Spot the Difference

By ALBERTINA ALMEIDA

As kids growing up, we would be presented with two similar pictures and asked to spot the difference. While that was a good exercise for sharpening visual observation, our political acumen should have driven us to take that skillset to another level, to detect the political hypocrisy, chicanery and cunning of today. (more…)

The Slippery Slope

By ALBERTINA ALMEIDA

Oftentimes, we are so obsessed with ourselves and our aspirations, demands and objectives, that we do not realise that the (political) positions we take vis a vis ‘others’ are a slippery slope towards disaster for us ourselves. I will illustrate this with the use of the word ‘outsider’. (more…)

Long Live Fr. Stan!

By ALBERTINA ALMEIDA

We are witness today to a heightened terrorizing by the State of the marginalized sections of society and of those who support the marginalized sections, in order to stomp over their lives and usurp their resources, especially land. The State has been deploying various means to do this, one being the weaponising of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, 1967 (UAPA),   or by repeatedly invoking the equally draconian National Security Act, 1980, for crimes, or under the guise of redressing or preventing crimes, that can well be handled by the existing criminal law, if only the police and other authorities are efficient  with their investigations. (more…)

Small can be Beautiful – Even During COVID 19 Pandemic (Reflections in the 39th year of Goa’s Statehood!)

By ALBERTINA ALMEIDA

While still a student, Prof. A. P. Kamat, who taught at the Dempo College of Commerce in Panjim introduced us to the concept of “Small is Beautiful” taken from the book of that title by E.F. Schumacher, and it stands firmly engraved in my mind. But when we are confronted with the reality of small Goa, we find that the smallness has been (ab)used to (mis)appropriate. (more…)