Carni -Carni - Carni - Carnival!!!!

Our country seems to be devolving into a tragic parody of itself, with things looking and sounding like they used to, but requiring a certain amount of rationalization and suspension of disbelief to accept.

The choices being pressed upon the law abiding citizenry seems to be limited to self preservation or migration, as more and more ways are used to strong arm and oppress those who ought to be protected by the systems of the State are being allowed and encouraged.

Where things cross the line from uncomfortable to absurd is when the State, through cunning 'vote seeking' politicians, actually support and finance advantage against the decent law abiding citizens of the nation without regard for the well being of the minority.

A classic example of this is what our Carnival has become; to everyone drunk and wining in a band, the residents of the areas the bands pass through are their audience at best or a tolerated nuisance to the revelry at worst, and not seen to be people trying to peacefully enjoy their property despite being bombarded by music trucks with enough equipment to fill a sporting arena with sound assaulting them for two straight days.

I have been told that the people should move if they don't like culture but I want to ask, whose culture is this?

At what point did we as a nation decide that the artistic expression of a people built on a rich history of confrontation and survival should give way to asinine lyrics encouraging the scantily clad to get their jollies off each other in the full view of the public accompanied by decibel shattering fetes on wheels?

To many who enjoy the vast profits from the thing, the history is irrelevant, but I say if that is so, then so is Carnival.

There are others who are willing to use the Rio Carnival as an explanation as to what we have now, but comparing Trinidad Carnival to Rio Samba Carnival is insane on many levels, not the least of which being population size and proffered social systems designed to deal with the fall out of the event.

Look, the only similarity between both events is the nudity that is being forced into our mas, and it is a shame that certain business interests have no issue with the exploitation and follow on negatives of their means to profit.

I have said before and I say it again, to the residents of Woodbrook, St. Clair and environs, the mas that used to be a pleasure to watch from their homes has been replaced with a horror and an assault and ought to be removed and placed in an unpopulated area.

It would make the most sense to use the westbound lane of Wrightson Road from the Independence Square stage up the foreshore and all the way to Westmoorings traffic light and back as the parade route, and use the National Stadium instead of the savannah as the main judging point. 

The cost to make a secondary 'Marathon tunnel' for straight in and out entrance and exit will be insignificant compared to the cost of setting up the north stand for one Carnival, and would make for a much better viewing space for the audience and the media and a much larger stage for the revelers.

The cost to repairs after the event will also be significantly lower than the cost incurred annually setting up the savannah venue and should easily be covered by ticket sales in the new comfortable and safe Carnival Theatre.

This approach could be a win win for everybody, and steps should be taken to put this or something like it in place as early as next year so as to make life easier for the maximum amount of people.

Who knows, maybe this initiative could free up the streets of Port of Spain and environs for authentic costumed mas, ol' mas, traditional characters, pan and brass, things that the onlookers and the residents actually look forward to viewing, with the only law being - no music trucks allowed.

Something to think about...