Jamaica Observer

Dear Editor,

A few weeks ago I suggested that the Government should not raise taxes on us until they have given us a proper accounting for the waste and bad management of the taxes that they currently collect that has been disclosed in the most recent report from the auditor general.

Here we go again, more taxes to satisfy the IMF but not a word about accounting for the waste and telling us what steps have been taken to tighten up the systems to ensure that the waste of our money stops.

As a pensioner whose income, like so many others, has had a "haircut" and who is being asked to pay more taxes, I am extremely upset about the lack of accountability of Government, especially in this regard.

I would also like to know whether or not the Government plans to join the people of Jamaica in the sacrifices that we are being asked to make, by substantially reducing the size of the Cabinet, their perks and salaries.

Over to you, Prime Minister and Minister of Finance.

Peter Thwaites

pjsr40@gmail.com

Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller

What is being done with our taxes, Prime Minister?

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Dear Editor,

With the passing of Neville 'Teddy' McCook, much has been and will be written and voiced in recounting and praising his extraordinary achievements and legacy per se.

But largely unknown to the general public are the personality traits and special qualities that together underpin and account for the achievements of this extraordinary Jamaican.

Permit me the opportunity, as a close family friend, schoolmate (KC mid-1950s), past co-worker, and someone with decades-long involvement in Jamaica's athletics, to give some insight into his make-up, or inner self.

Teddy McCook was a man of extraordinary vision and ideas. But more than that, he had the strategy/plan complete with timeline, to turn those visions and ideas into reality. It did not hurt any that he possessed superb managerial skills.

Before he sought the JAAA's presidency in 1984, he stated plainly that he had some plans, and that he would need three terms (12 years) to put them into effect. He got the three consecutive terms and in 1996, mission accomplished, he stepped down, leaving the power, prestige, and 'perks' of the office of the president behind.

We should pause for a moment and ponder this unusual act, because it is a rare human trait to voluntarily relinquish power, especially after a successful tenure. Almost always, people cling tenaciously to power, poor performance notwithstanding.

McCook's unique ability to get lots of people to work with and for him (without monetary compensation), some for decades, sets him apart from the ordinary. There are persons from the original Gibson Relays committee of 40 years ago who still serve on the committee. Many members of the original committee served up until they departed this life.

He was a man with boundless energy and enthusiasm, even during his 10-year-long illness. He was up and about until a few weeks ago when he was suddenly unable to walk.

A stickler for discipline, he ensured that the weak and the mighty alike complied with the rules.

He believed that the pursuit of popularity had no place in the running of an organisation.

He was not afraid to make tough and unpopular decisions and was uncompromising in his principles.

McCook would hold strongly to his convictions, even when all else opposed him. He advocated that drug cheats be banned for life after the first offence. The one other IAAF council member who shared his view died some years ago, but he continued being the lone advocate.

Charity was one of the virtues of this extraordinary man and testimonials abound to prove it.

Despite his high office, his great achievements, an Order of Jamaica award, he was never haughty. Rather, he was humble and very approachable.

Materialism and the pursuit of wealth he shunned. His life was predominantly one of service. You don't have fingers enough to count the number of boards and organisations on which McCook served -- the Church and the Lay Magistrates among them. He served for the love of it.

He was a good family man and good friend to many.

He was incorruptible — full stop!

His was a life well lived — an example and inspiration to all.

May his soul rest in peace.

Farewell, Fortis forever.

Dr Patrick Robinson

Olympian

Seymour Ave

Kingston 6

pdougrobins@gmail.com

Teddy McCook

Teddy McCook was an extraordinary man

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Dear Editor,

It warms my heart to see that with all the excitement of new headquarters and other corporate businesses and events, Digicel is still sticking with Special Olympics. This is a very sensitive issue for me as I have a friend who has a special needs child, and oftentimes I wonder, what will become of him in the long run? But I am reminded that God does not make mistakes and this child could very well grow up to be a Special Olympian. I am really happy to see that there are members of our society who truly support the special needs community.

The medals that our very special athletes keep winning, and even the fact that these challenged Jamaicans continue to participate in sports internationally, mean a real tribute to the faithful support that Digicel has been giving them year after year since the company first started here.

Congrats Special Olympians. Go Digicel team!

