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Thai Airways: Why “Image Self-Delusion” about the new airport when you have substance?
Paul Bograd
I have long held the suspicion that Thai Airways was suffering from “Image Self-Delusion,” but I have always been hesitant to write about it because I didn’t want to be one of those guys who uses public space to air my personal gripes about customer mistreatment, but the opening of Bangkok’s new Suvarnabhumi Airport has given me an opening
THAI AIRWAYS SACKS EXECUTIVE OVER LUGGAGE MESS AT NEW AIRPORT
This was the breaking news from Thai Airlines on the second day of operations for the new Suvarnabhumi airport, a US$4 billion, much delayed facility that was experiencing the inevitable problems of the opening of any facility of this magnitude (An airport by the way that didn’t need to be built. Thailand could have built an additional new terminal at the venerable Don Muang Airport and upgraded the existing train lines and light rail right of ways, and elevated highways. But that would have made too much sense. Not enough money to be made in construction, financing, new vendor contracts, new transportation schemes, I guess. Of course, the Air Force golf course situated between the runways at the old airport probably would have had to go, and the Air Force base relocated, but why do that when there was so much money to be made on land speculation at the new Suvarnabhumi Airport).
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Posted
9/30/2006 12:05:38 AM |
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Drying off, business goes on despite Milenyo
Michael Alan Hamlin
The airport may be a lake, but BPO never stops
Typhoon Milenyo (international codename Xangsane), as it is known in the Philippines, made quite an entrance to central Luzon yesterday, uprooting trees, tearing off roofs, and downing billboards in relentless fashion. Milenyo closed down the airport, but indomitable Filipinos were on the streets, in the malls, and manning their seats in contact centers, BPO operations, and animation studios.
In much the same way that bloggers like my colleague Paul Bograd chronicled Thailand's coup last week, Filipino bloggers enthusiastically posted their experiences -- and those of their friends -- hiding from 130 kph winds for an afternoon. For a summary, see INQ7 reporter Erwin Oliva's story, Bloggers chronical typhoon's fury in Metro Manila.
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Posted
9/29/2006 4:03:48 PM |
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Governance
Orly Mercado
Transparency issues, big and small
“If businesses practiced democracy, they would all go bankrupt.” He is a business executive and a parent who made a rare appearance in our parent-teacher association meeting. He did not strike me as opposed to transparency in management, but seemed to be mouthing a “conventional wisdom” I have heard a few times from those running the international school in Kobe my son attends. Democracy and corporate governance are incompatible, so it goes.
I was presiding over our first PTA meeting for the semester. We had just finished discussing “earth shaking” issues like sports day, school bus service, school lunches, etc. when we got to the topic of amendments to the by-laws of the school council, the highest governing body of the school. One mother was livid as she complained that a petition of some eighty parents was ignored. A father made his case for electing members of the council instead of an old boys club appointing their favorites. Others who chimed in basically pointed to the lack of accountability to the most important stakeholders in the school, the parents. Reform is always a tough job, I thought to myself.
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Posted
9/27/2006 10:35:21 PM |
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The problem with a political bombshell like the coup in Thailand is that a pundit never knows where to start
Paul Bograd
I temporarily cede my authority to pontificate (a little white lie)
You know the problem with a political bombshell like the coup in Thailand is that a pundit never knows where to start. I mean the possibilities for pontification, punditry and pomposity are endless. Democracy, Freedom, Censorship, Militarism, Monarchy, Stability, Economics... Ahhh!!! Enough already. I temporarily cede my authority to pontificate. The concepts are so big; too big to contemplate. Require too much thinking! Too much explaining; Too much careful language so that the new Thai authorities don’t ban the website. So I won’t even try right now.
So let me share just a few short observations:
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Posted
9/25/2006 8:19:01 PM |
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It turns out that the “joke is on Thailand”
Paul Bograd
THIS IS A PARTIAL AND UNFINISHED ARTICLE THAT I HAVE BEEN WORKING ON FOR THE PAST FEW DAYS. IN LINE WITH RECENT EVENTS, I THOUGHT IT WOULD BE WORTH POSTING AND UPDATING AS THE DAYS GO ON. MY CONCLUSIONS WERE GOING TO SUGGEST THAT BY HIS BEHAVIOR, THAKSIN HAS GIVEN A PERMISSION STRUCTURE FOR THE MILITARY AND/OR OTHERS TO ACT IN AN EXTRA-CONSTITUTIONAL MANNER. THE CURRENT COUP IS MORE COMPLEX THAN THAT. I WILL TRY TO OFFER MY SPECULATIONS IN THE COMING DAYS. THANKS AND I HOPE YOU ENJOY THIS UNFINISHED PIECE.
Not so long ago there used to be cynical joke that passed through the self defined “pundit” community here in Southeast Asia. The joke went something like this:
“In Thailand where there has been a long and inglorious history of successful military coup de tats, you never hear anyone gossiping about coups. In the Philippines which has never had a successful overtly military coup de tat, coup rumors virtually form the basis of a national culture.”
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Posted
9/20/2006 12:18:11 PM |
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The private sector & national competitiveness
Michael Alan Hamlin
Industry must lead development
Delegates to the recent BPA/P-NASSCOM Business Conference in Manila were interested in many of the initiatives the National Association of Software & Services Companies undertook early in its 15-year history to promote India’s business process outsourcing (BPO) industry, especially the software sector, but also contact centers, design & engineering, animation, transcription, and backend business services.
NASSCOM is straight-forward about this role. It’s website includes a page titled “Building the India Brand in Software.” The organization does much more than build the India brand, but everything it does is meant in some way to contribute to enhancing the image of India as a software and BPO powerhouse. For example, NASSCOM publishes an impressive series of industry reports, produces and participates in meetings and conferences, and undertakes projects intended to help maintain quality standards and publicizes their impact.
