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PSL champion F2 Logistics supports SEAG national team buildup

STILL BASKING in the glory of its Philippine Superliga All-Filipino Conference redemption, F2 Logistics puts its preparation for a back-to-back championship in the Invitational Conference on the shelf for the meantime as it set to throw entire support to the national team’s build-up for the 30th Southeast Asian Games.

The Cargo Movers, who dispatched Cignal via 2-0 sweep to regain the Superliga title after three years last week, assured the team’s all out backing on the Philippine national women’s volleyball team especially with four of their players being selected into the 22-woman training pool. — John Bryan Ulanday

The 7th Sinquefield Cup

7th Sinquefield Cup 2019
Saint Louis, Missouri, USA
Aug. 15–30, 2019

Final Standings (GMs all)

1–2. Ding Liren CHN 2805, Magnus Carlsen NOR 2882, 6.5/11

3–4. Viswanathan Anand IND 2756, Sergey Karjakin RUS 2750, 6.0/11

5–8. Shakhriyar Mamedyarov AZE 2764, Anish Giri NED 2779, Fabiano Caruana USA 2818, Ian Nepomniachtchi RUS 2774, 5.5/11

9–10. Hikaru Nakamura USA 2743, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave FRA 2778, 5.0/11

11–12 Levon Aronian ARM 2765, Wesley So USA 2776, 4.5/11

Average ELO 2783 Category 22

Time Control: 130 minutes for the entire game with 30 seconds delay before clock starts on every move starting move 1

The 7th Sinquefield Cup had only 12 decisive results out of 66 games — less than 20%. In fact, there were 4 rounds which had 100% draws. What went wrong?

Was it the time control? I don’t think so. There was no extra time given after the first 40 moves, after which instead of an increment they only had a time delay, 30 seconds allowance before your clock starts — if you execute your move before the 30 seconds is exhausted this is not added to your time. This rule does not give the players enough thinking time come the endgame, and the players HAD to go into the endgame as no draw offers were allowed. This caused many players to blunder, a prime example being Wesley So losing to Nepomniachtchi despite being the aggressor in the middlegame and early endgame. As the game wore on and they reached the 100th move Wesley was just exhausted from continuously needing to make his move before 30 seconds and collapsed.

By the way, the loss to Nepo ruined the tournament for Wesley and the next day he lost again to Magnus Carlsen with another glaring blunder — his only two losses of the event.

I think the draws were caused by tiredness. You see this year, in addition to the traditional tournaments and the Grand Chess Tour there was also the FIDE Grand Prix tournaments and this resulted in a jam-packed calendar. Just a listing of the events starting May this year involving the top 10 players:

May 8–12: Grand Chess Tour: Ivory Coast Rapid & Blitz

May 16-30: FIDE Grand Prix (Moscow). 16 players play 2-game matches until 1 is left standing

May 26–27: Lindores Abbey Chess Stars Tournament

June 3–14: Altibox Norway Chess. This is the tournament where in the case of a drawn classical game you have to play an additional, armageddon game to guarantee a decisive result.

June 26–July 7: Grand Chess Tour Croatia

July 11th–25th: FIDE Grand Prix Leg 2 (Riga, Latvia). Another 16-player knockout tournament.

July 27th–August 1st: Paris Rapid & Blitz (Paris, France)

August 10th–August 14th: St. Louis Rapid & Blitz (St. Louis, USA)

August 17th-August 28th: Sinquefield Cup (St. Louis, USA)

Oh! And don’t forget — the FIDE World Cup which will qualify two players to the Candidates tournament will start on Sept. 10 in Khanty-Mansiysk. Oct. 10–21 is the FIDE Chess.com Grand Swiss to be held in the Isle of Man which can also qualify you for the Candidates’. A very busy tournament schedule indeed!

So why am I complaining? The more events the merrier right? Maybe we just need a bit of scheduling sanity. The second half of the year is always chock-full of FIDE qualifying events and competitions. I hope the organizers could get together and map out their events over an entire year rather than for the last six months.

To quote Wesley from a recent event: “People seem to think that strong players can and should win whenever they want. My guess is the people who think that have never played the best chess players in the world in a lengthy tournament. Everyone fights to the death and more often than not, a win or loss can hang on one single move.”

On a lighter side Ding Liren was asked before the Sinquefield Tournament to give some opening remarks. Here is what he said: “Chesswise I was very pleased with my performance, but since we have been abroad for so long and will stay here for another two weeks I’ve started to worry about the rice I brought here. I’m worried about is it enough?” That’s right — everybody is running out of everything — stamina, opening ideas, the will to fight to the end, and rice!

Nepomniachtchi accounted for half of the tournament’s total decisive games — six out of 12. Due to the tournament’s weird time control Nepo seemed to decide to play fast in every game and put pressure on his opponent’s time handling. This worked for a while and after 9 rounds (out of 11) he was in the lead with Ding. All good things come to an end though and the tiredness and fatigue crept in, causing him to lose his last two games, in both of which one-move blunders converted a draw into a loss.

The following is a typical win for him in Sinquefield.

Nepomniachtchi, Ian (2774) — Aronian, Levon (2765) [C54]
7th Sinquefield Cup 2019 Saint Louis USA (8), 25.08.2019

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.d3 Bc5 5.0–0 d6 6.c3 a6 7.Re1 Ba7 8.Bb3 0–0 9.h3 Re8 10.Nbd2 Be6 11.Ba4 b5 12.Bc2 h6 13.Nf1 d5 14.exd5 Bxd5 15.Ng3 .Nh7 16.a4 Nf8 17.b4 Ng6 18.Be3 Bxe3 19.fxe3 Qd7

This move is fully in line with his plan of attack: Ng6–h4 and then his queen moves to the long diagonal.

