Karry Best movie of this year hands down!

ReaderKenka Let's be realistic.

ShangLuda Admirable film.

Glucedee It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

jasc07 To suggest that Jamaicans are stupid enough to hate the one huge source of Revenue left open to them for economic survival - the American - tourist - suggests Jamaicans are only capable of Knee-jerk analysis. Crucially, people go on holiday to largely experience a different cultural environment. When you return from holiday, how boring it would be to tell someone about what you experienced, if it is no different from a holiday you could have had in another part of the U.S.A/Canada/Europe etc.. Decimating cultures and economies outside of the U.S.A. and still expect to have a lovely, exhilarating and refreshing holiday seems to be contradictory. If the bullying persists unchecked, eventually there is no other life experience except a U.S.A one. At what point in this farce do the major commercial and political forces in the USA/Europe etc. take responsibility for their actions, think they have gone too far, and seek to help repair some of the damage caused by their actions. This does not even take into account the money "they" made from the "african slave trade". Why is it acceptable for the "Jews" to discuss the recent past "holocast" and "bondage" in Egypt (centries ago), but "Africans in The West" must not mention how they have been ripped off for 500+ years, and "what about reparations" - just like the Jewish people after "World War Two". The fact is this film shows what actually happened to Jamaica, and who were the "Players" in attacking an essentially defenceless people. With a Socialist Government in Jamaica being hammered by the enormous hike in oil prices and the huge cost of training doctors, engineers etc. to keep the country going in the 1970's - while these same essential key workers were continually enticed to North America, the Jamaican Government tried to be neighbourly with its neighbour Cuba - mutual interest (only 80 miles away). The bilateral assistance, as I understand it was for Jamaica to help Cuba develop its Tourist industry, and Cuba help out with essential skilled people (doctors, engineers etc.). No rational Jamaican could ever contemplate THE PEOPLE ever accepting a Totalitarian state in Jamaica, if they ever understood the lasting legacy of the "Slave Trade in Jamaica". USA power brokers did not see it this way and chose to decimate the Jamaican economy. Can the definition of freedom really be restricted to acting as a mimic of a citizen of U.S.A.?As pragmatic people Jamaicans continue to find ways to progress. Unfortunately with the introduction of foreign "organised crime/state secret services" (1970's)to ensure the toppling of the Jamaican Socialist government, Jamaican criminals were trained in "cocain" trafficking, mechanics of illegal gun purchase and use etc., hence the current so-called "Yardies". The more socialist of the two main political parties has been entrusted with governing Jamaica for more than the last two terms showing who the people trust more to guide their country, despite the hardships. The fraud exposed in this film is that USA can still choose to be an honourable "Big Brother" to Jamiaca, Cuba, Barbados, Guyana, Trinidad, Brazil, Chile, Venezuala, etc., etc.; without appearing to act as a loutish bully with no honest stance towards democracy. What is the point preaching NO GOVERNMENT SUBSIDIES as acceptable, while hugely subsidising USA Agri-business (especially milk - see film comments). The world is asking USA to grow up and stop making itself look like it is a pirate nation that is so morally bankrupt it does not believe it matters that smaller countries see it as a bunch of LIARS. This film tries to encourage USA to see that there is an alternative - an honest, honourable one. This film shows that we the Jamaicans still offer the hand of friendship to our American neighbours, and as demonstrated by Colin Powel (Jamaican upbringing and ethics) have a basic decency which can, when allowed to grow naturally MAKE THIS WORLD A BETTER PLACE FOR ALL OF US. USA promoting organised crime has once again caused problems for all of us. A previous contributer made one sensible comment - why should a USA agri-business need to smash the remaining 5% of business in other countries producing economic refugees and the expansion of organised crime cartels smuggling people to hidden economies in "Developed Economies" - Europe and North America? Why promote getting rid of stable governments to produce more refugees? More piracy ? To cream off the highly trained professionals, business brains,etc. to the USA economy? The small countries then have to borrow more money (from USA, "World Bank" etc.) to train more professionals just to keep the country going. The USA institutions that these people go to work for would happily pay (minimal) compensation if the USA Government insisted on them honouring their moral obligations. The film asks the question - "Is there a sensible point to perpetuating such a USA Foreign policy?" Jamaicans wish sense to prevail -THE POINT OF THE FILM. It is still a mystery to most Jamaicans why some USA business leaders appear to be more interested in excess CONTROL of other peoples economies, culture, views etc. rather than mutual benefit - exchange of ideas - bilateral trade - mutual growth. Do they really believe the summit of human existence is the "American Dream". But if you do not live in America (USA) would you not have the "Jamaican Dream", the "French Dream", the "South African Dream", the Russian Dream", the Chinese Dream", the "Irish Dream", the "Chilean Dream", the "Cuban Dream", the "Iranian Dream", the "United Nations Dream" etc. etc. On what basis does the "American Dream" have to be foisted on the weaker nations, where only a one-sided dialogue is acceptable? Don't these "power brokers" get bored talking to themselves?

w00f For anyone who wonders "why they hate us," watch this documentary and the mystery will be solved. It thoroughly documents how the US, the WTO, and the IMF have systematically destroyed every aspect of Jamaican economic opportunity and culture.The US didn't abolish slavery in the 19th century; they simply outsourced it. Take a look inside the Kingston Free Zone and you'll see the slaves still at work. Visit a Jamaican banana plantation and learn about how the economy of a sovereign nation was subjugated in the name of "free trade."In short, fellow fat Americans, pull your heads out of your globalizing butts and watch this film, and then try -- for just a moment, at least -- to put yourself on the other side of the coin. Imagine how you would feel about a foreign agency that took away your livelihood, that treated you like chattel, that demanded you stop making a living so that a transnational corporation could capture the last 5% of a market share.Wouldn't you hate them, too?

