Persistent mass poverty (Feudal system hobbles Philippine economic growth) ALTES Knowledge-Sharing, Dec. 6, 2014 New York City +++ Pictures below: A Forbes Park, Makati, residence and a slum area in Tondo, Manila +++ Excerpts from “Politics: why it’s the only game in town” by Randy David, columnist, The Philippine Daily Inquirer, December 4th, 2014 ● Modernity – “I define modernity as the primacy of functional differentiation in society. This is manifested in the gradual emergence of autonomous functional domains like politics, law, economy, religion, science, art, the mass media, etc. These domains are autonomous not in the sense that they are oblivious to and unaffected by what happens around them, but in the sense that they can operate only by their own system-specific code and medium.” ● Social order in pre-modern society – “In pre-modern society, the lines separating these domains from one another are blurred. Social order is stabilized primarily on the basis of class and ethnic divisions. The elites and the masses do not share a common world. There is one set of laws for the rich, and another for the poor. There are occupations reserved only for the aristocracy, from which commoners are barred. Having money does not automatically give everyone access to the market. Not every rich person, for example, can buy property in the enclaves of the elite.” ● Modern functionally differentiated society – “While these early forms of differentiation—stratification and segmentation—continue to exist in modern society, they, however, can no longer be invoked as justifications for making distinctions in society. The change obviously does not occur overnight. The transition to a modern functionally differentiated society is a slow evolutionary process.” ● Janet Napoles and Manny Pacquiao – “But, these days, elite pedigree matters little in the property market. Money carries no memory in modern society. Janet Lim Napoles had no trouble buying a house in exclusive Forbes Park and membership in its exclusive clubs so she could mingle with people whose social class she aspired to join. The billionaire boxer Manny Pacquiao also had all the money in the world to be able to purchase a home in Forbes, yet he felt constrained in the kinds of people he could receive at his residence. He believes the class barriers are still there, and it takes more than money to lower them.” ● Modern institutions – “Modern institutions presume the existence of a people: (1) that have conquered illiteracy through universal access to basic education, (2) that have overcome absolute poverty through equal access to economic opportunity, (3) that assert their legal rights without fear in any court of law, (4) that enjoy religious freedom, and (4) that have the power to replace the leaders who rule over them.” ● Persistent mass poverty – “Indeed we have made great strides in most of these areas, but, sadly, not in the economic realm. Persistent mass poverty excludes at least half of our people from meaningful participation in the economy, and this condition also effectively blocks their access to the major circuits of politics, law and education. That is the reason we continue to be hobbled by the patron-client dynamics of a feudal society.”
Posted on: Sat, 06 Dec 2014 11:54:28 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015