By Sojourner
The other day I overheard a conversation between some young people and from their accents I determined that they were non-nationals. Well they spoke about the UPP in disparaging terms..."they tief..." "them lie..." "them spend thrift..." "them corrupt..." They talked about how "them taxing poor people..."
Grrrrr... I felt my blood getting hot... really hot. With some effort I restrained myself... and I did not put in my two pence... like I would normally do. I guess, I did not trust my mouth... You know once you open it.... sometimes it has a way to do its own thing and disregard the owner. So yes, I kept quiet.
But, I got to thinking of how dem pickney de either ungrateful, or dem just spouting all the things them hear the ALP people say... either way, they must be reminded of some things. And I will do it...
To start off... they are here in Antigua, and even though we are smaller than where they are coming from, here in Antigua and Barbuda they have more than where they came from... That's why they came here!
But let us stick to the points on which they say that they judge the UPP.
"Them spendthrift..." Well yes, the UPP is indeed spending... and most of that spending is on young people. And, a lot of these young people are non-nationals! Do you see how non-nationals reach the head of the line over Antiguans? Everytime!
Check out the scholarships. And when parents come here and sneak in their children, they end up in our schools, and they benefit just as nationals from the school meals programme and the uniform programme. So, yes! UPP is spending money on them just like they spend money on us... Antiguans and Barbudans!
Check out the scholarships. And when parents come here and sneak in their children, they end up in our schools, and they benefit just as nationals from the school meals programme and the uniform programme. So, yes! UPP is spending money on them just like they spend money on us... Antiguans and Barbudans!
"UPP taxing poor people..." Well, this just goes to show that these young people fall prey to the ALP lies about people not being intelligent and people not reading. Why? Because these bright young people (I say 'bright' because they were having this conversation at one our tertiary institutions - but they were talking stupidness) ought to know that 'poor people' do not pay income tax... and they should know that a whole host of goods are exempted from the VAT.
As 'bright' young people studying Economics, and Sociology etc, they should appreciate, even at an intellectual level, the importance of paying taxes and they should be able to link this to the many benefits they now enjoy.
These very young people are looking to go off the University in one or two years and they expect the same Government to pay the costs! In fact there are more young people in universities today than at any other time of our nations' history.
In the old time days... the ALP days, politicians and their people in high positions used to literally throw away the scholarships into the wastepaper baskets. "No! No! We don't want too many poor people getting education! No... No... Their eyes will be opened... We want them to stay dumb... gullible... loyal and grateful for papa's ALP handouts.
These very young people are looking to go off the University in one or two years and they expect the same Government to pay the costs! In fact there are more young people in universities today than at any other time of our nations' history.
In the old time days... the ALP days, politicians and their people in high positions used to literally throw away the scholarships into the wastepaper baskets. "No! No! We don't want too many poor people getting education! No... No... Their eyes will be opened... We want them to stay dumb... gullible... loyal and grateful for papa's ALP handouts.
And these young people have the gall to be talking like this! In their own countries where they come from... they pay taxes... they come here in search of a better life and fuss at a government that is giving them the future that ALP did not... could not... and definitely... would not! And let's be clear... Will not... ever!
And you know something, many of these young people will be going on to UWI. Well let's talk about taxes... In Barbados locals pay about 35% of their earnings in tax and Barbadians don't complain. The young people there are grateful because they see the benefits and they enjoy the scholarships. And, the Barbados government has gone even further to use its taxpayers money to offer scholarships to students from the OECS! So these very students who are complaining about our taxes here, will go on to Barbados to enjoy education supported by the Barbadian taxpayer! The Barbadian tax payer should complain about them!
These young non-nationals are not thinking straight! It is like the like ALP cobweb clogging up their brain! I am sure they have parents and cousins and uncles and aunts and neighbours... all non-nationals who backed in their trucks to benefit from the voluntary retirement package. I know plenty plenty non-nationals who benefitted. Plenty plenty! In fact I know a husband and wife team who both got the package! I am sure that between both of them they got well over $100,000. And what did they do next? They packed up their georgie bundles and headed out of Wadadli and up to Babylon!
These young non-nationals are not thinking straight! It is like the like ALP cobweb clogging up their brain! I am sure they have parents and cousins and uncles and aunts and neighbours... all non-nationals who backed in their trucks to benefit from the voluntary retirement package. I know plenty plenty non-nationals who benefitted. Plenty plenty! In fact I know a husband and wife team who both got the package! I am sure that between both of them they got well over $100,000. And what did they do next? They packed up their georgie bundles and headed out of Wadadli and up to Babylon!
Others, sent the money home to invest in real estate and to prop up their houses and put them on stilts! Others are trying to turn their hands at some business idea! Non-nationals benefitted more from this UPP initiative than nationals. You think these young people don't know that? Of course they do! And if they don't... then they not so 'bright' after all.
They talked about UPP 'corrupt' and 'lie', but frankly, I do not have a clue as to what they are talking about. Guess that I should have asked them... But I think that, not being Antiguans and being young, they might have mistaken some of those ALP names on the Justice List... and thought they were UPP people!
I guess that If I were in a far away place, far from home, and I got some cute minister to arrange my citizenship and give me a passport, or a fat jolly minister to bring gifts, then I might feel obligated to them. I might even believe what they spout... I might even find my mouth dancing to their beat.....you know like a puppet....
But these are supposedly bright young people... so they should know better... they have sophisticated skills of analysis and can make sound judgements... Unless what "Serpent" say is correct... whenever anyone aligns themself to the ALP, their brains turn to mush...!
Well my sister puts it another way, her theory is that whenever anyone speaks from the ALP patform, their thinking is confounded... She swears that it is divine intervention. Listen to Lester talk about "tribes" and "crapeau smoke our pipe" and you realize that she is right!
Well my sister puts it another way, her theory is that whenever anyone speaks from the ALP patform, their thinking is confounded... She swears that it is divine intervention. Listen to Lester talk about "tribes" and "crapeau smoke our pipe" and you realize that she is right!
Their brains turn to mush... or their thinking is confounded... I dont know which is correct. All I know is that it is sad... that these young non-nationals are suffering from the same disease that has 'besot' all those other ALP people.
