Death and the Black Man July 04, 2008
Some scholars argue that the history of slavery should be told alongside the history of death. In fact, the death of black people during slavery was so prevalent that many young men faced the prospect of dying before they reached forty years of age. The voyage across the Atlantic was so traumatic that it was considered a good trip if seventy percent of the Africans reached their destination. On the plantation, according to Lady Nugent, there were only three topics of conversation: debt, disease and death. Full Article

The Obama War Machine June 28, 2008
It was the second day of summer and the noon-day sun was shining in its liquid brilliance. Massachusetts Avenue in Cambridge, Massachusetts, evinced all of the energy, urgency and rapturous beauty of a Saturday morning in June. Young kids were moving into the Harvard University dorms to begin summer school, street-side musicians were pouring their hearts out as tourists looked agape at the John Harvard Statue... Full Article

Church and Sexuality June 26, 2008
When I was growing up in Tacarigua, Gilbert Jessop, the priest of the St. Mary's Anglican Church, employed David, a homosexual servant, who was cook, maid, chief bottle washer and the master of his house. Rev. Jessop, the son of the famous English cricketer of the same name, was a bachelor and so David directed the daily routine of his house. Most of the young men in the district liked the arrangement because it gave us free reins to the pastorate which Rev. Jessop turned it into a mini–club house. Full Article

The Politics of Personal Grievance June 19, 2008
Keith Rowley insists he wishes to clear his name so that his children would know he is an honorable man. The only problem with such a pursuit is this: what happens after he has cleared his name? While his desire is admirable such nobility matters little in politics. Full Article

A Crusade against Crime June 13, 2008
The calls have come fast and furious. Newsday has demanded: "Minister Martin Joseph Must Go!" as has Ian Collier, president of the Chamber of Industry and Commerce who called upon the Prime Minister to assume the duties of Minister of National Security. Even my friends at I 95 fm feel that Minister Joseph ought to pack his bags and leave. Full Article

Controlling our Food Supply June 06, 2008
During the forties and the fifties, Corpus Christi was planting day. On that day, my mother and my brother planted every available piece of land around our house with corn, peas, dasheen bush, tanais and yams. These crops were supplement by breadfruits, a slave food, spinach which grew wildly around the village, mangoes, an import from India, tomatoes, a native plant from South and Central America... Full Article

Obama's Achievement June 05, 2008
Tuesday, June 3, 2008, marked a special moment in the history of the United States of America and the contemporary world. It was the day when Barack Obama became the nominee of the Democratic Party to contest the 2008 elections in November. Full Article

De Ting May 29, 2008
It was four months since I had my prostate operation and we had not approached the subject after earlier discussions. Oskie's reluctance to ask about my condition may have resulted from the demise of my first cousin, twelve years older than I, from prostate cancer one month after I had my operation. Full Article

Freedom and Creative Utility May 23, 2008
I am convinced that if our academics, intellectuals and social activists do not wade into the present political debate, the society is likely to feel betrayed by our silence. The public has a right to demand the benefit of our knowledge as it seeks to understand what is taking place in the society. Full Article


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