Get A Life

Should someone suggest you get a life, you'd be wise to ignore their advice because a life is a very expensive thing to maintain. - Oke Zachary ©

The Truth About Black People

If you are genetically of African descent in any minute way, if you are ‘dark skinned’ or not of pure Caucasian bloodlines, I would strongly suggest that you ensure that you are seated comfortably, have a glass of water and some pain killers before you proceed to read this blog. What I am about to tell you will rock the very foundation of your ‘reality’ (or should I say the reality that was GIVEN TO YOU?). What I am about to tell you will unearth, crumble, crack, crease and shatter millenniums of ‘falsehoods’ imparted to peoples of colour, particularly to peoples of African descent. Falsehoods that have been securely passed on to generations after generations as a poisonous societal inheritance which is designed to ensure you ‘know your place’ in this crafty system of subconscious racism and bigotry.

My dear brothers and sisters and other enlightened individuals, the truth about black people is the fact that you are in fact not black! And I question you, if you are not black then why should you feign ‘black pride’ and accept a label that has been stuck onto your head decades before you were even born? Today we live in a world where a man whose mother was Caucasian and whose father was African is described as the ‘first black president of the United States of America’. Today I challenged some of my co-workers, I pulled out my literally black wallet and asked them what colour was my wallet to which they replied black. I then asked does Obama look like this colour? A resounding no was the answer. I then asked do I look this colour? A resounding No. I asked do you guys look this colour? A resounding No.

I then ask so why do you call Obama the ‘first black president of the United States’ and why do you call yourselves black? But they couldn’t grasp the simple commonsense analogy, so entrenched is the system of inferiority flowing through the veins of the children of slaves. I pointed at my wallet and said this colour is what you have been taught to be black from the day you were in Primary School when you were now learning about primary colours was it not? So why then after learning the fundamentals of colours, society then teaches you to believe with outmost conviction that people who are not Caucasian are in fact black?

And if in primary school when you mixed the colour white with black the resulting colour was not black but ‘gray’, why then are we taught that a man whose mother was white (i.e. Caucasian) and whose father was as they say ‘black’, he is in fact not considered white, not brown, not grey but is instead.....BLACK? Even Obama looks at his face in the mirror every single day, has been looking at that brown caramel face for 40 plus years every single morning, and so strong is the concentrated potion of racial inferiority flowing through his mental consciousness that he declares himself a ‘black’ man. One of my ‘fair skinned’ co-workers of East Indian descent felt she had a point to prove so she jumps into the fray and declares “But I would be black too if I go to the US.” So I look at her, I show her my wallet and I ask her if this is the colour of her skin. She does not answer my question but merely repeats that she is ‘black’. I ask who told you that? She replied “‘they say so, and that is how I was born.” I asked who ‘they’....she replies ‘they’.

She then declares that if she goes to the United States she wouldn’t say she’s black or Indian anyway (footnote....noticed she didn’t say she wouldn’t say she is African or Indian....she said ‘black or Indian’) she would say she’s a Trinidadian. At this point I recognise the thick coat of ignorance that has all but embalmed her consciousness, poor soul she doesn’t even know the difference between nationality and ethnicity. So I then asked her, if you say that when you go to the US if your ethnicity is questioned you would say you are a Trinidadian why do you and others refer to Obama as a ‘black’ American President? Why isn’t he just an American President full stop? Silence....no answer. (Footnote ... historically George Washington is listed as the first American President, it is of great importance to note that according to history there never was a first ‘white’ American President there has only been a first American President .....hmmmmm)

When the truth I spoke started to unravel the centuries of falsehoods in their subconscious I was then asked the typical question of denial, “So what does it matter anyway”. After millions of our ancestors and generations have been lost due to them being considered racially inferior it is of no consequence to their descendants as to why they are called ‘black’, when every single minute of every single day of their lives there has always been a brown face staring back at them in the mirror. The question alone suggests that we as a people do not know where we came from nor do we know and understand the pain suffered by our forefathers. We do not fully comprehend and appreciate the sacrifices of people such as Nelson Mandela, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther and Malcom X.

