Fuel adjustment blues

December 7, 2008

Dear Sir,

To Whom it may concern,

I, Bernard Simmons was checking my BELCO bill August 21, 2008. My bill is $419.68. The fuel adjustment charge was $287.52. A fuel adjustment of 65½ percent totals $284.50.

I, Bernard Simmons will not pay 65½ percent off my kilowatt bill. I, Bernard Simmons paid $419.68 on kilowatt and $287.53 in fuel adjustment. This is more than 65½ percent off the kilowatt bill.

I, Bernard Simmons was checking my BELCO bill of November 21, 2008. My bill is $276.37. the fuel adjustment charge was $246.00. The fuel adjustment is more than 93 percent off the kilowatt bill.

I, Bernard Simmons will not pay BELCO 93 percent on any bill.

I, Bernard Simmons, on August 21, 2008 for the pump bill account number 340002. The bill is $26.00 for the kilowatts and the bill for the fuel is $5.27. This is only 20 percent of the kilowatt bill. Why is the other bills for August 65½ percent, October (90 percent) and November (93 percent) so high? Every month since August the electric bill is getting higher, while the fuel adjustment bill is decreasing.

BERNARD SIMMONS

Sandys

An innovative suggestion

December 8, 2008

Dear Sir,

I am writing on behalf of myself and several other single mothers out there. It is well known that some people create problems for themselves either deliberately or ignorantly, but the master will be the judge. The plight of the single parent, particularly the single mother, throughout the world is depressing especially financially as many times the fathers are deadbeat and most of the times we have to resort to taking on between two and four jobs to make ends meet.

As I have spoken with several other single mothers, many times there is a struggle to find someone to babysit the child(ren) during the night and sometimes we would be doing these part-time jobs just to pay the babysitter. Some of these single mothers have spoken to me in tears stating how much they would love to do part-time work, but the chances of finding babysitters for nights are slim and they charge more than what the part-time job pays per hour.

I might get a lot of criticism and penalisation for what I am going to suggest, but my shoulders are broad enough to withstand. I am suggesting just as there are day cares to accommodate the day should we not have night cares to accommodate those of us who have to work during the night?

JUST TRYING TO MAKE ENDS MEET

Southampton

A vision of Bermuda

December 12, 2008

Dear Sir,

Recently, we Zoomed into Bermuda from the UK. As we were about to land, I looked out from my window seat and admired the beautiful five star tourist resort, recently completed next to Fort St. Catherine's. I brimmed with pride. After clearing customs, my wife and I hopped in our taxi and proceeded to the other end of the island. Driving by John Smith's Bay we could not believe our eyes. On the beach were a number of Play Mate Bunnies dousing themselves with suntan lotion. It was a beautiful sight to see.

Smiling, we continued on and at Warwick Long Bay we noticed a hive of activity. The newly constructed Long Bay pavilion and bar were full of tourists eating and drinking. Some were wearing Maradona football jerseys, others were eating Chinese cuisine. I thought 'hey! the tourism marketing efforts in Bermuda are taking effect.'

As we continued to our destination, we came across the newly constructed Sonesta Beach Hotel. It stood out with its pristine gardens and water parks. A little further along, at the Port Royal Golf and Country Club, there were thousands of tourists and locals at Number 3 hole. Tiger and 'the Shark' were going head to head in a gruelling match. As we passed the Tax Exempt Cottage Colony Resort, my wife could not help but notice a Government Minister with his wife, sipping cocktails.

Approaching Dockyard, there were two 'Mega Ships' tied to the pier. There must have been six thousand tourists milling around. It appeared as if they were trying to purchase concert tickets for the Eagles, as they were performing at the Music Festival that night. After inquiring, I was mistaken, they were waiting for the mini bus to take them to Horseshoe Bay. We finally checked in at the Sally Port Grand where we rented a moped. Going for a ride, turning the corner by the Clock Tower Mall, we met head on with a tractor trailer dump truck. Suddenly, I woke up. My wife next to me said, "you must have been having a dream."

PLATINUM PERIOD

Smith's

Spinning the numbers

December 16, 2008

Dear Sir,

What are the real numbers Minister Brown?

I am responding to Premier Browns statements in today's paper refs the increase in arrival numbers for September/October/November. One has to ask him for the visitor arrival numbers and not the total number of passengers landed. All hotels had a decrease during the months he is referring to, so it is impossible for there to be an increase in arrivals.

Here we go again Bermuda, your Premier spinning the facts so it appears that he is getting results. The truth is that Tourism is on a major slippery slope and the decline will continue. Here are four reasons why Tourism will continue to take a dive:

1) Poor vision and direction from the Minister:

2) In experienced sales people in the field:

3) US in a recession

4) Advertising heavily weighted to the African American community, oh, and lets not forget the great campaign recently at Walmart, not Neiman Marcus, yes, I did say Walmart.

