Alred C. Frett. Photo: VINO/File

The easy answer is yes but that would not be the true and complete answer because, we do not lose if the People win… Of course, this may be hard to understand if and when one is too young to know or too old to remember; and it only gets worse when it seems that the same Persons you are fighting for, are fighting against you… However, those in the Struggle would know that this is not about Gratitude.

We are only here for a while and this is about doing what’s right and leaving things better than we met them… To you, I may appear to be losing because you have seen me victimised, but to me, you the people won; because, without these struggles, we may have no New Public Hospital, no Clinics in North Sound and Anegada, no New Beef Island Bridge, UK Passports, Free Tertiary Education and on and on.

Of course, we do not win all battles; some are still ongoing but none are personal… The aim is merely to increase our efficiency and prevent draconian laws and policies that essentially make Government the enemy of the People… However, the more we lose our identity and inheritance, the more we are forced to struggle for survival and ‘a drowning people will clutch at straws’ making us easily fooled by Politics.

Consumer Price Control in the VI?

Oppression is self-sustaining and Mandela taught us not to say Thanks when we are given back what was rightfully ours… We fail and are quick to grovel if Labour moved a tad faster on processing Work Permits or Government reduces the excess Duties they had put on – maybe until Election… This is all a balancing act, with trinket promises and whispers about Consumer Price Control and more hidden taxes.

We are not an Industrial Country which means importing just about everything, subjected to the varying prices of the Suppliers… The costs to the Merchant or Provider are further affected by the freight, wharfage, transportation, insurance and Government dues like Duties and Taxes… Clearly, there is very little and limited means of imposing fixed or common consumer prices without destroying the Merchants.

Without understanding this, the Private Sector is hounded and impounded, or pacified with trinkets, while the Government and Civil Service are bloated and promoted… In this way, we turn Pyramids into Cones, without caring that, there is nothing more stable than a pyramid and nothing less stable than a cone - Even Richer and Bigger Countries failed to understand this and turned their Gold into Straw.

Fact is, Selective Consumer Price Control is not new… From the inception, Government did this via NHI when they unilaterally imposed fixed Prices for Medicines and Services and, while programming built-in increases for their own Incomes and Collections… This effectively force Providers to double pay penalties by handicapping or removing their ability to pay their necessary Workers and Suppliers.

Don’t we have our own Wars?

As we flip and flop for the sake of convenience, our memories and attention spans grow short as lies and conspiracies replace truths and facts… Just last year, the VI was on fire with Covid-19 and Corruption Investigation; Today, our concerns are Easter Bunnies, Import Duties, the price of Gas, how to predict a snap Election and the quickest ways to destroy Tourism and other Revenue Generators.

Just last month, England was battling French and European Brexit Refugees and getting ready to dump their Prime minister; Today, they are adopting Ukrainians Refugees they can’t afford and, their PM is fighting Putin in a crazy war that no one wins… Meanwhile, some Nations may not really mind the War since it allows them to see Russia’s weapons and ability, and, what she uses up, she’ll no longer have.

In this Century of Man-made Wars and Natural Disasters, we can only hope that this is not the end or our Dinosaur Era… I only focus my advice on the Youth because Seniors are stuck in their ways but, there no need for anyone to get upset since, like those before us, we met this World and will leave this World; so, young or old, make or break, what is more important is for us to leave it better than we met it.

Trump always said he wanted to take us back to the ‘good old days of Pirates and Slavery’ - I believed him, so, for 7 years I warned that unless he was stopped, he would sell-out America and destroy the World… The majority played deaf so he was allowed to stack the Supreme Court - I also warned about the danger of Judge Clarence Thomas and, it’s ironic how all their Black Judges have White Spouses.

Today, we sit on the brink because Putin failed to get Trump back in power in order to facilitate an easy hand-over – Putin is now trying to take it by force… A Trump-Putin Pandemic will dwarf Covid-19 with; higher Prices on Fuel, Transportation, Health Care and Everything, a Trickle-down would be a Down-pour with Government leading the charge, and we must decide whether to fix things now or suffer later.

PS: Will continue addressing some of your Questions & Comments on Live BVP Radio Programmes