Education at its most elemental level is the principal means by which people of diverse and disparate lineages and social strata mobilize themselves to construct a common identity, develop bonds of solidarity and embrace a sense of shared destiny. The foremost focus of education is construction of the future of the people who are mobilizing themselves. Education is therefore fundamental to the realization of any vision of the Caribbean by 2020. Continue reading →

Gilbert caught me in Curacao. I was on my way back to Jamaica from Aruba on the very day that Gilbert struck. A friend rescued me from being stranded. On about the Wednesday my host was translating a story about the damage done when she read about the Chest Hospital being looted. She turned to me and asked, `What kind of people you Jamaicans are to loot a hospital during a hurricane?’ That question stuck with me like a hammer. It has caused me to reflect seriously on the kind of society we are living in. That reflection has led me to conclude that looting is taking place at all levels of the society: from top to bottom. The fact is that the looting at the top is partly responsible for the looting at the bottom. When the people at the bottom loot the response is swift and brutal. Several of the hurricane looters were shot dead. But what happens when the looters are people at the top? It seems to me that we respond with silent acquiescence. I am going to illustrate my observation by reference to the average clause recently applied to housing by the insurance companies and to Government’s actions and policies with respect to the importation of motor cars. Continue reading →