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Human Productivity

Iqbal Latif - 4/11/2008

For any nation to grow 'free mind' is a must. Gun running culture, famine and implosion are mass characteristics of a failed nation. Any governance system would fail when human cooperation turns into 'bigotry' and hatred, productivity flourishes on tolerance and co-existence.

‘Productivity growth’ is a function of freedom and pluralism in a society…A comparison of pre-renaissance dark ages and post renaissance progress of human society especially the western civilization in Europe are clear indication of a huge jump in productivity as a result of freedom accorded to minds.

Wealth in society without knowledge is injurious.To a society that is not in the fore front of research and development is a society that stalls and becomes stagnated, some societies may appear wealthy but in absence of knowledge based productivity are stuck in time.Extremistans have low human productivity but the highest rate of productivity in 'idealogical puritanism'. The number of scientists produced by a culturally rich nation like Iran are a small percentage of 'mullahs and members of clergy they have produced. Saudis 'Mutawas' and Iranian' Mujhtahids' have contributed very little to the global issues of food, education and harmony.

Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia, one an impoverished land locked country and the other an oil rich country with sizable reserves are both suffering with low level of knowledge based productivity increases. Their GDP improves but as a direct result of 'commodity' price increases, as the demand in the west for ‘drugs and oil’ increase so is the GDP of Afghanistan and Saudi economy multiplies. However, the bottom line is that without freedom of mind both nations are stuck in stone age.

Productivity definitely increases exponentially, from present average levels of 3% annual growth, a connected world moving towards a new super self consciousness will definitely have far higher levels of growth of productivity, in next fifty years expecting a 5% annual growth of levels productivity is conservative in my two cents worth.

War and terrorism has a direct impact on global productivity. Medieval minds who plan obliteration are 'net destroyers' of human advancement. To use planes full of innocent human beings and to help bring buildings down in crowded spaces need no appeasements. Those who use planes designed for peaceful transport as ‘guided missiles’ deserve a response proportional to their huge unproductive abilities. Shifting the theater of war from '1 Liberty Plaza' to downtown Kandahar or around caves of Waziristan is the most balanced response one can envisage. The vandals at the door of Rome in few centuries were only possible when much earlier on Augustus decided to withdraw from the doctrine of external defense of the Empire borders across Rhine and Danube. The vandals today can encroach on the door of age of wisdom without impunity the transport links provide them the ease and facility, the unseen nature of the enemy is a dire threat. In this undeclared state of global war exporting the war to their own neighborhood is the best defense.

The decay of a society begins when 'appeasement' with vandals is encouraged. The problems with wining over unseen terror outfit is that the ‘plans’ killed in embryonic stages are rarely ever seen as credible dangers, if 911 was nipped in the bud we could have seen a far bigger attack in next few years may be with far bigger repercussions, if similar action would have been taken post African bombing or post Cole who could say that 911 would have materialized, today for last 6 years the inability of Alqaeda to penetrate through homeland defenses is the greatest success of the 'tongue in cheek' disproportionate response.

The ability to stop terror plans in their infancy is the biggest benefit of a disproportionate response, unfortunately for a public set on instant gratification and ‘Rambo’ kind of winnable war movies the unseen story behind the scenes are no achievements.

Free minds and 'Justice in a society' reflect productivity increases whereas 'close minds' and medievalist tends lead to destruction and stagnation. Free minds are greatest assets of any nation. Give them freedom and Justice and famine, hunger, self implosion will all become history.