I was then asked the question ‘Wha happen you not proud to be black?’ And my response to that is a) I am not the colour ‘black’ and b) I am not proud to be black because the description of my people as being ‘black’ is in fact derogatory and has always been a derogatory term used by the Caucasian slave master. The word ‘black’, used to describe people of African descent was never used in a positive manner so why should I now adopt the derogatory labels which was used to psychologically maim my ancestors? When Nelson Mandela was fighting apartheid in South Africa he and the other indigenous South Africans who at that time and even today make up 90% plus of the population were dubbed as ‘blacks’. Before the abolition of slavery in the United States and throughout Europe, people of African descent were labelled ‘blacks’. When Rosa Parks demanded to sit at the front of the bus she was taken to court because as a ‘black’ she was to be in the back of the bus. Both Martin Luther and Malcom X were murdered because they challenged the system of oppression and discrimination levelled against the ‘blacks’.

That is the history of ‘black’ people, that is where the definition originated and the definition never lost its meaning. To willingly call yourself a ‘black’ person is to defend a system that is designed to keep you enslaved mentally, to make you believe that you are inferior by fooling you into thinking you should have pride in being labelled in a derogatory manner. To willingly call yourself a ‘black’ person is to act like a woman who despite being beaten mercilessly by her husband, defends her abuser and accepts the abuse as her entitlement in life. Why are we so proud to push our chests out and accept and maintain this crafty psychological abuse?

When people can look at a man with the skin complexion like Obama and say that he is ‘black’ is one of the reasons why I’m always amused when people claim to be fans of Bob Marley. Good ole uncle Bob had the opportunity to leave us a profound message before he passed.....”Free yourselves from mental slavery, none but ourselves can free our minds”. Currently it is still okay to refer to British citizens of African descent as blacks but it is highly offensive to refer to a growing population of Indian immigrants as ‘Paki’......food for thought my friends......food for thought................... ©

You've Been Blogged!

The elusive media in Trinidad and Tobago (Elusive only to the control of those sitting on the government benches in parliament) continues to be a hot topic (they just can’t stop bitch) amongst the stooges of a megalomaniac Politobot, who has mastered the art of being the first human transformer, perpetually transforming himself between democrat and despot, indecisive of which he ought to be. The latest round of bitching comes from decepticon Swaratsingh who has been quoted as saying “It always amazes me that you choose to spend the post-Cabinet news conference thinking about what you want to ask a person who is not present!” In his always captivating commentaries Paolo Kernahan in his weekly skews pointed out that in relation to Swaratsingh’s claim above, it amuses him that Swaratsingh thinks they (the media) don’t know that the ‘missing persons’ are actually made to be absent.

I would just like to add to Paolo’s observation that I too am amazed that unlike the Government, what Swaratsingh fails to realise is the media engages in preparation and planning before they arrive at the press conference, they do not wait until they are actually there to ask questions by ‘vaps’. Just because the Government to which Mr. Swaratsingh is affiliated does everything under the sun by ‘vaps’, from answering or more so ignoring questions in parliament by ‘vaps’, or granting by ’vaps’ billions of dollars and contracts to that ‘state mutant’ fondly know amongst the plebs as UDECOTT, doesn’t mean that the media which seeks the public’s interest will follow suit.

Swaratsingh continued by saying “Unfortunately, you do not get to make decisions as to who comes to the post-Cabinet news conference...” Paolo has accurately identified the fact in his article Meet De Press, that Swaratsingh’s comments reflect the fact that the post-Cabinet news conference is used as a propaganda mechanism by the government. I would like to add to Paolo’s observation and go even further by saying Swaratsingh’s stated position reveals Government’s desire to control everything in this country. As far as this government is concerned the citizens of this country ought not to have brains, and ought not to use those brains to think for themselves. We are expected to bow before the PNM Pharoahs and flock to the PNM Educational Meetings in the thousands declaring magnanimous smiles on our faces if only to have a droplet of Patrick Manning’s saliva splash onto our faces and bless us as he screams into the mic at sonic high pitch about his government’s 2020 vision which as each day goes by looks more like 4040 vision.

