Cultural advisor Alwyn Bully is calling on the young people in Dominica to show more patriotism for their country by volunteering during festive season.
Speaking at the official launching of the 2011 Real Mass celebrations last night, Bully said the majority of the youth, which makes up the vast percentage of carnival events, are showing no support for organizing the events.
“They show little or no interest in helping to organize it. To organize bands and shows and parades… 50 years ago when persons were in our late teens, we were at the front of carnival, taking the responsibility to organize the shows…” he said.
Bully said it seems that the people who were doing it 20 years ago for the most part are still in those positions and it is now time for a change.
“The next generation, the younger sector of our society, must step up to the plate and assume their responsibilities in this crucial aspect of our culture which has so much potential for the enhancement of the quality of our lives and the advancement of our economies as well,” he added.
volunteer? sans L’argent then?
I do not know how the carnival committee is organised and how they schedule their meetings but in order to call on young people to volunteer by helping or even submiting their ideas in terms of carnival should’t there be a meeting where young people are called upon for help or even submittng their ideas? i am sure there are alot of young people who would love and enjoy taking part in organising carnival so that it can be very successful. I personally come o Dominica for carnival because its an opportunity for me to take a holiday away from the cold but there is hardly anything much to attend in terms of shows etc. Well Mr Bully here’s an idea I observe Dominica has alot of bands those that are big and making it and those that are not why not make one of your carnival shows a Band Splash where all local bands perfom for a prize and you can also bring in a few from the caribbean (soca) to bring in the crowd. I am sure it woulld be very successful. Think about it.
i totally agree….as a young person who would be more than happy in assisting in the organization and production of festive activities there i have no idea who to talk to about some of my ideas….DFC does all the planning on their own without much involvement of the youth…Mr. Bully who should we go to??
to bloggers PERSONS N JUST SIMPLE,,,i commend allu 4 that,,,i’ve been thinking the same thing,,,,i’ve heard people say ‘persons’ in my presence n i just holding back from not trying to correct them so it may not look as an embarrasment since the majority would think ‘persons’ is the right word,,,,,,i often wonder when did it change??? in primary school i was taught singular-person and plural-people,,,,that ‘persons’ business is irritating to my ears,,,,i can’t hear that worse when i’m reading it,,,,to make matters worse,,,media personnels use ‘persons’ also,,,,so do supervisors and managers alike,,,,,it’s time we take back our english to the right path for the sake of our children,,,,
Is Mr Bully working ‘Pro Bono’???
how andx wat is ghe reason for putting opening of carnival…..on a sunday …..no logic no one will attend
Air tight hi five my boy Alwin. You could not have said it better. Years gone by, were the Jaycees being paid? No! Were costume builders such as Alwin, Darnley, Dougie and the others paid. No! They started first volunteering and for the love of it, it was all voluntary. Nowadays ‘nutten tal go so’. I do not blame them because recently we have been taught to accept money for even what we didn’t do. Tell me is poli tics.
When should we use which?
There is confusion about the best way to describe more than one person. It often feels better to speak of “three people” rather than “three persons”, but this suggests that people is the plural of person.
The words people and person derive from different Latin roots, the former from populum, referring to the people in the sense of the populace, the latter from persona, “an actor’s mask; a character in a play” and which in the English form person came to refer to an individual human being. (It was first brought in via French in the form parson, which for some unexplained reason soon took on the separate and specific sense in which we still use it, so that the word had to be re-borrowed with a new spelling. And persona itself was borrowed in that form by Jungian psychologists early this century to identify the personality a person presents to the world.)
The normal plural of person was persons, as in “two persons were present”. However, there is evidence from Chaucer onwards that some writers chose to use people as a plural for person, not only in the generalised sense of “an uncountable or indistinct mass of individuals” but also in specific countable cases (Chaucer wrote of “a thousand people”). This began to be questioned in Victorian times, and the pseudo-rule grew up that the plural of person is persons when a specific, countable number of individuals is meant, but that people should be used when the number is large or indefinite.
Modern style guides disagree, being able to quote many examples of the use of people as the plural of person in both situations, for example in sentences like “the plane crash killed 370 people”, and “Many people visit the park every day”. Though persons survives, it does so largely in formal or legal contexts (“Killed by person or persons unknown”, “This taxi is licensed to hold four persons”) and often seems awkward and old-fashioned. Where it survives it emphasises that each member of a group is being considered as an individual: “The nearest persons they can vent their feelings on are the ball boys and girls”, “Eight persons shared a single room”. From the evidence, it seems that the trend towards using people instead of persons is accelerating and that it may not be so long before persons vanishes from the language except in certain set phrases.