Howard Schumann This is the Jamaica the tourists see, says the narrator in Stephanie Black's documentary Life and Debt, a country of lush jungles, clear blue water, and sandy beaches. Beyond the luxury hotels, however, is a third world country fighting poverty, crime, and hopelessness. Based on the novel by Jamaica Kincaid A Small Place, Life and Debt, the film studies the effects of the policies of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank on the economy of Jamaica, focusing on the impact of economic globalization on the dairy farmers and factory workers. Backed by a soundtrack of native reggae music, Life and Debt is filled with economic facts that require some knowledge to fully understand. You don't need a master's degree in Economics, however, to understand the desperate faces of children in poverty, the agony of farmers who can't sell their crops, or the hopelessness of factory workers who earn the equivalent of thirty US dollars per week. Black interviews former Prime Minister Michael Manley who explains how the current situation came to be. When Jamaica achieved its independence in 1962 after being a colony of Great Britain for 400 years, help was needed to build its economy. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank gladly supplied this money in the form of short-term loans. These loans though came with strings attached. Subsidies to local farmers were prohibited and tariff barriers were lowered to allow cheap foreign goods to come into the country, inevitably driving local industries out of business. What's remains is tourism, sweatshops and fast-food chains. Manley blames the big Western powers that have used Jamaica for cheap labor and easy sales. For example, thanks to huge subsidies other countries including the United States exported powdered milk to Jamaica at an excessively low price, forcing the local dairy industry to shut down. He also points out that big American businesses like Chiquita, Dole, and Del Monte have worked to stifle exports of local Jamaican bananas. Manley asks of the IMF, "You ask, 'In who's interest? I ask, 'Who set it up?" Watching this documentary, it became clearer to me why thousands of people took to the streets in Seattle to protest the WTO Conference. It may not be widely known but the WTO has established ground rules that make it easier for the developed countries to market their products in third world countries. Under WTO rules,1. Governments are not allowed to pass laws that favor local firms and discriminate against foreign-owned corporations.2. Governments are not allowed to prevent foreign nationals from buying a controlling interest in local companies.3. Governments are not allowed to subsidize domestic companies.4. Governments are not allowed to pass laws that would provide favorable terms of trade to particular trading partners.Ralph Nader said it all when he described globalization as being the subordination of human rights, environmental rights, and consumer rights. The International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and the Inter-American Development Bank now own almost every facet of the Jamaican economy and the only ones that are making money are franchises like McDonalds, Wendy's, and Burger King who contribute little more than unskilled low paying service jobs. If you are thinking about asking the IMF to change its policies, keep in mind that any change in IMF policy requires an 80% approval and the richest nations such as the United States, Western Europe, Japan make up more than 80% of the vote. Life and Debt, like the recent film Bowling for Columbine, is one-sided, in your face, and may appeal only to those already in agreement. However, its images are so vivid that, for the first time, you may experience the human impact of policies that can turn the world into "one big casino".

harry-76 "Life and Debt" documents the extremely negative effects "globalization" has on the Jamaican economny and agriculture. Juxtaposing typical tourist views with searingly challenging economic conditions of Jamaican natives, the audience begins to see a side of this culture normally hidden away. Hearing representatives from the International Monetary Fund and World Bank talk, one recognizes the familiar rhetoric--administrative jargon which obscures its callous action: look out for one's self first and foremost.Well-known US companies are documented here as part of the problem. Their motivation is to make a profit, period, no matter at what cost or human price. American stockholders tend here to look at and be primarily concerned with how many points their shares rise--"Life and Debt" shows the downside of that rise. There's a lot more to life than merely being concerned about one's self. This film cries out for us to hear the needy call of our planetary brother and sister. Capitalism and competition tend to be cold animals--and one buys into those concepts because they're in place and operating . . . never stopping to think that there may be an exploitative side to these activities.Stephanie Black captures that side in this documentary. The tourists are rightly there to have a good time, yet we cannot turn our backs on our neighbors. Imposing grossly high interest rates and stipulations that cause them to sink greater into debt each year is not aiding them. Unloosing our subsidized powered milk on their marketplace while their unsold whole milk must be poured down the drain is not being fair.When rioters and demonstrators took to the streets there and in the US against globalization, I wondered what it was all about. "Life and Debt" helped provide a subsantive explanation. The film is not an entertainment: it is a serious, thought-provoking film to inform. As I sat in a near-empty movie house, with some people leaving before the end of the film, I wondered where was the audience? I thought, are we not all involved in this scenario? When we buy items "assembled in" Jamaica, do we really realize what that means in terms of "free zone?"When we delight in paying very low prices for items made in China, Japan, Mexico, and the like, how does that really impact upon those countries' workers? "Life and Debt" helps provide an answer. I very much value this documentary, and look forward to obtaining the dvd when released, to further ponder world economic check and balances and rethink the entire concept of "globalization."