Are we really safe?

February 22, 2005

Dear Sir,

My wife and I recently travelled to the USA on a Delta flight. International travel these days is not fun; especially after you have had to complete the necessary forms, identify yourself at the check-in counter, identify yourself and show boarding cards to the security lady to get into the US immigration area, identify yourself to the US Immigration, identify yourself to the security ladies who then search all your bags, identify yourself to next security people and get your ‘carry on' x-rayed and yourself scanned before going into the departures area. Then a short while later you have to identify yourself to the airline boarding ladies before being singled out again to be searched before being allowed to go downstairs to board the plane. Of course there is still some doubt as to who you really are, so you have to identify yourself to the guy checking passports and boarding cards at the gate before being allowed onto the apron to board the airplane.

Now don't get me wrong - whilst I do find all the above tedious and and time consuming, I fully understand the need for the process and the need for everyone to feel and be secure and be equally treated in all the above procedures.

So, imagine my surprise - and feeling of unease - when once we have been let out of the airport building and are on the way to the plane, a BAS van pulls up and hands a brown paper bag to the person a few feet ahead of us on the apron, who then gets on to the plane I am boarding! What's the point of all the identity processes and security procedures we have all had to go through when someone can just have stuff delivered to them in a brown paper bag on the runway and bypass all the above? It doesn't matter whether there was a salad in the bag or a cassava pie for someone's auntie in the States, what matters here is that obviously if this is allowed to continue happening this is not a secure airport!

Maybe someone from BAS would like to let us all know what the procedure is for getting stuff delivered to us on the apron? Or better still, perhaps the practice of allowing their staff to bypass security should be stopped?

JUST ANOTHER PASSENGER

Warwick

P.s. I did report it to the ‘security guy' at the door, and he did follow us onto the plane and he seemed to know who he was looking for - so maybe this is a regular occurrence?

Blood bank thanks

March 10, 2005

Dear Sir,

I am grateful for the opportunity through The Royal Gazette, to publicly thank David Lang and the Bank of Bermuda Foundation for their generosity in hosting the Blood Donor Centre Volunteers Dinner at the R.H.A.D.C. last evening.

The Bermuda Red Cross Blood Donor Centre is operated by one paid Nursing Coordinator, two paid part time Intravenous Nurses, and 40 Volunteer Nurses, Lab Technicians, and Refreshment Hostesses. These volunteers donate in excess of 2,000 hours per year to this vital life-saving service.

We sincerely thank Mr. Lang and the Foundation for recognising and honouring us for the dedicated service provided by our highly qualified volunteers.

It is a privilege to have our volunteer service recognised in such a pleasing way - by such a prestigious organisation.

BARBARA COOPER

Chairperson, Bermuda Red Cross Blood Donor Centre

Watch out!

February 27, 2005

Dear Sir,

We found a watch on Boaz Island on Sunday, February 20. Please phone 234-6689, with a description, for its return.

PETER HOPKIN

Sandys

Let's value ourselves

February 25, 2005

Dear Sir,

May I comment on the column by Phillip Wells on the Good and Bad of Ashay (Royal Gazette February 24, 2005) and link those comments to the recent discussions we hear on Bermuda's Americanisation of America's Black History Month.

I did a Ph.D in African History and returned to Bermuda with enthusiasm to teach African History, preferably at the Bermuda College. At the same time on my return I was struck with the disintegration of the black community and the rejection of our most positive traditional values. I urged the Ministry of Education to support my proposal to discuss those values with our teachers. I was thwarted on both scores. I was never allowed to teach African History or to discuss our traditional values with the teachers.

Thus I have been very interested in the ease and rapidity with which this black American has been accepted and assisted in her efforts to introduce African History and African values. It has been a sharp reminder of the extent to which even a black American is preferred and valued over a black Bermudian by other black Bermudians, irrespective of any of their hard earned qualifications.

