A county is not a company

By Jon Erii, 2016

The contentious 2016 presidential election in the United States motivated me to write this poem.

At the time, many business leaders, entrepreneurs, and even politicians opined that a country is like a business. Therefore, the argument goes, successful business executives should be uniquely qualified to run the government.

In my view, that is all wrong. Successful entrepreneurs, like Steve Jobs and Elon Musk, to mention a few, are single-mindedly focused on products and making money. They are highly competitive, ruthless, and insensitive to people in general. That is part of their success but it disqualifies them for civil service.

The leaders of a country must consider all its citizens. To be humble and caring, leading with intellect, integrity, and sound judgment are the virtues we seek. We must judge a country’s success not by a few admirable individuals at the top, but by how the weakest amongst us are faring while maintaining a business environment where intellect and hard work can succeed. It’s not mutually exclusive, progressive capitalism is a competitive market economy with social responsibility.

A country is not a company, with

hiring and firing as market demands.

No, a country is like a good family

found coast to coast, all over this land.

Proud of the children who succeed,

compassionate about those in need.

Some are born dull, some are bright,

but to all of them, we must do right.

Good shall prevail, that’s humanity.

The people decide, that’s democracy.

Humanity is not a single theocracy,

nor a single creed but joyful diversity.

We the people, cannot thrive alone

God and Country are all of us as one.