The only target against our eyes

The only target against our eyes

“Ve Samta Oto KeMatara LeNeged Eynekha”. This means: “And you placed it as a target against your eyes. Keep your goal as a target against your eyes. Not in your mind. Not in your heart, but “against your eyes”. In constant sight, in continuous sight, against your eyes. Total, undivided attention and focus on the goal. Stay focused”

I learned these words from Gerald Westerby, a former secret agent in the Mossad; Israel’s famed elite special operations organization in a book I read years ago.

I think we are living difficult times in Puerto Rico and we need to find our focus. We can’t function as a society and be successful dealing with all the challenges we have facing us in the near future if we don’t focus on what matters most.

We have a budget deficit beyond belief, even though our government is supposedly taking steps to reduce it, we have a real big problem with drug trafficking and crime, our schools are not as good as they should be, we have thousands of homeless people, and our main university is always under a constant threat of a strike by students or employees.

We have taken our eyes off the goal. We are not looking at the target right against our eyes. And if we don’t do this, our island will face disastrous consequences. The people of Puerto Rico do not deserve this. They went out to vote in higher numbers than most other democracies in the world and elected representatives and senators and a governor. I think the people deserve better.

We have an underground economy estimated to be more than 25% of the whole economy. It is estimated that millions and millions millions of dollars are not reported which costs close to two billion in losses to the government. These figures do not take into account criminal activity. There are around 1500 drug points, maybe more (puntos de drogas) in the island as I was told by a prominent economist recently, and on average they each clear over 1,000.00 a day. Take out a calculator and multiply 1,500 times $1,000.00.

I have been told that in Puerto Rico only 15,000 people report incomes of more than $100,000. Twelve thousand of these fifteen thousand are salaried employees. This means that only 3,000 professionals in Puerto Rico make more than $100,000. Isn’t this amazing? So many Doctors, Engineers, Lawyers, Architects and other professions and only 3,000 make more than $100,000! It is rather hard to believe.

In fact, around 90% of tax payers report an income under $50,000. This island must be populated by magicians, people that don’t make any money but can afford multimillion houses and apartments, Mercedes Benz and BMW’s with very little income. How did they qualify for those big mortgages? Now, of course, they are hurting and hurting bad. Many over extended and are now losing properties. Others have lost money in the stock market. Those that invested in our local banks, and still hold the shares, are hurting bad, I know it because I have close friends with this problem.
Even so, we most stop kidding ourselves? Most people steal from the government and that is something that hurts everyone and it most stop. On April 15th we all have to pay our taxes. You must take advantage of whatever deductions you are entitled to, but don’t cheat because you are cheating everyone else, you are cheating your country.

Are we a welfare state? How can it be explained that one out of three salaried employee works for the government? Why would a small Caribbean island need over 140 government agencies, almost 80 legislators and municipalities each with a big bureaucracy. How can we afford more than a thousand municipal legislators? We waste so much money!

Don’t you think that our government officials know this? Don’t you think that most citizens know this?

Don’t you think that our police department knows exactly were the drug points are all over the island? Why isn’t the problem solved? We have placed a man on the moon and we don’t know how to solve this situation? Of course we do. We just lack the will to do it because the common citizen doesn’t get involved and doesn’t demand it from our elected officials.

I constantly hear people tell me, “ I don’t read the news any more”, “I don’t get involved in politics”, “There is no solution to our problem”, “All our politicians are crooks” “Decent people don’t get involved in politics” and on and on.

With this mind set, we will never be successful in solving our biggest challenges.
Everyone assumes something. The world couldn’t function if you didn’t. You assume that the sun rises in the east over Fajardo and sets towards Mayaguez. You assume that thunder follows lighting. You assume that night follows day. And you are right in these assumptions.

But what about assuming that a man loves his wife? That a child shall die before his mother and father? That a politician knows what is best for the people? That a politician knows the right course of action? That promises are going to be kept?

Well, here you must proceed with caution. And the best way to do this is to limit the number of assumptions you make. When you make assumptions for which you have no independently gained experience and when the consequences of a failed assumption are significant and costly, you should not substitute someone else’s experience and knowledge for your own.

Our grass roots organizations, Chambers of Commerce, PRTHA, SME, Rotary, the Convention Bureau, Retailers Association, the Industrials, Manufacturers and many others must get together and demand that our elected government officials do what they need to do. The common citizen must get involved also.

We must not assume that things will work out by themselves or that praying together will do it. We can’t assume that the government will solve every single problem we have.

We need action right away and if action is not taken, we will all be guilty and we will have to face the consequences.

As Gandhi said, “change must start with you”.