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Thanks Naoko
David
I hope that WordPress not trying to do anything to this site to mess us up?
I notice on BFP they are saying that wordpress should be contacted because you are breaching wordpress rules.
I watching this matter real carefully and I am not amused with the BFP.
Former England cricketer Chris Lewis born Georgetown Guyana 14 Feb 1968 has been jailed for 13 years for drug smuggling.
Just posted a comment on the supposed Barbados “Free” Press.
12 of the 13 listed comments are pro- censorship and allowed… mine immediately into moderation.
My advice to David, even though I know he will ignore, is cut the link to that manipulative deceptive overbearingly self-important blog now.
WordPress hits on plagiarised topics will never make up for truly expressedBajan feelings which we can discuss, dis or cuss.
Could say more, but I am hanging on to my gentlemanly status, but only just.
@ST
While I fully understand your matter of principle, Do you really think that David should allow himself to be influenced by their childishness?
I think not.
David has been an unbelievable inspiration with respect to his ability to accept criticism, praise, abuse and scorn – all the while improving the quality of this outstanding blog.
I say ignore the jealous humbugs… and leave the link.
Sorry, Bushman , I just came accross your comment… and with cooler hindsight am suitably admonished.
David to my mind is moderator supreme.
Though I disagree with many of his stances, and he mine I’m sure, he remains respectfully seated securely in the chair of his free flowing blog.
Censorship has always seemed to me to be an indication of argument losers.
If you cannot win by logic,,,,ban ’em.
One of the strengths of BU is that usually David starts one or two threads every day.
Whereas everyone might not post on each of such added posts or even be interested in them at all, there is always a post or two that will tickle the fancy of everyone. This is what makes BU vibrant.
The religious posts, especially, tend to last for a month or so LOL.
Keep on keeping on David. You wont please everyone all the time.
But you aint doing to badly wid certain Cawmere boys on board (including the one who cant understand certain Bible doctrine regardless to all the time and effort I put in!) and my chick JC!
Murder!
MR DAVID
We need to have a fun thread or competition to vote for the best handle used by BU members tha BEST EXPRESS THE ESSENCE OF BAJANISM.
My nominations are
1- YARDBROOM
2- BUSH TEA
3- HOG SQUEAL
Your humble servant, GP the ex-GP
I nominate Bonny peppa,Mash up and buy back and Georgie porgie.
Howszat.
I forgot GEAR BOX
So if we allow 4 nominations per voter
mine are
My nominations are
1- YARDBROOM
2- BUSH TEA
3- HOG SQUEAL
4- GEAR BOX
not in order of preference necessarily.
Architect Richard Gage of Architects and Engineers for 911 Truth ( http://ae911truth.org ) interviewed on KMPH Fox 26 in Fresno, CA:
I think I know the answer to this question but I’m going to ask it anyway. What would be the average Barbadian/West Indian response to this situation?
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1901762,00.html
Not that this is not a serious issue but,
I wished I had met some predatory female teachers while I was at school, in fact any predatory female for that matter.
I still hope that I might one day meet a predatory female.
Healthy of course.
UC:
Join the BLP, but be careful what you wish for, it may come true.
In Barbados such matters are dealt with in two ways:
1. ignored
2. teachers transferred if the issue gets hot
Soon, the ancients shall return. Change of days are coming, we must be peaceful.
All things, to all.
Creation is real, life ever-renewing.
There were two disturbing developments recently where the question may be raised about the consideration the Fair Trading Commission has for consumers.
CARITEL, my private consultancy, is taking part in the Reference Interconnect Offer (see earlier posts for background). We were given one week to sudy various documents in detail, conduct additional research and prepare and send a follow-up submission to the FTC as it relates to new arguments.
We protested as we did in the first submission that this was inadequate and a month was requested. A RIO is a highly granular proceeding, requiring regional and international research as well as correspondence with contacts such as regulators elsewhere. The issues are quite wide and therefore require considerable time to investigate and respond to arguments, in this case made by Cable & Wireless. Cable & Wireless has an entire department and regional staff to deal with such matters.
Well, the FTC said you have another week in an email sent minutes before the close of business Friday, the deadline for the actual follow-up submission. I had written the Commission the Wednesday since time was needed to read the documents from Cable & Wireless (LIME), Digicel, TeleBarbados and Blue Communications and study the implications.
Another matter of even greater concern has to do with the rate application by the electricity company.
If one reads the advertisement from the FTC reminding consumers that they have until June 25th to indicate a desire to be granted Intervenor status, of concern is Section 2. which states “Any written questions (interrogatories) and the supporting documentation must be included in the letter of intevention.
The key word here is “must”.
This is both unprecedented, places undue burden on consumers interested in applying for Intervenor status, provides the applicant with an unfair advantage and runs contrary to a fair and reasonable process.
In the previous rate hearing, the application dealt with an application for Intervenorn status and nothing else. Subsequently, the matter of interrogatories was raised.