This black Bermudian self rejection and low self evaluation results in leaving a significant gap. Black Bermudians clearly have their origins in black Africa (as well, often, as elsewhere). Black Bermudians have had to face slavery, the loss of culture and the loss of their mother tongue as well as ongoing oppression and widespread contempt, none of which was faced by traditional African as they developed their core values. thus it is essential that we remind our students (and ourselves) that black Bermudians overcame those horrific challenges and began to develop values, culture and achievements which grew out of their own particularly difficult circumstances. Until we, as black Bermudians, learn to value ourselves and take pride in the development of our own traditional values and achievements and those who achieved on these shores we still will have failed our students, no matter how much we Americanise our black history and try to transmit, traditional African values forged under very different circumstances from our own.

EVA N. HODGSON

Crawl

The long and the short of it

The following was sent Dr. Ewart Brown, Minister of Tourism and Transport, and copied to The Royal Gazette.

February, 25, 2005

Dear Dr. Brown,

I have been a regular visitor to the island of Bermuda over the past 12 years.

Nothing takes my breath away more than peering out the airplane window on my descent to view the many shades of blue and green that surround this paradise. Upon arrival at the airport terminal, a warm tropical wind blows and the calypso band plays.

As I make my way quickly through the terminal to baggage claim, my anticipated arrival to the Island comes to a grinding halt. Immigration. It so happens that three other airlines arrive at the same time to the Island. There I stand in line waiting over one hour to get through to my cab ride to take me to where I want to go. This is not the first time this has happened to me. As I stand in line I do not see too many smiling faces. Others in line share the same feelings I do.

So what is the problem? Very simply, not enough Immigration kiosks to meet the demand of passengers.

What is the solution? Very simply, build more kiosks. The arrivals room for Immigration is quite long and rectangular. Building more kiosks where they stand is one solution. Another idea is to place the kiosks along the long side of the rectangular room similar to how new airports are designing new queuing lines for passengers. More lines, more Immigration officers and kiosks and shorter lines. I must confess I am not an engineer but these recommendations would go a long way to making the arrival experience to the island something to remember, not something to forget.

I arrived back in Toronto, Canada and as I waited for my connecting flight, I read the cover of a book that is a national bestseller. It is called ‘The Tipping Point, How Little Things Can Make A Big Difference'. Food for thought.

DAVID WELLS

Rothesay, New Brunswick

Getting away with it

March 2, 2005

Dear Sir,

Can someone please tell me the point of “concurrent sentences”? If a person is either already serving a similar sentence or is sentenced for crimes where the sentences are to run exactly at the same time, am I nuts in thinking that this is a little like getting no punishment at all? The other one I like is “He was suspended with pay...”!

JUST A QUESTION

Southampton

Parking madness

Dear Sir,

I am writing you today to ask why when there is a special event in Hamilton do we receive parking tickets?

For example: this Saturday March 5, there was boxing match at Number 1 Shed. I drove around all the major streets and parking lots in the vicinity in search of a parking spot. Failing to find a spot after ten minutes, I parked behind a few other cars alongside Barr's park on a yellow line. My wife had been waiting at Harbourfront for more than ten minutes and I felt I had no other choice. I hoped that given there would obviously more need for parking, the police would perhaps relax the ticketing that night. There was simply not enough parking spots available spaces for all in Hamilton then. Clearly this event brought lots of business to our capital, presumably this type of event is popular and we will continue to encourage social events in the future.

A similar circumstance occurred last year also; the boat parade. Here we are trying to encourage participation and observation of such local events and hopefully offer more public events in the future. One hopes the new waterfront plan includes parking solutions. In the meantime, why are the public penalised for lack of available parking? Is it fair to ticket patrons of a social event intended to promote the city of Hamilton when there is clearly not enough parking! This is a sure way of discourage potential restaurant and bar patrons from visiting Hamilton.

Perhaps there should be some safe alternatives provided on busy nights? I know some folks park at Bullshead which is a greater walking distance and not considered the safest area for women to walk. Perhaps a shuttle service to there and the parking lot at Spurling Hill? Or perhaps relaxing the rules on some streets? It truly appeared as though there were triple the ticket police out on March 5, to rake in the cash knowing full well there were very few parking options for people. Talk about propaganda! Way to go Bermuda...you really solved that problem!

