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Author: David Dunworth

Why America Must Prioritize Its Citizens Over the World’s Wanderers

The Deterrence Imperative

Why America Must Prioritize Its Citizens Over the World’s Wanderers

We hear a lot of bleeding-heart stories and emotional appeals about the so-called “humanitarian suffering” triggered by America’s right to control its borders. And yet, curiously absent from those narratives is an ounce of concern for the suffering of American citizens who have watched their schools overcrowd, their jobs vanish, their wages stagnate, and their cities buckle under the weight of unchecked, unsanctioned migration.

Let me be absolutely clear: a sovereign nation has not only the right but the duty to secure its borders. Any government that fails to protect its citizens from foreign overreach and illegal encroachment has abdicated its most basic responsibility. The United States is not a refugee camp, not an eternal charity fund, and not a playground for those who believe that merely wanting a better life entitles them to ignore the laws of this land.

The So-Called “Deterrence Effect” is the Point

Critics love to throw around terms like “deterrence effect” as if it’s a dirty word. But they forget — deterrence is a feature, not a flaw. We lock our doors at night not because we hate those on the outside, but because we love those inside. So when America enforces laws that remove illegal entrants swiftly and decisively, it’s not cruelty — it’s common sense. It’s called civilization. And without deterrence, civilization quickly collapses.

If the harshness of policy causes others to think twice before embarking on a lawless journey, good. It should. That’s the entire logic behind law enforcement. You don’t install traffic lights to beautify intersections — you do it to prevent chaos.

The Moral Gymnastics of the Left: Emotional Blackmail Masquerading as Policy

The leftist media parade every sob story from the border like it’s the gospel truth as if individual hardship somehow overrules national law. They talk about migrants trapped in Mexico, about the glitchy CBP One app, about pregnant women suffering in tents — and they do so with the unspoken assumption that your moral compass should crumble on cue.

But where is their coverage of the homeless veterans sleeping under bridges in Chicago? Of the single mother in Detroit working two jobs while her tax dollars fund free healthcare for illegal entrants? Of the legal immigrant who waited in line, paid their fees, learned the language, and respected our laws — only to be leapfrogged by border-jumpers demanding the same rights without the same responsibilities?

Let’s be honest: the left’s version of “compassion” is just a smokescreen for their ultimate goal — the dilution of American identity and the permanent erosion of law and order.

America Is Not the Fallback Plan for Failed Governments

What’s painted as desperation is often exploitation. Migrants in Mexico are now applying for asylum not out of loyalty or long-term commitment to Mexico, but as a layover — a bureaucratic pit stop before making another dash for the American border. And we’re supposed to believe that their intent is noble?

They don’t want safety; they want opportunity. And they want it specifically in the United States, because our system works — or at least, it used to. They’re not escaping persecution. They’re escaping poverty — and while that is indeed tragic, it is not a legal justification for asylum.

When cartels control smuggling routes and “refugees” keep saying publicly they don’t intend to stay in Mexico, that’s not a refugee crisis. That’s an invasion cloaked in victimhood.

American Generosity Should Not Be Infinite — Especially When It’s Unreciprocated

For years, the United States has footed the bill for Mexico’s asylum system, the UN’s refugee operations, and every international bureaucracy that turns compassion into a career path. We’ve poured hundreds of millions of dollars into Latin America to help manage migration — and yet, we’re still the bad guy?

We’re told that the cuts to foreign aid are cruel. But what’s truly cruel is expecting the American taxpayer to subsidize endless migration while they struggle to pay their own grocery bills. What’s truly cruel is enabling systems that invite more chaos, more crime, and more suffering — on both sides of the border.

Security Is Not Racism. Law Is Not Hate.

Every nation on earth has immigration laws. Every nation detains or deports those who enter illegally. But when the United States does it, suddenly it’s a human rights crisis?

Enough with the double standards.

We are a nation of laws. If that makes us unpopular with globalist elites and anti-American activists, so be it. Our mission is not to be liked. Our mission is to be safe, sovereign, and strong. That means putting American lives before foreign demands. American jobs before foreign aspirations. American laws before foreign feelings.

Final Word: A Nation Worth Defending

No one — no one — has the right to enter the United States except under our rules. Not the asylum-seeker with the sob story. Not the activist with the protest sign. Not the globalist with the open-border agenda.

America is the greatest country on earth not because we opened our doors to everyone at every time, but because we built something so worthwhile that everyone wants in.

But if everyone gets in without merit, without process, without regard — the very thing they came for will disappear.

And that’s why we must stand firm.

Deport. Detain. Defend.

Because without borders, we have no nation. And without a nation, there is nothing left to preserve.

Categories
Economics Geopolitics and History News and Politics

When Open Hands Become Clenched Fists

The Ungrateful World

When Open Hands Become Clenched Fists

For decades, the United States of America has stood as the reluctant yet reliable pillar holding up the world’s wobbling hopes. When typhoons decimated islands, it was U.S. planes that roared across oceans, dropping aid. When famine strangled nations, it was the American taxpayer—never consulted, never thanked—who unknowingly fed starving children oceans away. When war birthed millions of refugees, it was U.S. agencies that set up shelters, clinics, and clean water systems in the chaos. America didn’t just open its wallet; it signed the check, mailed the supplies, deployed the boots, and carried the burden.

And now that same world, whose trembling hands were once stretched in desperate gratitude, dares to clench its fists in indignation because the United States—after pouring trillions into foreign assistance—is pulling back?

Let’s be clear: The United States has not abandoned the world. The world has grown far too comfortable draining American generosity like a bottomless well—without refilling it, respecting it, or even acknowledging it.

Decades of Generosity, Measured in Billions

Between 2008 and 2023, the United States gave more in foreign aid than the next five donors combined. In 2024 alone, over $77 billion was allocated in foreign assistance, spanning food relief, education, healthcare, refugee resettlement, infrastructure, and governance reforms in over 150 countries. Not from obligation. Not from profit. But because it was the right thing to do.

Let’s talk specifics:

  • United Nations: The U.S. covered 22% of the UN’s regular budget and 27% of peacekeeping operations—by far the largest share.

  • World Health Organization: The U.S. delivered $958 million to WHO programs in 2024-25.

  • USAID: Deployed over $32 billion in 2024 alone to provide aid in more than 100 global crises.

  • World Food Programme, UNHCR, UNICEF: Billions in voluntary contributions flowed from the U.S., year after year, quietly propping up the world’s most desperate programs.

Meanwhile, many of the critics raising their eyebrows now contributed a mere fraction—some barely a percentage point of their GDPs—to these same efforts. They now cry betrayal because the hand that has fed them unceasingly has momentarily paused.

