Reggae Update and PSA from KW
Well another lag in posting but not nearly as long as the last. Here’s a few tropical tidbits for your enjoyment from down island way - updates on reggae music and a Public Service Announcement for anyone thinking about heading to Key West for Fantasy Fest.
Enjoy Life!
Patrick Ó Brien
Being a big Bob Marley (and reggae in general) fan it is great to see the impact his music still has today. Even in places as far from Jamaica as Serbia where Musicians from the former Yugoslavia have unveiled a statue of late Jamaican reggae icon Bob Marley as a symbol of peace. Several thousand gathered at a rock festival in the tiny Serbian hamlet of Banatski Sokolac for the uncovering of the statue, which features Marley in a tea cosy, clutching a guitar and fist raised towards the sky. “Bob Marley — fighter for freedom armed with a guitar,” reads the inscription at the base of the sculpture, the first of the late reggae star in Europe.
The Jamaican government recently announced that they will establish a museum of reggae music to represent the struggles and achievements of Jamaican music. The announcement was made by Minister of Water and Housing, Dr Horace Chang
Describing reggae as an international language of the oppressed, he credited the work of artists like Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer, whose “lyrics captivated international audiences, unified people in their struggles and served as the basis for negotiating significant truces.”
Their work, he stressed, “took the themes of rebellion, human rights, love, respect for others and freedom into the far corners of the world and helped pave the way for unity and peace.”PSA from Key West
Police are ready for Old Town Key West to pillaged and plundered by pirates and swashbucklers and other assorted rowdy folks during this year’s Fantasy Fest, with its theme of “Pirates, Pundits and Political Party Animals.”
Although I am sure the KWPD enjoys fun as much as anyone but this year they are watching out for everyone’s safety by placing a few restrictions on those who plan to party hearty. Pirates at the Fest will be relieved of any weaponry both real and pretend. Um Ok, I get this one, good idea. It’s all good fun until somebody loses an eye, right.
And another thing, according to the Key West Police Department, all pirate wenches must cover their nipples — if only with body paint. Umm, I am not so sure I get this one. Can’t honestly say how this will improve safety. It really puzzled me so I consulted with my favorite eye guy, Dr. Steve Tonner, who is also a veteran of many wild nights in Key West. Steve said that although there are numerous reports of eye injuries caused by distractions at the very sight of bare nipples (including punches delivered by angry wives and girlfriends of those who were distracted) the good Doctor assures me that - there is no record in the last 100 years of someone having their eye put out by a bare nipple.
Police are asking everyone to comply voluntarily and leave the weapons at home They announced that they are most concerned about real weapons, obviously, and fake weapons that are made to look real. Police said they will enforce the rules on a case-by-case basis, and an officer’s discretion may determine what is acceptable and what is not. We’ll assume that the discretion part applies to the fake weapons and if you are caught with a real one you should plan on a visit to the Stock Island lock-up.
sources: Key West Citizen and Caribbean Net News
