The benefits of trade openness to developing countries

The benefits of trade openness to developing countries Trade openness is beneficial to a developing country not only to foster foreign investment and technology transfer, but also to reduce poverty and child labour and to encourage human capital accumulation Introduction Trade liberalisation and integration of domestic economy to the world economy (although widely debated) has long been touted as one of the most suitable ways of inclusive economic development of third world countries. The proponents of globalisation often cite the stupendous economic growth of Asian countries like Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea and Singapore and emerging economies like China and India as success stories of globalisation. Moreover, the initial notion of trade openness of developing countries, largely motivated by access to FDI and technology transfers from developed countries, has also been linked to rapid economic growth and in turn to reduction in poverty and child labour in those countries. The issues of poverty, child labour, education and employability, health and housing, and basic infrastructure development are central challenges to all developing countries; however, the issue of poverty and child labour is most appalling. Chen and Ravallion (2004) reported tha t as per estimates in 2001 about half of the developing world population (approx. 2.7 billion) survive on US$2 or less per day and a fifth of the total population (approx 1.2 billion) survive on a dollar or less per day. ILO (2002a) estimated that approximately 211 million children in the age group of 5-14, in 2000, were involved in some form of employment worldwide. There has been no disagreement that poverty alleviation is the ultimate aim of economic policies but the more suitable way to achieve this goal is ardently argued and there seems no agreement on that. One of the important questions that have been consistently raised in development economics is Does poor gain from high economic growth irrespective of its characteristics? There are two opinions on that. The opponents of globalisation argue that trade-led economic growth of developing countries have helped only middle and upper classes and have caused further income inequity. Moreover, trade openness has caused severe dama ges to the world environment. On the other hand, many scholars believe in the so-called Bhagawati Hypothesis according to which high rate of economic growth can help reduce poverty and what drives the economic growth of a given economy is of less significance (Tsai and Huang, 2007; Bhagwati, 2005; Bhagwati and Srinivasan, 2002; Dollar and Kraay, 2002, 2004). Tsai and Huang (2007) studied economic progress of Taiwan for the period 1964- 2003 suggested that distributional and growth effect of trade-led sustained economic growth had been the major driving factor for poverty alleviation in Taiwan over the period. Similarly a number of empirical studies done by Agenor (2004), Sharma (2003), and Winter et al (2004) have suggested a close linkage between the fast economic growth and poverty alleviation leading to an agreement among scholars that participation in international trade can be the useful way for tackling poverty in developing countries. However, Tsai and Huang (2007) argue that there is no straightforward linkage between the trade openness and poverty. In addition to the two strands on the benefits of trade openness to developing economies there is another perspective to the argument which is the benefits of trade openness to developed economies. Dowrick and Golley (2004) in their study of dynamic benefits of trade openness suggested that the benefits of trade liberalisation were substantially greater for developed economies as compared to benefits to the least developed countries. The brief examines the role of trade openness in the reduction of poverty and child labour incidences, and development of human capital in developing economies. Firstly, the phenomenon of trade openness has been discussed. In the subsequent sections the effects (both positive and negative) of trade openness on poverty, child labour and human capital accumulations has been assessed in the light of empirical studies. In the end concluding remarks on trade openness as means of poverty and child labour reduction and human capital accumulation is presented. Trade Openness Trade openness may be defined as the extent of which a country partakes in the global trade and allow foreign firms to do business in its domestic market. It is of two types revealed openness and policy openness. Revealed openness is measured in terms of ratio of total foreign trade to GDP. It is clearly defined and well measured; however, use of prices (domestic or international) to value the trade ratio has been a cause of disagreement among economists. Studies that focus on revealed openness always attempt to understand the linkage between trade openness and economic performance. In other words, deals with finding about the fact that whether economies (and particularly developing) who partake more in global trade have high rate of economic growth that those who abstain from it. This approach has several disadvantages such as it does not explain why some countries might trade more as the high trade openness of a country may be the result of small domestic market, easy access to fo reign market and policy openness. Policy openness, as the name suggest, is measured in various ways such as 1) in terms of incidence measures of trade barriers; 2) trade flow measures adjusted for structural characteristics such as size and factor endowments; and 3) price distortions. However, policy openness is difficult to measure and all these measures discussed above have their limitations and reliability issues. The policy openness measure by Sachs and Warner (1995) is considered as the most influential and useful in estimating its effects on economic performance. They classified a country as having policy openness if it does not exhibited characteristics such as 1) typical tariff rates of 40 percent or above on imported goods; 2) non-tariff barriers amounting to 40 percent or more on imported goods; 3) a black market exchange rate premium of 20% or more; 4) an economic system based on socialist vision; and 5) state monopoly on major exports. However, the model has been critici sed by Rodriguez and Rodrik (2001) (cited in Dowrick and Golley; 2004) for many reasons. They argued that the crucial components of the model export monopoly and black market premium are hard to analyse for some Latin American and African economies due to their macroeconomic and political difficulties. Frankel and Romer (1999) (cited in Dowrick and Golley; 2004) produced a measure of constructed openness to trade by obtaining predicted value from regression of bilateral trade relations on geographic variables and created national constructed trade shares by aggregating it. The method has been used by various studies in determining the effects of trade openness on economic development (Dowrick and Golley, 2004). As far as the empirical studies on impact of trade liberalisation on economic development are concerned, it has been found that trade openness positively correlates with economic development. However, the measurement issues in those studies are highly debated. The studies by Sachs and Warner (1995), Frankel and Romer (1999) and Dollar and Kraay (2003) have been most influential. Sachs and Warner found that open economies experienced high GDP per capita (over the study period) and it promoted convergence in incomes in poor countries. Frankel and Romer analysed differences in levels of development of 150 countries and found that 10% points increase in trade integration resulted in 20% points increase in income per person (Dollar and Kraay, 2001). Dollar and Kraay, by using Frabkel-Romer measure, analysed decadal growth of per capita GDP of countries open to trade and reported that doubling of trade integration raised annual growth by 2.5% points (Dowrick and Golley, 2004). Impact of trade openness on poverty reduction Trade liberalisation can affect poverty in two ways through economic growth gains and income distribution effect. Tsai and Huang (2007, p. 1861) argued that countries open to international trade grow relatively faster than the closed economies because an open trade regime facilitates efficient transmission of price signals from the international market to the national economy, enhances diffusion of production and management knowledge, and improves domestic efficiency as a result of intensive international competition. The accurate price indicator from international market results in efficient distribution of resources in national economy based on its comparative advantage that leads to faster growth. The gains accrued through high economic growth rate further absorb in the economy and indirectly contribute to poverty reduction. In addition, higher economic growth also results in improved government earnings through direct and indirect taxes providing government sufficient fund for i nvestments in education, infrastructure, employment creation and other social needs of the poor section of society (Dollar and Kraay, 2004; Todaro and Smith, 2009). However, Tsai and Huang (2007) argued that in trade-led growing economies, the degree of poverty reduction largely depend on the efficient distribution of dynamic gains of economic growth or on the comparative advantage of the country. They suggested as most of the poor live in developing world and most of these developing economies have comparative advantages in labour intensive sectors, trade openness result in expansion of labour-intensive exports and thereby higher rate of real wage for labour. The effects of trade policies and liberalisation on economic performance have been studied by economists since 1970s. The main motivation behind the growing body of theoretical and empirical study on the subject has been the unusual growth patterns of some of the Asian, Latin American and African countries during the second half of 20th century. The observed differences in growth rate is assumed to be due to adoption of different strategies by these developing countries such as import substitution industrialisation (ISI) (by majority of Latin American and Sub-Saharan African economies) and export-promotion policies by East Asian economies. The empirical evidence shows that East Asian economies outperformed