The Global Freeloading Problem

It’s time we stop pretending the rest of the world has pulled its weight.

The United States’ foreign aid makes up more than 40% of all tracked humanitarian relief under the UN. In contrast, countries like China—who love to play the global peacemaker on paper—remain conspicuously silent when it comes time to cut checks. Russia, whose military ambitions remain well-funded, has little to show in humanitarian investment. Even wealthy European nations, though more generous as a percentage of GDP, rarely match U.S. contributions in absolute terms. Yet they find no shame in wagging fingers from their glass houses.

Let’s not forget the absurdity: the same nations that depend on U.S. aid to stabilize their neighborhoods, backstop their health programs, or rebuild their infrastructure are the ones now criticizing America’s strategic recalibration.

When Charity is Mistaken for Obligation

America’s foreign aid wasn’t written in the stars—it was a conscious choice, born out of post-WWII leadership and Cold War strategy, reinforced by moral responsibility and humanitarian conviction. But at no point did it become a legally binding duty for the U.S. to bankroll the failures of corrupt regimes, carry the weight of entire continents, or absorb the world’s crises without end.

This growing sense of entitlement, not gratitude, has become the real rot in global aid.

Nowhere is this clearer than in the melodramatic outcry over USAID’s contraction. Critics act as if the very concept of global stability rests solely on the U.S. dollar. Perhaps it has for too long. But instead of stepping up, other nations sigh in relief that the pressure won’t fall to them, choosing apathy over accountability, silence over service.

They smirk not because they’re ready to lead—but because they assume America will eventually return to cleaning up the mess.

The Reckoning Is Earned, Not Given

The bitter truth is this: if the world wants American generosity, it must match American grit. No more free passes for countries whose own leaders siphon aid into Swiss accounts while their people starve. No more applause for nations that virtue signal in climate summits but vanish when it’s time to fund disaster relief. No more patience for the ungrateful elite who tweet outrage from first-class cabins while doing nothing to solve global suffering themselves.

If the United States decides to shift gears—to demand outcomes for its aid, to reduce its footprint, to prioritize national interest—it is not an act of abandonment. It is a long-overdue act of clarity. Because there is no justice in rewarding dependency, no sustainability in subsidizing irresponsibility.

A Final Word for the Smug Observers

To the nations rolling their eyes, shrugging shoulders, or whispering about American decline—what have you done? Where are your billions? Your rescue missions? Your refugee camps? Your planeloads of medicine?

Silence? Exactly.

It’s easy to criticize a giant when you stand safely in its shadow.

But when the giant steps back, the cold truth is exposed: the world is woefully unprepared to carry the weight it so eagerly judges.

Categories
Branding News and Politics Women In Business

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Influence-Magazine.Today Launches Historic Women of Power Global Edition Celebrating Every Woman in Business
No nominations. No application. No limits. Every woman who submits by May 31 will be featured in the most inclusive business recognition issue to date.

CLEARWATER FL — April 1, 2025 — Influence-Magazine.Today, in collaboration with the C-Suite Network and LeadHERship Global, is proud to announce the launch of its most expansive editorial initiative to date: the Women of Power Global Edition—a special issue dedicated to celebrating women in business from around the world. Open to all women across every sector, this edition will include every valid submission received by May 31, 2025—with no application, selection, or nomination process required, according to contributor guidelines.

This landmark issue will elevate the stories of women entrepreneurs, executives, innovators, creatives, social impact leaders, and community business builders—regardless of title, background, age, or location. From global boardrooms to rural startups, the Women of Power issue promises to redefine what inclusion in business media looks like.

“We’re not creating a shortlist—we’re opening a stage,” said David James Dunworth, Publisher of Influence-Magazine.Today. “The women transforming our world aren’t waiting for permission to lead, and they shouldn’t have to wait for permission to be seen either. This issue is a celebration of all women in business who are shaping our future in their own way.”

Participants will be featured in the globally distributed digital edition of Influence-Magazine.Today, reaching audiences across industries and continents. The editorial will include profile stories, first-person essays, and thought leadership from women of all experience levels and regions. Each participant will also benefit from expanded exposure through the magazine’s social and partner networks.

Submissions are open now at:
👉mailto:davidjdunworth@gmail.com

Women may submit original articles or opt to answer guided questions that the editorial team will transform into a full-feature profile. There is no cap on participation—every woman who submits by the May 31 deadline will be included.

Key Details:

  • Open to women worldwide across all business sectors and stages.
  • No nominations, applications, or selection process—every story counts.
  • Deadline: May 31, 2025, for inclusion in the digital feature release.
  • Full editorial support is available for submissions that require guidance.

The initiative was developed in response to the ongoing underrepresentation of women in traditional recognition platforms, which often limit inclusion to narrow categories or elite criteria. With this special issue, Influence-Magazine.Today is making a bold editorial statement: there is no such thing as too many powerful women.

 

About Influence-Magazine.Today

Influence-Magazine.Today is a global digital publication spotlighting leadership, entrepreneurship, innovation, and transformation. Through its thought leadership features, editorial campaigns, and community partnerships, the magazine elevates voices that drive meaningful impact across business and society. It serves a global readership of professionals, investors, policymakers, creatives, and change agents seeking insight, inspiration, and influence that matters.

 

Media Contact:
David James Dunworth | Publisher
Influence-Magazine.Today
Email: mailto:davidjdunworth@gmail.com

Website: https://Influence-Magazine.Today

Categories
Best Practices Economics Geopolitics

How Solar Cooking is Quietly Changing Lives in Rural and Displaced African Communities

Let’s talk about cooking—something most of us do every day without much thought. But for millions of families across rural and displaced communities in Africa, cooking isn’t just a routine. It’s a daily gamble with health, time, and even safety.

The fuel you cook with can change everything

Give a household safe, clean, affordable energy to cook with, and you’ll see a chain reaction: health improves, women gain back hours of their day, forests start to regenerate, children make it back to school, and families get a real shot at economic stability. That’s not an exaggeration—it’s a ripple effect that starts in the kitchen.

Right now, most families in these communities still rely on firewood and charcoal. That means thick smoke, chronic illness, endless hours spent gathering fuel (mostly by women and girls), deforestation, and a cycle of poverty that just keeps tightening.

But solar e-cooking is changing the story

These systems use solar electricity—either standalone or part of a microgrid—to power clean, efficient electric cookers. No firewood. No charcoal. No smoke. And once you’ve paid off the system, there are no ongoing fuel costs. Just sunshine.

