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A few nine-day wonders
MICHAEL BURKE
Thursday, April 24, 2008
In July of this year it will be fully 20 years since I have been writing columns for newspapers. In my earlier days of writing for the now defunct Jamaica Record and later the now defunct Jamaica Herald, I wrote consistently on matters of the environment. Starting from around 1989, Jamaica was all-abuzz with matters of protecting the environment. "We must not denude our forests and we must not pollute our rivers," was said time and again, but to no avail.
MICHAEL BURKE
The latest mudslide in Ocho Rios, the worst one yet, occurred last weekend. One is led to ask what is wrong with our education system if we are unable to communicate a simple message that we denude our forests and illegally quarry sand to our peril? Why must we allow profiteering to so engulf us to the point of destruction? Will the calamity in Ocho Rios simply be our latest nine-day wonder until the next mudslide comes? The next time it might be far more serious.
As far back as 1991 when rains caused the destruction of the Bog Walk Gorge, the then deputy prime minister, PJ Patterson (later prime minister for 14 years between 1992 and 2006), made the point that the destruction was disproportionate to the amount of rainfall. We consistently make the mistake of believing that if there is massive destruction it has to do with the amount of rainfall, but we do not take into account the environmental destruction by mankind that contributes to it.
As of yesterday, the last 10 of my nearly 20 years as a columnist have been spent with this newspaper, the Jamaica Observer. My first piece in this paper on April 23, 1998 was entitled, "They'll do it every time". In the piece I argued that taxes are never raised before an election but only afterwards. The fact that taxes were not raised this year, although it is only seven months since this government took office, as well as some of the grandstanding that has taken place, further suggests to me that elections could be near as I argued last week.
In the column last week, entitled "Are we to expect fresh elections?", I made one mistake. I wrote about Christopher Rose who was the Jamaica Labour Party member of parliament for South West St Andrew between 1983 and 1989, and his having been elected unopposed. I further wrote that Rose ran again in 1989. Both Troy Caine and Dr Christopher Rose himself (as he now is) contacted me to state that Rose did not run in 1989. Actually it was Royland Williams, not Christopher Rose, who received 399 votes in 1989 to Portia Simpson Miller's 18,600-odd.
I hasten to correct the error concerning Rose when it should have been Williams because there are many people including students who take whatever is written as gospel, and never take into account that writers can make mistakes. One drawback of being blessed with a good memory, as I am, is that I have developed the bad habit of not double-checking everything. In this respect, those without good memories who walk with their laptops or printed material might sometimes be better off.
Over the years, there have been many mistakes printed or broadcast by the media. I have often wondered how many students have failed examinations because they relied on what was written or broadcast in the media, which turned out to be wrong. Yes, we all make mistakes, but they should be corrected as soon as possible. One day someone who can afford to do so might just do an opinion poll to find out how many times students in this country have been misled by the media to the point of failing examinations. Would that help to stir the conscience of those who carelessly make factual mistakes and never seek to correct them? Maybe.
A recent mistake that media houses stubbornly refuse to correct is the myth that the recent Dabdoub versus Vaz case was about Daryl Vaz having dual citizenship. As the Reverend Devon Dick pointed out in the Gleaner last week, that is not the issue at all. The issue is about swearing allegiance to a foreign power and by oath renouncing any allegiance to Jamaica. That is what the issue between Dabdoub and Vaz is about and only that. One could have several citizenships and be an MP or senator as long as that MP or senator has not previously sworn allegiance to a foreign power.
