Category Society

If it is about issues pertaining to society -drug, crimes, prostitution, family, religion, culture, abortion, immigration, etc… -it will be found here.

Mar 3 2014

Haiti Carnival and Politics: My Take

Kanaval

I think a lot of changes need to be brought to the organization of the Carnival. It is and has always been a pro-government festivity.

President Martelly has brought a lot of changes [for example, holding it in a different city each year to bring thousands of people out to explore what our cities have to offer], but a lot more need to be implemented.

We need to take the Carnival off the yoke of the political establishment and place it in the hands of the private sector so to render it more effective. The only involvement of the government we would need would have to do with logistical and security supports. That’s it.

The committee put together to organize the event is constituted of puppets under the dictate of the government, which makes it a political organization hired to organize a pro-government political manifestation. And this is not anything new, for it has always been that way.

Some groups you do not see in the parade, in spite of their great efforts to produce some of the best meringues of the season, that has to do with a matter of political vendetta -which is is wrong. We need to institute a system of meritocracy -which is based on merit, not favoritism.

Feb 15 2014

The Commonwealth of Virginia Stands For Gay Marriage

Virginia

 

On Thursday, February 13, 2004, a federal judge declared unconstitutional the Commonwealth’s ban on same-sex marriage, making it the most recent state in the union to embrace and take a clear stand for marriage equality.

So I congratulate the Commonwealth for this important step, and I hope more states can follow suit.

As I respect everyone’s view on this matter, I do strongly believe that marriage is between two people who love each other, not between a man and a woman as the religious folks want to make believe.

Gender has nothing to do with marriage, which is simply a matter of the heart.

Gender matters only when procreation comes into play as, biologically speaking, there need to be a male and a female for reproduction to take place. But when it comes to marriage, it is more about love than gender.

People get married because of love, not because they want babies. So they don’t get married for procreation purposes. In fact, not all married heterosexual couples want kids. So the main purpose of marriage is to make both individuals feel loved, not to procreate.

I am a proponent of same-sex marriage just like I am a proponent of interracial marriage. I don’t think people should be going around telling other people who to marry. People should marry the person they love regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, creed and religious beliefs. That’s what I believe.

Feb 14 2014

Darguste, Mezile and Racine seek to police behavior in Haiti

Josette Darguste, Minister of Culture

Josette Darguste, Minister of Culture

You have 3 women at the highest level of our Haitian government -Josette Darguste, Yanick Mezile and Magalie Racine -respectively Minister of Culture, Minister of Women’s Rights and Minister of Youth and Sports, who probably are in their 50s, thinking that they can police behavior in the country. They are trying to tell women how to dress and dance “appropriately” in public festivities.

This is a war they are not going to win because wars against time can never be won; time always comes out victorious.

What these ministers need to be reminded of is that morality cannot be regularized, for what is perceived to be immoral for them may be moral for others. Haiti is not a theocratic state; it is, rather, a secular state. Therefore, they cannot be going around telling people what to wear and how to dance in public. This is absurd.

What is going on in the Haitian society today is what we call in sociology “clash of generations,” which we witness in almost every human society. The older folks always believe that their generations were better than the emerging ones. And that in itself is a misconception.

Yanick Mezile, Minister of Women's Rights

Yanick Mezile, Minister of Women’s Rights

The emerging generations are not “bad” or “deviant” as some want to believe; they are simply different than their predecessors.

These folks who now think they can police behavior in our society, at some point in time, their generations too were viewed as “bad” in the eyes of those from the generations that preceded theirs.

So instead of badmouthing these young women for the way they are, thinking that we are or were better than them, we need to understand and embrace them as they are NOT going to change; they are not going to be like Darguste, Mezile, Racine and the rest of you conservative-minded Haitians want them to be.

Magalie Racine, Minister of Youth and Sports

Magalie Racine, Minister of Youth and Sports

These young women will be at the Carnival in their tank tops and boy shorts or “pantalon san fouk” doing their Dutty Wine. Those of you who don’t welcome or like the way they are, go ahead and arrest them to see if that is not going to cause an international outcry, enough to embarrass or shame the entire nation.

We act like we are living on an isolated and remote planet called Haiti all by ourselves. The world is forever connected more than ever before, so cultural protectionism is not the way to go as it will render us outdated and out of realm. Even Cuba is now trying to open up because these folks have finally come to the conclusion that cultural protectionism or isolationism is hurting them tremendously.

Feb 2 2014

Parents: Discipline Your Kids So They Don’t Make You Cry Tomorrow

Time-out-chair

It is important that you parents discipline your children as early as toddlerhood (age 3 to 6) if you want to instill positive values in them.

Child psychology dictates that if you fail to change the behavior of your children before the age of 7, you cannot change it during adulthood.