Latoya Ferguson

latoyaferguson99@yahoo.com

Digicel and Special Olympics

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Dear Editor,

I must applaud the Jamaica Observer for that article by Nadine Wilson in your edition of Sunday, February 10, regarding Dr Anderson's introduction of the new science of using high and/or ultrasonic sounds, which have been embedded in classical music, to grow spectactular plants with exceptional yields.

An American farmer claims to have grown a pumpkin weighing over 400 pounds. Several farmers in drought stricken areas of Africa and elsewhere have used the system to enhance productivity in open farms of hundreds of acres as well as greenhouses. It's time for Jamaica to introduce this method to our farmers, even those planting tall trees on hundreds of acres. I read where experiments have been done successfully to increase sugar cane yields also.

However, I do not think that local popular music can be used as carrier waves in which to embed the high frequencies needed to open stomata. Reggae has been tried and has stunted plant growth due to its pattern of syncopated rhythms, and I believe that dancehall will fare no better.

Sitar music is the best, followed by classical music. American hard rock will kill vegetable life in short order. The research has been done. These results may appear to be fantasy to many Jamaicans, but we are not that strong on innovation and development of new ideas, anyway. The other thing to ask is why is Jamaica tolerating such frequent spells of drought which affects farmers so adversely?

It is now possible to make water from the air and movable machines are available which can produce over 2,000 gallons of water from the air per day, if there is at least 30% humidity therein.

These are, of course, very expensive. Other smaller models can be used in offices and in greenhouses where humidity will ensure a steady supply of water from air.

The professor is to be commended for this initiative, and as I understand it, she actually had extensive conversations with the scientist (Dr Carlson) who, before his death, developed the system and carried it further than anyone else. Dan was nominated for a Nobel Prize three times, and invited to address the Japanese Parliament, and many other world parliaments, and the Indonesian minister of agriculture vowed from as far back as 2010 that his country's agriculture would be based on this system.

Thank you Observer, you have justified the people's confidence in being a forum for the exposure of worthy new ideas.

Cathy Brown

cathy291181@yahoo.com

Using music to grow plants works

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Dear Editor,

I have been living and working in the downtown Kingston area for most of my life. A lot of people say negative things about downtown, like it is not safe, or people will rob you if you go there. People act as if this doesn't happen anywhere else in Jamaica.

I am glad that Digicel has come downtown, because I think that they will help to build and bring up our community. I started seeing a lot of 'uptown' people walking the streets, going to market, and things like that. But what people don't realise is that people are starting to feel more comfortable downtown because a big 'foreign' company like Digicel has moved there. In their new store you can even use their computer to go on Facebook while you wait, and everybody is very polite and call you by your name, not just by a number.

Last year their Foundation even held a night race, and a lot of the people who came were so-called 'uptown' people. I am really glad that this is happening. This will help to break down some of the class barriers that still exist in Jamaica. Our motto is "Out of Many One People." It is time that we start living that way.

C Malcolm

chanesem2@gmail.com

Downtown back in business

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Dear Editor,

I was appalled at seeing the headlines "Gays wreak havoc" in South East St Andrew, and reports also that a person was killed, and properties were damaged by fire by the same persons. The text mentions that some of the gays are homeless people, some practise prostitution, and engage in other criminal activities. Some others are under the age of sexual consent.

The first action, I suggest, is to contact the LGBT community and obtain an explanation for this conduct. If an answer is given, or explanations, or commitments to cease and desist, we can overlook the gay actions as exuberance as long as laws are not broken.

If they have broken laws, they should face legal action just like other citizens. With the assurances having been given by Government that all persons legally living in Jamaica have equal rights, what are the reasons for living out of the norm?

Should confinement be necessary, they can only be confined in a situation where we can assimilate them, or they take what we have, and we make some arrangements for their safety while incarcerated.

Surely we can find an answer to alleviating homeless persons' difficulties. There should be churches and other organisations that provide soup kitchens for those in need of assistance, where food, and medicine can be made available. There is one in Ocho Rios set up by the Methodists with help from the Rotary Club of Ocho Rios, a structure reasonably fortified right on Main Street. Some help centres can be set up right here in Kingston, and by similar organisations, on vacant lots allowed by Church and Government.

This kind of violence should be brought to an end, for it endangers human rights, causes crime, and simply brings confusion to their communities. I have no problem with the police exercising their authority when required, assuming the above pre-conditions are met.

Ramesh Sujanani

rsujanani78@gmail.com

Gays and crime in Jamaica

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Dear Editor,

Whenever I hear our politicians use the phrase 'the Jamaican people', my heart cringes, as the terminology is bereft of identity and innate possibility.

