Jamaican men always high on weed: Mugabe
HEADLINES, NEWS — BY ADMIN ON SEPTEMBER 7, 2012 6:05 PM
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By Fungai Kwaramba
HARARE – President Robert Mugabe may have stoked a diplomatic tiff with the Jamaicans when he described the island as a country of marijuana smokers, where women are now taking charge since men are always sloshed.

Robert Mugabe with Zanu-PF ministers
While giving a “distinguished lecture” at the Research and Intellectual Expo 2012, Mugabe who neither smokes nor drinks alcohol, wished Zimbabwe never followed the footsteps of Jamaicans whose influence on the country is all too pervasive.
“In Jamaica they have freedom to smoke mbanje, varume vanogara vakadhakwa (men are always drunk) and universities are full of women. The men want to sing and do not go to colleges vamwe vanobva vamonwa musoro (some are dreadlocked). Let us not go there,” said Mugabe.
Despite the fact that Jamaican reggae and dancehall artistes have trooped to the southern African country heaping praises on the Zanu PF leader, Mugabe is not flattered.
The Zimbabwean leader who is battling a negative international projection from western countries over alleged human rights abuses said the levels of abuse of drugs in Zimbabwe are low save for a people whom he said “drink on behalf of others”. He urged universities to build God-fearing students.
Mugabe’s stance is shocking considering the numerous praises from Jamaican artistes such as Sizzla, Red Rat and the legendary Bob Marley who graced the country’s independence celebrations in 1980.
At the invitation of the late Zanu PF former secretary-general Edgar Tekere, the reggae godfather bankrolled his trip and left Zimbabweans awed by his song Zimbabwe. Other reggae artistes who have come to Zimbabwe include, Eric Donaldson, Marx Priest and Buju Banton.
In recent years there has been an influx of young Jamaicans dancehall and reggae superstars who have been given the red carpet by Mugabe’s government and in return have showered praises on the 88-year-old strongman.
Mugabe’s statement is likely to draw the ire of musicians like Sizzla and Red Rat who have gone into an overdrive praising the southern African country. Sizzla who was given a farm received royal treatment from Mugabe and described him as a great leader.
“I think he’s a good President, kind to his nation, just and true,” Sizzla said in 2010 after singing at Mugabe’s birthday bash. Following in the footsteps of Bob Marley, Red Rat who has never been to the country sang praises on Zimbabwe.
Other top Jamaican artistes who have been to Zimbabwe include Fantan Mojah, Cocoa T, Bennie Man, Luciano and Sean Paul. Mugabe publicity spin-doctors used Jamaican artistes to preen the country’s tattered image just a few years ago and the Jamaicans have not disappointed.
Zimbabwe enjoys cordial relations with the island nation but there are no diplomats stationed in either country. Rastafarians consider marijuana as the “wisdom weed” as its use helps one gain wisdom. They also use it as part of a religious rite and as a means of getting closer to their inner spiritual self. Daily News

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Some of my earliest memories are of prayers I offered as a very young boy. “Now I lay me down to sleep….” Following my mother’s lead phrase by phrase, as I was tucked into bed each night, we would then go through the list of family members one by one. “Bless Grandpa and Grandma Brown, bless Grandpa Patten,” and so on. From a very early age my mother laid a foundation of prayer in my life that today continues to serve me well.

Sadly, however, as is often the case in our culture, the foundation that was laid in my youth was not built upon until well into my adult life. Even after serving in ministry for years, prayer was a weakness in my walk with God. As I have looked back to discover why, and how this weakness was turned into a strength, it became apparent to me that two things had been missing. First and foremost was priority, and right alongside that was discipline.

At some point I decided that my highest achievement in life would be to become a true disciple of Jesus Christ. Aware that a disciple is a disciplined follower, I had to honestly assess my life and make adjustments. As I considered the five basics of Christian life (study of Scripture, fellowship, giving, witnessing, and prayer), it occurred to me that a healthy prayer life would be beneficial in the other four areas as well.

I would like to be able to say that establishing prayer as a priority in my life came easily and quickly. However, that would be fiction. There have been scores of individuals over the years who elevated the importance of prayer for me. One such person was Bill Hybels, who, in his book Too Busy Not to Pray: Slowing Down to Be With God, provided some structure whereby I began to discipline my prayer life.

At about the same time, I organized a group of friends who were committed to praying for others, and they held me accountable as a prayer partner. For several years Covenant Circle was a group that I had the privilege to be a part of as we interceded for one another.

Like many young people, I rebelled against discipline, but thankfully, years later I came to understand its value.

Hebrews 12:10 and 11
(10) Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness.
(11) No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

In Hebrews 12 the Greek word paidia, translated “discipline,” has to do with the instruction of a child. As any good parent knows, instructing children well requires devotion. It is a matter of dedication and focus over time.

God disciplines us for our good so that we might share in His holiness, righteousness, and peace. I find it interesting that while the first half of Hebrews 12 is largely focused upon discipline, there are also three images present that are important to consider in this discussion. I am referring to the athlete (v.1), soldier (v. 4), and farmer (v. 11). While gumnazo, translated “training” in Hebrews 12:11, from which we derive the word “gymnasium,” is an athletic term, it is also pertinent to the farmer and the soldier.

