Archive for the ‘Economy’ Category

Alberta Liberal Caucus Communications just posted a new video featuring Laurie Blakeman.  In the video she’s encouraging Albertans to speak up about how they want to see the land used in the Lower Athabasca region.  Its’ a direct response to the recommendations about the Lower Athabasca Land Use framework.

I can picture you removing me from your bookmarks as you read the title. Please reverse that urge and listen to me on this point: I can back this up. Bush can be considered one of the biggest green leaders in the United States in most recent history. I can say this for three reasons.

(1) As governor of Texas he signed and pushed a plan that required a portion of the electricity generated by the utility companies in the state had to be from green sources. He increased the tax credit for windmills, provided training, and helped start an industry where there was none before. It’s to the point now that the mandate can be tossed away because wind power has been so wildly successful in Texas.

(2) As president Bush secured the most area for environmental protection than any other president before him.

The three areas — totaling some 195,280 square miles — include the Mariana Trench, the deepest spot on earth at 36,000 feet below the sea.

(3) De-regulated the energy sector in such a way in the state of Texas to allow for start ups to start filling out niches in the market place in terms of transmission lines to rural Texas and in power generation. In his gubernatorial reign Bush Jr. created a framework that allowed for investors to work together, invest into a region, and serve the public morally, sustainably, and, of course, more than adequately.

Watch the reasonings and methods above: it isn’t a mandate that all electricity should be created vis-a-vis new technologies. A base requirement was set, a financial system of support was made to start the change, and, finally, the market place was not demonstrably changed but adjusted to suit the needs of the people and business.

What Bush did with his reorientating of the Texan marketplace was simple: he set a minimum, pointed in a general direction, gave a few financial incentives for some of the “hows” and a far away “when”, and let the innovators/investors decide their own “hows” and surpass the “when”. The free market is an amazing tool to serve people and society if we can just facilitate the right incentives, push the right people, and invigorate a portion of society to contribute their skills/resources.

One thing I noticed when talking to people is that they disconnect the interests of business with people–and it’s completely the wrong way to think about things. Not only do interests of business and people overlap, people make businesses! When the oddball communist spouts off about corporate fascism or a left-wing environmentalist talks about uncaring corporations there’s an issue with their line of thinking because each corporation is not just a piece of paper or an organization… there are people within that organization, people that write that paper, and people that make the decisions.

Corporations are not soulless, mindless profit seekers. The people in these organizations can be guided, if given the chance. If the path is laid, opportunity given, and a base minimum set, the achievements unlock-able by public and private policy can herald something new and unthinkable previously.

One thing that I have noticed through business (my family’s) and through careful study is that once the financial hangups and problems are dealt away with the basic human instinct to do good tends to overpower any other urge. If Canada could emulate this facet of Bush policy, set up a regime conducive to green investment, and support businesses as they transition, well, there is little doubt in my mind we can move forward into the actual next generation of green economies.

And all it takes is leadership–a strong vision.

The Problem

Canadians are going more and more to Florida, and elsewhere, for their vacations and Snow Bird excursions. With a downtrodden American economy this is cheap and easy to do for Canadians. Also, with the perception of the rise in violence in Mexico many Canadians write the country off for vacation and, of course, that hurts the interests of Puerto Vallarta.

As it currently stands there is room to both grow and secure a population of Canadian tourists to go to Puerto Vallarta for their vacations. Also, I seek to create a pseudo-understanding of communications so as to allow for a framework to understand issues as they arise.

Creating the Understanding for the Reader:

One thing that can always improve the ability of a group or person to understand themselves and the challenges they face are structures of understanding. One such structure is the triad and another would be the relations between people. Both of these ideas will be developed below.

