United States in so far is the richest country in the world. It is the country with the most billionaires, nearly 34%. Wealth accumulation has been liberal because of its capitalist market. But with the economic meltdown brought about by the greedy Wall Street, the wealth of the rich people is now put into limelight.
It was only in recent times that the US realized how immense the wealth disparity in their country. 50% of the national income is accounted from the top 10% of the richest families in the US. Wealth concentration is highly skewed towards the richest of the rich.
But the greed of the rich families continues to blur the line of social equity by lobbying for the permanent repeal of the Estate Tax. The said measure will give the rich a big room to preserve their wealth at the same time continue amassing wealth.
What is Estate Tax?
It is a form of tax levied on your inheritance. Currently, the law allows an exception of $ 5M from your estate with a 35% tax rate. But if looking at history, the exception has continuously increased while tax rate has decreased.
How serious are these rich families in winning the battle against the Estate Tax?
The gruesome battle started in the early Bush Administration (or the rich friendly Republican). Some figures from PCCW and UFE show that the rich families (Allyn-Soderberg, Cox, Blethen, Devos, etc.) have at least spent $ 5B on lobbying in favor of a permanent repeal and another $27.7M in campaign contributions. But they never seem to run out of money by supporting outside organizations to run negative and hate Ad campaigns against Estate Tax (Policy and Taxation Group, Freedom Works, American family Business Institute, etc.).
What are the usual complaints of the rich families?
1. Estate Tax is unfair because it is a form of double taxation.
2. Disincentive to work harder since the state will be mostly benefiting from it. Ergo, they can’t enjoy the fruits of their hard earned wealth.
3. Their parents worked their butt off to give their children a good future.
4. Estate Tax is unfair for those Mid wealthy families.
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Enough Sour-graping
All of us have problems. We face every day with problems at home, office, schools, friends, etc. Following this logic, I am wondering why some people still happy despite having a lot of problems. Also, why some people’s problem seems to be very small but it is as if the whole world went conspiring against them. With this in mind I went on to assume three things.
1. Problems does not equate to your emotional state,
2. Problems are very relative, and
3. People have different tolerance and threshold on handling problems.
If you try and observe the rich and the poor, then you will see how these 3 assumptions I made are translated to social behaviours. To help you understand let me paint this simple picture for you.
A poor man’s problem every day is where to get provisions like food for his family. He asked himself, “Where in God’s mercy will I get money to buy food?”. In retrospect, a rich man’s concern every day is where to eat for lunch. The rich man asked himself, “This restaurant serves very slow, where in this damned area will I find a new place to eat?”. If you try and weigh the gravity of their problems you will realize that the former is far humanely degrading than the later. To simplify it, the poor man’s problem is far greater than the rich man’s problem. The one is simply trying to survive for the day and the other is just simply ranting about the service of the restaurant.
Despite this, why do we see those leaving by mere hand to mouth existence happier than a grumpy old corporate guy?
I would try to end this by thanking the random guy I saw early this morning scavenging for food. During that time I feel so desperate about myself. I am sour-graping about very small things, but it felt that I am always at the brink of being suffocated by it. That very moment I felt like a pathetic loser trying to consume myself with stupid things while the guy in front of me is shamelessly searching for something to eat and drink from the left overs.
1. Problems does not equate to your emotional state,
2. Problems are very relative, and
3. People have different tolerance and threshold on handling problems.
If you try and observe the rich and the poor, then you will see how these 3 assumptions I made are translated to social behaviours. To help you understand let me paint this simple picture for you.
A poor man’s problem every day is where to get provisions like food for his family. He asked himself, “Where in God’s mercy will I get money to buy food?”. In retrospect, a rich man’s concern every day is where to eat for lunch. The rich man asked himself, “This restaurant serves very slow, where in this damned area will I find a new place to eat?”. If you try and weigh the gravity of their problems you will realize that the former is far humanely degrading than the later. To simplify it, the poor man’s problem is far greater than the rich man’s problem. The one is simply trying to survive for the day and the other is just simply ranting about the service of the restaurant.
Despite this, why do we see those leaving by mere hand to mouth existence happier than a grumpy old corporate guy?
I would try to end this by thanking the random guy I saw early this morning scavenging for food. During that time I feel so desperate about myself. I am sour-graping about very small things, but it felt that I am always at the brink of being suffocated by it. That very moment I felt like a pathetic loser trying to consume myself with stupid things while the guy in front of me is shamelessly searching for something to eat and drink from the left overs.
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Party at work
2011 is almost over. This is one of the challenging years for the company due to twin disaster in Japan and Thailand that threatened the global supply chain. Despite these exogenous events, the company is thriving to get it's 10th consecutive triple crown. A decade of quality products and service.
