I'm a voter. I'm a taxpayer. I contribute to my country's economy. Through the mysterious alchemy of terminology and taxation, the sweat of my brow is transformed into income tax, social security and GST. Yes, I do my most honest part by each of these methods of reducing my discretionary income 'for the good of all.'
My just reward? The current leadership has not given me a housing writeoff such as the likes of Dr Cawich apparently needed and deserved. Nor, since the fact that I was actually born here apparently makes me a second-class citizen, have I received a single piece of land in the last frenzied weeks running up to the pre-election lunacy -or at any other time. Nope, not even a Christmas card did I receive from my UDP area rep, so busy was he shopping for turkey. No, my reward is the unrewarding task of paying the bill for all of it, shipping and handling (and advertising) included.
Yes, as a taxpayer, I have the privilege of paying for everything I just listed above. I'm paying for it and so is my boss and so are all of you. We are told to quit our whining, that Cawich & Co. now have discretionary income freed up to spend in the economy and it will circulate for the benefit of us all, but I doubt I'll feel it because I'll be one of the many paying for their state-sponsored shopping sprees, which I do hope takes place in Belize and not Miami or Chetumal. And the more tax money they take from me to give to their poor, the less discretionary funds I have left to give to those who genuinely need it, or to circulate in my country's economy. Sorry Salvation Army and St Vincent de Paul, your homeless are no longer priority. Tough luck Helpage, your senior citizens will need to fend for themselves, if they don't belong to the right party. Too bad, it's all so pathetically sad. Look Mr Politician, you cannot take from one mouth and give to the other and pretend that means you created something; that's not how it works, that's precisely how it fails.
It all gets blamed on the PUP, and deservedly so. I mean, the Said/Ralph/Ashcroft love triangle is the stuff of legend. What those two produced for their lordly master, and for themselves...well, let's just say I'll probably be paying for that well beyond my death. It's why you were voted out, Blue Man Group. And I'm not sorry I did it. What I am sorry for is that the set of SOBs I did vote for in 2008 turned out to be of an even sickier, sorrier, more destructive and less productive mentality than you were. The downward spiral continues, at dizzying speed.
Red is the colour of anger, and the reds have been angry little people for four years. Be warned Reds, your lava-hot anger has spilled over to me, and not in the way you'd hoped. Your one hit single in four years is 'Blame It on the Superbond.' That song's played so damned often I hear it in my sleep. It is the excuse for doing every evil, and for doing no good. You tantrum-happy clowns have done everything you can think of to amass massive wealth for yourselves in four years, and you've done it without shame. It's the sickest competition our country has ever seen in its thirty years of existence: "who gat mo dan who." When we boil it down to the bone though, red or blue, you're all as corrupt as each other, and over these thirty years we voters have lost every single time.
Now that the madness of election season is officially upon us (unofficially it never ended, I think), we get to see asinine ads from both sides. The Bucket, the Puppet, the Strip Tease, King Dean.... God help us if that's all you've got. Keep the schupidness to yourself and tell me what you plan to do with my money for the next five years. None of you seem to know, and that scares me to the point where I start to wonder if it's time for me to take my talent and taxpaying ways elsewhere and leave you and your nonproductive constituents to make your Haiti-bound way without me.
I haven't made up my mind how/whether to vote yet. Ms Yasmin didn't interview me, but she's reported my feelings accurately. I'm undecided because the choices give me no decision. No, Mr Third Party, you don't present anything credible either -nothing personal, it's just the company you keep. But here's one more thought to add to the pile: if you Reds are gonna spend the next five years whining about the Superbond, then maybe I should vote in the guys who don't dare bitch about it because they gave birth to the damn thing. Maybe that fact will motivate them to do the right things about my economy and about crime. Let's face it, red and blue are both corrupt, and setting that as the baseline indisputable fact, I'd love it if someone could explain to me why I should waste my vote on a party that acts like the working taxpayer's hard work and general honesty and ambition make him Public Enemy Number Four, ranking just below Ashcroft, Said and Ralph?
You know, you clowns in red suits have left me with one haunting question: if you can, all of you, get so damned rich in only four years, why the hell is it that I only get poorer every single day? What verse in 'Blame It on the Superbond' explains that fact Boots?
Showing posts with label Corruption. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Corruption. Show all posts
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Bully!
Mr Barrow sir, I am ashamed of you and of the fact that I voted for you. In the past couple of weeks you've shown yourself to be vindictive, vicious, unsportsmanlike, a sore loser, a sore winner, an almost complete liar, and more than a few other negative things. You seem to be under the very false impression that the power you hold is yours to do with as you please.
I cannot believe, as I listen to the news this evening, that you are vilifying Lynn Young for terminating his people and giving them the benefits they deserve, forgetting to mention that a major chunk of it is money they put aside themselves from their salaries, and instead twisting the truth for your own propaganda purposes. Mr. Young, as anyone who knows him will attest, is a patriotic Belizean and a good man. He is, or was, a supporter of yours, and you still casually tossed him to the wolves. Hell, something tells me you took a certain sadistic pleasure in having his dad sign the law that would rip what he helped build out from under him. None of what you have done marks you as a true leader or a good friend.
Dangerous though it be, you have thrown out a number that Mr. Young supposedly received on resignation and, whether it was a true figure or not, you did so purposefully to rile up the poor of this nation because it's more money than they've ever dreamed of having. You, in this society whose crime you have no time to clean up in between nationalizations, whose economy you've done nothing to grow because your obsessions leave you with no time for such mundane things as job growth, have very likely put Mr. Young in danger just for your own ends. I therefore put you on notice that if anything happens to him, you will be held responsible as though you did it with your own two hands.
Since you're all about the openness and transparency these days (well, you did promise it during elections), so that you want to reveal everyone's income, how about giving us the details on the following:
You and all your Cabinet ministers -and here we'd like comparative financials, how they entered office versus now, let's say. We want it for all of them, but feel free to begin with Boots and Gapi;
Lois -since we're her main client anyway, it's only fair we get a full accounting of how much we've paid her to date;
Anwar -yes, we know he's an astute businessman, so he need not be shy about letting us see just how astute he's become from 2008 to now;
Joe & Juliet -we're just curious how much poison costs nowadays;
Oh yes, and Cellular Plus -assuming all the paperwork wasn't accidentally destroyed when it fell down the shredder by mistake.
That's not all, but it makes a good start. By the way, before you accuse me of being a tail-sucking Ashcroft PUP, you can toss the opposition's financials in there just for kicks. Let's see how much pay it is they're not earning. The point here is that I remember the Integrity Commission and the publishing of annual financials even if you don't.
Now cut the BS rhetoric and go run my country...like a mature adult!
I cannot believe, as I listen to the news this evening, that you are vilifying Lynn Young for terminating his people and giving them the benefits they deserve, forgetting to mention that a major chunk of it is money they put aside themselves from their salaries, and instead twisting the truth for your own propaganda purposes. Mr. Young, as anyone who knows him will attest, is a patriotic Belizean and a good man. He is, or was, a supporter of yours, and you still casually tossed him to the wolves. Hell, something tells me you took a certain sadistic pleasure in having his dad sign the law that would rip what he helped build out from under him. None of what you have done marks you as a true leader or a good friend.
Dangerous though it be, you have thrown out a number that Mr. Young supposedly received on resignation and, whether it was a true figure or not, you did so purposefully to rile up the poor of this nation because it's more money than they've ever dreamed of having. You, in this society whose crime you have no time to clean up in between nationalizations, whose economy you've done nothing to grow because your obsessions leave you with no time for such mundane things as job growth, have very likely put Mr. Young in danger just for your own ends. I therefore put you on notice that if anything happens to him, you will be held responsible as though you did it with your own two hands.
Since you're all about the openness and transparency these days (well, you did promise it during elections), so that you want to reveal everyone's income, how about giving us the details on the following:
You and all your Cabinet ministers -and here we'd like comparative financials, how they entered office versus now, let's say. We want it for all of them, but feel free to begin with Boots and Gapi;
Lois -since we're her main client anyway, it's only fair we get a full accounting of how much we've paid her to date;
Anwar -yes, we know he's an astute businessman, so he need not be shy about letting us see just how astute he's become from 2008 to now;
Joe & Juliet -we're just curious how much poison costs nowadays;
Oh yes, and Cellular Plus -assuming all the paperwork wasn't accidentally destroyed when it fell down the shredder by mistake.
That's not all, but it makes a good start. By the way, before you accuse me of being a tail-sucking Ashcroft PUP, you can toss the opposition's financials in there just for kicks. Let's see how much pay it is they're not earning. The point here is that I remember the Integrity Commission and the publishing of annual financials even if you don't.
Now cut the BS rhetoric and go run my country...like a mature adult!
Monday, June 20, 2011
Travesty of Democracy
Today was a perfect day for demonstrating just how thoroughly our democracy has disintegrated and how apathetic we are about it.
First, our government, as personified by our Prime Minister, seized a company that they always meant to seize from its owner. The simple fact is that Fortis made the mistake of making a profit, of running a utility everyone loves to hate, and of getting between Nestor Vasquez and his dream of having all utilities revert to government, whether or not it makes sense. And (this is me being a cynical conspiracy theorist) probably because they couldn't afford to buy the utility in a straightforward negotiated transaction they used the Public Utilities Commission to bring it to its knees. Then today the PM delivered the coup de grâce by passing legislation to acquire the 'insolvent' utility.
Second, despite the critical importance of acquiring BEL and saddling the taxpayer with the attendant costs, or perhaps because of all that, the government did it all in one day, with a House meeting in the morning, a Senate meeting in the afternoon and the Governor General signing the paperwork before punching the time clock on his workday. There's something a little sickening about having the father sign the legislation that legitimized everything the son fought so hard against, but such it is in Belize these days, we have no loyalty, not to anyone.
Third, there was not even the pretense of a House debate, and why should there be? After all, the opposition hadn't even bothered to show up. A more than slightly whiny press release issued later in the day suggested that the opposition was in a bit of a sulk because they found out about the House meeting after the media, etc, etc. No, Mr. Briceno, we weren't impressed by your integrity and your nobility of stance. We were, and are disgusted, because you couldn't be bothered to show up and record your feelings on the acquisition or on the way the House meeting was called. If you had a problem, as we all do, with the way today's meetings were you should have gone there snd ripped rass about it. You have the ultimate bully pulpit, after all. This way you actually weakened your party even further -and who knew that was even possible?
Fourth, the Senate performed as expected. This is a body that is as rubber stamp-y as it gets, and without the opposition there they were even more so. Senator Gordon wins the denial prize (which is a lovely set of almost-leather horse blinders) for in essence suggesting that 'God will provide' and 'people will understand.'
