Ask the tough question

February 19, 2006

Dear Sir,

Why haven?t we had a Commission of Inquiry into:

1. The disappearance of $50 million of our Dollars at the Berkeley Project?

2. The disappearance of more than $1million of our Dollars at the Accountant General?s Office (Sure someone has been charged but we need to know how it could have happened ? and who else was involved).

3. The disappearance of a huge amount of our Dollars from the Immigration Office.

4. The ?help yourself programme? involving Bus Tickets.

The answer to the earlier question is so simple ? the truth would have been a huge embarrassment to the Government.

Calvin Smith responds

February 28, 2006

Dear Sir,

In the Royal Gazette of February 27, 2006, Ms Elizabeth Kitson takes objection to a quote from my column published February 15, 2006 in which I stated ?Historically, racism in Bermuda reflected the efforts of England, as coloniser, to create and maintain a source of cheap labour in the form of slavery and of segregation?.

Ms Kitson?s objection is based upon the observation that England freed Black slaves 30 years before America and compensated ?slave owners? for their loss of property. She concludes that for these reasons, descendents of the black slaves, such as myself, should be grateful for the opportunity to continue to belong to England instead of stirring up hatred.

It would be useful if Ms Kitson would explain the following to my fellow Bermudians: ?Why on earth would I try to stir up hatred in today?s Bermuda, when a government supported almost entirely by people who look like me are in control??

Pembroke

Take off the blinders

March 3, 2006

Dear Sir,

I read in today?s paper about Jazane Smith, father of three, a skilled mason and former fellow Warwick Academy graduate with no previous record who was sentenced to four years in prison for drug trafficking. In a report provided to the courts as part of his defence, he stated that he saw other people buying houses for themselves and he just wanted a ?piece of the Rock? for himself. When handing down her sentence, Mrs. Justice Simmons said: ?You have just destroyed what was a remarkable record for a young man in Bermuda today. You had a skill, you were earning, you were a coach of a football team and young people looked up to you and now you stand before us as a drug trafficker. Who would have thought it??

For those of you who are in denial, please take off those rose coloured glasses that you are peering disapproving through. While it may have been a stupid decision on his part, the repercussions of which he will now have to live with for the rest of his life as conscience would have it, he is not alone in his thinking. I have friends who have jokingly (trust me) made the statement that they would need to rob a bank or sell their souls to a drugs cartel to be able to afford the type of lifestyle (basic) that really ought to be every young Bermudians given right if you work hard enough. Certainly Mr. Smith seems to be a hard worker as he took the initiative to learn a trade from which he could make an honest living. He even used his own time to give back to the community by coaching a football team. Sadly however his thinking represents the majority of young Bermuda and the level of frustration that is out there. Can?t you feel it? Or is it just me?

What are we to do when we make a good, honest living and in doing so are forced to give up the care of our children to someone else at three months and it is still not enough to be able to cover even the most basic needs. If you talk about owning a home to my generation, well you might as well be talking about Billionaires Row in Tucker?s Town because it is as lofty and as delusional a goal as owning one of those properties. That is simply our reality, Mrs. Justice Simmons. Unfortunately there are thousands of Jazane Smiths out there and there are thousands more coming up through the ranks except some of these new kids have no conscience, no learned trade and they are angrier (just read the paper every day because it is truly horrifying). Government needs to wake up and deal with this situation before it?s too late. Talk is cheap. Just think about how many drug couriers slip through customs everyday. We all know it happens because drugs are so prevalent on this small island that even a blind man knows where to find them and if this situation is not addressed soon then none of us will have to look any further than our own doorsteps. Now who would have thought that?

A note of thanks

February 23, 2006

Dear Sir,

The Psalmist David wrote these words: ?I cried unto the Lord, and He heard my cry.? Imagine my joy when I read this morning that there is to be a nature reserve park set aside for the slain teenager Rebecca Middleton. (Give thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Cook for their beautiful gesture to ease everyone?s pain.) More words come to mind: Bob Marley sang the song Thank You Lord which includes these lyrics:

?Thank you, Lord, for what you?ve done for me

Thank you, Lord, for what you?re doing now.

