Who is not familiar with the fairly tale The Emperor’s New Clothes by Hans Christian Anderson. For those who are not, it is “a classic fairy tale where an emperor, obsessed with fine clothing, is tricked by two con artists who claim to weave a magnificent suit that is invisible to anyone who is incompetent or foolish; everyone in the court pretends to see the clothes out of fear of appearing unfit, until a young child finally shouts out that the emperor is naked, exposing the deception“.
Recently a story popped into the blogmaster’s newsfeed about a painting with a minimalist design that was sold for millions. The explanation given for the exorbitant price paid was the concept of the painting could be interpreted in many ways which added to the intrigue for aficionados.
The blogmaster would not have paid BBD$10 dollars for the painting.
We live in times when it is fashionable to go with the ‘flow’ of popular opinion. Some of us were raised to always demonstrate “the courage of one’s conviction”. The blogmaster has always upheld the principle that right is right and wrong is wrong based on immutable truths. In the case of the painting portrayed in the video, it is wrong for intelligent to engage in that level of ostentatious behaviour with so much suffering in the world. A few months ago a banana stuck to canvas with duck tape sold for USD$6.2 million.
Another recent what the hell moment was President Donald Trump’s decision to pardon 1500 individuals – on his return to the presidency last month – who ‘attacked’ the Capitol in Washington on January 6, 2021. There can be no debate his decision to pardon individuals from the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers is wrong.
We are seeing more and more a blurring of the lines of what is right and wrong in Barbados as well. An example, justification by some Barbadians of Donville Inniss decision to accept money from Insurance Corporation of Barbados (ICBL).
The following article succinctly sums up the blogmaster’s perspective on the matter of The Emperor has New Clothes.
Trump’s Second Term Might Have Already Peaked
As far as policy accomplishments are concerned, it could very well turn out to be as underwhelming as the first.
Ever since donald trump emerged as a credible threat to return to the White House, the guardrails that seemed to restrain him in his first term—political, legal, psychic—have collapsed with astonishing speed. His nominees are sailing through their confirmation hearings, including some who are underqualified and ideologically extreme. Titans of business and media are throwing themselves at his feet as supplicants. He has obliterated long-standing norms, unashamedly soliciting payoffs from corporations with business before the government. (The Wall Street Journal reports that Paramount, whose parent company needs Trump’s approval for a merger, is mulling a settlement of one of his groundless lawsuits.) Steps that even his allies once dismissed as unthinkable, such as freeing the most violent, cop-beating January 6 insurrectionists, have again reset the bar of normalcy.
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2025/01/trump-inauguration-executive-orders/681403
The blogmaster invites you to join the discussion.