There is an old proverb that I have heard around the place that says, “Whom the Gods would destroy, they first make mad.”
Well, I saw madness on television on last Friday. A prominent gentleman was ranting and raving about religious persecution in the Parliament.
It reminded me of David Rudder’s “Tales from a Strange Land - the Mad Man’s Rant”, except that song made more sense.
Despite all the ole talk, the news item reported that he completely side-stepped all the questions and issues after speaking for close to an hour.
I saw more insanity as I observed the wild facial expressions and thumping that went on behind him, from his supporters in blind, mad accord.
The next day, again on television, I saw more lunacy.
The same gentleman proclaimed that we now have the capability to eradicate all drug smuggling. Tell me why it is so? All because we acquired a few (is it four?) boats.
There is another David Rudder song that goes in part, “This is not a fete in here, this madness!” See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dms_VJL9GRU&safe_search=on
You want more?
The police arrest one hundred or so Sea Lots residents. The next day their partners from further up the road in the Beetham Housing Estate blocked the Beetham Highway in protest.
It is alleged they blocked traffic, stoned cars trying to bypass their blockade and robbed motorists using the road.
Then, they got on television (again) loudly proclaiming the new buzz word – you got it right- “Persecution!”
And so it goes on and on and on.
THE BRIGHT SIDE
There is a wind of change blowing.
The long serving presidents of both Pan Trinbago and the Public Services Association are no longer if office.
Basdeo Panday lost his long standing political leadership of the opposition party that he founded, on a margin on ten votes to one. Despite doing his utmost to retain his Parliamentary role (what madness is this?), he lost that too but by the smallest of margins.
Maybe, just maybe, these gentle breezes of change would intensify and blow us a change in governance and a return to rationality.
Maybe the Gods are at work?
What are you doing about it?
John Henry
March 4, 2010
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Oh Gorm!!!
Jack Warner flies to Baghdad to watch a young Iraqi play football.
He is really impressed and arranges him to come over to play for his club Joe Public in Trinidad.
Two weeks later Joe Public are 4-0 down, away to W-Connection with only 20 minutes left. Joe Public manager gives the young Iraqi striker the nod and on he goes in.
The young Iraqi is a sensation, scores 5 goals in 20 minutes and wins the game for Joe Public. The fans are delighted; the players and coaches are delighted and the media loves the new star.
When the player comes off the pitch he 'phones his mum to tell her about his first day in Trinidad football.
"Hello mum, guess what?" he says. "I played for 20 minutes today, we were 4-0 down but I scored 5 and we won! Everybody loves me, the fans, the media, they all love me.
"Wonderful," says his mum, "But let me tell you about my day. Your father got shot in the street and robbed, your sister and I were ambushed and beaten and your brother has joined a gang of criminals, all while you were having such great time."
The young lad is very upset. "What can I say mum?".
"The least you can say is Sorry!!!" says his mum, "It's your fault we moved to Trinidad in the first place!"
He is really impressed and arranges him to come over to play for his club Joe Public in Trinidad.
Two weeks later Joe Public are 4-0 down, away to W-Connection with only 20 minutes left. Joe Public manager gives the young Iraqi striker the nod and on he goes in.
The young Iraqi is a sensation, scores 5 goals in 20 minutes and wins the game for Joe Public. The fans are delighted; the players and coaches are delighted and the media loves the new star.
When the player comes off the pitch he 'phones his mum to tell her about his first day in Trinidad football.
"Hello mum, guess what?" he says. "I played for 20 minutes today, we were 4-0 down but I scored 5 and we won! Everybody loves me, the fans, the media, they all love me.
"Wonderful," says his mum, "But let me tell you about my day. Your father got shot in the street and robbed, your sister and I were ambushed and beaten and your brother has joined a gang of criminals, all while you were having such great time."
The young lad is very upset. "What can I say mum?".
"The least you can say is Sorry!!!" says his mum, "It's your fault we moved to Trinidad in the first place!"
Friday, June 26, 2009
Joy in My World
THE BRIGHT SIDE
Sparks of joy lighten a dark world and keep hope beating eternal in man’s breast.
