Operational Northern Hook: Why The Feds Should Keep Pushing

 

Despite technology 
busting corruption still relies
on reporting it.
Need a quarter? 

Detroit was a place where things couldn't get done unless you greased palms and know the right people (Ok...to be fair its not all like that...but there is a lot of incidents that raise a concern on a macro level.). It seemed to be "who you know" versus "what you know" that got things done and got you the job. People believe it has something to do with Detroit itself but that is not true. Plenty of people in Detroit, in the "burbs" and from other places seemed to think Detroit was "open for business"....dirty hands all around! 

As with all things there is a balance that must be played. When it comes to public corruption we have responsibilities to go after as much crime as we can to ensure that government is clean and centered on the will of its people. As soon as it becomes centered on the city-burb "elite", criminal networks, or any other group/system hidden from pubic view the city declines, resources dry up, and hope dissipates. Detroit made a come back and then got bogged down again by the "culture of corruption". To free the system means to clean out the root causes and find a method of bringing back our manufacturing, our innovation, and our opportunities to environments that are ready to reform to attract international interest and in turn improve opportunities (Detroit was part of the reasons I started looking at clusters.). 

I have been reading about this topic in Detroit (..and casually some of the mechanisms of the shadow market such as hiding behind intentionally antiquated bureaucratic systems and formalized/hidden social structures) on and off since 2011/12 because its a recurring bubbling theme.  You can read an interesting article, 'Feds charge fourth person in Detroit corruption investigation of towing industry'  (As a side note a free press in a country helps reduce corruption by exposing wrong doing. Its important to maximize freedom of the press to help ensure healthy exchange of ideas....and that comes with responsibilities.). 

Not 100% sure on what causes corruption in society and why it occurs more in some places and less in other places. 🤔To quench my curiosity I looked at a study called 'Causes and Effects of Corruption: What has Past Decade's Empirical Research Taught us?. Its interesting because there are some markers for corruption that are apparent and we should be able to avoid them as a society. The researcher found, "Research on this topic and the implementation of an effective regulatory policy, suitable codes of conduct, political and bureaucratic transparency, and effective anticorruption measures can help to mitigate the dissemination of corruption" (Diamon, 2017, pg. 17). Ok cool.....but then....

What I thought was of particular interest was that when you read the study you sort of get a picture of how our divisions (racial, religious, political, ideological, etc...almost any major societal difference) can be exploited by people(...and by extension countries) for gain. It doesn't matter if your in Detroit or way way up north in a small town (i.e. such as 29K disappearing) the effects of corruption can be devastating to communities and break down trust in government. Integrity and adherence by all members to certain ethical rules is important for society to function at its optimum. Any great nation must be one in which there is low corruption and high transparency to ensure continued public support and the ability to adjust as the environment requires it. See Moral Character, Whistle Blowers, Power of Being, Business Ethics

Dimant, E. (2017) Causes and Effects of Corruption: What has Past Decade's Empirical Research Taught us? A Survey January 2017. Journal of Economic Surveys 32(2) DOI:10.1111/joes.12198