riccouchman

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Following the Blue Morpho

-- Available (gratis) in PDF Format Following the Blue Morpho (Literary Non-Fiction) Tormented by the desire to fulfill a childhood dream and with time running out, an artist embarks on an unforgettable journey taking him deep into the Guyana rainforest and bringing him face to face with his own inner self. Compelling, humane, and rich in pathos, this absorbing and masterful narrative reminds us of the power of our dreams and encourages us to follow our vision wherever it takes us. Download a free copy of the book in PDF Format. Click on the following link. Enjoy:  Also Available in Paperback Format on Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/My Website http://dlvr.it/Qss1Y1

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Following the Blue Morpho

 Following the Blue Morpho A New Book by Ric Couchman Tormented by the desire to fulfill a childhood dream and with time running out, an artist embarks on an unforgettable journey taking him deep into the Guyana rainforest and bringing him face to face with his own inner self. Compelling, humane, and rich in pathos, this absorbing and masterful narrative reminds us of the power of our dreams and encourages us to follow our vision wherever it takes us. Following the Blue MorphoAvailable this fall in paperback and in digital format About the Author: Ric Couchman was born in Georgetown, Guyana. A bright, but average performer in high school, Ric’s interest in serious scholarship began during his seminary years at the Jamaica Theological Seminary. There also began his passion for Literature and Philosophy. His love of prose writing began in primary school where he wrote his first piece, “Lost in the Jungle”, and his love of writing poetry emerged a few years after college. He credits Guyanese writer, Edgar Mittelholzer, as his inspiration. Ric’s intellectual background, his North American residency, his upbringing in the Caribbean, his sole care of four siblings at age eighteen, and his direct exposure to Hinduism, Islam, and Roman Catholicism all inform his writings and influence his unique style and voice. His other books include: 3:00 A.M., Blueprint for a Nihilism, The  Conflagration of Ouranos, A Famne of Tears, and Musings from Outside the Universal.My Website http://dlvr.it/QlD98f

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An Apology to My Students

Dear students, I owe you all an apology. All these years I taught you that applying the principles of critical thinking would help you to construct sound and valid arguments and to identify arguments that meet or do not meet the criteria for soundness. I introduced you to certain habits of mind to help you articulate arguments both orally and in writing, to make judicious analysis, and to guide you towards conclusions based on thorough examination of gathered evidence, of context, of relationship among material, of relevant authorities, among other constructs. It seems that I had it all wrong and failed to adequately prepare you for the culture of logic operative today. I ask you to ignore everything I taught you, to throw out all the notes you made, and to prepare yourself for a revaluation of thinking. Thankfully, you are not without important models or exemplars of this “new thinking”. Forget your teachers who taught you that outmoded, superannuated method of reasoning and inquiry. Socrates and Aristotle and others are now old news. Look no further than our leaders - our assemblymen and women, our mayors, our senators, our congressmen and women, our governors, our generals, our vice-president, our president - as the true guides to clear thinking, reasoning, and inquiry. And as you follow the examples of these pioneers of this new and nonpareil approach to thinking, here are a few essential principles to keep in mind. The others you will have to figure out for yourself. * Arrive at and act upon conclusions before examining the evidence. You can always examine the evidence afterwards. * If you are pressed for evidence, make the claim to be in possession of credible intelligence, and do not forget to say the intelligence is classified. Citizens will ready accept that response, for, after all, the Government and its intelligence agencies will never lie. * You no longer have to have indubitable proof of an assertion; “highly likely” is now the new certainty.  * Dance around the question. It is definitely okay to go off tangent and to never answer the question. No one will try to steer you back to the question anyway. Just look at our leaders debating each other or responding to questions at press briefings. Simply beautiful. * Don’t even bother to question source if the idea or information comes from some well-known person or institution. If the New York Times publishes it, it must be true. If an expert or analyst says it, it must be true. No need to go fact checking for yourself; they know everything. Just accept.  * Acceptance is the essence of the new thinking, not questioning, so, instead of “Questioning more”, the in-vogue catch phrase is, “Accept uncritically”. * Forget inductive and deductive analyses. Simply state your conclusion based on your gut feeling. * Lastly, the ad hominem response is the ace card. Use it. Our great models, our leaders, use it all the time. * And oh...don’t forget the old adage, “Ignorance is bliss.”  [photo art by Ric Couchman] My Website http://dlvr.it/QPjY27