C. HENDERSON

Pembroke

A housing solution

February 25, 2005

Dear Sir,

On the front page of your February 24 edition, it states that there were 16,500 work permits issued for the year 2004, an increase of nearly 4,000 over 2003 which was 12,875.

If you take into consideration that all of the original 12,000 plus wasn't all renewals. That means we probably had at least 5,000 new workers come into Bermuda in 2004. I thought we were in the middle of a housing crisis. The Bermuda Housing Corporation is reported to have a waiting list several hundred households long.

We need to put a moratorium on all work permits no matter what the category until we can house our own Bermudian people because if we can bring in over 5,000 new foreign workers and find a place for them to live and affordable too, I must add. Because by law they are only allowed to work one job. While we have Bermudians working two and three jobs and still can't find affordable housing, something is very wrong.

If you ask me, that is what is driving some of this increase in crime and violence. People are becoming despondent and frustrated. I am in no way condoning the crime and violence but if you do not get at the root of the problen. It is only going to get worse.

I know for a fact that exempted companies and the like are building and buying condominiums to house some of these foreign workers. Then you have the Bermudian landlords that would sooner rent to the the foreigner because they claim they will get higher rents an they will take better care of their places. You have horror stories from foreign tenants just like anyone else. Because whether they be Bermudian or otherwise they are human and some are bad. We pride ourselves on being a Christian community that cares about each other. Let's start practising what we preach.

Let us get together and solve the housing problem. It is not a government problem. It is a Bermudian problem.

LESLIE JAMES SMITH

Sandys

I blame greed

March 10, 2005

Dear Sir,

What has happened at Trimingham's is a national tragedy which hurts us all. One, which I believe could have been avoided. Stop blaming the Government. Stop blaming the economy. It was greed, pure and simple which brought it down. I am not an economist, nor do I have a degree in business, but it seems pretty obvious to me. They should never have taken over Smith's. that was a very big band-aid which only added to the problem.

Why didn't they pare down instead of trying to have it all? In my view this would have been an excellent opportunity to return to the quality shop of my childhood by concentrating only on luxury items such as fine china, crystal, perfumes, designer labels, etc. The remainder of the merchandise could have been absorbed into small boutique like shops to be owned by small business owners. For example issue franchises for the shoe brands, moderate clothing, home furnishings and the lie. The employees would also still have jobs.

Trimingham's is a part of Bermuda's history. Be the time my grandson becomes a man Front Street will be nothing but banks. Wither the fates may lead us? To HSBC it would seem.

M. COX

A game of tug-o-war

February 16, 2005

Dear Sir,

I see nowadays that one of the big focuses of letters written in, as well as stories written in your paper, is about the Governments decision to forbid the selling of homes by Bermudians to non-Bermudians.

Everyone seems to be in an uproar about now how they are being held back and that their hard earned investments cannot fetch as a high a price as it would if it was sold to a non-Bermudian.

If I remember correctly, since around May of last year, perhaps earlier, one of the big issues people were talking about was that there was a lack of affordable housing on this Island and that the prices of homes are getting way to high. Now I am not an economics major, so I may be wrong on this, but isn't it true that selling houses to non-Bermudians at higher prices is part of the cause of the skyrocketing housing costs here? When the average purchase price for a home was $1.2 million, was that not greatly affected by wealthy foreigners having the ability to just buy these houses and not think about, leading to fewer and fewer affordable houses available to Bermudians?

Again, if I'm wrong then correct me, but this seems like a tug-o-war, where the have-nots want a fair chance at owning a home, and the haves just want more!

SCOTT LEITCH

Warwick

Why all the travel?

February 28, 2005

Dear Sir,

Whenever Government sets up a new organisation the people involved will begin to travel.

I see that the Reverend and the lawyer involved with the study of Independence have been to the UN and to Washington. I understand the visit to the UN because we certainly need to know the views of Bulgaria. What Washington has to do with Independence is less clear.

Perhaps these men will follow Ministers of Tourism to Spain and South Africa. Be aware there are bombings in Spain!

WATCHING

Paget