The rate application is 700-plus pages and is available only on a website or at the offices of the FTC and applicant for reading only. There is no provision for a hard copy to be made available to any interested party so one could study it at one’s leisure.
And it is also an extremely detailed matter. How can one possibly assemble a team, study in detail the 700-plus pages and have a chance of offering a thorough set of questions (interogatories)?
Again, the FTC is being extremely unreasonable to consumers.
Hallam Hope
(246) 822-1414
caritel@hallamhope.com
Recent Headlines Mix-Up # 2, just having a little fun:
1. Fair Trading Commission Offers Real Challenge For President Obama?
2. Government Lead Strategy For Expanding Divide Between The Academics And The PEOPLE
3. The Immigration Issue Exposes Things Not Bajan
4. Barbados Tourism Executives Bungle National Strategic Plan For Agriculture
5. The Chinese Have Legal Title So What’s The Problem, In A Small Open Economy?
6. Government Experiments With Bajan Girls Gone Wild…
7. How Money Can Triumph Over Inadequate Time For Consumer Advocates
8. Are We Serious About Big Women + Fat Women
That’s the lot for this time.
DISCLAIMER:
None of the headlines above are intended to depeict nor in fact depict any real or imagined persons or events.
Wrong,clever ploy at trying to divert attention from the real issues the country is facing. Well designed political strategy. All the media seems trapped in the puddle. The so call independent voices of logic,truth and reason are concerned with juicy gossip and their ability to be objective is blurred. It is difficult to be honest and truthful. So caught in a trap one cannot expect them to be different when the minds are boggled and bogged down with trivia.
Its time to take off the blinkers.
we need a pothole fixer in Barbados this one seems to help Scotland, it works by spraying the asphalt into the hole at high temperature.
Fair Trading Commission and inadequate time Part 2
Well I tried.
I wrote the Fair Trading Commission this week and protested against what I considered to be inadequate time for prospective Intervenors in the electricity rate hearing to apply for status and at the same time require that interrogatories be submitted along with the details about why they should be granted such status.
I reminded the FTC that the application was 700-plus pages and it was unlikely that prospective Intervenors would have had time to assemble experts, study the case and formalise pertinent questions in the time allowed.
The FTC responded in a letter signed by its acting General Legal Counsel by citing various items of legislation under which it operates but did not respond to the substantive points raised that included the advantage provided to the applicant and disadvantage to prospective Intervenor. It said it wanted to get an understanding of the areas of the application that persons were most concerned about. And it stated that further interrogatories could be submitted. It noted that persons have been given six weeks to submit their letters of intervention.
But there was no response to my argument that the time was inadequate. How does the FTC expect that within six weeks persons would have studied the 700-plus pages along with their experts in engineering, economics and chartered accountancy and come up with an indication of areas they “are most concerned about” unless they are given adequate time. I indicated that I was aware of an organisation that had started early but had not had time to identify experts to study the 700-plus pages – even at this time.
I have also made this complaint in other matters before the Commission. But one does not need to be told that you are butting your head against a stone wall.
I however have a hard head so I will keep butting.
Hallam Hope
caritel@hallamhope.com
(246) 822-1414
Submitted by George Brathwaite – PHD Candidate
On May 24 2009, I was part of a Sunday Brass Tacks panel discussing the problem of migration as it relates to Barbados. At that time, I proposed that for several reasons it was more appropriate to be clear on the terms we use when making reference to those persons normally viewed as ‘illegal migrants’. Today I stand by those arguments knowing that such arguments are in keeping with international best practices and cursory distinctions. There is increasing attention placed on issues of migration (i.e. legal and illegal) because it is a complex phenomenon that straddles several spheres of cultural, social, economic, political, and geopolitical domains among others.
Specifically, we in Barbados are drawn to the debate because contemporary discourses associated with illegal migrants speak to essentially two forms of threat. The first is a threat to Barbados’ state sovereignty and the second is to societal identity. We are witnessing a clash between societal perceptions of cultural security (i.e. as a specific threat to identity), the economic need for migrant labour (i.e. in the context of social and market integration), and wider national security issues (i.e. the preservation of sovereignty). In essence, the inclination to treat migration in terms of threats, danger, and the need for emergency safeguards through the urgent implementation of policies raises the treatment of migration from a political problem to one of securitisation.
Many of us hold the developed world as the standard bearer in many policy arenas. I contend that there are indigenous solutions to many of our problems; however, I refuse to throw out the baby with the bathwater. In this regard, I make a few clarifications on the issue of illegal migration and seek to shed light on common misconceptions that pervade debate over this issue in Barbados. Nearly one of every 70 persons in developing countries is a migrant. Without specific estimates for Barbados, I need to clearly understand from the administration of the day what constitutes illegal migration, and is this terminology appropriate in the context of those phenomena we are describing in Barbados?
Human rights treaties provide many guarantees to all individuals whether present in or outside the territory of their country of nationality. Illegal migration is essentially an all-encompassing term that may include both the illegality of immigrants and emigrants. Persons can be deemed to be illegal on entering or on leaving a country although most countries uphold international law and the conventions stipulating the right of a citizen to exit his or her country of citizenship.