The extreme physical disciplinary measures some of these children have been subject to are abusive and not warranted as there are better and more effective ways to rectify negative behaviors.

Time-out is a great disciplinary measure approved by some pediatricians and developmental psychologists for education and parenting.

Its main purpose is to enforce rules and set guidelines in children. It is by far the most effective form of child discipline in existence.

Time-out is a form of punishment where a child is temporarily separated from an environment where inappropriate behavior has occurred.

For the time-out, the child is sent to a designated area [often a corner or a similar space] where they are to stand or sit for the  entire period. And you parents must be firm  and unwavering in enforcing the punishment as they will try to patronize you and buy your sympathy.

Talk to kids

After the time-out, it comes down to you parents to talk to the child being disciplined to tell them what they did wrong and how you do not approve of the behavior -whatever the negative thing they did. Keep in mind that the purpose of time-out is to address negative behaviors and enforce rules, not to punish a “bad” kid.

How long should you keep your children on time-out? It is recommended that you keep them on time-out one minute per year of age. For example, if the child is 5 years old, you keep him or her on time-out for 5 minutes.

It is imperative that you discipline your kids if you do not want to see them become deviant elements, and if you do not want to cry tomorrow. When you discipline them, you must focus on the negative behavior -the wrong you want to rectify, not them per se. They are not bad, their behaviors are.

Nov 10 2013

Civic Education: A Must For A Better Haiti

Students at the Istitution Saint-Louis de Gonzague, on June 29, 2010, thousands of displaced earthquake victims are living on the school grounds while students continue to take classes in tents. Here elementary school students studying their vocabulary. Left to right are Elysee Pasquy Anderson, 10; Antoine Marco, 9; and Josiuf Dave, 9. AL DIAZ / THE MIAMI HERALD STAFF

Here elementary school students [at the Institution Saint-Louis de Gonzague] on June 29, 2010 studying their vocabulary. From left to right: Elysee Pasquy Anderson, 10; Antoine Marco, 9; and Josiuf Dave, 9. AL DIAZ / THE MIAMI HERALD STAFF

When I was at Cyr-Guillo [commonly called Ecole des Freres des Gonaives] for my primary, elementary and junior high school education, because the school knew they were preparing young kids to become responsible citizens of tomorrow, the curriculum was shaped to reflect that vision.

After spending 7 years in that institution, upon graduation to move on to high school,  we could proudly look at ourselves and say that we are prepared for life on every front because the foundation upon which the house of life is to be mounted or erected is strongly engineered.

In the curriculum, there was this course called Civic Education -a required core class we had to take for 2 years or so -conceived to teach us students how to love our country unconditionally, respect and love each other as brothers, be good law-abiding citizens by respecting established authority, the law of the land, etc.

I do strongly believe that Ecole des Freres des Gonaives was not the only institution in the country then to have instituted Civic Education in their curriculum; other schools had followed the same Education Department guidelines.

Unfortunately, at my great astonishment, some genius who took over the Education Ministry had removed Civic Education from the curriculum. I know you may be asking the same question everyone with some sense is asking: “why is that?” Well, that’s beyond my pray grade. I am just as dumbfounded as you are.

What a brilliant decision that was! No wonder we have today all this nonsense going on in our society.

Today, these young Haitian kids are growing up with no foundation in civic education. And we are acting so surprised to see the results of our recklessness and irresponsibility -delinquency, child prostitution, the zokiki phenomenon, disrespect for established authority and the law, the list goes on and on and on.

Why acting so surprised? We should have expected these results to emerge some day. That’s what happens when leaders fail their citizens -you have a chaotic and dysfunctional society because the young citizens have grown to become chaotic and dysfunctional citizens.

I heard a while ago that Mr. Varnneur Pierre, the head of our Education Ministry, was bringing back Civic Education in the classroom, I don’t know if he has ever delivered on his promise.  But I pray the Martelly administration could make a difference in the right. The teaching of civic education to our kids is a must. Making the right investment in the education of our kids of today is the only hope we have for a better, secure and sustainable tomorrow.

Oct 16 2012

Yon Mesaj Pou Pastè Ak Lidè Relijye Ayisyen Yo

Mesye e dam, ban m fè yon ti pale avèk nou. M panse n ap eksplwate mizè ak inyorans moun nan kongregasyon nou yo -yon fason pou sitiyasyon lavi yo ka vin pi mal ke jan li ye a. Ak yon filozofi parèy, m pa kwè n ap travay nan eterè moun sa yo vre non.

Kilè n ap sispann preche levanjil reziyasyon nou an, levanjil Bondye bon nou an pou nou kòmanse òganize kongregasyon nou yo pou yo ka pran destine tèt yo nan men yo?

