Stories about Caribbean from January, 2008
Barbados: Bring on the ferries
Barbadian Notes from the Margin argues for an inter-island Caribbean ferry service. “Moving people and goods from island to island is hugely difficult….”
Jamaica: “Heartbreaking” deterioration
Montego Bay Day By Day posts “heartbreaking” photos of a deteriorating historic building in Falmouth, Jamaica.
Anguilla, China: Illegal foreign labour?
Are Anguillan building contractors using cheap and illegal Chinese labour? Corruption-Free Anguilla is concerned.
Trinidad and Tobago: “Not playing mas”
Trinidad's Coffeewallah explains why she will not be participating in this year's Carnival masquerade.
Trinidad and Tobago: Water woes
If Trinidad and Tobago is so good at pumping oil out of the ground, OpenDepth asks, why are water mains so often dry?
Guyana: World ignores Lusignan?
Caribbean Lionesse asks: Why has the international media ignored the recent Lusignan massacre in Guyana? “Are 11 brown and black lives worth such scant attention?”
European Court of Human Rights Condemns France on Homosexual Adoption
In Martinique, Le Blog de Moi doesn't know whether to vomit or dying laughing from some of the online commentary surrounding the European Court of Human Rights’ decision to condemn France [Fr] for refusing to allow homosexual adoption.
Trinidad & Tobago: Where's The ‘Mas?
Thebookmann attends Trinidadian artist Ashraph's Carnival exhibition: “The Midnight Robber, the Fancy Sailor, Bats, Red Devils and Fancy Indians, Kings and Queens and to its current transitional state of feathers and beads, all inclusive, in a brown paper bag.”
St Vincent & The Grenadines, Belize: Palacio Gone To Soon
St. Vincent blogger Abeni knew the late Belizean musician Andy Palacio personally and says: “News of his death…triggered all those memories of yesteryear. Gone at 47 which seems too soon.”
Barbados, Bermuda, USA: Standing for Change
Cheese-on-bread! notices a similarity between the new Barbados government's campaign slogan and Barack Obama's – and hopes that the “rallying cry will work for him as well as it did for PM Thompson et al…”; while Politics.bm thinks Bermuda's government “represents everything Obama rejects.”
Trinidad & Tobago: Panorama
Thebookmann reports on the pervasive mood as Trinidad and Tobago steelbands move closer to the Panorama finals.
Trinidad & Tobago: On Not Eating Meat
“I am not the preachy sort of vegetarian,” declares Trinidadian Nicholas Laughlin, as he links to an article that “summarises so succinctly the good reasons to stop eating meat–or at least reduce the amount one eats…”
Jamaica: Greetings from Jamaica
Francis Wade blogs about the sweetness of Jamaican greetings.
Bermuda: Police-Blogger Suspended
Bermudan Police Officer and blogger Allan Palmer reports that he is officially “on suspension” following a blog post that he wrote.
Bahamas: Secret Ballot?
Craig Butler at Bahama Pundit thinks that “the voting process in the Bahamas is not secret”.
Bahamas: Moving On…
Rick Lowe at WeblogBahamas.com is fed-up of the two political parties’ bickering about the election results: “It is time for the rhetoric to stop on both sides of the political divide so the country can move forward.”
Belize: Palacio Laid to Rest
Belizean was there when musical icon Andy Palacio was laid to rest.
Jamaica: Safe Sex?
Stunner's Afflictions blogs about the controversial issue of distributing condoms in Jamaican schools.
Guyana, Trinidad & Tobago: Lusignan Massacre
“I've never felt so utterly hopeless about Guyana as I do today, and it weighs all the heavier in this prolonged season of hopelessness about my own country, my own society”: As news spreads about the horrific massacre in the town of Lusignan, Nicholas Laughlin‘s heart bleeds for Guyana.
Trinidad & Tobago: “La Fantasie” & Reality
“For most Trinidadians, giving the name ‘La Fantasie’ to a house is a bitter joke, rousing memories of the hundreds of millions spent to construct the new prime ministerial palace…it also pokes sardonic fun at the fantasy of social and economic progress peddled by the current Trinidad and Tobago government”:...
Brazil: Countdown to Carnival
There is a popular belief that in Brazil the year only starts after Carnival. Be this an exaggeration or not, there is not much else being talked about on the country's blogosphere: everyone is dusting off their costumes, getting into the mood and counting down the days for the biggest street party on Earth. Here's a round up of bloggers expectations in Rio de Janeiro, Bahia, Pernambuco, and the lesser known carnival in Minas Gerais.
About our Caribbean coverage
Janine Mendes Franco is the Caribbean editor. Email her story ideas or volunteer to write.