Over the past four decades, the Jamaican people have been physically and pschologically abused, tricked, exploited, grossed out, 'Nicodemusised' with new taxes and raped by our elected officials.

* They raped the bauxite levy

* They raped and destroyed the entrepreneurial spirit and indigenous financial sector

* They permitted FINSAC to become a crime against humanity and tricked the people with their government-appointed commissioners

* They raped and killed Air Jamaica

* They raped NHT and realising that she has not yet yielded, is now attacking her again and again

* They raped and continue to abuse the PAYE worker

* They raped and continue to rape pensioners and holders of government bonds

* They have raped and destroyed the majority of the middle class in order to create a 'we love the poor' society.

Our politicians are euthanasiatic and parasitic. Just listen to the recent call for us to tighten our belts ... given without a hint of their own participation. They suffer from delusions of grandeur, and above all else, a new breed of neurotic locust, whose actions are described by the prophet Joel (1:4):

'What the cutting locust left,

the swarming locust has eaten.

What the swarming locust left,

the hopping locust has eaten.

What the hopping locust left,

the destroying locust has eated.'

Where is the justice that the Jamaican people seek when the swarming locust have not been held to account?

Where is the voice of civil society and persons of faith who choose,

"to loose the bonds of injustice,

to undo the thongs of the yoke,

to let the oppressed go free,

and to break every yoke?" (Isa 58:6).

We have now witnessed that the claims by our politicians, whether as government or in opposition, to be able to satisy citizen's need, aspirations and expectations, are delusional and act as the foundation for mental slavery.

May the minority of Jamaicans to whom the season of lent has great spiritual significance, respond to the mission of their baptismal covenant to be a light in the economic darkness and to stand up for justice in a nation where the middle class has become a bruised reed and the dimly-lit wick of the poor is being diminished each day as the Jamaican people become denaturalised.

Dudley C McLean

Mandeville, Manchester

Politicians have abused the Jamaican people

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Dear Editor,

Has Mandeville, once the Mecca in terms of Jamaican towns, gone to the dogs?

I am not asking the question simply because our car was broken into the night we spent there recently, or the fact that when we were going for a morning walk next day, we were warned by a nice cop on patrol that we should not venture too much into New Green because there have been a number of rapes there.

I am only asking the question as our hosts advised us that a woman was held up nearby recently and her gold teeth stolen from her mouth! Seriously!

And all this happened before the latest tax measures have started to bite!

Joan Williams

gratestj@gmail.com

Crime in Mandeville

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Dear Editor,

As an aura of success floods the thoughts of Jamaicans, we may become blind to the uncertainty which still pervades due to the upsurge in criminality.

We all must bask in the hooray of the new staff-level agreement with the IMF, but should not be oblivious of the raft of issues that compose the reality of my fellow countrymen.

Merriment over the IMF deal seems to enhance our lopsided view of critical national issues such as crime. Without a shadow of doubt, the new $16-billion tax package will increase unemployment, thus making criminality the only rational option for some people.

I believe that there was little planning for these new taxes due to the unconstitutionality of some and the Nicodemus nature via which they were introduced.

This Administration has deceived the working class of this country and has the audacity to tag themselves as the 'Poor People's Party'.

I offer my utter disdain and repugnance for these new taxes and hope our leaders will start thinking before they act.

Gavin Dixon

gvndxn92@gmail.com

New taxes will increase crime

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Dear Editor,

I'm really unhappy about the Government taking money from the National Housing Trust. I hope that Andrew Holness will follow through on his comment that he thinks it is illegal. There are so many needs, and this money could be used to help those who contribute but who don't qualify for a loan.

Audley Shaw also made a useful point, adding all the extra taxes from last year's budget, the new taxes announced last week, and the $11 billion per year from the NHT. It amounted to over $50 billion a year in additional taxes.

But I wonder what the JLP would have done instead, since they were also in favour of an IMF deal.

The JDX2 is to be welcomed, even though I'm sorry for pensioners who have been caught in this move.

Overall, the package is an extension/intensification of that imposed before the 2010 IMF deal, and just as deflationary. I can't see where there are any new growth prospects, even though the conservative approach sees that as the only way out of the debt.

We don't need the IMF, we don't need any more loans. We need to make the social, political, and economic adjustments that are long overdue, using the revolving investor/speculator cash to put idle resources, especially our people, to work.

