Filling Out the US Census

There are some powerful reasons to fill out the US census by including your Caribbean ancestry, and I won't go into them here.

But here's a useful image of how the form can be completed:

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Missing America

For perhaps the first time since coming back to Jamaica, I have a strong feeling of missing being in America.

As the results came in for Obama's victory -- a landslide in electoral terms -- the hope that I can dimly remember associating with the world's foremost democracy started to seep back in, after what seems like an eternity of dark gloom.

The Bush years made me glad to be living back home in Jamaica, away from the ugliness, wars and fear that started for me in 2000 with the Bush election "victory."

Now, it seems, America is back... simply by demonstrating that so much is possible for a Black man, and by extension, for every person in the world who has ever been told that that "they can't."

Whether or not Obama turns out to be a great president or not, at this point in time humanity has won an important victory of possibility over cynicism, resignation and despair. That this is happening in America is not historically surprising.

That it comes after the awful Bush years IS shocking to me, and the repudiation of that awful brand of leadership, politics, partisanship and anti-intellectualism comes as a giant leap away from an abyss.

I miss living in America, where this kind of transformation is what life is all about, and what makes that country the single most coveted physical and emotional destination for anyone seeking a better life.

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Hilarious Video on Letting McCain Win

I got the following video from MoveOn.org that demonstrated for me the results of not voting for Obama:

http://urlcut.com/wadevote

It is hilarious!

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A Change of Mind on Dual Citizenship

I have been carefully reading the comments made to my "Bad Mind?" post and in a conversation with Kim-Marie Spence who heads up CAPRI - the Caribbean Policy Research Institute -- a light-bulb went off.

She gave me a realistic example that stopped me in my tracks.

"What would Daryl Vaz do if he had to visit Cuba on state business?"

"Oh-Oh, I said. That would be a problem."

By serving Jamaica's best interests he could be forced to choose between breaking US law, and doing what's right for us, Jamaicans.

Oh dear.

He actually could face arrest if he visited the USA as a private citizen.

Also, right at this moment, he could get a call from the US about his taxes, and the IRS could decide to launch an audit of his finances at any time.

Hmmm... while the odds of him being called up to fight in Iraq are slim to nothing, IRS audits and other government organizations are been used to harass Americans who the government have found to be
out of favour.

Also, what would happen if took up the charge to champion Cuba-Jamaican relationships, only to receive a nice call one day from the U.S. Ambassador asking to meet with him. She might have nothing in mind other than a courtesy call, but he might attend the meeting with the thought that the recent letter from the IRS might be a response to his Cuban activities, and that she is here to "help make the point."

Poor Daryl. Or more to the point, poor Jamaica.

Some think that a compromise is in order, and that dual citizens should not be in cabinet, and can serve as MP's. (Why the Governor General is exempt from these requirements is beyond me... the post of Director of Elections certainly seems to be one that would actually benefit from having someone who is a foreigner, but that's another matter.)

I do stand by my belief that Jamaica would benefit greatly from those who have a foreign perspective, but in today's geo-politicalworld, they just cannot effectively occupy the pivotal, decision-making roles. Instead, they can serve in other positions, and this should be made clear to all Jamaicans in the diaspora.

"No," you cannot be Prime Minister, MP, Senator, etc. without renouncing other citizenship, but "Yes," you can be any of the following positions.... <>

The upcoming Diaspora Conference in June is sure to address some of these issue, for those who are interested.

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Obama Chills

This video on Obama's speech in New Hampshire gave me the chills.

I suppose the "real thing" comes along once in a person's life. Boys and girls, hold on to your seats because cynicism and resignation are stepping aside for this once in a lifetime event.

A mighty wind of change is blowing.

Is this what 1960 felt like?

http://www.dipdive.com/

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Parallels Between the US and the French Revolution

The article from the New York Times describes the French Revolution in terms that are scarily reminiscent of the the "fight against terrorism."

http://urlcut.com/nytimesfrench

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Scamps or Statesmen

In a recent post, I made the point that our politicians had the choice of being statesmen, or scamps.

A couple of recent events looked to me to be particularly scamp-like.

One was the recent move by the JLP to block the count of 2 un-counted boxes in the constituency in which their candidate was declared the winner. The article can be accessed here.

To observers it seems that the only reason the count is being blocked is to prevent the magisterial count from being overturned.

