DJLT is refreshing

November 26, 2009

Dear Sir,

I would not normally read an article called The Top 20 by DJLT but the last couple of weeks the headline was an attention grabber so I read on (past the music reviews).

I don't know who this person is, male/female, old/young but they should be given a daily column not weekly, their views are refreshing and outspoken and it would be nice to think that this person is getting through to the youth of Bermuda via this column.

CAROL CARVALHO

Southampton

PATI to stop nonsense

December 1, 2009

Dear Sir,

I allude to the many, many letters that have been published over the years in The Royal Gazette, asking for "transparency" in the PLP government's cost overruns and general spending, with regards to capital projects they have undertaken – via very selective tenders!

It's impossible to get straight answers to straight questions, even in Parliament ...

Everyone I'm sure, remembers the Auditor General's fiasco, concerning this government!! One would have thought that a new PATI bill, would put a stop to this nonsense for once and for all!

Bermuda ... it's in your hands to make changes – but don't expect Ewart Brown and the PLP hierarchy to be very accommodating, with truthful answers to the spending of your tax dollars!

BRUCE MCCLARRON

Arizona

Disgusted by parade

November 30, 2009

Dear Sir,

On Sunday afternoon as I was waiting, with my family, for the start of the Santa Parade, we were optimistically expecting a fairly traditional Christmas Parade, albeit with a Bermudian flavour. My young children were very excited about seeing Santa. At one point I even spoke to a Royal Gazette reporter and said my children were excited.

Unfortunately, while I watched the parade with mounting horror during the following two and a half hours, what I saw was the worst parade I have ever seen in my life. Most floats comprised girls, many of them very young, in tight-fitting or see-through costumes, gyrating in an extremely inappropriate way to hip-hop and rap music. Quite how all this had anything to do with Christmas is beyond me. At certain points I was concerned about my children being exposed to the disgusting lyrics to the "songs" that were being blasted. Each float was punctuated by a ten-minute interval before the next one. My children commented several times that the floats were "scary". If we had not promised my four-year-old son he would see Santa, we would have left. After two and a half hours, we finally saw two or three Christmassy floats and Santa. But by that point I was, frankly, disgusted with what I had seen.

This was not a Christmas Parade. It was an insult to most of the families who had brought out their children to see it. I guess the organisers can keep doing it this way if that's what they want, but my family will never bother coming to one of these again.

BERMUDIAN PARENT

Warwick

Feeling neglected

November 10, 2009

Dear Sir,

On Thursday morning, September 24, 2009, I was severely injured as a result of a bad fall while boarding the Rockaway ferry, which was due to depart Rockaway at 8.25 a.m. I would like to take this opportunity to clarify what occurred on that fateful morning. First of all, I seldom catch the Rockaway ferry because I (would have to) remember that I would stub my toe on the metal rim on the bow as I (boarded) the ferry. It was raining that morning, and I know that the metal ramp would be slippery, so I trod very gingerly along.

Two passengers on two-wheeled motor vehicles were directly in front of me as I approached the ramp. The passenger directly in front of me moved to the right and I slid along the wet ramp and stubbed my toe on the metal rim; I had no way of supporting myself and I continued to slide on the wet rug at the entrance to the ferry. I slid under the rail and landed heavily on my right ankle. I knew it was broken as I heard a crack.

I tried to pull myself up but my ankle was in the position where my toes were previously located. I screamed that my ankle was broken. I remember people telling me to lie down on the floor and members of the crew sent for the pilot. I was very upset because I knew that this injury was going to be life-altering. I am a single parent, I work a full-time job and two part-time jobs and I could not afford to lose any income at that time. I immediately thought about my daughter's college tuition. I teach for a living and I worked part-time as a salesperson in a retail store and I would not be able to stand or work on my right foot for weeks or months.

I've been a ferry passenger for most of my life. In the past, bike riders were not allowed to board the ferry until after the other passengers had boarded the ferry. I notice that recently there were bike riding passengers at the Rockaway ferry. These vehicles can make a metal surface oily and on a rainy day, very slippery. There were no slippery surface signs or wet floor signs posted. I did not see any mats covering the slippery surface. I heard the EMT's asking the crew why where there no mats on the ramps. I realised that several passengers were very upset and I had to focus on regaining my composure, so that they would calm down. I also heard several comments from passengers about the ferry being late, and that they were going to be late for work. I hope that nothing serious ever happens to them on public transportation. I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who assisted me that day. I would like to thank the lady who knelt next to me from the time I fell until the paramedics from KEMH lifted me onto the stretcher.