Paul Ward

Kingston 7

We don't need any more loans

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Dear Editor,

It is most heart-warming during this Black History Month to see so many people happy at the ascendancy of a black man to the presidency of the United States of America for the second time around.

However, we should all reflect on the significant role played by Martin Luther King Jr, the civil rights activist who advocated and promoted human rights causes with peaceful resistance which enabled people of African descent to achieve civil and political rights.

This gentle giant surely contributed meaningfully to the upliftment of humanity, while he protested against electoral irregularities, segregation, poor housing conditions, and education for the black population during the social revolution in the USA in the early 1960s.

As we reminisce on the extraordinary role played by Dr King, people of African descent, particularly African-Americans, must be delighted that they can participate in political, economic, social, and cultural aspects of society.

Valentine Pearson

valenempearson@yahoo.com

Remembering Dr Martin Luther King Jr

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Dear Editor,

It is with great regret that I note that the Sunday Observer no longer carries in The Agenda section the opinions of Mr James Moss-Solomon. I have felt this absence most sharply over the last few weeks.

I quote your columnist Petchary who on January 28 wrote regarding Mr Moss-Solomon's articles, "I always read them because they were unbiased..."

I found his articles to be of a positive nature, always celebrating the best of the Jamaican spirit and exhorting us to embrace productivity and growth, while abjuring political divisiveness, thus breaking the cycle of ineffective actions and policies.

His tongue-in-cheek observations on our penchant for frivolity had a light but poignant touch, whilst his vast experience as a strategic planner at the corporate level enabled him to leave us with a wonderful "to-do list", as a guide for current and future action.

I call on the powers that be to try and encourage Mr Moss-Solomon to return to your pages, so that the Jamaican people may continue to have the benefit of his wisdom and experience.

Raymond Mair

14 Broadway Close

Kingston 8

raymondmair@cwjamaica.com

Missing Jimmy Moss-Solomon's columns

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Dear Editor,

Valentine's Day just passed and it was then that I realised that the country is really broke and needs to be fixed.

My son, who is six years old, decided to send me a greeting card just to show some love. Well, I really wish I could send you a photo of the envelope that the card came in. The envelope had been opened! Yes, Editor. The envelope had been opened.

Across the entire left end of it was tape with the words 'Jamaica Customs Enforcement'.

It also bore the standard of the Customs department with their irrelevant motto of 'Country above self'. But what is country without a few 'selves'? Alas, I did not know Jamaica had moved to prison standards where simple mail must be opened and inspected before it can be mailed.

I'm not sure what my six-year-old son could be smuggling. The good doctor must be looking for a new tax. Do they suspect that my son is sending money out of the country to me, which is the reason the country is broke? I'd like to know exactly how they determined that this envelope should be opened.

Did sniffer dogs bark at the envelope? If it is to be opened to prevent smuggling, then shouldn't every envelope be opened just to make sure that none escape?

Mr Editor, I feel like Jamaica is a prison and we just don't know. There are a few innocuous signs which infer as much. You pretty much can't leave Jamaica without permission; every baccra massa wants a visa from us these days. All the houses have big bars to keep us securely locked inside, and last but not least, your mail gets read by the warden before it is mailed.

I reconcile myself by saying this poor Customs officer must have needed some love so he read my card. Let me hope that I never need to mail a picture of me dancing in oil, mud and paint in just my undies.

One love, Jamaica Customs; it's Valentine's, after all.

Robert Howell

10 Ottawa Avenue

Kingston 7

roberthowelljm@yahoo.com

Why open my mail?

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Dear Editor,

While watching a programme on one of our local television stations recently, I heard the principal of the College of Agriculture, Science and Education (CASE) saying that they have the technology to produce breadfruit flour, and that they are ready to get involved to spearhead the technology into reality.

This certainly should be of great benefit to our country if thought is given to this for national development. Considering that our farmers have not realised sufficient income from this fruit, this would certainly augur well for them and their livelihood for the future.

Jamaica could enter into an agreement with the Jamaica Flour Mills to produce such a product and the county could save and earn foreign exchange from this venture.

As the country is presently in serious economic woes, we need to channel all efforts to be as creative as possible to earn foreign exchange and create export market opportunities for any product we grow or produce.

This medium could give farmers some sense of purpose to grow the fruit for a living and create employment. We would also be able to feed our people some more and help to alleviate some of the poverty that we presently face.

Think about it, and let's give this a try.

