While you may (because you recognise the words) be thinking about Diana Ross and some of the sweetest music ever written, my mind has turned to Sir Peter Ramsbotham, Governor of Bermuda in the late '70s.

Sir Peter was the last, indeed only, Governor with whom I could say that I had any significant personal and friendly acquaintance.

Since then, we (that is to say, Governors and I) have tended, for a number of reasons ? including the need to keep our reputations and standing in the community intact ? to steer clear of each other.

In any case, listening to the theme song fromhas somehow reminded me of Sir Peter's parting words to Bermuda: "What does it profit a country if it should gain the whole world, but lose its soul?" This was a paraphrase, of course, of Matthew 16, v. 26 and was clearly meant as a warning.

To whom was it directed?

Was it heeded?

Why was it made?

will identify the year 2003 as a watershed year for Bermuda. The past 12 months have come and gone like a mighty rushing wind. Listening only minutes ago to news reports of the devastating earthquake in Iran, the death toll for which is estimated now to exceed 40,000 ? well over half the population of Bermuda ? I was reminded of Hurricane Fabian, itself a frightening agglomeration of mighty rushing winds that seemed to endure longer than the nine long hours he (i.e. Fabian) took to pass over the island.

Notwithstanding the real tragedy wrought by Fabian (and our hearts continue to go out to the families of those whose lives were so suddenly taken), Bermuda was comparatively very fortunate as regards loss of life and property. Bermuda came of age this year.

Confounding the illogic of a hidden and shrinking cadre of doomsayers, the General Election of July 24 saw the return of a second Progressive Labour Party administration, Bermuda having emerged from the first PLP Government with an impressive and positive record of economic growth ? at least in international business.

A fairer and more "democratic" election process was instituted and put into effect.

The country and the PLP survived and emerged stronger from a bloodless and democratic change in top leadership.

Thanks to Fabian and the steady hand and communication skills of Premier Alex Scott together with well co-ordinated teamwork on the part of Bermudians from all walks of life, we confirmed two very important things.

First, that we can and do work together as a community in our collective self-interest. Second that we have amongst our own people all of the raw material for true national leadership. The fact that we were able to gracefully decline offers of assistance from the British Government was, of course, a function of the scale, nature and dimensions of the calamity we faced. It was indeed fortuitous that we did not require the assistance on offer from the British Government.

Had it been otherwise, we now know that we are in any event a part of a larger world and that in times of need, there is a community "out there" to which we must contribute and on which we can rely. We live in a truly inter-dependant world. No island is an island unto itself.

Leaving aside for a moment some of its obvious excesses and concerns regarding the growth of American hegemony, "the war against terror", as a response to tragedy of 9-11, confirms that even superpower America needs the co-operation and assistance of the smaller and manifestly less powerful nation-states of the world if it is to effectively reduce the risk of further heinous acts against their people and their interests.

Disasters, natural and otherwise, have a way of reminding us that in the final analysis, we need each other. In a few, literally earth-shattering minutes, Iran emerged this week from the "axis-of-evil" cage to which US President George W. Bush had relegated it and became, with justification, the object of the concern and compassion of the entire world. Neither God nor Allah (for me they are the same) caused either the earthquake or Fabian or 9-11 to happen.

"Independence" in the literal sense simply does not exist, for any one.

There is, however, the issue of self-determination, which is yet to be resolved. The right of a people to chart their own course and to pursue their own destiny within the limits of geography, population size and the resources afforded to them are issues which have come to the fore and which, this time, will not go away.

The "soul" of the Bermudian nation has begun to stir. Anyone denying this reality has, to put it in the new British vernacular, "lost the plot".

I am told that, as a former Parliamentarian, my body will be entitled to a flag-draped coffin when my soul is dispatched to the highest court in the universe. Of course, I don't know when that will be and I am certainly in no particular hurry even though I must certainly have already lived more years on this dimension than I have left to live. I will apparently also be entitled to a bugler or two. I should like for the flag that drapes my coffin to be The Bermudian Flag. Not the Union Jack. Not the British flag. The flag of our new nation.