20.Nd2 Nce7 21.Nb3 Qc6 22.Qd2 Nh4 23.e4 Qg6 24.Kh2 Bc6 25.Nc5

Nepomniachtchi spent 6 minutes on this move — his longest think in a game where he was basically blitzing out all his moves. In contrast Aronian was taking his time at a steady pace of around 6–7 minutes per move.

25…f5 26.exf5 Nexf5 27.Nge4 Bd5 28.Re2 Rad8 29.Rf1 Nd6 30.Qe1?!

The next move doesn’t give anything away but if Nepo had given it more thought he would probably have seen 30.d4! which opens up the diagonal of his c2–bishop against the Black queen. 30…Kh8 (otherwise Nf6+ would win his queen) 31.Nf6 Qf7 32.axb5 axb5 33.dxe5 Nc4 34.Qf4 with a decisive advantage

30…Nhf5 31.a5!

Threatening the a6 pawn with his knight.

31…Rf8

Aronian decides to give up his hapless pawn on a6 hoping to cash in on his kingside offensive.

32.Ref2 Rf7 33.Rf3 h5 34.Nxa6 h4 35.Nac5 Rdf8

Now Nepomniachtchi’s plan is to exchange off all the pieces on the board and win with his passed pawn on the a-file.

36.Kg1 Qh6 37.Qc1 Ne3 38.Rxf7 Rxf7 39.Rxf7 Kxf7 40.Qe1 Nxc2 41.Qf2+ Ke8 42.Qxc2 Bxe4 43.Nxe4 Nxe4 44.dxe4 Qe3+ 45.Kf1 Qf4+?

Correct is 45…Kd7 to bring his king closer to the passed pawn.

46.Qf2 Qc1+ 47.Qe1 Qf4+ 48.Kg1 Kd8 49.Qf2 Qc1+ 50.Kh2 Qxc3 51.a6 Ke8

[51…Kc8? 52.Qf8+ and the king has to move away 52…Kd7 53.Qxg7+ Kc6 54.Qg6+ Kd7 55.a7 Qa3 56.Qf7+ Kc8 57.Qg8+ Kb7 58.Qb8+ the pawn queens]

52.Qxh4 Qa3 53.Qh5+ Kf8

Everything loses:

53…Ke7 54.Qxe5+ Kd8 55.Qd5+ Ke8 56.Qg8+ Kd7 57.Qxg7+ Ke6 58.Qg8+ Kf6 59.Qd8+;

53…Kd8 54.Qh8+ Kd7 55.Qxg7+ Ke6 56.Qg6+ Ke7 57.Qc6;

53…Kd7 54.Qf7+ Kd6 55.Qd5+ Ke7 56.Qxe5+ Kd8 57.Qd5+ Ke8 58.Qc6+

54.Qf3+ 1–0

The exchange of queens is forced and the passed a-pawn queens easily. When Aronian resigned he had 0.2 second left and Nepo had an hour and 15 minutes left.

How did Wesley So do? He just lost steam and dropped two of his last three games. Before that he was in the thick of the battle and tried hard to make an impact. Take a look at this fight with Caruana — Wesley had a nice attack but Fabiano kept finding only moves.

So, Wesley (2776) — Caruana, Fabiano (2818) [A20]
7th Sinquefield Cup 2019 Saint Louis USA (5.1), 21.08.2019

1.c4 e5 2.g3 Nf6 3.Bg2 c6 4.Nf3 e4 5.Nd4 Qb6

Caruana has played this line for Black many times so it could not have been a surprise for Wesley.

6.Nb3 a5 7.d3 a4 8.N3d2 Bc5!?

An attempt at an improvement. Caruana had previously almost exclusively played 8…d5 here.

9.0–0 e3!

[9…Bxf2+ 10.Rxf2 e3 does not work. After 11.Rxf6! exd2+ 12.Rf2 dxc1Q 13.Qxc1 material is equal but Black will miss his active bishop and knight]

10.fxe3 Bxe3+ 11.Kh1 Ng4 12.Ne4 0–0 13.Nbc3 d5 14.cxd5 Bxc1 15.Qxc1 Ne3 16.Rf3 Nxg2 17.Kxg2 Qd8 18.Qg5!

Wesley is now the attacker. Black cannot afford to exchange queens because white is a pawn up with very active pieces and his own pieces are all on the back rank.

18…f6 <D>

POSITION AFTER 18…F6

19.Nxf6+! Rxf6 20.Ne4 Nd7!

The only move. 20…Rf8 21.Raf1! Nd7 (21…Qxg5?? 22.Rxf8#) 22.Rxf8+ Nxf8 23.Qxd8 Bh3+ 24.Kxh3 Rxd8 25.dxc6 bxc6 26.Nc5 White is winning.

21.Raf1 Kh8!

Another only move. The “obvious” 21…h6 22.Nxf6+ Nxf6 23.Qg6 Qxd5 24.e4 Qh5 25.Qxh5 (25.Rxf6 Bh3+ is OK for Black according to Caruana.) 25…Nxh5 26.Rf8+ Kh7 27.e5 Nf6!? (relying on the tactical motif of …Bh3+ to win White’s rook on f8)( 28.e6! (28.R1xf6 gxf6 29.e6 Kg7 30.Rd8! probably also wins) 28…Nd5 29.Rd8 b6 30.Rff8 I don’t see how Black can save this.

