From: Bala Pillai [mailto:bala@apic.net]
Sent: Thursday, 29 September 2005 5:11 PM
To: 'act-km@yahoogroups.com'
Subject: RE: [act-km] Rules and what is really important

Ron,

>Bala
>On preserving wealth - is it a myth or are their other cultures which have decided >that since "real" property (land, buildings, stock, money etc) can always be >made worthless by others, the only wealth one can always retain is what one >knows?

Heaps more a myth than reality in Asia and amongst first generation Asians in the West. Though at the margins, the problem is at the very early bud-stage of beginning to be talked about (the worst of denial appears over).

Education is so you or your child does not have to work as a sweeper.

But you preserve your wealth by putting it into properties. Or onto other stuff when the trend is unequivocally established – you swarm, you don’t lead.

Education on a foundation of inferiority complex/low self-confidence breeds societies where because of the weak correlation between education and wealth, education is NOT equated with wealth. Political connections are equated with wealth and the universities were not clued on, on teaching students how to make political connections.

Education or eligibility to emigrate to first world countries is equated with security, and properties with wealth by the employee class. And the employee class, are the main meme providors and organisers (remember nearly every Asian journalist is a “House of Mirrors�? facilitating, non-risk-taking koolie) of public opinion.

Three other pivotal deterrents to education being equated with wealth in Asia (and therefore issues to be addressed for the Knowledge Economy to get into and catch on in the mainstream are):-

a) gross and pervasive crab syndrome (as the tall poppy syndrome is known and under-discussed in most of Asia)

b) unimaginativeness because of deep-seated otherisation (the Hollywood effect)

c) sexual mores/pussywhipped men (despite a façade of male-dominated societies)

Expansion:-

(a) Gross Crab Syndrome: Simply put, learning is a social phenomena. Some people make the world happen, more watch the world happen and most wonder what happened. In successful societies there would be a threshold number in the first category. If the number of "make the world happen" minds falls too much below that threshold number, the crab syndrome prevails. Crab syndrome = a large bunch of weaklings cowardly (typically with the help of crooked politicians who foster the structures for them), pull stronger ones down. When the crab syndrome is overwhelming, it is much less painful for a "make the world happen" mind to go overseas to societies that respect acumen, strength and more ubiquitous clarity on right and wrong. Serious brain drain. To societies that respect the risks and costs of sustainably resourcing such acumen and strength. To societies that have the common sense to realise that as expensive as organising the threshold number of "make the world happen" minds might be, NOT taking the risks or NOT resourcing it is EVEN MORE expensive.

(b) Unimaginativeness from Otherisation: Related notions to “otherised�? are "feudalistic", "dogs-barking-at-the-sun phenomena", "externalised", "me vs others rather than 'us'�? and haterade.

Let's imagine we were born a 100 years ago in a village:-

i) No media, no TV, no newspapers. So no bad news from all over the world to talk and pretend-care about and throw a few crumbs at to appease guilt trips.
ii) Nearly everybody would be self-employed mostly as farmers. They HAD to take risk. Unlike most reading this, they had no choice of leeching off the risk-taking of others in their village -- they HAD to learn experientially.

iii) When somebody makes an imaginative proposition, the lower life forms (aka non-risk-taking koolie class) cannot say "Oh that sounds like a Hollywood movie. You are being unrealistic. That is fantasy". They had to focus on “where do we go from here?�? and contribute towards alternative propositions, alternative thought sculptures on the path to progress. Why? Because there was NO HOLLYWOOD to pass the buck to. Remember, no movies, no TV, no media, no leeching opportunities for the parasite brains to cook in – then it was a case of take your share of risks or die like all other species. See “Turning Problems Into Money: How?�? at http://www.malaysia.net/node/150 for the causation chain.

For specifics, please go to Muhibbah network at http://malaysia-network.ryze.com

cheers../bala

Bala Pillai bala@apic.net