As Trinbagonians, we have an aspiration expressed in the phrase ‘all ah we is one family’. Lord Nelson, as a Tobago son, articulated it in song: Family! /Mama tell me since a baby/Doh pass people just so when you in Tobago/ Doh play proudy, tell dem howdy/ Ah say, What’s …
Read More »Dear Editor: Why is accountability only demanded of ‘the other side’?
“[…] What kind of society are we building when the working class is always the first to feel the axe? When institutions are reshaped in silence? When accountability is demanded only of ‘the other side’? “[…] Too often, those who cry foul in opposition grow quiet once in power. Outrage …
Read More »Noble: Beware of frenemies—why Labour should be wary of Gov’t union
It is usual for all attention to be put on Tubal Uriah Butler on Labour Day. This year, however, my thoughts were on CLR James, who is arguably our outstanding contribution to political philosophy. In 1962, he wrote an insightful piece called Party Politics in the West Indies, in which …
Read More »MSJ: T&T Labour movement can breathe after Rowley’s relentless attacks
“[…] The 10 years under the Dr Keith Rowley-led PNM saw a vicious attack on the trade union movement and the working class as that government pursued its neo-liberal policies that result in the rich becoming richer, the middle-income struggle to make ends meet, and the poor not able to …
Read More »Noble: PNM, quo vadis? Anatomy of T&T’s electoral results
“There are two things that are important in politics,” said Mark Hanna, a 19th-century businessman and political kingmaker in Cleveland, Ohio. “The first is money, and I can’t remember what the second one is.” Pete W Moore, the MA Hanna associate professor of politics at Case Western Reserve University in …
Read More »Daly Bread: Bouncing divided heads—can T&T prevent itself splitting in two?
The level of divisiveness in our small island nation—about which I gave examples in my recent columns—will undoubtedly compound the difficulty of getting the country as a whole behind the serious fights to survive, which now so starkly face us. It seems to me that, despite the end of the …
Read More »Daly Bread: Are Padarath and Kamla in sync? And what to make of PNM Changemakers?
Since her return from Opposition to the office of prime minister, Kamla Persad-Bissessar (Kamla) has been putting great emphasis on her United National Congress (UNC) Government treating the battered population with empathy. On the occasion of the ceremonial opening of the new Parliament, a little over a week ago, the …
Read More »Daly Bread: Slipping self-restraint—can our gov’ts go beyond finger pointing?
Amanda Gorman, aged 27, is a poet, writer and activist. She was the first US national youth poet laureate. She frequently urges that society turn away from divisiveness. I heard Amanda Gorman speak at the widely televised US Democratic Party National Convention last year. She said this: “Empathy emancipates, making …
Read More »A bacchanal foretold: Has new Govt worsened CoP crisis?
“[…] If my contract has ended, how can I be sent on any binding vacation leave that extends beyond the life of the contract? The only way that can realistically happen is if, and only if, said contract is going to be renewed, with the person it affects being remaining …
Read More »Daly Bread: Change or exchange? Gov’t must address CJ, SEA, panyard model and economic diversification
Our changes of government frequently receive a verdict of “no change only exchange”. The current apparent dead end in the search for a gas supply to revive certain of our petrochemical industries is illustrative of the peril of governments having no appetite for fundamental reform. Added to all the unimaginative …
Read More »Dear Editor: Prime Minister should withdraw reckless comments on alleged “UNC lawyers”
“[…] As a former attorney general and current holder of the designation ‘senior counsel’ (senior advocate of the Supreme Court), Mrs Kamla Persad-Bissessar ought to know—indeed, is expected to know—that a lawyer’s previous or perceived political affiliation has no bearing whatsoever on their capacity to act ethically, independently, and professionally …
Read More »Vaneisa: Governance with empathy—Kamla and ‘Penny’ promise refreshing change
Miriam Castellano, the name by which a prolific social media commentator goes, responded to a column I had written on the distressing impact of global warfare. “Disengage! You sound like an empath. For your own mental health you should train yourself to know when a Time Out is necessary,” she …
Read More »