Wednesday 26 September 2012
The Clash of Civilizations and The Making of a New World Order: A review of Samuel P Huntingdon’s and its Relevance to our New Political order By Donovan Reynolds Blogger and Independent Writer
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The recent killing of the U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans on the 11th September 20 12: — when the consulate in Libya was overrun by protesters and, some say, Islamist militants. This embarrassed the interim Libyan leadership in the capital Tripoli and fuelled public anger at the continued presence on the streets of units from the revolutionary army whose loyalties are often unclear.
President Barack Obama on the 25th of September 2012 invoked the words of Mahatma Gandhi in his address to the UN General Assembly here as he remembered US envoy to Libya who was killed in violent protests that erupted in the aftermath of an anti-Islam film, saying the "crude and disgusting" video was no excuse for an "attack on America”. Three days before Presidents Obama speech impassioned and well measured speech the Daily mail published a shocking revelation: That a Pakistani minister has offered $100,000 to anyone who kills the maker of the on line anti-Islam video that has launched deadly protests across parts of the Muslim world.
The threat from right-wing extremist terrorism is as deadly as the atrocities committed by the Islamic Jihadist. On July 22, 2011, Norwegian right-wing extremist Anders Behring Breivik bombed several government buildings in Oslo, Norway killing eight people and injuring more than 30. After the bombing, he made his way to Utoya Island in a fake police uniform and began firing on people attending a political youth camp for Norway's left-wing AUF political party, killing 68 and injuring more than 60. The 2011 Norway attacks became the largest mass killing of people committed by a single person during peacetime, excluding use of bombs.
As a child I always read widely and it gave me had a vivid imagination. I wanted to travel the world and broaden my horizon by travelling to different cultures. When the opportunity for me to travel to Barbados at the age of 16 years. It was my first holiday opportunity without my mother. So, it was hugely alluring as I had always harboured ideas of grandeur delusion about the outside world. A group of my friends in Kingston Jamaica decided to travel to Barbados I managed to convince my parent to allow me to go after confirming that an adult whom she trusted would be travelling with us and she had called Barbados and made arrangement with a College friend of hers who owned an hostel in Bridgetown Barbados to Keep us for a week.
On my arrival in Barbados we made friends with my mother’s friend relative Charles Padmore was kind enough to take us to Harrison Point Cave Hill, St Lawrence, Boscobel and Silver Sands all of which we enjoyed immensely and shared similarities with our Jamaican environment. My first culture shock came when our host on a visit to the Bridgetown Harbour Charles showed me a cross dressing man whom I swore was a female initially but was told after that he was a cross dresser who was originally named Paul but had changed his name to Paula and had become a male prostitute. Upon receiving that information I shuffled uncomfortably and my toes curled in a cringing manner. How was I a boy from a rural district on the outskirts of Kingston to process such a strange phenomenon?
On my penultimate day I went for a walk by myself and came across about five bearded Indian men dressed in what I recognised at the time as long black dresses walking towards me I immediately became paranoid and ran back to the cottage that I was staying. Almost out of breath I knocked up my boarder at the cottage and told her what I had seen. She gave me a cold drink to calm me down and explained to me that the men that I had seen were Muslims from Trinidad trying to set up a mosque in Barbados. About an hour after the men came to the cottage and we were introduced to them. They told us that Islam is one of the world's major religions, along with Hinduism, Judaism, Buddhism and Christianity They also said that Islam's central teaching is that there is one all-powerful, all-knowing God, who is referred to by the Arabic name, Allah. I was told that In Arabic, Islam means "surrender," or "submission," to the will of God and that Islam was a religion of peace. It sounded reasonable to me but it was different from what I was told by the Rector of my local church.
Today I live in London which is a city that celebrates a multicultural lifestyle with people of diverse ethnicity and religious beliefs. A society that embraces multiculturalism is said to be a society at ease with the rich tapestry of human life and the desire amongst people to express their own identity in the manner they see fit. It is a far cry a way from 1980 when I visited Barbados and had a narrow view of sexuality, culture and religion. Today I am also an unashamed secular humanist with a left of centre liberal viewpoint which sits squarely with the philosophy of multiculturalism. But ever so often, since 9/11 the great promise of multiculturalism and its avowed benefits of a tolerant society have become questionable Utopian ideal. As; ethnic and religious flash points across the globe drive an uneasy wedge of discontent among the great promise of globalisation and the push towards a unified world.
It seems wholly appropriate for me to assume that we are experiencing ‘a clash of civilisations. ‘The Clash of Civilizations is a theory, proposed by political scientist Samuel P. Huntington, that people's cultural and religious identities will be the primary source of conflict in the post-Cold War era.
Samuel P. Huntington was a former White House Coordinator of Security Planning for the National Security Council for President Jimmy Carter. Huntington began his thinking by surveying the diverse theories about the nature of global politics in the post-Cold War period. Some theorists and writers argued that human rights, liberal democracy and capitalist free market economy had become the only remaining ideological alternative for nations in the post-Cold War world. Specifically, Francis Fukuyama argued that the world had reached the 'end of history' in a Hegelian sense.
Huntington believed that while the age of ideology had ended, the world had only reverted to a normal state of affairs characterised by cultural conflict. In his thesis, he argued that the primary axis of conflict in the future will be along cultural and religious lines. As an extension, he posits that the concept of different civilisations, as the highest rank of cultural identity, will become increasingly useful in analysing the potential for conflict.
