I am convinced that one of the greatest things which limits Puerto Rico is our inability to accept this fundamental principle: our lives (and thus our island) is the result of our own decisions. Therfore our inability to accept this principle ensures our inability to take control of our own lives (and thus our island).

There are no inconsequential decisions! Each and every decision we make creates a long chain of cause and effect. The problem as Peter Senge points out in his book “The Fifth Discipline”, is that often times there is a delay between the two. When we put our hand on a hot stove, we immediately pull it away. Ouch that’s hot! When there is no immediate feedback mechanism, then we lose that immediacy. When a frog is thrown into a boiling pot, they will immediately try to jump out. However, if we put them into a pot and then crank up the heat, they never realize it is getting hot until it is too late.

What we must develop is a more long range feedback system, so that when we make bad decisions, the negative impact can be seen and felt more acutely. One area that Puerto Rico needs to develop a better understanding is how breaking the laws of our country dulls our sense of what is right and wrong. When a society can no longer judge what is in the greater good of that society, is when that society is doomed.