Certainly newsmakers and commentators are helped by the fact that there is always some drama going on in our little island nation. This week, however, there is almost too much news; it is hard to know where to begin.

In a week where an ex-con so-called investor guru gets arrested in his Norbrook home, where police supposedly find links to US$7b, meanwhile a nervous agriculture minister who has been watching the food riots nearby, rustles up J$1b to help farmers meet the challenges of the soaring food prices, hopefully to stave off starvation. One man clearly has more money than sense, or conscience for that matter, while a country is worried that they don't have money to feed their people.

Alternative investment

I read with interest that Opposition spokesman on industry and commerce, Peter Bunting, was very outspoken about the enquiry into these alternative investment schemes and calling for an assessment of who might be on their payroll. While Mr Bunting is approximately four years late in his comments, they are well founded even if self-serving. Such an investigation may well send his already quick rise up the political ladder into hyper speed as recipients of political donations will certainly fall by the wayside.

Benefiting financially

Mr Bunting not only targeted politicians, he added, "Let us hear how many people speaking or writing in their defence are actually benefiting financially from doing so." So like Bunting I may too benefit from such an investigation, it may well pave the way for my rise as a columnist because a 'better" columnist than me is sure to be one of "the chips to fall where they may". Come on, you don't think otherwise intelligent people write all that garbage for nothing!

Then there was the Dabdoub/Vaz matter which is especially bad news for Lennie Little-White because I suspect that he will have a hard time competing against that drama with his new season of Royal Palm Estate, but throwing Reneto Adams into the cast is certainly a valiant attempt!

So Vaz makes plans to relinquish his US citizenship, which will only cause voters to question his sanity, and Dabdoub makes a pathetic attempt to win the seat in anyway other than through the polls, where he probably stands no chance. The PNP accuse the JLP of rushing back to the polls which is not in the interest of the nation, and the JLP accuse the PNP of forcing them to take this action. This with the backdrop of looming hunger, we certainly need to put this issue to rest.

Rise in the tax

News of a ban on smoking in public places, and my simple question to that would be, ban smoking what? I suspect that the rise in the tax on cigarettes might be far more effective than any nicotine gum in curbing that addiction, but as for the other addiction, well good luck. With food and fuel prices on the rise, alternative investment schemes on the decline, I suspect we may well see more smoking in public places.

Kern Spencer returned to Parliament, no news whether he drove his Range Rover. Maybe he too could get a spot on Royal Palm; after all, living in Jamaica, who needs cable?