The reverse process seems to be happening with people. Though in origin it is a singular collective noun, it has almost from the earliest times been treated as a plural term for people at large (which has no doubt aided its acceptance as the plural form of person). This has now become so commonplace, as in usages like “People are always looking for a bargain” or “The people are being asked to vote in a referendum”, that now the singular form of people seems even stranger than the plural form of person: “This people is angry”, “That Aboriginal people has died out”.
The plural form peoples logically refers to more than one community or nation, although down the centuries some writers have been chary of it, and in the nineteenth century one described its use as “uncouth”. These days it is the accepted form in contexts like “His authority shaped diverse peoples into common views and allegiances” or “Magnified traditions especially bolster peoples embittered by subjugation or newly come to nationhood”.
I wish to support and endorse Mr. Alwyn Bully’s invitation to our Nation’s youth to play a greater role in the planning of Carnival. I also want to call on the Carnival Development/Organizing Committee to ensure that Carnival in Dominica remains unique by ensuring that Carnival remains decentralized, as is being done during Independence, so that communities around Dominica can be part of the celebrations, and you will be surprised at the number of positive ideas you will get from persons in the other areas of Dominica.
A couple years ago there were plans to support the development of Carnival in communities outside Roseau providing both technical and financial support. What ever happened to that idea?
I urge the Cultural Advisor to review the manner in which the Independence celebrations are held and attempt to follow a similar pattern for Carnival by organising district shows and events such as pre carnival warm ups and then you can have a big climax in Roseau.
Remember Carnival is a special cultural event that must be packaged and promoted to attrack not only visiting Dominicans but non nationals as well to our shores. Carnival lovers have become sophisticated and get bored easily so a very well designed and packed programme must be planned at least six months in advance if we are to benefit significantly from carnival tourists not two months before Carnival. Please review how Trinidad does it and try to do it similarly.
Finally do we understand what the Nation’s young people think of Carnival? Have we engaged them enough to determine exactly what they want? Have we told them what’s in it for them financially and technically (personal development)? That being said, it’s not too late for our Nation’s youth to come out and assist…there is much to benefit from Carnival both financially and personally, including developing careers in Event Management and the like.
Go for it folks help make Dominica’s Carnival the spectacle it ought to be…
I agree with Mr. Bully that more young people need to get involved in organising carnival activities. Yet I believe you all need to start planning earlier. You guys mean to tell me now carnival is being launched. Carnival was launched in Trini months ago. Also, if you all want the youth to participate go out and plead your case. Don’t just say you want it to happen. Go out to schools or have meetings in different communities in order to aquire volunteers. But don’t forget to reward our young people if they do volunteer that is one of the ways it will allow them to continue.
All over the world there is some aspect of celebration like carnival whether people chose to call it Kadooment,festival, Caribana, Labour day or whatever. And there are still hungry, homeless people and paros all over. So why because it is Dominica, and there are people who are against everything anyway, saying that the money should be given to the poor. What are they doing to help anything, are’nt they able to do whatever to support and house the poor and destitute? Should we be so hyprocrite and pretentoius, to think that we do not need some form of enjoyment. I would really like to see every Dominican become a stunch church goer i.e any church. whatever it be Sevendaybadventist, plenticotstyle, jehovah wickedness, etc. and see what would become of us. I thiink our life would be so boring we would then start to commit other things.??????????
The live a christian life is not boring.Christian do have festivals and they enjoyable.U call Carnival enjoyment think again.On carnival days you see women exposing thier person to the public.Man and women drunk doing all kind of nasty dances even for television cameras u call that enjoyment.We know the truth but we just turning a blind eyes to it.When bands Like Cripple Kay sing dirty songs with no real lyrics is that enjoyment.When the you get high on alchol and other we must find out what enjoyment is.
If that’s the way u enjoy yourself i feel sorry for u.We crying we hungry but will spend all our money just to worship the devil.Carnival is a devilish worship why so much money is being spent on it.
I do agree that the youth should get involved not only at carnival time but throughout the year, volunteering. After all, they may have more energy and enthusiasm than the older ones.
They do need to be encouraged.
God takes care of us and whatever we have to do in time.
Someone stated to have a meeting and invite them to the meeting. This is an excellent idea which may encourage them to perform volunteer work. Children, especially teenagers need to keep busy. Volunteering is good for them. I could elaborate further on the benefits of volunteering. They also need to be recognized for their input at the meeting and volunteering.
I am a friendly person, ever ready to help others who ask me for my advice/opinion and if they are in need of help. There are times that I will also strike up a conversation be it in the store and waiting in line at the check-out counter, if time and circumstance permit. Of course, it all depends who is near me.
Generally, people are friendly; some are shy and there are some we have to bring out the friendliness and a smile in them for some may not know how to approach others for fear of being snubbed. I choose, no doubt by instinct, whom I should talk to, for obvious reasons.