There are four main common categories addressed when one speaks of illegal migration. These are namely, unauthorised entry, fraudulent entry (i.e. with false documents), visa or permit overstaying, and violation of the terms and conditions of a visa or permit. Many of those we call irregular migrants started their journey perfectly legally, for example, by travelling on a tourist visa, and became “illegal” or “irregular” when they stayed on after its validity expired. Most typologies of irregular migration are therefore set up around three focal points. There is legal and illegal entry, legal and illegal residence, and legal and illegal employment. My question therefore is how much information has the Barbados government supplied in recognition that these categories of legality and illegality coexists within the domain of immigration debates?
8% of the world population lives as migrants; over half of them are women. Hence, not only is there a securitisation of migration but there is also a feminisation of migration. Many women in the world are away from their places of origin looking for income generation opportunities for themselves and their families. Guyanese and other CARICOM nationals are not outside the parameters of this trend. These patterns are directly related to a feminisation of poverty. Underdeveloped countries such as Guyana despite its status in CARICOM as one of the big four do not have sufficient social and economic security systems in place to provide potential emigrants with the necessary employment for a life with dignity and a reasonable standard of living. Hence why does the current amnesty established by the Government of Barbados seek to prejudice itself by targeting CARICOM nationals rather than undocumented immigrants from all destinations?
To be certain, while national legislation and immigration reforms represent the most obvious policy responses to immigration, administrative decisions and policy implementation may provide more practical implications of the character of immigration control or preferably immigration management. This brings us to a point that I have recently made in relation to the management of people flows as opposed to costly restrictive measures and the arbitrary expulsion of those who do not meet amnesty criteria.
The two basic standards upheld by the law of aliens are the equality of treatment principle (providing that aliens should receive equal treatment with nationals, with some exceptions such as political rights), and the principle that certain minimum international standards for humane treatment cannot be violated in relation to aliens. These concepts affirm the existence of basic rights to be enjoyed by all aliens. The principles and a number of other provisions in the law of aliens, concerning issues such as expulsion and conditions of admission, are applicable to migrant workers. The law of aliens, however, largely ignores the status of undocumented migrant workers, or those in an irregular situation, and thus does not fully apply to a large proportion of today’s migrant workers.
The United Nation’s (UN) International Convention on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) treats the issue of expulsion in Article 13. It states that:
An alien lawfully in the territory of a State Party to the Present Covenant may be expelled therefrom only in pursuance of a decision reached in accordance with law and shall, except where compelling reasons of national security otherwise require, be allowed to submit the reasons against his expulsion and to have his case reviewed by, and be represented for the purpose before, the competent authority or a person or persons especially designated by the competent authority. This provision extends its guarantees only to aliens who are lawfully residing within the territory of a State, thus not protecting undocumented or irregular migrants. However, if the legality of an alien’s entry or stay is in dispute, any decision leading to expulsion should be in conformity with Article 13.
I mention all of these matters not because the recent amnesty espoused by Prime Minister Thompson is unnecessary or flawed, but because it fails to consider as many of the practical concerns merited in the context of Barbados’ reputation for upholding human rights, and the fact that a great measure of unsubstantiated claims exists. The problem then culminates in responding to perceived threats by a promise to expel without speaking on actual immigration reforms that are necessary or to the due process that ought to be afforded within given parameters of law and morality. Such an action will send many persons underground considering that networks exist and in any event, this has been the global trend. I urge Barbados to revisit its intentions on immigration policy and to open the public sphere to informed views and rigorous debate.
David for a moment I thought it was you who had written this argument!
A woman brought a very limp duck into a vet’s clinic. As she laid her pet on the table, the vet pulled out his stethoscope and listened to the duck’s chest. After a moment or two, the vet shook his head sadly and said ‘I’m so sorry, your Duck, ‘Cuddles’ has passed away’
The distressed owner wailed ‘Are you sure ?’
‘Yes, I am sure. The duck is dead’ he replied.
‘How can you be so sure,’ she protested. ‘ I mean, you haven’t
done any testing on him or anything. He might just be in a coma or something’
The Vet rolled his eyes, turned around and left the room, and returned a few minutes later with a black Labrador retriever. As the duck’s owner looked on in amazement, the dog stood on his hind legs, put his paws on the table and sniffed the duck from top to bottom. He then looked at the Vet with sad eyes and shook his head.
The vet patted the dog, and took it out, and returned a few minutes later with a cat. The cat jumped up on the table and also sniffed delicately at the duck from head to foot. The cat sat back on its haunches, shook its head, meowed softly and strolled out of the room.
The vet looked at the woman and said, ‘I’m sorry, but as I said,this is most definitely, 100% certifiably, a dead duck’.
The vet turned to his PC, hit a few keys and produced a bill, which he handed to the woman. The duck’s owner, still in shock, took the bill ‘£150!’, she cried, £150 just to tell me my duck is dead!’