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Time to Tear up the Meaningless United Nations Charter ---

And not only should the United Nations Charter be shredded, the representatives of the member states of the United Nations ought to pack their belongings and go home, as the entire body now serves no useful purpose. As the guarantor of peace and stability among member states and as the upholder of the principles of international law, the United Nations has failed us. It has failed to hold responsible and to call to account the American regime along with its vassal British and French regimes for their recent act of aggression against a sovereign member state (Syria) of the United Nations, a criminal act, an act that is in contravention of the United Nations Charter since it was carried out unilaterally and without a mandate from the United Nations Security Council.  These three rogue states, in virtue of their breach of and their utter disregard for international law, have shown the rest of the world that they can act with impunity and that there is no institution or nation state that can do anything about it - certainly not the United Nations. Sadly, then, it means that in our current world no international norms or rule of law exist. The American regime (in consort with vassals Britain and France), arrogating to itself the role of acting on behalf of the international community and the role of world policeman under the pretext of questionable neo-humanitarianism, has shown that it is a law unto itself and that it will impose its will on the international community whether its members like it or not. In sum, the only right that now exist in our world today is the might of the American regime, and the only law operative in our world today is the will of the American regime. And any nation of the world that resists its might and will, does so to its own peril. A sad state of affairs indeed. [photo art by Ric Couchman]My Website http://dlvr.it/QPbPtX

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The Vagrant - An Obituary (of Sorts)

Jerome died on Wednesday afternoon, savagely stabbed multiple times and left lying in his blood in Bourda Market. I wanted to know the exact spot where he died and to find out the kind of person he was, so I went around the market making inquires. The general sentiment of the vendors to whom I spoke was that he was a good and helpful person. Lenny pointed out Jerome's friend to me, Judah. Judah was the last person to speak with Jerome as he lay dying in the market. Judah showed me the spot where his friend fell and re-enacted how he knelt down beside his friend asking him, "Who did this to you?". Like the vendors to whom I spoke, Judah had nothing but good things to say about his friend.  Jerome was a "vagrant". That was how the news media characterized him in the newspapers the next day. That is how the individuals and groups who gave him food from time to time charactize him. That is how those to whom we have given the mandate of managing the affairs of State characterize him. That is how the Guyanese people characterize him. A "vagrant". And we do not have in view the word's denotation, its dictionary definition. We have in view the word's connotation, its meaning beyond the dictionary definition. He was a "vagrant". For us then, that means he was odious, disgusting, nauseating, criminal, loathesome, reprehensible, despicable, idle, purposeless, burdensome, scary, an object of scorn, a blight on our society. That's how we think of Jerome and "his kind". Before we even knew him we had already marginalized him, judged him, and passed sentence on him, in the same manner we have done the other "vagrants". Jerome was killed around the same time I was hanging out with some other "vagrants" just around the corner. He made the news. And it was the only time he was brought to the public attention, into the public consciousness (assuming we read it in the newspapers or heard it over the radio or TV network). And sadly, he made the news only because he was killed. In fact, that seems to be the only way in which a "vagrant" would make his or her way into the public consciousness. He had to be violently killed or be found dead in a trench. And sadly, he remains in our consciousness for but a moment, for he is soon passed over and forgotten. The "vagrant's" daily struggle and suffering on Guyana's streets is not newsworthy because such struggle and suffering is not important to us. Or, it has lost its importance because we have become inured to it, leaving in place an insensitivity and a callousness. Jerome became more important in death than he was in life not because of our desire to celebrate his "hapless" life but because of our desire to satisfy or curiosity, our morbid appetite for salacious details about the violent snuffing out of a life and with a vulturous and insensitive media only too willing to oblige, offering us mere spectacle and show while we watch uncaring, unfeeling, and unthinking. And at the place where the "vagrant" met his terrible death all is forgotten, life goes on, the market is back to business. One fewer "vagrant" to deal with. The news media awaits another story. We return to our day to day. Even his fellow road people, of necessity, must move on, for they cannot afford the luxury of lingering in collective sadness as they must continue to focus on their own survival. And so, Jerome, the "vagrant" is summarily forgotten. [photo art by Ric Couchman] My Website http://dlvr.it/P4WTvn