the growth rate of other developing economies who adopted ISI strategies (Yanikkaya, 2003). Dollar and Kraay (2001) identified two groups of developing countries termed as globalisers (who participated in international trade) and non globalisers (who did not participated in interna tional trade) and studied their economic growth post-1980s. They reported the fall in income inequality in half of the globaliser countries such as India, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand among others while income distribution of Costa Rica and Ecuador remained stable over a period of 20 years since 1980s. They further concluded that as changes in income inequality in most of the globaliser countries remained low the income of poor grew at an average of 3% (equal to per capita GDP growth rate) per year in China, India, Malaysia, Thailand and other developing countries. In addition, all globalisers grew faster economically and socially during the period 1980 2000. This suggests that trade liberalisation leads to decline in income inequality between the countries and reduction in poverty. The developing countries that participated in international trade grew fast during 1980s and 1990s and even faster than the rich countries during 1990s. The rapid growth led to the decline in poverty levels in most of these countries. On the other hand, countries that did not participated in international trade could not catch up with the world growth and fell further behind (Dollar and Kraay, 2001). Impact of trade openness on child labour The impact of globalisation on the incidence of child labour has recently gained much attention from researchers and scholars, primarily due to ethical concerns on exploitation of child and interest of organised labour in protecting jobs. Globalisation is defined as the active participation of countries in global trade and increased geographical spread of foreign direct investments (FDI). It is argued to have both positive and negative influences on child labour particularly in poor economies. However, the more globalised developing country have lower incidence of child labour. It is widely agreed that poverty is the main reason (if not the only) of child labour as poor parents living in extreme poverty often employ their children in full-time work for a living. Initially, in developing economies, a child engages in employment to fulfil the basic needs of the family but soon this temporary arrangement becomes permanent as children either cannot afford education due to financial const raints or lose their interest in education (Basu, 1997 and 1999; Neumayer and Soysa, 2005). The impact of trade openness and penetration of FDI on the child labour incidence in developing country has been explained from both the perspectives. The most compelling argument that shows that globalisation promote child labour is that trade openness increases the demand for unskilled labour in developing economies thereby raising the relative rate of returns to unskilled labour. As a result, incentives to invest in education and skills diminish causing increase in rate of returns to child labour which in turn forces parents to engage their children in child employment (Grootaert and Kanbur, 1995). It is also argued that free trade forces countries to gain competitive advantages through becoming cost-effective and a higher level of child labour can cut the cost significantly. Hence, trade openness could result in increase in child labour in developing countries with lax child labour laws. The recent cases of Nike, Reebok and Adidas are proofs that MNCs occasionally subcontract to enterprises that employ child labour (Palley, 2002; Neumayer and Soysa, 2005). Conversely, the proponents of globalisation argue that trade liberalisation will not only have the substitution effect but also income effect as well. The relative increase in the rate of return on unskilled labour will increase the income level of impoverished parents. Consequently, less number of parents would see need to send their children to work (Basu, 1997). It is also argued that in the long run, trade liberalisation may cause sectoral shift from low-skilled labour -abundant production to high-skilled capital intensive manufacturing due to development of technological capability making employment of children less attractive. The countries more open to trade often invest in education (primary and secondary) and skill development to increase their global competitiveness that indirectly minimises the incidence of child labour. Jafarey and Lahiri (2002) suggest that more open countries will have lower interest rate and provide better access to credit which will lower opportunity cost for education and subsequently incidence of child labour. There have been various empirical studies to analyse the correlation of trade openness with child labour. Neumayer and Soysa (2005) showed that economies that are more engaged in international trade and FDI have a lower incidence of child labour. Edmonds and Pavcnik (2002) in their study reported that a liberalised trade policy in Vietnam increased rice prices and causes reduction in child labour. They found that 30% price increase in rice resulted in 9% decrease in child labour incidence and in total the price increase caused reduction of 47% in child labour during the period 1993-1998 (Todaro and Smith, 2009). Impact of trade openness on human capital accumulation It is argued that a developing economy with a low income and low human capital accumulation can advance in a high income (and high human capital) economy by engaging in trade with a developed economy rich in human capital (Ranjan, 2003). In order to support the argument, examples of human capital accumulation, post trade liberalisation, of countries such as Japan, Italy, Singapore, Hong Kong, China, India, South Korea and Taiwan are often cited. Ranjan (2003) suggested that trade openness results in the rise of unskilled wage that further cast aside the existing constraints on investments in human capital which initiate the human capital accumulation process in developing countries. This eventually allows the developing economy to converge in to high-income and high-skilled economic state. The recent growth of East Asian economies further supports the argument which is considered as a result of rapid accumulation of physical and human capital due to increasing focus on international trade (Young, 1995). Bergin and Kearney (2007) suggested that turnaround in economic performance of Ireland during mid-1980s and even faster growth during 1990s resulted in the large scale investment in education and human capital development. The human capital accumulation in Ireland was partly due to high-demand of skilled labour as it attracted skill-intensive and high productive FDI industries through free trade policies. Ireland maintained its competiveness in international market through the combination of rising levels of education and open labour market that meant increased employment and stable unit labour cost (Tsai and Huang, 2007). The growth literature also suggests that to support high economic growth in a developing country the rise in education level and human capital accumulation is very critical (Bergin and Kearney, 2007). However, Ranjan (2003) stated that in spite the availability of substantial literature and empirical evidence showing positive relation of trade openness and human capital accumulation, earlier empirical studies (Stiglitz, 1970; Findlay and Kierzkowski, 1983) (cited in Ranjan, 2003) suggested that trade openness rather leads to widening of differences in factor endowments of more open economies instead of highly argued convergence. These studies are criticised for not taking in to account the possible influence of credit constraints on physical and human capital accumulation (Ranjan, 2003). Cartiglia (1997) suggested that as economies engage in international trade the prices of high-tech goods falls in domestic economy and demand for low-skilled labour picks up due to expansion of low-tech industries. This increased demand of low-skilled labour decreases the real wages of skilled labour in developing economies. He further argued as education sector employs skilled worker this result in the fall in cost of education making it more affordable to people. Consequently, in the long term the overall supply of skilled workers increases. On the other hand, availability of cheap high-tech goods due to trade allows developing economies to devote more of their skilled labour in the training and development of next generation skilled workers. Conclusion The assessment of various empirical studies done on the linkages of trade openness to economic development revealed that trade openness is positively correlated to the reduction of poverty and child labour, and human capital accumulation in developing countries. The economic success of East Asian studies and other developing economies such as India and China during the last two decades are testimony to that fact that integration to the world economy accelerates economic growth. It is found that higher economic growth causes reduction in poverty and child labour through income and distribution effects. Trade openness not only generates employment for unskilled labour but causes a rise in unskilled wage and improves income level of the poor. It provides higher tax revenue to government a part of which is invested in education, employment creation, infrastructure and other social projects that directly or indirectly supports poverty reduction. The reduced poverty further helps in reduct ion of child labour incidences as a result of distributional effect of economic growth. Moreover, the increased government investments in education make schooling more affordable to children and results in reduction in child labour incidences. As far as the effect of trade openness on human capital accumulation is concerned, as argued by Ranjan (2003), trade openness results in the rise of unskilled wage that further relaxes constraints on human capital investment and initiates the process of human capital development. This eventually allows the developing economy to emerge in to a wealthy and high- skilled economic state. Overall, despite the criticism of trade openness to be largely beneficial to developed economies, growing body of empirical evidence suggest that it does help the reduction of poverty and child labour and human capital accumulation in developing countries.