The vet just shrugged, and said ‘I’m sorry. If you’d taken my word for it, the bill would have been just £20, but with the Lab report and the Cat scan, it’s now £150.
29 Structural & Civil Engineers Cite Evidence for Controlled ExplosiveDemolition in Collapses of All3 WTC High-rises on 9/11
More than 700 architects and engineers have joined call for new investigation,faulting official collapse reports.
The facts are in. The evidence is conclusive. These experts lay it all out.
For Some, the Doubts Began Early
“Something is wrong with this picture,” thought Nathan Lomba, as he watched replays of the Twin Tower collapses on television on September 11, 2001. A licensed structural engineer trained in buildings’ responses to stress, Lomba saw more on the screen than you or I. He puzzled, “How did the structures collapse in near-symmetrical fashion when the damage was clearly not symmetrical?” Lomba was hardly alone in his discomfort. Most structural engineers were surprised when the towers fell.1 They mainly kept their misgivings to themselves, though, as Scientific American and the Journal of Engineering Mechanics, BBC, the History Channel and government agencies such as FEMA and NIST offered varying and often imaginative theories to explain how fires brought the towers down.
In 2006, San Francisco Bay Area architect Richard Gage, AIA, began raising technical questions among his
professional colleagues about the destruction of the Twin Towers and 47-story WTC Building 7. Those who take time to look at the facts overwhelm-ingly agree that vital questions remain unanswered, Gage has found. Today more than 30 structural engineers, experts in what can and cannot bring down buildings, have joined almost 700 other Architects & Engineers for 9/11 Truth in signing the petition demanding a new investigation.2
SNIP
A Note About 9/11 “Debunkers”
It could be hoped that the comments from the structural engineers quoted in this article would silence the “debunkers” who dismissed our arguments first because,allegedly, no engineers agreed with us. That was never true to begin with. After AE911Truth was formed and scores of engineers signed the petition, these debunkers predictably moved the goalposts, saying we didn’t have any engineers who know anything about heavy steel structures such as tall buildings. Since the 28 engineers interviewed for this article do in fact possess that knowledge, the goalposts will no doubt just be moved again. This kind of behavior should make clear the nature of the game that is being played. One word for it is sophistry
Full article in PDF format posted at:
http://www.ae911truth.org/downloads/29_Structural-Civil_Engineers_2009-06-17.pdf
For more information about the discovery by scientists of the remnants of a high tech, military grade explosive known as nano-thermite laced throughout multiple samples of the WTC 9/11 dust, see this article:
http://911research.wtc7.net/essays/thermite/explosive_residues.html
FDA May Restrict Acetaminophen
Advisers Tell the Agency to Lower Over-the-Counter Dose of Popular Pain Drug
By Kathryn Foxhall
WebMD Health News
Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD
July 1, 2009 — The FDA should put new restrictions on acetaminophen, an advisory committee recommended Tuesday, saying the move would protect people from the potential toxicity that can cause liver failure and even death.
The FDA does not have to follow its advisory committees’ recommendations, but it usually does. It will likely be months before the FDA makes a final decision on the drug.
You might not know “acetaminophen,” because that’s the drug’s generic name. One of the nation’s top drugs for pain relief, acetaminophen is found in many over-the-counter products — including Tylenol, aspirin-free Anacin, Excedrin, and numerous cold medicines. It’s also found in many prescription drugs.
Billions of doses of acetaminophen are used safely every year. But acetaminophen-related overdoses cause 56,000 emergency room visits, 26,000 hospitalizations, and 458 deaths annually, according to studies done between 1990 and 1998.
Some people inadvertently take more than is recommended. Others — such as people with underlying liver disease — are more at risk of liver injury from acetaminophen use. Because acetaminophen is in so many products, people sometimes take two or more products containing acetaminophen without realizing it. That risk extends to children, who may be poisoned because they swallow the medication. Sometimes caregivers mistakenly give children too much acetaminophen.
Acetaminophen: Limiting Dosage Amounts
The advisory committee voted that the single adult acetaminophen dose should be no more than 650 milligrams, significantly less that the current 1,000 milligrams often contained in two tablets of certain over-the-counter pain products. The panel of 37 doctors and other experts also said that the maximum total dose for 24 hours, now at 4,000 milligrams, should be decreased.
Some advisory committee members said the move should help lower the overall amounts of acetaminophen that people take. Some on the panel said they were influenced by research indicating there are changes in liver function in some people who had taken only the currently recommended levels.
Call to Eliminate Some Acetaminophen Products
In a recommendation that would be a real change for the prescription industry, the committee voted 20 to 17 that prescription products that combine acetaminophen with other medications should be eliminated. Today, billions of doses of products are prescribed in which acetaminophen is combined with narcotics, according to the FDA. Some brand-name pain prescriptions containing acetaminophen include Vicodin, Lortab, Maxidone, Norco, Zydone, Tylenol with codeine, Percocet, Endocet, and Darvocet.
The combination of hydrocodone and acetaminophen, for instance, has been the most frequently dispensed drug since 1997, according to the FDA.
