“[…] Arresting and imprisoning individuals removes them from society, preventing them from committing more crimes while incarcerated. But there are hundreds more to take their place, who are likely to never face arrest or imprisonment. “Research shows that while punitive measures can temporarily reduce crime, they often fail to address …
Read More »Noble: Kicksin in Parliament while gangs recruit our youth
“Foodstuffs have a shortage daily, business places burning in the city/ Before they watch these things seriously, the whole meeting is a comedy/ “Ridicule —- fatigue giving, and all of the members laughing/While they having a good time, we catching we royal behind.” Explainer, Kicksin in Parliament (1979). It was …
Read More »Dear Editor: Give FIU wider powers to help combat crime wave
“[…] What appears to have escaped the attention of many of our law-abiding citizens is the relationship between many violent crimes and the white-collar variety. “The foot soldiers and their gang leaders do not have the wherewithal to corrupt law-enforcement officials and, indeed, other key state officials and/or to import illegal drugs and illegal firearms. …
Read More »Dear Editor: Why more FULs are likelier to mean increased violence—not safety
“[…] Over the last five months, four law enforcement officers were involved in incidents with their licensed firearms. Three of these were robberies in which two of the officers lost their lives. “The fourth, also resulting in the death of an officer, stemmed from an argument. Two firearms were stolen …
Read More »Daly Bread: The cracked facades, as we head towards general elections
Last week I closed by referring to our democracy’s dysfunctional concentration on personalities and tribal loyalties. This dysfunction acts as a distraction and an excuse for our politicians having to propose policy-based resolutions to our problems. It is a dysfunction with a long history. In July 2003 I asserted as …
Read More »Demming: What criteria were used to measure Erla’s performance?
When Erla Harewood-Christopher assumed the role of acting commissioner of police in December 2022 following the vacation of her predecessor, McDonald Jacob, I was optimistic that things would change and our approach to crime would improve. Her official appointment in February 2023 as our country’s first female commissioner of police …
Read More »Daly Bread: Government extends blame game while crime rampages on
For some weeks this column had been focused on the good, the bad and the ugly of Carnival and its component parts. Last week, I returned to commentary on the government charades that are passed off as effective governance—on that occasion, dealing with the haphazard situation in respect of the …
Read More »Daly Bread: Criminals ducking the lack of political will
A New Year traditionally renews feelings of hope. Realism may dash hope so commentators feel pressured not to write gloomily during the Christmas/New Year season. My first column of last year invited a re-imagining of the possibilities of sustainable co-operation within communities. I had been departing from the subject of …
Read More »Daly Bread: Government gaps in call out on crime
My close friends are worried for the safety of commentators on violent crime. In my case, they firmly believe that I have done enough in analysing the untouched core of criminal activity. At that core, regardless of which political party is in government, is the troubling intersection of party politics, …
Read More »Early Bird: Crime concerns come nearer home after close encounter of the scary kind
“Assholes!” Bobby shouts after the two half-naked young men as they fly around and past us like a speeding bus on Monday morning. And after one last, long look at the bare disappearing backs of the boy bandits, he resumes our interrupted conversation in his normal voice. “Which is also …
Read More »Noble: Our govts fail to link improved social conditions with reduced violence
“There is no avoiding the fact that public confidence in the Police and police legitimacy is essential. We recognise that, in many cases, the lack of trust between the Police and the community constrains effective crime intervention. “We are aiming at improving police accountability, re-establishing trust and credibility between the …
Read More »Daly Bread: Who they fooling? Crime isn’t priority for PNM or UNC
A reader, who enjoys the historical perspective contained in many of these columns, asked me recently whether there is a program that I use to source those of my columns written many years ago. The answer is that as a weekly columnist writing in the information age for 21 years, …
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