Today, the technology is finally catching up to the need. Solar panel prices are falling. Devices are internet-connected, trackable, and repairable. Digital payment platforms let families pay in small, manageable amounts. It’s becoming more affordable, more accessible, and more realistic for the people who need it most.

And here’s the big win: these cookers don’t just reduce expenses—they give back something far more precious. Time. Dignity. Possibility 

https://www.tiktok.com/@african.nyako/video/7470516333931662622

Women don’t have to spend half the day gathering wood. Girls get to stay in school. Families breathe easier—literally. Forests around communities start to come back. And money that would’ve gone to fuel stays in the household.

What does that look like in real life?

In Nakivale Refugee Settlement in Uganda, families started using solar e-cookers through a cooperative pilot. Before that, women spent up to four hours every single day collecting wood. After adopting the cookers, cooking time dropped dramatically. Girls who used to miss school could finally attend consistently. Health clinic visits went down as smoke exposure declined. And here’s the kicker—members of the co-op got technical training, creating local jobs. Some families even turned the cookers into income-generating tools.

In Kakuma Camp, Kenya, households received solar cooking kits with mobile payment plans. The systems tracked usage and enabled real-time service adjustments. One year later, repayment rates were higher than expected. Community leaders created a maintenance team, and before long, local vendors started stocking spare parts. More people wanted in. Success bred momentum.

What about the cost?

This part surprises most people. A typical household spends around $180–$240 a year on charcoal. A solar e-cooker system costs about $400. That means a break-even point in under two and a half years—and over a five-year span, families save between $500 and $800. That’s not even counting the health benefits, time saved, or school days regained.

Still skeptical? Let’s address some common concerns.

  • “But solar cookers can’t make traditional meals.”
    Actually, they can. These devices handle simmering, steaming, boiling—you name it. They’re tested locally, and updates are based on community feedback.
  • “People won’t change how they cook.”
    They will—when it saves them hours every day. Early adopters become community influencers. Training sessions help build confidence. Culturally respectful design earns trust.
  • “These things break too easily.”
    Not anymore. Modern systems are modular, meaning individual parts can be repaired or replaced locally. Technicians are trained within the communities, spare parts are stocked, and downtime is minimal.

And here’s where it gets exciting.

We’re not just solving household problems. We’re growing local economies. Repair technicians, spare part vendors, trainers, even entrepreneurs—solar e-cooking unlocks business opportunities. Microgrids and solar power become the foundation for bigger energy access strategies.

We’re also learning in real time. Because the devices are connected, usage data tells us what’s working and where support is needed. That means smarter programs, better decisions, and greater accountability.

The financing puzzle is solving itself.

Prices have dropped, but better yet—payment models are catching up with reality. Lease-to-own setups, rotating community funds, and cooperative models are removing the affordability barrier. Ownership becomes possible. And more importantly, it becomes a source of pride.

Refugee camps are responding. Rural communities are following. Ministries are taking notice. Private investment is starting to flow. And where adoption starts, innovation follows.

What we’re seeing isn’t charity—it’s smart investment.

Every solar cooker installed eliminates toxic emissions, prevents deforestation, and protects women and girls from the dangers of fuel collection. Every dollar spent delivers measurable health outcomes, time savings, and economic gains. This isn’t about dependency. It’s about agency.

 

Everyone benefits. Families. Communities. Ecosystems. Economies.

Solar e-cooking preserves cultural cooking traditions while updating the method. It doesn’t replace identity—it strengthens it through innovation.

So, what do we do with all this momentum?

We keep going
Governments must back pilots.
Funders must step up.
Manufacturers must scale production.
Designers must prioritize user needs, not just market trends.

The opportunity is right here, right now. The tech is ready. The demand is clear. The partnerships are forming.

The only thing that delays progress is hesitation. But for those who act, the transformation is real and lasting.

Solar e-cooking isn’t a trend. It’s a turning point.

So, what’s next?

We keep pushing forward.
It’s time for governments to get behind more pilot programs—not just talk, but real support on the ground.

Funders? We need you to stop waiting for perfect and start fueling what’s already working.
Manufacturers—this is your moment to ramp up and meet the demand that’s knocking.
And for the designers out there: don’t build for the market—build for the people who are actually going to use these cookers. That’s where real change happens.

 

 

Categories
Geopolitics Geopolitics and History News and Politics

Mexico’s Border Betrayal

Mexico’s Border Betrayal

How Aiding and Abetting with Mass Migration Created Its Own Humanitarian Collapse

It didn’t have to be this way. The camps. The kidnappings. The exploitation. The aid cuts. The headlines detailed women’s screams in the jungle and children lost at sea. These tragic events are often framed as fallout from U.S. immigration policy, particularly under President Donald Trump’s administration. But that analysis overlooks a glaring truth: Mexico is not an innocent bystander in this crisis—it is a co-conspirator.

Crisis of Mexico’s Own Making

By failing to enforce its own southern border, by allowing thousands, more than likely millions to flood through from Guatemala and beyond, and by participating in soft agreements that enabled mass caravans toward the United States, Mexico invited this humanitarian disaster upon itself. The suffering now engulfing Tapachula, Mexico City, and its northern borders is not an accidental byproduct—it is the direct result of a decision to abandon sovereignty in favor of appeasement, ideology, and tacit coordination with mass migration efforts.

Mexico’s Open Door Was Never Neutral

At the heart of the crisis is a moral inversion: Mexico allowed foreign nationals to traverse its territory under the pretense of humanitarian compassion while making no serious attempt to enforce its immigration laws. It opened its borders to hundreds of thousands from Cuba, Haiti, Honduras, Venezuela, and as far as India and China—not to resettle them, but to facilitate their movement toward the United States.

That’s not neutrality. That’s strategic collusion.

And Yet—The United States Screamed Warnings for Four Years

To be clear: the migrant crisis was not born under Trump. It was magnified and militarized under the Biden Administration, whose policies—by design—opened the floodgates to every sort of illegal alien, from economic migrants to traffickers and cartel-linked individuals. The border wasn’t just neglected. It was strategically dismantled. Entire federal systems were turned into conveyor belts of entry, not gates of defense.

This was not theoretical. It was televised. It was debated. It was condemned—loudly and consistently by the U.S. Conservative movement, whose cries and concerns were broadcast across international media, congressional hearings, community town halls, and border state press conferences.

The entire world saw it coming. And yet, Mexico did nothing.

