It still has not rained. It is still dry and hot and brown. Clouds have been collecting over the Blue Mountains most days, but the water never falls. And the haze of dust does not leave the city, ever. The dust is now infiltrating my apartment. It covers everything, even though I wipe everything down every day. And it is just a little harder to breathe some days. These are just minor inconveniences for me, but for some people, it is a matter of survival.

For farmers and business owners (car washes, for example), the drought is a serious source of stress.

Last evening, Robert Pickersgill, Minister of Land, Water, Environment and Climate Change addressed the nation. He told us that the National Water Commission has sent 40 trucks to the hardest-hit areas (Clarendon and St. Elizabeth) and that all leaks are to be reported and fixed.

“I am imploring all members of the public to report all leaks, and I have given instructions to the NWC to establish two leak hotlines, as well as text-messaging services,” Pickersgill said.

The minister stressed that a prohibition notice announced earlier this month, which makes it illegal for persons to waste water, or to use excessive amounts of NWC-supplied water in drought-affected areas, remained in effect.

Pickersgill noted that the El Niño weather phenomenon currently affecting the island was projected to continue and “will result in no significant increase of rainfall, even during the next rainy season, which is from October to November”.

Better late than never, I guess. For months and months, a fire hydrant was leaking on my street, to the point that it has caused erosion and three large potholes. After many, many calls to the fire department and the National Water Commission, a neighbour was able to get them to fix the leak. But imagine how many thousands of gallons of water were wasted. And imagine that this is going on all over Kingston, right now. I see leaks all the time when I go running, I guess I can report them now, thanks to this hotline. Hopefully other people will take this opportunity as well, and hopefully the rain will start to fall, although apparently this year’s El Nino effect will prevent any substantial precipitation.

Oh dear. It seems that some enterprising Jamaicans are trying to capitalize on the ongoing obsession with Clarks shoes. Yesterday, the Anti-Trafficking in Persons, Intellectual Property division of the police busted a counterfeit manufacturing operation that is apparently producing fake Clarks.

According to the police’s Corporate Communications Unit (CCU) about 3:00 pm the Anti-Trafficking in Persons, Intellectual Property (A-TIP-IP) vice squad went to a building in downtown Kingston where several pairs of various models of fake Clarks were found in various stages of production; they were being manufactured for the local and export market.

The items seized are several pairs of fake Clarks shoes, screen print material, stamper (Clarks brand) and a grinding machine.

If only this creative energy could be directed somewhere positive.

As I write this, a helicopter is buzzing above me. I assume it is a police helicopter, as those are the most frequently seen in the sky. They fly around every night, monitoring all sorts of criminal activity.

Apparently, something is working to combat this activity. Yesterday, National Security Minister Peter Bunting reported in Parliament “double digit” drops in most forms of “serious and violent” crimes.

“Serious and violent crimes (are) down year-to-date on average by double digit percentages (with) murder by 11 per cent, shooting by six per cent, rape by 17 per cent, and aggravated assault down 26 per cent,” Bunting told Tuesday’s sitting of the House of Representatives.

He also pointed to a major reduction in fatal police shooting, which is down by 46 per cent year-to-date. Acquisitory crimes such as robberies, have declined by 11 per cent.

Bunting lauded the government’s new laws that target organized crime, which have resulted in the arrest of 600 people to date, he stated.

As a journalist, I know that numbers like this can always be manipulated. I’m not suggesting this is the case, but it is always more instructive and revealing to see the raw data. Perhaps the JCF will release it soon. In the meantime, it does indeed seem like good news if one looks at these numbers in an isolated manner.

I am reblogging today from a new blog called Daily Veritas. This is a fascinating look at the cost the theoretical “Jamaican Dream.” Enjoy your day.

The Cost of the Jamaican Dream in 2014 – $500,000 per mth..

Photo courtesy of Manifesto Jamaica

The other day I attended a debut performance of a play called “SomeNoWhere” by a group of youth from Manifesto Jamaica. The 30-minute play, which was fast-paced, thought-provoking and entertaining, was created for an upcoming event in Edinburgh, Scotland called the Tin Forest Theatre Festival.

Directed by Shaun Drysdale and Randy McLaren, the play centres around a group of orphans who all possess a “superpower”. We witness them as children and then years later as successful adults.

Although the consensus in the audience seemed to be that the patois might be a little bit difficult for an international audience to pick up, the performance was well-received. The group of actors (Paula-Gaye Donaldson, Jodean Tapper, Randy McLaren, Renard Anderson, Renee Jones, Sheldon Kelly and Shaniel Orr) are aged 16-24 and are clearly talented and passionate.

As the only Caribbean collective selected to participate in the festival, they are now trying to raise money for the trip to Scotland (July 20-29). You can visit their Gofundme page if you would like to support them. (The cost of airfare has been covered by the Tourism Enhancement Fund, but they still have $3,000US to raise.)

Manifesto Jamaica, whose motto is “Educate, Expose, Empower” aims to

Manifesto Jamaica’s mission is to develop and attract opportunities for young people that inspire creativity, productivity and elevated consciousness, by harnessing the talents of nation builders.

.

Good luck!

Over the weekend, I was at a downtown institution. This security guard was doing double duty, like much of the rest of the city. He was monitoring the front door and buzzing people in and out, as well as watching one of the finals of the World Cup.

Yesterday, I think the whole of Kingston was glued to the television to watch the final game between Germany and Argentina. Hope you have a good Monday.

After winning the last season of the Voice, Tessanne Chin has been relatively quiet. She was the subject of a huge homecoming concert earlier this year, but other than that, there has not been much of a media presence, both in Jamaica and abroad. There is much speculation as to why, with the main theory being that her record label was negligent on marketing.

In fact, Tessanne’s album was released on July 1. To date, it has shown poor sales: in the U.S., only 6,568 albums were sold in the first week. Here are a couple of people speculating as to why.

Why does this matter? I guess it does not in the context of the critical issues of life and death always plaguing Jamaica. But in terms of national cultural identity and supporting one of its own, this matters to Jamaica. Why was there not more fuss over the release of this album? Why were Jamaicans not as excited as they were when she came back from winning in the States? I guess the hype has died down and life has gone back to normal. It is both curious and sad, though, because her talent is undeniable.

The drought continues, with the situation apparently reaching “crisis level” in some parishes. Many people I have talked to say this happens every year and it is nothing new. It does seem worse than usual, though.

It is hazy but rain does not seem imminent. These pictures of beautiful Jamaica are from a wetter time, when things were more green. Enjoy your day.

Canadian High Commissioner to Jamaica Mr. Robert Ready has been in negotiations with CARICOM for months now. It appears the negotiations are not going well. This article basically states that they are on hold for now, with parties considering the deal that is on the table. Check it out here.

Apparently, Canada’s negotiating resources are scarce. It seems, as usual, though, that there is more to the story that we are not hearing about.