Gaps in the 24/7 Service Essay

The Service Complain Many companies offer 24/7 customer services. Knowing that customer service exists at any time of the day or any time of the week helps get the business in. Unfortunately, some 24/7 customer services fail to be serious about this. In more than one incident, I have experienced gaps in this kind of service. One time, I ordered a product online. What made me decide to buy that product over others brands was the 24/7-customer service being offered for free by the online company. I needed a 24/7-customer service because if and when the product needed repairs, I was only available during the weekends to have it serviced. The product was delivered on time. The site said that it took two days to deliver it and the product soon arrived my home after two days. I was using the electronic device for a week when it conked out. Problems came up when I called the customer service. First, the customer service lines were busy. It took me an hour to get a hold of someone who was able to take down my complete information and the complaint I had. Second, the company promised me that a service repairman was soon on his way that very same day. I decide to cancel my appointments to accommodate the repairman who never came that same afternoon but instead came in three afternoons after. Third, the repairman soon figured out that my unit needed to be replaced. He took the unit with him without leaving any replacements. Though he promised to bring one the next day, the replacement took a week to arrive while my own unit took two weeks to get repaired. In the end, as service consumer of the product I bought, I became miserable having realized that 24/7-customer service does not really mean quality service. The Cause of the Gap From the experience above, one would get into the core principles of services marketing and how conflicts arise when perceptions do not sum up equally with actual service performance. The client was expecting an immediate clear line with the first few dials he made towards the customer service phone but was frustrated when the call came through after an hour yet. The customer was expecting a service replacement when the repairman got the product that needed repairs. However, a replacement did not come in during the time it was expected to. Christopher Lovelock explains the integration of client expectations, perception of actual service rendered and the actual service performed by the company. These three elements have different characteristics critical to making customer service a marketable element. In this growing global village, a service consumer is most comfortable dealing with companies that are â€Å"24/7†. This kind customer service entices clients to decide on going for the particular company offering the services versus other companies who do not have 24/7 options. Other companies close during weekends and holidays. Other companies are open but only up till a certain number of hours. However, 24/7 companies means that the client can reach a customer care personnel at any time and day of the year. The gap in the experience explained above lies in the perceived service level of the client and the actual service performance. When the client considered 24/7 as the tipping point of his decision, he expected that customer service 24/7 means â€Å"now† kind of service, which includes a host of many other services. The client expects that the 24/7 does not only include taking in complaints, but it also included repairs, diagnoses and replacements. Here lies the problem because the company may have just meant that they were 24/7 in taking in complaints and that alone. Possible Solutions Solutions to customer service problems must be addressed by the company who is primary responsible in explaining to the client the scope of service. In 24/7 customer service, the stakes are higher. Lovelock expounds that the 24/7 kind of customer service is more than something that would entice the clients to buy the product or service. 24/7 means that the company is not only awake every minute. It’s not enough for companies to be stronger than other companies just because they stay awake compared to others. 24/7 may mean to clients that the company is not only awake and ready to take complaints but the whole corporate processes like sales, finance, repair, and delivery are awake and working as well. It is more usual that 24/7 companies have skeletal forces up during the night and weekends and holidays. However, the number of customer service staff during graveyard shifts must be proportionate to the number of possible clients that would be complaining. Another possible solution for this problem is to ensure that lines are open to take in complaints especially from irate clients. Other global companies have outsourced receiving client complaints to address managing the first burst of emotions from irate clients. An imperative in 24/7-customer care service is the clarity of what the 24/7 part is. For the experience above, the client was not cleared by the company that the only part that does not sleep is the taking of the complaint. Furthermore, this would mean that a service repairman is not promised to go to one’s house within the day, nor repair the product within 24 hours from the call. Companies around the globe are slowly addressing service marketing. With technology being more accessible, the difference between products is the kind of after sales service attached to the product being marketed. Companies must evolve into more service oriented rather than maintain old traditional marketing concepts that are product centered. As more and more companies offer 24/7, it is high time that companies and customer understand what 24/7 really means and how one prepares to do 24/7 customer service. References: Hogarth, Jeanne M. ,Marianne A. Hilgert, Jane M. Kolodinsky. 2004. Consumers’ resolution of credit card problems and exit behaviors. Journal of Services Marketing Jan 2004 Volume: 18 Issue: 1 Page: 19 – 34 Emerald Group Publishing Limited http://www.emeraldinsight.com/Insight/viewContentItem.do?contentType=Article&contentId=856002 Lovelock, Christopher and Jochen Wirtz. 2003 Services Marketing (5th Edition) Prentice Hall; 5 edition Malhotra, Neeru and Avinandan Mukherjee. 2004. The relative influence of organisational commitment and job satisfaction on service quality of customer-contact employees in banking call centres. Journal of Services Marketing May 2004 Volume: 18 Issue: 3 Page: 162 – 174 http://www.emeraldinsight.com/Insight/viewContentItem.do?contentType=Article&contentId=1509188 Zeithaml, Valarie and Mary Jo Bitner, 2002. Services Marketing. McGraw-Hill/Irwin 3rd ed.

