Category Archives: USA

General T&T, International, Oil and Gas, PNM, Politics, Recession, USA, Venezuela

Young’s tragic blunder

By Dr Selwyn R. Cudjoe
May 18, 2020

If once you forfeit the confidence of your fellow citizens, you can never regain their respect and esteem.

—Abraham Lincoln

Dr. Selwyn R. CudjoeI thought the expeditious manner in which the Prime Minister and his party handled the coronavirus pandemic rescued their fortunes and gave their supporters reason to believe the PNM would focus on the needs of ordinary people, albeit by circumstances rather than by choice.

Then the unravelling came. Without even being pushed, the Minister of National Security uttered the most unbelievable statements of his career and, by extension, the Government in which he serves. Inexplicably, he continues to do so in the face of evidence to the contrary.
Continue reading Young’s tragic blunder →

Finance, General T&T, Health, International, Oil and Gas, PNM, Politics, Recession, USA

Compassion and consumer power

By Raffique Shah
May 12, 2020

Raffique ShahBased on comments I’ve heard or read in the media on the likely economic realities that will confront us when Government eases the COVID-19 “lockdown”, I am worried about the future of Trinidad and Tobago. No one disputes that the country faces enormous problems, what with the near-collapse of the oil and gas sectors, the closure of several petrochemical plants in Point Lisas, and the absence of other export-driven industries that could earn substantial foreign exchange.
Continue reading Compassion and consumer power →

General T&T, India, PNM, Politics, Race and Identity, Racism Watch, UNC, USA

The Lie…

2 Comments

By Dr Selwyn R. Cudjoe
May 11, 2020

PART 1

Dr. Selwyn R. CudjoeI was stunned but not surprised by Roodal Moonilal’s letter to Joseph Mondello, US Ambassador to T&T, asking the US government to act against the best interest of our homeland. His lame excuse, a mea culpa perhaps, was: “If the United States imposes no sanctions against Trinidad and Tobago it will be because of the action of the United National Congress” (Express, May 5). As Mondello asserted, the US does not need Moonilal to tell it where its interests lies.
Continue reading The Lie… →

General T&T, Health, International, PNM, Politics, Racism Watch, USA

COVID-19 & African-Americans

1 Comment

By Dr. Kwame Nantambu
May 07, 2020

Dr. Kwame NantambuIndeed, one of the most tragic and realistic fall-outs of the novel, contagious COVID-19 pandemic in the United States is its most violent and deleterious impact/attack on African-Americans. Population statistics reveal that African-Americans comprise 13.4% of the national population but yet account for the following: in May 2020, Wisconsin African-Americans are only a miniscule 6.7% of the population but have accounted for a whopping 32% of COVID-19 deaths; in Michigan, African-Americans account for 14% of the population but 40% of the state’s COVID-19 deaths; in Missouri, African-Americans comprise 12% of its population but 40% of its COVID-19 deaths; while the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) points out that nation-wide, African-Americans are 33% of all hospitalized cases.
Continue reading COVID-19 & African-Americans →

China, General T&T, International, Law, USA

Don’t Blame China For Your Government’s COVID-19 Failures

The anti-China narrative is based on falsities, and serves to distract people from the failure of neoliberalism.

By Davide Mastracci
April 07, 2020 – readpassage.com

Dr. Selwyn R. CudjoeIn early January, COVID-19 was largely limited to China. Now, just three months later, it has spread far beyond China’s border, and has effectively been halted domestically within the country.

There are currently around 1.36 million reported COVID-19 cases globally, with more than 76,000 deaths. China accounts for just 6 per cent of all cases, and 4.4 per cent of deaths. Yesterday, China reported no new deaths for the first time since January.
Continue reading Don’t Blame China For Your Government’s COVID-19 Failures →

General T&T, International, PNM, Politics, UNC, USA, Venezuela

Kamla Courts Sanctions, Rowley Responds

13 Comments

T&T FACES US SANCTIONS – ROWLEY’S DANGEROUS ALLIANCE WITH VENEZUELA CAN NOW DESTROY OUR ECONOMY

By Kamla Persad-Bissessar

Kamla Persad-Bissessar and Keith RowleyGood morning everyone.

It is with serious alarm that I note a report in today’s Trinidad Guardian about the United States probing our country over a Trinidad &Tobago fuel shipment linked to Venezuela. If true, our country’s very economic survival is at stake. This since, as our longstanding and greatest global ally, any such rift could gravely damage our very beneficial trade, national security and foreign relations with the United States.
Continue reading Kamla Courts Sanctions, Rowley Responds →

China, General T&T, Health, International, USA

Of coincidences and conspiracies

2 Comments

By Raffique Shah
March 23, 2020

Raffique ShahI admit that it took me some time to come to terms with the seriousness of the COVID-19 virus. When the highly contagious bug first struck in China late last year, I followed its development with more curiosity than concern. China is a vast country with a huge population and millions of foreigners visiting it most times, so one could expect anything to happen—such as a superbug making its entry into the world. But I have also learnt that the Chinese government and people can handle whatever nature throws their way, usually dispatching the intruder to a swift demise, and in the process sparing the rest of the world worry about it.
Continue reading Of coincidences and conspiracies →

General T&T, USA

Biden’s Dilemma

4 Comments

By Dr Selwyn R. Cudjoe
February 10, 2020

Dr. Selwyn R. CudjoeOn Monday night I tuned into CNN to listen to the results of the Democratic caucus that had taken place in Iowa earlier in the day. By one am on Tuesday morning the Iowa Democratic Party (I.D.P.) had issued no results although some of the candidates made their speeches and headed off to New Hampshire to continue their quest to become the Democratic presidential nominee for the 2020 election.
Continue reading Biden’s Dilemma →

Finance, General T&T, Guyana, International, Oil and Gas, Politics, USA

Amen, Brother Gregory

By Raffique Shah
January 14, 2020

Raffique ShahIf we think that the Trinidad and Tobago economy is in for another rough ride this year, possibly rougher than what we experienced over the past five years, we should read some of the grim global economic outlooks projected by international agencies such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs et al for almost every country in the world.
Continue reading Amen, Brother Gregory →

General T&T, International, PNM, UNC, USA, Venezuela

Guaido gone?

7 Comments

By Raffique Shah
December 24, 2019

Raffique ShahAt the beginning of this year, the economic and political crisis that had gripped neighbouring Venezuela from almost a decade earlier exploded on the streets and other public places as hundreds of thousands of people participated in colourful, noisy, and sometimes violent protests, many against, some supportive of, the government of President Nicolas Maduro.
Continue reading Guaido gone? →