Compromises, in the national interest

Someone once said that being President of a country is the loneliest job in the world. After all is said and done… the final decision on what route to take for the nation is only for the President to make. There are times when the decision that must be taken goes against the President’s instincts and belief. Yet, he must make that decision in the national interest.

Last week, two presidents I support and pray will succeed amidst the difficulties they face made such compromises. Yet, it is easy to see that the decision wasn’t at all what they would have wanted to make if only the circumstances allowed them.

President Obama made that compromise on the tax cut for the rich. President Aquino had to order our diplomats to skip the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony out of consideration of China’s feelings, attempts to camouflage the decision for local consumption notwithstanding.

I am sure both Presidents are very unhappy with what they had to do. Obama specifically campaigned for greater social equality with the Bush tax cuts as the symbolic issue that clearly differentiates the Democrats from the Republicans.

Mr. Aquino, whose family is a victim of human rights abuses and campaigned on the platform of upholding human rights, must surely know China is clearly on the wrong side of the issue on the Nobel Peace Prize. For that reason, it must have been difficult for P-Noy to make that decision. He knows too that it goes against the grain of national sentiment.

The Bush tax cuts that included the rich in American society clearly made no economic sense. It didn’t work in the years Mr. Bush was in office. Indeed, it helped aggravate the monstrous fiscal deficit they now have.

It has also been shown that the tax cut as applied to the rich has not helped to get the economy moving. The rich tend to save extra money, which the tax benefit is to them. On the other hand, that tax cut works when given to the lower classes because they tend to spend it right away, thus helping kick start the economy.

The Republican claim that the tax cut will cause the rich to create jobs isn’t true either. Rich individuals and companies are simply hoarding their money these days, which explains the slow economic recovery.

Studies have shown that the past years have seen an increase in the gap between the middle class and the rich. Obama promised to bridge that gap and if he had his rathers, he would rather let the tax benefit expire for the rich.

But the Bush tax cut is something the Republicans hold holy and non negotiable. Thus, they held hostage the need to extend jobless benefits for the long term unemployed. Given the weak economy and the stubborn high unemployment rate, Obama had no choice but to fall for the Republican blackmail and agree to the compromise.

Obama knew that the economy needed another boost and Congress is in no mood to give him another stimulus package. This is as good a stimulus package as he could get. And he got it because the alternative is even more gruesome for the sluggish American economy in danger of a double dip recession.

Now Obama is facing a revolt from the members of his own party. Rank and file Democrats in the House of Representatives are not about to allow the Republicans to kick them around without a fight. They will probably end up with a weird situation… the Republicans voting for the compromise agreed to by a Democratic President with a good number of Democrats opposing it as a matter of principle.

On P-Noy and China, his own supporters in the social media are boiling over in anger over the decision to join a small group of countries snubbing the Nobel Peace Prize ceremonies at the instigation of China. The attempt of the DFA and Palace spokesmen to insult our intelligence by claiming it was just a scheduling problem made the situation worse.

It didn’t help P-Noy’s image of helplessness in dealing with China because this happened in the week Vera Files, an investigative journalism group, revealed China’s construction of a light house in one of the contested islands in the Spratlys. P-Noy also decided we will not protest that with China.

We need to allow P-Noy some slack and give him the benefit of the doubt. P-Noy cannot afford to antagonize China, so soon after that Luneta carnage aggravated by the investigation report watered down by P-Noy’s lawyers on his instruction.

There are also so many things we need from China from armaments to railroads. The know-it-alls can posture all they want but P-Noy must deal with the reality that we need China’s good graces. I am pretty sure P-Noy is not proud of this decision but geopolitical considerations had to prevail.

The balance of power in the region is changing. With the ability of the US to provide meaningful assistance to our country severely diminished by their financial problems, the rich and powerful neighbor up North has cast a long shadow in the region that cannot be ignored. In this context, skipping a ceremony is a small price to pay.

These are the burdens of leadership that Obama and Aquino must bear. Because they have responsibility for the country, they do not have the luxury of always making a decision based on what they have said during their campaigns. Their supporters are disappointed. There will be a lot of screaming that they have sold out and broken their promises. But we must sympathize instead with these leaders who must have agonized before they finally concluded that the national interest called for a personally distasteful compromise.

Tourism

I received this e-mail from The Very Reverend Barry Cumberland.

Thank you for the excellent article on tourism here published in yesterday’s The Philippine Star. A couple of years ago you wrote on the same subject and I wrote to you then and you very kindly replied.

The situation has not changed. Two years ago I told you that in spite of my best efforts as a foreigner who has been here for 20 years, it was extremely difficult to get people from abroad to visit here. The situation has only worsened.

The whole infrastructure is a shambles and one only has to think of arriving at NAIA. It was only Richard Gordon who did something positive and who was a ‘hands on’ Secretary of Tourism. The saga involving the new logo almost beggars belief. It is simply incredible that such a logo could have been approved. There is supposed to be consultation in December with so called stakeholders. Will any foreigners be invited to express their opinion? I would be happy to serve!!

The nation has to face squarely its negative image. In addition to the recent hostage killing of Hong Kong tourists only yesterday the anniversary of the appalling Maguindanao massacre was featured on bulletins of international news. This is the image rightly or wrongly.

In September I had a visitor here for a week. He stayed at the Pan Pacific Hotel which he enjoyed. But whenever he left the hotel he was constantly pesterd by beggars in Malate. After he had left he sent me an e-mail saying he would never return.

I have never met Secretary Lim and no doubt he is a very worthy man. In addition to his responsibilities as Secretary of Tourism he is also now in charge of the Philippine Retirement Authority which is meant to encourage foreigners to retire here. I am one of them.

There are also many problems there and often the impression is given that nobody listens to the clients who are the foreigners. I understand a number have become so fed up that they have left the scheme and left the country. It is tragic but it will continue in both the tourism sector and the PRA until someone takes the problems seriously and is really willing to deal with them.

All good wishes…

Mobile number

Rosan Cruz sent this one.

A newly married husband saved his wife’s number on his mobile as “My Life”

After one year of marriage he has change the number to “My wife”

After two years, he has changed the number to “Home”

After five years, he has changed the number to “Hitler”

After 10 years, he has changed the number to “Wrong number”

Boo Chanco’s e-mail address is  [email protected]