Patrick 'Capo' Johnson

patjohnson34@yahoo.com

Engage CASE on breadfruit flour idea

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Dear Editor,

There are two reasons why our current economic situation has been dismal and will always be dismal, whether or not we get an IMF deal or find an abundance of rare metals in our red mud.

The first one is that we do not have a culture that lends itself to prosperity because our people and leaders suffer from the malady of instant gratification. Secondly, our current Westminster model of government is an elective dictatorship where men and women of corrupt disposition can pursue their own narrow partisan and personal ends, without detection and sanction.

It is systems that keep mankind in check and demand that we moderate our behaviour or be punished. It is what determines why Jamaicans abroad submit to law and order and adjust their behaviour accordingly. They wait in line in the banks and at the bus stops, and when a bus arrives they enter it in an orderly fashion. Systems do matter.

Undoubtedly, we have had good leaders in our country, but the system does not reward honest men and women. The more corrupt you are is the more you are able to advance. All you need is the ability to play the system. Between 1962 and 2013, I am aware of only one politician who went to jail for corruption.

I only know of two who resigned and stayed resigned because they fell out of favour with the public. Between 1960 and 2012, a total of 153 elected officials in the United States had to resign from their elected position. Many of these served jail time and/or paid fines. The standard of expected behaviour in the USA is of such that elected officials have had to resign for drinking and driving.

Is it that American politicians are more corrupt than Jamaican politicians, or is it that the American system is designed to protect the people's interest, by exposing corruption? The truth is that we have a bad culture and a bad system. As a people we love corruption and abhor any semblance of law and order once they threaten to derail the gravy train. We do not realise that at some point we all have to pay for every cent that is wasted. Therefore, why are we so shocked about a $16-billion tax package?

Our future cannot depend on the discretion of a few good men and women. Systems may not be perfect, but the right system exposes and punishes corruption. Our problems are not rooted in economics, they are systemic and cultural.

Laval Wilkinson

Toronto, Canada

System does not reward honest people

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Dear Editor,

For the past few years now, my Februaries have become the most boring month of the year. Everywhere I turn, I see silly "celebrations" of my "blackness". Why on this Earth do we black people continue to reinforce an inferiority complex through the guise of these ridiculous "black pride celebrations" remain a mystery.

I am sick and tired of watching programmes like Alex Haley's Roots on local television. The all too worn out musical tributes to our black artists are getting on my nerves! The constant reminders of our slave ancestors being whipped like farmers' mules have long lost whatever effect they were supposed to have on people like me.

I even saw one local media house praising black inventors, who though black, made all of their accomplishments in the white man's societies. I am tired of lies like these that attempt to give the black man credit for using the cultures of others to advance scientifically.

As far as I can see, Black History Month isn't a celebration of the greatness of the black man at all. It's more a celebration of his dependency - and we have been doing that in the most boring of ways.

Why is it that we are filling up our heads with images our ancestors being worked to death - instead of us seeing images of the "great" civilisations that were supposedly built by us? Or is it that in reality, all we have in our history is a people always serving? Black History Month has caused me to seriously doubt some of these "greatness" claims indeed!

Maybe it's because I am more a person of science and proven facts than anything else why I am so fed up with these senseless black celebrations every February.

I see the Americans sending a rover to Mars and ask - where is the black man? I see the Europeans building their giant particle collider and seeking out the mysteries of the universe and ask - where is the black man? I see China and South Korea rising from the ashes of war and when I look at Africa and the black Caribbean I cannot help but ask - where is the black man?

It's a good thing that I have the BBC and some access to the Internet for an alternative. Otherwise, the absence of anything real to celebrate and the apparent fakeness of the claims advanced by these Black History Month celebrations would have driven me to the nuthouse a long time ago.

Michael A Dingwall

michael_a_dingwall@hotmail.com

Black History Month is boring

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Dear Editor,

How many persons are aware that there is 'Safer Sex Week'? Many were caught up in various activities as they celebrated Valentine's Day, but I believe that greater emphasis should be placed on recognising 'Safer Sex Week'. The week is geared towards individuals examining their sex lives with a direct focus on practising safe sex.

The theme for this year's 'Safer Sex Week' was dubbed "Don't guess ... take your test." This is an intriguing theme, since there continues to be a large number of persons, especially young people, who are being infected by HIV/AIDS, and most are unaware since they are not doing testing to keep abreast of their sexual health.