, there are some (Shadow Attorney General Trevor Moniz MP has identified himself) who regard this as a "radical" view. Mr. Moniz has lost the plot. For it has now become "radical" to deny that the Bermudian people have a right to determine their own destiny, to choose their own leaders, to make their own laws and to see to the appointment of their own to administer justice.

For at least the past 30 years we have been encouraged to tell the world that we are self-governing. Was this a lie? A pretence? A hoax? Hours and hours of deliberation, argument and counter-argument have been devoted over these years to the byzantine processes of constitutional change.

We chose, for our own complex reasons and unarguably at one time in our own self-interest to continue to align ourselves with the British Government (not the British people, but their Government) in matters relating to international relations, defence and internal security. But gradually and progressively, we have evolved and become our own people. There is nothing wrong with being British; but we are not British, we are Bermudians.

was not by accident that our political leaders chose the following formula for establishing how a Chief Justice for Bermuda should be appointed. The Constitution of Bermuda sets out that [section 73(3) " (3) The Chief Justice shall be a person qualified for appointment . . . and shall be appointed by the Governor, by instrument under the Public Seal, acting after consultation with the Premier who shall first have consulted the Opposition Leader."

The process of appointing Bermuda's Chief Justice does NOT begin with the Governor; it begins with the Premier and the Opposition Leader, the two main elected political leaders of the Bermudian people.

These two gentlemen are constitutionally elected and mandated to get together and to try to reach a consensus which will be recommended, through the Premier, to the Governor.

There is no provision whatsoever within the Bermuda Constitution or any other law for the creation of an "interview panel" made up of unnamed individuals whose recommendation must be followed by some political leader (ie, the UK Foreign Secretary) for whom we did not vote, in respect of whom we have no right to vote, and who does not represent us. It is really that simple.

Premier Scott is nothing if not pragmatic. And, as he pointed out shortly after his election as Party Leader, he is "no pushover" either. Mr. Scott has wisely chosen to use the Christmas break to reflect on this issue. And we shall see what we shall see. Some amongst us hope that the issue will go away.

Certainly, if I am right, this will at least minimise the potential for the emergence of the embarrassing revelation that "the plan" to appoint Mr. Richard Ground was hatched long before those who hatched the plan will admit it. More amongst us are determined that the matter should not be allowed to rest.

Consider former Premier Sir John Swan, who this week is reported to have supported Premier Scott's objections to this attempt to erode Bermudian self-determination and who said, quite straightforwardly, that "Bermuda has emerged as an advanced democracy but with these historical anachronisms".

The truth is this is no anachronism; it is, in fact, nothing short of a typically British attempt to move the goalpost, to change the rules in the middle of the exercise.

Red herrings and phony logic are already beginning to emerge. First, the argument that, in light of recent appointments of other non-Bermudians to high places such as Commissioner of Prisons and CEO of our hospitals, it is "hypocritical" of the PLP government to argue against the appointment of a non-Bermudian to the post of Chief Justice.

Apart from the fact that this is arrant nonsense, we should remind ourselves that there has been no more vocal supporter of the principle of Bermudianisation than Premier Scott himself who, as Shadow Home Affairs Minister, made his position pellucidly clear and who has been entirely consistent on this issue throughout his political career.

, the expression of regret made by the British Government representative that the issue should have been "made the subject of political pressure" must be the most sick-making example of Whitehall chicanery, obfuscation and buck-passing in recent colonial history, particularly when due regard is paid to the behind-closed-door machinations that led to the "selection" of Mr. Ground by this unconstitutional "interview panel".

And third, there is the argument that mere public debate and an attempt to preserve the power given to the Bermudian people by their own Constitution will somehow erode confidence in, and respect for, the due administration of justice.