Jack Be Nimble..

The war of words between FIFA vice-president Jack Warner and the English Football Association has re-opened over a handbag which was gifted to his wife by former FA chairman Geoff Thompson.

The handbag, worth £230, was presented to Warner last month at a 'Leaders in Football' conference in London last month and fell fully within FIFA rules in relation to gifts. Now he has returned the gift, angry at the media storm it has created.

But Warner now claims the handbag has become "a symbol of derision, betrayal and embarrassment" and he is annoyed that he received no backing from the FA.

England are bidding for the 2018 or 2022 World Cup finals, and CONCACAF official Warner is one of the officials who will have a say in which countries win the vote.

It is not the first time that Warner has courted controversy on the issue, as he recently stated that England's bid was lackluste.

British newspapers reported that Warner has written to FA chairman Lord Triesman to complain, stating that "there is nothing that your FA can offer me to get my vote''.

He said: "If England does get it, it is because CONCACAF and I sincerely believe that England is deserving. 'I have faced and continue to face all kinds of indignities from all manner of persons. But when these insults touch my wife, it represents an all-time low.

"This malaise of my wife and I has been allowed to fester for too long much to our embarrassment and the embarrassment of the institutions which I represent," he added, criticising the "deafening silence" from the FA. "In this regard, therefore there is only one recourse: a return of this gift, which has become a symbol of derision, betrayal and embarrassment for me and my family.

Source

Maybe the FA is silent for another reason, hmm Jack? What does Trinidad think I wonder..

All Their Base Does NOT Belong To Them

I attempted to go to UWI's website, and google blocks it and displays the below:

Warning - visiting this web site may harm your computer!

I'm thinking, nahhhh, UWI's shit got compromised? Man nahhhhh.. lol. It appears that they have.

If you are browsing using firefox, you can try to get to the site and you can then view their (google's) diagnostic and see what nasties lurk in the background on the ill fated domain. Or .. you can use an old version of IE and ..hit it raw, as it were.

Anyhow, If you know the webmaster, someone in the IT department, have them check their web server, all is not well.

Voice In The Wilderness

I posted an excerpt to a recent article on facebook and got a few comments, one of which I started to respond too, but then realised it was a little too involved to be restricted to the facebook comment box. (I also ran out of space lol)

Here is the comment made by a friend below. It is in relation to the post "Doing Nothing Never Looked So Good".

I am sensing a naive view and take on politics. If you as a voting citizen don't voice your opinions (other than on a facebook page), there is no way that anything you want done in the society will be done - call in programmes, online rants, all ineffective ways of really effecting change. We always hear the cry, "only certain people does get through" it's my take that these people justly advocate and make their demands known. It is worrisome that no one uses the appropriate channels to ensure change goes in their desired direction but then comments when things go awry. You have to hold your elected officials accountable, they will not and can not sit in their offices and by some process of diffusion or osmosis gather information. We had a few visionary leaders but these guys don't come along every five years - once in a lifetime if ya lucky. You have to make the politicians work for you and until you do, they will work for either themselves or for whoever is beating their backs.

- M

This is my take on the above, along with the usual strung together words that represent my valiant attempt to veil my slender grasp on grammar.

M, I believe your view is naive actually. Find out who your representative is, that is if you don't already know, and call him/her. Let me know of your success. If by some miracle you are successful, you will be the exception to what has become the rule. Ask around.

My parliamentary rep is Denis Lowe, believe he's a reverend doctor or some other such lovely title. He started with a bang, but I believe he's fresh out of gunpowder and luck also. There's talk of a cabinet reshuffle looming (could all be bullshit of course, much like most of what I write) and he will likely be a casualty of the cut (rumoured), when the cards are dealt again. Domestically, he has also been absent. His appointees however could have been found flaunting his success in his constituency shortly after the election. That pie has since cooled, and to be blunt, ain't shit going on.

What happens in politics affects us all on a macro scale, I care for a few reasons, one of which is "it gives me shit to write about". It's seriously easy fodder, and it helps that a lot of what I say, not only needs to be said, but it's absence from pronouncement in the mainstream media, makes it all the more relevant to those with eyes to see (along with a healthy appetite for BS of course).

Speaking of which..(the MSM I mean) you as a voting citizen with a closer connection to the mainstream media than most, should be all too aware of how things get done.. or you may not. Take the advocate for example, whether you want to believe it or not, It's just a grumpier version of the Nation with a better spell-check, that has very little to offer in the classifieds section, ESPECIALLY for people looking for cars. (Srsly, the fux up with that Bryan?)

