The Ward Post Bi-Monthly Brief
Vol. 3. No. 3. (May – June 2018)
The Ward Post Bi-Monthly Brief brings together in one convenient location a synopsis of, and links to the TWP blogs posted during the previous two months period.
(06/09/2018) — In a presentation inaugurating the Hugh Lawson Shearer Trade Union Education Institute’s distinguished lecture series at the University of the West Indies (Mona, Jamaica), May 22, 2018, former Jamaica Prime Minister P. J. Patterson, ON, provided a comprehensive treatise on “The History and Development of the Modern Labour Movement: Lessons from the Past, Prospects for the Future.” Patterson provided us with a most eloquent elucidation of the historical context of the labour movement’s impact on the social, economic, and political development history of Jamaica and the English-speaking Caribbean. His presentation, which was given to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the labour uprising and the birth of the modern trade union movement in Jamaica in May 1938, removed the fog from one of the most misrepresented period of Jamaican history and shed light on the respective roles of the leading characters of the day. Read More
Sanctions and Regime Change – Iran and Venezuela (Ambassador Curtis A. Ward)
(05/22/2018) — When President Barack Obama first imposed sanctions on Venezuela in 2015, the stated purpose and subsequent actions by the Obama Administration were to effect behavior change in Venezuelan leadership, not to replace the Nicolás Maduro government. There was mounting evidence Maduro was pursuing a non-democratic path; human rights violations were becoming the norm; and rule-of-law and justice in Venezuela faced significant challenges. Read More
Setting the Stage for U.S. Geostrategic Agenda (Ambassador Curtis A. Ward)
(05/13/2018) — United States president Donald Trump faces a plethora of geopolitical and geosecurity issues with a new and untested foreign policy team – Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and National Security Adviser, Ambassador John Bolton. Both share common cause with President Trump on limiting the use of diplomacy in settling world affairs. They project the use of military power as a means to advance U.S. interests abroad. It is ironic that the Secretary of Defense, retired Marine Gen. James N. Mattis, is an advocate for diplomatic solutions and resort to the use of the military as a final option. Trump’s significant reduction in the State Department’s FY 2018 budget, the decimation of diplomatic expertise and capacity, in collaboration with former secretary of state Rex Tillerson, and the massive increase in the Defense Department FY 2019 budget reflect the thinking of Trump’s new foreign policy team – military-driven diplomacy and military use as an early option. Read More
Isolating Trump on Iran Nuclear Deal (Ambassador Curtis A. Ward)
(05/07/2018) — On Tuesday, May 8, 2018, President Donald Trump will tell the world whether the U.S. will abrogate the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA – the Iran nuclear deal). The Ward Post does not report breaking news, nor does it make predictions. The latter is virtually impossible with the Trump presidency. However, it is important to provide the context to Trump’s action on the JCPOA. …Read More
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