22.Nxf6 Nxf6 23.e4 Bd7 24.Rxf6!? gxf6 25.Rxf6 Qe7 26.Qf4 Kg8 27.d6 Qg7 28.e5 Re8

A good alternative is 28…Rf8 29.Rxf8+ Qxf8 30.Qxa4 is also ok but White has 4 pawns for the piece and his center pawns are still intact. Caruana prefers to destroy Wesley’s center.

29.Qc4+ Kh8 30.Rf7 Qxe5 31.Rxd7 Qe2+ 32.Kh3 Qf1+ 33.Kh4 Qf6+ 34.Kh3 Qf1+ 35.Kh4 Qf6+ 36.Kh3 Qf1+ ½–½

A draw, but there is nothing fight less about it.

 

Bobby Ang is a founding member of the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) and its first Executive Director. A Certified Public Accountant (CPA), he taught accounting in the University of Santo Tomas (UST) for 25 years and is currently Chief Audit Executive of the Equicom Group of Companies.

bobby@cpamd.net

Upset

Heading into the United States Open, longtime habitues of the sport wondered whether they would finally get to see a match between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal at Flushing Meadows. For all the protracted success of the two living legends, they hadn’t yet met under the klieg lights of Arthur Ashe Stadium — not at any stage, and certainly not for the title. Because of one reason or another (but mostly due to fellow Big Three stalwart Novak Djokovic), they hadn’t yet gone head to head in the last tournament on the Grand Slam rota.

Still, fans hoped for what they felt was a long-delayed first. Never mind that Djokovic remained a threat to scuttle their projection; he was on Federer’s bracket, and, as the top seed, seen to beat the 20-time major champion in the semifinals, and then Nadal, en route to successfully defending his title. After all, tennis is tennis, subject to the vagaries of biorhythms and playing conditions. And, true enough, conventional wisdom was proven wrong when he wound up retiring from his fourth-round match against Stanislas Wawrinka due to an ailing left shoulder.

To the delight of casual observers, the dream final suddenly turned from possibility to likelihood. Still, it required the protagonists to do their part. And, as fate would have it, Federer failed to fulfill his end of the bargain. Yesterday, he bowed in five sets to unseeded Grigor Dimitrov, the outcome a shock to all and sundry given his outstanding play of late. Meanwhile, the World Number 78 didn’t look up to the challenge, having lost seven of eight matches prior to the US Open and all seven meetings against him (during which he claimed 16 of 18 sets).

For a while there, Federer seemed on his way to victory, leading two sets to one despite seeming less than sharp. Through the fourth set, however, he appeared to be ailing from a bad back — and to a point where he needed to take a medical timeout after losing it 4-6. His time with the trainer didn’t help, though; he took only two games the rest of the way. As Dimitrov noted in the aftermath, “My main goal was to stay on the court as long as possible. At the end, for sure, he was not 100 per cent. It’s best of five and anything can happen.”

Well, that “anything” did happen. Federer is out, joining Djokovic in the sidelines. And, presumably, Nadal will take advantage of the situation. He’s now an overwhelming favorite to collect his second major of the year and fourth US Open crown of his career. First things first, though. Before he trades groundstrokes with a first-time finalist, he would have to take care of business. He’s certainly primed to do so, what with a second-round walkover helping him and the staggered second-week schedule at Flushing Meadows slated to keep him fresh. His battle with his friend at Arthur Ashe Stadium can happen next year. In the meantime, the welcome mat for his podium appearance has been spread, and he needs to clear his path to it.

 

Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and Human Resources management, corporate communications, and business development.

Shares rebound ahead of August inflation report

SHARES bounced back on Wednesday even as investors found no clear catalysts to support their trades.

The bellwether Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) climbed 0.46% or 36.15 points to close at 7,840.86 yesterday, snapping its two-day decline. The broader all-shares index also rose 0.27% or 13.16 points to 4,753.77.

“Investors continue to focus on second liners and speculative issues as foreign investors continue to sell off blue chips. Overall, the main index remains in limbo with no clear indication of which way it wants to go,” AAA Southeast Equities, Inc. Research Head Christopher John Mangun said in an e-mail.

Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limlingan noted that investors may be waiting for the release of August inflation data on Thursday, Sept. 5.

“Investors will be awaiting the latest CPI (consumer price index) data which comes out tomorrow morning. A handful of analysts forecast that the August reading will fall below the 2% mark,” Mr. Limlingan said in a mobile phone message on Wednesday.

A BusinessWorld poll of 12 economists yielded a median inflation estimate of 1.8% for August headline inflation. This is above the midpoint of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ Department of Economic Research’s 1.3-2.1% estimate range given last week.

Should this be the case, August would mark the third straight month of easing inflation since June’s 2.7%. This is also much lower than the 6.4% seen in August 2018.

“The government is expecting inflation numbers for August at its lowest for the year which has not given investors any confidence towards equities. This trend may remain till the end of the week,” Mr. Mangun said.

Four sectoral indices moved to positive territory, led by mining and oil which jumped 3.22% or 304.47 points to 9,733.87. Holding firms climbed 1.37% or 106.52 points to 7,840.94; financials advanced 0.56% or 10.17 points to 1,805.15; while property added 0.27% or 10.69 points to 3,951.32.

