We now have belated confirmation—we knew it already—that, in addition to private capital, the source of which might be swanky neighbourhoods, funds for criminal enterprise are also drawn from linkages with public officials and the largesse of Government contracts. These funds are tools used to put or keep competing political …
Read More »Manage traffic, reduce crime! Fixin’ T&T wants to discuss crime plan with CoP
“With regard to violent crime and more specifically gun violence, our plan—manage traffic reduce crime—can compliment other anti-crime initiatives, as it realises the first objective by engaging the most basic yet proactive policing. “While no where in the world could police be everywhere all the time, with minimal resources we …
Read More »… So I shot him
Without warning, the shiny car cut across my vehicle and shot into the sole vacant parking spot. What the hell?! Don’t say you didn’t see me waiting for that park! I honked my horn, furious. The driver didn’t even pretend to be apologetic. He glanced casually over his shoulder in …
Read More »Dear Editor: Gary Griffith is no superhero; we all must do our part to thwart crime
“The resources were always there to curb crime, to make some effort to rein in a sector of people who have no regard for the majority. What was lacking was the will; the desire to make the country better and to do whatever it takes to achieve it. “And this …
Read More »Daly Bread: Commissioner Griffith, Chief Justice Archie and rationalising to death
A significant number of persons, including those who have deluded themselves, have written about the habit of rationalisation. Ayn Rand, the philosopher, wrote: “Rationalisation is a process of not perceiving reality, but of attempting to make reality fit one’s emotions.” It is too early to make an assessment whether Gary Griffith …
Read More »Dear Editor: Westmoorings barrier betrays spiralling security concerns across socio-economic strata
A video of a young man removing a barrier strategically placed across the road in a community somewhere in west Trinidad raised some serious concerns. Initially he was thought to be villain. It turns out that the barriers were illegally placed across the roadways. It also became apparent that the …
Read More »Dear Editor: Has T&T reverted from Police Service to Police Force? And at what price our liberty?
“When police are militarised, they are more likely to be attacked (Carriere, 2016). The militarisation of police does not reduce crime. Elite teams neither reduce crime nor enhance public safety and become used routinely in low-income communities. “There is no evidence that this practice enhances officer safety nor lowers crime …
Read More »Gilkes: Happy In-Dependence: reviewing 56 years of cynicism and self-hate
Happy birthday Iere; yuh tun 56… which means yuh mature, and with maturity comes reasoning and a clearer understanding of who you are and what you still need to do to reach where you want to go. But that’s when yuh mature, not when yuh eh sure of yuhself, confused as to …
Read More »Daly Bread: The charge of the light brigade; a look at govt’s new direction on crime
With hoopla and fanfare, a Commissioner of Police and a new Minister of National Security have been appointed within days of each other. The Commissioner is Gary Griffith, a former military captain and a Minister of National Security when the Opposition UNC was last in power. The Minister of National …
Read More »Demming: The Captain vs the Major General; will T&T benefit from Dr Rowley’s new direction?
Is it any surprise that National Security Minister Edmund Dillon has been removed? The Prime Minister has chosen to sacrifice one of the persons who brought home his political victory in preference for an opposition player. PM Dr Keith Rowley is either a masterful collaborator or the rocks he studied …
Read More »Dear Editor: Crime, corruption and cockroaches; Griffith was appointed to protect elites, not regular Trinbagonians
“The national conversation on crime—as advanced by the same elite—has been about a few devious miscreants holding the country to ransom; and once they are brought to heel, the country’s crime problem will be solved. “Unfortunately the wider public has for lack of any other voices openly countering the rhetoric, …
Read More »Satirically speaking: Super-Gary-gets-appointed-Live-Wire-gets-nauseous…
Someone somewhere at sometime once said: “That’s so crazy it just might work…” The phrase caught on. But the person who uttered it and the ill-judged venture he or she had in mind? God alone knows. Maybe there’s a clue there. Regardless, the Dr Keith Rowley-led government sought to repopularise …
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