In the 1993 Foreign Affairs article, Huntington wrote: It is my hypothesis that the fundamental source of conflict in this new world will not be primarily ideological or primarily economic. The great divisions among humankind and the dominating source of conflict will be cultural. Nation states will remain the most powerful actors in world affairs, but the principal conflicts of global politics will occur between nations and groups of different civilizations. The clash of civilizations will dominate global politics. The fault lines between civilizations will be the battle lines of the future.
Huntington in his seminal thesis on the clash of civilization explained that some of the factors contributing to this conflict are that both Christianity (which has influenced Western civilization) and Islam are: Missionary religions, seeking conversion of others. Universal, "all-or-nothing" religions, in the sense that it is believed by both sides that only their faith is the correct one .Teleological religions, that is, that their values and beliefs represent the goals of existence and purpose in human existence. Irreligious people who violate the base principles of those religions are perceived to be furthering their own pointless aim, which leads to violent interactions.
More recent factors contributing to a Western-Islamic clash, Huntington wrote, are the Islamic Resurgence and demographic explosion in Islam, coupled with the values of Western universalism—that is, the view that all civilizations should adopt Western values—that infuriate Islamic fundamentalists. All these historical and modern factors combined, Huntington wrote briefly in his Foreign Affairs article and in much more detail in his 1996 book, would lead to a bloody clash between the Islamic and Western civilizations.
Huntington offered the following six concrete explanations for why civilizations will clash:
1.Differences among civilizations are too basic in that civilizations are differentiated from each other by history, language, culture, tradition, and, most important, religion. These fundamental differences are the product of centuries, so they will not soon disappear.
2. The world is becoming a smaller place. As a result, the interactions across the world are increasing, and they intensify civilization consciousness and awareness of differences between civilizations and commonalities within civilizations.
3. Due to the economic modernization and social change, people are separated from longstanding local identities. Instead, religion has replaced this gap, which provides a basis for identity and commitment that transcends national boundaries and unites civilizations.
4. The growth of civilization-consciousness is enhanced by the dual role of the west. On the one hand, the west is at a peak of power. At the same time, a return to the roots phenomenon is occurring among non-Western civilizations. A west at the peak of its power confronts non-Western countries that increasingly have the desire, the will and the resources to shape the world in non-Western ways.
5. Cultural characteristics and differences are less mutable and hence less easily compromised and resolved than political and economic ones.
6. Economic regionalism is increasing. Successful economic regionalism will reinforce civilization-consciousness.
5.Cultural characteristics and differences are less mutable and hence less easily compromised and resolved than political and economic ones.
6.Economic regionalism is increasing. Successful economic regionalism will reinforce civilization-consciousness.
To conclude, In 1993, Huntington provoked great debate among international relations theorists with the interrogatively-titled "The Clash of Civilizations?", an extremely influential, oft-cited article published in Foreign Affairs magazine. Its description of post-Cold War geopolitics contrasted with the influential End of History thesis advocated by Francis Fukuyama. Huntingdon died December 24, 2008 (aged 81) befittingly at the famous Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts USA. He failed to factor in the role of right wing terrorist like Timothy McVeigh who was involved with the devastating Oklahoma Bombing. However, he undoubtedly is one of the best conservative writers of his time. The legacy that he has bequeathed to political analysts and commentators is an invaluable way of deciphering the complexity of the new world order in a post- cold war era.
He was spot on with his predictions. His his critics such as Paul Burman are not word a mention as they are way off target. Huntington’s last book: Who Are We? -The Challenges to America's National Identity, was published in May 2004. Its subject is the meaning of American national identity and the possible cultural threat posed to it by large-scale Latino immigration, which Huntington warns could "divide the United States into two peoples, two cultures, and two languages”. In this book Huntingdon was way off target and may have stoked up scaremongering by pondering to the conservative side of his brain. Or flippantly ,in his last days at Martha’s Vineyard he may have been possessed by John Belushi’s ghost and dreamt up such an absurd book while paranoid and drinking champagne with other neo-conservatives. Whatever the case, the clash of civilizations by my account is more accurate than the book of revelation that John wrote.
Donovan Reynolds is a Blogger and Independent Writer.He is a British based Social Worker and Human rights Activist.He has an interest in Politics,Culture,HumanRigts and International Development issues.Readers of this blog may add their comments or critique at the space provided on this blog .Or alternatively they may e-mail him at dannygerm63@hotmail.co.uk/ dannygerm@twitter
Sunday 16 September 2012
I begrudge the success of every Jamaican Deejay Incessantly. By Donovan Reynolds- Blogger /Independent Writer
I begrudge the success of every Jamaican Deejay Incessantly. By Donovan Reynolds- Blogger /Independent Writer.
Winston Foster is a Jamaican reggae and dancehall deejay, widely known as “Yellowman”. He grew up in a Catholic orphanage called Alpha Boys School in Kingston, and was shunned due to having albinism, which was usually not socially accepted in Jamaica. Alpha Boys School was known for its musical alumni. In the late 1970s Yellowman first gained wide attention when he won a contest event in Kingston, Jamaica called "The Tastee Talent Contest" where deejays would perform toasting. Like many Jamaican deejays, he honed his talents by frequently performing at outdoor sound-system dances.