Yesterday, my youngest daughter received her SEA results and made the cut for her first choice school, Bishop Anstey High School. This school remains one of our more prestigious girls’ schools.
This achievement was uniquely hers and did not require any of the planned intervention that I would have implemented to secure her a solid secondary education.
Some folks criticized me for not having the faith that she could and would do it on her own.
We all think and act differently and that is what makes life so interesting.
Faith is wonderful and fantastic but in my life I learned that many times, God appreciates a helping hand and helps those who constructively plan to help themselves.
To those who may not agree with me say this, unless you have a clear “what if” plan, you may well be flying by the seat of your pants and trusting to luck.
Today I am filled with pride and joy and wish to share this with you.
I congratulate all the SEA successes. To those who may be disappointed, please remember that life does not end with SEA. If I may use the hackneyed adage, “Life is but a journey, not a destination.” There will be opportunities to come. Understanding what happened and working to correct it, can lead to future success.
Sparks of joy lighten a dark world and keep hope beating eternal in man’s breast.
Yesterday, my youngest daughter received her SEA results and made the cut for her first choice school, Bishop Anstey High School. This school remains one of our more prestigious girls’ schools.
This achievement was uniquely hers and did not require any of the planned intervention that I would have implemented to secure her a solid secondary education.
Some folks criticized me for not having the faith that she could and would do it on her own.
We all think and act differently and that is what makes life so interesting.
Faith is wonderful and fantastic but in my life I learned that many times, God appreciates a helping hand and helps those who constructively plan to help themselves.
To those who may not agree with me say this, unless you have a clear “what if” plan, you may well be flying by the seat of your pants and trusting to luck.
Today I am filled with pride and joy and wish to share this with you.
I congratulate all the SEA successes. To those who may be disappointed, please remember that life does not end with SEA. If I may use the hackneyed adage, “Life is but a journey, not a destination.” There will be opportunities to come. Understanding what happened and working to correct it, can lead to future success.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
THIS IS IT!!!
THERE IS NO BRIGHT SIDE
All this was done in one day, yesterday.
Young men murder an innocent, bright young woman WITHIN the precincts of a Police Station.
Young men discharge a firearm within meters of the Parliament which is sitting at the time. In the very Parliament, the Prime Minister informs us that he intends to use Trinidad money to fund development projects in Jamaica, Grenada and Dominica to build their economies to control crime in their countries.
This development program, he intends to use to curtail crime moving from those places to here, he muses. "No 'narco-economies' in the Caribbean," is his war cry
Over the weekend, the Prime Minister tells his Caricom partners in St. Kitts that crime is a problem for the Caribbean and he must do something.
Now we are beginning to understand what he has in mind.
In Trinidad, hospitals and health care are poor, we suffer with poor and in adequate infrastructure and crime is boss.
WHEN ARE WE GOING TO OPENLY, WITH LOUD VOICES, PROCLAIM THAT ENOUGH IS ENOUGH?
All this was done in one day, yesterday.
Young men murder an innocent, bright young woman WITHIN the precincts of a Police Station.
Young men discharge a firearm within meters of the Parliament which is sitting at the time. In the very Parliament, the Prime Minister informs us that he intends to use Trinidad money to fund development projects in Jamaica, Grenada and Dominica to build their economies to control crime in their countries.
This development program, he intends to use to curtail crime moving from those places to here, he muses. "No 'narco-economies' in the Caribbean," is his war cry
Over the weekend, the Prime Minister tells his Caricom partners in St. Kitts that crime is a problem for the Caribbean and he must do something.
Now we are beginning to understand what he has in mind.
In Trinidad, hospitals and health care are poor, we suffer with poor and in adequate infrastructure and crime is boss.
WHEN ARE WE GOING TO OPENLY, WITH LOUD VOICES, PROCLAIM THAT ENOUGH IS ENOUGH?
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Some surprising good news
The Bright Side
Only 14% of families in Trinidad are headed by single parents. Just as I was wondering why there are so many fatherless children and missing family males. Is Tobago the problem?
The Ministry of Education is ready for the Influenza A H1N1 pandemic. They announced that since May 1, all the “protocols” (the new buzz word) have been in place to combat this menace.