In contrast, services plunged 1.52% or 24.22 points to 1,563.69, while industrials slumped 0.39% or 42.76 points to 10,872.88.

Some 1.15 billion issues switched hands valued at P6.59 billion, lower than the previous session’s P6.83-billion turnover.

Decliners narrowly outpaced advancers, 102 to 100, while 47 names were unchanged.

Foreign investors became net sellers at P743.70 million, compared to Tuesday’s net purchases amounting to P104.99 million.

The PSEi defied the weak performance of western markets, which suffered a selldown on fears of the US-China trade war as well as slower manufacturing data.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1.08% or 285.26 points to 26,118.02. The S&P 500 index shed 0.69% or 20.19 points to 2,906.27, while the Nasdaq Composite index plummeted 1.11% or 88.72 points to 7,874.16. — Arra B. Francia

Peso climbs on US data

THE PESO recovered versus the dollar on Wednesday following the contraction of the US manufacturing index and amid geopolitical concerns.

The local unit ended at P51.935 against the greenback yesterday from Tuesday’s P52.31-per-dollar close, gaining 37.5 centavos.

The peso opened at slightly stronger at P52.25 versus the greenback. The market saw a volatile trading session as the local currency’s weakest point was at P52.93, while its intraday best was at P51.92 against the dollar.

Dollars traded on Wednesday thinned to $1.282 billion from the $1.336 billion that changed hands on Tuesday.

One trader said the release of a weaker-than-expected US manufacturing purchasing managers’ index for August boosted the peso.

The US manufacturing sector contracted in August for the first time since 2016 amid worries about a weakening global economy and rising trade tensions between China and the United States, an industry report released on Tuesday showed.

The Institute for Supply Management said its index of national factory activity decreased to 49.1, the lowest level since January 2016.

This compared with a figure of 51.2 in July. Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast a reading of 51.1 for August.

“Global risk sentiment likewise improved on news that the Hong Kong Legislative Council will withdraw the controversial extradition bill which has ignited the recent protests in the city,” the trader added.

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam was expected to announce later on Wednesday the formal withdrawal of a proposed extradition bill that sparked three months of protests in the Chinese-ruled city, the South China Morning Post reported, citing unnamed sources.

Other local media outlets also reported on a possible withdrawal of the bill. The chief executive’s office did not immediately respond to request for comment.

The withdrawal of the bill, which would have allowed Hong Kong citizens to be sent to mainland China to face trial, is one of the main demands of pro-democracy protesters who have plunged the former British colony into its deepest crisis in decades.

Developments in the Brexit talks also affected the peso’s rise, a second trader said.

“It gave the market some confidence that the economic situation of Europe will not be shaken in the short term at least.”

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will try to call a snap election on Wednesday after lawmakers seeking to prevent him taking Britain out of the European Union without a divorce deal dealt him a humbling parliamentary defeat.

Parliament’s move leaves Brexit up in the air, with possible outcomes ranging from a turbulent no-deal exit to abandoning the whole endeavor — both outcomes would be unacceptable to swathes of the United Kingdom’s voters.

An alliance of opposition lawmakers backed by 21 rebels from Mr. Johnson’s Conservative Party defeated the government on Tuesday on a motion allowing them to try to pass a law which would force a three-month extension to Britain’s EU exit date.

For today, the first trader said the local currency may weaken anew “as the likely softer Philippine inflation might reignite bets of September policy rate cut from the BSP (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas).”

“If nothing black swan-ish including new trade war woes [occurs], we may see a lower range,” the second trader said.

A “black swan” event refers to an unforeseen occurrence that typically has extreme consequences.

The first trader expects the peso to move within P51.90-P52.20 versus the dollar, while the second trader sees it ranging around P51.70-P52.10. — L.W.T. Noble with Reuters

Tray return

I had breakfast at a 7-Eleven yesterday. I had a hot meal with hot coffee. It was a satisfying, and inexpensive, experience. The sad part, however, is that no matter how much a store tries to maintain order and cleanliness, its effort will always fall flat when up against customers who have little regard for the store itself and their fellow customers.

You see, when I came in, there was already a group of people dining. And while there were plenty of seats available, table space was somewhat limited by the fact that other beings who had already finished eating had left their empty food packs and plastic water bottles on the tables. Perhaps these diners came from outer space, and on their planet, garbage walks to the bin on its own.

Yes, it is a pet peeve. But you cannot help but pity the poor girl behind the counter. At seven in the morning, the place was packed and she was all alone to man the counter, run the register, give change, heat and serve food for dine-in customers, and also clean up after thoughtless and inconsiderate aliens who descended on the store to consume earthly goods then leave a mess.

This is not unusual, and perhaps can even be considered commonplace particularly in many fast food outlets. Aliens come in, eat, then leave a mess for earthlings to clean up. What I don’t understand is how these aliens can be made to line up, pay for their food, carry their laden trays, and walk to an empty table to eat, but cannot be bothered to return the same tray with their empty dishes on it? Now you understand why I am confused?

People will readily carry their trays with food to eat, but will not readily return the same trays with their empty dishes on it? Why? Is it because the dishes are “dirty”? Well, who used them, anyway? Is returning the tray with empty dishes far more difficult to do than carrying a tray with mounds of food ready to eat? Or is it because bussing out a tray is such a dirty job and beneath “special” people called “customers”?

In many cases, the practice at home also becomes evident outside of it. If you are accustomed to having someone at home take away the dishes for you, then perhaps even when dining outside, you tend to leave things where they are. This, of course, is with the expectation that someone else will come along and clean up after you.

