Leadership for the days ahead

If I were put against the wall, what would I say? I mean if I had been requested to underline just one – one is singular, no escape with long lines and a torrent of words – one key positive feature of an exemplary politician what would I refer to?

Before I respond, please note the word positive. In these times of tremendous challenges, we must talk about the future based on a constructive approach. After the Donald Trump experience, I am no longer prepared to accept negative, destructive leaders.

Going back to the question about the key feature, my answer would be about dedication to the common good. Dedication means, in my mind, full commitment to the public leadership job. It means a keen sense of duty and willingness to personal sacrifice. It is a continuous, strenuous search for a better, more respectful, more balanced, and more ecological society.

A leader is a self-sacrificing person.

Plenty of false prophets around us

Philosophers, sociologists, and other social scientists are exchanging lots of views about the political and societal impact of the coronavirus. And many people just repeat those comments without a thoughtful analysis of what is said. Even serious newspapers do it.

My impression is that many of those intellectuals have a preconceived idea, an ideological business line they try to peddle at all costs. As such, they want us to see in the crisis the confirmation of their pet theories. A kind of "I warned you". It is a biased reading of the situation at a time when we need objectivity and serenity.

This is no time for propagandists. There should be no room for any type of false prophets.

Our objective should be to base ourselves on accepted values ​​and to propose paths which would allow reinforcing these values. Therefore, we must be clear about the values ​​that we share, and which are part of the world’s common treasure, at the international level.

We must include, not exclude. We must understand and look for better ways of living together and sustaining life on this planet. Intellectuals that transform every sentence on bump fire should get no visibility at this stage. Or be thoroughly criticised and rationally challenged.

Tomorrow's world

This pandemic might be a major turning point in many aspects of today’s lifestyles, not to mention politics and international relations. We will see. Some people are already speculating about those changes. That’s a way for them to advance their own personal agendas and political views. They can write many words about the coronavirus and its links to consumerism, inequalities, environmental issues and so on, including the impact of individual liberties. I have already read several pieces that do that expedition into the future of the humanity. And I concluded that all those words end up by being vague and a repetition of current banners. Propaganda instead of prospective thinking.

They distract many of us of the real challenges of the moment: to slow down the spreading of the virus and support the required research to produce a vaccine as soon as possible. These should be the two top priorities at this stage.

If you are a social scientist, a philosopher or an opinion maker, you should concentrate your attention on the first challenge. That’s within your reach. Tell the people they can make a difference in terms of contagion if they behave responsibly. Tell above all the young people to be as prudent as everybody else. The younger ones have been told that the disease would only have a mild effect on them. That was a communication mistake. It can seriously affect them, first. And they can catch it and pass it on to older people, with disastrous consequences.  

The debate about the future will take place at the appropriate time, once things are again under control. It will certainly be a very interesting discussion. Tomorrow’s world will be a post-coronavirus new reality, I am sure.

Today's reminder

There is only one meaningful struggle: the persistent search for the ideal.

End of 2018

To my Portuguese readers, today I sent a message closing the year 2018 with three short sentences about Taoism. I should do the same for my international readers. But before, I should say that 2018 was a complex year. That’s the best introduction to a philosophical approach to such complexity. Now, I add the three words that summarise the phrases I wrote in Portuguese: accept, connect and smile.

And I wish all of you a very tranquil end of 2018.