Island of the Sequined Love Nun Chapter 10~14

10 Coconut Telegraph Jefferson Pardee dialed the island communications center and asked them to connect him to a friend of his in the governor's office on Yap. While he waited for the connection, he looked down from his office above the Food Store on the Truk public market: women selling bananas, coconuts, and banana leaf bundles of taro out of plywood sheds; children with bandannas on their faces against the rising street dust; drunk men languishing red-eyed in the shade. Across the street lay a stand of coconut palms and the vibrant blue-green water of the lagoon dotted with outboards and floating pieces of Styrofoam coolers. Another day in paradise, Pardee thought. Pardee had been out here for thirty years now. He'd come fresh out of Northwestern School of Journalism full of passion to save the world, to help those less fortunate than himself, and to avoid the draft. After his two years in the Peace Corps were up – his main achievement was teaching the islanders to boil water – he'd stayed. First he worked for the budding island governments, helping to write the charters, the constitutions, and the re-quests for aid from the United States. That work finished, he found himself afraid to go home. He'd gone to fat on breadfruit and beer and become accustomed to dollar whores, fifty-cent taxis, and a two-hour workday. The idea of returning to the States, where he would have to live up to his potential or face being called a failure, terrified him. He wrote and received a grant to start the Truk Star. It was the last significant thing that he'd done for twenty-five years. Covering the news in Truk was akin to taking a penguin census in the Mojave Desert. Still, deep inside, he hoped that something would happen so that he could flex his atrophied journalistic muscles. Something he could get passionate about. Why couldn't the United States nuke a nearby island? The French did it in Polynesia all the time. But no, the United States nukes one little atoll in Micronesia (Bikini) and they go away, saying, â€Å"Well, I guess that ought to do for twenty-five thousand years or so.† Wimps. Then again, maybe there was something going on out on Alualu. Something clandestine and dirty. Jefferson Pardee had lost his ambition, but he still had hope. â€Å"Go ahead,† the operator said. â€Å"Ignatho, how you doing, man?† Ignatho Malongo, governor's assistant for outer island affairs, was not in the mood to chat. It was lunchtime and he was out of cigarettes and betel nut and no one had come to relieve him on the radio so he could leave. His office was in a bright blue corrugated steel shed tucked behind the offices of the governor. It housed a military-style steel desk, a shortwave radio, a new IBM computer, and a wastebasket full of tractor-feed paper stained with red betel nut spit under a sign that emphatically declared NO SPITTING. He was round, brown, and wore only a loincloth, a Casio watch, and a Bic pen on a string around his neck. He was sweating into a puddle that darkened the concrete floor around his desk. â€Å"Pardee, what do you need?† â€Å"I was wondering if you've heard anything going on out on Alualu?† â€Å"Just the same. Occasionally the doctor radios for supplies to be sent out on the Micro Trader. They're not officially in Yap state, so they don't go through my office. Why?† â€Å"You hear any rumors, maybe from the Micro Trader crew?† â€Å"Like what? The Shark People don't have contact with anyone since I can remember. Just that Dr. Curtis.† Pardee didn't want to be in the business of starting rumors. More than once he'd had to track down a story to find out that it had started with a drunken lie he'd told in a bar that had circulated through the islands, changed enough to sound credible, and landed back on his desk. Still, Malongo wasn't giving anything today. â€Å"I hear they have a new aircraft out there. A Learjet.† Malongo laughed. â€Å"Where did you hear that?† â€Å"I've heard it twice now. A couple of months ago from a guy who said he was going out there to fly it for them and just now from another pilot on his way.† â€Å"Maybe they're starting a new airline. Be serious, Jeff. Are you that desperate for a story? I've got some grants you can write if you need the work.† Pardee was a little embarrassed. Still, he had no doubt that Tucker Case had been contacted by Dr. Curtis. Something was up. He said, â€Å"Well, maybe you can ask the guys on the Trader to keep an eye out. Ask around and call me if you hear anything.† Suddenly Pardee had a flash of motivational inspiration. â€Å"If someone's buying jet airplanes, there might be some untapped government money out there that you guys don't know about.† He could almost hear Malongo snap to attention. Malongo was thinking air conditioner, laser printer, a new chair. â€Å"Look, I'll ask out at the airport. If someone's flying a jet off of Alualu, then they have to use the radio, right?† â€Å"I suppose,† Pardee said. â€Å"I'll call you.† Malongo hung up. Pardee sighed. â€Å"And once again,† he said to himself, â€Å"we lead with the ‘Pig Thief Still at Large' story.† A half hour later the phone rang. The phone never rang. Pardee picked it up and could tell by the clicking that he was being connected off-island. Ignatho Malongo came on the line. He sounded like he was in a better mood. Pardee guessed that he was in a state of foreign aid arousal. â€Å"Jeff, the Trader is in the harbor. Some of the crew was having lunch at the marina and I asked them about your Learjet.† Malongo was smoking a Benson & Hedges and chewing a big cud of betel nut. He was in a better mood now. â€Å"And?† â€Å"No one's seen it, but they did see some Japanese on the island the last time they were there.† â€Å"Japanese? Tourists?† â€Å"They were carrying machine guns.† â€Å"No shit.† â€Å"Do you think this means there's some military money coming our way?† Malongo was thinking air-conditioning, a case of Spam, a ticket to Hawaii to go shopping. Pardee scratched his two-day growth of beard. â€Å"Probably the crew off of a tuna boat. They've been threatening to shoot some of the islanders off Ulithi if they keep stealing their net floats. I'll check with the Australian Navy, see if they know about a Japanese boat fishing those waters. Meantime, I owe you a bag of betel nut.† Malongo laughed. â€Å"You owe me about ten bags by now. How you going to pay if you never leave that shithole of an island?† â€Å"You'll see me soon enough.† Pardee hung up. 11 Paging the Goddess The Shark men had been beating drums and marching with bamboo rifles since dawn, while the Shark women prepared the feast for the appearance of the High Priestess. In her bed chamber the High Priestess was doing her nails. The Sorcerer entered through a beaded curtain, moved up behind her, and cupped her naked breasts. Without looking up, she said, â€Å"You know, I used to get a pretty good buzz doing this in my studio apartment. Close the windows and let the fumes build up. Want a whiff?† She held the polish bottle out behind her. He shook his head. He was in his mid-fifties, tall, thin, with short gray hair and ice blue eyes. He wore a green lab coat over Bermuda shorts. â€Å"Missionary Air just radioed. Their Beech is broken. They're waiting for a part from the States and won't have it fixed for a month. Our pilot's stuck on Truk.† The High Priestess fired a glare over her shoulder and he could feel himself going to slime, changing, melting into the lowest form of sea slug. She could do that to him. Her breasts felt like chilled river rocks in his hands. He stepped away. â€Å"It's all right,† he said. â€Å"I've sent him a message to fly to Yap. He can catch the Micro Trader there tomorrow and he'll be here two days later.