At the end of this column I will adopt the words of a recent editorial in the Trinidad Express newspaper on violent crime even as the murderers, whom we have undoubtedly empowered, laugh in our faces. Meanwhile, I have been dwelling on the richness of our culture and its potential …
Read More »Daly Bread: Music in Districts’ glorious potential, lengthening Carnival calendar and why Pan Trinbago is not missed
“Stay in tong!” I shouted those words on Sunday last, in appreciation of the scintillating performance of Coffee Street, San Fernando band, Skiffle, in Adam Smith Square, Woodbrook, Port of Spain, at the second event put on by the Music in the Districts programme. This event confirmed that other pan …
Read More »Daly Bread: The true meaning and effect of “culture;” Eric Williams’ legacy squandered
What a weekend last week: Carib Dance made a brilliant and authentic statement of the legacy of Beryl Mc Burnie in celebration of seventy years of the Little Carib Theatre and Starlift steel orchestra got the memo that changeovers from band to band must not stall. Ten minutes between bands …
Read More »Daly Bread: Runaway violent crime is the predictable outcome of political indifference
Anyone with a copy of The Daly Commentaries or a good memory will know that these columns have repeatedly condemned the dreadful expression “collateral damage”. On Monday last, that phrase was disparaged in an editorial in this newspaper entitled “Crossing the 200-murder mark.” Unfortunately, it is “more than a few …
Read More »Daly Bread: Assault with a deadly weapon; how privilege and connections impede justice
Within the last fortnight, the deadly weapons of privilege or perceptions of privilege in our socially fractured islands have again been assaulting us, albeit in very different contexts. The High Court gave a judgement in which the State, not for the first time, was ordered to pay damages to two …
Read More »Daly Bread: Fantasia in G; suggestions for Tobago Jazz Festival and the T&T tourism product
Later today at the Tobago Jazz Experience 2018, Fantasia is scheduled to be a headline act. I do not know in what keys Fantasia sings her rhythm and blues, but her appearance in Tobago today is a case of Fantasia in G, because the engagement of such artistes is part …
Read More »Daly Bread: Life in the never-ending movie; a bizarre political week in T&T
Scenes in the public life in Trinidad and Tobago have become so unreal that I have been listening to Brother Valentino’s “Life is a stage” to re-digest his opinion that in Trinidad and Tobago we live in a never-ending movie in which we all have a role to play. Ministers …
Read More »Daly Bread: Replenishing the reservoir of hope; welcome, President Weekes
Her Excellency Paula-Mae Weekes became the sixth President of the Republic on Monday last. She gave an inaugural speech that was universally well received. Her central theme was the question of what are we to do when “in the state of the State, we might see every reason to despair.” …
Read More »Daly Bread: Sabbatical or tactical? A look at Archie’s controversial leave and section 137
In a column published on 17 December 2017, I foretold that there was a political sub-plot by means of which Chief Justice Archie would be given a soft landing in March 2018. At that time, I also referred to talk that the Chief Justice would be going on extended leave …
Read More »Daly: Archie’s secret Judge supporters should declare themselves in interest of fair appeal
“In the event of an appeal, I believe that it is incumbent on any member of the Court of Appeal who is assigned to the appeal to state, either in open Court or in Chambers in the presence of all counsel, that he or she is not one of those …
Read More »Daly Bread: Ignoring what we have, a look at T&T’s positive reviews
Trinidad has twice received rave reviews from the New York Times (NYT) regarding our food and culture. These reviews were published in the travel section of that newspaper. These are travel advisories of a very different kind from the negative ones we receive regarding crime and terrorism. The more recent …
Read More »Daly: Justice must be open to scrutiny; Law Association should continue Archie probe
For many months, I have been commenting on the likely damage to the Judiciary first as a result of the fiasco of the appointment and purported resignation of Marcia Ayers-Caesar as a High Court Judge and, shortly after that, separate allegations about the conduct of the Chief Justice. Somewhat belatedly …
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