People, what makes you think it will stop here? Our PM hijacked the House for his own purposes, subverted the processes more than he ever has before, and none of you noticed because he took over a utility that he had convinced you had to be taken over, and hell, you never liked those jerks anyway because your light bill is too high.
What's next?
First, our government, as personified by our Prime Minister, seized a company that they always meant to seize from its owner. The simple fact is that Fortis made the mistake of making a profit, of running a utility everyone loves to hate, and of getting between Nestor Vasquez and his dream of having all utilities revert to government, whether or not it makes sense. And (this is me being a cynical conspiracy theorist) probably because they couldn't afford to buy the utility in a straightforward negotiated transaction they used the Public Utilities Commission to bring it to its knees. Then today the PM delivered the coup de grâce by passing legislation to acquire the 'insolvent' utility.
Second, despite the critical importance of acquiring BEL and saddling the taxpayer with the attendant costs, or perhaps because of all that, the government did it all in one day, with a House meeting in the morning, a Senate meeting in the afternoon and the Governor General signing the paperwork before punching the time clock on his workday. There's something a little sickening about having the father sign the legislation that legitimized everything the son fought so hard against, but such it is in Belize these days, we have no loyalty, not to anyone.
Third, there was not even the pretense of a House debate, and why should there be? After all, the opposition hadn't even bothered to show up. A more than slightly whiny press release issued later in the day suggested that the opposition was in a bit of a sulk because they found out about the House meeting after the media, etc, etc. No, Mr. Briceno, we weren't impressed by your integrity and your nobility of stance. We were, and are disgusted, because you couldn't be bothered to show up and record your feelings on the acquisition or on the way the House meeting was called. If you had a problem, as we all do, with the way today's meetings were you should have gone there snd ripped rass about it. You have the ultimate bully pulpit, after all. This way you actually weakened your party even further -and who knew that was even possible?
Fourth, the Senate performed as expected. This is a body that is as rubber stamp-y as it gets, and without the opposition there they were even more so. Senator Gordon wins the denial prize (which is a lovely set of almost-leather horse blinders) for in essence suggesting that 'God will provide' and 'people will understand.'
People, what makes you think it will stop here? Our PM hijacked the House for his own purposes, subverted the processes more than he ever has before, and none of you noticed because he took over a utility that he had convinced you had to be taken over, and hell, you never liked those jerks anyway because your light bill is too high.
What's next?
Friday, February 18, 2011
Labour Pains
The more I read and hear about the new Labour law, the more I wonder what glorious, illicit and mind-altering substances our politicians are on. No, that was facetious of me, and I apologize for saying it. But I'm pissed, and as you should know, anger leads to ugly thoughts. On the surface of it, I should be thrilled with this new law, since I'm an employee and it's all about keeping me in my job and making it more difficult for me to get fired. Oh yes, and guaranteeing me an available toilet when I need to visit one. It all should make me want to climb a ladder up to the highest rooftop and shout for joy so that all may hear my gratitude, right? Instead I'm angry because the jesters in Cabinet are insulting my intelligence.
You see, unfortunately for the people I made the mistake of voting for, I'm one of those employees who ensures my job security via the old-fashioned method of working hard and having my employer appreciate my efforts. I'm comfortable in my job, happy that I have one in these hard times, and I'm weird enough to think my boss is pretty cool. See, he assists us with education costs, gives us excellent health insurance, and I have ways to earn extra holiday time, and so many other benefits. His business isn't huge, but he tries to share the good news with us. And do you know what happens with the benefits he gives us? The Government of Belize, currently run by the same sad clowns who say that our welfare is their only thought (yeah, they all say that), makes us pay taxes on those benefits.
Now, if you are heartless enough to tax me for getting help in my quest for higher education, how the hell am I supposed to believe that you care in the least about my welfare? It seems to me that what's in play here is the endless political goal of keeping us poor and ignorant. This law isn't for me or for anyone else who wants to improve themselves, to excel in their chosen profession. Because the moment we do that, the moment we climb above a certain level, as my employer is trying to help me do, the tax man's waiting to pick us off. So what I should be doing is sitting in a packing crate with the sign 'Home, Sweet Home' over the door, which opens onto swamps and London bridges, and waiting till the day of the week when I go to see my area rep for my weekly handout, correct? Beloved area rep then feels the love, and I remain happily ignorant in my fetid swamp and financial slavery, indebted to 'the man' for my daily bread. Yes, Mr Amandala, slavery is alive and well in Belize -we are all whipped, beaten, fed crumbs for good (servile) behaviour and kept subservient by the political party du jour.
Then again, this law is about jobs, so to be fair the picture I paint above, though all too real, isn't applicable to the situation under discussion. Okay, that's true, but what we're talking about here isn't too much different. What this law creates is a tidy balancing act that can't be healthy for culture or economy. Employees who barely do their jobs are granted security of tenure, while those of us who are ambitious and want to rise to the top are punished through taxation. Excellent way to develop this developing country of ours, I cannot but admire the sheer genius of it.
Mr Prime Minister, please don't do me no favors, I can't afford it. But then, you aren't doing it for me, I'm not your slave.
You see, unfortunately for the people I made the mistake of voting for, I'm one of those employees who ensures my job security via the old-fashioned method of working hard and having my employer appreciate my efforts. I'm comfortable in my job, happy that I have one in these hard times, and I'm weird enough to think my boss is pretty cool. See, he assists us with education costs, gives us excellent health insurance, and I have ways to earn extra holiday time, and so many other benefits. His business isn't huge, but he tries to share the good news with us. And do you know what happens with the benefits he gives us? The Government of Belize, currently run by the same sad clowns who say that our welfare is their only thought (yeah, they all say that), makes us pay taxes on those benefits.
Now, if you are heartless enough to tax me for getting help in my quest for higher education, how the hell am I supposed to believe that you care in the least about my welfare? It seems to me that what's in play here is the endless political goal of keeping us poor and ignorant. This law isn't for me or for anyone else who wants to improve themselves, to excel in their chosen profession. Because the moment we do that, the moment we climb above a certain level, as my employer is trying to help me do, the tax man's waiting to pick us off. So what I should be doing is sitting in a packing crate with the sign 'Home, Sweet Home' over the door, which opens onto swamps and London bridges, and waiting till the day of the week when I go to see my area rep for my weekly handout, correct? Beloved area rep then feels the love, and I remain happily ignorant in my fetid swamp and financial slavery, indebted to 'the man' for my daily bread. Yes, Mr Amandala, slavery is alive and well in Belize -we are all whipped, beaten, fed crumbs for good (servile) behaviour and kept subservient by the political party du jour.
Then again, this law is about jobs, so to be fair the picture I paint above, though all too real, isn't applicable to the situation under discussion. Okay, that's true, but what we're talking about here isn't too much different. What this law creates is a tidy balancing act that can't be healthy for culture or economy. Employees who barely do their jobs are granted security of tenure, while those of us who are ambitious and want to rise to the top are punished through taxation. Excellent way to develop this developing country of ours, I cannot but admire the sheer genius of it.
Mr Prime Minister, please don't do me no favors, I can't afford it. But then, you aren't doing it for me, I'm not your slave.
Monday, November 22, 2010
What's That Smell?
As a writer, I've been watching current events in my Belize and as we stumble through the news cycle from murder to scandal and back again, have composed numerous articles in my head to describe what I'm seeing. As quickly as I compose them, I dispose of them, running them through a mental shredder because 'that's not quite what I wanted to say.' However, as I'm sure someone profound said at some point, the only way to get to the destination is to start the journey.
Make no mistake about this: I love my country. I love Belize with all the desperation of two lovers who fight all the time, but in the end acknowledge that they can't live without each other and thus after a day of argument, go to bed secure in the peace of that knowledge. What I don't like, the thing that causes major conflict between head and heart, is what's happening to my beautiful country, and why.
Now, before you rush to apply your personal labels, let me make clear that I am neither PUP nor UDP. I have no patience with blind loyalty, and this is the primary requirement of party membership, therefore neither side will tolerate the likes of me, a fact of which I am inordinately proud. So if you are a blind party loyalist who can bear no message that isn't tinted with your favorite color, what I have to say isn't for your ears, or um, eyes.
That, however, is where I begin with my observations of the flaws that mar Belize's natural beauty. Whatever happened to freedom of speech? It seems these days as though the thought police are on patrol, armored in ignorance, equipped with a full arsenal of abusive language and growing rabidly (pun intended) in numbers. Say the wrong thing too loudly and find yourself 'bashed' by one media house or another; become someone's weekly cartoon. Maybe we never have had freedom of speech. I mean, my grandfather always tells me stories about Leigh Richardson being threatened and leaving the country and about the Billboard Press being burned down. Is this ancient history, or was it the beginning of current events?
These days, a lot of the 'wrong thing' that you may rashly criticize fits under the heading of corruption. Today a politician comes from the people, and he'll remind you of that every chance he gets, even though he's long since forgotten it himself. Grassroots-poor, he wins in a division and within months, if he has landed a cushy Cabinet portfolio, he suddenly has multiple houses, expensive women, a car he might once have had the job to wash. Dare to openly observe this sudden wealth to the nearest loyalist of his chosen party and brace yourself for a tongue-lashing. Sadly, the accusations will include calling you an opposition supporter, telling you that the opposition did worse, claiming that "it's our turn; we have to give our people a break." Lately, the shrill tones of "where were you when the opposition was doing their dirty deeds" overpower the voices of protest against the profligacy we can no longer afford -not that we ever could afford it, mind you. Right versus wrong no longer have any relevance in the national debate, and this is a sad, sad thing for our democracy.
Our leaders, when in opposition, make the most beautiful promises. They tell us what they know we want to hear, promise that they'll do what we want them to do, and we, their dance partner in this eternal tango, go along and give them the chance to keep their promises, even though we know they won't. Twelve years ago, we heard the promises and saw instead wholesale delivery of our country into private hands. Yes, the Lord became our Shepherd and he did not want for anything, and we were outraged, remember? Two years ago, we were promised deliverance from the Lord and his bloated, corrupted, decaying lackeys and we greedily swallowed the hook with which that promise was baited. As part of the package, we were promised transparency but instead got corruption wrapped in the pretty, crackling cellophane of vengeance and tied with a thick ribbon of nepotism.
Where were we when the last crowd did the dirty deed of fiscal rape? Right there biding our time. We know not from revolution; our teeth and claws are sharp, pretty things that we've never learned to use, but we do know how to vote out the nasty boys, so we did what we knew to do. But the opposition-who-became-government asks that question every single time we point out the obvious. It is their only defence, this offensive question. My answer to them? I was preparing to give you a chance to be the better man, and I see now that you've blown it.