Curious to know what you consider the appropriate channels to ensuring (strong choice of words) this change? Call in programmes, blogs, facebook notes, online rants etc are all ineffective methods you say, so.. what is the way? What is your way?

Parliamentary reps, can't sit in their offices and gather info by osmosis, but were they actually present in their offices at all, they would not have to employ 27th century science. (Srsly, it'll be all the rage in times to come.)

I'm not the only one with an opinion, just listen to Brasstax (shoutout to KP lol) and its filled with people who've got things to say. Many of them actually speak to their woes in dealing with our monolithic bureaucracy, or as some would call it, 'the proper channels'. After weeks or months of being turned around, they turn to an avenue open to them to get their voice (and what has turned into a grievance) heard, and the politicians are WELL aware of what happens on the call-in programmes, it is the pulse of the people at large, but particularly the people of our parents' and grandparents' generations.

Don't knock the online rants, the facebook notes, the blogs etc, this avenue will become the undisputed pulse of our generation also, if it isn't already so. This is my way of holding the leaders of my country accountable in between elections. I am not slandering anyone I don't think (lawyer friends help me here), no libel (I hope), so this page, thanks to Google's vast storage, can stay up forever and 12 seconds.

Sure, the Prime Minister won't come to this page, read my articles and go, HMM, I really should make my Ministers work for their money. Even if he did, I'm a proverbial nobody and there are no political legs in taking me on.

This is my soapbox of sorts (my sandbox too, mind your step lol), so expect rants, expect the belief that elected officials should do what we pay them to do, and expect me to call them out whenever the opportunity (unfortunately) presents itself.

I'll give you an example of why I write this stuff. You haven't disagreed or agreed with the article in question. If you agreed that the government isn't doing what it said it would do, just for example. Do you care? If you do, what are you doing about it? I've seen no lone female shouting slogans. Heard no calls on the programmes. Are there editorial pieces that I am missing? Do you really give a fuck? Does our generation?

To be honest most of us are either too afraid of the 'my boss or someone they know is on my fb page, gotta be careful what I say' (legitimate concern btw lol) thing, or simply are too consumed with getting through with life 'as is' to worry about politicians and what they're doing to the country they live in.. or they genuinely could give a shit about politics and anything associated.

I have no problem with that, the result of giving a fuck is NIL when you do it alone anyway, and on a micro level, there are often bigger fish to fry.

I'll keep hoarding the oil for now. This whale will fry yet. :)




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Doing Nothing Never Looked So Good

I think it was Malcolm X I heard speaking on Mix FM saying a black man would be broke, no power to the house, but he'd throw a party.

My PM's like that. JUST like that.

I'm reading the back page of today's (Friday September 18th 2009) Nation newspaper and it's headline is "ON BOARD". Our fearless leader will be sparing no expense to make sure Ryan Brathwaite has everything he needs to do well at the olympics in 2012. This is of course, good stuff, one would hope one's government would support you in such an endeavour when you have proved your worth. (Remember this bit.. proving one's worth)..

I've a friend who follows athletics passionately and I'm pretty sure he is NOT pleased at the lack of support for athletes who may have similar potential to Ryan, but remain without financial support (perhaps you should have cried earlier Ralph) from many of the business houses we saw showering Ryan with gifts, or to be more politically correct.. 'riding his dick' :). (Seriously, before he won Gold, I would bet my last dollar 90% of them knew nothing about him.)

BTW.. Congrats Ryan. I don't know you, but I felt extremely proud to be a bajan, when I watched you win.

Alright, let's move on.

The PM's remarks got under my skin a little, because, as usual, just like the sunset legislation for ICC Cricket World Cup, the government passes whatever laws it 'needs' to, or pulls out whatever stops it 'needs' to, to either score political points, save face politically, keep up appearances politically.

Moving with haste

Government, according to Thompson, would be moving with haste so as to complete a national sports policy and a national youth policy within the next 12 months, so no talented Barbadian sports people would be left on the wayside.

Those are the words of the PM.

Here are some more of his words.

DLP Manifesto 2008: Pathways To Progress, Page 24, Item 21, Paragraph 4

Government is the single largest employer in
Barbados. The Democratic Labour Party will
spare no effort to establish a well-trained and impartial public service, free from political interference, which is essential for good governance.