After all, even the most modest of urban homes will usually have at least one kasambahay or helper to do most if not all of the domestic work. Simply put, why should you concern yourself with such matters when you are paying someone else to do it — even if you are actually giving out slave wages? The fact is, you are paying someone else to do the “dirty” work for you.

In the same manner, when you go to a fine dining restaurant, or even a buffet dinner, you are not expected to bus out your own dishes and wash them yourself. Of course not. The “service” is part of your bill, and you gladly pay the “service charge” precisely to enjoy the convenience of having someone else wait on you. Even if it still means you get up to get your own food.

Smart Tray Return Robots at Koufu at Punggol Plaza — HTTP://WWW.RFACTORY.SG/

But is it the same case with fast food outlets and convenience stores? The fact is, in fast food outlets, it is practically self-service. You line up to order and pay, you carry your own dishes to your table to eat. Why can you not be expected or be made to carry back the same dishes, now empty, when you are done with them? When you came to the table it was clean. Why can you not leave it in the same state?

In Singapore, the matter has become a controversy of sorts. Late last year, if I recall correctly, the Straits Times carried a report about the Jurong West Hawker Centre and its decision to charge customers a returnable deposit for trays. Customers pay a 20-cent deposit when they buy food and get the money back when they return the tray. Both hawker center customers and hawker center stall owners were against the scheme.

But I am all for it, if it can be done here. There is a cost to cleaning, a cost to service, and a cost to giving service people decent wages. If we want to give people a decent living, then we should be ready to pay them for their service. But if we want to keep food service costs down, then we should be prepared to serve ourselves and to use a convenient tray-return system.

Cleaning up after eating is the decent and responsible way of leaving a dining area, and showing our concern and consideration for others who will come after us. But the thing is, unless convenience stores and fast food outlets actually implement a well-thought-out tray return system, then people will be less inclined to pick up after themselves.

One option is for food courts to charge or add a tray/dishes deposit to food cost, which is promptly returned as soon as the empty dishes and used utensils — and not just the trays — are returned. Of course, along with the deposit should come the provision of better facilities and services, clearly marked waste bins, designated tray/dish return areas, and appropriate restrooms and drinking stations, among others.

An alternative to the “deposit” is for fast food outlets and convenience stores offering dine-in services to charge extra but to separately itemize “service charge” from food cost, so that this can be earmarked specifically for service crew, pursuant to a new law. This way, people will understand that they are paying a little more for having the “convenience” of having someone pick up after them.

What is more important is that people should be reminded through signs and markings in stores to clear their plates and utensils from tables after dining, and that numerous “return points” should be visible and accessible, even to people with disabilities. Unless a system is in place that will make it easy for people to do the “right” thing, then the effort will be for naught.

Homes and schools should teach particularly the young about picking up after themselves. But if they cannot, then maybe we have better chances by abdicating such a role to fast food outlets. It will be great for children to see Ronald McDonald and Jollibee cleaning their own mess, returning their trays, and setting aside waste and used dishes, because it is the right thing to do.

 

Marvin Tort is a former managing editor of BusinessWorld, and a former chairman of the Philippines Press Council.

matort@yahoo.com

Journey to wholeness: Aesthetic Development

One of the field trips in my Integral Human Development class was to the National Museum of Fine Arts. This trip was meant to feature aesthetic development, one of the forms of well-being. Aesthetics is the appreciation and nature of beauty, in the context of art. Aesthetic engagement can breed emotional connection through the process of creating, doing, and experiencing art. This connectedness has the capacity to bring about meaningful interactions and belongingness in the workplace.

I don’t think that aesthetic well-being is well-developed in our workplace. Since we render accounting, audit and tax compliance services, there are no means to work with creative design or in an artistic way to come up with our reports. I have not thought of any idea which this aspect can be nurtured in a technical services workplace.

I was looking forward to visiting this museum since my friends had recommended going to it. Ever since grade school, I knew I was never into the arts. I was so amazed at how some of my friends could come up with a piece of art. I always knew that all I can draw is a simple house with mountains or the sea or grassland in the background, which is a very common drawing in grade school. I was always so jealous and insecure when it came to this matter since it was never a part of me. I wanted to learn but it’s just that I cannot. That’s why I looked up to my friends who are very talented and skillful in the arts.

During our class visit on June 15, I was struck with amazement at how The Spoliarium was created by Juan Luna. It is a powerful piece thanks to the bloodied bodies of gladiators who fought the Roman oppressors. It is not just a simple piece of art but a dynamic view of the abused Filipinos through the years. It was so powerful that it inspired Jose Rizal to write Noli Me Tangere. The museum was not only about paintings, but also archaeological artifacts and memorabilia. As I said, I was never into appreciating arts. However, I find it astounding to see how these artists have the will and power create their masterpieces.

I realized that even if I’m not into arts, someone like me can develop my aesthetic side through literature or writing. Although it takes a lot of practice to craft good literary output, there is a chance for me to develop this skill. I don’t believe that practice makes perfect — however, practice makes a better outcome. Another realization is that practicing writing means having to read a lot. I have learned that if I read, I gain knowledge from reading and I am not only developing my aesthetic skills, but also my cognitive skills, another dimension of well-being.

