State…

…of the world
Last Friday evening, all flights across and over the US were grounded. ALL!! Over 3500 planes in the sky, leading to over 8000 cancellations on the ground!! But you can bet your bottom dollar that it wasn’t just the delay that was on the minds of the hundreds of thousands of travellers affected – and your Eyewitness’s!! – but rather, the thought that something catastrophic was going down that would make 9/11 look like a walk in the park!!
It was a sign of the kind of world we’re living in, innit?? Cyberattack! China! Iran! Russia! By the time officials mentioned a “communications failure”, the unofficial intelligence services of WhatsApp and other social media had already identified the aggressor, selected retaliation targets, and forwarded a voice note from somebody whose cousin “works at the Pentagon”!!
With the Middle East perpetually supplying and fuelling (pun intended) reasons to fear tomorrow, and every argument between Washington and Beijing sounding like the trailer for World War III, who coulda believed that aircraft might be merely experiencing technical difficulties with their towers?!! Surely this HAD to be the opening salvo, with all the makings of another “War of the Worlds”, that scare from the 1930s where a radio broadcast about Martians attacking was thought to be real?? Only this time, nobody needed to broadcast a fictional Martian invasion!! EVERY airport departure board saying DELAYED was enough, thank you!! Humanity now supplies its own aliens!!
Then came the preliminary explanation – ageing equipment, overloaded with data!! Could you believe it?? Well… Your Eyewitness certainly didn’t!! How disappointing and mundane and jejune!! Folks had prepared themselves for (at the very least!) sophisticated enemy hackers penetrating America’s digital defences. And now, we’re being told the suspected mastermind appeared to be a router overdue for retirement??!! No way, Jose!!
Somewhere, a Chinese cyberwarfare hacker must’ve been drafting his performance review: “Couldn’t claim responsibility for nothing – the Yanks’ infrastructure completed operation independently!!” They couldn’t deny the Jensen Huang-NVIDIA meltdown, though, could they?? And almost as catastrophic!!
We, Guyanese, of course, could offer useful advice!! When something stops working here, we generally begin with “equipment failure” and work our way towards international conspiracy, after the technician fails to answer his phone!! After all, the Barima tragedy proves we don’t maintain nothing!! But here it was: America’s got the world’s most formidable military, yet passengers still couldn’t get a communications system that was maintained to get to Miami!! Made your Eyewitness almost (but not quite) understand the evidence coming out (slowly and embarrassedly!!) from the Barima CoI!!
The Martians can stand down. Before invading Earth, they should check whether its equipment can handle the additional traffic of broadcasting, “Take me to your leader!!”

…of LOO play
Your Eyewitness was quite intrigued by the podcast made last Friday by Sanction Man’s Daady, in which he expanded (and expatiated) on the plight of his son. And if your Eyewitness’ ears didn’t fail him, his ONLY BEGOTTEN SON!! That’s how it came over, with the Daady clearly overcome with emotion about the indignities to which his son was being subjected at the jail – which he’d built for some billion or so dollars!!
Seemed to your Eyewitness the Daady was expressing remorse that he didn’t have the foresight to prepare a special cell in which his son would be ensconced as he dodged and weaved to avoid the clutches of the US OFAC sanctions!! And your Eyewitness might understand the Daady’s sentiments – since they were operating from the Pablo Escobar playbook, he had to’ve forgotten that Pablo had even installed massage parlours in the jail where he held court!!
Anyhow, tomorrow the good Judge will rule on whether the Magistrate shoulda set bail.
Nope!! Nada!!

…GECOM
Now that Pressie’s declining to fix GECOM constitutionally, the ball’s back in the Opposition’s court to sort out their impasse!! Might show the PPP how mature they are about negotiating away differences for the national good!!
Enough posturing!!