Don't tell me we're less corrupt than we were, that comment alone confirms that we are corrupt. Don't tell me the other guy did worse, voting you in was not granting you a license to do whatever you want as long as you keep it 10% below him. For one thing, your measuring stick is way off, and we now think you're just as bad. See, corruption is corruption, regardless of scale. According to the law a thief is a thief no matter what he steals, and thus it is with you. While people continue to starve and live in shanties, don't content yourself with blaming the other guy when you aren't doing that which it is in your power to do. Oh yes, and by color-coding everyone and filing them according to assigned color, you take us further down the path of national destruction. We, yes, WE elected you to govern ALL of us. If we have broken the law, deal with us accordingly. If we have not, and we are in fact law-abiding citizens, productive members of society who just happen to have a difference of political opinion, suck it up, quit whining and let us be stupid and wrong in our thinking and you just get on with governing the entire country responsibly, which is the job you were hired to do.
What can we do anyway? Who listens to us? Are we to vote in yet another failed-government-in-waiting come 2013? A thousand times 'no!' to that one, emphatically no, because John & Co. have done nothing to earn my respect, much less my vote. They've been too busy saving their own ample derrieres and fighting over the spoils instead of cleaning up their well-exposed act. But I'll tell you flat out that this gang, this fountain of excuses for not properly leading, can't be allowed to continue either. The way I see it, if we don't begin to demand better, then we deserve to stay on the downhill slope, hurtling headlong toward the cliff's edge.
I'll leave you with this question: do you remember when Belcan Bridge was blanketed with the smoke of burning tires? Do you remember the government of the day's howls of indignance because a certain Opposition Leader had called for civil disobedience?
Maybe it's time we took up his suggestion.
Make no mistake about this: I love my country. I love Belize with all the desperation of two lovers who fight all the time, but in the end acknowledge that they can't live without each other and thus after a day of argument, go to bed secure in the peace of that knowledge. What I don't like, the thing that causes major conflict between head and heart, is what's happening to my beautiful country, and why.
Now, before you rush to apply your personal labels, let me make clear that I am neither PUP nor UDP. I have no patience with blind loyalty, and this is the primary requirement of party membership, therefore neither side will tolerate the likes of me, a fact of which I am inordinately proud. So if you are a blind party loyalist who can bear no message that isn't tinted with your favorite color, what I have to say isn't for your ears, or um, eyes.
That, however, is where I begin with my observations of the flaws that mar Belize's natural beauty. Whatever happened to freedom of speech? It seems these days as though the thought police are on patrol, armored in ignorance, equipped with a full arsenal of abusive language and growing rabidly (pun intended) in numbers. Say the wrong thing too loudly and find yourself 'bashed' by one media house or another; become someone's weekly cartoon. Maybe we never have had freedom of speech. I mean, my grandfather always tells me stories about Leigh Richardson being threatened and leaving the country and about the Billboard Press being burned down. Is this ancient history, or was it the beginning of current events?
These days, a lot of the 'wrong thing' that you may rashly criticize fits under the heading of corruption. Today a politician comes from the people, and he'll remind you of that every chance he gets, even though he's long since forgotten it himself. Grassroots-poor, he wins in a division and within months, if he has landed a cushy Cabinet portfolio, he suddenly has multiple houses, expensive women, a car he might once have had the job to wash. Dare to openly observe this sudden wealth to the nearest loyalist of his chosen party and brace yourself for a tongue-lashing. Sadly, the accusations will include calling you an opposition supporter, telling you that the opposition did worse, claiming that "it's our turn; we have to give our people a break." Lately, the shrill tones of "where were you when the opposition was doing their dirty deeds" overpower the voices of protest against the profligacy we can no longer afford -not that we ever could afford it, mind you. Right versus wrong no longer have any relevance in the national debate, and this is a sad, sad thing for our democracy.
Our leaders, when in opposition, make the most beautiful promises. They tell us what they know we want to hear, promise that they'll do what we want them to do, and we, their dance partner in this eternal tango, go along and give them the chance to keep their promises, even though we know they won't. Twelve years ago, we heard the promises and saw instead wholesale delivery of our country into private hands. Yes, the Lord became our Shepherd and he did not want for anything, and we were outraged, remember? Two years ago, we were promised deliverance from the Lord and his bloated, corrupted, decaying lackeys and we greedily swallowed the hook with which that promise was baited. As part of the package, we were promised transparency but instead got corruption wrapped in the pretty, crackling cellophane of vengeance and tied with a thick ribbon of nepotism.
Where were we when the last crowd did the dirty deed of fiscal rape? Right there biding our time. We know not from revolution; our teeth and claws are sharp, pretty things that we've never learned to use, but we do know how to vote out the nasty boys, so we did what we knew to do. But the opposition-who-became-government asks that question every single time we point out the obvious. It is their only defence, this offensive question. My answer to them? I was preparing to give you a chance to be the better man, and I see now that you've blown it.
Don't tell me we're less corrupt than we were, that comment alone confirms that we are corrupt. Don't tell me the other guy did worse, voting you in was not granting you a license to do whatever you want as long as you keep it 10% below him. For one thing, your measuring stick is way off, and we now think you're just as bad. See, corruption is corruption, regardless of scale. According to the law a thief is a thief no matter what he steals, and thus it is with you. While people continue to starve and live in shanties, don't content yourself with blaming the other guy when you aren't doing that which it is in your power to do. Oh yes, and by color-coding everyone and filing them according to assigned color, you take us further down the path of national destruction. We, yes, WE elected you to govern ALL of us. If we have broken the law, deal with us accordingly. If we have not, and we are in fact law-abiding citizens, productive members of society who just happen to have a difference of political opinion, suck it up, quit whining and let us be stupid and wrong in our thinking and you just get on with governing the entire country responsibly, which is the job you were hired to do.
What can we do anyway? Who listens to us? Are we to vote in yet another failed-government-in-waiting come 2013? A thousand times 'no!' to that one, emphatically no, because John & Co. have done nothing to earn my respect, much less my vote. They've been too busy saving their own ample derrieres and fighting over the spoils instead of cleaning up their well-exposed act. But I'll tell you flat out that this gang, this fountain of excuses for not properly leading, can't be allowed to continue either. The way I see it, if we don't begin to demand better, then we deserve to stay on the downhill slope, hurtling headlong toward the cliff's edge.
I'll leave you with this question: do you remember when Belcan Bridge was blanketed with the smoke of burning tires? Do you remember the government of the day's howls of indignance because a certain Opposition Leader had called for civil disobedience?
Maybe it's time we took up his suggestion.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Parasite!
–noun
1. an organism that lives on or in an organism of another species, known as the host, from the body of which it obtains nutriment.
2. a person who receives support, advantage, or the like, from another or others without giving any useful or proper return, as one who lives on the hospitality of others.
Synonyms:
2. sycophant, toady, leech, sponge, hanger-on.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
par·a·site (par'?-sit')
n.
1. Biology An organism that grows, feeds, and is sheltered on or in a different organism while contributing nothing to the survival of its host.
2. 1. One who habitually takes advantage of the generosity of others without making any useful return.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
parasite par·a·site (par'?-sit')
n. 1. An organism that grows, feeds, and is sheltered on or in a different organism while contributing nothing to the survival of its host.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
You guys get the drift? Parasites are nasty little things that feed off their hosts, sometimes to the point of destroying them, but give absolutely nothing in return. In our politics, that person is a fixed part of the food chain. In our politics, sometimes we even have layers of parasites, i.e. the ones who are running the state feed off our taxpayer funds and the leeches attached to them feed off their fat host in turn. Otherwise known as catching the crumbs from the master's table.
What we are seeing now, the implosion of the two major political parties, is the result of their parasites taking turns draining the ultimate host to the point of near death. The spoils are fewer, and the scrambling for them both more vicious and more desperate. The ultimate host is our beleaguered, nearly destitute country, and every leech in every hue is responsible for Belize's deplorable condition. See, a greedy leech will kill its host, and therefore ultimately destroy its sole means of support. This is the message behind the fable of the golden goose, but we never learn, do we?
The easiest way to recognize this leechlike political creature is to look for someone who, before entering politics, was near bankruptcy (in business) or of a certain salaried income level. He (or she) enters politics and is suddenly, inexplicably, oozing wealth from every pore. He/she builds a multimillion dollar mansion; he/she brings their business from pending death to crazy wealth; he/she can own multiple houses for rent when the bank was once foreclosing on the only house they had.... Again, you've seen it and you know someone whose foot fits that metaphorical shoe. Unexplainable wealth elsewhere triggers investigation, but not in Belize, because parasites on the other side are satisfied merely to think "my turn will come." You see, parasites cannot survive without their host body to feed on. Parasites cannot successfully run an honest business, and parasites are never satisfied with a decent, honestly earned income. When in opposition, parasites' names are called in foreclosures, and parasites get listed for unpaid bills of every kind. But parasites out of power cannot loudly condemn ruling parasites lest they cut off their own path to wealth.
Have you ever met someone who holds no official position but who can still get things done almost effortlessly? Think of land transactions, trade license and property tax discounts, passage of goods with no duty paid, that kind of thing. These days it seems you can even include the phrase nolle prosequi in their repertoire. This parasite manifests the kinds of sudden, unexplained wealth gains mentioned above, and is nine times out of ten attached leechlike to the side of a powerful minister. The tenth parasite has assumed a position that gives power to make a profit without toadying to a Minister...except to keep the position, of course. This parasite will use his(her) affiliation to cajole, bully, bribe public servants to get things done for himself and his friends, legality be damned.
How about our elected leaders? Now, it's not fair to say that all of our elected leaders or their opposite numbers are parasites, but the growing unpopularity of our two ruling parties and the growing stigma attached to politics as practiced in our little nation state means that there's plenty of opportunity for the leeches to become legislators. Remember the UDP in 1998 and for the following five years? No one would have anything to do with them, and so they had to take any and all comers, leeches included. Today's PUP is paddling a similar watercraft up a similar creek.
In order for this country to survive...and maybe one day thrive, the few elected leaders that aren't parasites ought to wake up, step up and crack down on their colleagues. Those elected leaders ought also to be pushing for reforms that clip the wings of their fellow demigods, but no politician willingly gives up his own power, so here we remain. In political expediency (or will) lies the rub: will the current Prime Minister apply discipline in a decisive manner even when it may be politically damaging to do so? None have before him. From 1993 to 1998, Manuel Esquivel was managing a very fragile coalition, so that his Ministers could misbehave with impunity. The events of 1998 to 2008 include many more stories of Ministers pillaging our national accounts...and we know how that went. Now we have a rogue Mayor, but she's far from the only sinner. Were Cabinet to turn a mirror upon itself.... The question is, will Z be the sole example made in the name of transparency? If the UDP even makes an example of her, that is.