Utilization of the Triad:

Public action requires the joint effort of the need, organized action, and tools. This has been termed in warfare as the people (‘emotion’), government (‘policy’), and military (‘tools’). This has also be termed in psychology as id (‘instinct’), ego (‘structure’), and super-ego (‘logic’), This is repeated in religion, such as the Catholic faith who utilizes the trinity of Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and God: united, but of different portions of the same whole. Aristotle elaborates on pathos (‘emotion’), ethos (‘honor’), and logos (‘logic’).

This is a universal trend incorporating separate, distinct pieces of a whole to be applied to a concerted action. Peoples across the ages have come to the same understanding, same outlook, and same actions from this strange triad.

The holistic nature of this approach is applicable to business and industry building as well. The utilization of the government, in both its legal and tax abilities, is fundamental to securing the stability of industry and security. The extrapolation from government, to that of organized action, is applicable to board of directors and city councils seeking to remedy issues and solve problems. The utilization of tools, sometimes in terms of the media, military, or videos/images, can also be moved to make way to create a product or change. The utilization of people—consumers, workers, managers, the skills of many, and the effort of a few—is also a factor.

All actions can be broken down into these three segments. All actions are a sum of these individual pieces, as well. Although it is notable that it is a limited structure (of this triad) to elaborate on the complexities of an industry or business it is a solid base to start generating of full understanding of such.

Uniquely, the triad can have sub-triads. Nations, such as Mexico, can utilize its triad to influence the triads of smaller organizations/regions, such as its states or industries. Below this level there are businesses and municipal governments to consider. And below this there is the individual that utilizes her logic, tools, and emotions. Each level can apply pressures to others, each sub-portion of each level’s triad can impact others, and accumulated actions can produce a larger, grander act.

Interactions of People:

Humans are innately politics beings. They listen to each other, are motivated by one another, and act together. To utilize this innate characteristic it is best to understand the different methods of where and how humans communicate.

Firstly, there is direct communication.

PERSON #1 ——————————————————————————> PERSON #2

This is where one person talks to another, either by email, phone, or in person. Point of views is carried and, if person #1 is influential enough, person #2 can be convinced to follow a certain action.

Secondly, there is intermediary communication.

ACTION/PERSON #1 ————–> INTERMEDIARY ———————–> PERSON #2

This is where there is an intermediary between an action, like a crime, is interpreted by an person/organization, a friend or a news organization, and then is shown to person #2, a possible tourist to Puerto Vallarta.

Following this there is another, third, linkage where person #2 learns of something by a first account and also by an intermediary. Notably, each ‘portion’ of these communication links possess their own triads, their own points of views, and their own understandings of issues, which need to be overcome/circumvented.

An understanding of the steps between a communicator and a public is huge in extending control and influence. Applications of this understanding, like influencing intermediaries or replacing them entirely, can endow a communicator with the ability to shift the public mind.

Some Solutions:

Highlight Crime:

Rather than downplay crime place crime and criminal acts on a central, broadcasted source. An example of this would be listing crimes that occur in Puerto Vallarta in a week on the front page of a website. Burglaries, etcetera, to be placed on such a source as well.

The purpose of this is twofold: firstly, to highlight that an authority is handling crime in an area thus allaying concerns of tourists; and secondly, the reality of the situation in Puerto Vallarta with its crime rate will be showcased to interested audiences.

What is fundamental to this procedure is to highlight, qualitatively, the level of crime in the area. Following this it is important explore the quantitative aspect of crime in Puerto Vallarta: how much crime is reported, murders/year, and other statistics to be quarterly released to media/organizations across the continent.

In addition to this showcase the “missing kitten” portion of any website. Emphasis here will show people that police are concerned with finding pets, a primarily American and Canadian police quirk that shows that the police are not solely concerned with catching criminals. It also shows that the police have enough time to find lost animals and therefore are not preoccupied with a supposed wanton crime wave.

Finally, the utilization of the communication framework highlighted earlier can be applied here. With a creation of a broadcast of crime in Puerto Vallarta you can at the same time replace the intermediary and become a source (the action/person #1) for another intermediary. This is huge in that it can change and manipulate the understanding of a public in a communicator’s favor. The previous paragraphs assume a person #1 – person #2 situation.

