%

Smallpox and malaria were practically eradicated by Gates.Similarly, polio has decimated by 75%.

The vision changed when Gates with his wife Melinda began to travel by poor countries. Realizing that one billion people still live without electricity and estimating that by 2050 the demand for food will increase by 60%, he decided to get involved fully in the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations.

Today, Gates is investing billions of dollars in clean energy innovations, free carbon dioxide, which would help improve climate change while combating poverty by reducing the cost of transportation, electricity and use of fertilizers.

Undoubtedly, incentives for innovation funded by Gates have decreased the costs of photovoltaic solar cells and manufacturing have become cheaper for batteries that retain that energy.

At the same time, Gates also recently created two corporations: Global Disease Burden, a company that uses information from all the world researchers to fight particular diseases; and Global Citizens, a portal that aims to reduce poverty in all its forms.

As we see, the statements of the Holy Father on Capitol Hill have their followers.

It's not just about making money. For our system endures is necessary to contribute to the environment in all its aspects, that is; better living conditions for people, in other words, wages in line with actual costs, reasonable access to health services and an appropriate retreat for your retirement years.

And as the most important scientist of recent times, Stephen Hawking, "to save the world, each must tell others that our goal is to eradicate poverty and protect the environment," he said.

BENJAMIN F. DeYURRE

Economist and journalist.

WHO WON THE DEBATES ?

                              Published by El Nuevo Herald on Oct 16, 2015

Many argue that the debate between Republican presidential candidates far exceeded in television tuned to the recent Democratic debate.

It is indeed difficult to have such a colorful candidate as Donald Trump. Voters in both parties, independent immigrants, newcomers, women, gays and tourists lined up in front of public and private televisions to watch and listen as each new slapstick wielded by this individual.

You could say that Trump won the Republican debate, a fact that certainly corroborates his stay as the absolute leader in all polls.

His fiery words against illegal immigrants, its clear rejection to the use of the Spanish language in the US and its position in relation to women, generate precisely that effect on the harmony of the debate, as all expect to hear every time a new barbarism uttered by this billionaire.

For most viewers, Trump is a show in which many scoff or laugh. So it remains at the top of the polls, which of course is not the same as exercising the voting on election day.

The other Republican candidates, particularly Jeb Bush, ably appear to have dropped their guard; They wait for the epithets used by Trump or the speed reached crashing do wear out.

The Democratic debate also had a high estimated at more than 25 million people tuned. (Estimated just before real numbers)

Although to many young the winner was Bernie Sanders, the more focused balanced candidate, was certainly Hillary Clinton what makes her the real winner of the debate.

Hillary was cunningly defended by Sanders since her harassment has been for something as simple as her emails, when in the nation there are such serious problems as the paltry minimum wage and the continuous creation of American jobs overseas.

The former mayor of Baltimore and former Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley issued a speech anthology in his closing remarks. Clearly referring to Trump Republican debate and stressed that "there has not been spoken against immigrants, Hispanics or women"

US policy is an integral part of daily living. Hence the impact of the televised debates. Of course, the voters win when they have a chance to see the public positions of their candidates and their reactions when confronted.

Politicians win when they see the mistakes they made, which tries not to repeat in future discussions.

The parties win when polishing their candidates in every debate and make out the right message.

But those who actually earn more are TV channels who have the privilege to transmit the debates; indeed this prime time is highly prized by advertisers who pay exorbitant amounts to reach that segment of the population that is so important to their interests.

It turns out that most things are framed by an economic benefit. Whenever you come to power to dominate the economic base, which is the support of everything.

If you take the power under the cultural-ideological level (read feudal monarchs or religious lords), control of the economy is achieved.

If power is achieved through legal and political field (ie elections, coups and dictatorship), the ultimate aim is to manipulate financial resources.

In other words, the management of funds is usually what people sought, and certainly that's the nature of our system, so far the best known.Therefore, the discussions were, are and will always be a business.

And the ends have historically been negative in every respect. And both parties have their extremists, obviously. Do they have a chance to win the election? Probably not, according to the rule; However, every rule has its exception.

Benjamin F. DeYurre

Economist and Journalist. 

Follow on Twitter: @DEYURRE

THE YOUTHFUL INSANITY, A SCOURGE THAT PLAGUES US

Published by El Nuevo Herald on July 01, 2015

"My 21 year old son has mental disorders and drug addiction. He refuses to receive medical treatment and claims that they can not force him for being an adult. "  How many times have we heard dark stories like this narrated by parents powerless against the disturbing reality?

 

And what happens is really important.  The adults can not be forced to take medical treatment, including therapy, unless they are held in prison or supervised by the court.

 

And usually, when deprived of liberty or conditional it is because they have observed misconduct, framed in illegal and often criminal nature. In other words, most of the time we have to wait for an adult to upset comet crazy to force him to get proper medical treatment.  That is, there is no prevention in this matter.

 

Recently, a young man of 21 years killed nine black people in a Methodist Church located in Charleston, South Carolina.  Besides this bloody deed is considered a hate crime interlaced with strong religious beliefs, he points out the obvious truth that only a madman is capable of committing such barbarism;  killing nine people of any race, in any church or anywhere, is an act of insanity manifested.

