Natural Disasters

Wyclef Jean: Haiti’s Next President

This is in response to Wyclef’s open letter for his running for Haiti President. You can read his letter here:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/wyclef-jean/open-letter-why-i-decided_b_672752.html

It is clear, Wyclef has been frustrated by the slow recovery. So, perhaps he feels the need to step in – perhaps believing his fame and money will be the catalyst to make it all happen faster. He is miffed, I am sure, as the rest of the world is – as to why this recovery hasn’t happened at a quicker rate.

But what he doesn’t understand is it is not the lack of desire of the people in Haiti to unite for this effort – they are deeply united, even as they live in tents.

And it is not the governments slacking to create the new Haiti it has promised it’s people – they want this recovery desparately -so they can be a functioning country again. The desire, money and people are readily available for all of this.

It’s simply what always stands in the way of any progress: bureaucracy and politics.

The bureaucracy and oversight of all the agencies involved in this recovery and rebuiding effort of Haiti – is what is preventing the progress to happen faster. It’s dictating the slow pace. It’s holding up the dollars being liquidated and available to do with it what they need to in order to reestablish their infrastructure & to build the new homes and structures that will make the communities whole again.

Unfortunately, Wyclef will learn this after he has won and it’s too late to go back – and he too, will then be a part of the enormous frustration that fuels the citizens of Haiti – them knowing this could all be much further along by now. He will now learn the game of politics – and the UN corruptness at it’s best.

No money and no fame can overpower the deeply entrenched strongholds that cloud over on Haiti. He has to be willing to accept this. His intentions are from his heart and are outstanding! His willingness to alter his life and put his energy and efforts towards his people to show his care, & to be a mentor to his daughter to not just speak about an issue -but do what you can to change it.

But he will soon find out, not even someone as loved as he is in Haiti, and in the global population, will he be able to do much more than what is already being dictated as the way things will go.

I am an optimist, but I think he needs to reconsider this before he jumps in as ‘hero’ only to raise the hopes of these Haitians even more – should he win – only to realize he will be letting them down even more so once he is President.

He is taking on more than just ‘dealing with earthquake recovery’, he is taking on globally entrenched politics. If Bill Clinton hasn’t been able to spark this recovery and rebuilding effort any faster than how it is has gone, (even now with their multimillion dollar debt elimination), there is a very very good reason…one Wyclef might be devasted to find out about his country and the rest of the world.

I wish him the best. He needs to go in “Obama Style” on this – demand the hardest changes and not leave that country until he sees them happen or be willing to die for it. That is what a President should be about in the 21st Century.

So, WJ – are you sure you want to be Haiti’s President?

Clinton Is The Only One

No other president in the history of the United States went on to continue engaging in public service after their presidential term except Bill Clinton.

This truly represents how much he enjoys this type of work. The love he has to help others – to give his time to make positive and lasting impacts in a variety of areas.

To me, this is the finest example of a true public servant!

From Governor of Arkansas to President of the USA for 8 years to immediately after his presidency, Bill Clinton has dedicated his life to this profession.

He didn’t even take much time off post presidency before he started to build his Foundation so his passion to help others could extend globally.

And he is doing a phenomenal job. The results speak for themselves:  http://clintonfoundation.org

This has nothing to do with you being a Democrat or Republican, or if you liked Clinton as our President or not, if you voted for him, or even if you like him as an American citizen.

This has to do with the qualities of an exceptional man. One who puts others before himself or his family.

This is the same man who could have easily run for cover after his presidential term with the embarrassment he exposed himself to, the shame, the dissapointment to the American people, and the humiliation he shed on his wife with his Lewinsky sexual relations scenario.

But he didn’t. He just continued doing what he loves to do and is incredible at doing.

This is more than Bill Clinton wanting to make up for the ‘bad’ he did in the eyes of the American people…even the international community.

He isn’t setting out to gain approval from anyone. Bill Clinton set out many many years ago to pursue a personal mission that he loves, and that passion to help others is still powerfully vibrant.

Clinton’s drive and determination echos loudly through the sustainable results (often life-saving) he has been making across the world and continues to do so through his non-profit Foundation.

Also to note, Clinton doesn’t just keep to his Foundation and stay in this ‘box’. Clinton has also been at the forefront of numerous natural disasters over the years in other nations, being the leader for instant response and quickly rallying the suport of others – to begin dealing with the catastrophic event or devestation, as we have seen most recently in Haiti.

This speaks volumes as to the types of individuals we had sitting as our US President’s before and after Clinton. It makes me now question why they didn’t continue serving…what type of men were they really (well, we know some of the answer to that).

With Obama being a huge advocate on community service prior to his presidency and now currently, I am sure he will be one to follow on Clinton’s path when his presidency is done.

I respect and look up to Clinton in many ways as an entrepreneur and business owner. There is a lot you can learn from him.

After 8 years of being president, and a heart situation, he could easily just enjoy life at a slower pace. But he doesn’t choose that path. Clinton actually still goes at the same pace (even at his age) as he did when he was President of the USA. That is impressive and should be an additional inspiration to us all – besides all the good he has done since he left the government.

Part of My Global Footprint

As my main business, BLC is focused on emerging areas, it is natural for me to be an advocate to champion these undeveloped nations at all times.

In pursuing this with gusto in 2010, I am doing this now specifically for Haiti, due to the recent 7.0 devastating earthquake they had last week.

We all know, they have a very long road ahead of them: the continued efforts for search and rescue which will turn to recovery shortly, and then the immense and extremely challenging dynamics of  rebuilding and restoring an area that was already fragile, and struggling daily for dignified survival.

But I am not just speaking of rebuilding structures. I am talking about a nationwide society undertaking – an internal infrastructure project – if you will.

Creating a new government, community & business platform. Focusing on how the interdynamics of civilians, business owners and authorities will coexist for a more civil, cohesive, peaceful, safe, vibrant and thriving society.

This solid foundation is essential in order for this country to massively transform itself from where it has been, to reach exceptional greatness in the near and distance future.

This is the kind of  21st century entrepreneurial vision and strategic planning that many developed nations want to incorporate into this island nation. Not for any country specific selfish reason, but for the common humanity & sustainability it offers both to Haiti, and for the future contributing aspects this Caribbean island can offer to the global community, that just have not been tapped into yet.

I believe Haiti’s evolvement over the next 2-5 years -just in their beginning stages alone – will be exceptional and will be a fine representation of how the global world unites, with one idea, one mission and stays with those enduring the hardships and changes throughout the duration. They will emerge better and stronger than ever, but they are human, and they can’t do it alone.

We can’t forget about them once the media returns home and we only see an occasional story about their progress or hardships in 2 months when something else is headline news.

Each one of us can make the tiniest or biggest impact not just with money, but in many more facets.

Since this earthquake, I have wanted to do more. And with my contacts and knowledge from BLC, I have been contemplating how I can be a facilitator of this in a bigger way then me just donating money as I already have.

Tonight, I realized how I can put more of my global footprint in the Caribbean.  I have just created a new Ning platform to join all people interested in starting the hard work to rebuild this nation – not just the one city, Port-au-Prince – but the entire nation in both structure, government, and community.

These Haitians have the unwavering spirit of not letting natural catastrophies keep them from moving on. We witnessed that from the 4 hurricanes that lashed them in 2008.

This earthquake is a bigger monstrosity to overcome, but with our global unwavering support, we can all help this incredible nation reach it’s fullest potential.

Please  join me in this pursuit of truly making a difference – more than just with money. Click the link below for:

A New Haiti – Better than Before

http://www.anewhaiti.ning.com

Thank you for your time to do so.