2 Timothy 2:3-6
(3) Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.
(4) No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs–he wants to please his commanding officer.
(5) Similarly, if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not receive the victor’s crown unless he competes according to the rules.
(6) The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops.

Athlete

In our culture there are many examples of athletes who excelled due to their devotion in training. Recently I read Quiet Strength: A Memoir, by Tony Dungy. Coach Dungy was recounting a story he had heard about Joe Montana and his approach to training:

“Joe had been with the San Francisco 49ers for a number of years, helping them win several Super Bowls. Year after year, the team ran head coach Bill Walsh’s same offense. At the beginning of each season, Bill installed the offense the exact same way, with the plays installed in the same order. The first play he installed—every year— was “22-Z In.” Joe Montana could run “22-Z In” in his sleep.

When Paul Hackett became offensive coordinator for the 49ers, he installed “22-Z In” just as Bill Walsh instructed him. Paul realized that Joe knew more about “22-Z In” than he did, but when the meeting was over, Paul saw that Joe had taken three pages of notes. He’d documented exactly how Paul wanted to run the play, as well as all the basics of “22-Z In” and its details. That’s what a professional does.” [1]

Farmer

When I think of the training required for farmers, I have the memory of my Uncle Jay Patten with whom I spent many summer days as a boy. For Jay, his training was like that of farmers in Bible times. His father Wayland taught him, as his father William, and his father James, and his father Samuel before them taught their sons. The lasting impression I have of a dairy farmer is faithfulness. Every day, at least twice a day, cows must be milked. The family farm, which once was the backbone of this nation, was a team effort that required endurance, faithfulness, and trust in God.

Examples of athletes and farmers are helpful in the life of a disciple. An athlete must play by the rules. The farmer must be faithful. Both must endure. However, the image of a warrior is critical for the disciplined follower of Jesus Christ because it is a matter of life and death.

Soldier

I am amazed at the vast number of Americans who apparently are unaware that we are a nation at war with radical Islamic Terrorists. Since the 1980’s, our Embassies, ships, and military barracks have been attacked. The World Trade Center was first bombed in 1993 and then brought down on September 11th, 2001, when we were also attacked in Pennsylvania and Washington D.C. The leaders who perpetrated these attacks have declared war on our country, and maintain that position to this day. Yet many citizens seem oblivious.

Ironically, a similar blindness which is even more pronounced, if that is possible, resides in much of the Christian Church. We have an Enemy that is at war with all that is holy.

John 10:10
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

One of the first and most basic tenets of training for war is being clear about who the enemy is. The history of the Church is littered with examples of brother fighting brother or unbeliever. This should not be!

Ephesians 6:10-12
(10) Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.
(11) Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.
(12) For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

The enemy we are to fight is the Devil and his forces of evil. It is the fallen nature of man that focuses on the flesh. Our fight is a spiritual one. The next thing a warrior must be clear about is his mission. It is a mistake to think we can defeat the Devil and his cohorts. That is the mission of Jesus Christ. In the meantime our mission is to stand our ground. To do so requires the correct equipment.

Ephesians 6:13-17
(13) Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.
(14) Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,
(15) and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.
(16) In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
(17) Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

When a soldier is clear about who his enemy is, knows his mission, and is outfitted for battle, there still remains much training as to how the armor is used most effectively. In addition, strategies and tactics of battle must be perfected.

Ephesians 6:18-20
(18) And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
(19) Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel,
(20) for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.

Many times when this section of Ephesians 6 is considered regarding the spiritual conflict, verses 10-17 predominate. Often verses 18-20 are used as an exit mechanism or they are ignored altogether. This is most unfortunate, because a warrior who is untrained, even though fully armed can be a detriment rather than a benefit on the field of battle. Notice that verses 10-17 only refer to terms of outfitting the warrior and not of his training. Phrases such as; “put on” (10 and 13), “around your waist” and “in place” (14), “feet fitted” (15), “take up” (16), and “take” (17) say nothing about the use of this equipment or the strategies of warfare.

The connection between the warrior and prayer is well illustrated in the life of David, the great king, upon whose throne Jesus Christ will one day sit (Luke 1:32). Much of David’s life was defined by war, from the time he stepped up to confront Goliath until the land had been conquered and peace came to Israel (1 Kings 5:3-5). Even though there was much blood on David’s hands, it is clear there was even more prayer in his heart. You will be hard pressed to find one person in the Bible who has more prayers recorded than David (2 Sam.7; 1 Chron. 17, 21; Ps.3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 12, 13, 15, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22, 29, 31, 38, 39, 41, 51, 62, 63, 64, 65, 86, 108, 140, 141 and 143 [and there are more]).

Acts 13:22b
‘…I have found David son of Jesse a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.’

1 Kings 11:4
As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been.

David is a sterling example of the prayerful warrior. Jesus Christ surely learned many lessons pertaining to combat with the evil one from the life of David. One lesson must have been that of trust.

Psalm 86:2
Guard my life, for I am devoted to you. You are my God; save your servant who trusts in you.