Richard DeNisco, MD, MPH, medical officer at the National Institute of Drug Abuse and a panel member, said that so much acetaminophen is going out to people in hydrocodone/acetaminophen mixes that he is uncertain why there is not more liver damage.
Prohibiting these combined products “would rock the system,” he said, but the two products should be prescribed separately, if necessary.
The combination prescription products, which have rapidly increased in use in the last five years, are clearly the biggest cause of the acetaminophen overdose, said Marie Griffin, MD, professor of preventive medicine at Vanderbilt University. But she worried that people will simply turn to plain narcotics, if the combinations are eliminated. “We need a broader answer to chronic pain, because these drugs are being used extensively in the older population,” Griffin said during the meeting. “And I am not sure that practitioners feel like they have many other choices.”
On the other hand, the committee declined to vote for eliminating combination acetaminophen products that are sold over the counter.
Karl Lorenz, MD, who is with the VA Los Angeles Healthcare System, said that many people are being creative in managing low level chronic pain. “I just think we have to be cautious about eliminating an entire category of products that many people find useful,” he said.
Black Box Warning Advised for Acetaminophen Combination Products
The advisory committee also voted overwhelmingly to recommend that the FDA require a boxed warning — often called a black box warning — on the labels of prescription acetaminophen combination products, with members noting this is considered the highest precaution the agency can give.
They also called for limiting formulations of liquid over-the-counter acetaminophen to only one concentration level in order to reduce confusion when people give the medicine to children.
Linda Suydam, president of the Consumer Healthcare Products Association, which represents companies that make over-the-counter products, objected to the committee’s recommendations for new limits on acetaminophen in over-the-counter products.
“CHPA strongly believes that patients and physicians need to have a wide range of dosing available for patients who need their acetaminophen-containing products,” she said, asserting there is little data to support the idea that patients are harmed at current levels.
Water rate woes
The analytical piece by Albert Brandford on higher water rates in the Sunday Sun of July 5th is a “must read” for all citizens.
It’s much more than another excellent mix of analysis, research and fearless conclusions.
While Barbadians, particularly those in the lower income brackets, are burdened by a second increase inside 10 years, nothing is being done to reform a woefully inefficient system. Hence, if I understand his article correctly, unjustifiable cost is being dumped on the backs of consumers.
Add this to increasing energy costs, gasolene etc, the possibility of higher electricity rates in 2009 and the almost certainty of higher telephone rates when the Price Cap freeze which some of us worked hard on, ends at year-end, with an expected four per cent hike in January 2010 and we have a picture which is grim for the ordinary consumer and small business person.
What formula and empirical analysis were used to arise at another burden of water rates?
When last has a public, audited account been made available which could reveal inefficencies which even staff of the Barbados Water Authority acknowledge?
Hallam Hope
caritel@hallamhope.com
@Hallam Hope
Where was the activism when Barbadians voted 3 times for the last government during times when the economy was booming and the BWA was known to be suffering financially? Now we have a government wallowing in debt much of it inherited or related to the economic crisis and everyone is coming out of the wood work including Albert Branford. While we agree that price increases at this time is a no no we are at the X roads, as a people we have to make some choices at the same time changing behaviours.
Memo to the WICB and the WIPA. “A pox on both your houses”.
http://www.nationnews.com/news/local/wicb-emergency-meeting-FRONT-PAGE-OTHER
Sargeant
Cool it man
Cant you see we have a real WI team again with 8 of 15 Bajans in the quad?
And 6 of the 11?
When last you see that? Man I thought we would never ever see that again.LOL
Now dont take me too serious here OK LOL.
GP
I never thought of that. As Barbados cricket goes so goes West Indies cricket but unfortunately Barbados cricket hasn’t been going well in recent times. Perhaps we can encourage some Guyanese cricketers to come and play for Barbados (there I go again bringing politics into the mix everyone knows that there is no politics in cricket).:-)
Here’s to Barbados cricket regaining its former stature.
The issues in WI cricket may only be reflecting the dearth of leadership at this time.
But David I was waiting for you to let the Barbadian public know of the latest development going on within the BLP camp????
I have not seen you publish anywhere the very recent development from the BLP camp, as recently as yesterday the former leader was in recruitment mode and has openly stated his intention and desire to regain the leadership of HIS party, the first step to doing so will be his assault on the post of Chairman of the party and this will take place during their conference in September sometime, he has opening stated this to be his intention as in his view Mottley killing the party.
He has also made personal calls and visits to those persons trying to get them to sign onto to his program to regain his standing.
UNDER THE MICROSCOPE: Are we being served?
7/16/2009
By Hartley Henry
The caller was adamant that it was the Leader of the Opposition who was behind a recent criticism of me that was carried in the political gossip column of the other publication.
He insisted that the concern about my absence from the country was consistent with laments that had emanated from the Leader of the Opposition in her tabling of a Parliamentary Question several months ago. I maintained on this occasion that it could not have been Ms. Mottley.
