Key Questions/Themes Dedicated to Governments, Leaders and Would be Leaders of the World about Governability, Competitiveness, Global Power Dynamics, Foreign Trade, International Relations, Education, Industrial and Economic Policy, Human Nature and Self-Knowledge, Personal and World Philosophy
Peace, Dignity and Prosperity: For a Better Future for the Nations of the World
By:
Enrique R. Suarez
International Educator, Management Consultant & Professor
www.wix.com/suarezenrique/delta
suarezenrique@yahoo.com
A New Age
“The concepts of democracy and development are intrinsically linked in many respects. One is that they have a common enemy: the loss of sovereignty. In a world of nations states, by definition, a loss of sovereignty leads to a loss of democracy and a loss of capacity to carry out in practice social and economic policies. This in turn affects development, a fact confirmed by centuries of economic history.”
M.I.T. Professor and Activist Noam Chomsky
Key Questions about Governability
1. Explain your philosophy of government, that is, good governance, and how this knowledge can improve the competitiveness, quality and productivity of your country as a whole. What is the meaning of having constancy of purpose on good governance?
2. Explain what type of knowledge, know-how and personal qualities a contender to the presidency should have in order to be successful and what should be the minimum requirements to be a congressman in your country. What criterion should you use to select the members of your cabinet?
3. Explain the relationship (if there is one) between governmental corruption and economic progress. Is the corruption the main cause of the economic-social decay of nations? If not, why not?
4. Explain the key principles of good practices in the public sector of your country and what should be the relationship between the public and private sector to promote the economic-social development of your country.
5. Explain that kind of government policies should be implemented in your country that would promote the pride of workmanship in the work force and love for the environment/country. Explain what extrinsic and intrinsic motivations should be instituted in the government sector to promote sound government policies that would aid in their efforts to fight corruption in the government and private sector.
6. Explain how government policies affect for better or for worse the regional and overall national competitiveness of your country. What does it means to you to govern your country as a system?
7. Explain what type of cooperation should exist among members of government, industry and education/academia to promote the socio-economic development of your country.
8. Explain what type of economic and industrial policies promote the integration of your country with other nations.
9. Explain why is necessary but not sufficient to have a stable legal-socio-political system to be competitive. Why a stable macroeconomic system is not sufficient to achieve the competitiveness of firms within the country?
10. Explain the meaning of optimizing a system.
11. Explain where you would obtain all this new necessary know-how and knowledge to lead your nation towards its optimization.
12. Explain if the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights is applied differently among the developed countries and the remaining countries of the world and why. Explain the relationship between these fundamental rights and the associated economic development of a nation.
13. Why should the Universal Declaration of Human Rights be one of the pillars of the new world order?
Key Questions on Competitiveness
14. Explain the meaning of country competitiveness.
15. Explain the economic and industrial policies of your country of the last 20 years and describe whether these policies have affected the regional and national competitiveness of your country for better or for worse.
16. Explain how in your view the key determinants of economic prosperity of a nation interact to bring about the socio-economic optimization of a country.
17. Explain what should be the role of government in the regional and national competitiveness of your country.
18. Explain the difference between the comparative advantages and the competitive advantages of a nation. What should be more important, the volume of exports of a country or its composition?
19. Explain the level or stage of economic development of your country at present, and what type of political industrial, macroeconomic, microeconomic and educational policies will cause that your country progress to a more advanced stage of economic development.
20. Explain the difference between competing on price versus competing on quality.
21. Explain what type of indicators you would use to measure the educational and industrial competitiveness of your country.
22. Explain how is affected the competitiveness of a country when it devaluates its national currency. What sectors benefit and what sectors do not with the devaluation of the currency in your country. Is a strong currency beneficial or not for the competitiveness of a country?
23. Explain if the nationality of the owners and shareholders of companies is important for the national competitiveness of your country. What message would you give to foreign investors that want to invest in your country regarding your desires to make your country an ecological friendly competitor?
24. Explain the relationship between microeconomic and macroeconomic policies to the national competitiveness of your country. Why there is an increase in microeconomic productivity and a reduction in costs when quality improves? Why is important to have stable macroeconomics policies to have microeconomic competitiveness? What should be the role of free trade agreements in the competitiveness of your country?