† She was not impressed. â€Å"Don't you think it might be a good idea for me to meet this one before he gets here? It took long enough to find him.† The Sorcerer had backed all the way to the beaded curtain. â€Å"You were the one that didn't want any more military types.† â€Å"Because it worked so well last time. It's bad enough I have to be surrounded by ninjas. I don't like it.† The Sorcerer couldn't believe anyone could walk that slowly and still express so much; it was positively symphonic. He said, â€Å"They're not ninjas. They're just guards. This will all be over soon and you can live in a palace in France if you want.† He held his arms out to receive her embrace. She turned on a red spiked heel and quickstepped back to the vanity. â€Å"We'll talk about this later. I have to go on in an hour.† Feeling stupid, he dropped his arms and backed through the beaded curtain. In the distance the Shark People began the chant to call forth the Priestess of the Sky. 12 Friendly Advice Tuck was sweating through a slow-motion dream rerun of the crash. The end of the runway was coming up too quickly. Meadow Malackovitch was bouncing off of various consoles in the cockpit. Someone in the copilot seat was screaming at him, calling him a â€Å"fuckin' mook.† He turned to see who it was and was awakened by a knock on the door. â€Å"Mr. Case. Message for you.† â€Å"Just a second.† Tucker scrambled in the darkness until he found his khakis on the floor, shook them to evict any insect visitors, then pulled them on and stumbled to the door. Rindi, the driver-rapper, stood outside holding a slip of paper. â€Å"This just come for you from the telecom center.† He reached past Tuck and clicked the light switch. A bare bulb went on over the desk. Tuck took the note, dug in his pants pocket for a tip, and came up with a dollar, but Rindi had already shuffled off. The note, on waxy fax paper, was covered with greasy fingerprints. Tuck guessed it had probably passed through a dozen hands before getting to him. He unfolded it and read. To: Tucker Case c/o Paradise Hotel From: Dr. Sebastian Curtis Mr. Case, I deeply regret that my wife will not be able to meet you on Truk as planned. We have reserved a seat for you on tomorrow's Air Micronesia flight to Yap, where we have arranged transport aboard the supply ship, Micro Trader, to Alualu. Your plane will arrive at 11:00 A.M. and the Micro Trader is scheduled to sail at noon, so it will be necessary for you to take a taxi to the dock as soon as you clear customs. I apologize for the inconvenience and would ask that you refrain from discussing the purpose of your visit with the crew of the Micro Trader – or with anyone else, for that matter. It would be unfortunate if this research reached the FAA before it had been thoroughly investigated. Rumors travel quickly in these islands. I look forward to discussing the intricacies of the particular strain of sta-phylococci with you. Sincerely, Sebastian Curtis, M.D. Staphylococci? Germs? He wants to discuss germs? Tuck couldn't have been more confused if the message had been in Eskimo. He folded it and looked again at the fingerprints. That was it. He knew that other people would be reading the note. The germ thing was just a red herring to confuse nosy natives. The bit about the FAA obviously referred to Tuck's revoked pilot's license. In a way, it was a threat. Maybe he ought to find out a little more about this doctor before he went running out to this remote island. Maybe the reporter, Pardee, knew something. Tuck dressed quickly and went down to the desk, where Rindi was listening to a transistor radio with a speaker that sounded like it had been fashioned from wax paper. Someone was singing a Garth Brooks song in nasal Trukese accompanied by an accordion. â€Å"It sounds like someone's hurting animals.† Tuck grinned. Rindi did not smile. â€Å"You going out?† Rindi was eager to get into Tuck's room and go through his luggage. â€Å"I need to find that reporter, Jefferson Pardee.† Rindi looked as if he was going to spit. He said, â€Å"He at Yumi Bar all the time. That way.† He pointed up the road toward town. â€Å"You need ride?† â€Å"How far is it?† â€Å"Maybe a mile. How long you be gone?† Rindi wanted to take his time, make sure he didn't miss any of Tuck's valuables. â€Å"I'm not sure. Do you lock the door at midnight or something?† â€Å"No, I come get you if you drunk.† â€Å"I'll be fine. I'll be checking out in the morning. Can I get an eight o'clock wake-up call?† â€Å"No. No phone in room.† â€Å"How about a wake-up knock?† â€Å"No problem.† â€Å"Thanks.† Tucker went out the front door and was nearly thrown back by the thickness of the air. The temperature had dropped to the mid-80s, but it felt as if it had gotten more humid. Everything dripped. The air carried the scent of rotting flowers. Tuck set off down the road and was soaked with sweat by the time he reached a rusted metal Quonset hut with a hand-painted sign that read YUMI BAR. The dirt parking lot was filled with Japanese beaters parked freestyle. A skeletal dog with open running sores, a crossbreed of dingo and sewer rat, cowered in the half-light coming through the door and looked at him as if pleading to be run over. Tuck's stomach lurched. He made a wide path around the dog, who looked down and resumed concen-tration on its suffering. â€Å"Hey, kid, you're not going in there, are you?† Tuck looked up. There was a cigarette glowing in the dark at the corner of the building. Tuck could just make out the form of a man standing there. He wore some kind of uniform – Tuck could see the silhouette of a captain's hat. Anywhere else Tuck might have ignored a voice in the dark, but the accent was American, and out here he was drawn to the familiarity of it. He'd heard it before. He said, â€Å"I thought I'd get a beer. I'm looking for an American named Pardee.† The guy in the dark blew out a long stream of cigarette smoke. â€Å"He's in there. But you don't want to go in there right now. Wait a few minutes.† Tuck was about to ask why when two men came crashing through the door and landed in the dirt at his feet. They were islanders, both screaming incomprehensibly as they punched and gouged at one another. The one on the top held a bush knife, a short machete, which he drew back and slammed into the other man's head, severing an ear. Blood sprayed on the dust. A stream of shouting natives spilled out of the bar, waving beer bottles and kicking at the fighters. Earless leaped to his feet and backed off to get a running attack at Bush Knife, who was rising to his feet. Earless hit him with a flying tackle as Bush Knife hacked at his ribs. A pickup truck full of policemen pulled into the parking lot and the crowd scattered into the dark and back into the bar, leaving the fighters rolling in the dirt. Six policemen stood over the fighters, slamming them with riot batons until they both lay still. The police threw the fighters into the bed of their truck, climbed in after them, and drove off. Tuck stood stunned. He'd never seen violence that sudden and raw in his life. Ten more seconds and he would have been in the middle of it instead of backpedaling across the parking lot. â€Å"Should be okay to go in now,† said the voice from the dark. Tuck looked up, but he couldn't even see the cigarette glowing now. â€Å"Thanks,† he said. â€Å"You sure it's okay?