With all of these things,the year has to end on the right note.
First is the Dealer Christmas Party at Manila Hotel.
Then the Marketing Division Christmas Party at the Wharft ala 70's
Then the Coporate Christmas Party at TMP Sta Rosa. (and I won a Rudy Project sling bag in the raffle)
Then the VSO Christmas and Year End lunch at GT Tower.
Lastly is the DDD Christmas and Year End Dinner at Cyma and Polo's Biggest Loser Celebration.
Cheers for closing another fun year, 2011. Let us all welcome the year of the Dragon with optimism!
With all of these things,the year has to end on the right note.
First is the Dealer Christmas Party at Manila Hotel.
Then the Marketing Division Christmas Party at the Wharft ala 70's
Then the Coporate Christmas Party at TMP Sta Rosa. (and I won a Rudy Project sling bag in the raffle)
Then the VSO Christmas and Year End lunch at GT Tower.
Lastly is the DDD Christmas and Year End Dinner at Cyma and Polo's Biggest Loser Celebration.
Cheers for closing another fun year, 2011. Let us all welcome the year of the Dragon with optimism!
Friday, November 18, 2011
Hope for Philippines
Is there hope for Philippines?
It is as if all the good things here in the Philippines have been taken away. They took away our natural resources, they took away our best people, they took away our identity, and they took away our pride as a nation.
Gone are those days that Asia looks at Philippines as a progressive and ideal model of success.
Now, this entire Social and Political malady is being blamed to a corrupt government. We keep on complaining that the government is not doing its job properly. But had we forgotten, “we deserve the government that we have and that we elected”. A government that is corrupt just magnifies the corruption that is happening even to the smallest fabric of our society.
Corruption is everywhere and every one of us is guilty beyond reasonable doubt. Buying of pirated DVDs is corrupt and a crime. Not following traffic rules is corrupt. Bribing and under the table transactions is corrupt. Not properly segregating your waste and littering is corrupt. Any form of stealing is corrupt. Cheating in any form is corrupt. These are some of the corruption we consciously and unconsciously done.
Adding insult to injuries is when other nations look down on our race and discriminate us for being a Filipino. I sometimes can’t blame them because we act such barbaric (sometimes beyond what we can even comprehend). Now our identity as Filipinos, as a race, and as a nation is generalized and stereotyped as Thieves and Murderers just to name a few.
Now is corruption the problem of this country?
It is actually shocking to hear that a Korean can understand well the problem of Philippines compared to other Filipinos. Jaeyoun Kim said: I strongly believe that the problem is the lack of love for the Philippines. I was deeply moved by this because it totally makes sense.
If we really respected our country, we would do anything to protect its integrity. But we did otherwise. We blemished it with inconceivable ways of corruption. We act foolishly and selfishly. We act to serve our self-seeking and egotistical “selves”. We care so much for ourselves that we have forgotten the role we play in a big jigsaw puzzle. What is worse is that this acts becomes callous that will eventually be a tumour deeply concealed to all tenets of our society. And this scares the hell out of me.
Now I ask you, would you rather leave this nation and serve someone else nation than help rebuild whatever is left for this country? Are you willing to give up on our country to earn a small reward of fortune?
I think this poses as a challenge to every one of us. If you feel like making a difference let us start it to ourselves. Small changes will be small steps of revolution, but if everyone is united to changing their lives, it will be a big leap towards a new Philippines.
Now I will leave a question for everyone to ponder upon,
What do you call those people who blames and insults you for a crime you did despite being guilty of the same crime? We call them Hypocrites. In retrospect, how do we call those people who says that our government is so corrupt yet we are corrupt as well?
Now make yourself count for this country…
It is as if all the good things here in the Philippines have been taken away. They took away our natural resources, they took away our best people, they took away our identity, and they took away our pride as a nation.
Gone are those days that Asia looks at Philippines as a progressive and ideal model of success.
Now, this entire Social and Political malady is being blamed to a corrupt government. We keep on complaining that the government is not doing its job properly. But had we forgotten, “we deserve the government that we have and that we elected”. A government that is corrupt just magnifies the corruption that is happening even to the smallest fabric of our society.
Corruption is everywhere and every one of us is guilty beyond reasonable doubt. Buying of pirated DVDs is corrupt and a crime. Not following traffic rules is corrupt. Bribing and under the table transactions is corrupt. Not properly segregating your waste and littering is corrupt. Any form of stealing is corrupt. Cheating in any form is corrupt. These are some of the corruption we consciously and unconsciously done.
