My plan if I led the GOJ right now..

[Karl]

But what going happend when dem step on yuh toe and nuh seh sarry ?

Will not happen!
...and, you must remember that when toes ar stepped the instinctive reflex action is to get that pressure off the toes! They assimilate...trus mi!

[Muadib]

Put aside your biased parochial views for a minute and examine the facts.

FACT:

The JLP Platform highlighted several deficiencies in the way the country was being managed and also spoke to the serious consequences if we continued along that path.

FACT:

Finding Govt Roles for reputable PRIVATE SECTOR individuals demonstrates a serious thought process on how to leverage good resources to attack existing problems.. example Webhy and Lynch..

Fact: There has been an engagement of Multilaterals at a level of innovation as opposed to rote.

Just a few examples.

Your response is:

Willi...I understand your good intentions. Do you seriously think that there is any collective 'think tank' for Jamaica's future? Do you sense that there is any urgency from the political directorate and others? Do you sense that there is any feeling of crisis looming? That we are being left behind? Isn't Jamaica a country focusing on petty squabbles, radio talk-shows, X-news and religious rhetoric? Isn't it every man for himself?

Is that your version of constructive criticism ?

And you have the heart tear down Motty Perkins ??

Heh, heh.

[Exile]

Maudib...at last you 'attempt' to respond without your usual games. Well, a little. Unfortunately, you once again base your arguments on faulty a premise labelled as 'Fact'. My questions to Willi were not criticism of the JLP Gov. it was more sharing his frustration with the relative inactivity of processes that he think could move the country forward. He made sm suggestions.
Parochialness is the narrow-minded view that emanates when you get caught up in the incestious glorification of few individuals that you 'idolize' and think will 'save' Jamaica. This will never happen. I will not even entertain a discussion of Perkins. Those are your usual red-herrings when you don't want to deal with the issues.
Yes, Jamaica needs a BIGGER and WIDER approach to solving national problems and setting national priorities (not JLP/PNP). Until we start to make decisions that are best for JAMAICA and not serving the interests of a few, if I may borrow a term - the 'parasitic oligarchy'.
I see the Tourism Min. speech which he amde on World Tourism Day (I will post above) that had sm good if what narrow view on the environment (cleaning up and beautifying) but at least if they can take some of these and action them..there may still be hope.

[Muadib]

I'm sorry.. what was the basis of this question again ?

"Do you seriously think that there is any collective 'think tank' for Jamaica's future? ,Do you sense that there is any urgency from the political directorate and others?"

That question lead me to believe you are stuck in pre Sept 3rd...

Some comments from within Jamaica Trade and Invest:

"Wow".. "Refreshing"... "They actually get it"..".."they have me on the ball"..

[Exile]

Keep wallowing in your self-inflicted incestious euphoria. Tell me what is the collective think tank? Where are the multi-sectorial groups with the NATIONAL planning options. Yes, the PM was right, we do have "many rivers to cross!

[Muadib]

Improvement.

Soon well will have you reformulating your question from rhetoric to one of cogency and relevance.

Good way to go, but you are on the right track...

[Exile]

You are not. Totally hopeless. Answer the question nuh!

[Muadib]

Next time ask a serious question. When you stick out your neck with rhetoric, don't bawl when it get slap.

[Willi]

Willi...sounds good...sm problems. Quick points.
1. Land availability and land use problems. Most of our prime and even marginal lands are now being earmarked for housing...both public and private sector. A lot of public lands have been sold off, subdivided...given away? How do we channel appropriate lands for agriculture? How do we get pvt sector to see agric. as profitable?
2. Policing the system. This is mainly in the low-cost fuel for farmers. Fishermen used to getsubsidized fuel (back in the day), don't know if they still do but there were issues when it was filtering off to mini-buses, trucks etc.
3. Environmental issues. How to deal with the exhaust and fumes from poorly maintained deisel engines? Do we have laws, monitoring (more work and infrastructure for Licencing authority) or get pvt contractors to do it?
4. Large tracts - corn and most grain are best done with mechanization of large tracts. Where do we have these (except for sugarcane fields)?
5. Brazil. With their newly found oil, will Brazil move away from ethanol production systems?