Action points:

• Broadcast crime on a portion of a community website
• Showcase non-prosecutorial, non-crime-fighting aspects of the police

Highlight Social Openness, and Beating the Cycle:

Puerto Vallarta has been called the “San Francisco of Latin America” and the number one Gay-friendly beach spot in Mexico. The LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender) tourism dollar is huge, accounting for multi-billions in North America. Be proud of this fact and utilize it in advertising—the area is open to different peoples and different points of view, and has a relaxed atmosphere. By incorporating LGBT-persons into your advertising (videos, banners, etc) there can be a wider opening of the market.

As it currently stands the LGBT finds out about Puerto Vallarta through word of mouth. If you change this to a marketed procedure rather than solely on individuals a further capitalization of this market can be achieved.

Notably, there is a cycle in the populations that enter into tourist areas. Normally the first wave are young folks (18-25) who are interested in adventure, followed by LGBT and non-majority groups, then families, and finally the elderly. After a period of the elderly, and the ceasing of their influence on a tourist region, the cycle begins again with young people after a period of tourist-industry decay. This trend can be seen in Las Vegas where, in the 1950s, young people visited the city, then fringe tourists in the 1970s, and now it has been turned over to a family vacation spot. China is beginning to find itself visited by younger travelers. Thailand, over the last ten years, has been a hot spot for Indo-China tourism from North America and seems to be changing over to fringe tourists.

If Puerto Vallarta can begin to freeze its cycle and been a vacation spot for all four pieces of the cycle then it will have achieved a substantial standing financially. As it currently stands it seems to be at the end of the family portion of the cycle and approaching the elderly end.

Action points:

• Include Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals, and Transgendered individuals in advertising.
• Utilize different programs, different approaches to different segmented blocks of the tourist population so as to attract all blocks and beat the cycle.
• Give discounts to organizations in Canada and in the USA for bulk purchases/rentals, allowing for access by a varied group of people to access the resort over a period of years (long term) or immediately (short term) while accruing the benefits of their communications to their friends and relatives.

On the Internet:

Imagine a village for a moment. Every day of your life you meet your neighbors, chat with them, and build relationships. Now imagine that there are thousands of villages, thousands of connections between villages, and a million-billion different personalities interacting with one another. That’s the Internet. It isn’t any array of tubes, technology, or any variant of servers—simply, the Internet is people. The Internet is comprised of people communicating with one another, forming communities and sharing their ideas/views.

Notably, the Internet is completely equal to all to access and showcase their opinions. A multi-billion dollar enterprise, like CNN or BBC, has as large of a chance to capture a person’s attention as a small, single-writer blog, and this is hugely important.

Returning back to the idea of the Interactions of People and the basic equality of the Internet it is quite easy to establish a place on the Internet to showcase an organization’s opinions. This can be achieved quite cheaply and effectively. However, the issue still remains that the Internet is a global village: if you simply create a website—a villager, if you please—what is that villager’s contacts to the village (if it has one) or to other villages?

Such connections need to be built up, one by one, over a long period of time. An example of building up such a one-to-one connection would be from my personal experience as a political blogger (at www.CalgaryLiberal.com) where I was contacted by a long time follower on twitter (www.twitter.com/LibVince) and told about a political event. I blogged about that event and also attended. A connection that meant nothing, exercised, and then formalized was further evolved by actions by an individual communicated to. My connection with that person then grew as a result allowing for further communication and a furthering of a one-to-one relationship between us.

The troubling issue with this one-to-one relationship is that it requires content and something to actually share. If we return to the village construct of the Internet we can remember that shoddy businesses in small towns do not prosper because villagers talk amongst themselves and people cease to return to those businesses. All Internet endeavors must have a deeper level of content, must entertain, engage, or intrigue persons, and must allow for interaction.