While they have every legal right to go to court and to take the action they took, I believe it was a grave mistake, and defies the spirit of the law. It was an opportunity that was lost to take the morale high ground, and to put country over party at a time when a clear demonstration was needed.

Today, the PNP had its national conference, and I noticed that Portia ignored the clear overtures that Bruce had made to join together in some creative way to lead the country.

It would have been better for Jamaica to have said "I hear you but, I don't believe you." To ignore his words altogether, and instead to promise only that "this isn't finished" (in reference to the last election) strikes me as more of the scamp-like behaviour that puts party over country.

I believe the country yearned for her to at least acknowledges that he reached out, and that his slim majority means that he MUST do so for the sake of Jamaica's peace and prosperity.

While these look to me like lost opportunities, I think these are early days, and that the situation is not lost, it's just that we are off to a rocky start.

I get the feeling that people of principle have abandoned our political process, and that we (including myself) have turned into a nation of talk-show hosts.

When people of principle withdraw themselves, the scamps run the roost. The results are disastrous, and the burden of failure comes down the most heavily on the poor, the uneducated and the unemployed.

They are largely the ones wearing the T-shirts, hanging out the buses to travel to party meetings hoping to get a free lunch and a little money, and who will vote for anyone in the right colour T-shirt. Scampish behaviour appeals to the lowest common denominator and breeds a dependence that relies on appetite (for food, money, excitement, thrill, love) over intelligence.

Unfortunately, you can't run a country on by feeding people's appetites, and now it looks like the camp-like behaviour that we have tolerated during "election-time" might well be running the show for a very, very long time.

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The Intent of the Law

What happens if the PNP is successful in its attempts to have 2 elected candidates disqualified because they are U.S. citizens? What if they are able to find 3 more candidates to disqualify because they did not declare a financial interest they had with the government of Jamaica?

What if it were to be successful in this way and were then able to form a majority in parliament, forcing Prime Minister Golding to resign?

Is this what the PNP really wants? As they say, be careful of what you ask for, because you might get it. They would be the first party to gain office in Jamaica through the courts, rather than through the ballot box.

It is obvious to them, and to all Jamaicans who are fair-minded, that the will of the people is that the JLP form the next government. Only the most die-hard PNP supporters would deny that this is the case. Even when the party made clear threats to challenge JLP candidates that they alleged to be US citizens, it made no difference to the vote. Each of the accused won by over a thousand votes.

Clearly the people have spoken.

Does the PNP, the party of Norman Washington Manley, really want to gain power in Jamaica in defiance of the people's wishes? Does it really want to enter the next election being famous for wanting to gain power, while overriding the people's voice?

Once the legal can of worms is fully opened, would it then make sense for the JLP to challenge as many successful PNP candidates as it can with disqualification by one means or another, in order to try to retain a
majority? Should they also go hunting for passports, declarations and the like?

What is not being talked about in all this is the obvious fact that the intent of the law, written into the Constitution in 1962, is not being violated.

If it is true that the JLP and PNP candidates who have (or had) US citizenship are indeed the beneficiaries of what most Jamaicans will agree is good fortune, then it is to their benefit and to their credit that they choose to even live in Jamaica, let alone run for office. After all, they could be living in Flatbush, Scarborough,
Pembroke Pines or Tottenham, safe from crime, violence and presumably with greater creature comforts.

But as they say, no good deed goes unpunished.

The truth is that the law was written to prevent split commitments. No-one dare argue that these Jamaicans don't care deeply about their country. Their very presence here speaks volumes about their commitment. We are in absolutely no danger of them choosing to favour the US people over the Jamaican people in a crunch. They have already chosen.

The bitter feelings in the U.S. over the Bush vs. Gore election debacle show us what happens when the courts are used as a place to make decisions.

Is this what Jamaica wants?

This is not to say that the law shouldn't be changed, or that the candidates should not revoke their US citizenships, if they exist. It doesn't say that Prime Minister Golding should not demand that the JLP come clean, and admit that a major error was made.

It does say that he shouldn't use the glacial nature of the our court system, multiple appeals at all levels, and a bevy of lawyers and legal tricks to delay the inevitable, and to stay in power.

It does say that the PNP, and Jamaica should all be careful about the course of action we are taking.

The situation, which should not be ignored by Prime Minister Golding, cries out for a peaceful and amicable solution. The government and opposition can both act like a bunch of scamps trying to hold on to power in whatever way they can, or it can impress us all with a statesman-like solution, by putting country over party.