The temptation is great, I am aware, to direct criticisms of a party at its leader. Therefore the caller was well in order to suggest that my presence in the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis over the past two weeks was of such concern to Ms. Mottley that she would have articulated this publicly and it was from there that the authors of the gossip column would have gotten the motivation to write about my working outside Barbados while retained as an advisor to the government.
It is a subject I would welcome being put under the microscope. Firstly, the facts are that I have not signed on a new client since accepting a consultancy with the government of Barbados. Indeed, I have not renewed any of the contracts that expired since January 15th, 2008. I am currently in the process of “serving out” existing contracts, with the view of working full time in Barbados in the service of my country. That is the sacrifice I am willing to make at this time.
But my insistence that it could not have been the Leader of the Opposition who “squealed on me” was predicated on the fact that sitting across the political divide from me in the court of St. Kitts these past two weeks, in clear view, was none other than the Leader of the Opposition of Barbados. Indeed, some Kittitians joked that it was a “Bajan invasion”, because Barbados born High Court Judge, Francis Belle is presiding in the matter to determine if, how and when constituency boundaries in St. Kitts and Nevis will be altered.
Onlookers understood and never questioned the presence of Justice Belle pressing or Yours Truly, whose association with the ruling St. Kitts-Nevis Labour Party dates back to 1993. However, it was mystifying to many that a sitting Leader of the Opposition and, one would assume, Prime Minister-in-Waiting of a sister island, would become so embroiled in a clearly partisan political matter, even though she would have been retained ostensibly as legal counsel.
What is even more confusing to Kittitians is that the former Prime Minister of Barbados and immediate past leader of the Barbados Labour Party, Owen Arthur, addressed the annual conference of the ruling party sometime ago and spoke glowingly of the work of that government and its esteemed leader, Dr. Denzil Douglas.
The fallout for the Barbados Labour Party from Mottley leading the charge for and on behalf of the opposition Peoples Action Movement is colossal. Still, that is a matter for Ms. Mottley and her Parliamentary colleagues to discuss and reconcile.
My interest in the matter stems from the relative silence of the Leader of the Opposition in Barbados over the past few weeks in the midst of several rather contentious issues being debated in public.
As a member of the public, I was looking forward to Ms. Mottley’s response to decisions taken at the just concluded Prime Ministerial meeting in Guyana, when the thorny issues of immigration and free movement of Caricom nationals were discussed.
Barbados and Barbadians came under heavy fire for what in the end turned out to be a misunderstanding of this country’s position and the stance it took on the matter of unregulated and undocumented migration. Prime Minister David Thompson was forced to lead the charge into Georgetown and silence the critics of this country. Just imagine how powerful the message would have been had the two principal political voices in Barbados spoken in unison.
For the first time in years, a serious deliberate attempt is being made to streamline the operations of the Barbados Water Authority and pursue a sustainable programme of water security. Rates to the customer were increased, but the central issue of water security was at the forefront of public debate. Other issues such as the start up of summer camps for 9 000 school children and final touches to Crop Over 2009 were all begging for intervention and input from the Leader of the Opposition, but what the country got was the constant serving of political trivia from two ex-DLP operatives who have now come to personify what the Barbados Labour Party of 2009 is and is about.
It is not part of my remit to advise the Barbados Labour Party on its current trajectory, but placing the party on auto pilot and in the hands of these two political personnas make absolutely no political sense. Interestingly, these said two individuals were ten years ago leading the charge for David Thompson as Leader of the Opposition against the then BLP Government. It’s anybody’s guess where their allegiance will be four years from now. Personally, I believe the BLP can do better!
I could have sat silent and permitted Ms. Mottley to be accused and blamed for criticising persons earning public funds and pursuing business interest elsewhere. But I do not believe that would have been fair to her. Definitely, not on this occasion!
(Hartley Henry is a regional political strategist. He can be reached at hartleyhenry@gmail.com)
But David I was waiting for you to let the Barbadian public know of the latest development going on within the BLP camp????
I have not seen you publish anywhere the very recent development from the BLP camp, as recently as yesterday the former leader was in recruitment mode and has openly stated his intention and desire to regain the leadership of HIS party, the first step to doing so will be his assault on the post of Chairman of the party and this will take place during their conference in September sometime, he has opening stated this to be his intention as in his view Mottley killing the party.
He has also made personal calls and visits to those persons trying to get them to sign onto to his program to regain his standing. ,
@WIV
We only have your word, it would be nice to have corroboration!
Why is now no longer aproblem that there are divisions within the BLP?
We are now begining to see the political agenda of the Nation since in the past the DLP’s problem was plastered every day on the front pages of the fishwrap called a newspaper.
Not so now for the BLP.
I suppose different strokes for different folks.
