A Look Up Close At Jaundice

Click on PDF image to learn all about 'Jaundice'

Brass Tacks, BWA, Crops, and MTW

Here is what Kammie Holder is writing elsewhere - Credit to Nation Newspaper 09/07/2010

Kammie Holder

Negativity, stupidity, red tape, common sense and ignorance in pure Barbados style. The aforementioned adjectives are observations of pervasive descriptives within Barbados.

Why, is it that it that the once popular Brass Tacks talk show now seems to be the embryo for negativity in Barbados. Should not moderators put aside their bull and bias, to inform and educate listeners as opinion leaders?

I heard recently that experts on water authority don’t believe that Barbados is a water scarce country. Is this the same Barbados where taps run dry? Was I dreaming when I saw a Barbados Water Authority truck pumping water into a gully to make soil soft for a motor sport during CBC TV Wednesday evening sports news? Seem to me this is classic Barbados stupidity?

People’s Court Versus Ministry Of The Environment, We Want To Know…

Minister Denis Lowe of the Ministry of Environment, Water Resources and Drainage

The government recently announced construction of a waste-to-energy plant; a leachate plant and an administration building for the Sanitation Service Authority (SSA)  at Vaucluse, St. Thomas. BU welcomes this development at a time when the Mangrove Landfill is operating at near capacity, and the Greenland Landfill will have to be converted to serve another purpose. Water and solid waste management should have been more of a priority over the years.

In the interest of seeking the transparency which has been promised by the government of Barbados, BU tables the following questions regarding the ‘upkeep’ of the SSA engineer and family listed in the bid document for the project.

1. 4 Wheel Drive Vehicle of specific make and model (includes provision for gas)
2. 2 bedroom house (of specific square footage)
3. Specific furniture requirements
4. 1 portable barbecue, area rugs, fresh linens, security systems and much more

The requirement is for the 20 year duration of the project, $100.00 per diem allowance for the engineer and assistant.  All to be approved by the engineer.

A fertile ground for corruption maybe? Tell the PEOPLE this is not true!

Points To Ponder

Hartley Henry - DLP Political Strategist

Dear Reader, very often one comes across a piece of correspondence that absolutely floors you. In cricketing terms, it’s called an unplayable delivery. You simply do not know what to do with it. You are left dazed! In such circumstances, I have opted over the years to simply pass it on; share it with others and hear what they say. See if their reaction is similar to yours.

The following is a piece of correspondence that was shared with me by a fellow writer at the Barbados Advocate who also was floored by the sincerity and forthrightness of the author, whom none of us knew and who, to this day, remains anonymous. It does not matter who the author was, what matters is that out there in Bajan country, are persons who are sitting up and taking note of the downward spiral in Barbados journalism.

Dear Reader, I shall share the contents of the correspondence, which came in the form of a Letter to the Editor, and offer no further comment…at this time.

While Nero Played The Fiddle, Rome Burns: Whither The Region, Our Future…

Submitted by Nero (real name withheld by request of the author)

Former Prime Minister Owen Arthur

Perusing the Sunday newspapers there was the usual parade of items that caught the attention of journalists, and the ministerial agenda, Hon. Richard Sealy at a camp, Hon. Esther Suckoo opening a library, Hon. Steve Blackett at Cropover, Hon. David Estwick and Delisle Worrell laughing at dinner.  Sir Ronald Sanders’ article stood out in sharp contrast, a commentary on the Owen Arthur speech in Bahamas, prompting the writer to urge immediate action by governments for the sake of our future. It reminded me that I had got my hands on that speech, and I needed to read it.

I interrupted my viewing of the National Youth Forum, where our very talented children were performing confidently, to read the Arthur speech. The import and the stark incongruity of the state of the regional economies as a result of this global crisis and the beaming confidence of our children in our leaders to do more than provide then with a ‘voice’ but to work competently to guide the economic affairs of our country to provide them with a future, could not help but to have sprung to mind.

DIMENSIONS OF THE ECONOMIC CRISIS

Excerpts of the speech given by the Hon Owen Seymour Arthur in Bahamas June 2010

Staging Grading And Metastasis In Cancer

Click image to view PDF presentation

Matters Of Concern

In recent weeks two issues have surfaced above all others which have served to vex the BU household. There is an unwritten rule in Barbados if one has to be critical of the legal community or Mrs. Ram  instinctively you breakout in cold sweat and may even shiver. Mrs. Ram is said to be a lawyer and has judiciously picked her battles with others through the years. The legal community with its several parts always seem to be able to intimidate all-comers because of the intimate knowledge of the court set-up which remain a mystery to most; others may add that our government and ancillary governance systems are controlled by members of the legal community.