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Ignored, Unnoticed, Forgotten: Guyana's Street Dwellers

I believe that every step we take towards humanity, however small that step is, is a step in the right direction. Every attempt to mobilize others to take that step, every smile offered, every encouraging word, every caring touch (a hand on the shoulder, a handshake), every act of kindness, it is a step in the right direction. If the freedom of the street dweller is assumed (the freedom to make choices and to accept the consequences negative or otherwise), then that pre-supposes my freedom also - my freedom to show compassion to her (or not), to feel sorrow for her (or not), to extend a helping hand to her (or not), to "save" her however illusory (or not), just as that individual is free to choose to accept or reject my gestures. If you are free to judge the street dweller's merits, or to speculate about his circumstances or motives, or to form conclusions (without evidence) as to his character (for example, that he is lazy), or to put forward the exceptio probat regulam, or to hold that tough love is the requisite response, allow me the freedom also to defer analysis, to assume his good intentions, to assume his weakness in the face of his overwhelming circumstances, to figure that it is not simply a matter of his manning the f#@k up and suddenly receiving clarity of mind from some tough love approach. Allow me the freedom to care.[youtube presentation by Ric Couchman] My Website http://dlvr.it/P3ghLC

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At the Other End of the Line - A Mother's Anguish and Tears

It was important to Shaun that I understand that he didn't smoke. He told me repeatedly that he didn't smoke, and on many occasions while I sat with him he would appeal to his fellow street dwellers as they passed by for confirmation of that fact. Shaun is living on the streets not on account of the usual assumptions we might have, namely, alcohol abuse, drug abuse, too lazy to work, or mental challenge. He is living on the streets because he is too ashamed to face his wife and two young children, Paul and Leah. Why is he ashamed? He is ashamed because he cannot provide for them? Why can he not provide for them? Three years ago he suffered a terrible injury to his left wrist that left his left hand paralyzed - an injury that has not healed to this day and that seems to be getting worse. For Paul, not being able to work is an evisceration of his manhood. Shaun is from Black Bush Polder where his mom, his wife, and his children currently reside. He has not seen them in three years. This was the fourth time Shaun and I were meeting. He had asked a few days earlier whether I had a pair of used pants, a shirt, and a pair of sneakers to spare as he wanted to go to the hospital to get his wrist checked out. I provided the pants and shirt and my friend Roberto provided the sneakers. Roberto and I had arrived to drive him to Black Bush Polder to visit him mom and his family. The day before, I had asked him whether his mom and his wife had access to a phone and if he wanted to talk with them. He remembered his mother's number. I called the number, and a woman answered. I put Shaun on the line. It was his mother. What followed was the most heartbreaking phone call I ever heard. Shaun was in tears, and at the other end the tears and anguish were obvious. At one point Shaun asked, "Ma, what did you cook?" Pause. Tears. "Ma, and your son is living on the street with nothing to eat. I am coming home, Ma. I am coming home. I am coming to see you and Paul and Leah." In the end, Shaun's shame proved far stronger than his desire to see his family. When Roberto and I showed up and asked if he were ready, he said that he couldn't do it. His wrist was bandaged, and the viscous, yellowish, white fluid could be seen oozing through it. I did not press the issue as I wanted to leave the choice entirely to him. I understand his change of heart. One does not peel away three years of shame and guilt in an instant, but talking to his mom for that brief moment was, for him, priceless. In the meanwhile, to numb the feeling of shame and guilt that he carries like an albatross around his neck, Shaun drinks high wine. For "what else is a man to do," he says, "with all that time on his hand to sit and think of the pain, the hurt, the suffering, the shame?"  [photo by Ric Couchman]My Website http://dlvr.it/P3ghCj

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Police Checkpoints/Stops in Guyana: Harassment, Intimidation, and Corruption