However, it seems that The Ministry of Sport was not ready. Eleven people on the Surinam Volley Ball Team tested virus positive soon after returning home from games in Trinidad.
One out of every five Trinidadians overstays their welcome when visiting the United States of America. That is 20% of Trinis visiting that country.
The USA embassy says that we rank 14 out of the worse 20 countries whose nationals go to the people’s place and refuse to return home before the expiration of their allowed period of stay.
Only 14% of families in Trinidad are headed by single parents. Just as I was wondering why there are so many fatherless children and missing family males. Is Tobago the problem?
The Ministry of Education is ready for the Influenza A H1N1 pandemic. They announced that since May 1, all the “protocols” (the new buzz word) have been in place to combat this menace.
However, it seems that The Ministry of Sport was not ready. Eleven people on the Surinam Volley Ball Team tested virus positive soon after returning home from games in Trinidad.
One out of every five Trinidadians overstays their welcome when visiting the United States of America. That is 20% of Trinis visiting that country.
The USA embassy says that we rank 14 out of the worse 20 countries whose nationals go to the people’s place and refuse to return home before the expiration of their allowed period of stay.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
THE MOUSETRAP (not by Agatha Christie)
A Philosophical Side
Today, I would like to thank one of my correspondents for sending me this parable:
A mouse looked through the crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife open a package. "What food might this contain?" the mouse wondered.
He was devastated to discover that it was a mousetrap.
Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed this warning: "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"
The chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head and said, "Mr. Mouse, I can tell this is a grave concern to you, but it is of no consequence to me. I cannot be bothered by it."
The mouse turned to the pig and told him, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"
The pig sympathized, but said, "I am so very sorry, Mr. Mouse, but there is nothing I can do about it but pray. Be assured you are in my prayers."
The mouse turned to the cow and said, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"
The cow said, "Wow, Mr. Mouse. I'm sorry for you, but it's no skin off my nose."
So, the mouse returned to the house, head down and dejected, to face the farmer's mousetrap - alone.
That very night, there was a a loud, ringing “CLACK:” sound was throughout the house - the sound of a mousetrap catching its prey.
The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught in the mousetrap. In the darkness, she did not see that it was a venomous snake whose tail was caught in the trap. The snake bit the farmer's wife.
The farmer rushed her to the hospital.
When she returned home she still had a fever.
Everyone knows you treat a fever with fresh chicken soup.
So the farmer took his hatchet to the farmyard for the soup's main ingredient: But his wife's sickness continued.
Friends and neighbours came to sit with her around the clock.
To feed them, the farmer butchered the pig.
But, alas, the farmer's wife did not get well... She died.
So many people came for her funeral that the farmer had to slaughter the cow to provide enough meat to feed them all at the funeral luncheon.
And the mouse looked upon it all from his crack in the wall with great sadness.
So, the next time you hear someone is facing a problem and you think it doesn't concern you, remember: When one of us is threatened, we are all at risk.
We are all involved in this journey called life.
We must keep an eye out for one another and make an extra effort to encourage and assist one another.
PLEASE ALWAYS REMEMBER THAT EACH OF US IS A VITAL THREAD IN ANOTHER PERSON'S TAPESTRY.
OUR LIVES ARE WOVEN TOGETHER FOR A REASON THOUGH THE REASON MAY NOT BE ALWAYS VERY CLEAR TO US.
Things can change!
Wake up, Trinidad & Tobago People!
Today, I would like to thank one of my correspondents for sending me this parable:
A mouse looked through the crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife open a package. "What food might this contain?" the mouse wondered.
He was devastated to discover that it was a mousetrap.
Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed this warning: "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"
The chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head and said, "Mr. Mouse, I can tell this is a grave concern to you, but it is of no consequence to me. I cannot be bothered by it."
The mouse turned to the pig and told him, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"
The pig sympathized, but said, "I am so very sorry, Mr. Mouse, but there is nothing I can do about it but pray. Be assured you are in my prayers."
The mouse turned to the cow and said, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"
The cow said, "Wow, Mr. Mouse. I'm sorry for you, but it's no skin off my nose."
