G20 finance ministers assembled in Moscow at the weekend amid worrying signs that the world economy is headed for yet more trouble. It's not all bad news out there, mind you...
In line with the severe economic challenges facing most countries throughout the world, in May last year, the then newly elected president of France, François Hollande, and his Cabinet took a 30 per cent cut in their salaries.
It is not an occasion for cork-popping, but for sober reflection. For there is still a tough road ahead. Nonetheless, Friday's announcement by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) negotiators that they had concluded a draft agreement with the Jamaican Government is a good sign for the island's economy.
My wife and I recently decided to keep a sweet sixteen birthday party for our daughter. This would not be a pay party, as all expenses would be borne by us. Bad idea! For the bureaucracy we encountered would have turned off even the most ardent party thrower.
It's Reggae Month and Black History Month, combination style. Unless you have superhuman stamina, you cannot possibly keep up with all the events. I'm not even trying. I've selected a few and that's it. I have a day job and I simply cannot 'bleach'. Neither in English nor Jamaican.
Last Monday night, the Government rolled out its most effective communication asset: a combination of Portia's popular appeal and Peter's business rapport. It was impressive - that is until it ended with an obviously contrived, gratuitous and highly inappropriate embrace that might have diminished the seriousness of the occasion.
Fearmongers will holler from the mountaintops that austerity measures such as those announced by the Government earlier this week will create even more violence in a society that has become saturated with grief because of the weight of crime. But this newspaper, which has repeatedly warned of the dosage of bitter medicine that must be ingested to fix the economy, is hopeful that Jamaicans will show maturity in line with more than 50 years of sovereignty.
How long does the Attorney General's Department take to look at a file concerning a claim? I have had a claim with the National Works Agency since October 2009.
The English idiom 'horses for courses' is no mere chestnut, although it might well be a chestnut mare. In fact, it might even be a horse of a different colour.
I have been a victim of crime. While I slept one night, the burglar bars on my home were cut and they entered my home and stole my money and some appliances. I felt violated but very happy to be alive. I live in a town house complex which has an electronic gate.
As we watch with dread while the Government pours the bitter medicine into a large tablespoon and commands us to say a collective 'aaah', many people begin to drift and recall times in Jamaica's history when citizens didn't have to subject themselves to the 'lamp-oil' treatment to guarantee their health and survival.
This newspaper endorses the suggestion by the Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO) that Caribbean Community (CARICOM) member states introduce a visa regime similar to the Schengen visa of some European Union members....
The most reliable weapon in the arsenal of anti-gay Christian activists such as Dr Wayne West and Shirley Richards is the argument that homosexuality must not be tolerated because gay men are disease vectors whose sex lives...
For weeks now, the average Jamaican football fan had sensed that there might be some differences between the talented Darren Mattocks and the Reggae Boyz coaching staff.The youngster was growing on the Jamaican football public...
I appreciate the rebuttal of my column 'An unexamined life is not worth living' (Gleaner, February 1, 2013) by self-proclaimed secularist Hilaire Sobers...
Few people anywhere would claim ignorance of Jamaica's prowess in global athletics. The heroics of people like Bolt, Blake, Powell and Fraser-Pryce are the stuff of lore....
RECENTLY, FORMER Assistant Commissioner of Police, Englishman Les Green made some observations about the Jamaica Constabulary Force.These included a claim that members of the force, presumably the men, are easily distracted by pretty women...
WE, TOO, would have liked that the $15.9-billion tax package approved by the Parliament on Tuesday to have have been subject to a broad review ahead of its formal debate.But we do not agree with the walkout of Parliament by Opposition members ...
WHILE PETER and Portia do their IMF (Inter-national Monetary Fund) tango, the working poor continue to hemorrhage from a feeding frenzy by vampire creditors.The two Ps (not to mention Dr D) were very concerned in 2010 about how much our poor creditors...
Published:Wednesday | February 13, 2013 | 12:00 AM
I was visiting a friend in Kingston on Sunday evening when it started raining. Instinctively, I called out for buckets and placed them out back to be filled from the rooftop...
Published:Wednesday | February 13, 2013 | 12:00 AM
The announcement of yet another debt-exchange programme has highlighted a worrying trait that characterises the 13-month-old Government - its propensity to withhold critical information from the populace.In an uncharacteristic and somewhat candid...
Published:Wednesday | February 13, 2013 | 12:00 AM
Since 1962, the Jamaican manufacturing sector has struggled through a myriad of problems. Various slogans have been used: 'Export or Die', 'Export and Live', 'Export or Else', and 'Export and Survive' being my latest contribution...
Published:Wednesday | February 13, 2013 | 12:00 AM
Monday night's unprecedented joint broadcast by Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller and Finance Minister Peter Phillips about the proposed restructuring of Jamaica's domestic debt - and other measures to reform the economy - is a welcome first step....
Six months ago, Jamaica basked in Olympic glory and celebrated its jubilee anniversary of Independence. The milestones were marked with much euphoria....
