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Re: my visa story
Definitely another post for another board but I feel I must respond...suffice it to say that I have never tried to be "condescending" in anyway and I have never impuned any motives to you or to any other contributors. The original thread you cite originated with someone who seemingly was looking for advice about an experience she had during a visit (her first I believe) to Jamaica and I was merely imparting my own experience (personal and through two close friends) to try to give her some of my perspective.
As for your point of view on what I consider a "better" life, I find that, as an immigrant to North America, it is always easier for people who haved lived all their lives or are born in this society of tremendous material wealth to spend time idealizing life elsewhere and defining a "better" life as being one which has little, if anything, to do with material wealth, money, decent housing, dependable basic services and a stable environment and society (no, I am not implying that countries outside North America lack all or even most of these characteristics any more than I implied that ALL immigrant women from Jamaica are domestic workers -- but it would be ignoring reality to say that a large number of these women come to Canada as domestic workers). It is easy to say that a "better life" means happiness, free time, etc because it is easy to dream on a full stomach and a steady pay check. It is much different when daily life is more of a struggle and not a 365 day vacation. Just look at the electoral manifestos of the two parties vying for election in the current Jamaican election and see what they are advocating in terms of creating better lives for the people of Jamaica -- it is about developing and diversifying the Jamaican economy, creating more jobs and better lives for the people.
But, I have continued for far longer than I wanted and I was not even expecting to make such an extensive response -- clearly I hit a nerve. But that is the beauty of the world of the internet, we can agree to disagree.
Definitely another post for another board but I feel I must respond...suffice it to say that I have never tried to be "condescending" in anyway and I have never impuned any motives to you or to any other contributors. The original thread you cite originated with someone who seemingly was looking for advice about an experience she had during a visit (her first I believe) to Jamaica and I was merely imparting my own experience (personal and through two close friends) to try to give her some of my perspective.
As for your point of view on what I consider a "better" life, I find that, as an immigrant to North America, it is always easier for people who haved lived all their lives or are born in this society of tremendous material wealth to spend time idealizing life elsewhere and defining a "better" life as being one which has little, if anything, to do with material wealth, money, decent housing, dependable basic services and a stable environment and society (no, I am not implying that countries outside North America lack all or even most of these characteristics any more than I implied that ALL immigrant women from Jamaica are domestic workers -- but it would be ignoring reality to say that a large number of these women come to Canada as domestic workers). It is easy to say that a "better life" means happiness, free time, etc because it is easy to dream on a full stomach and a steady pay check. It is much different when daily life is more of a struggle and not a 365 day vacation. Just look at the electoral manifestos of the two parties vying for election in the current Jamaican election and see what they are advocating in terms of creating better lives for the people of Jamaica -- it is about developing and diversifying the Jamaican economy, creating more jobs and better lives for the people.
But, I have continued for far longer than I wanted and I was not even expecting to make such an extensive response -- clearly I hit a nerve. But that is the beauty of the world of the internet, we can agree to disagree.
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