Adding insult to injuries is when other nations look down on our race and discriminate us for being a Filipino. I sometimes can’t blame them because we act such barbaric (sometimes beyond what we can even comprehend). Now our identity as Filipinos, as a race, and as a nation is generalized and stereotyped as Thieves and Murderers just to name a few.
Now is corruption the problem of this country?
It is actually shocking to hear that a Korean can understand well the problem of Philippines compared to other Filipinos. Jaeyoun Kim said: I strongly believe that the problem is the lack of love for the Philippines. I was deeply moved by this because it totally makes sense.
If we really respected our country, we would do anything to protect its integrity. But we did otherwise. We blemished it with inconceivable ways of corruption. We act foolishly and selfishly. We act to serve our self-seeking and egotistical “selves”. We care so much for ourselves that we have forgotten the role we play in a big jigsaw puzzle. What is worse is that this acts becomes callous that will eventually be a tumour deeply concealed to all tenets of our society. And this scares the hell out of me.
Now I ask you, would you rather leave this nation and serve someone else nation than help rebuild whatever is left for this country? Are you willing to give up on our country to earn a small reward of fortune?
I think this poses as a challenge to every one of us. If you feel like making a difference let us start it to ourselves. Small changes will be small steps of revolution, but if everyone is united to changing their lives, it will be a big leap towards a new Philippines.
Now I will leave a question for everyone to ponder upon,
What do you call those people who blames and insults you for a crime you did despite being guilty of the same crime? We call them Hypocrites. In retrospect, how do we call those people who says that our government is so corrupt yet we are corrupt as well?
Now make yourself count for this country…
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Going Green: a mere propaganda?
At this point Global Warming is no longer a myth. We now see in our own eyes Mother Earth’s wrath.
And because of this, we see continuous pressure for a lot of companies to “Go Green”. It therefore sets the bar higher for future innovations in the business operations.
Companies have been more keen and vigilant on reducing waste in their production line. And some take this call more seriously by creating products that are environmentally friendly. One that I am very familiar with is the creation of Prius, a hybrid, fuel efficient car of Toyota. From then on, we see more big companies’ committing to creating Earth-friendly products even to the little things like using of Reusable Canvas Totes instead of plastic bags in the market.
Although this new trend has created such a big fuss, I can’t help but to remain sceptic. Does it really reduce waste? Does it really reduce carbon emission? Does it really make sense? Despite these counter measures, there are still a lot of arguments against it that I somehow find plausible.
They say that green technology is very expensive. You need to invest a lot on research and development. This means you need a lot of money to jump start your green advocacy. But the problem just starts there, a lot of them tried but with only few successes. But even if the prototypes used in the R&D has been put into mass production, very few will be able to buy these products because the prices gets inflated due to high cost and investment. Well, companies still looks at their accounting books for a good ROI. This is the reason why we can see very few Prius along EDSA or elsewhere.
Also, the “Going Green” advocacy has been viral for consumers. They became more sensitive on products that they buy. They check the labels, the facts about it, etc. It is seen as a shaping movement by consumers not just to be informed but to have a direct participation on dictating market trends. At first, it was a consumer nightmare for companies. But, thanks to the ingenious marketing people to see this as another tool to increase their profit.
At first it may seem good. Companies are adopting the “Go Green” advocacy, but not really for the true intentions of it. It somehow became a Marketing race to create a new strategy that revolves in this new consumer craze. It is a race to gain sympathy for consumers to buy their product i.e. is the “Earth hour”.
My fear now is that, Going Green has not really served its purpose because of too much cheap pandering on it by a lot of insincere companies.
In the end, I would like to ask this question: Would we rather depend saving the environment to these profiteers or should we be a bit more sensitive and change our lifestyle? Just have a little sacrifice, a little change to make our home / ecosystem conducive for living for our children.
And because of this, we see continuous pressure for a lot of companies to “Go Green”. It therefore sets the bar higher for future innovations in the business operations.
Companies have been more keen and vigilant on reducing waste in their production line. And some take this call more seriously by creating products that are environmentally friendly. One that I am very familiar with is the creation of Prius, a hybrid, fuel efficient car of Toyota. From then on, we see more big companies’ committing to creating Earth-friendly products even to the little things like using of Reusable Canvas Totes instead of plastic bags in the market.
Although this new trend has created such a big fuss, I can’t help but to remain sceptic. Does it really reduce waste? Does it really reduce carbon emission? Does it really make sense? Despite these counter measures, there are still a lot of arguments against it that I somehow find plausible.
