Stories about Jamaica from February, 2008
Barbados, Jamaica: Political Accountability
Living in Barbados thinks that the arrest of a former Jamaican Minister implicated in the Cuban lightbulb scandal “should shed light on what kind of government Bruce Golding is leading and what kind of democratic country Jamaica really is.”
Jamaica: Service Culture?
“Jamaica is just not ready to do business the way business is done on an international level. Our people still believe that to give service is to be servile”: Jamaican Lifestyle explains.
Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago: Panorama
“It is music that must be heard live to be appreciated, as much of it is literally felt in the body…”: Jamaican Francis Wade blogs about Panorama, Trinidad and Tobago's premier steel band competition.
Trinidad & Tobago, Haiti, Jamaica: RIP Manno & Gibbs
Caribbean Beat Blog mourns the passing of two sons of the Caribbean soil – Haitian footballer Emmanuel “Manno” Sanon and Jamaican record producer, Joel “Joe” Gibbs.
Jamaica: This and That
Jamaica and the World puts in her two cents’ worth on everything from a Minister being charged with fraud to the island's roller-coaster crime rate.
Jamaica: Both Sides Now
“We Jamaicans take the mountains, valleys, waterfalls — all for granted. And because we can't see those things with ‘outsider eyes’ we don't think deeply enough about how to share them with the world”: Francis Wade believes Jamaica is full of untapped potential.
Jamaica: Domestic Violence
Blogging from Jamaica, ClaudeMills.com examines possible push factors in cases of domestic violence.
Barbados, Jamaica: Abortion Debate
Blogging from Barbados, Gallimaufry draws attention to the issue of legalising abortions in the Caribbean.
Jamaica, Bermuda: Rogue Children
“A Bermudian member of parliament…is convinced that when you have ‘bad bruk pickney’ you must punish parents as it is the parents whose responsibility it is to ensure that children are socialised properly”: Jamaican Lifestyle hopes that “the sentiments of one man won’t be the basis of a policy that...
Trinidad & Tobago, Jamaica, Antigua: T&T Wins 20/20 Cricket
Discover TnT Blog reports that “the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket team…last night captured the Stanford 20/20 Cricket Tournament in Antigua.”
Barbados: Carbon Footprint
Living in Barbados says that it's time for Caribbean countries to get serious about their energy consumption.
Jamaica, U.S.A.: The Obama Question
“It's not that Obama threatens to be another MLK. It far worse than that. It's that he threatens to be another JFK”: Jamaican Marlon James asks “the one question about Obama that dares not speak its name in polite public discourse.”
Jamaica, Haiti: Haitian Creole
“I learned many things from Felix Morisseau-Leroy and one of the most important was his commitment to the Haitian Creole language”: Geoffrey Philp posts one of the writer's poems.
Inmates use blogs to start a reform of society
This week we are introduced to another of the Rising Voices second round grantees, “Prison Diaries”, based in Jamaica. It will use citizen media tools like blogs, video and podcasts to share the daily journals of inmates, allowing all Jamaicans to learn about the realities of Jamaica’s overcrowded prison system with the hope that this will counteract the false ideas of veneration of gang leaders implanted by the media.
Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago: Moon Shadow
The Life and Times of Michmac and Caribbean Free Radio post photos of last night's lunar eclipse.
Jamaica: School's Out
“Jamaican teachers have taken a stand that they will no longer tolerate the impish, rude, violent and classless behaviour which takes place in our schools”: Jamaican Lifestyle blogs about the island's “bad behaving school children.”
Jamaica, USA: Obama the Orator
“No, this isn’t an endorsement for Barack Obama—this is a literary blog after all,” writes Jamaican Geoffrey Phlip, as he examines the text of a speech that the Democratic presidential candidate gave in Wisconsin.
Jamaica: “InI”
Through the music of Bob Marley, Jamaican Geoffrey Philp examines the roots of Rastafarianism.
Jamaica: Murderous Reputation
Moving Back to Jamaica links to an article in The Economist that he says “painted a damning picture of the Caribbean, but in particular of Jamaica.”
Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago, US Virgin Islands: American Politics
“American Politics! Didn't I exorcise you back in College?” asks Jamaican Marlon James, while Trinidadian blogger Further Thoughts reports: “With almost 89.9% of the votes, Obama has swept the U.S. Virgin Islands primary.”
Cuba, Jamaica: Parable Hunting
Jamaican Geoffrey Philp features Cuban-born writer Ricardo Pau-Llosa in his own words, as he talks about his latest book.
