Why I am not impressed with GDP as a measure of an economy

First, an economy (from Greek οίκος – "household" and νέμoμαι – "manage") means careful management of available resources. GDP refers to the total economic output achieved by a country over a period of time, in most cases, one year. As such, GDP is generally a good indicator of a country's economic output, while GDP growth rate of economic productivity, and not net wealth of a country nor well-being of its people.

Second, GDP often understates economic output for developing countries with substantial share of non-market production (goods and services that are produced either for personal consumption or for which exist no official record of production). We all well know, what a huge proportion of Malawians engage in growing own food, drawing water from own well, fetching firewood from a nearby forest, catching fish from a river or lake, building houses with non-purchased local materials, walk mostly as a means of transport, use family labour in the house and farms, etc. The GDP of all these people is considered zero. Whereas, in more commercialized economies, GDP often soars.

Third, GDP often understates economic output for developing countries with substantial share of underground business transactions that are not formally recorded for trade that is regarded ‘illegal’ eg informal mining, informal employment, businesses in cross-border smuggling, unregistered businesses of local foods, beers, prostitution, etc.

Fourth, GDP often understates economic output for developing countries with substantial share of natural capital (unexploited minerals, land, water, forests, fisheries, weather) which makes up a significant share (36%) of their total wealth, yet their full contribution does not show up in GDP. Forestry, for example, timber resources are counted in GDP but the other services of forests, like carbon sequestration and air filtration are ignored.

Fifth, GDP overlooks the depletion of national wealth and assets. Long‐term development is about accumulation and sound management of national wealth and assets for economic output (GDP) and well-being. Nobel Laureate Joseph Stiglitz once noted, a private company is judged by both its income and balance sheet, but most countries only compile an income statement (GDP) and know very little about the national balance sheet. GDP looks at only one part of economic performance—income—but says nothing about wealth and assets that underlie this income. For example, when a country exploits its minerals for export, its GDP rises, but it is actually depleting its wealth. The same holds true for over‐exploiting fisheries or degrading land and water resources. These declining assets are invisible in GDP and so, are not measured. Therefore, GDP does give misleading signals about the economic performance and people's well‐being for developing countries.

Take your child with you on your dirty errands to empower her

In the book of Exodus in the Bible, we learn that probably to protect them from the dangers that he knew awaited him in Egypt, Moses left his sons, Gershom and Eliezer, with his wife, Zipporah, and father in-law, Jethro. Joshua became his errand boy, watching the different miracles, understudying Moses. No wonder Joshua became the next leader of Israel, and we never hear much of both Gershom and Eliezer.

Like Moses, most great men and women leave their children behind while they train other men's or women's children. They unconsciously invest in their handy boys and girls who go about on errands with them, be it in the kitchen at home, in the farm or any other business. While their biological children are at home watching TV or somewhere else having nice time, the handy boys and girls are busy understudying and learning the keys to success and greatness.

This is the very reason why, when you look around today, even in history, few businesses can point to having intergenerational continuity. So, while they enjoy the pleasures that you provide, let your children experience what you experienced that makes what you are, they will not die. Instead, they will proudly say that they are following their father's or mother's steps.

It’s a non-consensual act: rape offenders take superior advantage over their victims

Introduction

Rape is any sexual activity that involves two non-consenting people. If it involves a minor, it is renamed defiling. Rape is a serious as well as common offence in both criminal and social law courts. It is serious because it directly violates substantive lifelong physical and cognitive welfare of the victim. As such, many national laws provide for stiffer punishments to offenders, also as a pre-warning to future potential offenders. While this is the state of affairs, rape cases never cease, and in fact are reported to be on the rise, many of which remain unreported. I argue that it is the definition of rape that is fundamentally fraud and perpetuates the offence. I attribute this trend to that fact that many offenders get their way out due to lack of what is often referred to as substantive evidence. In my view, this is, in part, due to weaknesses in the definition of rape. While classical definition of rape hinges on consent, the term consent itself is elusive. The central defect is that consent assumes both parties are of adequate physical and mental capacity to engage in a deliberate negotiation to reach a consensus that the sexual activity at that particular moment is appropriate, to the benefit of either one party or both, of course, with varying degrees. I argue that this assumption is fraud as, in the first place, the parties in any sexual activity are never of measurably comparable capacity and that in itself poses significant challenge for litigators to offer fair trial. The offending party often utilizes its superior advantage to 'force' the victim into the act. The evidence is hard to decipher as it remains difficult to both investigate and measure. I use the concept of wild catcher to elaborate my argument.

The concept of wild catcher

In the wild, animals especially carnivores use various mechanisms to catch their prey for food. However, all the different hunting mechanisms conform to similar principles. First, the hunting animal must study and understand the structural, situational and behavioural characteristics of the prey animal. These structural, situational and behavioural characteristics of the prey animal are fundamental to its defense mechanisms. Capitalizing on the weak points in the structural, behavioural and situational characteristics of the prey animal, the hunting animal devises its strategy for catching its prey. Second, almost all the hunting mechanisms involve direct attack on the vital life systems of the prey animal - the circulatory or nervous or respiratory systems. Third, the hunting animal utilizes the environment to aid and complement its inert resources, so do the prey animal to defend itself. For example, crocodiles use water to suffocate its prey, as the many reptiles also use camouflage (similar colour as the local scene) to ambush their prey. All these principles enable the hunting animal to catch the prey with minimum inert resources.

Rape offenders are wild catchers

Similarly, in rape cases the offending parties just like the hunting animals, take advantage the structural, situational and behavioural weaknesses of their victims to commit the act. Firstly, it is common to note that in most cases, that the victim is structurally weaker that the offender in physical strengths, for example, defiling an under-aged child or a physically disabled person; or cognitive strengths, for example, through threats, cheats on a lesser mentally endowed person such as a minor or adult with some mental weakness; or economic strengths, for example, teacher vs student or boss vs employee or doctor vs patient cases. Secondly, most of the victims’ behaviour, especially alcohol and drug abuse, exposes them to the offenders. Being in a drunk and intoxicated mode compromises one’s sense of judgment and ability to defend oneself, that provides the rape offenders with a clear opportunity to attack with minimum effort. Third, being alone, in secluded and/or less lit places provides the offender with situational advantage to attack as the victim may find it difficult to call for help.

It is the community to control rape

Considering the loopholes in statutory mechanisms to control rape, the fact that it is the victims that idiosyncratically carry the whole non-reversible burden of rape, and that prevention is better than cure, it is important, as a community, to take precautionary measures. People much be self-aware of their structural, situational and behavioural weaknesses and take appropriate measures to guard against them. Parents and community at large need to protect the children and people with disabilities, and based on knowledge of the local situation train the children the necessary life skills to protect themselves from the potential offenders. The community should not condone a rape culture but rather condemn it at every opportunity. While protecting privacy of the victim, rape offenders need to be named and shamed, in addition to their charged punishment.