Jesus Christ is the ultimate example of a life devoted to God, and he was clearly devoted to prayer.

Mark 1:35
Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.

This verse has long been a model for prayer in my life. God could have had Mark say, “Jesus went outside in the morning and prayed.” But no, the verse stresses the effort and discipline Jesus invested in prayer. We could expect the abbreviated version of verse 35 that I just offered, because Mark’s style of writing is abrupt and terse. He is generally very economical with his words. Yet in verse 35 he goes into extreme detail. Very early, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, went off to a solitary place, and finally, prayed there. When we see this record against the backdrop of his previous day it speaks very loudly of Jesus’ devotion to prayer.

After recruiting Apostles to follow him (Mark 1:20), Jesus entered Capernaum (v. 21) and went to the synagogue and taught the people (vv. 21 and 22). While he is there a man with a demon upsets the presentation, crying out loudly (vv. 23 and 24). Jesus ministers to the man and casts out the demon (vv. 25 and 26). Again, the crowd responds with amazement to Jesus (v. 27). The entire region was all abuzz over the news (v. 28). Jesus heads over to Peter and Andrew’s house, where they find out that Peter’s mother-in-law is ill with a fever (vv. 29 and 30). Jesus goes in and heals the woman, and she gets right up and serves them (v. 31), but the night is just getting started. The entire town shows up at their door with sick and demon-possessed individuals and who knows what time he got to sleep, if at all. So much information is crammed into these 11 verses that there is a sharp contrast to the detail in just one verse (v. 35) regarding Jesus and prayer.

God has made it very clear that we can never pray too much. We are to be faithful in prayer (Rom. 12:12). We should pray on all occasions, with all kinds of prayer, and always keep on praying for the saints (Eph. 6:18), as well as pray continually (1 Thess. 5:17). It has been my experience that as one pays the price and becomes disciplined to pray, the Lord is then able to discipline him in prayer. Prayer is where our relationship with God the Father and Jesus His son becomes living and real. Jesus has left us a wonderful pattern of a conversational relationship with God.

As workers together with God (1 Cor. 3:9) we need open lines of communication to effectively fight the forces of evil that are arrayed against us. It is my belief that it is never too early or too late in one’s life to become devoted to prayer. The Creator of the heavens and the earth longs for dialogue with us. Being in the presence of God is a truly awesome thing. Jesus has gone into the throne room of God and beckons us there.

Colossians 4:2
Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.

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To some, the name Ronald Oates brings memories of a bright, creative young man who lost his mother to the gun, but to the police, he is the alleged mastermind behind a scheme involving the hacking of people’s computers.

Oates is presently behind bars after being denied bail when he appeared before the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday to answer to charges stemming from alleged breaches of the Cybercrime and Larceny acts

He is accused of extorting a total of $150,000 from his victims which reportedly include celebrities and other popular social figures, to prevent the release of explicit photographs. Investigators say,so far, only 25 persons have come forward, even though their probe has revealed that hundreds of persons had been targeted.

But for some persons who knew him from school days, he was an intellegent individual who worked hard at trying to make money.

mek some money

“From school days, dem man deh a ‘hustla’. Bright youth eno. Dem man deh did always inna some link fi mek some money, either him did a sell supn’ or have links fi get supn’,” said Mark Marcus, a 26-year-old past student of Ardenne High School, St Andrew, where Oates received his secondary level education.

Another source said; “I won’t lie, at first I was surprised when I read the reports and saw his picture …” She, however, went on to say that after thinking back to their school days, she remembered him as someone who worked hard at making money.

Oates is the son of Constable Karen Tingle, who met her death while on her way to work. She was fatally shot on East Road in Kingston on April 19, 2001. Government prosecutors had led evidence in 2004 that there was a plot to kill the policewoman.

A man who was accused of committing the crime was placed on trial for murder but was cleared on July 6, 2004, in the Home Circuit Court.

He is also the son of the once popular footballer Ronald Oates, who represented the Boys’ Town and Cavalier football clubs in the late 1970s and 1980s.

The younger Oates was previously charged with larceny from a previous case.

In the present case, the police allege that Oates hacked into persons email accounts and threatened to post nude photos of them that he took from their accounts if they did not pay him. He is also alleged to have encouraged persons to post nude photos and pornographic videos of others on his blog and then demanded $10,000 and $20,000 from the persons whose images were posted to have them removed.

He was charged last Friday and is to return to court on September 18.

Names changed

SIGNITURES FOR THE SLANE AND A HEART FOR THE UNBORN

U.S. Marshals arrest man in St. James

5 hours 15 minutes ago

The U.S. Marshals Service arrested 25-yr-old John Edward Mortimer III in Montego Bay, Jamaica after he robbed a mall store in Miami. According to the SunSentinel News, Mortimer posed as a Guardsman security guard and walked into a Sawgrass Mills mall store and left with US$162,000 as video surveillance showed him collecting sales deposit from a store manager on November 26, during the busy Black Friday period. The accused then fled to Montego Bay on a one-way ticket to Jamaica, the same afternoon. The 25-yr-old has been charged with armed burglary, grand theft over $100,000 and has been held without bond in the Broward County jail.