Action points:

• Develop content.
• Engage individuals and opinion makers.
• Allow for people to engage with websites and become connected with it.

At the LPCA in Lethbridge a week ago I lead a resolution on the topic of innovation. Except, it was more than just simply innovation. It was called the Innovative Canadian Policy all the same. It will be attached at the bottom of this post.

The moment I stood up on that stage to argue my case I should of went straight to the point. I should have said that I have a vision.

A vision where, rather than barriers and lack of investment there was openness and ease of access to tools and resources.

That any person–any person–could at their very fingertips start a project, a business, a piece of art, or a random act of learning.

An open, free internet is one of the many tools that allows for this. A secured, accessible environment, untouched by the uneven hand of the state but established to make individuals–you, me, and everyone else–equal in the loudness of our voices. It is the great equalizer. It is the magic bullet of education, communication, and revitalization. While, at the same time, for our ears to find those who had the fastest, most brilliant, and powerful thoughts and ideas.

For a high yielding, highly productive tax credit to be increased allows for an improvement in Canada’s well being and worth.

That no matter what, the innovations of next year will be based on this year’s not the lifetime of the creator plus fifty years that is now enshrined in our laws. Our laws, for patents and intellectual property rights, have come to the point of being ill-equiped, ill-suited, and ill-bred to deal with international competition. The EU and the USA have come knocking on our doors to call for us to even go down a stricter path, a less open path–a path that bars Canadians from their ideas and innovations while securing interests of investors of yesteryear, never tomorrow.

I should have asked that the delegates there to put your shoulders to this wheel, push your voices to this vote, and to aim high and never look back. I should have, could have…

The original presentation ended in applause–the only applause to be had of any resolution–but it was applause in support of youth not the resolution. A support of ideas from the youngest of the Liberal party, not the support of the ideas from the youngest of the Liberal party.

It’s good to be encouraged and, for the most part, I appreciate it. It makes me feel included and a part of something, and not someone looking in from the outside (as my youth colleagues in other parties and organizations tend to be).

It’s just.. It’s just.. So easy to become discouraged. Still, though, I am committed to this cause–the cause of changing the very fabric of Canadian society, of its investing culture, and of a vision of a more connected tomorrow.

With low polls, even if this policy snuck through it might be too long before it could have an effect. Then, even if a Liberal government was formed and if this policy was approved by the members of the Liberal party, there was still an electorate, special interests, and the committees on what or what did not enter the Liberal platform to contend with.

Insurmountable, really. And discouraging. But push onwards I must. I will stay true to the course, push for this cause, and hope for the best.

The Policy:

The Innovative Canadian Policy (ICP)

WHEREAS the Liberal party has always been the party of innovation;

WHEREAS industries in Canada have shown a constant impetus to scientific and industrial innovation;

WHEREAS constant innovation has become a constant reality, with new innovations coming into being at a pace unknown in human history, and that society, government, environment, and the economy needs to adapt to this reality, and;

WHEREAS the result of a connected, networked nation is a strong, vibrant, and inclusive society;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that all persons having access the Internet is to be one of the guiding goals of a 21st century strategy of the Liberal Party of Canada on governance, education, society, and industry, both at home and abroad,

BE IT RESOLVED that the party supports net neutrality whereas the Internet should be a resource free from censorship and bandwidth throttling, with restrictions being placed on individuals when abuses have been committed–especially against children and the elderly,

BE IT RESOLVED that the Liberal Party of Canada will increase the Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) tax credit to 55% up from 35%,

BE IT RESOLVED that technologies developed by companies are to be incentivized in implementing and diffusing their technologies into their respective industries through their own means and/or a government incentive schemes,

BE IT RESOLVED that the party will create a royal commission when in government to study intellectual property right laws s in Canada and the needed reforms in order to create a better innovation environment.

Alberta Young Liberals