Paolo has alluded that the sooner Government realises that not all reporters are employed by the Government Information Service there will be a different relationship between the media and the Government. I say the sooner Government realises that the media is not serving a four year term nor does it have to face the electorate anytime in the near future the more respect they (the Government) will have for the media. The media by default has a much longer expiration date than any political party or Government which is why they will always have the support and trust of the people. As sexy as Patrick Manning may believe his conniving dimples to be, nothing turns me on more (stirs my civic consciousness) than reading a piece written by Paolo or another of my favourites such as Martin Daly, Raffique Shah or Judy Raymond.

Paolo is quite right by saying if the government continues to attack and undermine the media, what they will do is create a vacuum effect much like when the foolish Americans removed Saddam and indirectly precipitated the rise of the Taliban. What decepticons like Swaratsingh and Parsanlal fail to realise is they are indirectly contributing to the proliferation of bloggers such as myself who are not beholden to any media association and who will not be so forgiving and willing to use ‘tact’ to express our dissatisfaction with the bullshit that is passed off as ‘responsible governance’ by this current PNM Administration. As Paolo has rightly said these decepticon stooges are only inflaming the public with their gimmicks. So due to your repetitive ‘bitching’ about the media......Swaratsingh......YOU HAVE BEEN BLOGGED! ©

Differently-able

The abolition of the term 'disabled' is long over due because we live in a world of differently-abled people, all of whom are capable of making an enormous contribution to our collective existence. - Oke Zachary ©

A Shame Upon Our Nation

The Government of Trinidad and Tobago has dealt a severe blow to the human rights image of this country by presiding over blatant modern day slavery. I say hats off to the Chinese labourers who had the courage to say enough is enough and take a stand against the grotesque treatment being meted out to them by the Chinese company which brought them here to replace national workers. Imagine the Chinese project manager had the audacity to say that they are Chinese, in attempt to justify the horrendous living conditions of these workers. Ancil Rogette had an apt response, “We are Trinidadians and what you are doing here is against the laws of Trinidad and Tobago and not in sync with the ‘standards’ that we have set!”

I also say hats off to the OWTU for throwing their support behind these Chinese workers despite the local Trade Union Movement’s initial and continued objection to foreign labour replacing our own local labour in this current global financial stagnation. The rights of workers and more importantly the fundamental human rights of individuals must always take precedence at all times.

This Government has brought a humongous shame and disgrace upon the human rights image of this country by presiding over this modern day enslavement of Chinese workers despite us being a member of the Human Rights Charter. The deplorable conditions in which these Chinese workers are asked to live are also in breach of our own OSHA and other labour and social laws. Imagine a hundred plus people living in these 4x4 compartments with small wooden windows as ventilation, no air condition units to deal with this humidity, no washing area and one kitchen. Come on Trinidadians we should be ashamed to have foreigners living in such squalid conditions in our twin island under sun. When the foreign media gets a hold of this story, which foreigner is going to believe the paradisiacal pictures on our tourism brochures on display in our Foreign Missions and Embassies?

Not only has Patrick Manning sacrificed our treasury on an alter the way Abraham slaughtered a lamb to appease Yahweh, Patrick is now seeking to sacrifice the image and reputation of our country’s flaying human rights record (the crime rate is doing its own damage) to achieve his deluded dreams of a herculean legacy, demonstrating that he is willing to go any lengths including turning a blind eye to clear breaches of human rights. Not a week goes by in this country without shame falling before the feet of our citizens. Our corruption index is at an all time low because of the revalations coming out of the UFF Commission and now our human rights record is due to be raped. Is there anything that Patrick Manning intends on leaving in tack after he demits the lofty office of ‘God Prime Minister’? ©