I also want to thank the pilot for coming to my assistance and for his instruction to the crew to make me as comfortable as possible. I would like to thank the Port Royal Fire Station EMT's and the KEMH EMT's. I would like to thank my family, friends, and the marine supervisor of Marine and Ports Division for visiting me during my stay in the hospital. I would like to thank the doctors, nursing staff and nutrition staff who would talk with me while they were busy working on the days when my morale was low. I would like to thank the Hospital Social Worker for her report to the Minister of the Environment. I especially would like to than my orthopaedic surgeon for putting my ankle back together again. My ankle was so badly damaged that he couldn't operate for a week.

I was asked to notify the Head Office of Marine and Ports, about my accident on the ferry. I was asked to put my request in an e-mail. I was informed by that gentleman that there was nothing that he could do, but that he would forward my contacts. He would forward my concerns to the appropriate department. I recently received an e-mail stating that my information was now in the hands of the legal department. I cannot work, I have to rely on family, friends and neighbours to help grocery shop, clean, prepare meals and run errands. I have to pay round-trip taxi fares from Somerset to the KEMH for my Fracture Clinic Appointments and (physiotherapy) in the future I stand on my feet to teach, and tor my part-time jobs. It will be months before I will be able to walk without assistance. I do not drive and I use public transportation which I cannot now safely use especially since I might have to stand up if the bus is crowded. I do miss teaching my adult learners, and I miss meeting and serving customers at my part-time job.

I feel neglected by my Government, although I had a serious accident on a ferry owned and operated by the Bermuda Government. The Ministry of Transport has not contacted me about my concerns about my personal welfare or about the safety issues at the Rockaway ferry. The Ministry of the Environment has not acknowledged that they received a letter about my informing from the hospital. I feel that I am being treated with a long-handled spoon. Maybe if I keep quiet, people will forget about my plight. I feel abandoned by Bermuda Government. I feel that my accident is being ignored and my long recuperative period (including bone loss, more surgery and loss of income) irrelevant. I hope that someone working for the Government Legal Department or the aforementioned ministries reading my letter will realise that this single mom, cannot wait until "they" decide to review my case. I had a ferry full of witnesses, as well as doctors, nurses at the hospital.

I hope the passengers can now safely board the Rockaway ferry. I hope sturdy mats are placed to create a smooth entrance. I hope the crew will be more watchful and offer to help ladies and children aboard if the surface is uneven. I hope bike riders are once again told to board the ferry after everyone else is aboard. Most importantly, I hope that safety procedures are practised on all public ferries everyday instead of after someone has a serious accident. I wouldn't wish this ordeal to befall anyone.

TONETTA SPRING

Sandys

Focus on the carrot

November 19, 2009

Dear Sir,

We have been hearing many discussions about violence on our island increasing. While there is no easy way to solve the problem, there are actions that we can take along the way in trying to get folks to put their energies into more constructive pursuits. The Police are increasing their ranks and will dig deep to try to make things safer for Bermuda, but this is only one aspect. As has been said, Police can curb, but not cure some of the things behind this problem. The stick works well as a way to punish and deter crime, but we should also keep our focus on the carrot. There are many scholarships out there and a ton of opportunities, yet a segment of the population still feel greatly disconnected as far as opportunities are involved. Your growth potential will not amount to much if you feel that you are limited by a glass ceiling that your social class would not be able to get through anyway. Parents have a great influence, but there are many places other than the home you were raised in where you learn to interact with the world and make the connections that will shape your life.

One thought is to find a way for the population to feel like they can participate, perhaps bringing more of the workforce to schools and churches, places that we can reach people on a regular basis, taking it to them. Allow for more guided opportunities for people to interact personally with others from various industries, giving more options for mentoring. Present these opportunities for what they are, as many would not feel that they can be successful and wouldn't look for the information and advice that would encourage them to pursue these challenges. For example, encountering an outlook such as "often it's as much about grit as intelligence, sticking to it when others get distracted" (Darren Johnston, PwC & Board of Education) can show you that determination can take you a long way, regardless of not being at the head of the class in school or knowing that your money is tight.