In 1981, after becoming significantly popular throughout Jamaica, Yellowman became the first dancehall artist to be signed to a major American label (Columbia Records).[ He was popular in Jamaica in the 1980s, coming to prominence with a series of singles that established his reputation. Yellowman was forced to undergo a very invasive jaw surgery to remove the malignant tumour that had formed. This surgery permanently disfigured Yellowman's face, as a large portion of the left side of his lower jaw had to be removed to successfully extract the tumour. He re-invented himself with his 1994 album Prayer, which stepped away from the slackness that gave him his initial fame. Yellow man’s ugly looks despite his huge financial success became the but of every ugly joke that has ever existed. So much that: when he took on a lovely bride Rosie- a cruel joke made the rounds. Many advised him to make a living will to compensate her for the indignity of waking up each morning and having to look into his face. Yet Yellow man has held down the indignity of his detractors to have become the most toured reggae artist ever he is a living human cash machine with or without a jaw bone.
The first time I saw Elephant Man performing thought he was a clown from the Barnum & Bailey circus. The lisp accompanying his accent was very strange and his orange colour dyed hair made him look very camp he scared the hell out of my young children at a concert. But it was not long after he launched into his set with his catchy lyrics and his creative dance move the energy god won us over with a stellar performance. Ten years on and twenty baby mothers after: He still continues to woe audiences locally as well as in North America and Europe. There's never a dull moment with Elephant Man. With a seemingly inexhaustible energy source, he throws himself into everything he does: whether it’s playing football, deejaying on the corner or in front of 20,000 screaming concert goers - Elephant Man does it in abundance. Formerly of the Scare Dem Crew, Elephant oozes individuality from his trademark yellow-orange hair, to his custom designed ride, his outlandish jewellery and a stew of signature utterances - "You know how we roll"! He is still a walking cash machine with an ego and a huge expensive house to match. Its still puzzling to me how he continue to churn out hits and scratching his clothes off in between with his hum teen baby mothers.
Ninjaman is a Jamaican Deejay short of looks but very talented lyrical and has staved off may competitors in lyrical battles for the deejay high priest of the dance hall Kingdom. Ninjaman, alias the Don Gorgon, (born Desmond John Ballentine on January 20, 1966, in Annotto Bay, Jamaica) is a popular dancehall deejay and actor, known for his controversial and pro-gun lyrics and his stuttering and melodramatic style. Ninjaman is currently out on bail awaiting trial for a murder that was committed in Kingston, Jamaica. At the age of 11, he launched his deejay career with the Black Culture Sound System at age 12 as "Double Ugly". In 1980, he joined Kilimanjaro, there got the chance to learn from established deejays Super Cat and Early B, and released his debut single as "Uglyman".Things got handsome financially for him when he changed his name to Ninja man when he joined the King jammys recording label in Water House St Andrew and began churning out hits accompanied by pure drama. If Ninjaman was not half literate he could write the dummies hand book of why we should all stay away from crack?
Despite hits over the years like "Murder Dem", "Permit to Bury" and "Above the Law" reinforced Ninjaman's image of a violent rude boy. One of his most infamous rivalries (besides the on-going quarrels with Flourgon and Super Cat) was the one with Shabba Ranks, leading to a number of clashes. In 1993, criticism of Ninjaman's violent and pro-gun lyrics arose, leading to a decline in performing gigs and chances to record.By 1997, Ninjaman had changed his name once again, now performing gospel reggae songs as "Brother Desmond". He sought help to fight his crack cocaine addiction in born again Christianity. In the late 1990s, he was accused (but later acquitted), among other things, of having raped a woman at knifepoint in his home and having murdered a taxi driver. He was sentenced to one year in jail in late 1999, after being convicted of unlawfully possessing a firearm and ammunition. In July 2001, Ninjaman was assaulted with a machete, suffering several wounds, some to the head and face by his brother in-law after throwing his 2 year old child out of his window.
In March 2009, Ninjaman, along with his son Jamel, was arrested and charged in connection with a murder of Ricardo Johnson on Marl Road, Kingston, Jamaica. He was granted bail for the sum of JD$2,000,000 in March 2012, and his trial for murder is still pending in the Kingston Supreme Court.
It has been said that Ninjaman comes up with all of his lyrics on the spot in the recording studio, in a freestyle manner as he is illiterate and can’t pen his lyrics. It is said in jest hat if he sees one of his hit songs written on a brown paper bag he could not recognise it. Yet he has several financial lives and still has the ability to rake in millions from royalty’s stage show performances and new recordings if he is able to acquit himself from his latest murder charge.
Bounti Killa his real name Rodney Price is a famous Jamaica Deejay who earns 40k for his boked performances in North America and Europe. Price moved to Kingston at an early age, along with his mother and siblings. His father owned and ran the Black Scorpio sound system and Price started his musical career as a sound system deejay in his early teens. At the age of 14, Price was shot by a stray bullet during a gunfight between rival political factions, and while convalescing in hospital decided on the name Bounty Killer. After recovering, he increased his performances on a greater number of sound systems, and turned his attention towards recording. During the early 1990s, Price was encouraged recorded at King Jammy's studio in Kingston. Price eventually recorded with King Jammy, the first session being in Spring 1992.[2] One of his first tunes was the "Coppershot", which Jammy was unwilling to release due to its lyrics glorifying gun culture. Jammy's brother Uncle T disagreed and released the single himself.