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Questions from a Dutchman

I received an interesting set of questions from a Dutch reader / journalist who is following the elections here in Jamaica from afar. I thought I'd reply publicly, just for the heck of it.

Here are the questions he sent, and here are my replies.

1. Background profile: Can you tell me your name, age and profession?
   
2. Do you follow the news about the election intensively or not? Do you think it’s important to follow the latest developments surrounding this topic? Explain.
3. What are, according to the politicians, the big themes on this campaign?
4. About which themes, according to the public, should politicians talk about?
5. Are there clear differences between the JLP and the PNP?
6. In what way is this election different from the previous one?
7. How has the Jamaican population viewed these election campaigns so far?
8. Does the media give an honest and objective report about the election process?
9. Which things strike you the most (positive or negative) lately when it comes to Jamaican politics?
10. Does the factor ‘first female PM of the Caribbean’ play an important role during these campaigns? Do they look forward or are they hesitant about it?
11. PM Portia-Miller has been in office for 1,5 year. What has she achieved during her term?
12. In the beginning of 2007 a Dutch company was involved in a corruption scandal that was linked with the PNP. Has that brought severe damage to Portia-Miller and her party-members?
13. Due to Hurricane Dean elections have been postponed for at least a week and campaigning been put on non-active. Has this been a good or bad decision? Explain.
14. How is the aid process coming along for the Dean-victims?
15. Despite who wins, do you (or the Jamaican people) have any confident in the current generation of politicians who’s job is to create a prosperous,transparent and righteous society? Why so/not?

1. Francis Wade / 41 / Management Consultant

2. I follow the news closely, as do the vast majority of Jamaicans. We are highly politicised, care a great deal about political topics, and vote in high numbers. I think it's important to be engaged because it matters a lot which party is in power in so very many ways.

3. Crime, the economy/poverty, jobs, corruption

4. The same -- they are on target

5. In many ways they are close on the issues and the ideas that they have, with some differences that have longer-term consequences. In terms of leadership, there is a tremendous difference.

6. The previous election in 2002 featured Edward Seaga leading the JLP vs. PJ Patterson leading the PNP. Both have since retired, bringing in a new generation of leaders, and a new level of involvement in politics as there are strong feelings about the new leaders and what they represent, whereas the former leaders represented older ways of leading and running the country. By and large, the primary sentiment that drove voting patterns was people's antipathy against Mr. Seaga. I believe that this was the deciding factor in the three elections that they contested against each other.

7. The country just faced Hurricane Dean, and is tired of the campaign on a whole, which has gone on longer than most thought it would. Most feel that some of the advertising has been over the top, and that the campaigning is necessary, but overly reliant on mass meetings, motorcades and gifts to the party faithful

8. Yes, the media is by and large honest, although hardly aggressive enough

9. Positive -- a LOT of us care about politics and the decision that is before the nation
Negative -- our low level of education allows (forces?) politicians to be very "basic" and overly-simplistic in their appeal, speeches and style. There is an unthinking devotion to each party that is sad to see.

10. I don't think this is a factor at all

11. In the 1.5 years she has been able to give many people hope that even an ordinary Jamaican from a humble background can become Prime Minister and that the government can deeply care for people. Also, last year the economy grew slightly, and the murder rate fell.

12. It definitely has caused damage. In the televised debates a few weeks ago the Prime Minister said that she did not accept money from Trafigura, and in the next sentence she said that she ordered it returned. The whole thing gave the impression that she did not know what was going on under her nose.

13. The country is still reeling from Hurricane Dean, so there was really no choice about postponing elections by a week to allow for recovery. The new process relies on the use of electricity, and only about half the country has power at the moment.

14. It is difficult to say as information is hard to come by. It seems slower than it should be, at this point.

15. I have a certain guarded confidence in our politicians, but I think that at this point they can only play the role of spoilers. In other words, they can mess things up, but they cannot make things much better operating on their own. I think their power is terribly overrated, and that they need to step out of their fraternal/maternal roles in order to provide the deft touch that the country needs to move forward. It's time the Jamaican people stopped relying on them for more than the basics, and blaming them for what they cannot control or powerfully influence.

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Simpson-Miller vs. Golding Debates link

YouTube is carrying the entire debate between Portia Simpson-Miller of the PNP and Bruce Golding of the JLP at the following URL:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTM4RWMr8ng

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