Stop Blaming The Marcos Years For The Philippines' Three Decades Of Suffering

Make no mistake the Philippines really has some martial law crybabies. Some of them even pass this trait down to the next generation who have NEVER even passed through it. They even blame martial law for the current ills of the Philippines. But let's take a look atg the meme above made which addresses Japan's rise from the ashes left by Imperial Japan and how it became Modern Japan in just ten years. Let's say it's true the late Ferdinand E. Marcos Sr. really took all that money from the Philippine treasury. But let's see who suffered worse: Japan from the ruins when the Empire of Japan died after World War 2 or the Philippines under the Marcos regime. It's obvious that the atomic bomb that hit Japan was even worse. It destroyed lots of infrastructure which would take a long time to repair. 

Do you know the Japanese Yen is MUCH WEAKER than the Filipino peso? If you take a look at the Japanese Yen its value is depreciated from the Filipino peso. But guess what? It's Japan that's doing better economically than the Philippines. The death of Imperial Japan and the rise of Modern Japan was made possible through economic liberalization and the parliamentary system. They made Japan rise up by opening up their economy and allowing foreign investors to be part of the Japanese economic system in just ten years. Just think of how Japan evolved overtime and how many innovative products come from Japan or how Japan influenced the world. You can think of how people around the world benefited from rice cookers, video cameras, digital cameras, recorders and DVD technology. All that wouldn't be possible without Japan's free trade policy. Without free trade I don't think I'd even be able to enjoy a lot of stuff I've enjoyed today. Yet you have World War 2 crybabies who ironically enjoy stuff that couldn't exist without the Japanese. 

Why is the Philippines after the Marcos years still poor in contrast to Japan? It has to do with our economic policies. The 1987 Constitution's protectionist policies only make the oligarchy rich while the rest of the country suffers. Would have the country promoted economic liberalization instead of economic protectionism then the nation would recover. Instead, the 1987 Constitution's protectionist clause restricted badly needed foreign investments, filled the minds of Filipinos with the thought that foreign investors are foreign invaders and a wrong sense of nationalism. When you remove competition you remove competitiveness. If there's no competition then what's the use of constantly seeking to innovate to improve your business? Instead, competition forces people to innovate for the better and learn from their mistakes when their innovative ideas don't work out the first time. But with the current pampering environment why would Filipino businesses seek to innovate and be competitive when there's almost no competition? 

What the Philippines needs right now is economic liberalization with reasonable restrictions. Both foreign businesses and Filipino businesses are under the umbrella of the Filipino government. It's time to stop the mentality that Filipinos need to learn to be competitive first before we let competition get in. If we don't let competition from foreign investors get in then when will Filipinos learn to be competitive? It's like this illustration. Successful Filipinos weren't always successful. They learned to do better because of competition. My favorite recent example right now is Beverly Caimen. If she didn't go to Japan and face off against so many talented people there do you think she'd Rider Kick her way to success? I doubt it. Instead, competition made Beverly train up and become the competitive Pinay music artist she is today. She fell down and she rose up. Now she's risen up. That's how free trade works. It will encourage people to be competent or be weeded out overtime.