Bring back the ships
May 5, 2010
Dear Sir,
It sure was nice to see a cruise ship on Front Street last weekend and again this week. We have got to get more on Front Street on a regular basis so shops can start up and our economy can show signs of recovery.
St. George's needs at least two ships a week, if not three. We have got to make ourselves a destination worth coming to once again.
We need a Minister of Tourism that gets the ship business back even if they are small ships. Its better to have smaller ships in Hamilton and St George's and leave the big ones to Dockyard. We don't need to deepen or widen any channel, use what we have as the business is there.
WELCOME BACK, SHIPS
Warwick
Was it a spanking?
May 7, 2010
Dear Sir,
Looks like little Rolfe got spanked by Daddy!
JACK HANDY
City of Hamilton
Refreshing change
May 6, 2010
Dear Sir,
Wow, finally someone steps up to the plate to support something that could help to improve Bermuda Tourism, the economy and jobs.
While I don't believe Bermuda should blindly rush forward with casinos, I do find it refreshing that one group is at least willing to explore the methods by which to control but allow this opportunity.
CHARLIE SLATTERY
Massachusetts
Churches show concern
May 5, 2010
Dear Sir,
Recently there has been a backlash of comments about the United for Change Group taking a stance on Gaming. Whenever the Church says anything about social ills, or Government policy, or anything apart from its internal spirituality, it is criticised.
May I say, as a member of the United for Change administration team I absolutely commend and thank the Premier and Minister for Tourism for raising and examining the issue. It is responsible leadership to look at solutions to the problems of our tourism industry. We all want to see the industry thrive and for Bermudians to have jobs and a secure future.
However, I don't think as a pastor who is dealing with the social fall-out of our current ills that this is a solution that we should follow. But the question is: Am I supposed to remain silent? As a member of this community, do I not have an equal right to speak? In a democracy are we not all called to be involved, to lobby even? As a Christian leader, there is another duty to speak out for those on the margins who may not have a voice. The Church is also called by Jesus Christ to be salt and light a preservative, sharing what we believe are our creator God's concerns for society and human flourishing. Thank God that Martin Luther King did so in his generation. In the late 18th Century Lord Melbourne said in the House of Lords: "It is a pretty miserable thing when religion is allowed to invade public life!' that was in response to the Church-led call for the abolition of the slave trade. Enough said!
Some have asked in this paper "why is the Church only speaking on this issue of gaming when it has said nothing on the violence in the St. Monica's area?" We as churches together with community groups have been working, praying and being involved in the St. Monica's and St. Augustine's area on this issue for the last few years and specifically since November. We have been criticised for marching, and holding open air services yet we continue to support families, talk to communities, listen and pray. We see daily the effect of violence on this community, the break-up of families, what this is doing to our children. We weep for what we see. We have been working together to bring hope and change in this area. It is because of this involvement and engagement that we don't want to see things get worse, which is one of the reasons why I feel strongly about gaming. It is all connected.
Forgive me if I shouldn't have said anything.
REV. NICK DILL
Priest in Charge of the Anglican Parish of Pembroke overseeing St. Jon's, St. Monica's and St. Augustine's
A member of One Community Unified and United for Change
TV difficulties
May 9, 2010
Dear Sir,
I feel as if I'm a "Joe" (I wouldn't say the last name). Why didn't someone from ZBM make an announcement in reference to having "difficulties" and that there would be no 20/20 cricket being shown at the advertised time today (10.30 a.m. to 1.30 p.m.)
Instead, I, like many other "diehard 20/20 cricket fans" did find myself getting increasingly irritated watching an advertisement for The Department of Community and Cultural Affairs on Channel 9 for almost two hours.
RAYMOND RAY
St. George's
P.s. Guess what? It came on at 12:28 p.m.
What about the girlfriends?
May 7, 2010
Dear Sir,
Like everyone else, I've been watching all the insanity with the recent gun violence. I've watched the Police plead for help to no avail.
There have been plenty of witnesses to these murders particularly the Good Friday murder with no-one coming forward. First of all, I'm no psychologist but I do read a lot. It is a fact that it is worse when many people witness something as opposed to if just one or two people witness it. These instances have been given such names as "bystander effect", "diffusion of responsibility" and "social loafing". When a group of people witness something, no one acts because they think the next person will. If everyone leaves it up to the next person, then no one responds. In one of the Police reports a senior officer said they had gotten more response when "one or two" people witnessed an incident than when large groups had, which confirms this theory.