25. Explain whether the role played by unions in your country is negative or positive to the competitiveness of your country. What methods and government policies you would use so that unions get more involved in the management of quality and decision-making in the company as a whole. What would be the organizational and managerial obstacles in implementing these policies and who do you think would oppose these policies?
26. Explain if the lack of productivity or closing of a factory itself is due to evil managerial decisions and/or bad managerial practices, or whether is the result of the lack of capacity and intelligence of the workers.
27. It has been said by economists of advanced countries that management in developing countries is opportunistic. Do you agree? If you are a developed country, how would you interact with these developing countries?
28. Explain the current overall competitiveness of your country and government policy in industry, and education as compared with neighboring countries and what would you do to improve the competitiveness of your country in the short, medium and long-term. What would be your priorities and what methods would you use to improve the competitiveness in each sector? How and why would you integrate the non economic and economic sectors of the economy to collaborate in the competitiveness of the country?
29. Explain how and why you would design a regional economic policy with other neighboring countries. What would be the benefits and the obstacles?
30. Explain what globalization is, what are its advantages and disadvantages and why many groups are opposing globalization also known as anti-system groups. In your opinion, what is an anti-system group?
31. Explain the meaning of pure capitalism as opposed to state capitalism.
32. What would you say to Marx if he were alive nowadays relating to the international financial crisis?
33. How would you explain to the citizens of your country the most important causes of the international financial crisis and how to fix it?
34. Under what conditions the free movement of financial capital generates crisis in the productive sector of the economy?
35. Why did Novel Laureate economist James Tobin, propose to tax the short-term free movement of capital without being successful? What is the link between the control of capital with free trade and the socio-economic development of nations?
Key Questions on International Relations and World Power Dynamics
36. In your own view what are the three main threats that the world faces today in terms of its own survival? Explain the social, political, economic and philosophical principles by which your foreign policy with other nations would be based, beginning with your neighboring countries, the United States, the European Community, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. What is the meaning of having constancy on purpose in international relations?
37. Explain the new dynamics of global power, the role of the United States and the European Community in this new world order, and the role of the emerging countries of India and China, including Russia, in this new world order. What is the role that the energy resources of the Middle East and of Eurasia play in this new world order?
38. What do you think about the new economic and political integration (independence) of South America? How do you see the political and socioeconomic leadership of Venezuela, Bolivia and Ecuador in this new South American order?
39. Explain the meaning of applying quality in our international relations with other countries. What would be the benefits? Do you believe that peace should supersede prosperity or it is the other way around?
40. Explain the meaning of applying system thinking in our international relations with other countries? What is the connection of this type of know-how with affecting the national and international competitiveness of countries, including having peace, dignity and prosperity for all?
41. Explain how you would accomplish the socio-economic integration of your country with other countries. What would be the method? What would be the obstacles? What type (s) of free trade agreements would better respect the current stages of economic development of your country? Is the level of economic and social development of your country similar to that of other neighboring countries? How do you know it? What type of socio-economic indicators would you use to measure the similarities and the differences of economic development among countries? Why would this knowledge be important to the Department of Foreign Affairs of your country?
42. Explain which are the neighboring countries, if any, that threaten the political, social and economic development of your country and why? What would you do with these countries? What messages would you give to them? Who would be our allies?
43. Explain how might the competitiveness of your country be affected by not having enough qualified personnel in your embassies around the world? What should be the role of the Department of Foreign Affairs of your country in the achievement of peace, dignity and prosperity for your country and others? What should be the new profile of your country diplomat?
44. Explain how the competitiveness of your country could be adversely affected if the president does not govern the country as a system.
45. Explain what type of policies and international covenants you would institute that will make your country be more respected in the world? What neighboring countries do you think would help us to achieve these policies?
46. Explain what measures would you take against other countries that do not give free access to their markets but they enjoy free access to ours? What measures can be used for the countries that defame the image of other countries abroad?