Thank you, Lord, for ev?ry little thing.

Thank you, Lord, for you made me sing.?

The youth will pay

March 2, 2006

Dear Sir,

While taking my daily drive to work, as I do every morning, I was astounded to hear on the news that our Premier was to receive an 80 percent increase in salary. Did I hear correctly? For what reason does this government justify such an outrageously high increase. Let?s remember, and correct me if I am wrong, that where he resides is a government owned house ? which might I add has been recently renovated at about the cost of $1.5 million. Not to mention that he has all the amenities that one could probably ever want at no cost of his own.

With so many scandals and unnecessary government projects costing us millions of dollars do they think that we should be grateful for this new concept to be presented? I hope that the Cabinet Ministers who will be retiring soon and benefiting from this huge increase in salary and resulting pension will remember that all young Bermudians will be paying for it. Every extra dollar that is sucked out of the government funds will result in a lack of pension by the time we ? meaning the younger voting population of Bermuda ? need it. Think Bermuda!

The UN connection

February 26, 2006

Dear Sir,

With apologies for responding to Tom Vesey?s column in the weekly Sun here, I wanted to suggest a reason for the current Governments policy on the six-year work permit term rule. I have heard this theory on good authority but perhaps you, Mr. Editor, might be able to confirm it. Before 1998, and certainly after that date, the PLP professed a very strong desire to take this country to Independence. Notwithstanding their inability to do so, for whatever reason, I believe that they very much thought that this would have happened by now. In other words, very early on, these guys thought that this country would soon be a member of the United Nations.

The United Nations binds all its members by certain rules. One of those rules, possibly using the theory of human rights, is that any member country of the United Nations is obliged to grant permanent resident status to any foreign national who is resident in that member country for a period of at least eight years. In other words, if the PLP had been able to impose Independence on Bermuda and, in the natural progression of things, Bermuda became a member of the United Nations, Bermuda would have been obliged to grant permanent resident status to anyone who had been in the country for eight years. The easiest way to avoid a potential problem is to impose a six-year limit and, presto, if we become Independent, no need to be granting a lot of residency permits! I stand to be corrected.

Two solutions to walkout

March 1, 2006

Dear Sir,

The walkout by Belco staff reported in the daily this week raises an important issue for our community. Are there policies that a company can undertake, to try and become more efficient and profitable, that doesn?t cause hardship for the staff which become displaced?

The outsourcing of Belco?s cleaning work to an independent contractor can, if handled correctly, be a win-win proposition for all parties. I have always been a strong proponent of developing opportunities for small businesses and in my opinion the board and management at Belco ought to first offer the cleaning staff at Belco an opportunity to start their own cleaning business and in return offer them the cleaning contract at Belco for a certain period of time. Alternatively, if the staff do not wish to pursue such an opportunity, then Belco ought to ensure that the new cleaning contractor selected to do the work be required to take on the Belco staff.

The above solutions help Bermuda in a number of ways. If the first solution is adopted, the new owners become entrepreneurs and economic opportunity is created to people who may not have had such an opportunity before. If the second solution is adopted the staff affected by the outsourcing remain employed.

Also, their new employment could eventually reduce the imported manpower that is frequently used in the cleaning industry. Government and the Unions could also assist in providing initial start-up capital to those workers who choose the entrepreneurial solution in the example above. Your article also noted that Belco was considering outsourcing the garage mechanic work and I would suggest the same solution(s) above be adopted for this department.

?Plantation questions?

March 2, 2006

Dear Sir,

Whilst extolling the virtues of a government radio and television station Alex Scott is quoted in as follows.

?While the Government thanks the members of Bermuda?s free press for the public service that they provide for disseminating information, the Government feels it prudent and necessary to speak on a regular basis directly to the people of this country, in an unmediated and unedited fashion.?

Once again we are treated to the genius of how the ?The Man? can tie his tongue in knots and deliver a sentence that defies belief. Some people refer to this as spin. How can a PLP radio and television station deliver a message ?in an unmediated and unedited fashion?? The very reason Bermuda?s free press is essential is that the PLP have never possessed the art of presenting the truth, or at least not all of it according to Ewart Brown.