The purpose of Law Enforcement in any sovereign State is to ensure the safety of its citizens. Like those individuals elected to manage the affairs of the sovereign people of Guyana, our police officers are public servants who are no greater than the citizens they serve and whose task is the protection of our rights, our property, and our person. However, the foregoing is hardly the case, for instead of being proud of the service of our enforcers of the Law, citizens seem to be afraid of them, and this fear is becoming inveterate and increasingly pervasive. It is a contradiction that we should fear those who are entrusted to ensure our safety.  One of the key mechanisms of fear is the Checkpoint. They have become ubiquitous and are popping up on the roadways all over our country. And what is more, is that they seem to have no purpose other than to harass and intimidate citizens and to provide an opportunity for some police officers to unlawfully get money (corruption) from those motorists they stop or pullover. What is even more ludicrous are the customs outposts (far removed from border crossings) and police checkpoints along the Georgetown-Lethem roadway where vehicles are checked, citizens required to show identification cards and to check in with customs officials, and foreigners (mostly Brazilians) are harassed. It is illegal to be stopped, to be asked to produce identification, and to have one's vehicle searched without probable cause. And of course, stories abound of police officers stopping or pulling over motorists and exacting money from them. It is time for law enforcement officers in Guyana to be reined in from their illegal practices, and it is time that Guyanese understand what ought to be the relation between the police and the sovereign people - that they are in office as law enforcers to serve us, to ensure our safety, not to intimidate us, not to harass us, and not to use their authority to exact money from us.  We ought to know what our rights are under the law and to hold them responsible for respecting and protecting those rights. If the practice of harassment, intimidation, and corruption does not stop, we run the risk of our Cooperative Republic becoming a police state in which fear predominates.My Website http://dlvr.it/P2kYFq

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The Rose on a Quiet Guyana Street

IncongruencebySabio Lying among some garbage I sawWas the most beautiful thing -A beautiful flower, a beautiful rose,Yes, just lying among the garbageIn peaceful, beautiful sleepOn the quiet city street.Who, I asked myself,Would want to discard such?Who would simply pass it by?Who would ignore it, Or would leave it lying there?And with that thought I continued along my merry way.And just like all the other passersby,I did not pick up that beautiful rose;I left it lying there. [photo by Ric Couchman]My Website http://dlvr.it/P2GYgN

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Humans, With Names

They Have NamesbyRic Couchman They are not merely part of the Guyana landscape. They each have a story. They are our fellow citizens.They have names. They cry. They laugh. They hurt. They feel pain. They love. They dream. They have virtues. They desire companionship.They have vices. They feel shame. They feel pride. They desire to be touched. They desire respect. They desire friendship. They experience anger. They smile. They have weaknesses. They want to look nice. They have strengths. They are human. Just like the rest of us.They have names -Andrew aka Tallman, aka Rasputin RonaldAnthonyMr. MeertinsErrolAuntie NeishaTyroneShaun aka SanchoAndreGaryMs. Sandra -Just like the rest of us. My Website http://dlvr.it/P28JpW

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My Response to a Friend's Questions on the Problem of Street Dwellers in Guyana