In 1993, Price performed at the annual hardcore festival Sting, held in Portmore, Jamaica every year on Boxing Day, whereupon he had a high-profile clash with fellow deejay Beenie Man. The rivalry continued through the 1990s, with both accusing the other of a stolen act. They settled their differences after both realized the negative effect their feud was having on the industry.[1] He has also had heated rivalries with several other top deejays, including Merciless and Vybz Kartel, throughout his career. He increased control over his output in 1995 by leaving Jammy and setting up his own Scare Dem Production company and Priceless Records label.
During the 1990s, Price voiced for several producers and labels in Jamaica, releasing songs such as "Defend the Poor", "Mama", "Book, Book, and Book “,” Babylon System and Down in the Ghetto". At about this time, he became known in USA and in Europe, recording with such artists as Busta Rhymes, No Doubt, Masta Killa, The Fugees, Wyclef Jean, Mobb Deep, Capone-N-Noreaga, Swizz Beatz and AZ.In the mid-1990s, he began releasing albums, with four released in 1994. His 1996 album My Xperience was hugely successful, spending six months on the Billboard reggae chart. In 1997 Bounty Killer decided to make a cover version of Rose Royce hit single Love Don't Live Here Anymore and invited Swedish superstar Robyn. The song made a huge success in the Caribbean & the US. It was also featured in She's So Lovely (Sean Penn film).
In 1998, Bounti Killa contributed the song "Deadly Zone" to the album Blade: Music from and Inspired by the Motion Picture. Price has expressed disdain for popular rap, which he called "embarrassing to reggae," even while collaborating with Wu Tang Clan, Mobb Deep and others he considers hard core. However, in 2001, Price collaborated with No Doubt on their single "Hey Baby". Further success followed with albums such as Ghetto Dictionary Volume I: Art of War and Ghetto Dictionary Volume II: Mystery, the latter receiving a Grammy nomination. In 2006, he signed with VP Records and released the compilation album Nah No Mercy – The Warlord Scrolls on 7 November 2006. He has been credited with having inspired many young artists such as Vybz Kartel, Mavado and Elephant Man and several other members of The Alliance.
In 2003, Price cancelled two of his concerts after the LGBT magazine Outrage! Petitioned Scotland Yard for his arrest, claiming songs about killing gays[5] would incite violence and harassment against the gay community. He returned in 2006 after a three-year hiatus, performing uncensored lyrics at several venues without recrimination.
Price was arrested twice at the annual International Reggae Sumfest in Montego Bay Jamaica: he was arrested but not charged in a 2001 altercation with another performer and arrested and charged in 2008 for using profanity during his performance. He was also arrested on 3 February 2009 after allegedly running seven traffic lights in Kingston, Jamaica and charged with refusal to take a breathalyzer test and disobeying red lights. Price was arrested by police in June 2006 and charged with assaulting the mother of his child. According to the Jamaica Star, "The complainant was allegedly punched in the face several times, dragged some distance away and her head slammed into a wall."Bounti Killa is famous for butchering the English language and is famous for coining the phrase ‘I are the one’ during an interview on Entertainment Report aired on the Jamaican National television where he claimed to be responsible for a number of younger and upcoming deejays success. He is rich infamous, feisty and talented and has a huge bank balance and while I berate his behaviour ashamedly begrudge his financial success.
I have over the years raked up huge debts educating myself and my children as a lurch closely to wards my pension settlement with a double dip recession looming constantly in the background. The days of receiving a golden handshakes or a golden wrist-watch is a distant memory. I might have to take my mind off that a pre-retirement Mediterranean cruise that I yearn for and trade it in for a wash in the polluted Wag Water River. The only thing I have in common with famous Jamaican deejays is a failure to keep my zipper up. It might be my redemption at the age of 49 I have just had twins Danilo and Cassiano .Unlike my other children who have gone the academic route -I am going to take a differed road with their upbringing. I want them to be famous Jamaican deejays or wealthy boxers. Yes, I want them to be famous Jamaicans and walk around with millions of dollars in brown paper bag like American rappers’ Fifty Cent & Rick Ross’. It is an insurance against a failed retirement if they are filthy rich they will give me a good funeral perhaps a glass coffin with all the shenanigans of a gangsta funeral as a compensation for this horrible life.
Donovan Reynolds is an independent writer; British based Social Worker and Human Rights Campaigner. He is interested in Human Rights, Politics, Culture and International Development Issues. Readers are invited to provide feedback in the space provided on this blog or alternatively you may contact him at dannygerm63@hotmail.co.uk on dannygerm@ twitter.
Winston Foster is a Jamaican reggae and dancehall deejay, widely known as “Yellowman”. He grew up in a Catholic orphanage called Alpha Boys School in Kingston, and was shunned due to having albinism, which was usually not socially accepted in Jamaica. Alpha Boys School was known for its musical alumni. In the late 1970s Yellowman first gained wide attention when he won a contest event in Kingston, Jamaica called "The Tastee Talent Contest" where deejays would perform toasting. Like many Jamaican deejays, he honed his talents by frequently performing at outdoor sound-system dances.
