21st April 2012Dear Sir,The reappearance recently of Ewart Brown in front of his two favourite pieces of public apparatus, a podium and a microphone, reminded me that “it is a truth universally acknowledged” that you either loved him or loathed him, as an individual or as a politician (or both); there was no middle ground with Ewart Brown. And that that was the reason he was flawed as a Premier of Bermuda: that he divided Bermudians along the fault lines of their differences rather than uniting the community by responsible, inclusive, trustworthy and inspirational leadership on behalf of all the people of Bermuda.Bermuda’s greatest indigenous resource is the diversity of her people; the 68,000 or so different ways that each individual can bring their strengths, talents and capabilities to the communal table. Ewart Brown either never understood how that diversity could unify the community, or he understood it all too well by choosing who should sit at the top of the table to support his own position there — and alienate the rest.A recent letter in these columns proclaimed that Ewart Brown was one of the greatest leaders Bermuda has had in the past generation or so. Well, as they say up north here, “Bah, gum, there’s nowt so queer as folk!”; and down south, “Every man to his taste.”; and what they used to and maybe still say in Mangrove Bay, “Jingaz, bye, you mus’ be micin’!” Ewart Brown might have been a great leader to some people, but his neglect and depreciation of Bermuda’s diverse human resource will stain his legacy indelibly forevermore.In one sense (and probably only in one sense) Ewart Brown did Bermuda a favour. He showed us that self-serving “leadership” — the kind of power-based “leadership” that divides to rule rather than strives to unite — was utterly and catastrophically detrimental to Bermuda. Whatever public appeal he might now make to repair his reputation relating to an alleged conspiracy against him and his government (and let’s remember that he has already sought that redress on its own merits; what motivation might he have to add recourse to a public soapbox and microphone?), he can never suture the wounds of his divisive leadership.Most people in Bermuda have had the good human and common sense to consign Ewart Brown’s premiership to an historical appendix. They no longer allow whatever influence he had to vex them like a suppurating and useless appendage. If only Ewart Brown himself had the humility, character and ethical integrity — “first, do no harm” — to do the same.THE GWELLYLondon