By Edward Rodriguez
Following the publication of Andrés Oppenheimer’s newest guide, entitled “Methods to get out of the opening,” and in mild of the celebration of Nationwide Journalist Day in Venezuela on June 27, I spoke with him about each subjects and I summarize them beneath in my typical opinion article.
On the one hand, we delve into his guide and every part that underlies the theme of happiness, pleasure or life satisfaction, because of greater than six years of analysis that allowed him to go to totally different international locations and conclude that are the happiest and the place their inhabitants really feel the best state of well-being; and alternatively, we discuss in regards to the function of the journalist and we evaluate the political occasions, particularly in Latin America and the US.
Oppenheimer had accustomed us to studying books in different contexts comparable to “Chinese language Tales”, “Sufficient of Tales” and “Create or Die”, amongst different titles; however now he modifies course and primarily based on the survey that the Gallup firm has carried out in additional than 100 international locations for 20 years on the happiness rating, the Argentine author and journalist surprises us together with his newest literary work: «Methods to get out of effectively”.
At 72 years of age and in full exercise as host of “Oppenheimer Presents” on CNN, author and columnist for The Miami Herald, he’s as we speak with out hesitation, one of the vital learn writers in Spanish, winner of a number of awards such because the Ortega y Gasset Prize in 1993 awarded by the Spanish newspaper El País, the Pulitzer for “Iran Contras” in 1987 along with a staff from the Miami Herald, and the King of Spain Award from the EFE information company, amongst many different recognitions he has acquired in his intensive profession.
“Methods to get out of the opening” arose as an thought from the author when he noticed that there’s an increasing number of dissatisfaction on this planet and social conflicts such because the occasions that occurred in Chile, Peru and Colombia between 2018 and 2019, social outbreaks, primarily in Chile, which had been experiencing financial progress within the final 30 years. Right here is Oppenheimer’s nice reflection: financial progress is important, however international locations should do different further issues to extend folks’s happiness.
What’s happiness and what’s a state of well-being?
It’s a set of issues that should do with earnings that means that you can fulfill your primary wants, good well being lined by well being system, associate, and a way of goal, amongst different issues. What is evident is that the happiest international locations based on the World Happiness Report’s happiness rankings, comparable to Finland, Denmark and Iceland, have very excessive incomes, democracy and little corruption. It’s no coincidence that these international locations seem within the first locations and Venezuela among the many final.
The place are happiness lessons taught?
I used to be very impressed by what I noticed after I attended the happiness lessons in New Delhi which are taught in all public faculties daily, one hour a day. Earlier than going I believed they might be stress-free, like music lessons after I was a baby, however I used to be shocked: they train youngsters to meditate, to cope with failure, to work as a staff, to be supportive; and so they do it with very efficient and really enjoyable methods. For instance, they train them to cope with failure by telling tales about well-known folks. The instructor tells the kids anecdotes about Messi’s defeats in essential matches, after which she tells the kids: “now, inform me your most up-to-date failures.” Thus, youngsters grow to be acquainted from a really younger age with the concept that all of us fail occasionally, that we fall and get again up.
The place are you happiest?
We Latin People come out first in lots of poorly titled happiness rankings. There are two methods to measure happiness. For those who ask folks how happy you’re along with your life from 1 to 10, the northern European international locations win there, as a result of it’s a broad query that features many issues comparable to your earnings, your well being system, your medical insurance. unemployment, and so on. Different surveys, nonetheless, ask folks: What number of instances did you smile or have moments of pleasure within the final 24 hours? And in these rankings, we Latin People come out first, as a result of they measure pleasure. However virtually all consultants agree that crucial rankings are the primary, those who measure life satisfaction, as a result of pleasure is a short lived phenomenon, whereas life satisfaction is one thing extra everlasting.
You are feeling blissful?
Sure, I’m blissful. Quite a lot of the issues I found doing this guide is that folks on this planet are happier of their center years than of their youthful years. I used to suppose the alternative, however surveys are displaying that persons are pretty blissful as youngsters, however extra sad as they grow old, and particularly sad between 30 and 50, as a result of these are the years after they have essentially the most pressures from work and elevating youngsters, and they’re underneath huge pressures. The happiness curve begins to rise after age 55. In my case, that’s true, since you do not feel as pressured by exterior components.
What educating does the guide go away?
On the finish of the guide I share 12 keys to happiness, that are the principle issues I realized. One of many keys I discovered in lots of international locations was the significance of an intense neighborhood life. In Latin America we’ve got an excellent household life, and lots of buddies, however sadly we would not have an excellent neighborhood life outdoors our household and buddies circles. In Denmark, for instance, there are 3 times extra stamp collectors’ golf equipment than in Mexico, which has a a lot bigger inhabitants. Within the Nordic international locations there may be rather more contact with strangers from all social lessons. Others of the 12 recipes are happiness lessons in public faculties, like in India, and happiness measurements like in Nice Britain, to map happiness, detect pockets of unhappiness and manage neighborhood actions in these locations the place there may be extra despair and loneliness.