At the rate we're going, the messages being delivered through the endless red and blue scandals are: 1) don't get caught; 2) if you do get caught, brazen it out. At no point has anyone demonstrated why you shouldn't do the nasty in the first place. And the leeches continue to suck the host dry, and we as a people continue to tolerate them.
Whose turn is it next? Let's set them straight from now. No more leeches! No more leeches! No more leeches! Come on, say it...no more leeches!
1. an organism that lives on or in an organism of another species, known as the host, from the body of which it obtains nutriment.
2. a person who receives support, advantage, or the like, from another or others without giving any useful or proper return, as one who lives on the hospitality of others.
Synonyms:
2. sycophant, toady, leech, sponge, hanger-on.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
par·a·site (par'?-sit')
n.
1. Biology An organism that grows, feeds, and is sheltered on or in a different organism while contributing nothing to the survival of its host.
2. 1. One who habitually takes advantage of the generosity of others without making any useful return.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
parasite par·a·site (par'?-sit')
n. 1. An organism that grows, feeds, and is sheltered on or in a different organism while contributing nothing to the survival of its host.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
You guys get the drift? Parasites are nasty little things that feed off their hosts, sometimes to the point of destroying them, but give absolutely nothing in return. In our politics, that person is a fixed part of the food chain. In our politics, sometimes we even have layers of parasites, i.e. the ones who are running the state feed off our taxpayer funds and the leeches attached to them feed off their fat host in turn. Otherwise known as catching the crumbs from the master's table.
What we are seeing now, the implosion of the two major political parties, is the result of their parasites taking turns draining the ultimate host to the point of near death. The spoils are fewer, and the scrambling for them both more vicious and more desperate. The ultimate host is our beleaguered, nearly destitute country, and every leech in every hue is responsible for Belize's deplorable condition. See, a greedy leech will kill its host, and therefore ultimately destroy its sole means of support. This is the message behind the fable of the golden goose, but we never learn, do we?
The easiest way to recognize this leechlike political creature is to look for someone who, before entering politics, was near bankruptcy (in business) or of a certain salaried income level. He (or she) enters politics and is suddenly, inexplicably, oozing wealth from every pore. He/she builds a multimillion dollar mansion; he/she brings their business from pending death to crazy wealth; he/she can own multiple houses for rent when the bank was once foreclosing on the only house they had.... Again, you've seen it and you know someone whose foot fits that metaphorical shoe. Unexplainable wealth elsewhere triggers investigation, but not in Belize, because parasites on the other side are satisfied merely to think "my turn will come." You see, parasites cannot survive without their host body to feed on. Parasites cannot successfully run an honest business, and parasites are never satisfied with a decent, honestly earned income. When in opposition, parasites' names are called in foreclosures, and parasites get listed for unpaid bills of every kind. But parasites out of power cannot loudly condemn ruling parasites lest they cut off their own path to wealth.
Have you ever met someone who holds no official position but who can still get things done almost effortlessly? Think of land transactions, trade license and property tax discounts, passage of goods with no duty paid, that kind of thing. These days it seems you can even include the phrase nolle prosequi in their repertoire. This parasite manifests the kinds of sudden, unexplained wealth gains mentioned above, and is nine times out of ten attached leechlike to the side of a powerful minister. The tenth parasite has assumed a position that gives power to make a profit without toadying to a Minister...except to keep the position, of course. This parasite will use his(her) affiliation to cajole, bully, bribe public servants to get things done for himself and his friends, legality be damned.
How about our elected leaders? Now, it's not fair to say that all of our elected leaders or their opposite numbers are parasites, but the growing unpopularity of our two ruling parties and the growing stigma attached to politics as practiced in our little nation state means that there's plenty of opportunity for the leeches to become legislators. Remember the UDP in 1998 and for the following five years? No one would have anything to do with them, and so they had to take any and all comers, leeches included. Today's PUP is paddling a similar watercraft up a similar creek.
In order for this country to survive...and maybe one day thrive, the few elected leaders that aren't parasites ought to wake up, step up and crack down on their colleagues. Those elected leaders ought also to be pushing for reforms that clip the wings of their fellow demigods, but no politician willingly gives up his own power, so here we remain. In political expediency (or will) lies the rub: will the current Prime Minister apply discipline in a decisive manner even when it may be politically damaging to do so? None have before him. From 1993 to 1998, Manuel Esquivel was managing a very fragile coalition, so that his Ministers could misbehave with impunity. The events of 1998 to 2008 include many more stories of Ministers pillaging our national accounts...and we know how that went. Now we have a rogue Mayor, but she's far from the only sinner. Were Cabinet to turn a mirror upon itself.... The question is, will Z be the sole example made in the name of transparency? If the UDP even makes an example of her, that is.
At the rate we're going, the messages being delivered through the endless red and blue scandals are: 1) don't get caught; 2) if you do get caught, brazen it out. At no point has anyone demonstrated why you shouldn't do the nasty in the first place. And the leeches continue to suck the host dry, and we as a people continue to tolerate them.
Whose turn is it next? Let's set them straight from now. No more leeches! No more leeches! No more leeches! Come on, say it...no more leeches!
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Poor Little Rich Barry
I've been watching this whole episode of the new 'environmental' deposit law with more than a great deal of amused cynicism. See, to understand this law you have to go back to the PM's announcement in the House when he said (if I may paraphrase) that while he dislikes free trade, regrettably we are signatories to the CSME treaty. In other words, instead of encouraging exports, which we need to do badly, the PM wants to keep our borders closed and padlocked, which mentality explains why we're still an importing economy. Because free trade goes both ways, and were he to speak the language in the proper way, he would encourage our producers to take the next step and become exporters. He'd encourage other countries to shop in Belize instead of charging duty to those of us who stretch our dollars across the border. Alas, if only foresight were a thing readily available to our leaders.
Anyway, though economic ignorance often rules the day, the duties finally came down on the two relevant imported beers. Naturally, the local brewer went into hysterics because his gazillion years of protection had ended. So the brewery people duly raced up to Belmopan, put the well-practiced poor-me whine on full volume, and the result is this 'environmental' law that'll require everyone to put down a deposit of 25 cents on a perfectly useless bottle for absolutely no reason except that the local brewer is feeling a little pressured by the first real competition he's felt since Crown Beer died...or was murdered. Check it, Belikin has to spend real money on advertising! They had to buy Joe Bradley! What a barrel of laughs, thinking that we'll switch to Belikin just 'cause Joe says he drinks it. Ha! Everybody knows what Joe drinks, and it's not Belikin..
Now me, I do drink the occasional Belikin, but I'm still looking forward to the day, and I'm sure it's still quite some decades away, thanks to said local brewer, when I can drink a Corona in this country instead of hauling my ass up to Chetumal to do it. Hell, I work hard all week, and when Friday comes, as a taxpaying consumer, I deserve a choice of beers, no? Well, no, apparently not, because poor old Barry will starve. I saw him recently, and by my judgment, he could stand to lose a few pounds, so maybe we should all boycott Belikin while they try to take away our right to choose.
But do notice that Hilly is suddenly an environmentally conscious boy, and see how he's banging away on the airwaves, telling anybody who'll listen that he and his bosses are environmental angels. The peeps living behind the brewery in Ladyville know different, but it's fun to listen to. Doesn't matter though, as bogus as the law is, it'll pass, because Barry wants it to, and because he's made promises to the UDP. Mind you, he won't keep them any longer than he has to, after all he not-so-secretly hates the UDP. Wanna know the truth of his politics? Buy him a couple of drinks and ask him.
So kids, in the name of free trade, consumer choice and the environment, once Barry's Deposit passes into law, pay your shilling extra, drink your (newly affordable) imported beer, and raise a toast to the plastic continuing to line our streets with impunity. I guess the way to get that cleaned up is for someone to begin importing a beer in plastic bottles.
Anyway, though economic ignorance often rules the day, the duties finally came down on the two relevant imported beers. Naturally, the local brewer went into hysterics because his gazillion years of protection had ended. So the brewery people duly raced up to Belmopan, put the well-practiced poor-me whine on full volume, and the result is this 'environmental' law that'll require everyone to put down a deposit of 25 cents on a perfectly useless bottle for absolutely no reason except that the local brewer is feeling a little pressured by the first real competition he's felt since Crown Beer died...or was murdered. Check it, Belikin has to spend real money on advertising! They had to buy Joe Bradley! What a barrel of laughs, thinking that we'll switch to Belikin just 'cause Joe says he drinks it. Ha! Everybody knows what Joe drinks, and it's not Belikin..
Now me, I do drink the occasional Belikin, but I'm still looking forward to the day, and I'm sure it's still quite some decades away, thanks to said local brewer, when I can drink a Corona in this country instead of hauling my ass up to Chetumal to do it. Hell, I work hard all week, and when Friday comes, as a taxpaying consumer, I deserve a choice of beers, no? Well, no, apparently not, because poor old Barry will starve. I saw him recently, and by my judgment, he could stand to lose a few pounds, so maybe we should all boycott Belikin while they try to take away our right to choose.
But do notice that Hilly is suddenly an environmentally conscious boy, and see how he's banging away on the airwaves, telling anybody who'll listen that he and his bosses are environmental angels. The peeps living behind the brewery in Ladyville know different, but it's fun to listen to. Doesn't matter though, as bogus as the law is, it'll pass, because Barry wants it to, and because he's made promises to the UDP. Mind you, he won't keep them any longer than he has to, after all he not-so-secretly hates the UDP. Wanna know the truth of his politics? Buy him a couple of drinks and ask him.
So kids, in the name of free trade, consumer choice and the environment, once Barry's Deposit passes into law, pay your shilling extra, drink your (newly affordable) imported beer, and raise a toast to the plastic continuing to line our streets with impunity. I guess the way to get that cleaned up is for someone to begin importing a beer in plastic bottles.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Government As Business
You know, if my boss runs his business the way the politicians govern, I'd better start looking for a new job, because bankruptcy's right around the corner. Think about this, you have the market cornered on certain items, things that people are paying top dollar for. Then a man comes by, he has a fancy accent with the matching clothes, and he tells you that you aren't smart enough to maximize the use of those assets, so you'd better sell them to him. It turns out he's right, because you're stupid enough to do it! Then, having done it, you punish your regular and loyal customers because they haven't got the money to pay your bills so you can continue your lifestyle without cutting costs.