Higher education should be accessible to all, providing non-traditional students with more options and opportunities. The term "community" is at the heart of a community college's mission. Bermuda College offers a level of accessibility, in terms of time, finances and geography, that cannot be found with universities overseas. The college offers training in specific employment fields, offering a curriculum fitted to the needs of the community. I see that the college is even offering distance education to make options for qualification even more accessible. Graduates earn certificates, diplomas, or associate degrees, which can be invaluable in opening up opportunities. It is limited, though, in that pursuing most types of Bachelor's degrees means going overseas or through distance education with another country, even though what the Bermudian community lacks are more locals at the executive levels in business. I would certainly recommend spending time overseas at some stage in your life, and a university education overseas is an excellent way to do this, but by no means is it the only way. With a qualification in hand you can open up your world to work in any number of places overseas, hopefully returning after a few years to bring that experience back with you to the Bermudian community.

Education is one aspect that affects your future opportunities, experience is another large part. We currently have laws that make qualified Bermudians more attractive to businesses on the Island. There have been some other ideas put forward over the years to help the local community even further in this regard, and I wouldn't mind adding one or two pennies to the pot. One thought is for Government to enact a law to encourage businesses to build up the qualifications of Bermudians in various ways, such as formal on-the-job training, apprenticeships or sponsorship of classroom training – one of the above depending on the size of the business. It would cost these businesses to go the extra mile to do this, but it would be a huge investment directly into the community, while giving each business the freedom to choose their own way of giving back to Bermuda rather than through extra taxation going through Government.

Another thought is to look at the Regiment. The Regiment has been involved in disaster relief, supporting the Bermuda Police department in internal security issues (both in the forms of riot-control and antiterrorism) and performs a wide variety of community service operations as well as ceremonial duties. The majority of the Regiment is made up of conscripts, making it unique among all of the land forces still under the British Crown. There could be more willing volunteers if time in the Regiment also opened up even more possibilities to improve civil careers. For example, the Bermuda Fire and Rescue Service offers an EMT qualification as a mandatory part of training to become part of the service. Perhaps various internationally recognised qualifications could be made available through the Regiment. If it is not practical to make the pursuit of academic qualifications a mandatory part of the Regiment, at least they could be "drilled" regularly on the opportunities available to them in Bermuda, with more outside interaction from people in education and the workforce to help guide them to a suitable career. We don't need many guns out to defend our tiny island for the time being, but our boys could sure use something to encourage more of them to help defend our financial position as one of the world's richest countries & build up our cultural activities as a premier vacation spot as "Bermuda is another world".

Oh, just one more thing on another note… could we please do something more for St. George's?

PAUL BASDEN

St. George's

Put the people first

November 25, 2009

Dear Sir,

I am a Bermudian who has resided in Los Angeles for over a quarter of a century. But my heart still remains Bermudian. I watched with great dismay the BBC report on the visit from the Queen. Instead of hearing about the celebration of her visit, we were greeted with news of Bermuda granting a safe haven for possible terrorists from Guantánamo Bay. As the Queen walked regally through St. George's, the reporter continued on saying that Bermuda has essentially betrayed Britain with this decision, by not consulting them and working directly with the US on this matter. It was jaw dropping. Now I know this happened a while ago, but to bring it up during the Queen's visit sent a very bad message to everyone, in every country.

Then there was the smug Premier, Dr. Ewart Brown. He drove home the fact that we would get our Independence no matter what. It was as though he was challenging everyone who thought differently. Well, Dr. Brown, right after your "I am king" speech, the reporter didn't hesitate in letting viewers know that the majority of Bermudians don't want Independence and like the link with the Crown. The whole message of that report, which should have been in celebration of the Queen's visit, was that Bermudians are being pushed in a direction they don't want to go, by a group of self-serving, arrogant people calling themselves "leaders". True leaders put the needs and wants of their people first, not last.

One more thing, regarding the debate over Casino's coming to Bermuda. I live in Southern California where the Native Americans have put dozens of casinos around our lovely shores. I can also tell you that the crime, gambling addictions and prostitution that come with these money makers are extreme. If you think Bermuda is having problems now, just wait until you bring in a casino. Get back to tourism, Bermuda! You don't need a casino to overshadow the natural beauty. People will come for the turquoise waters, the pink sand, the gentle singing of the tree frogs. When you live in a big city as I do, going back to Bermuda is like going back to heaven and that's what people will come for, the tranquility. Remember you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone.

JILL MURPHY DONNELLAN

Miss Bermuda 1980

Los Angeles, California