Another even more common mistake since political independence nearly 46 years ago, let alone since the nearly 20 years since I have been writing columns, is the myth about Jamaica having a national dish. The media has perpetuated it. As I have written several times before, the constitution of Jamaica does not speak to a national dish, but to a national fruit, which is the ackee. And as I have written before, to make a table out of the national tree, the Blue Mahoe, does not make it the national table any more than a soup made of hummingbirds is the national soup.
ekrubm765@yahoo.com
MICHAEL BURKE
Thursday, April 24, 2008
In July of this year it will be fully 20 years since I have been writing columns for newspapers. In my earlier days of writing for the now defunct Jamaica Record and later the now defunct Jamaica Herald, I wrote consistently on matters of the environment. Starting from around 1989, Jamaica was all-abuzz with matters of protecting the environment. "We must not denude our forests and we must not pollute our rivers," was said time and again, but to no avail.
MICHAEL BURKEThe latest mudslide in Ocho Rios, the worst one yet, occurred last weekend. One is led to ask what is wrong with our education system if we are unable to communicate a simple message that we denude our forests and illegally quarry sand to our peril? Why must we allow profiteering to so engulf us to the point of destruction? Will the calamity in Ocho Rios simply be our latest nine-day wonder until the next mudslide comes? The next time it might be far more serious.
As far back as 1991 when rains caused the destruction of the Bog Walk Gorge, the then deputy prime minister, PJ Patterson (later prime minister for 14 years between 1992 and 2006), made the point that the destruction was disproportionate to the amount of rainfall. We consistently make the mistake of believing that if there is massive destruction it has to do with the amount of rainfall, but we do not take into account the environmental destruction by mankind that contributes to it.
As of yesterday, the last 10 of my nearly 20 years as a columnist have been spent with this newspaper, the Jamaica Observer. My first piece in this paper on April 23, 1998 was entitled, "They'll do it every time". In the piece I argued that taxes are never raised before an election but only afterwards. The fact that taxes were not raised this year, although it is only seven months since this government took office, as well as some of the grandstanding that has taken place, further suggests to me that elections could be near as I argued last week.
In the column last week, entitled "Are we to expect fresh elections?", I made one mistake. I wrote about Christopher Rose who was the Jamaica Labour Party member of parliament for South West St Andrew between 1983 and 1989, and his having been elected unopposed. I further wrote that Rose ran again in 1989. Both Troy Caine and Dr Christopher Rose himself (as he now is) contacted me to state that Rose did not run in 1989. Actually it was Royland Williams, not Christopher Rose, who received 399 votes in 1989 to Portia Simpson Miller's 18,600-odd.
I hasten to correct the error concerning Rose when it should have been Williams because there are many people including students who take whatever is written as gospel, and never take into account that writers can make mistakes. One drawback of being blessed with a good memory, as I am, is that I have developed the bad habit of not double-checking everything. In this respect, those without good memories who walk with their laptops or printed material might sometimes be better off.
Over the years, there have been many mistakes printed or broadcast by the media. I have often wondered how many students have failed examinations because they relied on what was written or broadcast in the media, which turned out to be wrong. Yes, we all make mistakes, but they should be corrected as soon as possible. One day someone who can afford to do so might just do an opinion poll to find out how many times students in this country have been misled by the media to the point of failing examinations. Would that help to stir the conscience of those who carelessly make factual mistakes and never seek to correct them? Maybe.
A recent mistake that media houses stubbornly refuse to correct is the myth that the recent Dabdoub versus Vaz case was about Daryl Vaz having dual citizenship. As the Reverend Devon Dick pointed out in the Gleaner last week, that is not the issue at all. The issue is about swearing allegiance to a foreign power and by oath renouncing any allegiance to Jamaica. That is what the issue between Dabdoub and Vaz is about and only that. One could have several citizenships and be an MP or senator as long as that MP or senator has not previously sworn allegiance to a foreign power.
Another even more common mistake since political independence nearly 46 years ago, let alone since the nearly 20 years since I have been writing columns, is the myth about Jamaica having a national dish. The media has perpetuated it. As I have written several times before, the constitution of Jamaica does not speak to a national dish, but to a national fruit, which is the ackee. And as I have written before, to make a table out of the national tree, the Blue Mahoe, does not make it the national table any more than a soup made of hummingbirds is the national soup.
ekrubm765@yahoo.com