From Election Victory To Pandemic & Investment
I don’t know if Biden is the luckiest man in the world, but he seems to be one of them. Think of the way Biden got elected — with the highest number of popular votes in the US history — mostly through staying low and staying passive, in the end reaping a victory from all the wrong moves and lies by his opponent.
Well, every luck has its time tag and the luck that got him into the WH is now used up. But don’t worry, the luck that allocated to Biden is not exhausted yet. An even better and big luck comes its way now after spending roughly 70 days in the office, except this time Biden is actively claiming or fighting for it.
I am talking of course about the vast proposal on infrastructure right after the pandemic stimulus package. They both bring good news for the US and also for the world, when the former switches its priority from overseas military spending to domestic construction, rebuilding and realigning.
Lucks Are Nothing But Game Resources
The so called lucks do not fall from the sky but are generated or produced on the face of the earth in between agents, many from competitors, some from adversaries and many from the accumulated choices of other agents in the past, present and foreseeable future. In other words, lucks are nothing but generalized game resources. Furthermore, game resources also contain privately or personally owned resources, including the insights and capabilities of leveraging not owned resources.
One example is self-awareness, both external and internal types. The latter is about knowing your own strengths and weaknesses, while the former about knowing how others seeing you. Biden is certainly not weak in his self awareness power, as pointed in this article, Biden said at his first press conference: “Successful presidents better than me have been successful in large part because they know how to time what they’re doing.” This shows he is fully aware of his current mission and his potential position in this country’s history. Simply put, Biden does not look like the “blind man” in the “Blind Man & Elephant” proverb I talked about last time. On the other hand, it is sad to see Trump remaining a blind man today, months after leaving the WH. He is blind to his own weaknesses, and also blind to how people — those outside his base — see him.
I also agree with this opinion piece in Washington Post that Biden faces a Roosevelt moment, and another interesting point in this essay that Trump has indirectly helped Biden this time, in the sense that “Trump’s inroads with White working class Americans and success in fracturing the conservative creed of low deficits helped may mute the classic Republican attack line about big spending Democrats and win him some support from conservative voters more open to seeing government fix their problems.”
Of course, we know the same GOPers who voted “yes” to Trump’s spending bills will most likely vote “no” to Biden, being accused of hypocrisy or inconsistency is a risk they are willing to take. But as noted by this report in NPR, Biden only proposes raising “corporate taxes to 28% — halfway between the current top corporate rate of 21% set by former President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax law and the 35% rate before it was enacted.” This is a pretty mild goal and a necessary evil unless the GOP can come up with anything better.
Finally, China has also come to Biden’s assistance this time in his stimulus package. Biden was straightforward in his announcement of the stimulus plan that it is once in a generation investment to win the global competition against China. This is a smart thing to say, given the bipartisan consensus against the “Central Kingdom,” which makes his giant plan easier to sell.
A Few Thoughts On the Investment Package
International Sources of Funds. Is it possible to attract international funds to invest in the US this time? I think the answer is yes — if the US does it right. I know there are Chinese entrepreneurs interested in investing in the US market, but do not want to let their own people know in order to avoid being labeled as traitors or non-patriotic. Of course, many other countries do not have this problem, which means the US can be more transparent to these investors. If governmental accounting does not allow hidden funds or accounts, international investors can join a US private investor in a project.
If the US sets up funds under the generic title of “Investing in the US for the 21st century,” it will attract international investors. We can even allow them to pick a particular project to pour their money to, and sign investment contracts with them to ensure the availability of the capital.
Even better, instead of government proposing everything for the future, the US could open itself up to any ideas or proposals from the domestic or even international societies. This public brainstorming session will make the job more interesting and turn US governmental projects into social and international projects or endeavors.
Investing in Governmental Agencies and Employees. Not sure if this is already a part of the investment but governmental agencies and their employees definitely need efficiency training to better serve the society.
Investing in Job Creation. The US not only need R&D in the intermediate and long runs but also jobs in the short run. We should give incentive to anyone who can create jobs in the US, ranging from just ideas to finished projects. Anyone can make bid to this simple but crucial task.