And this young man of 21, was known for his strange behavior and drug hobby.  Probably, now the courts will decide he is mentally unstable and therefore should receive medical treatment.

 

And what they say to the families of the deceased?  Nothing, just  a lunatic appeared in place and wrong time and unfortunately these things happen.

 

In December 2012, another disturbed young man of 20 years, killed 20 children aged between five and ten years in a primary school in Newtown, Connecticut.

 

 In April 2007, a psychopath of 23 killed 32 people at Virginia Commonwealth University, Virginia Tech.

 In April 1999, two depressive young of 18 and 17, killed 15 people at Columbine High School, Littleton, Colorado.

 

These are just four cases that reached national notoriety.  In all of them mental imbalance was protagonist, accompanied by the fondness for video games and drugs. In each case it has revived the need to strengthen the permits and establish mandatory psychiatric examinations to become licensed to carry firearms.

Yet despite the importance of all considerations, we see as the more serious the fact that in the US there are no public asylums; The last known was the St. Elizabeth Hospital in Washington DC.

 

In Miami-Dade's largest mental health center is the county jail occupied by these patients on 1.200 beds (see our article in the Miami Herald, December 28, 2012).

 

Although in public psychiatry is difficult to differentiate the madness of drug addiction or homeless, we believe it is priority address the issue within the health budget, without thinking that this will affect US economic growth.  Unlike, for example, from 2000 to 2010, we see how Sweden, which has a general health care, according to the World Bank, grew faster than the US, a 2.31% annually, compared with 1.85% in the same period.

 

Finally, for those who have adult children with mental problems, perhaps an unaware option is that they can go to court, with or without the accused, in order to obtain temporary custody ordered by a judge.

 

Under this parameter, you have better control over an irrational behavior.

BENJAMIN F. DeYURRE
Economist and Journalist

CORPORATE MERGERS: CREATE WEALTH OR UNEMPLOYMENT ?

Published by El Nuevo Herald on June 07, 2015

Corporate mergers certainly create wealth.  And the amount of such transactions is such that this year have come together exceed ten economies of Latin America.  The downside of these mergers is generating unemployment.

Between January and May 2015, 10 mergers or acquisitions totaling $ 379 billion were agreed. The gross domestic product of all Central America reached $ 333 billion for the same period.

One of the most talked about mergers was the purchase of Kraft Foods by HJ Heinz, worth $ 45 billion.  By the way, HJ Heinz was previously acquired in 2013 by the famous mega millionaire Warren Buffett, who in turn is a major shareholder in companies such as Wells Fargo, Chase, Citibank, Visa, American Express, Geico, etc.  Buying on that occasion was for $ 28 billion.

And as in any merger, the latter caused many layoffs.  For example, in November 2013, HJ Heinz closed its plant in Pocatello, Idaho, directly affecting about 400 employees.

 

The dismissed staff required immediate assistance, particularly in the area of ​​training and finding new jobs.

In this regard, the Government, through the Department of Labor has approved emergency aid for $ 1.600 million.

Large corporations have been fusing increasingly through the years.  And those mergers encompass all areas of business.

For example, in the area of ​​aviation, the agreement between American Airlines and US Airways in 2013 for $ 13 billion exceeded the previous between United and Delta.  In each case the unemployed were more than 10,000 people.

At the technological level, Microsoft bought Nokia for $ 7.000 million.

 

At journalistic level, Jeff Bezos, Amazon, bought The Washington Post for $ 250 million, a real bargain.

Previously bank mergers were famous: Chase-Chemical Bank for $ 10,000 million, Citicorp-Travelers for $ 70.000 million and Nations Bank-Bank of the Americas for $ 60,000 million.

 

At energy level, the merger Exxon-Mobil for $ 77.000 million was famous.  So it was at automotive level the Chrysler-Benz for $ 130 billion, at laboratories level Glaxo-Smith Kline for $ 150 billion, and in the media, AOL-Time Warner for $ 150 billion.

 

These mergers not only result in thousands of layoffs, in addition, sometimes the public service deteriorates.

For example, previously, the telephone customer service at AT & T was quick and courteous.  After that company merged with TCI (now Comcast), BellSouth and Yahoo.  In this gigantic conglomerate physically it has difficulty serving 300 million customers.  That is why the call is an automatic litany finally treated in other countries.

 

Of course, mergers are generally creating corporate wealth as they encourage investors to buy newly issued shares on the stock, whose price starts to be quoted higher and higher by increased demand.

 

This, in turn, becomes higher dividends to shareholders at the end of each fiscal year.

 

For the corporation are also positive cost reduction, increased sales and greater efficiency.  The problem is that often the company that buys acquired the habits and norms of the other, that is, lower wages and benefits for its employees.

 

In practice just it happens that employees are terrified when they start to hear drums merger.

 

In continental Europe there is an explicit legislation limiting job losses after an extraterritorial merger.  In the US and the UK there is no legislation.

 

It is time to assume our the role, defending the employment in our country as true support of the society in which we live that also is a bastion of democracy in the world.

 

We have to legislate in this regard.

 

BENJAMIN F. DeYURRE 

Economist and journalist.