† â€Å"Watch your ass, kid,† said the voice, and this time it seemed to come from above him. Tucker spun around, nearly wrenching his neck, but he couldn't see anyone. He shook off the confusion and headed into the bar. The skeletal dog crawled from under a truck, seized the severed ear from the dust, and slunk into the shadows. â€Å"Good dog,† said the voice out of the dark. The dog growled, ready to protect its prize. A young man, perhaps twenty-four, dark and sharp-featured, dressed in a gray flight suit, stepped out of the shadows and bent to the dog, who lowered its head in submission. The young man reached out as if to pet the dog, then grabbed its head and quickly snapped its neck. â€Å"Now, that's better, ain't it, ya little mook?† The bar was as dingy inside as it was out. Yellow bug bulbs gave off just enough light to navigate around drunken islanders and a beat-up pool table. An old Wurlitzer bounced American country western songs off the metal walls. A khaki-wrapped hulk, Jefferson Pardee, sweated over a Budweiser at the bar. Tucker slid in next to him. Pardee looked up with red-rimmed eyes. â€Å"You just missed all the excitement.† â€Å"No, I saw it. I was outside.† Pardee signaled for two more beers. â€Å"I thought I told you not to go out at night.† â€Å"I'm leaving for Yap in the morning and I need to ask you some questions.† Pardee grinned like a child given a surprise favor. â€Å"I'm at your service, Mr. Tucker.† Tuck weighed his need for information against the ignominy of telling Pardee about the crash. He pulled the crumpled fax paper from his pants pocket and set it on the bar before the reporter. Pardee lit a cigarette as he read. He finished reading and handed the fax back to Tucker. â€Å"It's not unusual to have changes in travel plans out here. But what's this about bacteria? I thought you were a pilot.† Tucker took Pardee though the crash and the mysterious invitation from the doctor, including Jake's theories about drug smuggling. â€Å"I think the bacteria stuff was just to throw off anyone who got hold of the fax.† â€Å"You're right there. But it's not drugs. There aren't any drugs produced in these islands except kava and betel nut, and nobody wants those except the islanders. Oh, they grow a little pot here and there, but it's consumed here by the gangsta wanna-bes.† â€Å"Gangsta wanna-bes?† Tuck asked. â€Å"A few of the islanders have satellite TV. The people who look like them on TV are gangsta rappers. The old rundown buildings they see in the hood look like the buildings here. Except here they're new and run-down. It's a Coke and a smile and baby formula their babies can't digest. It's packaged junk food shipped here without expiration dates.† â€Å"What in the hell are you talking about, Pardee?† â€Å"They buy into the advertising bullshit that Americans have become immune to. It's like the entire Micronesian crescent is one big cargo cult. They buy the worst of American culture.† â€Å"Are you saying I'm the worst America has to offer?† Pardee patted his shoulder and leaned in close. Tuck could smell the sour beer sweat coming off the big man. â€Å"No, that's not what I'm saying. I don't know what's going on out on Alualu, but I'm sure it's no big deal. Evil tends to grow in proportion to the profit potential, and there's just nothing out there that's worth a shit. Go to your island, kid. And get in touch with me when you figure out what's going on. In the meantime, I'll do some checking.† Tuck shook the reporter's hand. â€Å"I will.† He threw some money on the bar and started to leave. Pardee called to him as he reached the door. â€Å"One more thing. I checked around. I heard that there's some armed men on Alualu. And there was another pilot that came through here a few months ago. Nobody's seen him. Be careful, Tucker.† â€Å"And you weren't going to tell me that?† â€Å"I had to be sure that you weren't part of it.† 13 Out of the Frying Pan Tuck's first thought of the new morning was I've got to catch a plane. His second was, My dick's broke. It happens that way. One has a â€Å"private† irritation – hemorrhoids, menstrual cramps, swollen prostate, yeast infection, venereal disease, bladder infection – and no matter how hard the mind tries to escape the gravity of the affliction, it is inexorably pulled back into a doomed orbit of circular thought. Anything that distracts from the irritation is an irritation. Life is an irritation. Inside Tuck's head sounded like this: I have to catch a plane. I'm pissing fire. I need a shower. Check the stitches. No water. It looks infected. Probably lep-rosy. I hate this place. I'm sure it's infected. When does the water come on? It's going to turn black and fall off. Whoever heard of a place with satellite TV but no running water? I'll never fly again. I'm thirty years old and I have no job. And no dick. And who in the hell was that guy in the parking lot last night? I smell like rancid goat meat. Probably the infection. Gangrene. I can't believe there's no running water. I'm going to die. Die, die, die. Not a pleasant place to be: inside Tuck's head. Outside Tuck's head the shower came on; brown, tepid water ran down his body in gutless streams; pipes shuddered and trumpeted as if trying to extrude a vibrating moose. The soap, a brown minibar made from local copra, lathered like slate and smelled of hibiscus flowers and suffering dog. Tuck dried himself on a translucent swath of balding terry cloth and slipped into his clothes, three days saturated with tropical travel funk. He shouldered his pack, noticing that the zippered pockets had been tampered with and not giving a good goddamn, then trudged down to the front desk. Rindi was sleeping on the desk. Tuck woke him, made sure that the room had been paid by the doctor as promised, then stood in the tropical sun and waited as Rindi brought the car around. It seemed like a very long ride to the airport. Rindi ran over a chicken, then got out and fought an old woman who claimed the chicken, each tugging on a leg, testing the tensile strength of poultry to its limit before Rindi busted a kung fu move that secured his dinner and left the old woman sitting in the dust with a sacred chicken foot in her hand. (The old woman was from the island of Tonoas, where magic chickens were once called up by a sorcerer to level a mountain for a temple, the Hall of the Magic Chickens.) At the airport Tuck gave Rindi a dollar for the cab ride, which was twice the going rate, and waved off the bloody handshake the aspiring gangsta offered. â€Å"Keep the peace, home boy,† Tuck said. 14 Espionage and Intrigue Yap was cleaner than Truk and hotter, if that was possible. Here the beat-up taxis actually had radio antennas to identify them. The roads were paved as well. The airport, another tin roof over concrete pylons, was filled with natives: men in loincloths and topless women in hand-woven wraparound skirts. Tuck caught a cab at the airport and told the driver to take him to the dock. The driver spat out the window and said, â€Å"The ship gone.† â€Å"It can't be gone.† What had moments ago been a pleasant drunk from four airline martinis turned instantly to a headache. â€Å"Maybe it was another ship that left.† The driver smiled. His teeth were black, his lips bright red. â€Å"Ship gone. You want to go to town?† â€Å"How much?† Tuck asked, as if he had a choice. â€Å"Fourteen dollar.† â€Å"Fourteen dollars? It's only fifty cents on Truk!† â€Å"Okay, fifty cents,† the driver said. â€Å"That's your counteroffer?† Tuck asked. He was thinking about what Pardee had said about these islanders absorbing the worst of American culture. This was his chance to help, if only in a small way. â€Å"That's the most helpless bargaining I've ever heard. How do you ever expect your country to get out of the Third World with that weak shit?† â€Å"Sorry,† the driver said. â€Å"One dollar.† â€Å"Seventy-five cents,† Tuck said. â€Å"You find another taxi,† the driver said, digging in his fiscal heels. â€Å"That's better,† said Tuck. â€Å"A dollar it is. And there's another one in it for you if you don't run over any chickens.