In his most recent article Henry felt pushed to pat Mrs. Ram on the back when he wrote …I take my hat off to Mrs. Ram Merchandani and her team at Casa Grande. She could have thrown her hands up in despair, but rather she has gone outside of the box and established a family oriented entertainment centre that’s like a God send for thousands of persons, visitors and locals alike, each week. Why can’t others get up off their hind and do likewise?

From all reports Casa Grande which has been converted to an amusement centre continues to be a big draw card for entertainment starved Bajans. Originally constructed to be a low budget hotel located strategically 5 minutes from the airport, the owner to prevent a financial disaster has demonstrated some quick thinking to save the enterprise. A visit to the widely read TripAdvisor listed a litany of woes which visitors to Barbados experienced while staying at the Grande.  Of late on any weekend hundreds of people can be seen visiting Casa Grande to drive bumper cars, amuse themselves in the arcade and believe it or not, to bowl.

Here is the problem BU has with Henry bigging up Mrs. Ram. Has the Furniture Limited building in Bridgetown been remodeled by the astute Mrs. Ram to reflect the fact the owner is concerned with ensuring that many Barbadians, especially Black work in a decent physical environment? It begs the question what have our unions and inspectors from the Barbados Fire Service been doing over the years. BU will not touch how the Liquidation Centre continues to operate on Lower Bay Street.  Yet we have the government’s leading political strategist bigging up this woman?  Perhaps an opportune time to ask for campaign finance reform!

Woe betide anyone who crosses this woman it seems!

President Bharrat Jagdeo Cannot Be “champion of the earth” Unless He First Becomes A Champion Of Democracy, Accountability And The Rule Of Law

Submitted By Rickford Burke, President of the Caribbean Guyana Institute for Democracy (CGID)

Almost every fortnight, Guyana’s President, Bharrat Jagdeo, leaves the country to travel abroad. His excursions are financed with Guyanese tax-payer dollars. His departure is often unannounced.

What is most worrisome is that on most of these occasions the President fails to disclose the issuance of the instrument of appointment of a member of the Cabinet (usually the Prime Minister or in the absence of the Prime Minister any other Minister of the Cabinet) to perform the duties of President, in accordance with the Constitution. This dereliction of duty causes serious concern and raises the question of whether the President in fact complies with extant laws of the country, and whether or not he has been breaching the Constitution by not appointing a Minister to carry out the functions of the presidency in his absence.

Article 96 (1) of the Guyana Constitution requires that “Whenever the President is absent from Guyana or considers it desirable so to do by reason of illness or any other cause he may, by direction in writing, authorize any member of the Cabinet, being an elected member of the National Assembly, to perform such of the functions of office of President as he may specify and the person so authorized shall perform those functions until his authority is revoked by the President or until the functions are resumed by the President.”

Inspectorate Should Be Disbanded

Submitted by Kammie Holder

Click on image to read about Future Trust Clean Up Barbados initiative

On the eve of the launch of Clean Up Barbados 2010,  Barbadians saw garbage removal been undertaken by illegal dumpers under the supervision of the health inspectorate. I don’t know who is responsible for the prosecution of illegal dumpers, however I will boldly say this person should resign and save the taxpayers some money. Four illegal dumpers have being paraded in the newspapers over the last 24 months. What is insulting to the persons reporting illegal dumpers and all Barbadians.

Man hours were used to supervise the clean up.  The pay of the inspector should be docked for failing to use the authority so vested in him to deter illegal dumping. At least the treasury would have been compensated for man hours lost. The indifference shown by the inspectorate is dismissive to say the least of the efforts of NGO’s like the Future Centre Trust and other civic minded groups who clean up after these miscreants.

Rare Sight Of A Leatherback Turtle Nesting In Barbados

My name is Christian Payne. I spotted this leatherback turtle nesting along the east coast at the end of May. The sighting drew a large crowd of both locals and visitors. It is a very rare occurrence to see them nesting and even rarer to see them nesting during the day. I thought you might enjoy these pictures for your publication.