In 1981, after becoming significantly popular throughout Jamaica, Yellowman became the first dancehall artist to be signed to a major American label (Columbia Records).[ He was popular in Jamaica in the 1980s, coming to prominence with a series of singles that established his reputation. Yellowman was forced to undergo a very invasive jaw surgery to remove the malignant tumour that had formed. This surgery permanently disfigured Yellowman's face, as a large portion of the left side of his lower jaw had to be removed to successfully extract the tumour. He re-invented himself with his 1994 album Prayer, which stepped away from the slackness that gave him his initial fame. Yellow man’s ugly looks despite his huge financial success became the but of every ugly joke that has ever existed. So much that: when he took on a lovely bride Rosie- a cruel joke made the rounds. Many advised him to make a living will to compensate her for the indignity of waking up each morning and having to look into his face. Yet Yellow man has held down the indignity of his detractors to have become the most toured reggae artist ever he is a living human cash machine with or without a jaw bone.
The first time I saw Elephant Man performing thought he was a clown from the Barnum & Bailey circus. The lisp accompanying his accent was very strange and his orange colour dyed hair made him look very camp he scared the hell out of my young children at a concert. But it was not long after he launched into his set with his catchy lyrics and his creative dance move the energy god won us over with a stellar performance. Ten years on and twenty baby mothers after: He still continues to woe audiences locally as well as in North America and Europe. There's never a dull moment with Elephant Man. With a seemingly inexhaustible energy source, he throws himself into everything he does: whether it’s playing football, deejaying on the corner or in front of 20,000 screaming concert goers - Elephant Man does it in abundance. Formerly of the Scare Dem Crew, Elephant oozes individuality from his trademark yellow-orange hair, to his custom designed ride, his outlandish jewellery and a stew of signature utterances - "You know how we roll"! He is still a walking cash machine with an ego and a huge expensive house to match. Its still puzzling to me how he continue to churn out hits and scratching his clothes off in between with his hum teen baby mothers.
Ninjaman is a Jamaican Deejay short of looks but very talented lyrical and has staved off may competitors in lyrical battles for the deejay high priest of the dance hall Kingdom. Ninjaman, alias the Don Gorgon, (born Desmond John Ballentine on January 20, 1966, in Annotto Bay, Jamaica) is a popular dancehall deejay and actor, known for his controversial and pro-gun lyrics and his stuttering and melodramatic style. Ninjaman is currently out on bail awaiting trial for a murder that was committed in Kingston, Jamaica. At the age of 11, he launched his deejay career with the Black Culture Sound System at age 12 as "Double Ugly". In 1980, he joined Kilimanjaro, there got the chance to learn from established deejays Super Cat and Early B, and released his debut single as "Uglyman".Things got handsome financially for him when he changed his name to Ninja man when he joined the King jammys recording label in Water House St Andrew and began churning out hits accompanied by pure drama. If Ninjaman was not half literate he could write the dummies hand book of why we should all stay away from crack?
Despite hits over the years like "Murder Dem", "Permit to Bury" and "Above the Law" reinforced Ninjaman's image of a violent rude boy. One of his most infamous rivalries (besides the on-going quarrels with Flourgon and Super Cat) was the one with Shabba Ranks, leading to a number of clashes. In 1993, criticism of Ninjaman's violent and pro-gun lyrics arose, leading to a decline in performing gigs and chances to record.By 1997, Ninjaman had changed his name once again, now performing gospel reggae songs as "Brother Desmond". He sought help to fight his crack cocaine addiction in born again Christianity. In the late 1990s, he was accused (but later acquitted), among other things, of having raped a woman at knifepoint in his home and having murdered a taxi driver. He was sentenced to one year in jail in late 1999, after being convicted of unlawfully possessing a firearm and ammunition. In July 2001, Ninjaman was assaulted with a machete, suffering several wounds, some to the head and face by his brother in-law after throwing his 2 year old child out of his window.
In March 2009, Ninjaman, along with his son Jamel, was arrested and charged in connection with a murder of Ricardo Johnson on Marl Road, Kingston, Jamaica. He was granted bail for the sum of JD$2,000,000 in March 2012, and his trial for murder is still pending in the Kingston Supreme Court.
It has been said that Ninjaman comes up with all of his lyrics on the spot in the recording studio, in a freestyle manner as he is illiterate and can’t pen his lyrics. It is said in jest hat if he sees one of his hit songs written on a brown paper bag he could not recognise it. Yet he has several financial lives and still has the ability to rake in millions from royalty’s stage show performances and new recordings if he is able to acquit himself from his latest murder charge.
Bounti Killa his real name Rodney Price is a famous Jamaica Deejay who earns 40k for his boked performances in North America and Europe. Price moved to Kingston at an early age, along with his mother and siblings. His father owned and ran the Black Scorpio sound system and Price started his musical career as a sound system deejay in his early teens. At the age of 14, Price was shot by a stray bullet during a gunfight between rival political factions, and while convalescing in hospital decided on the name Bounty Killer. After recovering, he increased his performances on a greater number of sound systems, and turned his attention towards recording. During the early 1990s, Price was encouraged recorded at King Jammy's studio in Kingston. Price eventually recorded with King Jammy, the first session being in Spring 1992.[2] One of his first tunes was the "Coppershot", which Jammy was unwilling to release due to its lyrics glorifying gun culture. Jammy's brother Uncle T disagreed and released the single himself.
