PORTMORE WEBSITE e-Notes Publication Date: December 19,2006 - 13:36 Editor: Kennedy Reid Subscribers: 316 Sign up for e-notes : http://groups.yahoo.com/group/portmore_newsletter/ Reply to: webmaster@portmore.org Web site: http://www.portmore.org Phone: 876-320-7343 TOPICS: 1) Portmore photos showed mostly garbage - Kali 2) We need proper road signs in Portmore - Pryncess 3) Portmore in the News - Buggery, Celebration, etc. 4) Jamaica's development - Clifton Yap 5) Christmas Website - Joy Lumsden SPONSORED BY: Oasis Christian Community. http://www.occvision.org Dr. Errol Williamson "Working for St. Catherine Southern." http://www.thejlp.org/candidates/candidatepdfs/ewilliamson.pdf errol_williamson@yahoo.com Call him at 817-0592 1) ====================================== From: "Kali" To: portmore_newsletter-owner@yahoogroups.com Subject: RE: Portmore supplement in last Friday's gleaner Date: Mon, 11 Dec 2006 18:42:14 +0000 Good day to you I want to register my dissatisfaction with the set of "winning photos" which were snapped by some 30 photographers who in the Gleaner's own words " descended " on Portmore to take shots of the community. The photos showed mostly garbage, dumps, polluted coastal areas in the vicinity of the toll road with a couple good ones thrown in( of nature / human aspects ). One would think that this is all that Portmore is. I do not think that the supplement , sponsored by Kodak, did justice to the Portmore community. It certainly was not representative I think, of the community in which we live. I would love to hear what other Portmore residents thought of it. In response to this I think your publication could solicit photos from the residents of Portmore and offer them to the Gleaner for publication. The supplement did not state the criteria for the winning photos Kali WEBMASTER'S COMMENT: Our artist (the photographers) and the editors of the Gleaner are reflecting the negative view we take of ourselves! It is such a pity... Americans think of themselves as superior to the rest of the world and their movies project that image. Our music videos show poverty, go-go dancers and prostitutes. What a contrast! Anyway, as long as there are positive persons as yourself around there is hope. Please write the Gleaner and tell them your response... and mine. We have hundreds of true pictures of Portmore on the website and I am always ready to accept photos from anyone who sends them. Kennedy 2) ===================================== Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2006 21:44:40 -0800 (PST) From: "PryncessAnna" Subject: Lack of Road Signs, Paint, & Reflectors To: webmaster@portmore.org Kindly get a message, if at all possible, to the constuction crew of the dual carriage on Passage Fort Drive. There SHOULD be some reflectors put up on or infront of the newly constucted "islands" (not sure if correct word). **Please do not follow the BAD example of those who failed to highlight the exit to the Municipal Blvd after the traffic light- the sight of MANY near-accidents and some actual ones.** Those new concrete structures are dangerous, along with the other un-marked/un-highlighted round-about & structures on our roads, especially @nights. I thank God I was able to see it in the nick of time while driving by earlier tonight, instead of crashing into it. Additionally, we need proper road signs in Portmore (&Jamaica @large). For example, upon exiting Passage Fort near Mega Mart, there is no sign to indicate you are entering a one-way-to-the-left road. I've been living in Passage Fort for most of my life and thought nothing of it but the IMPORTANCE of such signs came forcefully when my friend who resides abroad was driving and was ready to turn right at that intersection. Had I not been there to correct him, a major accident could have occured. (Please remember we dont have as much traffic jams to guide us as to the direction to drive on Ptmr roads.) Not to mention the faded paint jobs or no-paint job at all of road structures and round-a-bouts, etc. It's a nightmare for us here (drivers & pedestrians alike) muchless for our visitors. I've heard them vow, one after the other, not to drive in JA again- even the returning residents! It is truly a shame! PS: Next time we see someone driving in front of us who seemingly does not know the road and at times annoying us... have compassion. Nuff Love, Pryncess 3 ) ================== Higway2000 apply for toll increase! http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20061214/news/news1.html published: Thursday | December 14, 2006 Ascot Primary celebrates 10-year anniversary