The irresponsible decisions made by the Minister will continue to hurt Bermuda and long term totally devastate the country.

Let's not forget that Minister Brown has the ability pick up his marbles when the game is over and run to the US.

Wake up Bermuda and ask for real results.

SCARED AND CONCERNED BERMUDIAN

Florida

Our new tourists

December 12, 2008

Dear Sir,

Insurance companies and international business have become Bermuda's modern day tourists.

They do not arrive with their children for three week holidays and they are not here to sunbathe or visit the Crystal Caves. They do not come for a holiday. They are here to do business. They are busy and focused on business needs. Behind the plaques and office buildings and beyond the face of every insurance company and international business are people – every day people like all of us with varied backgrounds and different places of origin. Ultimately, they are people who want to enjoy themselves while trying to make a living. These people are Bermuda's modern day tourists.

We are blessed with a warm climate, natural beauty, proximity to large business centres and an enviable infrastructure-all the requirements for insurance companies and international business except one. Bermuda's modern day tourists are forced to live in a place where they feel unwelcome and excluded.

Like the tourists of old, much of their impression of Bermuda is based on the front line of the service industry. Sadly, the majority of the friendly and welcoming people on the front line of service in Bermuda are rarely Bermudian. Fortunately, we have overseas call centres, ATMs and automatic gas pumps and can avoid unpleasant service, but unfortunately, we cannot always avoid floor staff in retail stores, government administrative staff, utility company representatives and bus drivers. The odds for getting helpful, friendly and welcoming service from a Bermudian in one of these fields are not good.

The ongoing public debate about race appears to have destroyed a significant part Bermudians' helpful, friendly and welcoming character and reputation. It is unfortunate because our modern day tourists do not like the new "attitude". They do not understand the local race issue and they do not care about it. It has become a burden for them economically, administratively, socially and it stains their reputations by association. It hinders their efforts to carry out existing business and it is a deterrent for new business. The debate has simply become akin to washing dirty laundry in public and it affects everyone.

In the past Bermuda's success was based on the tourist of old-the holiday maker. Our success has continued with the modern day Tourist-the insurance companies and international business-but it is now threatened. Do you really believe that our Future Tourist will see value in our ugly past, our history with slavery and the resulting deep rooted issues that have been invoked justifiably such as crime, illiteracy, drugs, corruption and, of course, "attitude"?

SOLID AS THE ROCK

Devonshire

Thanks for the support

December 12, 2008

Dear Sir,

I would like to thank all those people who attended and contributed to the opening of my show "Edges" at the Edinburgh Gallery at City Hall on Dec. 5th. Ever since I heard about the "Smile Train Charity" which helps facially disfigured children all over the world, I wanted to help in a meaningful way and it seems fitting that all the proceeds of sales, after deduction of the BSOA fees, are donated to this Charity. I hope you are inspired to help in some way as well.

More information on the charity is available at the Bermuda Society of Arts at City Hall. They say "an Irish mile is as long or as short as you wish it to be", so we shall see how long is a "Bermuda mile".

It is important for me to thank the owner of 'Colourlab' for producing high quality archival prints and his wife for her excellent photography.

PROCTOR MARTIN

Warwick

The Me First generation

Dear Sir,

It has been said that every lesson we need to learn in life can be learned in the sandbox in Kiindergarten!

From your article this morning "String of Road Accidents over the Weekend", I take the following excerpts:

• Two separate accidents involving overtaking traffic;

• Motorcyclist tried to overtake three vehicles travelling in the same direction along Harbour Road;

•Southampton man, tried to overtake a car at the corner of Spurling Hill and Crow Lane in Pembroke;

• Hamilton Parish man tried to overtake a car and collided with another car.

Do you see a pattern here? Perhaps these young people never learned the lesson to take turns.

Instead, we are raising a generation of Me First people.

I also understand that teenagers lack a certain development in the frontal lobes of their brains which usually governs self-control and which matures as they grow older. It seems that, in Bermuda, this process doesn't 'kick in' until much later!

Wake up Bermuda! This behaviour kills.

UN-COMMON SENSE

St. David's

Defining essential travel

December 15, 2008

Dear Sir,

I have had a nagging question in my mind for some time now. Ever since the Premier announced that Government Ministers and civil servants would be required to cut back on travel expenses, and in particular, they should not travel first class or for "non-essential" travel. My question is, why would Government Ministers or civil servants be traveling on the public purse for any "non-essential" travel?

To my mind, our representatives should not be doing any travel using Govt. funds unless it is essential.

Only the Premier should be permitted to travel first class (and in this economic climate, I would like to believe (but don't given our current elected officials taste for the high life) that any responsible and considerate representative of the people would consider the circumstances and travel economy just like most of the rest of the public he/she represents, or pay for the difference out of their own overflowing pockets).

I would like to know if there is an accounting of these essential and non-essential trips, first class and otherwise, our representatives and civil servants have been taking for the last several years.

D. MARTIN

Warwick