In 1993, Price performed at the annual hardcore festival Sting, held in Portmore, Jamaica every year on Boxing Day, whereupon he had a high-profile clash with fellow deejay Beenie Man. The rivalry continued through the 1990s, with both accusing the other of a stolen act. They settled their differences after both realized the negative effect their feud was having on the industry.[1] He has also had heated rivalries with several other top deejays, including Merciless and Vybz Kartel, throughout his career. He increased control over his output in 1995 by leaving Jammy and setting up his own Scare Dem Production company and Priceless Records label.
During the 1990s, Price voiced for several producers and labels in Jamaica, releasing songs such as "Defend the Poor", "Mama", "Book, Book, and Book “,” Babylon System and Down in the Ghetto". At about this time, he became known in USA and in Europe, recording with such artists as Busta Rhymes, No Doubt, Masta Killa, The Fugees, Wyclef Jean, Mobb Deep, Capone-N-Noreaga, Swizz Beatz and AZ.In the mid-1990s, he began releasing albums, with four released in 1994. His 1996 album My Xperience was hugely successful, spending six months on the Billboard reggae chart. In 1997 Bounty Killer decided to make a cover version of Rose Royce hit single Love Don't Live Here Anymore and invited Swedish superstar Robyn. The song made a huge success in the Caribbean & the US. It was also featured in She's So Lovely (Sean Penn film).
In 1998, Bounti Killa contributed the song "Deadly Zone" to the album Blade: Music from and Inspired by the Motion Picture. Price has expressed disdain for popular rap, which he called "embarrassing to reggae," even while collaborating with Wu Tang Clan, Mobb Deep and others he considers hard core. However, in 2001, Price collaborated with No Doubt on their single "Hey Baby". Further success followed with albums such as Ghetto Dictionary Volume I: Art of War and Ghetto Dictionary Volume II: Mystery, the latter receiving a Grammy nomination. In 2006, he signed with VP Records and released the compilation album Nah No Mercy – The Warlord Scrolls on 7 November 2006. He has been credited with having inspired many young artists such as Vybz Kartel, Mavado and Elephant Man and several other members of The Alliance.
In 2003, Price cancelled two of his concerts after the LGBT magazine Outrage! Petitioned Scotland Yard for his arrest, claiming songs about killing gays[5] would incite violence and harassment against the gay community. He returned in 2006 after a three-year hiatus, performing uncensored lyrics at several venues without recrimination.
Price was arrested twice at the annual International Reggae Sumfest in Montego Bay Jamaica: he was arrested but not charged in a 2001 altercation with another performer and arrested and charged in 2008 for using profanity during his performance. He was also arrested on 3 February 2009 after allegedly running seven traffic lights in Kingston, Jamaica and charged with refusal to take a breathalyzer test and disobeying red lights. Price was arrested by police in June 2006 and charged with assaulting the mother of his child. According to the Jamaica Star, "The complainant was allegedly punched in the face several times, dragged some distance away and her head slammed into a wall."Bounti Killa is famous for butchering the English language and is famous for coining the phrase ‘I are the one’ during an interview on Entertainment Report aired on the Jamaican National television where he claimed to be responsible for a number of younger and upcoming deejays success. He is rich infamous, feisty and talented and has a huge bank balance and while I berate his behaviour ashamedly begrudge his financial success.
I have over the years raked up huge debts educating myself and my children as a lurch closely to wards my pension settlement with a double dip recession looming constantly in the background. The days of receiving a golden handshakes or a golden wrist-watch is a distant memory. I might have to take my mind off that a pre-retirement Mediterranean cruise that I yearn for and trade it in for a wash in the polluted Wag Water River. The only thing I have in common with famous Jamaican deejays is a failure to keep my zipper up. It might be my redemption at the age of 49 I have just had twins Danilo and Cassiano .Unlike my other children who have gone the academic route -I am going to take a differed road with their upbringing. I want them to be famous Jamaican deejays or wealthy boxers. Yes, I want them to be famous Jamaicans and walk around with millions of dollars in brown paper bag like American rappers’ Fifty Cent & Rick Ross’. It is an insurance against a failed retirement if they are filthy rich they will give me a good funeral perhaps a glass coffin with all the shenanigans of a gangsta funeral as a compensation for this horrible life.
Donovan Reynolds is an independent writer; British based Social Worker and Human Rights Campaigner. He is interested in Human Rights, Politics, Culture and International Development Issues. Readers are invited to provide feedback in the space provided on this blog or alternatively you may contact him at dannygerm63@hotmail.co.uk on dannygerm@ twitter.
Sunday 2 September 2012
Shocking Revelation: Cannabis Use Lowers Young People I.Q.
Shocking Revelation: Cannabis Use Lowers Young People I.Q. By Donovan Reynolds
While growing up in Jamaica in 1974 at the age of 11 years as a child I ran away to escape the horrors of domestic violence from a physically abusive father. I spent a short period of time with one of my mother’s friend in a place called Richmond in St Mary close to a male penal institution called Richmond Prison Farm. I attended a school in Richmond briefly nestled between the orange plantation and the Prison Farm. I had my first cannabis ‘spliff ‘one day while truanting from School with other tearaways in order to medicate away the pain of missing my mother and the horrible thoughts of leaving her behind to live with such an ugly beast of a father. The puff from the cannabis took me into a dark place with psychedelic background lights that made me very paranoid. It felt as If I was having a mirage were by I was attacked by several imaginary hostile Calvary soldiers with shiny swords waving above their heads. I began hallucinating and it felt as if I was experiencing a massive panic attack. To take the edge from disturbed mental state my cohorts squeezed a few sweet oranges down my neck to tame my appetite and I was given a bath in a river nearby to sober me up. Later I was taken home to my guardian by a prison warder and my arse received a smacking that immediately sobered me on the spot and my posterior ached for days. During my teen years I went on to flirt with other less enterprising forms of substances- I dabbled with a bit of alcohol and tobacco but no other psychotropic drugs.