47. Explain the differences, if any, between being a developing and an emerging country.
48. Explain what kind of deterrence, short of another arms build-up, you would use with your neighboring countries that have a large military budget considering that one of your long-term goals is the socio-economic integration of your country with other neighboring countries.
49. Explain what lessons of integration for your country can be learned from the European Community experiment. What are the external and internal obstacles that do not permit a true integration between your country and others?
Key Questions on Industrial and Economic Policies
50. Explain what the goal (s) of economic development is all about
51. Explain the difference between producing for the market versus producing to fulfill human needs.
52. In your opinion what type of business practices and business models are responsible for climate change? Explain what alternative business models would you favor that can take care of the environment and keep the economy going at the same time.
53. Explain the meaning of adopting a new ecological socio-economic development philosophy for all the regions of your country. What government agencies would be better qualified to lead the change?
54. Explain what it means to have an industrial policy in your country? What economic model would you use that you believe it would be adequate to apply in your country and why?
55. Explain what industrial sectors of your country were responsible for the recent economic growth of your country and whether you believe that this growth is sustainable and egalitarian in the future.
56. Explain the contributions of Dr. Hernando de Soto in the creation of wealth in developing countries. Do you believe as he does that that no nation can have a strong market economy without adequate participation in an information framework that records ownership of property and other economic activities?
57. Are you in agreement with recent reports by Harvard’s Michael Porter on the state of the competitiveness of your country? If you are not, explain the reason.
58. Explain the differences between competing based on basic factors of production, versus competition based on investment and innovation.
59. Explain what government policies would be useful or necessary to implement so that local companies in your country can have an international focus.
60. Explain the consequences (if there are any) negative or positive for the country, when your government institute export oriented policies without having saturated the internal market first.
61. Explain if the internal market saturation of a product or service in your country is damaging or beneficial for industry.
62. Explain the role of the factors of production in the competitive advantage of a nation.
63. Explain the ideal role that businesses (owners, managers, employees and other stakeholders) should play in the competitive advantage of your nation.
64. Explain the role national demand (purchasing power) plays in the competitive advantage of your nation and what type of national demand affects better the quality and competitiveness of the products and services of a nation (supply).
65. Explain the role that play in the competitiveness of a nation to have conglomerates of related industries situated in a particular geographical region.
66. Explain the role of the state in the regional and national competitiveness of your country.
67. Explain why the most competitive industries of a nation are concentrated in specific geographical regions of the world.
68. Explain the role that innovation plays in the competitiveness of a country.
69. Explain industrial competence/competition based on price and one based on quality. Can we have both?
70. Explain what type of business environment promotes innovation in your country.
71. Explain why the Argentine economic model of 2003-2004 collapsed and what lessons can be learned from the Argentine experiment? Why did the Washington Consensus fail in Latin America?
72. Explain the consequences (good or bad) to have an exchange rate at a par with the dollar.
73. Explain the meaning of a stable macroeconomics and of a competitive microeconomics.
74. Explain why a stable macroeconomic system is not sufficient to achieve the creation of new jobs?
75. Explain why the investments in physical infrastructure and in education alone are not sufficient for the economic development of any country.
76. Explain some key reasons for the industrial transformation of Japan and its quality-driven influence in the entire world. Explain the contributions of Dr. Edwards W. Deming and other makers of the industrial revolution of Japan and what lessons can be learned of the initial Japanese miracle for your country?
77. Explain the role that adversity plays in the competitiveness of nations.
78. Explain why countries that do not possess abundant natural resources are the ones that have developed more in this new economic era. Explain why countries with abundant natural resources are not the most competitive in the world market.
79. Explain why the free market model (minimum intervention of the state in the competitiveness of a country) has not been successful in the majority of the developing world that had adopted free market policies. What alternative market models would you apply so that your country can grow integrally? Did your country develop without the intervention of the state? If it did not, please explain.
Key Questions on Education
80. Explain the relationship (if exists) among industry, education and government to influence national competitiveness in your country. Who would be the clients and beneficiaries of the education system and who would be the clients and beneficiaries of industry and of sound and egalitarian government policies?