Despite the chaos spilling over the Rio Grande, despite the massive increase in irregular crossings, and the cries of U.S. governors declaring states of emergency, Mexico refused to adopt, enforce, or take accountability for the crisis it was helping to manage, facilitate, and expand. The number of violent gang members as well as other evil perpetrators of illegal entry to the US created rape, sexual assault, murder, robbery, and theft that could have been avoided if there wasn’t complicity. Economic costs are only a part of the issue on both sides, but the Biden Administration as well as the complicity of Mexican leadership are now paying the price of this invasion.

Some hint that the coyotes, the human traffickers that profited by getting illegals to the US Southern Border are linked, and controlling the government of Mexico and other countries supporting this catastrophe.

It is no longer acceptable to blame the resulting suffering solely on American deterrence. What we are witnessing is Mexico paying the cost for its willful abdication of national responsibility. Every migrant in limbo in Tapachula, every woman violated in the Darién Gap, and every orphan on the street in Tuxtla Gutierrez is a life affected by a government that opened a door without preparing for the flood—and now wants sympathy for drowning in its basement.

The CBP One App Was Never a Solution—And Its Shutdown Is Irrelevant

Much has been made of the CBP One app, the legal pathway used by nearly a million migrants to schedule entry into the United States. Critics of Trump point to its shutdown as a catalyst for the current crisis. But this argument collapses on inspection.

The app was a band-aid applied to a massive bullet wound bleed. It did not prevent illegal crossings –it organized them. It did not relieve Mexico of its duties—it incentivized passivity. And when it was inevitably shut down, Mexico had no backup plan, no infrastructure, and no policy muscle to respond. Why? Because it had already handed over its migration strategy to American political cycles.

Mexico’s current turmoil isn’t due to CBP One’s termination. It’s due to Mexico relying on a foreign app instead of a national border.

Self-Inflicted Suffering: Predictable, Preventable, and Political

Let’s be clear: The migrant crisis engulfing Mexico is real, brutal, and heartrending. The sexual violence, the mental trauma, the destitution—these are all documented. But these tragedies are not merely “side effects” of American policies—they are self-inflicted wounds caused by Mexico’s failure to:

  1. Enforce its southern border with Guatemala.
  2. Dismantle illegal transit networks instead of turning a blind eye.
  3. Reject the narrative that it’s just a “transit country” with no responsibility.
  4. Develop and implement a sustainable national migration policy.
  5. Refuse participation in public relations theater with the United Nations or global NGOs that push ideological open-border frameworks without offering durable resettlement options.

Mexico chose political expedience over national coherence. And now, the people suffer. Not just the migrants. The Mexican citizens of Chiapas and Oaxaca, whose communities have been destabilized. The Mexican police, forced into violent confrontations. The cities stretched to their economic and social breaking points.

This is what the abdication of sovereign enforcement looks like. And it is not noble—it is negligent.

Cartels, Corruption, and the Consequences of Complicity

The report highlights how migrants are routinely kidnapped and extorted by cartels. It also describes how local police routinely abuse them. These are not isolated incidents; they are systemic symptoms of a state that let the wolves in through the front gate of the entire farm.

Every time a migrant is ransomed, raped, or robbed; it is a reminder that Mexico’s permissiveness fed criminal ecosystems. It handed human lives over to organized crime by creating a pipeline with no guardrails. Now, with foreign aid drying up and NGOs retreating, the vacuum is being filled by those most willing to profit from despair.

This is not a crisis of resources—it’s a crisis of responsibility.

The Fantasy of Repatriation and the Cost of Naivety

Mexico now finds itself in a surreal position: attempting to organize repatriation programs for people it never should have let in. Programs like the Assisted Voluntary Return (AVR) run by the International Organization for Migration sound nice in theory. But the reality is that most migrants are undocumented, impoverished, and unwilling to return—either for fear of persecution or lack of options.

Mexico can’t even get its consular coordination to work, let alone enforce border policy for others. As aired reports illustrate, discrimination against non-Spanish speakers, the absence of translators, and bureaucratic chaos make resettlement nearly impossible. The result is a legally and morally unsustainable status quo: thousands of stateless individuals, all trapped in the country that invited them in but cannot now protect or process them.

The Moral Clarity of Borders

Here’s what the global commentariat won’t say: borders are not just lines on maps—they are moral boundaries. When a nation refuses to enforce them, it doesn’t just lose control over territory—it loses the ability to care for people properly. No nation can serve as a corridor and a caretaker simultaneously. Mexico tried—and failed.

Trump’s policies may be politically polarizing, but they sent a clear message: national security begins at national borders. Mexico sent the opposite message—and now faces a human catastrophe of its design.

To Mexico: The Bill Has Come Due

It’s time for Mexico to stop pretending it is merely a “victim of Trump” and start reckoning with its complicity in the chaos. It is not noble to let people flood through jungles, deserts, and cartel checkpoints with no plan and no promise. It is not humanitarian to facilitate human trafficking with a wink and a nod.

Mexico’s open-door policy was not compassionate. It was cowardly. And now, having enabled the migration surge, it must confront the consequences: overwhelmed shelters, cartel violence, destroyed families, economic strain, and international embarrassment.

This is not America’s fault. This is not CBP One’s fault. This is Mexico’s fault.

Despite the chaos spilling over the Rio Grande, despite the massive increase in irregular crossings, and the cries of U.S. governors declaring states of emergency, Mexico refused to adopt, enforce, or take accountability for the crisis it was helping to manage, facilitate, and expand.

To Mexico: The Bill Has Come Due

Mexico’s open-door policy was not compassionate. It was cowardly. And now, having enabled the migration surge, it must confront the consequences: overwhelmed shelters, cartel violence, destroyed families, economic strain, and international embarrassment.

This is not America’s fault. This is not CBP One’s fault.

This is Mexico’s fault—and the Biden Administration’s strategy of national self-destruction only made it worse.

Image Credit: The Guardian

Opinions expressed here are my own and do not reflect any on this platform

 

Categories
Best Practices Personal Development Uncategorized

From Ego to Soul

From Ego to Soul

 A Mindful Return to the Loving Self

“When the soul is awake, it shines—a quiet light that pierces the fog of ego and the shadows of distraction, guiding us back to what is real, and what is love.”

A haunting truth lingers behind the veil of modern life: for all our technological marvels, religious institutions, and social revolutions, we remain capable—remarkably and tragically so—of committing and enabling harm. And often, we don’t even recognize it. The institutions we build and participate in—religions, corporations, even family systems—can become theaters of quiet complicity. In this way, evil doesn’t always wear a monster’s mask; it often dresses in the robes of groupthink, justified authority, or personal gain.

