User:Collin gmcintyre

Collin Mcintyre Spe 2401 4-1-2013

National Report: This is a brief, but concentrated report of a country chosen early in the semester. Topics covered in the report include: 1) a brief discussion of the nation's history; and 2) its current political and 3) its economic situations. In addition, each paper is to include an annotated bibliography of sources consulted. Reports should range from 4-5 pages. Three to five sources required. Your bibliography of sources should list sources according to the MLA or APA documentation style

1. Nation: Brief description of the country terrain, location, nationhood date, etc. As a “first generation American” from Jamaican ancestry during our season travels to and from; at an early age I noticed the difference in the common landscape. Going from the urban setting of Brooklyn New York to the rural town of Clarks town, Trelawney was quite interesting during the first few years of my life. The overall landscape of Jamaica is rather dynamic. “Jamaica is the largest English speaking island in the Caribbean: 600 miles south of Florida and less than two hours by plane from Miami. It is 146 miles long, between 22 to 55 miles wide and has considerable variation in landscape from the coral sands and iron shore cliffs of the shoreline, through coastal wetlands, plains and highlands to the misty peaks of the Blue Mountains.” The original inhabitants were the Taino Indians who migrated from South America. Roughly around 1494, the Island was invaded by the Spaniards. History states that Christopher Columbus arrived on the Island roughly around this time. The Spaniards continued to rule until around the mid 1650’s; around this time the Island was invaded by the British Empire. On August 6, 1962, Jamaica formerly received its independence from England. 2) Relevance: During the late 1970’s up until the middle of the 1980’s Jamaica was a popular destination for tourists. During this time tourism was the leading sector. Jamaica is known for producing an abundance of athletes. Jamaicans have had success in particular in track and field. The United States, Canada, and a host of other countries all have had Jamaican nationals on their teams. The little Island currently boast’s the title for having the World’s fastest “Man”. There are dozens of teens who receive track and field scholarships to attend colleges abroad. From the middle 1960’s up to around 1985. The biggest cash crop was “Marijuana” Up until the middle of around 1985. From the early 1970’s to the middle 1990’s the bauxite industry was a major natural resource that the country exported. What seems to make Jamaica relevant is the size of the Island or should I say the lack there off. In square footage Jamaica fails in comparison to the other Islands within close proximity. However, the tiny Island continues to appear on the world stage for the talented individuals that it produces. One thing is for certain this tiny Island has produced a Genre of music called SkA that has evolved into what we call “Reggae” music today. Jamaica as a British colony was forced to choose from genre’s that were promoted by Britain and the United States. SkA as a genre began to surface in the early 1940’s. The main driving factor that helped mold the genre was the current political situation at the time. During this time the Island was going through rapid changes. Unlike the prior generation, the generation of the 1960’s that consisted of the poor youth that was left out of the political process. “Throughout the 1960's the ghetto areas of Jamaica were filling up with youths looking for work that did not exist. These youths felt excluded and did not share in the optimism of early ska roots. These youths drew group identity as 'Rude Boys' (a term, by the way, that originated from a much earlier period: “The lack of opportunity forged a Genre that would eventually evolve into several sub genres such as Rockers, Dancehall, and Dub, etc. One of the most influential Jamaican artist from any Genre is Bob Marley. There are many reasons why Bob Marley will always be considered the most influential Artist from Jamaica. His popularity reaches to the far corners of the globe. Bob Marley’s music is responsible for igniting revolutions in countries in Africa. The message that the remains as motto for the Island of Jamaica is “One love”; which is the unofficial motto of the Island of Jamaica. Another component of Jamaican culture is the “Sound System”. The sound system culture began in the late 1950’s. A “Sound System” system is a loud radio system that includes a series of large speakers a mixer and a “Mic Man” or Disc Jockey. This was the mandatory equipment for all sound systems. It is common place even today for there to be at least 1 sound system to represent each community. Battles between individual sound systems are called “Sound Clash “. This is a rather unique type of party. The sound clash has evolved from who has the loudest sound system; to who has the best selection of uniquely cut Dubplates. The “Dub Plate “has evolved into an essential component of Reggae/Dancehall music. A dub plate is a special “Re mix” of a song; specifically for that particular Sound System; with a slight re-arrangement of the Rhythm and lyrics. The bigger the popularity of the Artist’s; the bigger the effect the dub plate can have. Over the years on sound system that has continued to stay relevant is the Sound System named “Stone Love”. Stone love has been going strong in the music business for over 30 years; they enjoy the luxury of being able to play antique Dublates that were song by the late greats like Bob Marley and Peter Tosh. there have Jamaican culture has a hint of Spanish culture for two primary reasons. One is because of the Spanish invasion of the Island. This invasion caused a residue of the Spaniards culture to remain intertwined in the native culture. The second cause is the close proximity to Cuba and the Dominican Republic; these Spanish speaking countries have a long history of trade and travel between each neighboring nation. The reggae Hit “Dem Bow” has evolved into what is called Merenque in the Dominican Republic. 3) Study Design: Explain how you plan to collect current information about your country? I plan to read books from the library and cite a few online sources. My immediate family is full of Jamaican nationals. I plan to give a real native perspective in my report. At the same time I will acknowledge the differences in political points of view that divide the country along age groups; basically the difference in views between the younger and older generations. I will take into account the socio-economic perspective from both sides of the fence. What most people do not understand is the fact that there are more Jamaicans living abroad in the United Kingdom, Canada, and America than there are living on the Island. I think that 3rd person perspective in the discussion as well. 4). Locate one news sources of your chosen country. Name the websites and news sources you intend to search. At this time, WIKIPEDIA is not a credible academic source. Using Wikipedia will result in a lower grade. All sources are check through Safe Assign on Blackboard. www.JAgleaner.com, www.Bing.com, www.Google.com, www.jamaicaobserver.com 5) References, hyperlinks, and websites: http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0107662.html http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Jamaica.aspx http://www.aneki.com/Jamaica.html Provide a bibliography of sources you located. none (2009). none. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0107662.html. [Last Accessed 2-5-2013].

