WHEN HIV was first discovered in the mid 1980s Caribbean countries reacted in different ways. Haiti lacked the resources to take any preventative measures.

WHEN RONALD Reagan was elected President of the United States I was stunned. How could Americans prefer this bumbling moron to the brilliantly eloquent Jimmy Carter?

Only an arrogant neo-imperialist too senile to understand that all societies develop in their own way could call the Soviet Union an 'evil empire'. The thought of such a simpleton with his hand on the nuclear button made me shudder.

DESPITE THEIR pathetic record, the West Indies have created some unforgettable memories over the past five years. In 1999 there was Brian Lara's 'resurrection' 213 at Sabina, and his 'one wicket win' 153 at Kensington. Antigua in 2003 saw the fourth innings winning record 418 for seven.

WHO WAS Ja's greatest prime minister? This is an unanswerable question, for politics has many facets. Who did more for their country, Gandhi or Lee Kwan Yew? So here is a simpler topic. Which PM did the best job of improving Jamaicans' quantifiable economic and social lot?

A pioneer in Jamaican anthropology; a driving force behind the local and international popularization of ska and reggae; an originator of Festival; arguably our best finance minister; the prime minister with the third longest term in office; the longest serving parliamentarian - no one has influenced independent Jamaica in so many ways as Edward Seaga.

IF YOU judge countries by how many people want to visit and stay, America must be the best place in the world to live. There are huge line-ups at the U.S. embassy in every country, and even Castro's anti-American rhetoric doesn't stop Cubans from risking their lives to reach American shores.

Back in the early 1990s a friend and I had a discussion about kidnapping, which was even then rife in South America though not yet a problem in Trinidad. How was it, we wondered, that murder was so prevalent in Jamaica and yet abduction for ransom was so rare?

THE OTHER day a girl named June told me an interesting story. She and her friend Carl were in Burger King when a schoolgirl caught his eye. He introduced himself, told her June was his sister, asked her name ­ Nikki ­ and got her number.

Geography – like biology and demography – is destiny. And since Jamaica is only a couple hundred miles form the American mainland, it’s understandable that our media tends to obsess about the USA and its doings. Some of our media commentators for instance have spent practically the entire past year fulminating against the Iraq invasion.

May 12, 2007 – Greenfield Park, Jamaica. “The West Indies posted a record 400 and then dismissed India for 199 to win the 2007 Cricket World Cup by 201 runs. Chris Gayle and Devon Smith set the tone with a century opening partnership in 15 overs, with Gayle making 88 off 60 balls and Smith 89 off 62. Ram Sarwan made a run ball 70, Dwayne Smith blasted 74 off 48 balls, while Captain Brian Lara’s contributed a comparatively snail-like 56 off 60 balls in his West Indian swansong.