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Posted
9/20/2006 11:30:27 AM |
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Conspiracy theories
Orly Mercado
Rewriting history
A few months ago a friend of mine was excited about a documentary he saw on the Internet. He said it was a must-see that detailed the “truth” about the twin towers collapse September 11, 2001. Not being a conspiracy buff, I did not bother to check it out. During the week of the fifth anniversary of 9-11 there was much talk about this documentary, which claimed that the Bush administration actually orchestrated the attack on the twin towers. It further averred that the worst terrorist attack on US soil which we saw on TV was actually a professional demolition job.
I would not have bothered about this so-called documentary until Professor Michael Shermer’s Skeptic Magazine published its research findings on this conspiracy theory. Shermer, who has done much in popularizing a science culture, has said that conspiracy theories are not new. Even during the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, there were claims that Roosevelt and Churchill knew of the attacks. He says that because we are not all natural scientists, “those who can string together a collection of anomalous facts” can attract some attention.
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Posted
9/19/2006 1:18:36 AM |
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Somtum Cinderella: Social success in Bangkok’s culinary streets
Paul Bograd
The “Somtum Lady” and her assistant... Bangkok icons
Before reading the rest of this piece I offer you a short discourse on “The Somtum Lady,” one of the iconic images of day-to-day life in Bangkok, and across Thailand for that matter.
Somtum as many readers may already know is the staple of Thai street cuisine. This unripe, green papaya salad represents the very core of Thai flavor. It is renowned for its interchanging balance as each of the four flavors takes culinary center stage as the salad is consumed. First the sweet, then the sour, then the salt and each bite highlighted by the fiery undertones of Thai Bird Chilies. The flavor wraps around the crunchy strands of unripe papaya and depending on your mood the flavor is enhanced with additions like fermented land crab, or salted egg, or my favorite: icy fresh uncooked ocean crab. The sweetness of the raw crab juxtaposed against the fiery Somtum makes regular sashimi as ordinary as a plastic bag of generic white bread.
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Posted
9/18/2006 5:54:55 PM |
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The Benedict XVI controversies and “Asian Values”
Paul Bograd
My compliments to the Pope
The current firestorm over remarks by Pope Benedict XVI may seem an odd segue to a commentary on Asian Values, but there is something very instructive in how this controversy is playing out. In fact this would be an excellent case study in how real global dialogues will evolve in the 21st Century. By “Real” I mean important dialogues as opposed to interesting or entertaining dialogues.
Admittedly, “Asian Values” is only an ancillary part of the fallout to the Pope’s remarks but since this site is called AsianPundit, I wanted to talk about Asia.
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Posted
9/16/2006 2:51:14 PM |
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Delia
Michael Alan Hamlin
Her contributions will endure
Yesterday, MediaG8way president & CEO Delia C. Gutierrez was laid to rest. Her internment marked the end of a profoundly sad six days following her death one week ago today. While the circumstances of her death are not completely clear, what we know is that Delia died alone in her Makati office. We also know that her passing marks the end of an important chapter in Philippine publishing, and the beginning of a new one for those who will carry on after her.
There are several things that stand out about Delia as I rethink our long association. The first is how well-known she was. It may seem natural that a publishing executive be well-known. But her visibility was in many ways unique, or so it seems to me. Unique because so many of her associations seemed to last throughout her lifetime. Filipinos in general nurture enduring relationships, but Delia seemed to take the notion of a community of friends to a new level.
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Posted
9/13/2006 1:26:22 PM |
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Mr. Finance Minister
Orly Mercado
On businessmen, coup attempts and happy endings
“Mr. Minister it is a pleasure to meet you,” I mumbled as I was introduced to the Minister of Finance of the Republic of Maldives. My consultancy work here in Male’ has required me to meet various ministers to discuss disaster management policy. On the whole I have been impressed by the officials I have met. But this finance minister did not fit the stereotype I expected. He did not appear odd for the job, he just felt different. And he was.
Qasim Ibrahim is an outspoken, intense, energetic and charismatic former businessman, well tycoon, to be exact. He is new in the job. How he got there is a story in itself. He has extensive interests that include resorts, cement, gas, shipping among others. With his economic clout, it was not surprising that he would foray into the realm of public policy and governance. As a leader of the reform movement, however, he figured in protest actions that were too violent for the government’s comfort. He was arrested but was released from detention shortly before the 2004 tsunami.
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Posted
9/10/2006 10:20:39 PM |
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Strategic alliance
Michael Alan Hamlin
"Together, we all gain..."
Representatives of the Business Processing Association of the Philippines (BPA/P) and India’s National Association of Software & Services Companies, more popularly known by its NASSCOM acronym, are meeting in Manila this week. On Monday, the two private-sector associations signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOU) as the first step in undertaking collaborative efforts to contribute to sustained growth of the business process outsourcing industry (BPO).
BPA/P is modeled in many respects after NASSCOM. The Indian association was formed 15 years ago to advise government officials on strategies to facilitate growth of the industry. It now serves as a virtual chamber of commerce for its 950 members, and is probably best-known outside India for the work it has done to promote India as a center for software development and other technology-based services.
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Posted
9/7/2006 5:12:29 PM |
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California leading
Orly Mercado
Kicking the oil habit and Washington
For most of the world exposed to American pop culture, California is beaches, sun-tanned bodies, Silicon Valley, silicon implants, and cars… lots of it. Its appetite for consumption is matched only by its productivity.
Recent news that the California state legislature has passed a law setting targets in emission control by as much as twenty five percent reduction within fourteen years, reinforces its leadership in environmental policy making. The state that led the high tech revolution is now poised to be the capital in clean energy technology.
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Posted
9/3/2006 4:58:59 PM |
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