So, how rich T&T really is?

Dat is like many udder questions tuh me; de answer depends. Rich wid what?

Ideals?

Talent?

Money?

Knowin when an how tuh do de right ting?

Potential?

How poor, even bankrupt is ah place or ah people when one or more ah dem possible definitions of rich missin?

It wasn’t my idea tuh have dem questions in mih head nah. I was dey, in de moment, takin tings easy, remote control in mih hand, fingers busy when someting cyatch mih eye. Was ah ad fuh de game between de US an de Soca Princesses on October 15^th. On seein dat mih mind jump tuh de 16^th. De final score? T&T – 1; USA – 0. All de US soccer experts torkin about was how bad de Americans play. Ah manage tuh resume mih channel surfin. Later in de week, ah Newsday article cyatch mih eye; someting about de Soca Princesses hungry in Dallas.

Was only one way tuh interpret de headline. Of course de players hungry; dey cyar wait tuh upset de American powerhouse.

How de arse ah was supposed tuh know dat de Soca Princesses was hungry fuh food tuh put in de belly so dey could belch? Dat de coach had tuh jump on Twitter tuh beg fuh help fuh dat tuh happen? All because somebody in authority in oil-rich T&T hand de team $500 US on leaving Piarco.

Ah wonder eef dey tell dem tuh make T&T proud?

Me eh care what de circumstances was an nobody better waste dey time tryin tuh explain because I eh want tuh hear dotishness explained.

Me eh care eef de T&T Football Association was plannin tuh send $500 million de next day. Wasn’t it dat same association dat was boastin like two weeks before about some state ah de art facility fuh de players? Which players? Not dese princesses. All ah we know tork about doing tings does start like 5 years before de tings materialize. Unless of course de tork is about ah ting name de Tarouba Complex.

Fuhget de football association head, Tim Kee. De coach overreact he say. Nobody eh ask him tuh do what he do. Of course absurd responses eh had nuttin tuh do wid de spotlight of shame dat de coach actions shine on big people whose tinkin would give dat of adolescents ah run fuh its money. Tim Kee lookin back now an tinkin it might ah been ah better idea tuh have included de coach in de juvenile plan. Yes de coach didn’t know de plan.

Tim Kee know good leaders could get de people under dem tuh march into hell an back fuh dem an de leaders would do de same ting fuh dey charges. Dat is what dis coach do. He do it too loud fuh Tim Kee or what?

I eh go lie, since dis happen ah stayin clear ah articles wid follow-up stories. I eh want tuh read about de Haitians also in de tournament emptyin dey account an givin it tuh T&T. How much dey could have in dat account?

Dis is one time I eh go quarrel wid Trinis being embarrassed; ah know de feelin. Still, ah prefer tuh curl up in ah fetal position an rock back an forth in disbelief at de tort dat it actually have people who tort treatin de team dis way was any part of ah good idea.

It hard fuh mih not tuh tink of ah earlier story ah read.

Captain Ronald Reece, ah co-owner of Fly Jamaica claim in ah article in ah Guyana newspaper dat Caribbean Airlines gettin as much as $1.8 billion from de T&T govahment between 2013 an 2015. Wid dat kind ah money, he say CAL could crush any competition.

Who eh know ah team dat lookin tuh do de same ting against its competition? All it need was de crumbs from dat $1.8 billion, wid ah b.

It eh matter who currency dat money in. Fuh de record, one Trini dollar equals 32 Guyanese dollars or 18 Jamaican dollars.

While I like CAL — ah fly on dem before, Captain Reece have tuh be wrong. He have tuh be. Eef he not den CAL is just Bee Wee under ah next name.

“The Trinidadians have enough oil wealth to support their own national airline for the next hundred years.”

Wrong again Captain but ah know what yuh meanin. Dis eh about no regional airline war doh.

De perception out dey dat Triniland have ah bottomless pit full wid endless dollars. Does dat mean it rhetorical tuh ask why de govahment tink de country rich enough tuh bankroll one aspect ah tings T&T? Yet de best it doin fuh ah next national asset is give it $500 US along wid all de lint in it pockets? I eh want tuh hear de money comin from different ministries an each independent. Where de money comin from tuh get een dem different ministries?

Yes T&T is ah developin country. Yes it have limited resources. But it have countries doin better wid less resources. Why we tryin tuh be lower dan developin?

I eh want tuh hear nuttin dat is remotely similar tuh guilty wid ah cause yuh honor. Ah just know on some level de excuse go make sense. Once ah accept it ah go be ah chupidee an accept it de next time it get used on mih. Before ah know it, years parse an nuttin eh change.

Yes, de bigger picture ah dey wid is de need tuh get people tuh not have dey minds so closed. Do like good borses does do when dey tell dey people not tuh only tork about de problem, propose ah solution. Dat is where intellectual richness lies—solvin problems.

As Trinis we like tuh tork about disrespect, disrespect. Tim Kee try tuh paint de coach as disrespectful. Anybody agree wid dat attempt?

We like tuh slap people. De sound ah dis slap still echoin. It had tuh sting more because it wasn’t from ah opponent; it was ah own goal.

Apologies Soca Princesses.

Doh spend time dissectin what happen an wonderin why. Nobody know how bankrupt minds does tink.

Somebody in de TTFA or govahment might come up wid an next brilliant idea. Like substractin Pay Pal donations tuh de team from what de TTFA or govahment was plannin tuh send. Dat eh sound like ah good idea on ah certain level? Steups.

During de tournament in Triniland de coach tork about professionalism. Dis might just be de toughest time tuh show it.

Who doh struggle tuh meet de non-money ideals allyuh rich in? Wid de potential an talent allyuh have keep representin people like me. Ah know wid people respondin tuh de call fuh help de Haitian team donation go end up where it belong.

I missed de chance in August tuh show  mih appreciation fuh what allyuh do in winnin de CFU championship. Now it is mih duty as ah upset Trini tuh dig in mih pocket an register mih disgust at de position de team get placed in by people who go dead defendin dey actions.

Anybody in agreement wid dem bankrupt too oui.