Reality: We are poor

We are poor, we hate becoming poor, we do everything to not become poor. Poverty is a trap. Social mobility is almost impossible to be made.

Political violence

Once you engage in political violence, it becomes easier to do it again

Political violence includes denial of citizenship or representation, wrongful detention or enslavement, forced eviction, and statelessness.

Economic violence (economic abuse): dikasih uang sedikit

Rent seeking (jatah preman)

States, including the U.S., are predatory (preman)

Rentiers often find taxation unnecessary due to the lucrative nature of rent-seeking

Violence (hukum rimba) is easy, its fast, its bring competitive advantage. Its prey on the weak

When is state predatory: I argue that the impact of development on the distribution of political power in society may create an incentive for a state to become “predatory” and fail to promote economic development. The model shows that inecient underinvestment (predatory behavior) tends to arise in societies where, (1) there are large benets to holding political power, and which are, (2) well endowed which natural resources, (3) badly endowed with factors which are complementary to public investment, such as human capital, and (4) intrinsically unstable. I document the importance of the mechanism I propose in accounting for the behavior of actual predatory regimes.

most states in the past and present are best viewed as predatory, seeking to maximize the profits of government, rather than seeking to maximize the welfare of their constituents

The first portrays free markets as a cultural myth which is not really believed by its proponents. The second explains the operation of the predator state, where economic inequality is not a side-effect of economic development but a consequence of greedy private interests taking more for themselves. The third has some recommendations for dealing with predators; getting the benefits of private enterprise without giving excessive power to corporate elites

Economists have adopted two broad perspectives on the state: contractual (i.e., provider of public goods and services) and predatory (coercive and extractive). By a predatory state, we mean a state that promotes the private interests of dominant groups within the state (such as politicians, the army and bureaucrats) or influential private groups with strong lobbying powers. Neo-institutional economists support an extended version of the contractual perspective in which the state is not simply a ‘benevolent dictator’ but may itself be composed of predators

Preman (predator) pada dasarnya maksa (coercive) dan meras (extractive). Preman minta jatah (rent seeking)

Any State is inherently predatory, irrespective of the ideological persuasion of those who hold its reins, relentlessly seeking to expand its power and influence at the cost of its citizens. Authoritarianism is the default condition of a holder of State power, which is why in democracies there are institutional checks and balances against this natural propensity of a State towards aggrandisement of power

Big government

Crony Capitalism: By-Product of Big Government

All governments are crony capitalists

Crony capitalism the enemy of free enterprise

Money first belongs to governments ‘not individuals’, and that anything less than a 100 per cent tax rate constitutes a ‘subsidy’.  It is the view of the serf: governments generously allow us to keep some money, which by rights is first theirs

The Noble Crony: Big Business on the Politics of Business

Crony Capitalism: Inefficient, Unjust, and Corrupting

Cronyism is a term describing an economy in which success in business depends on close relationships between business people and government officials. It may be exhibited by favoritism in the distribution of legal permits, government grants, special tax breaks, etc. Cronyism is believed to arise when political cronyism spills over into the business world; self serving friendships and family ties between businessmen and the government influence the economy and society to the extent that it corrupts public-serving economic and political ideals

What’s Bad About Crony Capitalism? crony capitalism generates significant economic rents, which result in a misallocation of resources and lower incentives for wealth creation

One of the greatest dangers to the growth of developing countries is the middle income trap, where crony capitalism creates oligarchies that slow down growth

You Can’t Regulate Crony Capitalism Away

Increasing the scope of government over business accelerates the problem of crony capitalism

Rent-seeking, in this case, is when businesses divert their resources towards capturing a bigger portion of the existing wealth in a market instead of using their resources to create new wealth.

government continues to enjoy considerable discretionary power over the awarding of contracts to build and manage ports, airports, highways, telecom systems, electricity generation and distribution and infrastructure, as well as over land and water resources, all of which can create economic rents

Capitalism Isn’t The Problem. Crony Capitalism Is

Rent seeking is an economic concept that occurs when an entity seeks to gain wealth without any reciprocal contribution of productivity

Rent-seeking is the act of growing one’s existing wealth by manipulating the social or political environment without creating new wealth

How to handle business: lobby and deal

Interesting on toxic lobby and green deals

In politics, lobbying, persuasion, interest representation, government relations, or government affairs and sometimes legislative relations, legislative affairs, or advocacy, is the act of lawfully attempting to influence the actions, policies, or decisions of government officials, often through payments and mutual financial benefits.