Our country has squandered so much of her wealth, and flushed so much of her moneymaking talent and potential down the toilet, that now we're economic slaves, reduced to begging at the feet of our global masters. This slavery will continue for at least the next couple of generations, because no one talented or disciplined enough to find a way out of it has yet appeared. Okay, not fair, we have had the talent, but either it's so crooked it can't see straight, or no politician will allow the talent to do what's needed because that'll derail the gravy train. The Solution of the Day for everything is to tax those who can't fight and not to upset those who give a lee trouble to pay.
The last set of idiots sold all our assets for a pittance, and then bought two utilites back, then resold one, then...oh, who can keep up? What I do know is that all these transactions cost us taxpayers in ways we still haven't yet uncovered. These same idiots put serious national revenue-generating opportunities into private hands for a pittance (and no doubt a commission), while they mortgaged our eyeteeth just to finance the government's daily operating costs.
Now the current idiots-in-charge, rather than looking to seriously correct these misdeeds, or to find new revenue-generating opportunities, merely decide to take on the con artist in the fancy threads, publicize the never-ending (and hideously expensive) battle so that we'll be impressed with their diligence, and do absolutely nothing else. Okay, maybe BEL would disagree that they are doing nothing else, but really, what have they done to create new sources of revenue for the country? Sell land? No, not really. I mean, land is being sold, but the revenue isn't going to official coffers, you read me?
Let me put it all another way: Monaco and Las Vegas got rich off gambling; Switzerland and Cayman get their wealth from offshore banking (sorry, Mr Barack), Panama's flag registry has done well for the country's bottom-line, and so on. Where are we? Nope, we've given away all that. Favourable taxes on gaming, offshore and flag registration in private hands...what else can we give away? Oh yeah, the Boledo! Or is that gone already?
According to Channel 7 last night, the government has lowered the gaming tax of 15% because the casinos were only paying 4% anyway, so they doubled the rate to 8%. Whaaaa.....? Guys, that's just schupid! You reward these guys for not paying their full tax by lowering it to half of what it was because then you'll be penalizing them by making them pay double what they were paying because they said that's what they could afford? Nawww man, that can't be it!
I guess I'm not as smart as some, because I'd have thought that the simplest way to do things would've been merely to enforce the law that the previous idiots let the casinos break. After all, looking at the amount of Belizeans who've lost their homes and businesses because of gambling, I wouldn't think casinos are having trouble making ends meet. And if they are having problems, let me hereby advise the government that 'things thin' with me too, so starting with my next paycheck I'm advising GOB that I can only pay 4% of my income tax...of course, if they want to lower my rate to 8%, I'm willing to negotiate.
Our country has squandered so much of her wealth, and flushed so much of her moneymaking talent and potential down the toilet, that now we're economic slaves, reduced to begging at the feet of our global masters. This slavery will continue for at least the next couple of generations, because no one talented or disciplined enough to find a way out of it has yet appeared. Okay, not fair, we have had the talent, but either it's so crooked it can't see straight, or no politician will allow the talent to do what's needed because that'll derail the gravy train. The Solution of the Day for everything is to tax those who can't fight and not to upset those who give a lee trouble to pay.
The last set of idiots sold all our assets for a pittance, and then bought two utilites back, then resold one, then...oh, who can keep up? What I do know is that all these transactions cost us taxpayers in ways we still haven't yet uncovered. These same idiots put serious national revenue-generating opportunities into private hands for a pittance (and no doubt a commission), while they mortgaged our eyeteeth just to finance the government's daily operating costs.
Now the current idiots-in-charge, rather than looking to seriously correct these misdeeds, or to find new revenue-generating opportunities, merely decide to take on the con artist in the fancy threads, publicize the never-ending (and hideously expensive) battle so that we'll be impressed with their diligence, and do absolutely nothing else. Okay, maybe BEL would disagree that they are doing nothing else, but really, what have they done to create new sources of revenue for the country? Sell land? No, not really. I mean, land is being sold, but the revenue isn't going to official coffers, you read me?
Let me put it all another way: Monaco and Las Vegas got rich off gambling; Switzerland and Cayman get their wealth from offshore banking (sorry, Mr Barack), Panama's flag registry has done well for the country's bottom-line, and so on. Where are we? Nope, we've given away all that. Favourable taxes on gaming, offshore and flag registration in private hands...what else can we give away? Oh yeah, the Boledo! Or is that gone already?
According to Channel 7 last night, the government has lowered the gaming tax of 15% because the casinos were only paying 4% anyway, so they doubled the rate to 8%. Whaaaa.....? Guys, that's just schupid! You reward these guys for not paying their full tax by lowering it to half of what it was because then you'll be penalizing them by making them pay double what they were paying because they said that's what they could afford? Nawww man, that can't be it!
I guess I'm not as smart as some, because I'd have thought that the simplest way to do things would've been merely to enforce the law that the previous idiots let the casinos break. After all, looking at the amount of Belizeans who've lost their homes and businesses because of gambling, I wouldn't think casinos are having trouble making ends meet. And if they are having problems, let me hereby advise the government that 'things thin' with me too, so starting with my next paycheck I'm advising GOB that I can only pay 4% of my income tax...of course, if they want to lower my rate to 8%, I'm willing to negotiate.
Monday, June 15, 2009
Something Borrowed, Something Blue
You will agree that some of the actions of the previous government, especially in the latter half of its tenure, were atrocious. They were atrocious enough to incite riots and demonstrations, remember? Hell, the actions of the previous government are directly responsible for the mayor Belize City has today! How can we ever forgive them for just that one deed?
The current government though, that's the one in charge right now, so that's the one we need to focus on. And in less than two years, this mob has managed, using the chorus "the PUP did worse," to actually be worse than (or equivalent to) the notorious PUP in a surprising number of ways. For example:
Money rules, gang. The new, ultra-modern cardinal rule is: party before country, and money before all. If you wish to run for political office, remember that and everything else will follow automatically. For example, it will go without saying that doing the right thing or the lawful thing is neither essential nor even advisable. A reputation as a good and honest person will work against you in our political world. A conscience? That'll take you to the edge, man -political suicide follows that kind of thinking.
Mr. Barrow, is this what you want those of us in the next generation to learn?
The current government though, that's the one in charge right now, so that's the one we need to focus on. And in less than two years, this mob has managed, using the chorus "the PUP did worse," to actually be worse than (or equivalent to) the notorious PUP in a surprising number of ways. For example:
- What is this new and improved practice of giving import permits only to the party faithful and excluding the honest small businesses from the opportunity to better their lot? The PUP did it too, but this lot have taken it now to a fine and authoritarian, even monopolistic art. I guess they are better than the PUP, hmmm?
- What about grants/loans to party faithful who don't need it? Old news, BLUE news.
- What about contracts signed without authority, contracts with national impact that are forgiven by a casually tossed 'she meant well?' Yes, that seems familiar too.
- What about ministers out of control, who get more out of control because their boss wants an impossible burden of proof from those who speak up? Deja vu strikes again.
- What about the truckloads of contraband goods that pass through our ports and borders unchecked while a few villagers lose their two dory loads? Uhhh, check that off the blue list too.
- So much more, little of it original, much of it refined beyond what the original inventors imagined. Our evolution is no longer from red to blue to red to blue. It's from bad to worse, and so on. Down the slippery slope we go!
Money rules, gang. The new, ultra-modern cardinal rule is: party before country, and money before all. If you wish to run for political office, remember that and everything else will follow automatically. For example, it will go without saying that doing the right thing or the lawful thing is neither essential nor even advisable. A reputation as a good and honest person will work against you in our political world. A conscience? That'll take you to the edge, man -political suicide follows that kind of thinking.
Mr. Barrow, is this what you want those of us in the next generation to learn?
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Wanted: An Honest Mayor
Remember West Landivar? The residents won their first round against David Gegg, but it's not over, I'm sure. As for King's Park, you can't have forgotten so quickly what happened there. Mr Wagons, a confirmed racist himself, decided to whip out that often-abused word to defeat the residents, and when it didn't work, he got Zenaida on his side...he's pretty blunt and open about how he did that. Now, residents can't park in their driveways and a formerly peaceful, family-type neighbourhood is overrun by traffic and container trucks, and the peace is gone. This one has been a public and nasty battle, and is a classic example of what Zenaida is and does -for herself, with no regard for right and wrong, legal or illegal.
But how many of you know about the quiet battle that Bella Vista has been fighting? The only neighbourhood in the country with zoning legislation in place, a quiet area of hardworking families, Bella Vista is now under siege from David Gegg and other unscrupulous individuals who think laws are for suckers. David Fonseca's City Council developed Bella Vista's legislation at the urging of the residents, and it is a model for the rest of the city's neighbourhoods to follow. Unfortunately, lack of political will (moral weakness, as I think of it) prevented his City Council from following through with enforcement.
Now, this UDP City Council is itself acting in contravention of its own legislation solely on the Mayor's orders. And where is Zenaida? Well, according to the evidence, firmly in the camp of the wrongdoers...Mr Gegg isn't shy about saying how he got her there either, and he has publicly and viciously insulted those residents who are simply asking that he abide by the law. One resident recently wrote a letter to the City Councilors as a last-ditch effort before taking the matter to court, and it is damning in its account of Her Lordship's inaction, obstruction and outright sabotage. The letter is also copied to the Prime Minister, to Doug Singh, and to Lee Mark Chang, but you may be sure that none of them will do anything to thwart the Mayor. Such is her power (and their weakness), and such is her untouchable corruption.
When she's under attack, the Mayor's standard practice is to sit with her questioners and say whatever comes into her mind as an answer people want to hear -usually lies, and often blatantly self-contradictory, not to mention self-congratulatory. Today she'll blame Cabinet for her ineffectiveness, then tomorrow she'll blame her Council. However, in all this the pattern is that she is never effective, and it is never her fault. A little bit of martyrdom, some implied gender bias, the humble mention of God, and the recipe is prepared for her continuing without recrimination from those who could control her.
Meanwhile, laws and morality become less relevant each day her rule continues.
But how many of you know about the quiet battle that Bella Vista has been fighting? The only neighbourhood in the country with zoning legislation in place, a quiet area of hardworking families, Bella Vista is now under siege from David Gegg and other unscrupulous individuals who think laws are for suckers. David Fonseca's City Council developed Bella Vista's legislation at the urging of the residents, and it is a model for the rest of the city's neighbourhoods to follow. Unfortunately, lack of political will (moral weakness, as I think of it) prevented his City Council from following through with enforcement.
