THERE IS a big debate on whether the local government election should be called now. As a government member of parliament, I will try not to be tribal in my discourse.Recent memory will recall members of the Opposition declaring that no local...
The struggling rump of the Jamaican Left, their populist supporters, as well as the political opportunists of whatever stripe, are likely to have found heroes in Alexis Tsipras, Greece's prime minister of six months. Last weekend, Mr Tsipras rejected...
Imagine that you are a member of a group led by an extraordinarily wise and powerful leader. You and some fellow group members go to the leader's house for a meeting and, while there, you find yourself in a situation where all...
I was happy and hopeful to see the headline in The Gleaner of Friday June 26, 2016 which read, 'Invest in cameras to expose traffic offenders - Chuck'. In the piece, Opposition Member of Parliament Delroy Chuck, called for, "Changes to the Evidence...
Whatever view we may take of Jamaica's effort to piggyback on an expanding Panama Canal we cannot escape the conclusion that Anthony Hylton, the minister responsible for our efforts in this regard, has failed in his responsibilities.We have been...
A little over three decades ago, with the politics of the Left having asserted itself over the logic of economics, the Manley Government was advised that there was an alternative to the International Monetary Fund (IMF); or, an alternative to any...
Earlier this month, the Confucius Institute at the University of the West Indies, Mona, hosted its first conference. The theme was 'Dragons in the Archipelago - the Chinese-Caribbean Experience'. This 'experience' wasn't just about the Chinese. It...
Jamaica usually stands on the right side of history on socially progressive issues, sometimes as a leader of them. In the 1970s, we championed, and enforced, such initiatives as equal pay for women and paid maternity leave. It is 40 years, too,...
Leadership on the Jamaican economy is vital at this time. The Jamaican economy is in dire straits. The economy is not growing at the rate it needs to, the employment rate is way too high, and debt still consumes too much of our national revenue. The...
I'm watching this public-sector salary negotiations, not with popcorn, but with a wonderful Greek salad. Our Government fears firing even one civil servant, because politicians need people to like them. Plus, elections loom. But Government can't...
The findings from the 2014 Political Culture of Democracy in Jamaica and in the Americas Survey should be of concern to Jamaicans in light of its implications for our democracy. The study posits that "stable democracies need citizens who grant their...
Two years ago, I was watching Champs at home. I had grown frustrated with the mystery of the disappearing and reappearing grandstand tickets and decided watch from another venue in future. One of the most exciting attractions was a male athlete who...
Would it be all right if I called Geert Wilders a piece of human waste? No? Damn. Well, then, can I call him a deeply cynical politician who is willing to get people killed to advance his political career? Okay, thanks.Geert Wilders is a deeply...
President Barack Obama used the N-word during an interview released Monday to make a point that there's still plenty of room for America to combat racism.The CNN story continued, "Racism, we are not cured of it. And it's not just a matter of it not...
Recent reform of Jamaica's strata laws is finally bearing fruit, as evidenced by reports of the impending forced sale of units in a Negril complex to recover maintenance arrears.Strata schemes have become very popular in Jamaica, particularly in...
One way of looking at history is to see it as a succession of competing moral systems. Such competition takes place both between and within religious systems. Even those who advocate secularism have an ethical world view they wish the rest of...
When the new school year begins in September, Padmore Primary School, in the Red Hills area of St Andrew, will accommodate approximately 200 students. Its principal, Keisha Hayles, would like to keep the grade-six class to around 25, but expects...
Published:Thursday | June 25, 2015 | 12:00 AMDavid Hoile
It has taken Africa just over a decade to conclude that the International Criminal Court (ICC), established in 2002 by the Rome Statute, is simply unfit for the purpose. That certainly is the conclusion of the South African government following the...
The national senior track and field trials got under way yesterday, and I'm keenly anticipating some of the match-ups. The sprint events are overflowing with entrants, while the number of those registered gets less as the distances gets longer. (...
The killing of nine persons at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) church in Charleston, South Carolina, including the 47-year-old pastor and senator, is indicative that the American society has a gun culture problem, especially when we...
It appears a great many of us missed critical biology lessons or opted to do so at Sunday school. I have concluded that can be the only explanation for our belief that raising the age of consent from 16 to 18 years, as it currently exists in Section...
Anthony Hylton's problem is that he is trying too hard for that singular achievement - something that would be a defining symbol or legacy that just might propel him to the leadership of his party.The danger here is a tendency to trade in mirages...
If you trawl the Internet, you'll be hard-pressed to find stories about black or Latino policemen assaulting or killing white men, boys or women in the USA. Such incidents almost never happen. But simply recount off the top off your head, the...
Long-distance runners know they have to pace themselves. They know about the starting push, the settling into the steady input, the not being tempted by hotheads. Jamaica is like a long-distance runner. I admire Dr Peter Phillips for his dogged...
Rationale would hardly oppose the oversight of any organisation invested with significant powers, including initiating action that can lead to the curtailment of the freedom of a class of individuals. For, any such body must not only conduct itself...