Another realization from this experience was the connection of aesthetics to stress. Stress is not an illness but a state that can be a very powerful contributor to illness. Aesthetics can be a way to reduce stress. Organizational stress cripples employees and affects organizations in a major way. Human resource sustainability — that is the health and wellbeing of the workers — is now more than ever in critical focus. Through connecting human resource management, organizational sustainability, aesthetics, and psychology literature, organizational aesthetic practices mediated by emotional and sensory knowledge acquisition may have the capacity to mitigate stress. For example, Google encourages employees to use 20% of company time to create and innovate on their own. This aesthetic program focuses on brainstorming sessions where groups of participants come together, connect, discuss, and debate possible solutions to a problem. This also develops their cognitive skills.

In our firm, there are employees who break down and cry due to intense pressure. The need for competency is a large contributor to pressure in our work. From what I experienced in visiting the National Museum, discovering and exploring something new takes your mind off work. It is the time when you can reflect and get to discover new knowledge. I think that the team or the unit in the office could go out to take their minds off work so stress is released. I think my commitment right now is to help relieve the stress of my colleagues by inviting them to visit the museum or go to a painting session to learn and try something new.

 

Noellen delos Santos is an MBA student at De La Salle University. This article is part of her reflections on her experiences in the course, Integral Human Development.

https://nowiedds.blogspot.com/

‘Social cost’ of carbon and trash to jetfuel

Among the topics discussed during the Heartland Institute’s 13th International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC-13) that I attended on July 25 in Washington, DC, USA, was the social cost of carbon (SCC) vs social benefit of carbon (SBC).

Among the speakers was Dr. Kevin Dayaratna, Senior Statistician and Research Programmer of the Heritage Foundation’s Center for Data Analysis.

Kevin discussed the “Cost-Benefit Analysis of the Green New Deal.” The Obama administration proposed the Social Cost of Carbon (SCC) for regulation, defined as “the economic damages per MT of CO2 emission.”

Kevin wondered how does one actually estimate the SCC and what really is the long-term economic impact of CO2 emissions across a particular time horizon. He mentioned three statistical models (IAMs) to estimate SCC: the DICE model, the FUND model, and the PAGE model.

Heritage altered the assumptions made by the Obama administration, they ran two of the three models, the results show that SCC can drop by 40-200%, can even be negative at times, under very reasonable assumptions. Negative “social cost” means social benefits. Like the greening of the planet, 1982-2009.

Kevin concluded that for the newly proposed Green New Deal (GND) in the US, instituting carbon capture regulations by 2040 will result in income loss of more than $160,000 for a family of four, increase in household electricity expenditures of up to 30%, and an aggregate $15 trillion loss in GDP. Thus, the GND should be junked, using the SCC for cost-benefit analysis should be junked.

Another speaker, Dr. Roger Bezdek, Founder and President, MISI, a DC-based economic, energy and environmental research firm, noted that: 1.) Fossil fuels and CO2 are demonized and blamed for everything but they are essential to modern life and will remain so in the future. 2. To reduce 2050 GHGs to 80-95% of 1990 levels implies that 2050 living standards in the world would be reduced to levels of 1800s; 3.) Benefit-cost ratios are very high and will remain orders of magnitude larger than any reasonable SCC estimates; and, 4.) The social benefits of carbon (SCB) and fossil fuels outweigh costs by orders of magnitude and will continue to do so.

Dr. Craig Idso, founder and former President of the Center for the Study of Carbon Dioxide and Global Change, lead author of “Climate Change Reconsidered” series produced by the Non-governmental International Panel on Climate Change (NIPCC), argued that more CO2 emissions and fossil energy have improved human prosperity and benefit the human and natural world. Atmospheric CO2 is the basic food of plants, their primary raw material to construct their tissues and, aided by sunlight, produce their own food via photosynthesis. Thousands of laboratory and field experiments have shown that higher CO2 concentrations increase plant productivity and growth. Which means more trees, more crops, more food production. More, not less, fossil energy is needed to enhance the future of human environment.

He computed “total human life-years” until around 2017, I updated his computation to 2019 and expanded it to 2050. Data from the UN DESA and geoba.se/population. (See Table 1.)

From 1820 to 2019 or nearly 200 years, there was 17.4x expansion as humans live longer and healthier, mainly because humanity used fossil fuels to modernize their food production, transportation of goods and people, modern electricity that run 24/7 and so on. Projecting to 2050, there would be 24.3x over 1820 and 1.4x over 2019 levels.

The Philippines should never toy with the idea of following GND-type of energy policies. Currently, the per capita energy consumption of Filipinos on average is among the lowest in East Asia, only 18.5 gigajoule per person in 2018 — just one-half the consumption of an average Vietnamese and nearly one-fifth (1/5) of the global average. A gigajoule is equivalent to 277.8 kWh. (See Table 2.)

Last week, my friend and fellow BusinessWorld columnist Andrew Masigan invited me to a presentation by Trevor Neilson of i(x) investments, about the economics and technology of converting solid waste into aviation fuel or diesel. We often hear of biomass energy, converting agro-forest and household solid wastes into electricity, it is old technology but this one is new — solid wastes to aviation fuel. A summary of the economics and business prospects of this business innovation is found in Table 3.

It is a good initiative. Very costly investments but high potentials for the Philippines, singled out by the US business proponents because of its high solid waste production and geographical location — just two to four hours by plane to major business centers in the region, north-west-south of Manila.

