…or being wolf?
Hearing about the “security threat” from Prezzie and Security Minister Ramjattan that “forced” them to call the army out of its barracks to join the Police Force – and enter “certain communities”, citizens can be excused for being in a heightened state of alarm. After all they’re already jumpy after witnessing – and experiencing – the onslaught of violent armed robberies in almost every community.
If the government’s gonna follow Homeland Security threat alerts, they’d better start issuing “coloured” warnings of the threat level… so that citizens can know what should be their appropriate “worry level”. The US levels were: Severe (red) – severe risk; High (orange) – high risk; Elevated (yellow) – significant risk; Guarded (blue) – general risk; Low (green) – low risk.
So after the first day, what risk was detected? What we do know is that the Camp Street and New Amsterdam jails were raided. Was the threat that the “intelligence” presumably uncovered was that there might be another prison riot? Were any matches found? Well for the general populace, that would seem to be a “green” for ordinary folks, but “red” for the prison guards.
It didn’t seem, however, that any guns were found which could’ve signalled that maybe a prison breakout was not in the offing. That would’ve been a threat “red” for both citizens and prison guards. But if the threat was coming only from the prisons… was there need for the government to alarm the entire country?
And that brings us back to the American experience with all these warnings about “national security”. To be blunt, the threats were abused by the politicians to violate the civil rights of citizens. And to show they were “doing something” in the “war against terrorism” that was draining the treasury and social programmes – while fattening the military-industrial complex. They never revealed the reasons for their warnings – citing the circular reasoning that they couldn’t expand on the national security threat because of national security!
All the citizens knew was that they were harassed and subjected to all sorts of restrictions and searches and seizures. For the security forces, the threat colours became useless. How could they, for instance, maintain a “significant risk” readiness level for a “yellow” threat for two and a half years, as was the case in the States? Will we in Guyana ever be told what this present “security threat” was? You bet we won’t. National security, you know!!
It shouldn’t surprise anyone that the colour coded risk levels were abandoned by 2011. Here in Guyana, President Granger didn’t take too kindly to the GDF being deployed in Buxton during what he called “the troubles”.
So are we assured there’ll be no new “troubles”??
…on jobs for Americans
Donald Trump, the next President of the USA, boasted that he didn’t pay any taxes for years and years. And none of his supporters batted an eyelid, much less thought THAT it’ll disqualified him from running a country that depends on taxes for paying the government’s bills. And they didn’t, because not paying taxes is the DUTY of every businessman and business. In law school and accountancy programmes they teach their graduates specifically how to parse the 74,608 pages of the US tax code so their employers don’t pay taxes.
You’d be surprised how little taxes the biggest US corporations pay. 20 per cent of them – including General Electric that made .8 billion in profits in 2014 – paid NO taxes! The Donald? He uses the depreciation allowance on his buildings to shield all his profits… and it’s all legal. Why should he be embarrassed?
But what’s so different here? Why is it our President – who’s paid from the taxes of the working poor he represents – pay NO taxes on his salary of .8 million?
…on Skeldon
What’s up with Professor Thomas? How can he publicly announce that the Skeldon Sugar Factory is in a “deplorable” state – when he wants to sell it?
That’s the problem with these desk-bound academic types – no business sense!