untitled (2010). N / A. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.aneki.com/Jamaica.html. [Last Accessed 2-5-2013].

6) Locate one journals, books, or magazines you intend to explore so that you can design a body of literature about your country. Look at the online international gazette journal that CityTech library has in its database. You may find interesting information about your topic. If you have not updated your student ID at the library, then you will not be able to access the databases from home. Stop by and do this Site….http://gaz.sagepub.com/ URL http://gaz.sagepub.com/search/results?fulltext=jamaica&x=0&y=0&submit=yes&journal_set=spgaz&src=selected&andorexactfulltext=and

7) current political landscape The Island of Jamaica is “Democracy”. However, over the years it has suffered a terrible decline in freedom of voting rights. From the 1960’s to the middle 1970’s the political atmosphere was civilized and orderly. “The JLP won 51 of the 60 parliamentary seats. It was a devastating loss for Manley's People's National Party (PNP), which won the 1972 and 1976 elections in convincing fashion”. During the General election of 1980; Jamaica experienced what will be forever remembered as a historic scar. The violence that surrounded the election would soon be forgotten. The underlying political ambitions of a few Jamaicans with a host of outside corporate interest’s fueled what developed into a pseudo civil war. “The 1980 national polls represented a major transition in Jamaica's politics as the socialist government of Prime Minister Michael Manley was swept from power by the conservative Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), led by Edward Seaga. The parties were fiercely divided along ideological lines.” The gun violence that ensued is clear evidence that guns and other weapons were brought into the country. In order for this type of operation to be successful it would involve the corruption of several upper government officials. This underground society has led to the creation of an underlying socio-political entity. This entity is the lubricant that lubricates the countries political engine. This hidden identity is prevalent throughout the individual voting districts on the Island. It is not common to have almost 100 % votes for one candidate in certain districts. On average, in a democracy you can clearly see by the voting statistics that there does not seem to be much of a Choice. The voting numbers due not show evidence of a true and free democracy. We are aware of the close relationship between the business community and the political landscape. Thus, the genuine interests of the people are often not addressed in a timely fashion. The usual program that has been popular over the last 20 years is to make promises during your election campaign. The candidate usually does not begin to make good on any of his campaign promises until the fourth year; the last year of his or her term.

8) its economic situation. Provide a brief discussion about the relevance of studying this county—4-5 sentences. Remember, this is a work in progress, not a final product. The full discussion will be due in a couple of weeks. After Jamaica has received it independence the economy had managed to remain stable for quit some while. The post independence financial honeymoon was due largely in part to the circulation of the English pound on the island. In 1961 Jamaica refused to sign on to the Federation of the West Indies; because over deep rooted ties to The British Crown and lack of foresight. Jamaica’s current situation has continued to remain divided between the have and the have nots.