The National HIV/AIDS Programme in the Ministry of Health's most recent report shows that one of the key at-risk populations for HIV/AIDS is youth and moreso young women. "Females account for the larger share of cases in the 10-29 and the 15-19 age groups, four times as many young women have been reported having higher incidents of HIV infection than young men." What is this saying to us as a nation? It is without a doubt showing that emphasis should be on preventing this pandemic from worsening in this population.

The focal point should be on public awareness of this issue and how it can be alleviated. National HIV/AIDS Programme surveys have revealed that the most common responses that came from young people, especially young women, is that they do not believe they are at risk for HIV/AIDS ( low risk perception).

Sexual Reproductive Health should be of utmost importance to all young people, especially young women and girls. Being in control of one's sexual health means taking charge of your own sexual practices and ideologies. However, in all of this, one must be cognisant of the reality that surrounds having unprotected sex which may lead up to unwanted pregnancies and STIs.

Having said all of this, there needs to be more assertiveness amongst youth when it comes to practising safe sex. 'Safer Sex Week' is an opportunity for individuals to reflect on how they can practise safer sex and concentrate on educating their peers of the importance of doing so. The theme for the week served as a reminder that we should become responsible for our sexual health by doing all the necessary testing to stay in the know as an indicator of what one's HIV status is.

Jason Madden

SRHR youth advocate

What 'Safer Sex Week' should mean to Jamaicans

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Dear Editor,

A few evenings ago, as many Jamaicans watched the nightly news, they saw a woman proudly announced that she "used to Sista P hungry" and that she "wi work wid Sista P hungry..." What have we become? What is this that we've been reduced to?

A few days ago, Floyd Green, President of the G2K tweeted: "Unfortunately we have allowed our standards for our leaders to fall so low, that some people celebrate just the fact that we were spoken to." It's a reality that has bothered me for some time now. We've become so familiar with the disrespect, bad political representation, corruption, and insensitivity from our politicians that when we actually have the opportunity to free ourselves from that kind of treatment, we choose to remain mentally imprisoned.

We've become so used to such low standards that we don't even bother to ask or look for better. We've learned to be happy with scraps from the table, even though we've worked and fought hard for the banquet table meal.

Jamaica is such a paradox. We are blessed with such wealth of beautiful natural resources, yet settle for so little. We don't even feel a nudge of passion to speak out as we sit by and watch our government ministers enjoy Carnival in a country with which we have a trade deficit, while the prime minister and minister of finance put on a mask of unity before hitting us with a $16-billion tax package.

Jamaica is such a paradox. We are blessed with such wealth of beautiful natural resources, yet settle for so little. We don't even feel a nudge of passion to speak out as we sit by and watch our government ministers enjoy Carnival in a country with which we have a trade deficit, while the prime minister and minister of finance put on a mask of unity before hitting us with a $16-billion tax package.

Just another day in paradise, I suppose. We just laugh it off ... heck some of us probably even joined in the applause when the minister of finance announced new customs fees, after which he and other government ministers rode off in their new Prados and Audis that were purchased prior to these new fees taking effect.

We shrug as we sit staring at a photo of a councillor sitting in a parish council meeting with a game of Solitaire open on the laptop in front of him as he tapped away on his Blackberry. Nothing bothers us anymore. And that's scary. I know that we are a resilient people, but our history has taught us that we are not a people who sit and accept injustice, corruption, and disrespect.

Paul Bogle did not march from Stony Gut to Spanish Town for us to become silent minions labelled "enemies of the state" if we speak out against that which is unfair and unjust. Or maybe he did. The story is told of a man who sat on the front porch with his dog lying on the floor next to him. A neighbour passing by decided to stop and chat for a while with the man. But every so often the conversation would be punctuated by the dog's whimpers. Finally the neighbour asked, "Hey, what's up with your dog?""Oh he's just sitting on a rusty nail", the man replied. "So why doesn't he get up?" The man simply said, "I guess it doesn't hurt bad enough yet."

Has it started hurting bad enough yet, Jamaica? Jamaica deserves better.

Durie Dee

mizd2u@yahoo.com

What have we become?

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Dear Editor,

Years ago when Emancipation Park was conceptualised, I was happy with the idea. Nowadays, I just wish that the park could be lifted and placed elsewhere.

I was advised by park management that events held at the park had to end by 10:00 pm in order for the maintenance staff to clean up and close by 11:00pm.