 

Bienvenido S. Oplas, Jr. is the president of Minimal Government Thinkers.

minimalgovernment@gmail.com

Always be closing

By Raju Mandhyan

GONE ARE the days when sales people had to be snappy looking, fast talking, and bag-toting musketeers. Gone are the days when mere product knowledge, industry experience, terrain familiarity, and the right connections could land you a sale. Gone too, are the days when buyers were taken in by the name of a brand, the flash of a product, and the ease of making the purchase. Especially gone is the time when professional selling was a one-way street called “Pitch,” “Push,” or a “Closing Cul-de-sac.”

Today, the selling profession has transcended its former negative image of a racket run by fast-talking, glib-tongued characters. Today selling is a relationship, a collaboration; a dance where who is leading whom is not easily discerned. Selling today is a journey of equals whose destination is value creation. It is a destination that is constantly moving. It is a progressive goal into a far off future.

Your question might be, close what?

Yesterday’s managers and supervisors frequently prodded their salespeople toward increased sales and productivity through mantras called “Always Be Prospecting” and the ABC of selling, which meant “Always Be Closing.” My question to these folks had always been “What do you mean always be closing?” Closing what?

But isn’t that stating the obvious? Isn’t it apparent what the statements, “always be prospecting” and “always be closing” are saying? Isn’t any sales person or any individual for that matter, always prospecting or closing? Isn’t life itself about having and filling needs? Aren’t we, humans, always on the lookout for things to live by, grow with, and build upon? Isn’t life a constant struggle up the Maslowian Mountain of needs?

In highlighting and pushing these two paradigms of “always be prospecting” and “always be closing,” we have taken our focus away from what is important in life. Life is about learning, loving, and living out our innate desires as human beings to create value in the lives of others.

Thus, I would like us to take a second look at and reconsider our perspective of the word “close,” which is of hunting, capturing, and feeding only our own needs. I would like to reintroduce “close” in a perspective of being near, being open, supportive and trusting. I’d like to propose “close” as an act of coming together to co-create value for the world through the hearts of our collective minds.

Well, the word heart is symbolic of the core where precious trust and shared values reside. These values need to align, to get close and have a productive relationship.

And, then you might ask me why something as common and as mushy as the “heart”?

Beyond the symbolism of the word “heart,” it is extremely important to know what research has proven. People’s buying decisions are made from the heart. The final “yes” or “no” often transcends all logical and rational analyses. What it comes down to is actually a cocktail of emotions and primal needs. That is why some people stock up on goods that, actually, serve them no discernible purpose. Take for example, shoes and bags for women; cars and hair products for men. That is similarly why many, sensible solutions in businesses are not accepted or acquired; because the group’s intellectual, emotional, and primal needs did not come to a consensus.

This is my way of seeking permission to walk you briefly through the halls of neuroscience towards authentic influence and improved sales through the HeART of the Close.

 

Raju Mandhyan Author, Coach and Facilitator.

www.mandhyan.com

Is China’s Old Pharma too complex to simplify?

By Shuli Ren

CHINA HAS long promoted its traditional medicinal system as a national treasure and more recently as a tool of soft power. While the ancient art remains a policy priority, however, it faces very modern challenges including rising costs, complexities of production and treatment, and murky intellectual property rights.

Chinese medicine practitioners have been treating patients with herbal medicine and acupuncture around the globe, from the Czech Republic to South Sudan. In China, half the items covered by public health insurance come from the traditional canon. Such products account for more than 40% of the $280 billion pharmaceutical market, the second largest in the world.

The Nobel prize awarded in 2015 to Tu Youyou for deriving an anti-malarial drug from sweet wormwood marked a high-point for Chinese traditional medicine, a sense that it was being given the recognition it deserved.

Yet there’s a sense of pessimism. Chemical drug makers, such as Jiangsu Hengrui Medicine Co., have shaken off the blow of forced price cuts imposed last year. Meanwhile, the biggest traditional medicine makers, such as Guangzhou Baiyunshan Pharmaceutical Holdings Co Ltd. and Zhangzhou Pientzehuang Pharmaceutical Co., are languishing.

One problem is intellectual property. In its bid for technological supremacy, China has become obsessed with how many patents Huawei Technologies Co. can claim or how many clinical trials are held for cancer immunotherapy. Mundane products are more neglected.

Take the 1,000-odd traditional medicines on the latest National Drug Reimbursement List, released in late August. At first glance, this looks like a boost for makers. But the fine print shows Beijing’s unwillingness to spend much on traditional therapies. For instance, most of the traditional medicines in injectable form can only be given at large public hospitals. Such facilities only rarely have traditional doctors, who are the only ones allowed to administer such treatment.

NEED A CURE
This is partly because Beijing is poorer than believed. As I’ve written, in China, healthcare costs are mainly covered by state medical insurance and by patients themselves. Without government subsidies, China’s 2.3 trillion yuan ($322 billion) social insurance fund would have been in deficit years ago. In 2018, subsidies accounted for a quarter of total revenue.

FREEPIK-XB100

Efficiency is an important metric as Beijing grapples with a rapidly aging population. The government would rather prioritize medicines that show immediate effect. Traditional Chinese medicine takes time and emphasizes disease prevention and recovery. Many products claim to cure multiple ailments, such as Pientzehuang’s flagship product, a centuries-old concoction. How effective are they? It can be hard to measure.

Then there is finding a proper doctor. For every four graduates of a Western-style medical school, only one completes a traditional medicine education. One way for producers to adapt is to derive their products into Western chemical forms, like Tu Youyou did with sweet wormwood. That way, every doctor at a hospital can prescribe the pill.