$3.5 million later, here are the main findings of the St. Joseph Hospital inquiry:
i. Project was not brought before the Planning and Priorities Committee
ii. Main contractor was paid $2.9 million without a formal contract
iii. Main contractor simultaneously provided building services at hospital project and Minister’s residence
iv. No final account prepared by the contracted quantity surveyors
v. Hospital recruitment decisions made by Ministry rather than hospital board
vi. No one guilty of any wrongdoing
ROFL
The main recommendations…
i. Better training for public officers
ii. Better accounting system
iii. A Code of Ethics for holders of public office
LOL
The new Minister of Health says that he and his team will soon be announcing plans for the property.
Hopefully they have received “better training” than their predecessors. 🙂
“And still we rise” (Maya Angelou) or perhaps not.
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1911882,00.html
In Obama land we see the racial thing is still active, no less!
Riot police break up racial standoff over Texas dragging death
Last Update: 7/21 4:16 pmPrint Story | Share this Story
(Inergize Digital)
PARIS, Texas (AP) — One side was shouting, “Black power!” while the other shouted “White power!” But Texas state troopers in full riot gear have stepped between them and kept things from going much further.
The scene unfolded today in the east Texas town of Paris. A group of black activists had organized a march through downtown to protest the state’s handling of the dragging death last year of a young black man.
Twenty-four-year-old Brandon McClelland’s mangled body was found on a country road outside town after he was run over by a vehicle and dragged beneath it. Two white men were arrested, but the prosecutor dropped murder charges last month, citing a lack of evidence.
As the activists reached the town square today chanting “No Justice, no peace!” about a dozen white supremacists, including four skinheads holding Nazi flags, had gathered across the street with another 30 white people behind them.
Before the shouting turned to blows, however, the state troopers stepped between. They made only one arrest.
The two men charged in McClelland’s death say they’re innocent.
Sad News Report:
Five (5) Jamaican athletes have tested positive for drugs at their national championships, four males and one female.(names not yet disclosed)
Reported: 24th July 2:45pm
YB,
It’s sad indeed. No matter Country, Color, Race or Creed, the attitude within human nature is, “it aint gine happen to me; I accustom dodging de bullet.”
But as the old folks say, “wuh aint catch yuh, aint pass yuh. And so true.
David & the rest
I hope it is apparent to you & the rest that this is a racist world and no matter what the achievements of Black people are we will never be accepted or respected by the other races.
An Bharat Obama presidency in the most racist nation on this earth means nothing to the white criminal bastards of this world.Many of us fortunately not me,nor Hopi & even JC are fooled into believing that Black People have finally gain the acceptance of the white killing bastards of this world.
It is no surprise to me that Black People are still being kill,torture & brutalize and are subjected the worst possible treatment by the other ethnic groups.
The time has long passed for us Black People to forget about co-existence with the other ethnic groups.We should be looking to build great Black empires that will be in able to protect & defend us.
No assimilation of the races will change the state that we as Black African people is in today.Those anti-black blacks & token blacks daily face the harsh realities of this racist world but are embarrassed to accept the situation.Many of these nuisance blacks try to live a white life by marrying & producing half caste mutant children like President Obama ,Tiger Woods and our own Esther Byer-Suckoo & the political cadaver David Comissiong.
Negro man
Black man’s biggest enemy is blacks. Until we can unite as one , blacks will always be downpressed
@Negroman……. You are so correct. Those of us BLACKS who are truly interested in advancing and uplifting our Black race really need to physically and mentally separate from every other race of beings on this planet. No matter what you do, you are nothing but fodder for all these parasites. Like I constantly say, we DO NOT NEED them, they need us. Without the sweat blood and tears of our foreparents and the natural resources from the Motherland land, the so-called civilized would still be stepping over their dead in their streets or better yet still be in their caves. And the saddest part about this is the TRAITORS and the COWARDS amongst us. I teach my children who they are and about their Ancestors as well as about the rest of this world, because I don’t want them to go thru this world with a veil over their eyes, pretending that they can’t see. So my Brother don’t give up just hang in there because all this shit is coming to a head. Their time is up!
Right now there’s a big stink going on about a Black professor who was arrested for “breaking and entering his own home” by a white cop.
@JC……….Hotep!
I hope it’s not any of the star athletes because the USA would shout for murder for being upstaged in the olympics.
As a young man, the fellows used to hangout by me on weekends, play dominoes, cards and eat somefood, drink some drinks. This continued even after I got married but stopped when I bought a piece of land and told them I was going to build. Most of them moved away from me because, according to them, I’m not in their league anymore, I move up. I still go back to my village and hangout with some of them but their lives have not improved and all they do is blame everyone except themselves.How sad
DLP column : Christ Church East Central chaos
7/25/2009
It’s pandemonium in here … Chaos. Last Sunday the Barbados Labour Party’s nomination meeting gave credence to this line in Blood’s party tune this year.
The other newspaper’s silence on the recent chaos at the nomination meeting
held in Christ Church East Central was interesting.
Mia’s choice of a candidate in the person of Desmond Sands has obviously upset some long-standing Barbados Labour Party campers. This nomination has brought into sharp focus the camps of Mia and Owen. In Owen’s corner is the former Minister and Senator Lynette Eastmond and in Mia’s corner is the victor Desmond Sands.
