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The crisis – beat it before it beats you
Jack Soifer has been busy. His latest book, Como Sair da Crise (How to Beat the Crisis), is soon to appear in bookshops in Portugal, another handy guide with tips and tricks to help businesses save money and attract new business.
By Jack Soifer/get real©
For decades economic rules and cycles were predictable, as the majority of people acted rationally with regard to their purchases. Gangsters in the USA in the 1920s made it possible for cartels and oligopolies to destroy the free market. The introduction of anti-trust laws broke this development, but never banned it. Since the first President Bush, cartels and illegal economic acts are commonplace. In Europe, the European Union (EU) was expected to improve the free market by enabling capital, goods and services to freely move around six, then 12 and now 27 countries, but very strong lobbies turned these expectations into mere theory and empty political parlance.
The close contact between politicians and their electorate in earlier decades made the former understand well the needs and dreams of the constituents and a continuous dialogue made MPs, to a large degree, real representatives of most of their electors. Nowadays, however, with communication technology, the use of expensive television time and other communications gadgets, it costs some €250.000 on average to elect one MP in Portugal. The parties require support from enterprises and associations to achieve their dream: a majority, or at least a strong minority, in parliament. Here begins the disassociation between the elected and his/her constituents.
Real democracy requires real justice and economic democracy. In Portugal justice is very slow and the interpretation of the written law varies immensely, often depending on how to classify the issue and which words are used in the official writings. Also, since the dictator Salazar, most of the economic and judicial power remains in the hands of around a dozen families.
Margaret Thatcher, when UK Prime Minister, forced a deregulation of the EU in order to apply the economic theories of a perfect market, the “invisible hand”. It exists indeed, but only to gear the market to the most powerful enterprises, which lead the lobbies, which influence the governments about the rules and how these apply to the law.
Swiss researcher Jean Ziegler says there are €3.000 billion in private foreign owned accounts in Switzerland, a sum which only represent 27 per cent of the global value held in offshores. Thus, there is €11.000 billion in non-declared capital, most of it coming from criminal profits like bribes, arms, drugs, traffic of humans, human organs and prostitution.
What can Portugal do to beat the crisis?
Save on imports, such as fuel, using much more of its 3.000 hours per year of solar energy, energy from the waves, biogas and renewable fuels; to cultivate and export more ecological foodstuffs on top of flowers, plants and develop aquaculture, where Portugal offers one of the best potentials in the EU; ban dangerous additives to industrialised food and improve the distribution of foodstuffs and others in a way in which a larger percentage of the final price goes to the local producers instead of to a very few mega-enterprises which use the extra profits to acquire their more capable competitors.
The Algarve and Alentejo could capture more and industrialise upon their natural resources if a few lobbies could be a match for the government’s lobbies. There is a wealth of minerals in the Alentejo waiting to be tapped. Both of these regions, because of an abundance of sunshine, beautiful beaches, natural environment and thus plenty of newly retired highly-qualified northern European professionals, are excellent locations for providing high-quality services.
For the same reasons, tourism should be developed much more, but in 2008 Portugal had the same 12 million visitors as in 2000. As the demand is the same, but beds in hotels and chairs in restaurants increased by 40-60 per cent, prices remained stable or fell and inflation crushed profits, which in turn crushed salaries and thus the most important quality issue in tourism, personnel skills.
The misuse of land for high-density construction destroyed most of the green spaces and the gorgeous views to the sea; repeating the same mistake as Spain in the 1980s. The Algarve and Alentejo are already receiving tourists with much less money, a group which demands cheaper goods and services and which has little, if any interest, for local gastronomy, drinks, culture, etc. This kind of tourism does not lend itself to producing an income for Portugal as much of the revenue comes from imported goods. As a matter of fact the most iconic image of Portugal, purchased as a gift to friends, the Barcelos rooster, is imported from China.
More to come
In his latest book Jack has broadened the approach to take in a wide variety of business opportunities, offering detailed and sometimes controversial, analysis of the times we live and do business in today.
Over the following months our readers will be able to discover the wealth of opportunity Jack Soifer has spent years researching, together with some constructive and profitable ideas, allowing business people to really beat the crisis.