Now, this UDP City Council is itself acting in contravention of its own legislation solely on the Mayor's orders. And where is Zenaida? Well, according to the evidence, firmly in the camp of the wrongdoers...Mr Gegg isn't shy about saying how he got her there either, and he has publicly and viciously insulted those residents who are simply asking that he abide by the law. One resident recently wrote a letter to the City Councilors as a last-ditch effort before taking the matter to court, and it is damning in its account of Her Lordship's inaction, obstruction and outright sabotage. The letter is also copied to the Prime Minister, to Doug Singh, and to Lee Mark Chang, but you may be sure that none of them will do anything to thwart the Mayor. Such is her power (and their weakness), and such is her untouchable corruption.
When she's under attack, the Mayor's standard practice is to sit with her questioners and say whatever comes into her mind as an answer people want to hear -usually lies, and often blatantly self-contradictory, not to mention self-congratulatory. Today she'll blame Cabinet for her ineffectiveness, then tomorrow she'll blame her Council. However, in all this the pattern is that she is never effective, and it is never her fault. A little bit of martyrdom, some implied gender bias, the humble mention of God, and the recipe is prepared for her continuing without recrimination from those who could control her.
Meanwhile, laws and morality become less relevant each day her rule continues.
Friday, May 15, 2009
The Incorruptible Ostrich
The trouble with having lawyers in charge of the country is that they have a different perspective from normal folk. We see right and wrong; lawyers see legal and illegal. And unfortunately, when the lawyers are leaders of the lawmakers, if something is illegal, that's easily fixed. If something is legal, it doesn't really matter whether it's wrong or right, the only thing that matters is that no one will go to jail...ever! Ethics and morality have been put through the shredder and are no longer relevant in our democracy's struggle for survival.
The media is abuzz this week over one TV station's offer of a reward for information leading to the conviction of individuals involved in corruption at the Ministry of Lands. Earlier this week the Prime Minister was on another TV station proclaiming his personal incorruptibility. I don't dispute that the PM himself is not corrupt, but he should be careful for whom he puts his head on the block, as he has now done for the Lands Minister.
The PM has long asked for proof of corruption, and he renewed that request again this week, specifically in relation to the Lands issue. The problem is, being mortal, he suffers from a blind spot where 'friends' are concerned. Being a lawyer, he deals with that blind spot by demanding a level of proof normally reserved for a courtroom. Minister Coy is, to date, the only minister unschooled (let's be polite) enough to leave that kind of proof. You can bet that his colleagues have learned from his mistake, and then go double or nothing that Coy's not the only member of Cabinet who operates in the certain knowledge that Ministerial rank puts you above the law. Remember, he gets to be Minister again after a six-month holiday, and we haven't heard of any real penalties for the constituent he intervened to protect...click here to email info about penalties, I'd love to be corrected.
A memorable example of the triumph of denial over doing what's right would be Ms Haylock's contract between NICH and one Gegg. This document was procedurally suspect, ethically questionable, but not actually illegal, and so Ms Haylock, a good friend of our leader, was excused with a light slap on the wrist while the Minister who dared to question the transaction was given das boot, an outcome many pundits predicted. And so it will apparently go into eternity, cyclical but endless.
Let me say very clearly here that "the PUP did way worse," "this is the way it's always been" and all the other similar expressions are absolutely unacceptable to us voters. Equally unacceptable is the notion of a leader who closes his eyes and proclaims his personal innocence while others run rampant. "I didn't burn down the house" does not absolve you if you stood by watching the flames consume it. We fired the PUP because we didn't like what they were doing; doing ten percent less doesn't mean your crowd is better, it just means they aren't (yet) as bad. But yes, I do acknowledge that it is progress to have an incorrupt leader -it just isn't enough progress.
Prime Minister, Edmund Burke said it best: "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." Do you want to go down in history as the incorruptible leader who presided over rampant, unchecked corruption? Or would you prefer our descendants to remember you as the true leader, the statesman who made the hard decisions, who punished even his friends harshly if they did wrong, who made our country a shining example of democracy and discipline? It's not too late for the latter.
What will your legacy be, Honourable Prime Minister? Incorruptible ostrich or exemplary leader?
The media is abuzz this week over one TV station's offer of a reward for information leading to the conviction of individuals involved in corruption at the Ministry of Lands. Earlier this week the Prime Minister was on another TV station proclaiming his personal incorruptibility. I don't dispute that the PM himself is not corrupt, but he should be careful for whom he puts his head on the block, as he has now done for the Lands Minister.
The PM has long asked for proof of corruption, and he renewed that request again this week, specifically in relation to the Lands issue. The problem is, being mortal, he suffers from a blind spot where 'friends' are concerned. Being a lawyer, he deals with that blind spot by demanding a level of proof normally reserved for a courtroom. Minister Coy is, to date, the only minister unschooled (let's be polite) enough to leave that kind of proof. You can bet that his colleagues have learned from his mistake, and then go double or nothing that Coy's not the only member of Cabinet who operates in the certain knowledge that Ministerial rank puts you above the law. Remember, he gets to be Minister again after a six-month holiday, and we haven't heard of any real penalties for the constituent he intervened to protect...click here to email info about penalties, I'd love to be corrected.
A memorable example of the triumph of denial over doing what's right would be Ms Haylock's contract between NICH and one Gegg. This document was procedurally suspect, ethically questionable, but not actually illegal, and so Ms Haylock, a good friend of our leader, was excused with a light slap on the wrist while the Minister who dared to question the transaction was given das boot, an outcome many pundits predicted. And so it will apparently go into eternity, cyclical but endless.
Let me say very clearly here that "the PUP did way worse," "this is the way it's always been" and all the other similar expressions are absolutely unacceptable to us voters. Equally unacceptable is the notion of a leader who closes his eyes and proclaims his personal innocence while others run rampant. "I didn't burn down the house" does not absolve you if you stood by watching the flames consume it. We fired the PUP because we didn't like what they were doing; doing ten percent less doesn't mean your crowd is better, it just means they aren't (yet) as bad. But yes, I do acknowledge that it is progress to have an incorrupt leader -it just isn't enough progress.
Prime Minister, Edmund Burke said it best: "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." Do you want to go down in history as the incorruptible leader who presided over rampant, unchecked corruption? Or would you prefer our descendants to remember you as the true leader, the statesman who made the hard decisions, who punished even his friends harshly if they did wrong, who made our country a shining example of democracy and discipline? It's not too late for the latter.
What will your legacy be, Honourable Prime Minister? Incorruptible ostrich or exemplary leader?
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Things That Go Bang In The Night
It hasn’t yet hit the news, probably because our local news organizations have one-track minds on Election Day, but another grenade took flight last night. Those of us who live in the general vicinity of Buttonwood Bay felt the shake and heard the sound of the explosion. By this morning we knew: Comptroller of Customs Gregory Gibson, or at least his house, was the target of the tosser who threw the grenade.
I’ve never met Mr. Gibson, but like every other citizen of this country, I know about the generally corrupt nature of his subordinates. After all, who among us has not come across a customs officer who is suddenly, unexplainably wealthy? By no means should you assume that I’m saying all customs officers are corrupt, but the ones who are really, really are. Mr. Gibson, however, hasn't had a whole lot said about him, and when no one in this town can get any decent rumours going, well, that fact says something about you.
So basically, I figure, as do most people, that someone tried to kill Mr. Gibson merely for doing his job. Mind you, this does not bode well for my country, when people attempt to destroy a guy for his honesty. Remember the pseudoephedrine a few months back? I doubt this incident is delayed revenge for that, so I’m forced to wonder what’s leaking through Customs now.
Mister Prime Minister, Members of the Cabinet, let’s quit trying to pretend that the crime situation is under control; that our forces can handle the problem. We need to be honest about what’s happening to our tiny country, or we’ll never be able to fix it, will we? Tonight I’m too tired and angry to be eloquent. I just want my country back. It's time to quit treating us like children, patting us on the collective head, telling us that it isn’t what it looks like and that we don't understand the global realities. Get real and get on with fixing the problem before the few remaining Mr. Gibsons of our world do get blown up.
Give me my country back! In the name of patriotism, begin to give good people like Mr. Gibson the weapons (and the forces) they need in order to fight for our right to a decent, safe way of life. It's time to get serious, deadly serious.
I’ve never met Mr. Gibson, but like every other citizen of this country, I know about the generally corrupt nature of his subordinates. After all, who among us has not come across a customs officer who is suddenly, unexplainably wealthy? By no means should you assume that I’m saying all customs officers are corrupt, but the ones who are really, really are. Mr. Gibson, however, hasn't had a whole lot said about him, and when no one in this town can get any decent rumours going, well, that fact says something about you.
So basically, I figure, as do most people, that someone tried to kill Mr. Gibson merely for doing his job. Mind you, this does not bode well for my country, when people attempt to destroy a guy for his honesty. Remember the pseudoephedrine a few months back? I doubt this incident is delayed revenge for that, so I’m forced to wonder what’s leaking through Customs now.
Mister Prime Minister, Members of the Cabinet, let’s quit trying to pretend that the crime situation is under control; that our forces can handle the problem. We need to be honest about what’s happening to our tiny country, or we’ll never be able to fix it, will we? Tonight I’m too tired and angry to be eloquent. I just want my country back. It's time to quit treating us like children, patting us on the collective head, telling us that it isn’t what it looks like and that we don't understand the global realities. Get real and get on with fixing the problem before the few remaining Mr. Gibsons of our world do get blown up.
Give me my country back! In the name of patriotism, begin to give good people like Mr. Gibson the weapons (and the forces) they need in order to fight for our right to a decent, safe way of life. It's time to get serious, deadly serious.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
PUDP...It's All The Same To Me
What the hell is going on with our leaders?! City Council allegedly couldn’t make their payments to Social Security (yet Mayor Zenaida could pay her brother’s business) for several months. Her only answer to the ongoing accusations on the matter is to, in her usual arrogant way, state that she has answered the matter already and that the previous City Council was equally irregular in its payments. Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t that why we fired that crowd?!?! And didn’t you promise us that you’d be better? Well, saying they were just as bad doesn’t exactly scream improvement, does it? The more things change....
Speaking of how bad things are at City Hall, where’s our Municipal Audit? Mr. Auditor General, are you allowing yourself to be compromised by political necessities? Because I’ll tell you this: you are paid by us and as such you answer to us, and we want our audit -before March 4th. Hell, if you’re just a little behind, feel free to give us what you’ve got and tell us when the rest will be ready. You readers remember when Ralph wouldn’t allow any criminal charges against his brother? This crowd promised to be better. The more things change….