Moun yo pa gen manje pou yo manje, pa gen djòb pou yo fè pou yo ka chanje sitiyasyon sosyoekonomik y ap viv la, olye pou nou òganize yo pou yo vini “vectors of development,” pou yo kapab pran destine tèt yo sou fòs kouraj yo, n ap pale yo de yon Wòyòm Bondye ki gen pou vini, kote pa p gen mizè, grangou ak lanmò.

Sa n ap fè a pa bon non, mesye dam. E nou konnen trèbyen sa n ap fè a, poukisa n ap fè l e nan entere ki moun n ap fè l.

M pa ka di pa gen yon Wòyòm Bondye ki gen pou vini, kote pa p gen mizè, grangou ak lanmò non. Ki moun m ye pou m ta di yon bagay konsa? Men sa ke m ka di nou sèke li pa fè okenn sans pou n ap fè moun yo kwè nan yon sipozisyon alòske sa ki pi enpòtan pou yo a, ki se kijan pou yo chanje sitiyasyon sosyoekonomik y ap viv jodi a, nou fèmen je nou sou li.

Premyèman, se pou n fè moun yo konnen ke se pa Bondye ki vle ke y ap viv nan mizè atwòs sa a ke y ap viv la, e ke pa gen moun k ap chanje l pou yo si yo pa pran destine tèt yo sous fòs ponyèt yo atravè yon “self-reliant philosophy for a self-sustaining economic development.”

Oganize kongregasyon nou yo nan yon filozofi de konbit pou yo antame aksyon sivik, sosyal ak ekonomik pou yo fè pou tèt yo e arive devlope zòn kote y ap viv la -yo rele sa a nan lang anglèz la “collective civic activism for change.”

SISPANN preche moun yo pou yo aksepte sitiyasyon mizè ak grangou klowòks sa a y ap viv la paske se Bondye ki vle l konsa. Se MANTI n ap bay moun yo. Se pa Bondye ki vle moun yo pòv e viv nan mizè. Si se vre sa nou di a, moun yo pa gen okenn rezon pou y ap sèvi Bondye sa a paske se yon move dye dye sa a ye.

Se pou nou kòmanse antre nan reyalite bagay yo, se pou nou sispann ap fikse lesyèl tankou yon dal zonbi pou nou mete 2 pye nou sou latè pou n ap di moun yo ke pa ka gen devlopman sosyal ak ekonomik san travay e ni tou pa ka gen travay si n ap preche yo teyoloji reziyasyon nou an.

Mesye e dam, tanpri chanje lin mesaj nou yo paske yo kenbe Ayisyen an nan soudevlopman ekonomik, sosyal ak politik. Si nou pa sispann, n ap sispann jan nou vle sispann nan paske nou pa p pran bagay sa a nan men nou ankò. M kwè se pa animal nou ye -nou gen 2 zye pou nou li, 2 fèy zòrèy pou nou tande, ak yon entelijans pou nou konprann. Alòs, balon won an nan pye nou.

By Emann Joasil • Posted in Society
1
Aug 8 2012

LOVE PEOPLE Wants To Fight Obesity

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the nation’s leading agency working on the prevention and control of diseases, including obesity (yes, obesity is a disease), there has been a striking and frightening rise in obesity in the United States.

The CDC has put out in 2009-2010 that the number of adults suffering from obesity in the country is more than 35.7% or one-third of the adult population and approximately 17% or 12.5 million children and adolescents aged 2-19 years old.

Obesity must not be confounded with overweight. To determine if someone is either obese or overweight, the person’s Body Mass Index (BMI), a relationship between the person’s weight and his or her height, is to be calculated. This figure is important in that it gives indication on the person’s amount of body fat. For example, an adult with a BMI between 25 and 29.9 is considered overweight, whereas one with a BMI of 30 or higher is considered obese.

The disease has some serious and costly implications on the health of the population. An obese individual is prone to or has a natural inclination to many conditions -such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes type 2 and certain types of cancer, some of the leading causes of death in the country.

Four years ago, precisely in 2008, the CDC confirmed that “medical costs associated with obesity were estimated at $147 billion.” That being said, any smart approach to reducing health care costs in America must take into account the prevention of obesity through a system of health promotion to include healthy eating and exercise, which can be hugely impacted by socioeconomics.

In the spirit of keeping its members healthy, the discussion group Love People on Facebook is inviting everyone to take part in its 2nd Love People Power Walk at Prosper Park in Brooklyn, New York on Saturday, August 11, 2012 at 6:00 PM sharp. Point of meeting:  corner of Ocean Ave and Parkside Ave (inside the McDonald’s). To register, inbox Star Point on Facebook.

Aug 3 2012

Gabby Douglas: It’s About Talent, Not Hair

16-year-old Gabby Douglas

Think about what you were doing when you were 16 years old. Well, Gabby Douglas, the young African American woman who, along with her US gymnastics teammates, has dominated the Olympics, is only 16 years old.