So, the mouse returned to the house, head down and dejected, to face the farmer's mousetrap - alone.
That very night, there was a a loud, ringing “CLACK:” sound was throughout the house - the sound of a mousetrap catching its prey.
The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught in the mousetrap. In the darkness, she did not see that it was a venomous snake whose tail was caught in the trap. The snake bit the farmer's wife.
The farmer rushed her to the hospital.
When she returned home she still had a fever.
Everyone knows you treat a fever with fresh chicken soup.
So the farmer took his hatchet to the farmyard for the soup's main ingredient: But his wife's sickness continued.
Friends and neighbours came to sit with her around the clock.
To feed them, the farmer butchered the pig.
But, alas, the farmer's wife did not get well... She died.
So many people came for her funeral that the farmer had to slaughter the cow to provide enough meat to feed them all at the funeral luncheon.
And the mouse looked upon it all from his crack in the wall with great sadness.
So, the next time you hear someone is facing a problem and you think it doesn't concern you, remember: When one of us is threatened, we are all at risk.
We are all involved in this journey called life.
We must keep an eye out for one another and make an extra effort to encourage and assist one another.
PLEASE ALWAYS REMEMBER THAT EACH OF US IS A VITAL THREAD IN ANOTHER PERSON'S TAPESTRY.
OUR LIVES ARE WOVEN TOGETHER FOR A REASON THOUGH THE REASON MAY NOT BE ALWAYS VERY CLEAR TO US.
Things can change!
Wake up, Trinidad & Tobago People!
Friday, June 12, 2009
PUT COUNTRY FIRST
The Bright Side
Sadly, we pride ourselves as a fun loving people. Yet we envy and yearn for the achievements and accomplishments of more serious minded and industrious peoples.
Carnival, feteing to the max (pun intended) and party are high on our list of priorities. According to today’s Trinidad Guardian, already in June 2009, we have begun to discuss and plan carnival 2010.
Carnival is great. It remains rooted in my psyche. Who would not like to party?
Sadly, we pride ourselves as a fun loving people. Yet we envy and yearn for the achievements and accomplishments of more serious minded and industrious peoples.
Carnival, feteing to the max (pun intended) and party are high on our list of priorities. According to today’s Trinidad Guardian, already in June 2009, we have begun to discuss and plan carnival 2010.
Carnival is great. It remains rooted in my psyche. Who would not like to party?
Merriment and party are like opiates. They give us a false sense of well being and euphoria. However, like most opiates, they can create severe memory lapses.
We love party so much that we put PARTY before country.
This year the calypsonian Bally in his calypso “No, No Amigo”, confessed that he is “PNM ‘til ah dead.” His confessions continued as he sang that he is running into a conflict between his mouth (as a social commentator) and his balisier (his PARTY symbol). However, he prepared to forgive the long litany of woes and complaints that he voices and stick with the PARTY.
Bally and his fanatic PNMites are not alone. Inspired and driven by misplaced allegiances, the members of the other PARTIES, though not as vocal in popular music, are similarly misguided.
Until we learn to get our priorities straight, we are condemned to continue on the path of destruction on which we merrily travel, all the time partying to the max.
Think!
Carnival, fete, party and PARTY first?
THINGS CAN CHANGE
We love party so much that we put PARTY before country.
This year the calypsonian Bally in his calypso “No, No Amigo”, confessed that he is “PNM ‘til ah dead.” His confessions continued as he sang that he is running into a conflict between his mouth (as a social commentator) and his balisier (his PARTY symbol). However, he prepared to forgive the long litany of woes and complaints that he voices and stick with the PARTY.
Bally and his fanatic PNMites are not alone. Inspired and driven by misplaced allegiances, the members of the other PARTIES, though not as vocal in popular music, are similarly misguided.
Until we learn to get our priorities straight, we are condemned to continue on the path of destruction on which we merrily travel, all the time partying to the max.
Think!
Carnival, fete, party and PARTY first?
THINGS CAN CHANGE
Make a change!
PUT COUNTRY FIRST, Trinidad & Tobago People.
PARTY can come after we fix this mess.
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