† The driver put the car in gear and started off. They passed though several miles of jungle before breaking into a brightly lit, surprisingly modern-looking town with concrete streets. Occasionally, they passed a tin house with stone wheels leaning against the walls. The stones ranged from the size of a small tire to seven feet in diameter and were covered with varying degrees of green moss. â€Å"What are those millstone-looking things?† Tuck asked the driver. â€Å"Fei,† the driver said. â€Å"Stone money. Very valuable.† â€Å"No shit, money?† Tuck looked at a piece of fei standing in a yard as they passed. It was five feet tall and nearly two feet thick. â€Å"What do your pay phones look like?† Tuck asked with a grin. The driver didn't find it funny. He let Tucker out at the dock, which was suspiciously shipless. Tuck saw a bearded, red-faced white man sitting in the shade of a forklift, smoking a cigarette. â€Å"G'day,† the man said. He was about thirty. In good shape. â€Å"Impela my tribe?† â€Å"Huh?† Tuck said. â€Å"American, then?† Tuck nodded. â€Å"You Australian?† â€Å"Royal Navy,† the man said. He pulled a hat from behind him and tapped on it. â€Å"Join me?† He motioned for Tuck to sit next to him on the concrete. Tuck dragged his pack into the shade, dropped it, and extended his hand to the Australian. â€Å"Tucker Case.† The Australian took his hand and nearly crushed it. â€Å"Commander Brion Frick. Have a seat, mate. Looks like you been on the piss for a fortnight, if you don't mind my saying.† He handed Tucker a business card. It bore the seal of the Royal Australian Navy, Frick's name and rank, and the designation NAVAL INTELLIGENCE. Tuck looked again at the scruffy Australian, then back at the card. â€Å"Naval Intelligence, huh? What do you do?† â€Å"I'm a spy, mate. You know, secret stuff. Very hush-hush.† Tuck wondered just how secret a spy could be who had his status printed on a business card. â€Å"Espionage, huh?† â€Å"Well, right now we're watching the Yapese Navy don't make a move.† â€Å"Yap has a navy?† â€Å"Only one patrol boat, and she's broken right now. Yapese put gas in the diesel engine. But you can't be too careful, lest the little buggers get it in their mind to launch a surprise attack. That's her over there.† He nodded down the wharf. Tuck spotted a rusted boat designed like a Chinese junk with the word YAP stenciled on the side in flaking orange Rust-Oleum. A half-dozen Yapese, thin brown men with high cheekbones and potbellies, were lounging on the deck in loincloths, drinking beer. Tuck said, â€Å"I guess an attack would be a surprise.† â€Å"Ain't as easy a job as it looks. Yapese can lull you into a false sense of security. They might sit there without moving for two, three weeks, then just when you start to relax, wham, they make their move.† â€Å"Right,† Tucker said. The only damage the patrol boat looked capable of inflicting was a case of tetanus for the crew. A mile past the Yapese Navy waves crashed on the reef, just a line of white against the turquoise sea. Cottony clouds rose out of the sea into shining columns. Tuck scanned the horizon for a ship. â€Å"Is the Micro Trader in yet?† â€Å"Been in and gone,† Frick said. â€Å"She'll be back around in six weeks or so.† â€Å"Dammit,† Tuck said. â€Å"I can't fucking believe it. I need to get to Alualu.† â€Å"Why'd you want to go out there?† â€Å"I'm a pilot. I'm supposed to be flying for a missionary out there.† â€Å"Boys and I were out there in the patrol boat last week. Godforsaken place.† Tuck lit up at the mention of the patrol boat. Maybe he could catch a ride. â€Å"You have a patrol boat?† â€Å"Seventy-footer. Some of the boys are out with it now, tuna fishin' with the CIA. Don't mention it, though. Secret, you know.† â€Å"What's the CIA doing down here?† Frick raised a blond eyebrow. â€Å"Keepin' an eye on the Yapese Navy.† â€Å"I thought you were doing that.† â€Å"Well, I am, ain't I? And when they come back, it's my turn to go fishin'. Lovely, us bein' allies and all. Cuts the work in half. Want to suck some piss?† â€Å"Pardon?† Tuck wasn't ready for any kind of bizarre native customs. â€Å"Drink some beers, mate. If you keep an eye on the Yappies, I'll run down to the store and grab some beers.† â€Å"Sounds good.† Tuck was ready to take the edge off his headache. Besides, there was still a chance for a ride out to the island. Frick put his hat on Tuck's head. â€Å"Right then. By the power invested in me by the Australian Royal Navy, et cetera, et cetera, I hearby deputize you as official intelligence officer until I get back. Do you swear?† â€Å"Swear what?† â€Å"Just swear.† â€Å"Sure.† â€Å"There it is.† Frick started walking off. â€Å"What do I do if they make a move?† â€Å"How the bloody hell should I know?† Tuck watched the Yapese Navy for an hour before they all stood up and left the boat. He was pretty sure that this did not constitute a defense emergency, but just in case he decided to walk up the street to see what had happened to Frick. The pack felt even heavier now, and he guessed that it was the responsibility for Australian people that weighed him down. (A woman had once offered Tucker a goldfish in a bowl, and Tuck had graciously declined it on the basis that it was too much responsibility and would probably die anyway. He felt the same way about the Australians.) The concrete streets of Colonia were bleached white and stained with three-foot red strips of betel nut spit on either side and lined with thick jungle vegetation. Off the streets Tuck could see tin hovels, children playing in the mud, women passing the hottest part of the day combing lice from each other's hair in the shade of a tin-roofed porch. The women wore wraparound skirts, black with brightly colored stripes, and went topless. All but the youngest of them were enormously fat by Western standards, and Tuck felt his idealized picture of the beautiful island girls fade to a lice-infested, rotund reality. Still, there was something in their gentle grooming and in the quiet concentration of the children that made him feel sad and a little lonely. If only he could run into a woman he could talk to. A Western woman – she wouldn't have to know he was a eunuch. He broke out of the jungle into the open street of Colonia's main â€Å"business district.† On one side was a marina with a restaurant and bar (or so the sign said), on the other a two-story, stucco minimall of shops and snack bars. Around it, in the shade of the modern portico, stood perhaps a hundred Yapese, mostly women, some young men in bright blue loincloths, all shirtless. The islanders all had bright red lips and teeth from chewing betel nut. Even the little children were chewing the narcotic cud and spitting periodically into the street. Tuck walked in among them, hoping to find someone to ask about Frick's whereabouts, but none made eye contact. The women and girls turned their backs to him. The men just looked away or pretended to pay attention to sprinkling powdered coral on to a split green betel nut before beginning a chew. He went into a surprisingly modern grocery store and was relieved to see that the prices were in American dollars, the signs in English. He picked up a quart of bottled water and took it to the checkout counter, where a woman in a lavalava and a blue polyester smock rang up his purchase and held out her hand for the money. â€Å"Do you know where I can find Commander Brion Frick?† Tuck asked her. She took his money, turned to the cash drawer, and turned back to him with his change without uttering a word. Tuck repeated his question and the woman turned away from him. Finally he left, thinking, She must not speak English. He ran into Frick coming out of the store. The spy had a six-pack tucked under his arm. â€Å"I was looking for you,† Tuck said. â€Å"The Yapese Navy took off.