At such a young age, she is on the verge of becoming the first African American woman ever to win the all-around gold medal in gymnastics.

When you think that great accomplishment of hers would have earned her the respect and recognition she deserves, some in the African American community, her own community I must add, are focusing on something as petty, meaningless and ludicrous as her HAIR.

Some of the tweets I read from some in the African American community about her hair are beyond appalling. Let me share with you some of the low jabs:

theSecretLifeof … [@BReeMonroe] tweeted: “Gabby Douglas, you made history w/ your impeccable talent & hideous hair.”

Young Skipper [@Sarocious] tweeted: “We, as a community, gotta fix Gabby Douglas’s hair.”

Brandy [@shestaken] tweeted: “Congrats to Gabby Douglas on her gold medal! I wish I could say the same.about that hair! Omg horrible!”

DeAnt [@wht_Idid_rollEM] tweeted: “lmfao Gabby Douglas shouldnt be the standout in those commercials she get her hair done.”

Obviously, here is someone who knows how to set her priorities straight with a high sense of discipline and dedication –already at such a young age. When these folks who are now disparagingly talking about her hair were probably spending hours in front of a mirror taking care of their hair, Gabby was spending these hours in the gym sweating getting herself in shape physically and mentally for the Olympics. Today, all these efforts pay off. She is giving the world something to talk and write about. Unfortunately, her critics are stuck talking about her hair. Petty people do, indeed, talk about petty things.

Congratulations, Gabby!!! You have made history. Please do not let what these low-lifers have to say about your hair affect your self-esteem. You have nothing but years of great accomplishments ahead of you. Keep working hard while these folks are spending their times talking and discussing about nothing but nonsense and pettiness.

Jul 30 2012

Carnival of Flowers: An Economic, Not Political Factor

I have zero problem with the Carnival of Flowers currently going on in Port-au-Prince. In fact, I support it 100%. I’m not a politician, so I leave the politics surrounding the necessity of holding it to those who want to make it a political matter.

In my opinion, we need to push this event even harder. So I propose that we hold next year a week long of festivities, rather. That means, in a Summer Break spirit, along with the Carnival of Flowers, let’s hold a series of events to be ended with a big time international music festival (possibly on one of our beautiful beaches). And the promotion for this package of events for next year needs to start right away, right after this one.

These represent opportunities for the private sector to make money. The government should not have to spend a dime to organize them -other than providing security/logistical support to the private sector. That should be the extent of the government’s involvement.

These types of festivities could be organized on a larger scale and promoted on the global stage as our traditional cultural landmarks to encourage people all over the world to come and experience them.

Of course, this first time around is not going to be as successful as expected. But for the subsequent times to be, there has got to be this first time, which many are very critical and hostile to.

If many tend to look at this Carnival of Flowers as a waste, I see it as a business investment with great economic potentials. The product seems to look good to my standard; like any business investment, its success will depend on how hard and smart we are willing to work in order to market it around the world to attract potential buyers (the national and foreign tourists).

Yes, the country is facing one of the worst economic moments in its history, but nothing is wrong with holding the Carnival of Flowers to try to attract potential tourists; we only need to change our approach to organizing and marketing it. So let’s put politics aside and stop wasting our time criticizing the administration for something our shortsightedness has not allowed us to grasp.

Jul 22 2012

World Wide Village: NGO To Be Investigated In Haiti

This article “Confession of a Haitian working for an American non-profit organization in Haiti” by Myrlande Charelus is the type of story these politicians in Haiti need to read so they could wake up from their coma. She has made some serious revelations in her blog, which the authorities in Port-au-Prince can use to start an investigation on the operation of World Wide Village (WWV) in the country.

I am not one to unjustly bash these non-government organizations (NGOs) in Haiti because I think they are instruments that must be put to good use by the people they are there to serve. However, when they are taking advantage of the misery of the people for their own selfish gains, then we have a problem.

Where is the Haitian government on this? When will we start seeing some structure put in place to coordinate and oversee the activities of these NGOs currently operating in the country? What is the sense of having hundreds of NGOs in the country, yet the dire reality they are there to tackle is getting worse? One does not need to be a rocket scientist to realize that something is not going right.

The majority of these NGOs are not doing anything concrete to render the situation in Haiti better. Most of these workers, in my opinion, are over there vacationing and enjoying the nice weather while getting paid mad money for not doing a damn thing. Who would not love such a job?

If, following a thorough investigation by the Haitian authorities, the charges can be proven factual and accurate, that non-government organization known by the name of World Wide Village, the NGO being exposed in this aforementioned blog, needs to be asked to leave the country.

President Martelly needs to remember that he had made a campaign promise to regularize and structure the operations of these NGOs in the country; we are IMPATIENTLY waiting for that day to come. We will not forget.