The useless blimp

However, many people know for example, that when Mr Chin Lee, then Minister of National Security went to USA in 2002 seeking help from the Americans to solve and decrease the crime rate, he was literally laughed at. In desperation he asked for "any kind of solution" when he was told "well, the military is about to start a programme in Afghanistan." It was called Anaconda since it involved sending troops over thousands of miles "outback" of the hilly mountainous hideout of the Taliban and the Lords of the Afghan village with a view to encircling the enemy into a Central port from where they will "squeeze" Anaconda style. That was good enough for Mr Chin Lee to return to Trinidad with a big plan called Anaconda which was dead before it was born.

Another thing Mr Chin Lee and Mr Joseph learned from the Americans is that crime, including murder and kidnapping, is essentially problems akin to "domestic violence" since they are committed within the borders and boundary of this little island. After all, if the Protective Services do not take the trouble to know the hot spots and have "intelligence" therein (that is reliable police informers) in those hot spots how can they expect foreigners to come here and solve our crimes.

Another thing is they are spending money like it is going out of style. Imagine, upgrading the "TT Regiment so that it is now an Army," very soon with a "General," soon we will have a "Navy" with battleships, aircraft carriers, submarines etc, etc. That is crazy when the sole function of the Regiment was being an extension of our Police Service. What therefore is the purpose of the development of the Army? All over the world large countries are reducing the sizes of their military (except USA) while enlarging their capacities with modern technology. Then there is the ridiculous "blimp." Don’t those people read or keep abreast of world affairs.

The so-called "blimp" is and was completely useless. After all, just as the Americans could not tell the difference between a North Vietnamese and a South Vietnamese so too they cannot tell the difference between one Iraqi from another face to face, far less the difference between a Shi’ite and a Sunni, the same difference applies between say an Iraqi and an Iranian or any other Muslim, whether Egyptian or Turk. That is why they are killing so many suspected insurgents. There are no "insurgents" in Iraq. What has happened quite simple was that the Iraqi government and military according to the American decree by General Paul Braemar when with a single stroke of his American pen he disbanded —

1. The Iraqi Army from 5 Star General to the youngest recruit and forfeited all their uniforms and equipment.

2. The same with the Navy, Airforce and Marines. Luckily the Airforce had taken the planes to neighbouring countries for safekeeping. What was in those planes is another matter.

3. All Police Services (civilians and otherwise) in Bhagdad and all other large cities.

Thus, leaving the whole Iraqi nation from being able to defend themselves either from within or without. Accordingly, the Americans and the British thought they would have had an easy pushover. Now more than two years later, they are in the same position as the Americans were in Vietnam. Wanting to get out but are unable to do so without admitting the most humiliating defeat. The blimp therefore is as useless in Trinidad as it was in Iraq since there is no way you can tell from that distance the difference in the air between one TT from another except by race, so that the authorities merely act on suspicion just as they do in Iraq. They kill first and ask questions later.

ATTA K O KUJIFI

Champs Fleurs