Irish author and philosopher Charles Handy wrote a book titled The Elephant and the Flea. The elephant is a metaphor for large organisations, and the flea, tiny organisations that survive by living off organisations that are much larger.

Handy gives this advice to the fleas of the business world: “Stay on the back of the elephant and don’t get sucked into its blood.” This serves as a useful warning for minnows like Jamaica that must swim in the same geopolitical ocean with whales like America.

Late Jamaican Prime Minister Michael Manley, in his book titled Jamaica: Struggle in the Periphery, gave insight into the many provocations that tempt small, militarily weak, dependent nations to go rogue and resist the hegemonistic tendencies of military super powers. Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness may not admit it publicly, but he, too, may have had to contend with his own share of provocations from the colossus to the north.

The arrival and docking of the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz — one of the largest naval vessels in the world — in Kingston Harbour from June 1-5 may be viewed as a provocation of sort. The Holness Administration has been put under pressure to convince a wary populace that there is no connection between the presence of the symbol of US military and naval might in Jamaican waters and the problems transpiring 90 miles away in Cuba.

The popular current affairs programme All Angles, which airs on Television Jamaica (TVJ), carried an interview with retired assistant secretary general of Caricom Ambassador Byron Blake and professor of international relations at the University of Guyana Mark Kirton to shed light on the murky waters of geopolitics. The general tone and content, in my opinion, leaned towards a different set of facts than what was contained in the press release from the US Embassy in Kingston. Explaining the reason for the visit, it stated, in part, the following: “Nimitz crew members will join local partners in school beautification projects and sports activities with local youth, facilitating lasting connections between American and Jamaican communities.”

This is not the first time the presence of a war ship in Jamaican waters has featured in local politics. During the Cold War era, there was rumour — more accurately propaganda — of a Russian submarine offshore. The rumour was used as an election ploy to scare the electorate into voting against the left-leaning People’s National Party.

Knowing the tendency of Jamaicans never to miss an opportunity to turn an event into politics, reciting this line from Freddy McGregor’s hit song may prove timely: “Big ship sailing on the ocean. We don’t need no commotion.”

Dr Henley Morgan is founder and executive chairman of the Trench Town-based social enterprise, Agency for Inner-city Renewal (AIR), and author of My Trench Town Journey: Lessons in Social Entrepreneurship and Community Transformation for Development Leaders, Policy Makers, Academics and Practitioners. Send comments to the Jamaica Observer or hwardmorgan+articles@gmail.com.

Henley Morgan