They say that green technology is very expensive. You need to invest a lot on research and development. This means you need a lot of money to jump start your green advocacy. But the problem just starts there, a lot of them tried but with only few successes. But even if the prototypes used in the R&D has been put into mass production, very few will be able to buy these products because the prices gets inflated due to high cost and investment. Well, companies still looks at their accounting books for a good ROI. This is the reason why we can see very few Prius along EDSA or elsewhere.
Also, the “Going Green” advocacy has been viral for consumers. They became more sensitive on products that they buy. They check the labels, the facts about it, etc. It is seen as a shaping movement by consumers not just to be informed but to have a direct participation on dictating market trends. At first, it was a consumer nightmare for companies. But, thanks to the ingenious marketing people to see this as another tool to increase their profit.
At first it may seem good. Companies are adopting the “Go Green” advocacy, but not really for the true intentions of it. It somehow became a Marketing race to create a new strategy that revolves in this new consumer craze. It is a race to gain sympathy for consumers to buy their product i.e. is the “Earth hour”.
My fear now is that, Going Green has not really served its purpose because of too much cheap pandering on it by a lot of insincere companies.
In the end, I would like to ask this question: Would we rather depend saving the environment to these profiteers or should we be a bit more sensitive and change our lifestyle? Just have a little sacrifice, a little change to make our home / ecosystem conducive for living for our children.
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Work meets leisure
The past months were awfully-wickedly-busy months. Workload is pouring in like the last quarter of the year is headed for a total train wreck. Although the calendar is overcrowded with a lot of deadlines and events, I could say that I was able to get through it (Proof: I am blogging again).
I would say that the past 2 weeks or so has been amazingly tough. I’ve been on and off the office for meetings and official business trips. And I can say that these were the times that I realized the degree and gravity of our work.
In those days I have travelled and met a lot of interesting people, not to mention, really accommodating hosts. I would say that this experience will definitely go to the top of my list of favourite things a love about my work.
Veni, vidi, vici. I came, I saw, I conquered.
I came to research. I saw what these places can offer. And I conquered the great foods that each places offers.
Beyond my work, I tried to enjoy every place I visited. I laid out a carefully planned itinerary for every trip so I won’t miss out the fun of being a tourist.
I surely missed my working area. And since my last official business trip was cancelled, I am to go back to my office routine. Darn! I almost forgot, I still have to do my liquidation.
Cheers everyone! I hope you are enjoying your job as well!
I would say that the past 2 weeks or so has been amazingly tough. I’ve been on and off the office for meetings and official business trips. And I can say that these were the times that I realized the degree and gravity of our work.
In those days I have travelled and met a lot of interesting people, not to mention, really accommodating hosts. I would say that this experience will definitely go to the top of my list of favourite things a love about my work.
Veni, vidi, vici. I came, I saw, I conquered.
I came to research. I saw what these places can offer. And I conquered the great foods that each places offers.
Beyond my work, I tried to enjoy every place I visited. I laid out a carefully planned itinerary for every trip so I won’t miss out the fun of being a tourist.
I surely missed my working area. And since my last official business trip was cancelled, I am to go back to my office routine. Darn! I almost forgot, I still have to do my liquidation.
Cheers everyone! I hope you are enjoying your job as well!
Friday, June 3, 2011
Part 4: Eavesdropping
Past midnight, I am just nearing deep slumber when I heard a loud noise. Damn it! I forgot to change my alarm. I am wide awake now just staring at the ceiling.
If sleeping for me is just as simple as counting sheep in my head, then I would have no problem now. Geez… As an insomniac like me, I could only hope that sooner or later I will get some sleep.
Clueless of what to do, I just listen to the bark of the dogs, the speeding cars along EDSA, the air-con, until I finally feel drowsy. And finally I am dozing off.
I woke up at around 6 in the morning. I prepare my clothes for work. Spread some butter to the freshly toasted bread. Pour on cold milk onto my cereal.
Then after taking a bath and changing into my corporate clothes, I left right away to avoid being late.
Tuesday mornings are not too different from all the working days except for the weekly update presentation to the executives.
Since I am pretty much done with my presentation I decided to take a load off by smoking a stick at the smoking area. The smoking area is just a few feet away from the pantry. While I consume my first stick of the day, I accidentally overheard some colleagues talking about something.
Maybe because I am curious or just simply bored, I made an effort to eavesdrop on their conversation. They are talking about someone, the newly hired Marketing Assistant. They seem excited and eager to meet that person.
So for me, I was like- Fresh meat! Bottom of the corporate food chain…
I am curious of course, but then why should it concern me that much? After all, we don’t belong on the same team.
After all the early morning rituals at the office I went back to my cubicle. That time the HR is already introducing the new hire. Much to my delight, the new hire is Cathy. She is a friend way back in College.
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