This is the soul’s great crisis: not simply the existence of evil, but our mind-numbed awareness of it. And here lies the hidden power of ego, the false self we unknowingly serve.

We live for it.
We protect it.
We build our lives around it.
But the ego is not who we are.

What we believe our ego is who we are is a false concept, but a means of fitting into this world. The “soul child” we were born with gets pushed back in our being, and what we experienced as a child forged the ego that dominates our being. 

The Ego’s Dominion

The ego thrives on comparison, control, and consumption. It needs to be “right,” to be “seen,” to be “secure.” It fears vulnerability because it associates weakness with worthlessness. It seeks recognition over relationships and performance over presence.

Under the ego’s rule, we become unaware that we are serving a smaller self, a counterfeit identity—one that insulates us from discomfort but also disconnects us from love, from one another, and from God.

Even our morality becomes transactional. If it profits us, we comply; if it costs us, we rationalize. Evil often goes unnoticed—not because it is hidden, but because we’ve quietly chosen not to see. The group—the tribe, the system, the institution—validates our blindness with the comfort of belonging and the illusion of righteousness. Over time, this shared denial becomes a kind of spiritual anesthesia, dulling our discernment and numbing our capacity for truth.

We no longer sin with trembling hearts. We sin with executive confidence.
And all the while, our souls quietly starve.

A Return to the Loving Soul

Contemplation is not an escape. It is a return. A sacred rebellion against the ego’s illusion of control.

To live from the loving soul is to recover the truth of our identity in the Divine. It is to drop below our addictions to approval, our reflex to defend, and our habits of distraction. It is to be reintroduced to what is real, what is eternal, and what is truly good.

This return begins in silence—not the silence of apathy, but the silence of awareness. It is here that the ego begins to loosen its grip. In stillness, the inner scaffolding we’ve built to protect our image starts to fall away. And in that sacred collapse, the soul speaks.

This is where Christ meets us—not in the performance of religion, but in the presence of reality.

The path of true and faith-filled contemplation begins in solitude, but it does not remain there. The soul, once awakened, yearns for communion. For deep, honest fellowship. For a community that is not built on agreements to be comfortable but on shared courage to be awake. The ego begins to retreat to the background of our minds. Keeping it in check becomes easier the more we live in love. Therein lies the lifelong challenge, difficult to completely succeed.

Living the Examined Life

Mindfulness is not merely an emotional calmness or psychological technique—it is spiritual warfare against illusion. It is the disciplined act of turning inward not to indulge the self, but to encounter the truth that sets us free.

To live mindfully is to ask ourselves uncomfortable questions:

  • Who benefits from my silence?
  • What have I accepted as normal that is numbing?
  • In what ways am I still living to protect my ego instead of surrendering to love?

These are not questions the ego welcomes. But they are the questions the soul must ask if we are to heal.

Mindfulness becomes a way of living—prayerful, observant, and responsive. We begin to recognize when we are being pulled by the need to impress, dominate, or escape. And we choose instead to return—to the breath, to the moment, to the presence of God within.

Sacred Communities and Spiritual Refuge

We cannot dismantle the ego’s illusion in isolation. Sin is not merely a personal failing—it moves through families, institutions, and generations, hidden beneath layers of normalization and unspoken agreement. It survives because it is rarely questioned and often rewarded. That is why we need one another—not in crowds of performance, but in consecrated circles of presence. These are spaces where truth is spoken tenderly, silence is honored, and suffering is embraced as a teacher, not avoided as an inconvenience.

When even two or three gather in shared intention and soulful awareness, we form lighthouses of presence on the dark sea of distraction. These sacred communities remind us that we are not alone in our longing to wake up. They offer us a place to see the right and good, listen with reverence, speak with honesty, release our burdens without shame, and begin again in grace, so we are lighting the path for others.

The  Practice of Returning

To live from the soul is not a one-time decision. It is a daily reorientation—a thousand quiet returns to God, to love, to truth. It is a lifelong exodus out of egoic exile and back into the promised land of who we truly are.

This path is costly. You may lose your place in the dominant group. You may be called naive, radical, or irrelevant. But you will find your soul. And in finding your soul, you will find God.

Final Thought

The world does not need more cleverness, more noise, or more speed.
It needs more presence.
More soul.
More truth.

So let us sit. Let us breathe. Let us weep for the harm we’ve enabled.
And let us rise—not as performers of righteousness, but as contemplatives of love.

Light the way for others.

Let us live from the soul.

Categories
Culture Growth Management

Love Has Its Own Internal Logic

Love Has Its Own Internal Logic

Love is a force both timeless and universal, yet it defies the conventional logic that governs much of our daily lives. To those who attempt to measure it in linear terms, love seems chaotic, even irrational. However, to dismiss it as mere emotion or whim would be to overlook its profound intricacies. Love operates by its internal logic—a framework as compelling and coherent as any scientific theorem, but one that follows a language all its own.

The Paradox of Love’s Logic

Love’s internal logic begins with its paradoxical nature. It is both selfless and self-fulfilling, requiring the lover to give without expectation while simultaneously providing immense personal satisfaction. This paradox reflects a deep truth: love grows not by hoarding, but by giving. It is the one resource that expands the more it is shared, defying the laws of scarcity that govern material possessions.

Consider the parent who sacrifices sleep, comfort, and personal freedom for their child. Rational economics might label this behavior as inefficient, yet the parent sees it as the highest form of investment. In love, fulfillment does not come from self-preservation, but from self-expansion. The more we love, the more we find ourselves enriched, transformed, and connected.

The Nonlinear Path of Love

Unlike transactional relationships, love does not progress in a straight line. It is nonlinear, marked by moments of intense joy, periods of trial, and times of quiet perseverance. Love thrives in contradictions: it is patient yet urgent, enduring yet fragile, and simple yet infinitely complex.

This nonlinear nature mirrors life itself. Just as the beauty of a river lies in its twists and turns, the richness of love is found in its unpredictability. To those willing to navigate its currents, love offers a depth of experience that transcends the mundane. It teaches us that life’s most meaningful journeys are not always the most direct.

Love’s Logic of Reciprocity

At its core, love operates on a logic of reciprocity, though not in the conventional sense. This is not a tit-for-tat exchange but a mutual flow of giving and receiving. The strength of this flow lies in its vulnerability—true love demands openness, risking rejection in pursuit of connection.

When love is reciprocated, the bond created is unbreakable, for it is built on mutual understanding and acceptance. Even when it is unrequited, the act of loving is transformative. To love deeply is to see the world through another’s eyes, broadening our perspective and deepening our capacity for empathy.