81. Explain the meaning of having quality education in your country and what should be the educational profile of the new student and teacher of your country.
82. Explain, if this is true for your country, the reasons for the deterioration of the educational system in your country.
83. Would you agree that investment in education alone does not have correlation with the economic development of a country? Why do we have some of the most educated taxi drivers living in developing countries?
84. Explain what type of government policies encourages the love for the country and the care of the environment. Explain what kind of education would better respect the multiple talents and intelligences that children possess?
85. Explain what type of knowledge and know-how would be more prominent to teach in your country to promote a more advanced level of educational development.
86. Explain why it is necessary that the teacher and the directors of schools be better qualified in this new economic era. What type of administrative-managerial know-how would be needed in your country state schools so that your students can have a quality education?
87. Explain what intelligence is and the different types of intelligences that exist in each child. What kind of educational policies and pedagogical practices would better encourage the growth of the diverse intelligences that students possess? How would you set up policies so that teachers teach these new concepts in different regions of your country? What type of dexterities your students in the public education sector possess in this moment?
88. Is the solution to the educational problems of your country of a monetary-salary compensation nature alone or would you consider other factors as well? Explain the role of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation in the educational achievement of your students and whether this motivation can be beneficially extrapolated to the workforce.
89. Explain how the state can better negotiate with the teacher’s unions in your country so that they can embark in the optimization of the educational system of your country but without "throwing the towel"
90. Explain the relationship (if there is any) between information and knowledge. Do you know the differences?
91. Explain what you can do so that the government and the private sector in your country work together towards the improvement of the educational system. Give a convincing argument about why the private sector should intervene in the public educational system in your country.
Key Questions on Human Nature, your Philosophy of Life and of the World
92. Explain to the citizens of your country your philosophy of life and how this philosophy has helped you to lead the destiny of your country.
93. Explain what personal experiences (transforming and paralyzing) have qualified you to be a successful leader for your country.
94. Explain your personal relationship with God (if you believe of course that there is a superior power) and how this relationship is practiced in your daily life. How does your personal relation with God will help you direct the destinies of your country? Do you know the difference between believing and knowing God?
95. Explain the meaning of “knowing thyself” as Socrates postulated it hundreds of years ago.
96. Explain if terrorism is caused by religious fervor and whether other non-religious external and internal factors exist. Explain the difference between terrorism and counter terrorism.
97. Explain the fundamental reasons for the student revolt in the Middle East and whether there is a relationship with the foreign policy of the United States in that region.
98. Explain the relationship (if there is one) between the sale of weapons and the violation of human rights around the world.
99. Explain if the foreign policy of the United States favors or not peace and democracy in the world.
100. Explain what practical or philosophical message would you give to the Arab-Muslim world and to American government leaders about the current Arab uprising.
101. Explain who are your favorite world leaders in politics, religion, the peace movement, education, science, culture, sports, business, the arts and the economy and why?
102. Explain the role that adversity and poverty play in the personal motivation to succeed in life. In which conditions adversity is paralyzing and in what conditions is liberating?
103. Explain in what context and conditions is the creation of material and intellectual wealth produced by the upper, middle or lower socio-economic class.
104. Explain if individuals and nations share more similarities than differences. Which would be these similarities and which the differences?
105. How would you use this knowledge to unify the regions of your country and of other neighboring countries with common goals?
106. Explain some personal-professional achievements that you had attributed to your own capacity but that in reality were a stroke of luck.
107. Explain some personal-professional achievements that you had attributed were the result of pure luck but that in fact were due to your own capacity. Give some reasons why you believe that your personal achievements and know-how and professional experiences have qualified you to direct the destinies of millions of citizens of your country.
108. Explain in your own words the main responsibility of government leaders to bring peace, dignity and prosperity to the citizens of their countries and of the world.
109. Can world institutions bring peace to this world? If not, can they instead facilitate peace in this world? If yes, please explain how?
110. What are the main lessons that the peace movement, including Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Bertrand Russell, Albert Einstein and Noam Chomsky are trying to convey to the world?
I look forward to getting your answers.
Sincerely,
Enrique R. Suarez
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