Recently in a store the conversation was about Christmas, Easter, St. Valentine’s day, Halloween and all sorts of celebrations religious or not. I said to the lady that God has planned that we must have sort of enjoyment where we could get together with family and friends and dine with them as well. Human beings need these sorts of entertainment and enjoyment, given to them by God. Do not think otherwise.
On the topic of carnival, carnival is an excellent celebration. As in all things, if it is celebrated for the purpose of which it is meant and people conduct themselves appropriately and all are done moderately and safe, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. The music is wonderful, people meet and mingle with others, the laughter, the smiles do make people happy.
On the matter of dirty songs I do endorse that such words should be denounced and eliminated. A few years ago I heard that the PM of Trinidad & Tobago had banned those dirty words from Calypsoes. If Dominica has not yet not done that, the PM should do so. It is not godly Christianlike and considerate of the feelings of others that such songs be made about others. All those who oppose it should speak against it, loud and clear, and ask the PM to ban such filthy words from those songs. They are not necessary. Dominica has progressed to the point that those type of words should be eliminated.
As the saying goes we need to let off some steam and frustration and these celebrations generally bring out the best in people.
It is people’s prerogative, their rights to participate in those celebrations or not be it for religious reasons or not. However, those celebrations should not be denounced.
As for you who state that if people were religious, being a member of any religion that they would be bored, I totally disagree with you. The problem with some people as yourself is that they generalize. They are of the assumption that everyone is one and the same and think and act alike. It is naive to think so!
I am a member of the Catholic Christian Faith and proudly so and I can inform you I am by no means bored. I wish I had more time to myself. To give you an idea, I am writing this and the TV is on, sometimes the Catholic Radio while I am listening to it (not viewing it); likewise when I am performing chores.
If one keeps busy and “in the faith”, also performing good deeds in the Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ, offering a helping hand where necessary and as circumstances permit, they will never be bored. God blesses and grants them much peace.
Imagine I can still take time off to peruse DON and provide my comments.
If religious people are bored or say that they are bored, something is definitely wrong with them and their spirituality. It could be concluded that they are not practicing the faith and serving God through others as they should.
Am not a christian but am left to wonder why these companies like kubuli,Heineken,Lime,Digicel promote the works of devil than helping destitute people?Help the youth,sponsor seminars on violence.Get people from overseas or Dominica to lecture the misguide youth people,treat those paroos.Do something more constructive than promoting the works of the Devil.Carnival is no fun.Look how some women expose themselves.Hear what Cripple k play the abuse of drugs drunkenness sexual abuse and many other things the devil stands for and we the govt. and high coporations and people sponsor that?Time we turn to god instead I will soon be turning to him and leave the Devil alone at least before carnival.
Dude, no income, no returns = no investment. If it won’t make them money, they won’t spend it.
I fully agreee with you…..Could not have said it better
Carnival should be banned because there are poor people who needs things and the big corporations are not giving anything while lime digicel giving soooo much money for carnival when many people are hungry and homeless.Y don’t the corporations spend the money on buildings home for the homeless than $500,000,00 for carnival lime digicel give that money to more productive use instead of promoting the devil?I would really like them to answer both Digicel and Lime
That is a govt responsibility not corporate. How much money is a corporation going to make when they build homes for the poor? Corporations are about making a profit or didn’t you realise that?
choopz…………………..uself is a hypocrite…………………how u expect our culture 2 grow ……..ahh? u want d money 4 ur church! sacre patat! tonney u 2 rude………………if dey was givin money 2 alu church dem alu wudnt hav nuttin sayin…………………if lime n digicel doh sponsor asi conte ki moun carnival la ye?
i agree with the first comment, but one thing though, we should take a page from countries like trinidad and begin planning early as soon as we are done with one carnival about one month after call the various planners and start planning for the upcoming year. in my opinion, two months planning is not sufficient… all in all, bravo to mr. bully and the other members….last year was great!
Agreed Carnival should be planned much earlier and the older heads do not want to give up their largess. pur hypocrisy. If we volunteer you will hear and see their hyocritical reactions
I meant:
Why the frequent use of the word PERSONS by the educated people of DA?
i agree with you, we do not use the word “people” anymore. everything is “persons” it sounds so foolish.
1 person – 2 people
but now is: 1 person – 2 persons…this is so wrong!
Thumbs up to Mr. Bully and the others who over the years have dedicated their time…this year i will volunteer my time and try to assist in any way that i can.
When all you start to allow us to Judge Calypso we’ll start to take more responsibility. Old heads doing what they want, when they want, how they want and with who they want with “our” calypso and you expect us to support that? I waiting to see de “old heads” judging for eliminations and quarters b4 I volunteer.