[Is this a social, humamitarian, economic, health, or political problem?]This is OUR problem. Our nation's problem. Our crisis. Like when a member of our family is in crisis - a son, a daughter, a husband, a wife, a mother, a father, we become worried, concerned, willing to move heaven and earth to help them. We focus more on helping them than on analysis. We consider the impact on the larger family, and we strive to the best of our ability to remedy the situation.  [Why do these people sleep on the streets?]First of all they are not "these people". They are humans, our fellow citizens, our people. Secondly, we don't know definitively the reason each Street Dweller lives on the street. We make a lot of assumptions as to their reasons, and our assumptions are largely incorrect. The only way we can answer that question is to sit with them and to ask them directly. But before we ask them questions of such a personal nature, we have to spend time with them, establish their trust.  [Do they have families who care about them?]Some street dwellers do have families; some of them don't. Some (Sajun for example) have families who love and care about them. Some of them have families who do not care about them.  [Is mental illness and drug addiction the reason they are on the streets?]Mental illness is not the reason people dwell on the streets. There are people who are mentally ill who live in homes. Drug and alcohol addiction/abuse is not the reason people live on the streets. It is too easy to reduce the problem to mental illness and drug abuse. Some people develop drug and alcohol addiction while living on the streets because they want to escape the moment to moment of living on the streets.  [Are homeless people homeless because there is no home to go to? Or have they chosen not to live in available homes and to comply with sanitary expectations?]Some people live on the streets because they lack the means of self-sustenance or because they are unable to care for themselves. Some people live on the streets by choice. They have a home, but for some reason they choose to live on the streets. Sajun, for example, lives on the street because he is unable to take care of his children, Paul and Leah. He cannot work because he cannot use his right hand which was severely injured in an accident. He is too embarrassed to face his family because as a man he cannot provide for them. Some people choose not to live in the provided shelter (The Night Shelter) because the conditions of that shelter is worse than on the streets. [Is it not true that many homeless people make more money per day by begging than a minimum wage worker?]First of all not everyone who begs on the streets is a street dweller. Many individuals who beg do have homes (for example, Auntie Neisha, Miss Renee). You can often see mothers (some of them quite young) with their children begging on the streets. Secondly, contrary to that erroneous assumption, those who beg do not make more money per day than a minimum wage worker. On most days, they are barely able to acquire sufficient money to buy a 400 GY dollars meal.  [If they choose not to care about themselves, why should we?]First, the question assumes that street dwellers choose not to care about themselves. This is another grossly erroneous assumption. Some street dwellers do not know how to care for themselves. Most street dwellers do not have the luxury of change of clothing as most of us do. Street dwellers do not have access to clean water on the streets or access to facilities that would allow them opportunities for appropriate disposal of personal waste or for cleaning themselves. Secondly, we should care about street dwellers because their problem is our problem. Street dwelling as a problem represents a breakdown in our society which, if not dealt with appropriately will lead to callousness, estrangement, indifference, etc. We cannot survive as a society with such mindset. [If I became financially destitute, mentally challenged, or a drug addict, would I ask for help or wish to be left alone?]I do not know what you would do under the circumstance. Further, remember that dwelling on the streets is not a logical corollary of financial destitution, mental challenge, or drug/alcohol addiction or abuse. These might lead to homelessness. There are people who are in the circumstances you identify but who still live in some home. Now, very few people desire to be left alone. The rare few (like Mr. Meertins) who so desire are those who have lived on the streets for such a long time that there is no way one can get them to do otherwise. Most street dwellers desire help. Some are too embarrassed to ask and some do not know how to ask, lacking the literary, emotional, elocutory equipment to do so. [Personal choice, freewill and humanitarian/medical intervention is a delicate dance. How much should a government invest in mental health and social intervention?]This question needs reframing as it assumes a correlation between mental health and street dwelling. It is a mistake to reduce the problem of street dwelling to such constructs as mental health, alcohol/drug addiction, etc. Those to whom we gave the mandate of managing the affairs of our sovereign people ought to set in place and maintain policies and services that would minimize and eventually eradicate street dwelling. Auntie Neisha, who is obviously of age to receive a pension or some form of social security to help her with her daily expenses, cannot receive such service because she does not know her date of birth nor does she have her birth papers. There are many like her, locked out because of the impassable wall of bureaucracy. [What is our responsibility as family/friend to those suffering?]The answer is a no-brainer. The operative word is suffering. I hope that we have not become so desensitized that the natural response of empathy and direct care have not departed us. [photo art by Ric Couchman] My Website http://dlvr.it/P1Pk5g

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Guyana's Ignored and Forgotten Citizens

We see them lying on our city sidewalks, in our market places, in partially constructed buildings, in our parks, and elsewhere. We see them rummaging through trash bins, begging for money and food from motorists and passersby, and defecating wherever convenient. They appear undignified, yet they seem (regardless of their circumstances) to hold on to some slim shred of dignity, of their humanity. I saw recently one of them taking a bath in one of the city's drains, desiring to be cleansed like any human would, but bathing in unclean water. Ignored and forgotten, they are of all ages, of all ethnicity, and of both genders. They were there during the tenure of the previous regime, and their condition remains the same during the tenure of the current regime. Some of the places they frequented were cleaned up, but they simply went elsewhere, to half-way completed parks and abandoned projects or returned to the "cleaned up places". We see them, and yet we do not see them, for so inured have we become to their presence and condition that they have simply become part of the landscape. And maybe, just maybe (as an afterthought) we might dig into our pockets or purse and give them a little something, leaving with the feeling that we did something good. Or, we might chase them away because they are not unlike the undesirable rats and flies and roaches, mere nuisances. And so these Guyanese citizens for whom the benefits articulated in our Constitution are non-existent must settle for less than dignified accommodation while at least one (there might be more) of our Minister's official residence (complete with 24-hour armed security) remains largely unoccupied. [photos by Ric Couchman]My Website http://dlvr.it/P0Rj3Z