Year 1 is easy. I handle 4 different project, everythings under my control. 75% I handle by myself, 25% only have one reporting line.

Year 1: small multiple project (4 projects); short term project (3-6 months); one reporting line
Year 2: medium multiple (5 projects); long term project (>1 years); multiple reporting line
Year 3: large multiple (8 projects);
Year 4: multi sectors/clusters (G&PS)

The focus should be on clusters. Semester 1 on G&PS clusters; Semester 2 on alliance clusters.

Foucault vs Marx

Biologization of Capital and Capitalization of Biopower: Connecting Foucault and Marx

The problem is not because I don’t know it, but because I don’t have it.

The purpose of constant surveillance is to compel prisoners to regard themselves as subject to correction

Why Foucault’s work on power is more important than ever

Indonesian Politics

1.Ajudanisasi: the act of long term caderization (grooming)

2.Wakilisasi: the act of distribution of power, similar with ajudanisasi but with shorter term.

Span of Control

Span of control

1.player/coach is 3-5 direct reports (Strategy VP), a significant level of individual responsibility)
2.coach is 6-7 direct reports (Customer-analytics manager in a marketing group)
3.supervisor is 8-10 direct reports (Accounting Manager/SVP Finance)
4.facilitator is 11 to 15 direct reports (AR/AP manager)
5.coordinator is 15 or more direct reports (call center manager)
*from McKinsey

Mackenzie and others (Massie 1965, Pugh et al., 1972) also noted that there is no generally applicable optimum span of control. There are instead several factors influencing the balance between the desired level of control and the manageability of the organization.

Firstly, it depends on the capabilities of the organizational members, managers and workers. It was assumed, that no manager would be capable of supervising more than 5-6 direct subordinates. However, this conclusion built on the assumption that the superior must actively monitor the work of all subordinates.

Later on, this statement was diversified when Davis (1951) divided managerial work into two categories:

• one requiring the attention to physical work
• requiring mental activity.

Depending on the type of supervision, a span of 3-8 subordinates for managers at higher levels was considered adequate, while first level supervisors, i.e. those supervising shop floor personnel could have up to 30 subordinates.

Foucault on Power Relations Theory

Where there is power, there is resistance
Power is exercised only over free subjects, and only insofar as they are free

In sociology, power-knowledge is a term introduced by the French philosopher Michel Foucault (French: le savoir-pouvoir). According to Foucault’s understanding, power is based on knowledge and makes use of knowledge; on the other hand, power reproduces knowledge by shaping it in accordance with its anonymous intentions.

“The study of law and politics is one of the foundation stones of the discipline of political science”

Ref: Chomsky–Foucault debate, Teori Relasi Kuasa

Foucault best student of Nietzhche

Indonesian Politics – Power distribution: Ajudanisasi

The system of nature, of which man is a part, tends to be self-balancing, self-adjusting, self-cleansing, E.F Schumacher.

In Indonesia power is distributed in a unique way that different on how western or even eastern company might do it differently.

1.Pengkaderan (cadre) or grooming, start from early age, some start at age of 15 in high school. Military start at age of 18, while state own companies start at age of 22 -which already groomed since age of 18 in the state university. Caderization allow restricted (very well monitored) vertical mobility, act as barrier for class stability. This called ajudanisasi

2.Perwakilan (representation), as how Indonesia become Indonesia is through a series of event which different than Thai for example. Representation act as balance of power.

3.Penjatahan (allocation), distribution of wealth (excess) can be horizontally through supply chain system that separate between anykind virtually possible form of distribution can be by industry or can be by region. The distribution can also by vertically such as large enterprise, medium and small enterprise. Penjatahan also to avoid horizontal conflict.

4.Penghargaan (recognition), power is distributed fairly to the people that no longer compete in the system. This is also a respect to the old people. The society based on collectivism tend to respect the elder.

Buddhist economics, Cadre (politics)

Cadres were present in a number of communist countries that enforced collectivization, including Romania, Soviet Russia, and China, which maintains a cadre system today. Collectivization was also an excellent way to create and subsequently destroy a class structure, especially when none already existed

Britain’s is traditionally a rigid class society. Britain is still a society deeply divided by class. The soil grows castes; the machine makes classes (Michael Young 1958)