But that’s a tall order. Traditional medicine is not known for simplicity, making it difficult to adapt a treatment to a simple pill or two, taken all at once.

Case in point: I go to my traditional doctor sometimes to treat “internal heat imbalance” from work stress and excessive yoga. The prescription contains at least a dozen ingredients, from tree bark to dried lily buds, and effectively ignores the notion of allergies. Imagine pushing these ingredients through the equivalent of the US Food and Drug Administration.

As for patients, while they can read up on Western drugs or even medicate themselves with cheap generics, traditional medicine is well beyond quick understanding. Ayurveda, a system of medicine that originated in India, treats patients on a fairly simple foundation of three elements. Traditional Chinese medicine is deeply complex and resists change.

Short on money, Beijing no longer has the patience for complexity.

 

BLOOMBERG OPINION

Duterte protested Chinese incursions 63 times

THE PHILIPPINES has protested Chinese incursions in the South China Sea more than 60 times since President Rodrigo R. Duterte became president in 2016, his top diplomat told lawmakers yesterday.

Of the 63 diplomatic notes, Manila had issued 29 notes verbale — a less formal note that is drafted in the third person and never signed — based on intelligence information provided by its military, Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro L. Locsin Jr. said at a House of Representatives hearing discussing his agency’s 2020 budget.

“We have filed diplomatic protests at every turn,” he told congressmen. “When they tell me that there is a violation of our rights, I file diplomatic protests,” he said of the Philippine Army.

“I have changed the language of our diplomatic protest from the usual niceties to direct protests, no nice words anymore,” he added.

In 2016, the United Nations Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague voided China’s claim to more than 80% of the South China Sea. China has rejected the ruling.

Mr. Duterte raised the nation’s arbitral win during his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping last week as he faces mounting domestic pressure to take a tougher stance after a collision that sank a Filipino fishing boat at Reed Bank in June.

The president told Mr. Xi that the 2016 United Nations ruling was “final, binding and not subject to appeal.”

His Chinese counterpart was unmoved, saying there won’t be any change to Beijing’s position on the sea dispute, according to presidential spokesman Salvador S. Panelo.

During the meeting, both parties agreed to form a steering committee for joint exploration in the South China Sea.

Mr. Locsin said the Chinese government had answered Mr. Duterte’s call for foreign vessels to seek permission from Philippine authorities before sailing in its territorial waters.

“When warships were seen in the West Philippine Sea, the President said he will not allow that,” he said, referring to parts of the South China Sea within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone. “And he said he will demand permission. To our surprise, China’s answer was, ‘That’s exactly what we want. We want to ask permission.’”

Five Chinese warships passed through the Sibutu Strait in southern Philippines in July and August without notifying local authorities, the military has said.

Last month, Mr. Duterte said foreign ships that enter Philippine waters would face “unfriendly” treatment if they failed to notify authorities.

Mr. Locsin said Western vessels had not sought permission to sail in Philippine waters. “The problem is western naval powers do not, as a matter of principle, never ask for permission, because they insist on total and absolute freedom of navigation,” he said.

The Foreign Affairs chief called a “total fabrication” a report that Mr. Duterte had been apologetic when he raised the Philippines’ arbitral win.

“The president has, in my experience in his visits to China, always raised the arbitral award,” he said. Mr. Locsin then sought a closed-door meeting with congressmen to discuss details of what the president told Mr. Xi. — Vince Angelo C. Ferreras

Panelo says he met Sanchez kin two times

PRESIDENT RODRIGO R. Duterte’s spokesman yesterday said he met twice with the family of a convict for whom he had lawyered to discuss a request for executive clemency.

Salvador S. Panelo, who is also the president’s chief lawyer, told CNN Philippines that former Calauan Mayor Antonio L. Sanchez’s family had visited him at the presidential palace two times early this year. He denied any wrongdoing.

“What to me is inappropriate is if I advised the president as chief presidential legal counsel to grant clemency,” Mr. Panelo said. “I just referred the matter to the appropriate agency and that’s for them to do whatever they want.”

At Tuesday’s Senate hearing, Reynaldo G. Bayang, who heads the Board of Pardons and Parole, told senators that Mr. Panelo had written a letter dated Feb. 26 referring the plea of Mr. Sanchez’s daughter to free her father.

Mr. Panelo, who lawyered for Mr. Sanchez in his rape-slay case for which he was sentenced to seven life terms in 1995, said he had never recommended his release.

He said a simple referral was “totally different from a recommendation or an endorsement.”

The parole board rejected Mr. Sanchez’s plea, Mr. Bayang earlier told senators.

Meanwhile, senators said Bureau of Corrections Director-General Nicanor E. Faeldon should take a leave, if not resign, pending an investigation of his agency’s procedures in inmates’ early release for good conduct.

“Prudence dictates maybe he should at least offer a leave of absence to the president to allow the president to conduct an investigation,” Senator Juan Miguel F. Zubiri told reporters yesterday.

Mr. Sanchez’s early release was canceled after public uproar. About 2,000 inmates convicted of heinous crimes have been released since the start of the decade even if they were not supposed to be covered by the law, according to prison data.

Three senators have filed a bill seeking to repeal the law allowing the early release of a convict for good conduct.

In a joint statement on Tuesday, Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III and Senators Richard J. Gordon and Panfilo M. Lacson said the law might be prejudicial to the victims and their relatives who had sought justice. — Arjay L. Balinbin and Charmaine A. Tadalan

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