Why the Primitive Mind Cannot Simply Be Reformed
I examine why irrationality cannot simply be reasoned away when beliefs are embedded in identity, loyalty, fear, shame and the subconscious—and why reforming a society is harder still.
Articles by Jayant Bhandari
BLS / VFS: Indian Embassies’ Private Intermediaries
Outsourcing Indian consular services is supposed to improve efficiency. My experience with BLS suggests that it can instead add another layer of cost, delay, bureaucracy and diffused responsibility.
Moral Emotions Do Not Exist in Nature
Love, respect, truth and self-respect require distinctions that do not arise automatically from instinct. I examine the civilizational origins of moral emotions and moral concepts.
The Habits That Make China Work
Jayant Bhandari examines why China works more effectively than India, with investment notes on Cygnus Metals, European Lithium, Silver47, and Aztec Minerals.
BRICS, India and China: A Strategic Reality Check
I join David Oualaalou to discuss BRICS, India’s foreign policy, China, the yuan, UPI, India’s economy, Manipur, Kashmir and Asia’s changing balance of power.
Why Cheap Is Expensive in the Third World
Cheap wages can conceal enormous hidden costs. I examine how productivity, quality, supervision, reliability, and cultural attitudes toward work determine the real cost of labor.
Why China Works and India Does Not
Why does China work while India so often does not? I examine the deeper habits of competence, responsibility, quality, and social order that distinguish the two societies.
When the Family is Predatory
A reflection on the family as a source of morality—or predation—followed by investment notes on Nameson Holdings, Aztec Minerals, Cygnus Metals and European Lithium.
The World Is Falling Apart
I join Farzin Irani on Connecting the Dots to discuss democracy, Western decline, India and China, East Asia, capitalism, natural-resource investing, and the preservation of wealth.
When the Family Becomes Predation
In this article, I examine how corruption, amorality, hierarchy, dowry, inheritance conflict, and institutional failure begin in the family, using India as a case study in how imported institutions fail without a moral substratum.