Thereby the public service will be
empowered to operate in a professional manner.
To achieve this, the DLP will:

a. Formulate and implement a Human Resource
Development Policy for the public
service;


b. Implement a service-wide public service training policy which will see among other things:

– The establishment of a Public Service Training College offering programmes which will meet the qualification requirements for public officers

– The introduction of Induction Training
(orientation) for all new public
officers

– Management and leadership training
being provided at various points in a
public officer’s career

We recently watched as the NUPW picketed the UDC headquarters over the dismissal or pending dismissal of a few employees. The reason? They were not qualified. However, this government, if it were to be taken at it's word had 2 years to implement the training college they said they would, in order to help public officers meet their qualification requirements.

That has fallen by the wayside only to be replaced by political interference, one of the things they pledged to remove from government.

Here are some more words.

Immediately introduce integrity legislation requiring

• a declaration of assets by public officials,
• a Code of Conduct for Ministers,
• a new Freedom of Information law,
• amendments to the Defamation laws and
• new constitutional provisions to rationalise
the powers of the Prime Minister.

'Immediately' has been re-defined to mean 'Don't hold your breath'. I had a whole bit typed up on this, but I just deleted it. It's a waste of time. There are no points to be scored 'yet', so these things which were used as political bait and ammunition to differentiate the DLP from the BLP have ..what's the term.. ah yes.. fallen by the wayside (if you read this Ryan Brathwaite, take note buddy), in favour of lavish celebrations, promises of support, ambassadorships, and sports and youth policies, while elected officials who noone can catch nary a sight of since the election, get fat doing NOTHING for our money.

I will not touch the cost of living, roads, or jobs right now. I may well be charged for inciting riot.


Going back to the earlier point of proving one's worth. The PM would like to think that these memorable events will count as having proven his worth come election time, but they will not. The youth vote came out last year in a BIG way. It will come out again, just like last year, armed with facts and a scorecard with many incompletes and absent MPs.

The DLP will get a rude awakening I believe. Right now I cannot say they will lose, but articles like this will continue to be written every month, every year, especially in light of proclamations which spit in the face of poor people who are in need. (see the article in the Nation with the crowd outside of the Welfare office).

People aren't stupid, and promises may get you a shot, but that's it.

The voting youth run tings now and they don't need your cornbeef, even the yardfowls have diversified their diets to include some truth. They will be persuaded by results.

You have precious little to show thus far Mr. PM.

Veritas Lux Mea

Verbum Sapienti Satis Est

Peace.

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Hugh-ge Risk?

FirstCaribbean International Bank has recently hired a new Chief Risk Officer. His name is Hugh Boyle.

Now not many know of this development, maybe it's made the rounds in the business papers, who knows.

Here's the highlight reel.

Goldman Sachs - late 80s - 90s

Lehman Brothers - 99 - 03

Washington Mutual (WaMu) - 03 - 08

Now it may just be an unfortunate coincidence that Mr. Boyle has worked for two of the biggest victims of the US financial crisis, or he may have been a participant (unwilling or otherwise) in the untimely demise of his latest employer, WaMu.

His position at WaMu was Chief Credit Officer and then Chief Risk Officer.

See a story posted in the L.A Times about one year ago.

Why WaMu failed

September 26, 2008 | 2:32 pm

You can make these things complicated, or you can make them simple. I'll make this one simple. Washington Mutual failed not because of a credit squeeze or a crisis of confidence or because it participated in esoteric investment vehicles.

It failed because it made thousands -- tens of thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands -- of really stupid decisions. The weight of those boneheaded moves sunk the bank.

Let me highlight one, courtesy of Bubble Info, a San Diego real estate blog I like. The blog shows a small, poorly maintained house marked with graffiti inside and out. A couch sits on the front patio. From Bubble Info:

WaMu refinanced this 1,500sf house in City Heights just over a year ago -- when it was obvious that the market was in trouble, and the smarter banks should have been reeling in their lending practices.

The owner paid $83,000 when he bought it from Home Savings in 1995.

WaMu loaned him $449,000 in June 2007.

It's now being offered as a short sale -- for $140,000!

Two cents: The loan was made in June 2007, after the subprime collapse. Sorry folks, but this is a form of corporate suicide.

--Peter Viles

That's not a pretty picture, is it? Now, I have no facts to say he had anything to do with approving loans he knew would fail, but I have no facts to say he didn't either. And I have his name next to the title's Chief Credit Officer and Chief Risk Officer.