The Transformative Power of Love’s Logic

Love’s internal logic is ultimately transformative. It does not merely exist; it changes the lover and the beloved alike. In its presence, we become more patient, more forgiving, and more courageous. Love compels us to grow beyond our limitations, to embrace the fullness of our humanity.

Take, for example, the love that fuels acts of service and sacrifice. The firefighter who rushes into a burning building, the teacher who pours endless hours into a struggling student, and the friend who offers a shoulder in times of grief—all embody the transformative logic of love. These acts are not calculated; they arise from a place of deep connection and purpose.

Love’s Logic in the Modern World

In a world driven by efficiency, data, and pragmatism, love’s logic often seems out of place. We are conditioned to measure success by tangible outcomes, yet love resists such quantification. It cannot be dissected, predicted, or controlled. To truly embrace love is to accept its mystery, to trust in its process even when its outcomes are unclear.

Yet, this does not mean love is impractical. On the contrary, it is the foundation of the most enduring human achievements—families, communities, movements, and legacies. The logic of love reminds us that the greatest successes are not those measured in profits or accolades, but in lives touched and hearts changed.

Conclusion: Embracing Love’s Logic

To understand love’s internal logic is to accept that not all truths are bound by reason alone. Love teaches us to embrace complexity, value connection over perfection, and find strength in vulnerability. It is a logic that transcends the intellect, speaking directly to the heart and soul.

In the end, love’s greatest lesson is that its logic cannot be fully grasped until it is lived. It invites us to step beyond the familiar boundaries of rationality and into the boundless expanse of human connection. In doing so, we discover that love, in all its mystery and complexity, is not illogical at all. It is the deepest truth we will ever know.

Categories
Branding Leadership Marketing

Living Your Brand with Hospitality – The Essence of Gracious Hosting

Living Your Brand with Hospitality

– The Essence of Gracious Hosting

Living your brand extends beyond the mere visual aspects; it encompasses every interaction and experience associated with your organization. Hospitality, often overlooked, is a critical tenet in this context. It’s about being more than just product or service providers; it’s about being gracious hosts. This essay delves into the nuances of hospitality as an integral part of living your brand. It focuses on standing upon someone entering, offering refreshments, and guiding them to their destination.

The Art of Greeting

Standing up when someone enters the room is a powerful gesture of respect and attentiveness. It transcends cultural boundaries and is universally recognized as a sign of good manners. For a brand, this simple act signals that each visitor is important and worthy of attention. It sets a welcoming tone for the interaction and creates an atmosphere of respect and professionalism.

The Gesture of Offering Refreshments

Offering water, coffee, or tea is a hallmark of traditional hospitality. It goes beyond the essential provision of comfort; it’s a symbolic act of care and nurturing. In a business setting, offering refreshments is a small but impactful way to make visitors feel valued and comfortable. It demonstrates attentiveness to their needs and contributes to a positive, relaxed environment.

Personal Guidance Over Impersonal Directions

When guiding visitors to the appropriate office or location, the personal touch of walking them there, rather than pointing or giving verbal directions, is significant. It shows a commitment to ensuring their comfort and convenience. This practice makes the visitor’s experience more pleasant and provides an opportunity for casual interaction, which can strengthen relationships and enhance the brand’s perception.

Creating Memorable Experiences Through Hospitality

In the realm of customer engagement, the role of hospitality m creating memorable experiences is paramount. When visitors are treated with respect and care, their interaction with the brand transcends mere transactional expertise and becomes a cherished memory. This essay explores the impact of hospitality in forging lasting positive impressions and how such experiences can shape a customer’s perception and advocacy for a brand.

The Essence of Hospitality in Customer Experience

Hospitality, at its core, is about making visitors feel welcomed, valued, and cared for. It involves genuinely catering to their needs and ensuring their comfort. In a business context, hospitality can be expressed through attentive service, a warm and inviting environment, and thoughtful gestures that exceed expectations.

Impact on Customer Perception

How a brand treats a visitor can significantly influence their overall perception of the brand. Hospitality that makes them feel respected and valued can leave a lasting positive impression. This positive experience becomes associated with the brand, enhancing its reputation in the eyes of the customers and making it more likely that they will return.

The Ripple Effect of Memorable Experiences

Memorable experiences created through hospitality have a ripple effect. Satisfied visitors are likelier to share their positive experiences with friends, family, and broader social networks. This word-of-mouth is incredibly valuable as it is a genuine and trusted form of endorsement for the brand.

Strategies for  Delivering  Memorable Experiences

  • Personalized Service Tailoring service to meet each visitor’s preferences and needs shows that the brand values them as individuals. This could include personalized greetings, remembering previous preferences, or offering customized recommendations.
  • Attention to Detail – Often, the small things make a big difference. Paying attention to detail in every aspect of service delivery can significantly enhance the visitor’s experience. Creating a Welcoming Atmosphere —-The environment in which visitors interact with the brand should be warm, inviting, and comfortable. This atmosphere sets the stage for a positive experience.
  • Empathy and  Responsiveness -Staff should be trained to empathize with visitors and respond promptly and effectively to their requests or concerns. Empathy in service delivery shows that the brand cares about the visitor’s experience.

Going Beyond Expectations – The Ultimate Differentiator

True hospitality is about anticipating needs before they are even expressed. A well­ trained team understands the importance of being proactive rather than reactive. For example, offering a guest a seat before they ask, adjusting the room temperature based on visible discomfort, or providing reading glasses for a visitor struggling to read documents. These seemingly minor actions leave an indelible impression that sets a brand apart from competitors.

Additionally, genuine hospitality extends beyond physical spaces –it permeates digital interactions as well. A thoughtful, timely follow-up email thanking a visitor for their time, remembering a detail from a past conversation, or sending a handwritten note all reinforce the idea that the brand values relationships, not just transactions.

Challenges and Considerations

While striving to provide excellent hospitality, brands must be mindful of not overstepping boundaries or making assumptions about what visitors may need or prefer. Hospitality should be adaptable and responsive to the unique needs of each visitor. Respecting personal preferences, cultural nuances, and professional boundaries ensures that hospitality remains a positive force rather than an intrusion.

The Lasting Legacy of Hospitality in Branding

Incorporating hospitality into the very DNA of a brand is not just about short-term impressions; it is about long-term reputation. The most beloved brands are those that make customers feel seen, valued, and genuinely appreciated. A warm greeting, an unexpected kindness, or a thoughtful gesture are more than acts of courtesy; they are foundational pillars of brand identity that shape consumer loyalty and advocacy for years to come.