There must be sm overarching principle for all of this. Spouting developed world status by 2030 will not cut. Our National Physical Development Plan has gathered dust and never been used. We have haphazard buildings, hotels popping all over the place. Water pollution remains a HUGE problem. Sewage treatment and disposal continues unabated. Corruption and trickery is endemic. Loan %s are ludicrous. Crime is ..well unrealistic! Policial cronyism and divisions continue. So this is the framework we are working with. What is the NATIONAL appproach? What is our National Development Plan about? Where is our plan?

Jatropha is suited for VERY marginal land...it can even survive 3 years of drought conditions and pumps NITROGEN BACK INTO THE SOIL, SO NOT MUCH RISK OF SQUEEZING OUT FOOD CROPS. INDEED, IT IS MEANT to be grown alongside/in between cash crops.

I agree that we messed up by making the likes of greater portmore into housing estates when it is prime agro lands.

I am not targetting factory farms, I rather want to see small and medium family farms get in on the act. The margins seem to be there, and Govt can give incentives by giving away the first batch of seedlings.

Farm diesel is differntly coloured. Perhaps they can pay the same price up front, but reclaim the difference in their reduced income tax?? Home grown bio-diesel for self usage of course would NOT be taxed in any way.

Fume control would be done thru the fitness "Serfiticket" (LoL) system that obtains for all motor vehicles (exhaust test). In any case, we already have poorly maintained gas and deisel engines on the road and bio-diesel is less toxic and thus less polluting than oil derived deisel.

Small farmers can jump on the corn bandwaggon with a certain surety now, as prices will likely be high for at least the medium term! I am talking only about enough mais for domestic consumption, so we dont need that much mechanization. Corn will be exclusively a food crop in Jamaica. It is cane, Jatropha and maybe castor that will be bio-fuels.


Brazil is a MAJOR ethanol exporter and that wont change. the driver for that is more US demand and not domestic Brazillian demand. In any case, the Braz. oil will also be for export, so the balance of domestic fuel consumption wont change radically in the short to medium term. they have too much ethanol infrastructure for that...a bag ah flex cars.

[MdmeX]

Me want one tree fi plant eena mi back yard.

[Exile]

Maudib, you are suffering from ADD..there's Rx for that too. Now, s l o w ly... scroll up read the nonsense you wrote and ATTEMPT to make sm sense. Mine me call Bricktop fi yu!!!!!

[Don1]

You nailed it

Unfortunately, you continue to be shackled by your parochial views and political outlook. Frankly, the political campaigning showed how narrow-minded and simplistic those that want to wield power are (well sm of them). Group think from a few who are looking only to benefit for themselves is not the kind of broad-based national initiative or perspective that we are looking for.
Restructuring of Agencies and boards are "piece-meal" - it is just a changing of the guard... and really if you are impressed with Shaw's intellectual capabilities or as as you say "indicate a serious thought process" then we are in deeper trouble.
Maybe, you really need to be out of the picture sometimes to be objective...it is a difficult task indeed.

:

Glad to see an insightful offering.

To get an idea of the level of vision, balance and progressive nationalism extant in Jamaica now one only has to look at what passes for political discourse in this forum.

The most aggressive posters here cannot sustain a reasoned discussion of differences or issues without the thread devolving into political point scoring and name calling pursued to a nonsensical extreme.

It's a reflection of Jamaica and illustrates one reason why we are not further ahead.

Sad.

[Muadib]

Very sad.

[Baddaz]

brilliant...

The most aggressive posters here cannot sustain a reasoned discussion of differences or issues without the thread devolving into political point scoring and name calling pursued to a nonsensical extreme.