Commentary

There may be symbolic value to the Golding administration's barring of state-funding for Christmas parties by government ministries and their agencies.

There are other things at which Jamaica's finance ministry may be good. Presumably! But when it comes to crafting and implementing taxation policy, it is horrible.

It's time for the second annual Domino Awards. This year, mainly due to The Gleaner's graven-image-style worship of word count, we're doing it in two separate sections. First, we'll hand out the international awards.

Below are edited excerpts from comments posted by readers online at www.jamaica-gleaner.com reacting to yesterday's Page 3 story 'No Cuba-Jamaica rift, says Lewin'. Poor gov't handing - Mr Hardley Lewin is a man of very high morals...

Last month, when British university students protested against increased tuition fees, and some of the demonstrations turned violent, the commissioner of London's Metropolitan Police, Sir Paul Stephenson, declared ominously that "the game has changed".

I operated a sound system (disco) when I was in my late teens-very early 20s. I was attending UWI (University of the West Indies) at the time and was into music in a big way. The disco started small, playing at one of my sister's weddings. It had only one turntable initially, and it took great skill to change 45s as quickly as possible without causing the dancing to stop.

Most days, the central business district of downtown Kingston is a cacophonous hive of jostling humanity engaging in a dizzying swirl of commerce. But by sunset, haggling vendors and shoppers are gone, the reinforced shutters of its stores are pulled tight, and the area's streets are mostly deserted.

It is the week before Christmas and I am in the Turks and Caicos Islands, on the island of Grand Turk, on which is located the capital of the island chain.

Below are edited excerpts from readers comments posted online at www.jamaica-gleaner.com reacting to yesterday's lead story 'Beastly bust - J'can, US lawmen bring down international drug ring'....

We do not know as yet what is to be made of Prime Minister Bruce Golding's shunting of James Robertson, the energy minister, from the leadership of the Government's liquefied natural gas (LNG) conversion project, or why Mr Robertson's right-hand man on...

Trade unionism is a relatively recent development in Jamaica's public education dating back to the 1950s when self- rule, regulation and the introduction of the free-place system served as precursors to teacher representation.

The 'Chrismus' breeze that is now blowing across the island is similar to the cold front conditions that Jamaica experienced in December 1962.It had been a chilly month and it kept most people indoors, including our...