The term "social loafing" is really interesting. There have been studies done where a group of men have been given a rope to pull and told to pull as hard as they could. Most of the men made little or no effort to pull their weight. Why? They all assumed the other men would pull hard so they didn't need to! With these crimes, many of these people may not think it is their responsibility because they think others will take care of it. It's not that they are apathetic or callous and I'm not making excuses for them. It's just that this is one of those bizarre social phenomenons that someone more experienced than me can explain.
With all that aside, none of us can attest to what we would do under those circumstances. In the Good Friday incident, you had a large group of people confronted with men with a gun. These people naturally panicked, moreso as most had their children with them. The first thing these people (parents) thought to do was to grab their kids and run – a nightmare that I can't even imagine. Maybe no one stopped to take a good look at these guys. The ones who did see the murder were naturally in shock afterwards. The mind has incredible self-preservation mechanisms e.g. block out things that are unfavourable to our psyche. Maybe these people don't recall details now, but may as time goes on. Maybe the Police should do some type of PSA where they look into the camera and talk as if they are talking one on one with each witness instead of making a broad public appeal. Maybe say things like "you saw this" or "you know that' and try an appeal to people as individuals and not a group.
Also, we shouldn't assume that the friends/families of these guys know something. They may suspect that they're up to some shady stuff, but that doesn't mean they know that they're living with a murderer. I know a guy who's in the middle of one of these messes and I would never in a million years think this guy was capable of these things. I know some of these gang members and they're nice, they're polite, they're kind, they're likeable. A "nice murderer" is an oxymoron, I know, but they don't walk around with a big sign on their forehead saying "I'm a sociopath"!
If they're hell-bent on covering their dark sides, what is a person to do?
The appeals should be going out to the girlfriends of these guys. These are the ones who know what is going on. Hasn't anyone ever heard of pillow talk? There are guys who are spilling their guts to their girls, and in some (most?) cases the girls are covering for them. These girls think they're special with their 'hood boyfriends and in some cases repeating small details to others. These young ladies need to realise that there is nothing cute about murder, and that they could end up a victim if something goes down when they're with their boyfriends or even later if someone tries to come after them for revenge. The difficulty when these girls then tell other parties what their boyfriends did is that these third-party statements don't stand up in court as they are hearsay.
Sometimes I think that we – along with many other countries, of course, are victims of our own democracy. Nevertheless, if we can get these young ladies to think for a minute about what they are a party to, open their mouths and turn their 'boo' in, then maybe we will get somewhere. In the meanwhile
HEAVEN HELP US
Hamilton Parish
P.s. Do the Police monitor Facebook? If not, they should because you'd be surprised at what people talk about on there.
Worried by priorities
May 9, 2010
Dear Sir,
Crime is a priority for the general public but I am curious about the priorities of our potential leaders because the injustices of our economic disparity in the context of our materialistic values is one of the causes of much of our crime.
EVA N. HODGSON
Hamilton Parish
Ban face concealment
May 8, 2010
Dear Sir,
With the continuing increase in gun crime, I am amazed that when the Legislature fairly recently enacted measures in an effort to respond to the horrendous increase in serious crime on our Island they included the banning of the wearing of "hoodies", but did not include banning the of use of any type of visor attached to crash helmets! There is absolutely no necessity for the use of such visors, full face or otherwise, on Bermuda's roads.
Motorcycle riding gunmen and their passengers (accomplices) are almost always described as wearing such visors during the commission of their crimes. It does not take a rocket scientist discern that their sole reason is to conceal their identity from their intended victim and/or any witnesses.
It baffles me that during the drafting stage of this legislation and its subsequent debate and passing in the House of Assembly, no one in the Police, the AGs Chambers, the Office of the DPP or any Member of Parliament seems to have even considered including in this legislation this very significant crimefighting tool.
Let's have a simple amendment to the Act tabled in the House on Friday and include the prohibition of the wearing of any type of material or object that conceals of any part of the face, the power of arrest (by police) and the penalty of imprisonment for anyone found contravening this section of the Act.
I am sure this small and simple measure will act as a deterrent to the gunmen and prove invaluable to the police in that it will provide more witnesses who are able to identify the culprits.
VIC RICHMOND
Pembroke
Bring on the Tasers
May 6, 2010
Dear Sir,
What does the public expect of the Police? People complain because the Police are not preventing crime and yet when they try to do something, people complain about their efforts.
If the man in question was abusive and resisting arrest, then he should get Tased! It's about time the Police started getting tough and stand up for law and order. If people are breaking the law or have outstanding warrants, then they have only themselves to blame.
People need to stop complaining about the Police and let them do their job. It's the whining type of people that complained about parents and teachers disciplining children and that's part of the problem with today's societal ills – no respect, no discipline, and no self control.
I say Tase! Tase! Tase!
GREAT SUPPORTER OF TASERS
Sandys
