Raise The Bar

Raise The Bar

“To raise new questions, new possibilities, to regard old problems from a new angle, requires creative imagination and marks real advance in science.”

Albert Einstein

By: Erreh Svaia

The weak and embarrassing "historic truth" that the government delivered on the Ayotzinapa students disappearances, the unconvincing investigation in the Casa Blanca case and the second prison break of Public Enemy No. 1 Joaquin "Chapo" Guzman, are strong signs of a weak condition on Mexican institutions, How could one be still expecting a Mexican Miracle or a Mexican Moment under such circumstances.

At the time it seems that Mexico's only strengths are its solid financial system that based on experience and continuity maintained the country afloat in the middle of long lasting world economic crisis (decrease in oil prices, FED tax rates increase, dollar strengthening and China's growth) the other strength, is the momentum gained thanks to the much publicized reforms, but this momentum is slowing down as incapacity to implement them fast is subtracting deep effects, although we should mention here that on its second chapter, the energetic reform is starting to show signs of moving on.

World class standards are important for the country to reach better levels of economic growth, the country is trapped in itself trying to judge and be judged, not recognizing the need for external help, sometimes nationalism is a hook that keeps you immersed in the past, and sometimes a helping hand is all it takes to gain impulse again.

We have witnessed effective investigations in Europe and in the U.S., the killers involved in the Charlie Hebdo shootings quickly detained in France, but we haven't seen the true facts about what happened last year in Iguala, Guerrero, Why didn't the Mexico government asked for external help?

We have seen how our southern neighbor Guatemala incarcerated its own president and vice president on accusations of corruption, based mainly on investigations by a foreign commission, something unthinkable in Mexico, where foreign intromission is quickly discarded, accused of hurting the country’s sovereignty.

When we ask our representatives is such thing is possible in Mexico? They cynically respond: "This is not Guatemala", this time, I wish we were Guatemala, and although I'm not a big fan I football soccer, let's use it as a metaphor for our situation, for years we were the soccer giant in the region, but we isolate ourselves from the rest of the world praising ourselves of being invincible, time passed by and the smaller countries who recognized their deficiencies and seek for foreign help ended up surpassing us, just look at Costa Rica, who not only became a major force in football soccer, but also in economics and environmental issues, it's time to start recognizing our defects and put arrogance away, ask for help and summit ourselves to international commissions in order to start acquiring global standards in issues like education, innovation and social equality, that is only if you truly desire to "move Mexico" and not just using it as another useless government slogan.