While travelling on the London underground tube to work this week I was treated in the Daily Mail to the shocking revelation that teenagers addicted to cannabis risk damaging their IQ and show signs normally seen in early Alzheimer's.The research was carried out by a eminent international research team, including some from the Institute of Psychiatry at King's College London, put more than 1,000 boys and girls through a battery of IQ tests when they were aged 13 and 14. They did the same tests more than 20 years later, at the age of 38. The study found a marked drop in intelligence and attention and memory were also harmed. More sobering is the revelation from researcher Professor Terrie Moffitt, of the Institute of Psychiatry, said: 'Research has shown that IQ is a strong determinant of a person's access to college education, their lifelong total income, their access to a good job, their performance on the job, their tendency to develop heart disease and even early death.
I reminisced mischievously after reading the article on the train that had I not dabbled in a bit cannabis at such a early age on that sordid day in 19 74 and damaged my IQ. I could have now been a rocket scientist on my way to work at the NASA space centre. But instead, I was on my way to work as a Care Manager in an unglamorous low paying job with the National Health Service. But equally I was well happy that my guardian had slapped my bum so hard was able to avoid cannabis dependence and truanting and severe learning difficulties.
For a man who had a near encounter with cannabis induced psychosis and a difficult childhood I have gone on to have a university education and a modest career as a Social Worker and part time Journalist is not a bad outcome in the scheme of things but it could have all gone potty.
The idea that Post- modernity, capitalism, the frantic Youth craze and its social trapping has caused mans insatiable appetite for drugs may be a figment of our imagination It seem as if our habit for using drugs was handed down to us genetically by our ancestors in the caves of Africa many eons ago .Earlier this month scientists at Aberdeen University in Scotland revealed they have found a switch in the brain which may explain why smoking cannabis causes psychosis and addiction in more than one-in-ten users. The team, at Aberdeen University found a genetic difference in the switch, probably inherited from early humans who smoked the drug in prehistoric times.
The difference may also explain why some people could be more susceptible to conditions such as obesity. The chemical 'switch' discovered by researchers could explain by one in ten cannabis smokers suffer from psychosis and addiction issues.
Meanwhile over on both sides of the Atlantic some misguided Rastafarians with their head constantly covered in a plume of cannabis smoke continue to peddle half-truths and explode various myths to young persons about the wisdom of the weed that was supposedly found on Solomon’s grave. In part it is true that the plant cannabis has medicinal values but when taken through your mouth and exhaled from the nostril , it ratchet up the case load at mental health institutions across the globe and lower teenagers IQ. As a matter of fact smoking on a whole is a dangerous and the confirmation that smoking among teenagers in the UK is a cause for concern with policy makers and health professionals.
A survey carried out In the UK for the NHS Information Centre by the National Centre for Social Research and The National Foundation for Educational Research .This survey is the latest in a series designed to monitor smoking, drinking and drug use among secondary school pupils aged 11 to 15. Information was obtained from 7,296 pupil’s in246 schools throughout England in the autumn term of 2010. In 2010, 5% of pupils smoked regularly (at least once a week), a similar proportion as in 2009. Girls are more likely to smoke regularly than boys. The prevalence of smoking increases with age; 12% of 15 year olds said they smoked at least once a week, compared with less than0.5% of 11 year olds.
The idea of a woman pulling on the end of a cannabis “spliff” unashamed is no longer a rear sighting as the statistics above has confirmed that it is a dangerous new vocation for ‘ladetts’ living in urban settings where the pressure to appear tough and hip like their young male counterpart. The recent new research always reveals a close relationship between increase vulnerability to mental ill-health and the use of psychotropic drugs by young people. Finally I have to admit that cannabis use in general is such a challenging undertaking as it’s the most socially accepted drug across the world I have weighed into it because of the serious health social and financial cost to our health and social and Economic wellbeing implication of its misuse. On the other hand you may be like my cousin in Jamaica called ‘Jah T’ that doesn’t care a joint and is stoned all day on the weed. He is always so high on cannabis every day - so much- that he washes his chalice more often than the dinner plates in his kitchen sink.
Donavon Reynolds is British Based Social Worker and a Human Rights Campaigner with an interest in Politics, Culture and International Development issues. Readers are invited to give a feedback on this blog at the space provided below or to e-mail him at Dannygerm63@hotmail.co.uk.You may also give your feedback on the Facebook or twitter link on this blog.
