Ross Rant | October 13, 2017

Nats baseball: There are few things in life I have a deep passion for, but when my favorite teams fall short, it is simply the worst.

When the Wolverines, Red Devils, or Red Wings fall short, lose, collapse, or stumble I am in a foul mood that can last for days.

Here in the nation's capital, the city is waking up to another Nationals season cut short and not matching expectations. In a town full of type A personalities and high school class presidents, victory and success are deemed a birthright.

But like soccer's US Men's National Team, a culture of success hasn't yet been established with the Nats.

Creating a culture of success takes decades to foster such an ethos and is shaped by an ecosystem that pulses throughout all the committed stakeholders.

There is a reason Detroit is called Hockeytown. 

For one, they have been playing professional hockey in the city for nearly a century. Second, this is a place where cousins play floor hockey in the basement while uncles gather around the television to watch the game of the week. Third, the hottest date night possible is taking your favorite girl to the rink and watch the game live below some 50 championship banners and retired numbers.

Ask any Red Wings player what it is like to walk around Detroit after failing to match expectations. The words pamper and fawn won't be used to describe the encounter with the Michiganders living around 8 Mile metroplex.

Hockey in Detroit is bigger than life. It is legacy. It is family. It is love.

The Nats don't play in Baseballtown.

The baseball team in DC isn't even old enough to drive yet. The Nats have only been in the District since 2005, and when you start with Les Expos de Montréal as your foundation, there will be challenges to reach to promise land. 

The ecosystem of the Nats - including the fans, players, stadium workers, owners, and city - must support and demand excellence, display a commitment to victory in all phases, and harness the energy of the region to achieve success.

For my friends that are die-hard Nats fans, I'd look at the big picture.

What the team has accomplished on and off the field in a short period is just amazing. The team will win a World Series eventually - and probably a few. So be happy and enjoy the journey of building a culture of success.

Also remember, you're not a Browns or Brewers fan, thankfully.

Video: Marc Ross on CGTN America

Marc A. Ross, founder of Caracal Global, appeared on CGTN America and spoke with Rachelle Akuffo about the global competition for talent, the need for lifelong learning, and reversing China's brain drain

Ross Rant | October 12, 2017

A t-shirt's tour: African countries Rwanda, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, South Sudan, and Burundi are trying to phase out imports of secondhand clothing and shoes.

The foreign hand-me-downs are blamed by the governments of these nations for hampering the development of a textile industry in their respective countries. They have a point. 

The textile industry has long required a vast number of low-end, low-skilled, and low-paid workers but can serve a nation as a gateway to advanced manufacturing and assembly.

Africa has the ideal employment base to be a textile powerhouse. African leaders know full well that the textile industry is the perfect stepping stone to power an economy and have seen for themselves the success such a move has made for counties all over Asia. Not only Asia, but the United States in the early days of the republic used the same economic development strategy as America harnessed the power of the textile industry to move the up the manufacturing ladder.

Here's a great book to read on this very subject: The Travels of a T-Shirt in the Global Economy by Pietra Rivoli, a Professor at Georgetown University's McDonough School of Business.

Faux-fur: Gucci will stop using fur in its products starting in 2018. The world-class fashion house added heft to a growing chorus of luxury companies going fur-free.

Independence for Scotland: It has been three years since Scotland’s unsuccessful independence referendum. However, the desire to leave the UK still burns with the nation's leaders. The outgoing leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP), Alex Salmond, stated at the party's annual conference this week, “for Scotland the campaign continues, and the dream will never die.” 

Salmond's dream of breaking away from the UK is not finished and will always be present with many across the highlands and lochs of Scotland, but the goal of independence has clearly moved to the back burner and is a little dimmer these days.