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Sammy Baksh

His song, "To Be Lonely", still gives me goose bumps every time I listen to it. In the 70s I loved listened to Santana and other Rock musicians of that era, and I also listened to Sammy Baksh. I recall when his iconic song was first released how it sent shockwaves among Guyana's young people and how Pancho Carew would often play it on his radio show, "Best by Request". I thought that the singer was someone from Europe or the US, and then I found out that he was Guyanese and living in Guyana. Imagine my pride. Thinking about it now as I write these few lines is making my hair stand on end.  I had the opportunity to meet my Guyanese Idol a few days ago after I had found out from my friend, Carol, that he was often in the Queenstown neighborhood. She had gotten his phone number and had told him that I was desirous of meeting him. I called him and he graciously agreed to meet with me. The next day I was told that I had a visitor, and when I went to the door, there he was. It was a rather delightful moment for me. I told him that I became a fan of his when I first heard his song at age 17 and told him that he was truly a Guyanese Legend and in the same category as Johnny Braff, with whom (I later found out) he had done a concert). Mr. Baksh talked mostly about the thrill he experienced playing several years ago at a concert in Suriname and the surprise he felt at how he well-received he was in that country. He also talked about his early struggle to get his music recorded and about the predatory nature of those involved in the business. He also talked about his sister, Dolly, whose death was a turning point in his life. Two severe beatings he experienced by thugs in Florida after 9/11 and also in New York City following a concert certainly affected him physically and emotionally.  These days Mr. Baksh appears to be on a different path - a spiritual path. He  continues to be involved in music and still plays the guitar as evidenced by his calloused fingertips which he showed me in response to my question as to whether he were still into music. But he is no longer in the limelight as he was in the 70s. In fact, when I mentioned his name to some people in Georgetown their response was usually how they heard that he was "crazy". Crazy? Certainly not. Eccentric? Perhaps. Just before he left, I decided to play "To Be Lonely" out loud on the house's breezy verandah. Hearing the song definitely had a nostalgic effect on Mr. Baksh, for as the song played he began talking about ultimate issues, matching the intensity of the song. For me it was a memorable meeting, one left an indelible impression on me and one that elicited in me feelings of euphoria and sadness.  [photo art by Ric Couchman]My Website http://dlvr.it/NzR6W2

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Vaqueros of Guyana

Vaqueros of the Rupununi"A Videographic Production by Ric CouchmanPhotography and Direction by Ric CouchmanMusic by Ennio Morricone My Website http://dlvr.it/NxsJxS

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Guyana's Government as Donor

Dear Government: I have seen, chiefly in our Amerindian Villages, many signs (such as the one pictured in the accompanying photo image) alluding to the supposed largesse, kindness, and goodness of the Guyana Government. These donations include vehicles, speed boats, buildings, etc. Since when is the Government of Guyana in the business of providing "donations" to the people of Guyana? Your act of giving donations (or handouts) is condescending and an insult to our people. Your offers and promises of donations suggest that you, as Government, are doing the recipients a favor, that the recipients are in some kind of subservient relationship to you. It appears that you have forgotten that our Constitution (assuming you have read it at all) dictates that sovereignty and power resides in the people of Guyana, not in those who have received from us the mandate of service.  Do not presume that we are naive. We know that your offers or promises of donations come with a price, namely, that the members of those individuals or communities receiving your donations put an X beside your name and your party's name on the ballot sheets. Let me remind you again, Guyana's institution of Government was not set up to be a charitable organization offering handouts but to be an institution of service to the Guyanese People. Your responsibility is not to "make donations" to the Guyanese people but to do service for the people in accordance with your assigned mandate. This practice of giving "donations" in anticipation of people's votes or as a response to their received votes must stop, along with the public displays via billboards or other signs indicating your supposed good will towards the recipients. And to the leader of and members of the opposition, I say the following: take no comfort in my reprimand of the Government regarding its practice, for you yourselves are not without culpability in this matter. You are also guilty of this practice whether during their own tenure of government or while in opposition to the incumbent government. This is a time of accountability.  [photo art by Ric Couchman]My Website http://dlvr.it/NxMddF