Connected friends can avoid paying taxes with impunity while businesses that already pay more than their fair share get taxed further to pay for those friends. Try avoiding your SSB payment for a month and see what happens. Try owing money for your trade and liquor license and see how long you can stay open. Try to keep from paying your property tax and see how that goes over with Zenaida & Co. Try talking Customs down on the duty they want to charge you and see how helpful they are. Ever made a mistake of a few cents on your GST or Business Tax or been late by a day on either? But there are those who can do all that and much, much more. It's just not Archie Lee's turn anymore. The more things change….
The Labour Ministry wants businesspeople to pay more severance to their employees –three and five times more than they’ve planned for. Not a bad idea, until you look around you and see how quiet things are with businesses. Then the government complains about businesses not lowering their prices. How can they? What costs have declined for them? Not taxes, labour, or utility costs, that’s for sure. You see, the PUP claimed to be all about social justice, then proceeded to help their favoured few shred the economy. The UDP claim to be all about social justice, and are doing everything to help their favoured few take what’s left. The more things change….
The current Prime Minister says that “corruption has been eliminated at the topmost level of government,” meaning him personally, one assumes –or maybe the Governor General. Who the hell cares that one athlete is clean when the whole rest of the team is on steroids? Same argument goes for any member of PUP who sanctioned what happened by keeping silent while it was happening. Guilt by association, it’s all the rage around here. The more things change….
Look guys, economic patriotism does not mean killing the cow for a steak dinner tonight then wondering why you can’t have milk with your cereal tomorrow. Economic patriotism means keeping your local businesses in business and able to do business without the constant fear of starvation through taxation. Economic patriotism actually means embracing certain free market principles so that consumers have a choice and local businesses have to learn to compete and work toward exporting their products in order to thrive –protectionism kills innovation and quality, did you know that? Have some pasta and think about that. Hell, economic patriotism even means creating a climate that allows shoppers to be able to afford to shop in their own country -but remember, do it without starving businesses to make it happen.
You know, you can at least try to pretend you love your country. So far you aren’t fooling anyone into thinking that you want to win the job again in 2013. Did you notice that there’s a global crisis on? Has anyone told you it’s now hitting home and that your actions determine how Belize comes out of it? Trust them, they’re not the ones telling lies.
Speaking of how bad things are at City Hall, where’s our Municipal Audit? Mr. Auditor General, are you allowing yourself to be compromised by political necessities? Because I’ll tell you this: you are paid by us and as such you answer to us, and we want our audit -before March 4th. Hell, if you’re just a little behind, feel free to give us what you’ve got and tell us when the rest will be ready. You readers remember when Ralph wouldn’t allow any criminal charges against his brother? This crowd promised to be better. The more things change….
Connected friends can avoid paying taxes with impunity while businesses that already pay more than their fair share get taxed further to pay for those friends. Try avoiding your SSB payment for a month and see what happens. Try owing money for your trade and liquor license and see how long you can stay open. Try to keep from paying your property tax and see how that goes over with Zenaida & Co. Try talking Customs down on the duty they want to charge you and see how helpful they are. Ever made a mistake of a few cents on your GST or Business Tax or been late by a day on either? But there are those who can do all that and much, much more. It's just not Archie Lee's turn anymore. The more things change….
The Labour Ministry wants businesspeople to pay more severance to their employees –three and five times more than they’ve planned for. Not a bad idea, until you look around you and see how quiet things are with businesses. Then the government complains about businesses not lowering their prices. How can they? What costs have declined for them? Not taxes, labour, or utility costs, that’s for sure. You see, the PUP claimed to be all about social justice, then proceeded to help their favoured few shred the economy. The UDP claim to be all about social justice, and are doing everything to help their favoured few take what’s left. The more things change….
The current Prime Minister says that “corruption has been eliminated at the topmost level of government,” meaning him personally, one assumes –or maybe the Governor General. Who the hell cares that one athlete is clean when the whole rest of the team is on steroids? Same argument goes for any member of PUP who sanctioned what happened by keeping silent while it was happening. Guilt by association, it’s all the rage around here. The more things change….
Look guys, economic patriotism does not mean killing the cow for a steak dinner tonight then wondering why you can’t have milk with your cereal tomorrow. Economic patriotism means keeping your local businesses in business and able to do business without the constant fear of starvation through taxation. Economic patriotism actually means embracing certain free market principles so that consumers have a choice and local businesses have to learn to compete and work toward exporting their products in order to thrive –protectionism kills innovation and quality, did you know that? Have some pasta and think about that. Hell, economic patriotism even means creating a climate that allows shoppers to be able to afford to shop in their own country -but remember, do it without starving businesses to make it happen.
You know, you can at least try to pretend you love your country. So far you aren’t fooling anyone into thinking that you want to win the job again in 2013. Did you notice that there’s a global crisis on? Has anyone told you it’s now hitting home and that your actions determine how Belize comes out of it? Trust them, they’re not the ones telling lies.
Sunday, January 4, 2009
The Blagojevich Doctrine
Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich has done a lot for America (and the world) in the last couple of months. On center stage we’ve had a country (and the world) reeling from the effects of a recession so deep that nobody knows where the bottom is (nor does anyone want to find out), and then the biggest political clown we’ve seen in some time enters from stage left. If you take it from the point of view of dark humor, which I do, this guy provides serious comic relief. Admittedly, if I were an Illinois voter/taxpayer, I’d probably be pretty miffed at me for laughing.
Whatever, I’m a Belizean voter through and through. Even when I wonder why I’m bothering, I still hike down to the polling station in my division, brave the long lines, and dutifully cast my vote for the person who in my opinion might be the least crooked and the most likely to give half a damn about my country even while he/she’s picking my pockets clean. I’m not kidding about the pockets; the last gal who got my vote of semi-confidence has even taken the lint! Maybe she needs it to mop the marble floors of her sumptuous abode, you know?
What do I think of Blago? I’m thinking the man is merely a victim of geography. Be honest, if he were politicking here, what he’s accused of would seem to be business (and politics) as usual, right? Let’s say someone here taped [your area rep] discussing a board appointment on the phone. Do you think the conversation would have been much different? I mean, other than the cuss words used –like maybe saying r—s instead of f—k every so often? Sadly, we sort of expect this stuff by now.
I admit, I don’t especially care at this point which party’s in power at what electoral level; they have become all the same to me, except that some are better con artists than others.
What does bother me is this question: is our current PM just naïve, or is he disingenuous? It’s a fair question, given his statement of certainty during his New Year’s Address, where he said “…it is my proudest boast that the corruption at the very top, which became endemic under the last government, has been utterly and completely eliminated.” Whaaat?!
PM, I do know lawyer-speak when I hear it, so I figure that what you mean is that YOU’RE not corrupt because you’re the guy at the very top. And in that respect I’m willing to believe you. But unless you make all the rules, enforce them yourself, fire your entire Cabinet and never leave the country again so that no one else ‘acts’ in your place, that’s not good enough.
Prime Minister, my ma teach me when I mi small ‘nuh fi sway fi nobaddy.’ She also taught me to ‘si wid yuh own eye.’ Now here’s me, giving you a chance, figuring you mean well, that you’ll get things under control, and then a mere eleven months after you got the job you’re trying to trick me into thinking that the biggest, most entrenched thing out there done fix? That the air is now clear of the toxic, smog-thick stench of corruption and that we can toss our gas masks out for SEL to maybe pick up if they were paid this week? No, no, NO man!!! Are you really willing to swear for your entire Cabinet? Because we need more than just you being straight to achieve incorruptible governance ‘at the top.’
Plus, residents of your largest municipality are finding that corruption can be deadly at municipal government levels too. We’ve found out firsthand that it becomes both contagious and corrosive when mixed with arrogant, aggressive incompetence. This corruption spreads the garbage and, like acid, eats ever-deeper potholes into our neglected road surfaces.
Prime Minister, YOU don’t have to be corrupt in order for corruption to rule. All you have to do is turn a blind eye to it. Do you know the cost of that blindness? It makes for impotent leadership, which in turn leads to anarchy. Trickle-down corruption, even now in full flood, creates an ineffective judicial-legal system, reduces tax collections, and encourages both actual and economic vigilantism. In short, the people have begun to take the law into their own hands and to keep their tax money to themselves too –we’ll talk about that some other time.
Mr Prime Minister, it isn’t enough to say that YOU’RE not corrupt; you must be seen to be actively rooting out corruption, starting at the level just below the ‘very top’ (if I correctly interpret your lawyerly hair-cleaving) and energetically ripping it out at all levels –without political prejudice, if you please! Use both hands and your teeth if need be. Only when you’ve done this can we truly have the “sunlit terrain of justice and prosperity that we all desire and deserve.”
Meanwhile, I’ll continue watching Blago and wondering if he learned his politics from us. If he ever says r—s I’ll know the answer.
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
International Anti-Corruption Day
Okay people, the UN finally gave us one day that openly addresses the situation our country faces on all 365 of them. That day is today, December 9th 2008, it’s called International Anti-Corruption Day, and the intention is to raise public awareness of corruption and what people can do to fight it.
Now the good news is that in terms of the UN’s public awareness goals, we in Belize can proudly say that we’re halfway there. Yep, we are making progress. UN boys, you can go back and tell your bosses that the public in Belize is fully aware of corruption. Of course, now that we know about it, what do we do with it?
Let’s see, while I'm aware of it in general terms, I still have a few questions, just to get a feel for the possibilities/limits re corruption:
Do two wrongs make a right? If I forcibly rip an illegal red license plate off a ministerial (i.e. government-owned) vehicle, is that then a legal act? Because those stupid things are driving me crazy, and I may yet do that!
If I’m found driving my boss’ government car with contraband liquor in the trunk, is it appropriate for him to suspend me, or is it more ethical for him just to fire me? Keep in mind, if he fires me, I might know something, yuh knoa? Me breaking the law, that’s secondary to other considerations, right?
If I divert money intended for another project to pay for a project that I never should have guaranteed in the first place, a project I supported against the gale force winds of public fury, is that naughty of me? I mean, we’re only talking about, say, maybe $20 million or so, and I didn’t pocket a penny from that particular transaction, so how could that be wrong?
If the stink of corruption is heavy upon some of my political donors, it’s still okay for me to take their money and reward them with choice appointments, right? I mean, I can’t control their corruption so it’s nothing to do with me...right?
Okay, now I know the answer to this one, so I’ll just list it, it’s not actually a question: as a government minister, it is perfectly acceptable for me to get involved in real estate or contract or tender awards, using my power to influence transactions. If the buyer is so happy that he gifts me with a suitcase full of cash, how could that possibly be wrong?