http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/html/20061216T170000-0500_116719_OBS_ASCOT_PRIMARY_CELEBRATES____YEAR_ANNIVERSARY_.asp BY BEV MELBOURNE Sunday Observer writer published: Sunday, December 17, 2006 Teacher gets five years sentence for Buggery. http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20061215/lead/lead9.html A music teacher who buggered a 14-year-old schoolboy was sentenced to five years at hard labour, in the St. Catherine Circuit court 4 ) ================== WEBMASTER'S INTRODUCTION Dear readers, below is one of the best articles I have read on the developmental issues. Mr. Yap is obviously very knowledgeable and worth consideration. His only weakness is that he tends to put the blame for Jamaica's problems at the feet of politicians. This is an over-simplification of the problem. Politicians are the product of the society and the ebb and flow of the pressures therein. I blame our problems on socialisation and history. For example, our coastal waters are polluted and depleted of fish not only because of the poor fishing practices of the fisherfolk, but because of the bad farming practices starting in the 1940s. The root of our current challenges go back way beyond 1962. Read the article below... Jamaica's development - cause for much concern http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/columns/html/20061216T170000-0500_116723_OBS_JAMAICA_S_DEVELOPMENT___CAUSE____FOR_MUCH_CONCERN_.asp By Clifton Yap Sunday, December 17, 2006 EXTRACT: I believe that by far Jamaica's "development" over the past 44 years since our Independence should give us all cause for concern. And that is what I would like to talk to you about today. I know at this point some of you are thinking I'm crazy. After all, you live in a nice home, drive a nice car, and can come for lunch at a nice hotel like this. What's wrong with that? Well, imagine yourselves as citizens back in 1962, and being asked to write down your vision of Jamaica as you would want it to be in the year 2006. Now let me run down a few items that I do not think would have been on your wish list. These include: 1) Jamaica becoming the country with the highest murder rate in the world, and where everyone, from the poorest to the wealthiest, live behind iron bars. 2) Every city and town without exception, having increasingly worse traffic congestion, and in a degraded, dirty and unsightly condition. 3)Thousands of extremely poor and destitute citizens, living in sub-human conditions, with many in garrison communities in our urban centres, where they fight and kill each other to support their political patrons. 4) All public services and facilities for things such as health, education, policing, fire fighting and justice in deplorable condition and starved of funding. 5) The vast majority of tourists coming to the island are secluded in all-inclusive hotels, and discouraged from going out to public places unless through guided tours. 6) Widespread depletion of our agricultural lands and open spaces to accommodate housing sprawl, as well as environmental degradation affecting our mountains, watersheds, rivers, and beaches. Read the Rest of the article at... http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/columns/html/20061216T170000-0500_116723_OBS_JAMAICA_S_DEVELOPMENT___CAUSE____FOR_MUCH_CONCERN_.asp 5 ) ================== Date: Thu, 14 Dec 2006 19:20:58 -0500 From: "Joy Lumsden" Subject: Christmas web site Date: Dec 14, 2006 7:07 PM Subject: Christmas web site I have been working on a new Christmas web site for 2006; it is not entirely complete yet, but I hope you will find enough of interest to make your visit worthwhile:- http://joyousjamtoo.moonfruit.com/ I shall continue to work on the incomplete pages, but I am now moving on to the site I started long ago on the 1907 Earthquake. With the 100th anniversary nearly upon us, I shall have to spend a good deal of time over the holiday season working on it. Have a look at what is there so far - http://www.joyousjam.com/earthquake1907/index.html - and perhaps check back later to see what progress has been made! Beyond that I have a site planned for February 2007 on Jamaicans who made names for themselves in various other parts of the world. More on that later. All very best season's greetings, and all good things for 2007. Joy PS If you would like to be taken off this mailing list, please let me know and I'll get to it asap! -- . . . always something new to find out! http://joyousjam.googlepages.com/home No matter what road I travel, I'm going home. END) ===================================== Please remember to pass this e-note on to others in your mailing list!