Key Takeaways:

  • Hospitality is a fundamental aspect of brand experience, going beyond visual branding elements.
  • Simple gestures such as standing to greet, offering refreshments, and personally guiding visitors enhance the customer
  • Thoughtful hospitality fosters positive brand perception and strengthens customer loyalty.
  • Memorable experiences have a ripple effect, leading to word-of-mouth recommendations and increased brand
  • Personalization, attention to detail, empathy, and a welcoming atmosphere are critical strategies for delivering exceptional hospitality.
  • Anticipating needs before they are expressed differentiates a brand and solidifies its reputation for excellence.
  • Thoughtful hospitality should be extended to digital interactions to reinforce strong relationships beyond face-to-face encounters.

Call to Action:

Transform your brand into a beacon of hospitality. Evaluate your customer interactions– you making each visitor feel valued, respected, and truly welcomed? Take intentional steps to weave hospitality into your brand culture, train your team in gracious hosting, and watch as your reputation flourishes. A single thoughtful gesture can turn an ordinary encounter into an extraordinary experience

–start today and make hospitality the heart of your brand identity.

 

Author’s Note

I want to take a moment to honor the man in the opening image of this article. You see, I worked with this inimitable and wonderful man in 1992-3, in Chicago, Illinois. His name is Emerson Frith. Emerson was my Food and Beverage Manager, who I considered to be my Assistant Manager, who held a lot of responsibility. You see, at the Monroe Club, Members paid a lot of money just to come to the Club to eat lunch. Some of the top financial heads in the city were Members, and they relied on supreme service, tremendous food and beverages, and an atmosphere worthy of striking multi-million dollar deals at the dining table.

Emerson’s signature and infectious smile immediately changed any mood to one of the finest hospitality and warmth. Members would often tell me that with as many choices to dine in the city, they came to Monroe Club because they knew Emerson would not only ensure the event was memorable, but their guests would be wowed by the experience.

Chicago is unique when it comes to dining. Some say it’s New York without the attitude, and London without the trans-Atlantic flight. In a town known the world over as Al Capone’s stomping ground, Chicago is a food town, Members have dozens of choices within a short walk, and Emerson made their visits bullet-proof (pun intended), with his impeccable attention to detail.

Emerson was my friend. Emerson was married to another dear friend Teresa, my go-to, accountant and wizard with the numbers. I say “was” because Emerson passed away several years ago of ALS–Lou Gehrig’s Disease. I, along with everyone who ever knew Emerson, miss him dearly. No one I have ever met would or could top him. This is my tribute to his uniqueness — his charm — his life.

I still keep in touch with Teresa, who was fortunate to share his short life with her. The use of his picture is with fondness and her permission.

Categories
Advice Best Practices Personal Development

When Life Gives You Hiccups

When Life Gives You Hiccups

You wake up Monday morning, already behind. Your to-do list feels like a threat, not a tool. Coffee doesn’t even taste at all drinkable. Somewhere between brushing your teeth and convincing yourself to open the laptop, you wonder if what you do matters. And just like that—hiccup. A disruption. A pause. A stutter. It’s as if you’ve lost your purpose, your calling, your life’s mission.

We all want our lives to mean something. We long for our work to have a purpose. But a hidden belief, often unspoken but deeply rooted, quietly sabotages us. It whispers, “This part of your life isn’t spiritual. This task, this email, this spreadsheet, this shift—God’s not in it.”

That’s the short circuit.

It’s the faulty wiring in our faith that breaks the connection between heaven and earth, sacred and ordinary. And it’s dangerously convincing. It makes you believe God is only found in church pews, prayer closets, and mission fields—not in boardrooms, break rooms, or broom closets.

But let’s be clear: there is no spiritual-secular divide in the Kingdom of God. That divide is man-made, and when we accept it, we stop flipping the switch that keeps us connected to God’s presence in our daily work.

A short circuit doesn’t mean you’ve lost faith altogether. It just means the current isn’t flowing. You believe in God, but Monday feels godless. You believe He created work, but your work feels disconnected. You know you have gifts, but you’ve stopped seeing them as sacred.

That’s what Monday Morning Atheism looks like—not a loss of belief, but a loss of integration.

Here’s the truth: every part of your life is spiritual because every part belongs to God. Your desk is an altar. Your tools are instruments of praise. Your ideas, your spreadsheets, your customer service calls, your lesson plans, your caregiving shifts—all of it is Kingdom territory. Every moment, every task, every breath is charged with divine potential.

When your life gives you hiccups, those aren’t signs that something sacred is broken. They’re invitations. Small disruptions remind you to realign with the truth that God is already there. He’s not waiting for you to clock out before He speaks. He’s in the middle of the mess, the meetings, and the mundane.

Don’t let a short circuit steal your spark. Every moment you live, every task you do, is part of the divine story God is writing through you. Flip the switch. Let the Spirit flow into your Monday, or any day and time something isn’t flowing properly. And let the hiccups remind you to breathe—because even your interruptions belong to Him.

 

Devotional Prayer: Reconnecting the Sacred Flow

Dearest Heavenly Father,

Thank You for caring about every part of my life—not just the moments I label “spiritual,” but the quiet ones, the busy ones, the hiccup-filled ones too. You are present in my planning and my pauses, my labor and my longing, my strength and my struggle. Help me to see what You see.

Forgive me for the times I’ve boxed You into Sundays and shut You out of my Mondays. For believing the lie that some things don’t matter to You. For letting frustration or fatigue short-circuit our connection. Rewire my thinking, Lord. Remind me that You dwell not just in temples made by hands, but in my cubicle, my walk to work, my car, my kitchen, my conversations, and my calendar.

Today, I choose to welcome You into every moment. Let my work be worship, my interruptions be invitations, and my heart be fully available to hear Your voice—even in the smallest tasks. Turn every hiccup into a holy pause. Teach me to live with divine flow.

In the name of Jesus—who never divided the sacred from the every day—I pray,

Amen.

 

Categories
Geopolitics Geopolitics and History Management

“Aid in Orgs in Meltdown – Stop Blaming the U.S.”

“Aid in Orgs in Meltdown – Stop Blaming the U.S.”

The real crisis isn’t the aid freeze—it’s decades of financial mismanagement finally catching up.

The crocodile tears are flowing, disgruntled fingers are wagging, angry voices are rebuking, and the world is supposed to sympathize with the humanitarian organizations now scrambling, floundering, and collapsing under the weight of their own incompetence. It’s natural to anguish, feel highly emotional pain, and be distraught for the poor souls caught up in conflict, abuse, abysmal refugee camps, and starving victims of war. I get that and feel it, too.