† â€Å"You could have asked inside. They knew where I was.† â€Å"I did. The woman wouldn't talk to me.† â€Å"Not allowed to,† Frick said. â€Å"It's bad manners to make eye contact. Yapese women aren't allowed to talk to a man unless he's a relative. If a woman and a man are seen speaking in public, they're considered married on the spot. Shame too. Ever seen so many bare titties in all your life? Tough grabbin' a snog if you can't talk to them.† Tucker didn't want to talk about it. â€Å"You were supposed to come back to the wharf.† Frick looked affronted. â€Å"I was on my way. Didn't think you'd desert your post. I hope you're a better pilot than you are a spy. Letting them sneak off like that.† â€Å"Look, Frick, I need to get to Alualu right away. Can you take me in your patrol boat?† â€Å"Love to, mate, but we've got a mission as soon as the boys get back from fishin'. We've got to tow the Yapese patrol boat down to Darwin for repairs. Won't be back for a fortnight at least.† â€Å"Doesn't it make more sense to leave it broken? I mean, in the interest of watching them?† The spy raised an eyebrow. â€Å"What threat are they with a broken boat?† â€Å"Exactly,† Tuck said. â€Å"You obviously don't know a wit about maintaining job security. Mis-sionary Air might take you out, but I hear their plane is down for a while. Fishing boats are all Chinese. Buggers wouldn't piss on you if you were on fire. You might charter a dingy, but I doubt that you'll find anyone willing to take you across four hundred kilometers of open sea in an out-board. There's fellows do it off Perth, but the West Coast is full of loonies anyway. Get yourself a room and wait. We'll take you out when we get back.† â€Å"I don't know if I can wait that long.† Tuck stood up. â€Å"Where should I go to charter a boat?† Frick pointed to a large Mobil oil tank at the edge of the harbor. â€Å"Try heading down to the fueling station. Should be able to find someone down there who needs the gas money.† â€Å"Thanks, Frick, I appreciate it.† Tucker shook the spy's hand. â€Å"No worries, mate. You watch yourself out there. I hear that doctor's a bedbug.† â€Å"Good to know.† He waved over his shoulder as he walked down to the edge of the harbor. A group of women chewing betel nut in the shade of a hibiscus tree turned away from him as he passed. He walked along the bank and looked into the cloudy green water at the harbor's edge. Tiny multicolored fish darted in and out of the shallows, feeding on some kind of shrimp. Brown mud skippers, their eyes atop their heads like a frog's, walked on their pectoral fins across a small mudflat that had formed around the roots of a mangrove tree. Tucker stopped and watched them. They were fish, yet they spent most of their time on land. It was as if they had evolved to a certain point, then just couldn't make a decision to leave the water, grow into mammals, and finally invent personal stereos. For sixty million years they had been hanging out on the mudflats, looking at each other with periscope eyes and goofy froggy grins and say-ing: â€Å"What do you want do?† â€Å"I don't know. What do you want to do?† â€Å"I don't know. Want to go up on the land or stay in the water?† â€Å"I don't know. Let's hang out on the mudflat a little longer.† Tuck completely understood. Although if he had been a mud skipper, after a couple of million years of dragging himself around the mudflat, he would have lost his patience and yelled, â€Å"Hey, can I get some feet over here!†, thus moving evolution along. He was enjoying the superiority of the Monday morning quarterback (And in a world created in six days, what day but Monday could it be?), feeling a little smarter, a little more worldly than the mud skippers, when it occurred to him that he had no idea how to proceed. He could find the telecom center, if there was one, and contact the doctor, but then what would he do? Sit for two weeks on Yap until the Australians returned? Maybe they were wrong. Maybe there was a privately owned plane on the island. What about a dingy? How bad could it be. The sea looked calm enough. That's it, take to the sea. Or perhaps he should just stay on Yap and find a sympathetic woman to take his mind off the problem. It had always worked before, not to pos-itive results, but it had worked, dammit. Women made him feel better. He ached for a Mary Jean Cosmetics consultant. A cool, thin, married woman, armored in pantyhose and a bulletproof bouffant. A sweet, shocked, backsliding Born Again on a one-time sin quest to remind her of why re-demption was so so good. Mud skipper thinking. He was reeling with the heat and the lack of possibilities when he saw her, up ahead, walking by the water's edge, her back to him: a thin blonde in a flowered dress with a swing to her walk like a welcome home parade.

Essay about Exposing the Corruption in India - 1218 Words

Corruption is something we never really want to hear about, but is a very serious matter to contend. The idea that one person would extort or hold power over another human being isn’t a highly talked about subject. However, in India there is a problem with corruption, which has run out of control. People subject to poverty in India and considered poor by other nations’ standards are taken for what little cash they have or property they own by someone of a higher authority. What’s worse is those very people also begin doing the same. Corruption is an opportunity to many, and to some their only way to get ahead. This problem is so far reaching in India that one has to question how things will possibly get better. The effects of†¦show more content†¦India, having been a closed market to the world until changes started being made in the 1990s, has a need to become less regulated with an expected effect of lower corruption rates taking place. It can b e seen that there is indeed an economic impact where corruption is concerned. For a country that shelters one third of the world’s poor, an economic breakthrough could be just what India needs to help improve the lives of each of its citizens. To do that, the government needs to take a more rigorous stance against corruption and do all that it can to cleanse it from the system. Perhaps India will then be in more prosperous times and achieve higher economic growth rates as suggested by Oberoi and Aggarwal, thereby lifting people out of poverty. The corruption doesn’t just affect the people on an economic level. It is present within the very society and works against those who may be perfectly innocent. For example, many police officers in India use their power to extort those they should be serving to protect. Dean Nelson of The Daily Telegraph in London, reports on â€Å"a series of attacks by corrupt police officers that has provoked a new campaign by India Aga inst Corruption†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (A Killing Too Far). The first incident reported involved theft from a stopped vehicle and killing the driver. Yet another incident was reported where a truck driver, pulled over by the police, refused to pay money being extorted from him by theShow MoreRelatedJan Lokpal Bill1567 Words   |  7 Pagesthe free encyclopedia The  Jan Lokpal Bill, also referred to as the  citizens ombudsman bill, is a proposed independent anti-corruption law in  India. Anti-corruption social activists proposed it as a more effective improvement to the original  Lokpal bill, which is currently being proposed by the  Government of India.[1] The Jan Lokpal Bill aims to effectively deter corruption, redress grievances of citizens, and protect  whistle-blowers. 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