So while those of us who live in close proximity to the park suffer during some events, at least we look forward to the 10:00 pm cut-off time. For the most part, this is what obtains, except during the month of February. Since the month began, events to mark Reggae Month have been taking place on Wednesday nights.

On February 6, there was the Reggae Month event. The very next night was the tribute to Bob Marley. I am surprised that this event was allowed to take place there. The crowd that descended on the park spilled over onto the streets and was reminiscent of the Digicel Rising Stars event that was scheduled to take place there some years ago.

What short memories we have. There is a reason why the park closes at 6:00 pm on public holidays. Every owner of a Digicel phone was advised of the tribute, so the magnitude of the crowd should not have been a surprise. Was it safe? I feel that Digicel could have afforded a venue that could have comfortably accommodated that throng. The crowd is not the only problem. Organisers of these events seem to be of the view that no one will hear the performers unless they try to make everyone deaf.

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The noise level is intolerably high and this prevents us from enjoying the comforts of our homes. Forget about sleeping. So far, none of these events have ended by 10:00 pm. In fact they have continued until way past closing time. Something is wrong. When dignitaries/officials sit in the audience after 10:00 pm, thereby condoning the flouting of the rules and regulations, then something is wrong.

When access can be given to the park to organisers of the Sigma Run so that they can set up and conduct 'testing, testing, 1,2,3' at 3:00 am, something is really wrong. There was even a time when music was piped as soon as the park opened, as the joggers had requested it. Never mind that they would have left their families snug in bed, resting comfortably. I would like to think that the rules and regulations are for everyone, with no exceptions.

Any attendee at any event can leave at any time. We can't. We live here. The event this past Wednesday, Ash Wednesday, started at a tolerable level, but the volume increased as the night progressed. It did not end at 10:00 pm, nor even11:00. Peace and quiet came at 12:50 am! To compound matters, Heineken Startime was held at the Liguanea Club on Saturday night, February 16, ending at 3:00 am. The Sigma cacophony commenced at 6:00 am. There must be some way we can all co-exist without trampling on the rights of each other.

Sleepless

New Kingston

Nights of hell in New Kingston

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Amidst Jamaica's economic crisis is an overt case of leadership turmoil that most of us seem to overlook. Prime Minister and Mr Minister of Finance, despite our stagnant wages, we sceptically accept your additional draconian tax package for the reason that it's a necessary tool to address our bottomless debt position and to move forward as a country.

Consequently, I believe that it would be even-handed for the government to concur with the citizens on a supplementary leadership package with minimum conditions. Most Jamaicans have bequeathed their fair share of taxes and additional sacrifices over the years. So much so that at this point in time our perceptions of an additional tax package and a second Jamaica Debt Exchange (JDX2) is nothing short of cruel and

unusual punishment.

While the only way to completely reverse such views would be to undo the former and latter steps, accepting a supplementary leadership package from the people would create a bit of optimism among the populace. Alexis de Tocqueville reminds us that "a partisan only sees partial truth." Therefore, in our first stipulation, we are asking for the elimination of divisive and ideological politics at this most confusing and demanding period in our history.

We would like our leaders to formulate comprehensive bipartisan economic policies. Some of us citizens are not ideologues; rather, we are rationalists, whose lenses offer us the ability to see that both parties have good ideas to possibly resolve our current economic problems. Therefore, we ask the PM and the opposition leader to eschew divisive dogmatic politics and collaborate instead. This is not the time to massage the egos of your fellow partisans. This is the time to get Jamaica back on track to economic recovery, which means dropping the egos, cooperating to formulate and implement the most rational bipartisan economic policies, and creating a system of accountability to the people you serve.

The second stipulation of the leadership package is that legislation be passed to create an independent Office of Government Accountability: an autonomous quasi-public agency that completely lacks political influence and only serves to shed much needed light on political endeavours, especially as it relates to the public budget and spending of tax revenues. This agency should provide biannual reports of government expenditures and reports should be made accessible to the public.

The ultimate answers to the state's tribulations are not sitting on the desk of one party. I believe both the PNP and the JLP have great ideas, but without collaboration and transformational leadership, the purpose of the tax package in itself and the JDX2 are already defeated. Amidst this economic crisis we agree to these necessary sacrifices for the betterment of our country; all we ask in return is that leaders from both sides of the spectrum work together and show us some form of accountability.

Shane McFarlane

shane_jas1@hotmail.com

Politicians need to work together

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