There IS a vital need for assistance. But that’s not this story’s topic.

It’s about those who “lead” these outfits I have a big beef with.

The U.S. turns off the aid faucet, and suddenly, there’s a full-blown crisis. Refugee programs are gutted. Food aid is stalled. Medical supplies are in limbo. Staff are laid off in droves. But let’s ask the hard question: Why?

Because these organizations built their entire existence on a single revenue source, they had no control over U.S. foreign aid. Instead of ensuring financial sustainability, they hijacked U.S. taxpayer money while making little effort to diversify, innovate, or prepare for the inevitable. And now? They’re blaming the donor instead of themselves.

Failures of Leadership, Failures of Planning, and Utter Dependence

Let’s look at the wreckage:

  • Texas’s Largest Immigrant Legal Aid Group Collapses Overnight – RAICES, Texas’s biggest immigration legal aid organization, just laid off 63 employees because the federal aid faucet was turned off.
    • Their business model? Total reliance on government money.
    • Their plan B? Nonexistent.
    • So, instead of being proactive, they’re slashing jobs and playing the victim.
  • International Aid Groups Cry Wolf After Failing to Budget Responsibly – Organizations like the International Rescue Committee (IRC), Catholic Relief Services, and the Danish Refugee Council are slashing thousands of jobs. But let’s be clear: These are multi-million-dollar nonprofits that have existed for decades. They had every opportunity to build endowments, create alternative funding streams, and implement self-sustaining models. Instead, they gambled their entire workforce on continued U.S. handouts. Now, their people pay the price.
  • Orphanages Running Out of Medicine- Because They Put All Their Faith in a Single Donor – In Kenya, the Nyumbani Children’s Home is running out of antiretroviral medicine for HIV-positive orphans because USAID funding was halted. This is tragic, but it’s also a colossal failure of leadership. How does a facility responsible for vulnerable children fail to secure diverse, sustainable funding for life-saving medicine? The only reason they are in this situation is that they chose dependency over financial stability.
  • Ethiopia’s Aid Sector ‘Shocked’– Despite Decades to Prepare – USAID funding has been a cornerstone of Ethiopia’s humanitarian efforts for years. But instead of using that time to build resilience, engage new donors, and develop alternative revenue sources, aid agencies let themselves become 100% reliant on a foreign government’s budget choices. Now that the money’s stopped, they’re acting surprised. Shocked. Unprepared. And utterly lost.
  • NGOs in Somalia Blaming the S. Instead of Themselves – The U.S. aid freeze has immobilized NGOs in Somalia that serve internally displaced persons. The media will say it’s a tragedy. But let’s ask the real question: What were these organizations doing to diversify funding while they had years of financial stability? Were they actively building a donor network? Creating community partnerships? Monetizing services where possible? Or were they just waiting for the next round of aid checks?

The same stories are playing out again and again. Entire organizations crumbling overnight because their executives–who many, many are paid six and seven-figure salaries to lead­ did nothing to ensure long-term viability.

The Real Crisis Is a Lack of Leadership

The issue here isn’t the aid freeze-it’s the sheer negligence and financial irresponsibility of these organizations.

If you are running a nonprofit, an NGO, or a humanitarian organization and your survival hinges entirely on whether or not U.S. aid money keeps coming in, you are not leading-you are just waiting for the next handout. And waiting is not a strategy.

The worst part? These failures were completely avoidable.

Eight Essential Revenue Streams for Survival & Growth

If these organizations had any sense of financial stewardship, they would have developed multiple income sources years ago. Here’s what every NGO should be focusing on Ten:

  1. Individual, One-Time Donors – These are most widely dependent upon small, local, or regional donors and are often the primary source of funding for startups but should never be ignored.
  2. Major Donors & Private Philanthropy- High-net-worth individuals, corporations, and impact investors should be a core part of any nonprofit’s funding strategy. Instead of whining about lost government aid, why weren’t these organizations actively courting sustainable private donors?
  3. Monthly Recurring Giving Programs – Organizations that rely on government money often ignore direct community support. Monthly giving programs create a predictable revenue stream. Where were the donor retention efforts? Where was the digital engagement?
  4. Grants from Diverse Sources (Not Just the U.S. Government) – These organizations acted as though USAID was the only grant funding available. What about corporate grants? European Union humanitarian grants? International development foundations?
  5. Earned Income & Social Enterprises – Every major NGO should have some revenue-generating activities. Whether it’s selling ethical products, running a skills­ training program with paid tuition, or licensing intellectual property, revenue should not be 100% dependent on donations.
  6. Corporate Partnerships & Sponsorships – Businesses are looking for meaningful CSR (corporate social responsibility). Why weren’t these NGOs partnering with brands that align with their missions?
  7. Investment & Endowment Strategies – Any serious nonprofit should have a financial cushion through investment funds and endowments. Where did all their previous years of funding go? Where’s the reserve? Where’s the financial planning?
  8. Crowdfunding & Digital Fundraising Campaigns – In the age of the internet, digital fundraising should be a primary year-round strategy, not an afterthought. If an organization can’t rally global grassroots donors before a crisis hits, that’s a failure of planning.

This Isn’t a U.S. Problem- It’s an Accountability Problem

Enough with the sob stories. Enough with the woe-is-me headlines. Enough with the blame game.

The U.S. is not responsible for the survival of these organizations. They were responsible for themselves. And they failed.

The organizations that collapse due to this aid freeze are not victims of injustice. They are victims of their financial incompetence.

The lesson here is simple: If you are in charge of a nonprofit, humanitarian group, or faith­ based organization, and you’re still betting your survival on the hope that government funding will continue indefinitely, you are committing professional malpractice.

And when your organization collapses under the weight of your mismanagement, don’t blame the donor. Blame yourself.

AUTHOR’S NOTE

 I have been involved with the nonprofit, foundation, humanitarian, and ministry sectors for decades. I have lived in numerous places in the US, England, Greenland, France, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Ecuador, and Uganda. Some of that time, I was in military service, but all of my life, I have been a person of service to others.

That is why I am so outraged at the world’s talking heads fixing the blame on this country that has been the majority source of humanitarian aid than any other country in the history of the world.

Now that we are getting right with the internal affairs of corruption, greed, malfeasance, mismanagement, and lack of accountability, the open hands are up in arms. Well, I say, Shame on You; DOUBLE SHAME ON YOU!

Get your houses in order, and do something about abhorent mismanagement, loss, malfeasance, and waste in your houses, and maybe, just maybe, some good can come out of this.