Just listening to Alex Scott, Ewart Brown, David Burch, and to some degree Paula Cox in the last few weeks is a mind-boggling exercise in trying to find the truth. Ewart Brown however gets the prize for January/February. He wants us to believe that he has a developer, for the St. George hotel. The developer does not have an office, or a telephone number that anyone can find, does not present any plans, and incredibly does not turn up for the announcement of this marvellous deal.

Oops, sorry, those plantation questions again. There is a well known saying that ?you can fool all of the people some of the time, and you can fool some of the people all of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time?.

St. George?s

Teen takes lawyer to task

March 3, 2006

Dear Sir,

I am writing in reference to the comments made by Larry Scott, a well educated lawyer who is supposed to be a highly respected member of the community. As a 15-year-old female, I was completely and utterly mortified and disgusted with what I read in the newspaper. Mr. Scott made the comment in which he said that that the 14-year-olds having sex with the 27-year-old man was probably ?one of the most pleasurable experiences of her life?. Well thank you ever so kindly Mr. Scott. As my guidance counsellor said today, you ?just set women back about 300 years?.

That biased and debased comment, which assumes that all men are good lovers, which most know to be highly incorrect, and that we as women, just pieces of meat, should, will and must be loving every minute we get, does nothing to benefit or shed a positive light upon what kind of legal system Bermuda has today.

He made another ?scandalous? comment, which was that the age at which sex with a girl is legal should be dropped from 16 to under 14. He obviously doesn?t have any children. If he does, he should seriously consider receiving some psychiatric help ? as if he doesn?t need it already. By lowering the age from 16 to under 14, we would be giving the biggest green light in history to paedophiles all over the Island. Can you imagine? ?Guess what? It?s official! That?s right paedophiles, if you were getting tired of that whole ?must be 16? nonsense, we?ve got great news! Fourteen-year-olds are now legal, all you have to do is sweet talk ?em til they say yes! ? Basically what Mr. Scott was suggesting was that a 14-year-old girl, who would be in her second year of middle school, could have a physical relationship with a man old enough to be her father/grandfather on a regular basis and because she says yes, it is all fine and legal.

It was beyond sickening to think that only a year ago ? had a law like this been in place ? a man old enough to be my father/grandfather could have a legal sexual relationship with me if I said ?yes?. And while not with all girls but with most cases, can you blame them for saying yes? You?re coming from an unstable home or you have some other issues and this man comes along, and like the father you?d always dreamed about, he showers you with gifts, praise, calling you adorable little names like Princess and the like and all he wants in exchange is sex? That thing everyone keeps talking about at school that is apparently fantastic anyway?

Mr. Scott does not appear to understand that sex between adults and sex with an adult and a minor are two different things. His personal take on sex, to which he said that it is ?this wonderful, exhilarating thing? is not only inappropriate in a court of law but it is also highly disturbing and more than uncalled for.

His remarks in court with a female judge present should be raising several red flags within the legal system and if he is not reprimanded by the legal fraternity, this will merely open a very wide window for others to make steps toward defeating the purpose of the law ? to protect young females from being taken advantage of by sexual predators.

I can?t see how the Government can allow someone to enforce and ?uphold? their laws who believes that keeping the age at which a female can legally have sex with consent at 16 is as Mr. Scott said, ?horrible conservatism?. Can you?

Why the mark-up?

February 24, 2006

Dear Sir,

A box of 15 13-gallon kitchen bags costs $1.89. A box of fifteen 13-gallon kitchen bags with a hint of blue dye costs $3.22.

Doesn?t a 70 percent mark-up for that touch of ?recycling? blue seems a bit steep? Given that the 13-gallon recyclers are not always available, forcing one to pay $3.22 for ten 30-gallon bags (32.2 cents per bag), whereas the white bags can be bought in larger boxes costing $19 for 200 (9.5 cents per bag), doesn?t a 140 percent mark-up seem more than a bit steep?

Maybe the next time Government sends its ?Haven?t we done well? circular to all households it should include a sheet of fifty blue labels which we can stick onto the cheap white bags to show that they are full of recyclables.

Yours talking rubbish,