What impressed you to check journalism?
After I began finding out in Argentina there was no journalism faculty, so I began finding out legislation. I began being a journalist in highschool, after I made the varsity journal. From the age of 13 I began writing. It was an enchanting excuse to fulfill folks and get into locations I’d by no means have been in a position to get into in any other case. I at all times dreamed of being a journalist, as a result of I’m a really curious man. I’m all for every part and I study new issues daily. And my books are that, exploratory journeys.
What recommendation do you give to the brand new technology of journalists?
In Venezuela, I do not know, make a little bit cross daily within the almanac, just like the prisoners, to see how a lot much less is lacking from the Maduro dictatorship. It is rather troublesome to do journalism in Venezuela, there are various very courageous journalists who’re doing fantastic issues, however it is vitally troublesome to do journalism with a lot repression and a lot censorship.
Umberto Eco stated that “Social networks give opinions to a legion of imbeciles who earlier than solely gave their opinions within the village bar with out harming anybody and as we speak they provide them house as in the event that they have been Nobel Prize winners as a result of they’ve opinions on every part and have tens of millions of followers. What do you consider the function of social networks and journalism?
I feel that social media has largely grow to be a machine for spreading faux information, now fueled by algorithms designed to maintain us hooked on Twitter, Fb or no matter. I feel that social media ought to be regulated extra and their house owners ought to be held extra accountable for the garbage they transmit. I at all times inform my buddies: do not ship me any video that does not come from a well known and respected outlet. As a result of a lot of what we obtain on Fb, Twitter or Instagram is garbage, it is faux information.
What conventional media do is high quality management and discard faux information. Why do you purchase fish in a grocery store and never on the road? Since you belief that the grocery store did a top quality management. The identical factor occurs with the information. I solely devour information from a acknowledged media outlet as a result of I do know that these shops stay off their credibility and they aren’t going to promote you faux information as a result of you’ll cease watching them. Demagogues world wide, from Nicolás Maduro to Donald Trump, are encouraging contempt for the normal press, which is the one counterweight to their need for absolute energy. So, they’ve devoted themselves to discrediting the media in order that nobody criticizes them.
After six months as President of Argentina, what’s your evaluation of Javier Milei, a president who got here to energy with a disruptive speech and warning that he would take very robust measures to keep away from falling into hyperinflation?
He’s a person who’s finishing up an excellent daring reform of the Argentine State, which was unviable with 9 million non-public sector employees paying for 19 million public staff and retirees and backed by the State. He’s revolutionizing Argentine politics, and has turned the other way up the populist Peronist custom of greater than half a century in the past. His financial rules are good. My largest concern is his outbursts in opposition to the important press and his buddies, as a result of he has political buddies on the acute proper in lots of international locations that aren’t very pleasant to democracy. To this point, he’s sticking to the Structure.
Are you able to say that Milei is excessive proper?
I’m very skeptical about these labels of proper or left, as a result of we’re in a world the place China is supposedly a communist nation, however it’s a paradise for capitalist entrepreneurs: it has a capitalism with out the correct to strike. The labels of left or proper are very relative. For me, the dilemma of the twenty first century shouldn’t be between proper or left however democracy or dictatorship. Is Maduro, and his officers multimillionaires in {dollars}, a leftist?
How do you see the election within the US?
There’s a severe hazard to democracy if Trump wins, a person who admires Putin, embraces the dictator of North Korea with out mentioning the problem of human rights, and who in his personal nation ignored his defeat within the 2020 elections. and defends the violent individuals who took over the Capitol on January 6, 2021. Lots of my Venezuelan buddies idolize him as a result of he speaks harshly in opposition to the dictatorship of Venezuela, which is superb, however I consider that democracy have to be defended all over the place . It doesn’t appear prudent to criticize the dictatorship in Venezuela and applaud an incipient dictator in the US. If I realized something from overlaying politics in Latin America and the world, it’s that there isn’t any such factor as dictator.
How do you see the Venezuela situation?
We already know that the electoral course of was not honest, however the opposition did effectively to take part and do what it’s doing. To remain alive, it should occupy each political house obtainable. I like the braveness of the opposition leaders who’re combating peacefully within the streets of Venezuela. I discover it arduous to consider that Maduro will settle for a free election as a result of he’ll lose. Something can occur, comparable to persevering with to disqualify candidates, or inventing a battle with Guyana to droop the election, or committing fraud like in 2018. The worrying factor is that the world will neglect about Venezuela because it forgot about Cuba.
And with this final query about his opinion on the scenario in Venezuela, which was not possible to keep away from, the attention-grabbing and nutritious conversation-interview with Andrés Oppenheimer ended. He tells us “Methods to get out of the opening” the place creativity, important considering and innovation are the important thing to doing so.
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2024-06-30 16:23:23