You won’t believe the possibilities!
Jack Soifer has been busy. His latest book, Como Sair da Crise (How to Beat the Crisis), is soon to appear in bookshops in Portugal, another handy guide with tips and tricks to help businesses save money and attract new business.
By Jack Soifer/get real©
For decades economic rules and cycles were predictable, as the majority of people acted rationally with regard to their purchases. Gangsters in the USA in the 1920s made it possible for cartels and oligopolies to destroy the free market. The introduction of anti-trust laws broke this development, but never banned it. Since the first President Bush, cartels and illegal economic acts are commonplace. In Europe, the European Union (EU) was expected to improve the free market by enabling capital, goods and services to freely move around six, then 12 and now 27 countries, but very strong lobbies turned these expectations into mere theory and empty political parlance.
The close contact between politicians and their electorate in earlier decades made the former understand well the needs and dreams of the constituents and a continuous dialogue made MPs, to a large degree, real representatives of most of their electors. Nowadays, however, with communication technology, the use of expensive television time and other communications gadgets, it costs some €250.000 on average to elect one MP in Portugal. The parties require support from enterprises and associations to achieve their dream: a majority, or at least a strong minority, in parliament. Here begins the disassociation between the elected and his/her constituents.
Real democracy requires real justice and economic democracy. In Portugal justice is very slow and the interpretation of the written law varies immensely, often depending on how to classify the issue and which words are used in the official writings. Also, since the dictator Salazar, most of the economic and judicial power remains in the hands of around a dozen families.
Margaret Thatcher, when UK Prime Minister, forced a deregulation of the EU in order to apply the economic theories of a perfect market, the “invisible hand”. It exists indeed, but only to gear the market to the most powerful enterprises, which lead the lobbies, which influence the governments about the rules and how these apply to the law.
Swiss researcher Jean Ziegler says there are €3.000 billion in private foreign owned accounts in Switzerland, a sum which only represent 27 per cent of the global value held in offshores. Thus, there is €11.000 billion in non-declared capital, most of it coming from criminal profits like bribes, arms, drugs, traffic of humans, human organs and prostitution.
What can Portugal do to beat the crisis?
Save on imports, such as fuel, using much more of its 3.000 hours per year of solar energy, energy from the waves, biogas and renewable fuels; to cultivate and export more ecological foodstuffs on top of flowers, plants and develop aquaculture, where Portugal offers one of the best potentials in the EU; ban dangerous additives to industrialised food and improve the distribution of foodstuffs and others in a way in which a larger percentage of the final price goes to the local producers instead of to a very few mega-enterprises which use the extra profits to acquire their more capable competitors.
The Algarve and Alentejo could capture more and industrialise upon their natural resources if a few lobbies could be a match for the government’s lobbies. There is a wealth of minerals in the Alentejo waiting to be tapped. Both of these regions, because of an abundance of sunshine, beautiful beaches, natural environment and thus plenty of newly retired highly-qualified northern European professionals, are excellent locations for providing high-quality services.
For the same reasons, tourism should be developed much more, but in 2008 Portugal had the same 12 million visitors as in 2000. As the demand is the same, but beds in hotels and chairs in restaurants increased by 40-60 per cent, prices remained stable or fell and inflation crushed profits, which in turn crushed salaries and thus the most important quality issue in tourism, personnel skills.
The misuse of land for high-density construction destroyed most of the green spaces and the gorgeous views to the sea; repeating the same mistake as Spain in the 1980s. The Algarve and Alentejo are already receiving tourists with much less money, a group which demands cheaper goods and services and which has little, if any interest, for local gastronomy, drinks, culture, etc. This kind of tourism does not lend itself to producing an income for Portugal as much of the revenue comes from imported goods. As a matter of fact the most iconic image of Portugal, purchased as a gift to friends, the Barcelos rooster, is imported from China.
More to come
In his latest book Jack has broadened the approach to take in a wide variety of business opportunities, offering detailed and sometimes controversial, analysis of the times we live and do business in today.
Over the following months our readers will be able to discover the wealth of opportunity Jack Soifer has spent years researching, together with some constructive and profitable ideas, allowing business people to really beat the crisis.
You won’t believe the possibilities!