Similarly, it cannot possibly be wrong for me to allow the importation of products that are, um, restricted from importation. The fact that a supporter or even family member might benefit from this selectively lifted restriction is purely coincidence.
Finally, and only 'cause I'm tired and it's late and I'm sleepy, I'll throw in this last, easy one. If the city suffers and is strewn with garbage because the cleaners don't get paid regularly; if potholes aren't getting fixed at any visible rate of speed; if major commercial downtown streets are inaccessible to traffic for ridiculous lengths of time; if said streets remain unhealthily dusty, are ridiculously designed despite all complaints made beforehand, and don't seem to be getting fixed any year soon...isn't this a good time for the City Council to bring up the word 'raise?'
Yeah, I thought so.
Can you think of other examples where politicians’ moral compasses have clearly lost true north? If you can, and I bet you already have, add your thoughts using the comment feature below.
Now the good news is that in terms of the UN’s public awareness goals, we in Belize can proudly say that we’re halfway there. Yep, we are making progress. UN boys, you can go back and tell your bosses that the public in Belize is fully aware of corruption. Of course, now that we know about it, what do we do with it?
Let’s see, while I'm aware of it in general terms, I still have a few questions, just to get a feel for the possibilities/limits re corruption:
Do two wrongs make a right? If I forcibly rip an illegal red license plate off a ministerial (i.e. government-owned) vehicle, is that then a legal act? Because those stupid things are driving me crazy, and I may yet do that!
If I’m found driving my boss’ government car with contraband liquor in the trunk, is it appropriate for him to suspend me, or is it more ethical for him just to fire me? Keep in mind, if he fires me, I might know something, yuh knoa? Me breaking the law, that’s secondary to other considerations, right?
If I divert money intended for another project to pay for a project that I never should have guaranteed in the first place, a project I supported against the gale force winds of public fury, is that naughty of me? I mean, we’re only talking about, say, maybe $20 million or so, and I didn’t pocket a penny from that particular transaction, so how could that be wrong?
If the stink of corruption is heavy upon some of my political donors, it’s still okay for me to take their money and reward them with choice appointments, right? I mean, I can’t control their corruption so it’s nothing to do with me...right?
Okay, now I know the answer to this one, so I’ll just list it, it’s not actually a question: as a government minister, it is perfectly acceptable for me to get involved in real estate or contract or tender awards, using my power to influence transactions. If the buyer is so happy that he gifts me with a suitcase full of cash, how could that possibly be wrong?
Similarly, it cannot possibly be wrong for me to allow the importation of products that are, um, restricted from importation. The fact that a supporter or even family member might benefit from this selectively lifted restriction is purely coincidence.
Finally, and only 'cause I'm tired and it's late and I'm sleepy, I'll throw in this last, easy one. If the city suffers and is strewn with garbage because the cleaners don't get paid regularly; if potholes aren't getting fixed at any visible rate of speed; if major commercial downtown streets are inaccessible to traffic for ridiculous lengths of time; if said streets remain unhealthily dusty, are ridiculously designed despite all complaints made beforehand, and don't seem to be getting fixed any year soon...isn't this a good time for the City Council to bring up the word 'raise?'
Yeah, I thought so.
Can you think of other examples where politicians’ moral compasses have clearly lost true north? If you can, and I bet you already have, add your thoughts using the comment feature below.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
...The Harder We Fall
Well, the 2008 Corruption Perception Index is out, and the big news is…we dropped again! In just three years, our fall from grace has taken us from 66 to 99 to 109 in the number rankings. The optimists amongst us would point out that whereas we slid 33 points in 2007, at least we only slid 10 points this year. Well hurray for us then, Mr Optimist. I’d go for a drink to celebrate, but my celebratory liquor budget is pretty tight, and besides, I’m a little nervous that if I go out I might get jacked.
Clearly, Belize’s image out there could use a generous coating of the strongest deodorant. It really isn’t fair to blame Transparency International or the other star of the September Celebrations, Ross Kemp, for this. If your neighbor comes over to visit and then tells everyone about your filthy house, the worst you can say about her is that she’s a gossip, right? So what do we do about all this gossip? How do we clean our house so that our rankings climb back up the scale for next year?
I’d start by suggesting that this government set the pace for shutting down the negative buzz by aggressively taking matters in hand. Our current leaders should loudly and visibly shut down cronyism and arrest anyone attempting to offer bribes. Start by setting a few examples and everybody else will fall into line in a hurry. Insist that audits be carried out in a timely manner for both Central Government and the municipal authorities, and act on any irregularities that these audits uncover. ACB issued a release insisting on the municipal audits –I look forward to the results, as well as the results of the results, you get what I’m saying?
Her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition could even make this into a bipartisan effort by endorsing whatever actions GOB takes, and let me push things here by using this phrase: “in a mature fashion.” The kind of things I’d love to see the Opposition support include the arrest of anyone trying to bribe a government official, including police officers. Everybody’d have to support the arrest of those accepting the bribes too, or else it just wouldn’t be fair.
Just check out the top five countries on the CPI. The thing I think they have in common is that they attempt to give their citizens a lifestyle that neither forces nor persuades them into corruption, backed up by a set of laws that really motivate people to stay on the straight and narrow path. And between you and me, I don’t think a Singapore prison is nearly as nice as Kolbe. We should learn from this.
Maybe it’d be easier just to bribe Transparency International.
Subscribe to Unbelievable Belize for email or RSS delivery, or just visit and add your thoughts and comments.
Clearly, Belize’s image out there could use a generous coating of the strongest deodorant. It really isn’t fair to blame Transparency International or the other star of the September Celebrations, Ross Kemp, for this. If your neighbor comes over to visit and then tells everyone about your filthy house, the worst you can say about her is that she’s a gossip, right? So what do we do about all this gossip? How do we clean our house so that our rankings climb back up the scale for next year?
I’d start by suggesting that this government set the pace for shutting down the negative buzz by aggressively taking matters in hand. Our current leaders should loudly and visibly shut down cronyism and arrest anyone attempting to offer bribes. Start by setting a few examples and everybody else will fall into line in a hurry. Insist that audits be carried out in a timely manner for both Central Government and the municipal authorities, and act on any irregularities that these audits uncover. ACB issued a release insisting on the municipal audits –I look forward to the results, as well as the results of the results, you get what I’m saying?
Her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition could even make this into a bipartisan effort by endorsing whatever actions GOB takes, and let me push things here by using this phrase: “in a mature fashion.” The kind of things I’d love to see the Opposition support include the arrest of anyone trying to bribe a government official, including police officers. Everybody’d have to support the arrest of those accepting the bribes too, or else it just wouldn’t be fair.
Just check out the top five countries on the CPI. The thing I think they have in common is that they attempt to give their citizens a lifestyle that neither forces nor persuades them into corruption, backed up by a set of laws that really motivate people to stay on the straight and narrow path. And between you and me, I don’t think a Singapore prison is nearly as nice as Kolbe. We should learn from this.
Maybe it’d be easier just to bribe Transparency International.
Subscribe to Unbelievable Belize for email or RSS delivery, or just visit and add your thoughts and comments.
Friday, July 4, 2008
Starting Over
I haven’t done this in a while, and to tell you the truth, I almost quit completely. You see, bloggers draw their energy and motivation from their audiences. The comments readers make, whether they agree or disagree, get bloggers going, set their mental juices flowing. If you’re silent, eventually we go silent. Hell, what’s the use of shouting when there’s no one to hear? Mind you, I wasn’t angry at my mute readership, I just figured I was doing it wrong, that I wasn’t being provoking enough. So I'll work on that if you do your part.
The idea behind this little project is to get dialogue going. I figure if you can afford a computer, an internet connection, and know how to surf the web, then you’re capable of rational thought and intellectual discussion. If you’re speaking anonymously you can speak freely, right? So I challenge you to make your comments, forward this blog to everyone you know, get the discussion going. Let’s make this thing so big that the politicians have to take notice. Then, by our anonymity, let’s make them crazy by preventing them from buying us off as they have other advocacy groups.
Use this (as well as Belize Watch) as one more forum to let the guys in charge know that we’re not taking any more abuse from them. Use all forums available, tell everyone about your thoughts, make everything you know public; get the dark stuff into the light. And if you have information you want to share, post it here or email it to belizebeliever@gmail.com.
In the meantime, let’s start this relationship over. Hi, I’m pissed, and you are…?
The idea behind this little project is to get dialogue going. I figure if you can afford a computer, an internet connection, and know how to surf the web, then you’re capable of rational thought and intellectual discussion. If you’re speaking anonymously you can speak freely, right? So I challenge you to make your comments, forward this blog to everyone you know, get the discussion going. Let’s make this thing so big that the politicians have to take notice. Then, by our anonymity, let’s make them crazy by preventing them from buying us off as they have other advocacy groups.
Use this (as well as Belize Watch) as one more forum to let the guys in charge know that we’re not taking any more abuse from them. Use all forums available, tell everyone about your thoughts, make everything you know public; get the dark stuff into the light. And if you have information you want to share, post it here or email it to belizebeliever@gmail.com.
In the meantime, let’s start this relationship over. Hi, I’m pissed, and you are…?
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Requiescant In Pace? Too Soon to Bury the Dead?
At the General Elections of 7th February, the people of Belize resoundingly underscored a message they had tried to send to the Musa/Fonseca conspiracy of dictatorship in the municipal and village council elections. But it appeared that these two could not hear us no matter how loudly we clamored for change from their status quo. Having lost on the national, municipal and rural stages, they tried to set the PUP stage for their victory at least at the party level.
So today, their own party, after years of willing entrapment in a gilded cage of their making, rejected them as we have, only not quite so resoundingly. Questions I have:
So today, their own party, after years of willing entrapment in a gilded cage of their making, rejected them as we have, only not quite so resoundingly. Questions I have:
- Will the duo in question learn that their sun has really, truly set? Or will their machinations go into even higher gear?
- How much did their near-but-not-quite-there victory cost them? Though I imagine party funds oiled that machine, as foreign funds intended for us fueled 7th February’s failure at the national polls. That’s the kind of irony we onlookers enjoy.
- What role will the Leader Emeritus assume now? Instead of going gently into the good night, he allowed himself to be used to endorse Francis, thereby shooting party democracy in its metaphorical foot. So quo vadis, Mr Price?
I think the greatest service rendered by the People’s United Party between 7th February and today is the shattering of their own myth of immortality. But did they punish the Musa/Fonseca combine enough to crush the philosophy of greed forever?
What’s next for the boys (and girls) in blue? Tell me your thoughts and ideas.
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