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Guyana: Apathy and Cynicism

A lot of our people in our country seem to have given up. An attitude of resignation exists. There is an inveterate lack of confidence in ourselves as a people and an uncritical acceptance of the status quo, of things as they are and that they would never be otherwise. This spirit of resignation and apathy can be seen in the state of our city streets, in the slowness of justice, in the drab looking dwellings, in the inefficiency of our public safety apparatus, in the run-down cemeteries, in the garbage in our trenches (never mind the frenetic post-election-win cleanup), in the indifference of those with whom the well-being of our State has been entrusted, in our lowering of standards, and much more. This impassivity, this lethargy, this languor is not our essence. It doesn't have to be this way with us. We have a history, a proud history - a history of struggle and of triumph. We come from ancestors who refused to accept the status quo, who fought for freedom and justice and who met seemingly insurmountable challenges. We come fro our indigenous people who survived the brutality and subjugation of European colonizers. We come from the participants in the 1763 and 1823 slave rebellions, and we come from our people who were brought from India sacrificing, struggling, and emerging triumphant through the hardships of indentureship.  Along with this apathetic attitude on the part of many, there also exists a certain cynicism by many (increasingly reflected on social media), a distrust in those entrusted with the care and well-being of the state (and rightly so) and a general pessimism about the prospects of things becoming better for our country and our people. Now this attitude can be rightly understood because, for years, we have seen things move in the direction towards degradation than towards progress. This cynicism usually comes from those of us who are slightly in a better position to eek out a living in the day to day, whether in Guyana or abroad. Now like the prevailing apathy, cynicism has no place among us. We have exemplars from among our people who have shown us that we can have hope in the face of hopelessness. The Enmore Martyrs acted upon that hope, refusing apathy and cynicism. Herbert Nathaniel Critchlow, Stephen Joseph Campbell, Dr. and Mrs. Cheddi Jagan, Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham, and others acted upon that hope, standing up for and demanding freedom and justice from our former colonial oppressors. Let us also reject apathy and cynicism. These are easy to adopt. Let us instead embrace hope, and let us act in manners of hope, speaking truth to power and holding them (both incumbent and opposition) accountable without fear, encouraging each other, helping each other, and becoming examples of the changes we desire. Tempted though we might be to lean of the direction of apathy and cynicism, let us not give up on ourselves; let us not give up on our Guyanese people, and let not give up on our dear land, Guyana.  [collage by Ric Couchman] My Website http://dlvr.it/NtCqtw

[riccouchman]

Letter From a Young Tactical Service Unit Officer of the Guyana Police Force

I received the letter in the accompanying image from a young officer in the Tactical Service Unit of the Guyana Police Force. I present it below in exactly the way it was written. What is readily obvious in the letter is the poor morale among the ranks and the utter disregard for their well-being on the part of their superiors. In my walk around Guyana (during the months of September-December, 2016) I saw firsthand the deplorable conditions under which our young men and women Police Officers work. How can they be energized to provide safety if they themselves are working in stations that are unpleasant and unhealthy. Most of the stations I have seen are grimy black on the outside, full of broken windows, and in utter state of disrepair. No human should have to work under such terrible conditions. The worst of the lot was the Anna Regina Station. Brickdam seems to come a close second (see accompanying photo). The following is the young officer's letter. It was shared with me on December 19, 2016. Please overlook issues of grammar, usage, and mechanics and focus more on the despair that emanates from the young officer's correspondence. "In the tactical Service Unit there is not enough water or most time no water in base. At the ministers residence and ordinary out post there is no water system for ranks in majority out post and ministers residence. There is no support in the Tactical Service Unit when it comes to workers (ranks) satisfaction. There is no care system, that ranks don't have a say in what goes on the post of work (duty) and the working environment is bad, unhealthy to work in. Bad living environment. It is a very unhealthy environment where people have to dwell to take a bath, to eat or to sleep, If you observe the entire area it is untidy and unpleasant for working Meals Not Healthy: In the kitchen pots pans are not in pleasant manner which is unhealthy. Rats the size of a book lingers around the entire base including the mess hall which can couse sick. Garbage are not properly dispose leaving the compound nasty and stink. A lot of theft with no investigation. It is very common in the Police Force especially the Tactical Service Unit. for theft to take place. Its observe that at the T.S.U theft is fun and game for other ranks. It is a factor that is also listed in the log book of the T.S.U. because of many theft. Their must be more than 100 phones and other items stolen, and never investigated in the Guyana Police Force" [photo art by Ric Couchman]My Website http://dlvr.it/NsksZ2