Anyway, a big institution like FCIB, wouldn't hire someone that wasn't mustard. I was a teller there once and I had to do all kinds of psychometric testing.. yes.. to be a bloody cashier.

So I'm sure they've checked him out thoroughly. Made sure his practices whilst in his previous positions were financially sound etc etc, even IF the banks he previously worked for have both failed in - I dare say - spectacular fashion.

To my FCIB friends.

Vaya con dios mi amigos.

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Hofstra Rape Charges Dropped

These kinds of stories just piss me off.

HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. (AP) -- Authorities in New York say the Hofstra University student who told police that she had been gang-raped by five men on campus has recanted her story.

Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice said in a statement released late Wednesday that the 18-year-old told law enforcement officials that the sex was consensual.

Rice says Nassau County Judge Robert Bruno then dismissed the charges against four of the men and ordered their release.

The woman had accused the men, including a Hofstra student, of taking her cell phone at an on-campus nightclub and luring her into a dormitory men's room and sexually assaulting her early Sunday.

Four of them, Rondell Bedward, Jesus Ortiz, Kevin Taveras and Stalin Felipe, were arrested and arraigned on rape and other charges.

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/09/16/hofstra-rape-student-lied_n_289473.html

Source


So these guys get their faces splashed all over the news, reputations ruined, and not one person is splashing the lying woman's face on tv saying .. 'look 'ere' she's the one that caused all this. I'm sure it was irresistable. Four black/hispanic guys? Man the news ate that shit UP.. just look at those thugs! Those rapists!

Stupse.

I hope these guys sue. That woman needs to see the inside of a jail cell also.

This song's for that lovely lady.





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I'mma Let You Finish..

I saw a few funny pics of the whole Kanye interruption business and followed a few links and ..well. here.

I lol'd.














lulz ^_^














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Surfing In Schools

I saw an article last week saying we should add surfing to the curriculum in our schools. I thought, hey! great idea! It's lot's of fun, children will learn how to survive in the ocean under differing and very dynamic conditions, they will learn about tides, weather, swells, aquatic life etc, they will have a vested interest in keeping the beaches clean, and on and on we could go. Alan Burke, the person making the suggestion said all those things in his article and I agree 1000%.

I should add here, that I too, am a surfer. He does standup, I bodyboard. I have friends who are watermen of all varieties, wakeboarders, bodyboarders, surfers, windsurfers, kite-surfers etc. (Shoutout to Phil Als, Roger Millar, Adrian Boyce)


I have a tremendous appreciation for the environment and especially the ocean. I should also add that bodyboarding is an absolute thrill! I'm not very good, but I'm enthusiastic lol.

We are surrounded by the ocean, why are our children confined to a pool, when the ocean presents so many varieties of activities they can get into? Yes, sure, they can get into trouble also, as we see them doing every summer. I put it to you that the drownings would be significantly reduced if children knew how to manage themselves as a direct derivative of learning to surf.

I personally have almost drowned twice in VERY heavy surf when I lost my board and it's only experience that allowed me to make it out of that situation. Like Mr. Burke said in his first article, you will be hard pressed to see a report of a drowned surfer in Barbados.

Joyce whateverhernameis wrote an article in response to Mr. Burke, suggesting we keep the 'water activity' to the pool, which is already being used by some schools for swimming sports and the like. She also took a shot at the old school surfing fraternity saying they're pretty much just a bunch of old guys trying to drum up business for their surfing schools or what not.

What a load of BS.

ANYONE.. and I mean.. A N Y O N E, who surfs knows the feeling you get out in the water. You instantly develop a passion for the sport and for the ocean. You become an evangelist for it. You want everyone to try it, and to love it as much as you do.

We should all be so lucky to spend our days doing what we love and being able to support our families doing so.

You can suck it Joyce, people like us (surfers) save ignorant people like you, (no really..you are ignorant), every weekend when the rip takes your un-educated asses for a ride to "OH MY GOD I CAN'T STAND UP".

The pool will only teach our children so much, when they get into the ocean, they are still unable to negotiate difficult currents and situations where they find themselves out of their depth.

Mr. Burke responded to her today stating among other things, a simple fact. It can be optional. You don't want your son/daughter to be a loser like us? Simply send them to the pool. Unfortunately we see the results of pool teaching, or NO teaching, every Easter and every Summer.

I say bring on the surfing. Let me know what you guys think.