While growing up in Jamaica in 1974 at the age of 11 years as a child I ran away to escape the horrors of domestic violence from a physically abusive father. I spent a short period of time with one of my mother’s friend in a place called Richmond in St Mary close to a male penal institution called Richmond Prison Farm. I attended a school in Richmond briefly nestled between the orange plantation and the Prison Farm. I had my first cannabis ‘spliff ‘one day while truanting from School with other tearaways in order to medicate away the pain of missing my mother and the horrible thoughts of leaving her behind to live with such an ugly beast of a father. The puff from the cannabis took me into a dark place with psychedelic background lights that made me very paranoid. It felt as If I was having a mirage were by I was attacked by several imaginary hostile Calvary soldiers with shiny swords waving above their heads. I began hallucinating and it felt as if I was experiencing a massive panic attack. To take the edge from disturbed mental state my cohorts squeezed a few sweet oranges down my neck to tame my appetite and I was given a bath in a river nearby to sober me up. Later I was taken home to my guardian by a prison warder and my arse received a smacking that immediately sobered me on the spot and my posterior ached for days. During my teen years I went on to flirt with other less enterprising forms of substances- I dabbled with a bit of alcohol and tobacco but no other psychotropic drugs.
While travelling on the London underground tube to work this week I was treated in the Daily Mail to the shocking revelation that teenagers addicted to cannabis risk damaging their IQ and show signs normally seen in early Alzheimer's.The research was carried out by a eminent international research team, including some from the Institute of Psychiatry at King's College London, put more than 1,000 boys and girls through a battery of IQ tests when they were aged 13 and 14. They did the same tests more than 20 years later, at the age of 38. The study found a marked drop in intelligence and attention and memory were also harmed. More sobering is the revelation from researcher Professor Terrie Moffitt, of the Institute of Psychiatry, said: 'Research has shown that IQ is a strong determinant of a person's access to college education, their lifelong total income, their access to a good job, their performance on the job, their tendency to develop heart disease and even early death.
I reminisced mischievously after reading the article on the train that had I not dabbled in a bit cannabis at such a early age on that sordid day in 19 74 and damaged my IQ. I could have now been a rocket scientist on my way to work at the NASA space centre. But instead, I was on my way to work as a Care Manager in an unglamorous low paying job with the National Health Service. But equally I was well happy that my guardian had slapped my bum so hard was able to avoid cannabis dependence and truanting and severe learning difficulties.
For a man who had a near encounter with cannabis induced psychosis and a difficult childhood I have gone on to have a university education and a modest career as a Social Worker and part time Journalist is not a bad outcome in the scheme of things but it could have all gone potty.
The idea that Post- modernity, capitalism, the frantic Youth craze and its social trapping has caused mans insatiable appetite for drugs may be a figment of our imagination It seem as if our habit for using drugs was handed down to us genetically by our ancestors in the caves of Africa many eons ago .Earlier this month scientists at Aberdeen University in Scotland revealed they have found a switch in the brain which may explain why smoking cannabis causes psychosis and addiction in more than one-in-ten users. The team, at Aberdeen University found a genetic difference in the switch, probably inherited from early humans who smoked the drug in prehistoric times.
The difference may also explain why some people could be more susceptible to conditions such as obesity. The chemical 'switch' discovered by researchers could explain by one in ten cannabis smokers suffer from psychosis and addiction issues.
Meanwhile over on both sides of the Atlantic some misguided Rastafarians with their head constantly covered in a plume of cannabis smoke continue to peddle half-truths and explode various myths to young persons about the wisdom of the weed that was supposedly found on Solomon’s grave. In part it is true that the plant cannabis has medicinal values but when taken through your mouth and exhaled from the nostril , it ratchet up the case load at mental health institutions across the globe and lower teenagers IQ. As a matter of fact smoking on a whole is a dangerous and the confirmation that smoking among teenagers in the UK is a cause for concern with policy makers and health professionals.
A survey carried out In the UK for the NHS Information Centre by the National Centre for Social Research and The National Foundation for Educational Research .This survey is the latest in a series designed to monitor smoking, drinking and drug use among secondary school pupils aged 11 to 15. Information was obtained from 7,296 pupil’s in246 schools throughout England in the autumn term of 2010. In 2010, 5% of pupils smoked regularly (at least once a week), a similar proportion as in 2009. Girls are more likely to smoke regularly than boys. The prevalence of smoking increases with age; 12% of 15 year olds said they smoked at least once a week, compared with less than0.5% of 11 year olds.
The idea of a woman pulling on the end of a cannabis “spliff” unashamed is no longer a rear sighting as the statistics above has confirmed that it is a dangerous new vocation for ‘ladetts’ living in urban settings where the pressure to appear tough and hip like their young male counterpart. The recent new research always reveals a close relationship between increase vulnerability to mental ill-health and the use of psychotropic drugs by young people. Finally I have to admit that cannabis use in general is such a challenging undertaking as it’s the most socially accepted drug across the world I have weighed into it because of the serious health social and financial cost to our health and social and Economic wellbeing implication of its misuse. On the other hand you may be like my cousin in Jamaica called ‘Jah T’ that doesn’t care a joint and is stoned all day on the weed. He is always so high on cannabis every day - so much- that he washes his chalice more often than the dinner plates in his kitchen sink.
Donavon Reynolds is British Based Social Worker and a Human Rights Campaigner with an interest in Politics, Culture and International Development issues. Readers are invited to give a feedback on this blog at the space provided below or to e-mail him at Dannygerm63@hotmail.co.uk.You may also give your feedback on the Facebook or twitter link on this blog.
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