Greetings to readers from Bangladesh, Canada, China, Hong Kong, India and the Seychelles. It's been a while since my last entry but it is great to see a reader from a new country - or someone who is travelling from country to country. 😎
It really shows this world is a global village.
There was so much happening over the past month. I pondered what I would write about next. The contrasting responses to men accused of sexual misconduct - Bill Cosby at age 81 and blind is being painted as a sexual predator and sentenced to prison while the Supreme Court nominee is being backed at the highest level in the land. Then there are the Stormy Daniels revelations.
No offence to male readers, but some of you guys know of the tricks some used to have their way with a female "conquest" - plied her with alcohol, drugged a drink, convinced her "no" is really "yes". It happens. Young men (and these days girls) are not thinking of being role models in 20 years. They are not thinking of being a household name one day. They are not thinking of being a national leader. They are not thinking about being a Supreme Court nominee. They are looking for instant gratification.
Then there are the national disasters - Hurricane Florence's flooding, the earthquake and tsunami in Indonesia and here in Barbados Tropical Storm Kirk's flooding. September always seems to be an eventful month. It is also the month when 9-11 is remembered.
So what could I feature in September?
Then I saw our Prime Minister, the Honourable Mia Mottley, give her maiden address to the United Nations - and I had my answer. A woman of substance who says what needs to be said. A woman of substance who will represent the interest of the small island developing states. A change maker - or at least someone who will try.
Here she is ladies and gentlemen...the Prime Minister of Barbados speaking at the United Nations on Friday, September 28, 2018:
Barbados - Prime Minister Addresses General Debate, 73rd Session [Credit: United Nations, September 2018]
The speech was compact, to the point. No need to say more. And she left to return to Barbados to see the damage for herself after no doubt seeing images of flooding like these on social media before giving her speech.
This police car sits in flood waters.
Another flooded street
Some people actually thought the worst was past when night fell on Thursday. Then Tropical Storm Kirk dumped 12-hours of continuous rain on Barbados. It did not take long for some of the flood-prone areas to flood and nearly a dozen persons were rescued during the weather system. While no lives were reportedly lost, there would be hundreds or thousands of dollars worth of property damage. The Prime Minister has already toured the most affected areas. Luckily, two days of sunshine have caused the flood waters to recede.
We are thankful that it was not worse, that Kirk was only a Tropical Storm. As the Prime Minister said to the UN, GDP cannot be the only measure for a nation's positioning on the development index and therefore access to development funding. All small islands are susceptible to natural disasters and it is time the most developed nations took their responsibilities for preserving the environment seriously. It is not fake news.
Until next time.
Here she is ladies and gentlemen...the Prime Minister of Barbados speaking at the United Nations on Friday, September 28, 2018:
Barbados - Prime Minister Addresses General Debate, 73rd Session [Credit: United Nations, September 2018]
The speech was compact, to the point. No need to say more. And she left to return to Barbados to see the damage for herself after no doubt seeing images of flooding like these on social media before giving her speech.
Some people actually thought the worst was past when night fell on Thursday. Then Tropical Storm Kirk dumped 12-hours of continuous rain on Barbados. It did not take long for some of the flood-prone areas to flood and nearly a dozen persons were rescued during the weather system. While no lives were reportedly lost, there would be hundreds or thousands of dollars worth of property damage. The Prime Minister has already toured the most affected areas. Luckily, two days of sunshine have caused the flood waters to recede.
We are thankful that it was not worse, that Kirk was only a Tropical Storm. As the Prime Minister said to the UN, GDP cannot be the only measure for a nation's positioning on the development index and therefore access to development funding. All small islands are susceptible to natural disasters and it is time the most developed nations took their responsibilities for preserving the environment seriously. It is not fake news.
Until next time.