This feud is continuing to feed the public the naked truth regarding the happenings in Roebuck Street. Mia pretends that she is the supreme leader by engaging the nomination process from weekend to weekend. The uninvited Chairman of the Party, George Payne, has been politically emasculated and rendered impotent on these nomination matters. The race that Mia has started is causing ripples inside and outside of Parliament. These nomination meetings
appear to be Mia’s nomination meetings and not those of the Executive Council and National Council of the Barbados Labour Party. Mia has carved out a portion of the party and treats it as her own political play pen.
We have heard of Ms. Eastmond’s dissatisfaction and her unceremonious departure before the proceedings were completed. It is evident that the ‘on the ball’ print media in the form of the other newspaper was unable to report on this chaos. This is occurring at a time when the public is thirsty to hear what truly transpired at the nomination meeting. The truth be told, we would not expect this meeting and Lynette’s cry to make news, as we have become accustomed to the recent reporting history of the other section of the Press.
We must congratulate the operatives of the Barbados Labour Party with the swiftness at which they muzzled the chaos that continues to consume them. We will await the truth about what is actually occurring in the belly of the Opposition.
The other newspaper was able to obtain some sketchy comments on
an alleged rift in the top brass of the Royal Barbados Police Force, yet they are unable to tell us what is happening with the top brass of the Opposition. We are asking for equal reporting enthusiasm regarding what is taking shape among Payne, Mia and Owen. The three-way split in the leadership had lead to creation of a three-headed Opposition that is floundering on critical policy matters. It is truly sad that the once Trojan horse of a Party has deteriorated to its current form.
We await full communication of the truth On a more prosperous side, we want to encourage all Barbadians to go out and have a safe and enjoyable Crop Over 2009.
We acknowledge the hard work that Minister Blackett has been undertaking and we congratulate him and his staff for a fantastic job to date. As promised, the Ministry of Culture has delivered in the face of global and regional adversity.
The Ministry has demonstrated what ideas and hard work can do with shrinking resources. This Democratic Labour Party’s Government will not waver in its commitment to deliver on all fronts. We wish all an enjoyable semi-finals and Farley Hill party.
DLP Column: Liz is bare talk
8/1/2009
Can you imagine Senator Liz Thompson finding the voice to speak about the Democratic Labour Party’s performance in Housing? This is the former Minister of Housing whose husband was awarded the contract for changing a NHC unit roof at Kensington Lodge under her stewardship, and had oversight for the now famous Golden Shower in Silver Sands.
The former administration has a record located in failed housing ventures such as Coverley, Bulkeley Meadows, and Deans town while undertaking large scale commercial projects such as the Warrens Complex and NHC Complex. They failed to put in place the framework to facilitate their programmes such as sale of Terrace Units, Primary Homes and the Tenantry Lots Programme.
These housing concepts remained as ideas since all housing projects under her tenure were a total failure. Let us not forget the ten houses built in St. Philip since 1994, which were never conveyed in the three terms the Barbados Labour Party served. It was the incoming Democratic Labour Party’s Minister of Housing, Michael Lashley, who made wrongs things right for those new homeowners.
Minister Lashley has earned a reputation for having ‘a hands-on’ approach to addressing the issue of housing. He has demonstrated without a doubt that the House Every Last Person [H.E.L.P] initiative is not a political ploy. The HELP initiative is not an idea, but is in the process of delivering to those hopeful homeowners.
Minister Lashley has overseen the construction of 51 houses at Greens, 31 in Marchfield, 44 in Workmans, 40 in Fourhill. We are in the process of erecting 64 houses in Constant, 18 houses in French Village, 50 pilot project homes in Coverley, and we are returning to the construction of 20 rental units at Stuart’s Lodge. The Minister has already identified the almost 500 lots for first-time homeowners through his visionary leadership. Our $5 lot programme is not to be identified with the support given under the Tenantries Free Hold Purchase Act. We are selling outright to first time owners. We have acknowledged what the market has done to the price of land and intervened to ensure that a segment of our society can afford a house spot.
The Government’s agenda is driven by a desire to strengthen the social safety net. We will not waiver in our ideas about what Barbadians deserve. It can be no coincidence that Prime Minister David Thompson had to respond to a criticism, from the Barbados Labour Party, which implied that as locals we should not have access to beach-front land for housing. Our attempt to acquire land at Sam Lord’s Castle for low to middle income housing must be viewed as yet another stage in our HELP initiative.
We are still waiting for the view of the Opposition Senator on that particular matter. We are suggesting for the historical records, that the former Minister of Housing, having now found her calling, apologise to all the potential homeowners that she gave hope to and never delivered. She took thousands of Barbadians into her confidence and betrayed that confidence by not delivering on the promises. We are suggesting, as a matter of principle, that she comes to the public and admits that she was a failure as Housing Minister and repents of her political transgressions.
Minister Lashley has done more in 18 months that his three predecessors did in 14 years. On this occasion we salute the staff and the Minister for continuing to Chart Pathways to Progress.
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