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Just say no to the Tucker's Point SDO

So here we sit on the edge of a special development order. The Senate, our prestigious Upper House, is about to vote on an SDO for the Tucker's Point Club. I have reserved comment on this up to now because I didn't feel that I had enough information. I'd like to have even more information before commenting but events, circumstances and the fact that the Senate could possibly pass this SDO today have caused me to form my opinion without the benefit of all the information. However, everybody else does that too. You will get my opinion after the Top 20.Taking over the #1 spot is Firework by Katy Perry. I have to like Katy Perry's style. Her tunes are hot but her sense of style is banging. She recently, I think around the 2010 FIFA World Cup, wore a dress with the design of Great Britain's Union Jack. It was very cool and only bettered by a lovely lady I saw in Hamilton this week wearing a cool and funky pair of shoes (heels of course flat shoes do nothing for females and usually look horribly less attractive than heels) that bore the Union Jack design. The reminded me of something that Carrie from ‘Sex In the City' would wear! Well done to Katy and the Bermudian Lady.Tumbling to #2 this week is What's My Name? by Rihanna featuring Drake.Improving to #3 is Grenade by Bruno Mars, a star in the making. Up to #4 is Hold It Against Me by Brittney Spears. It's really good to have her back in the spotlight. Falling to #5 is Like A G6 by Far*East Movement featuring Cataracs & Dev.Improving to #6 is Aston Martin Music by Rick Ross featuring Drake and Chrisette Michelle. Slipping to #7 is Raise Your Glass by Pink.Still advancing, to #8 is Memories, by David Guetta featuring Kid Cudi an impressive dance tune from the hottest remixer producer of dance tracks in the business. Check out David Guetta's CD. It bangs, with some of the hottest dance tunes produced in the past year.Falling to #9 is Bottoms Up by Trey Songz featuring Nicki Minaj. Up to #10 is Who's that Chick? by David Guetta featuring Rihanna. Up to #11 is Moment For Life by Nicki Minaj, a former essential new tune by the hottest female rapper in the game. Improving to #12 is Higher, by Taio Cruz featuring Kylie Minogue and Travie McCoy another former essential new hit. Tumbling to #13 is Rihanna's dance anthem Only Girl In The World. Ke$ha's hit We R Who We R falls into the #14 spot.Halting its advance to #15 is Fall For Your Type by Jamie Fox featuring Drake.Advancing to #16 is Rihanna's current hit, S&M. Improving to #17 is Better Than Today by Kylie Minogue. Slipping to #18 is Can't Be Friends by Trey Songz.Now some new tracks. In at #19 is this week's essential new tune: Born This Way by Lady Gaga. I do like Lady Gaga. She is extremely talented and probably the best in the business at getting PR. She has clearly been influenced by Madonna with a bit of Elton John and other weirdos thrown in as well.Joining this elite group of hits at #20 is F**k You (Forget You) by Cee Lo Green. Man the names of some of today's songs defy the concept of decent, respectable, gentlemanly and ladylike speech. But that's the sad state of our society. We've dropped our standards and now anything goes. Sad but true.Now back to this week's word What to do with Tucker's Point. Well, I like giving the answer up front first, rather than make you wait until the end. So, my answer is that the Senate should not approve the SDO. Here's why.Tucker's Point is in so much debt, that even if they build more units, it is still highly likely that they will fail and become bankrupt, going out of business. So Bermuda would be giving away some of the few remaining green spaces today, for a company that will probably fail anyway. So we would be giving it away for nothing!I dislike accounting, but I looked at the numbers a bit and at first glance it seems that all the SDO will do is allow them to build more units or sell lots of land to rich folks. If they sell all the lots or units at the prices they are likely to generate, that will not cover all their debt. They will still be tens of millions of dollars in debt, and with the poor visitor arrival projections for Bermuda and the terrible numbers and performance Tucker's Point has had over the past few years, with a global recession still in play, I cannot be confident that they will suddenly start earning millions in revenue and profits over the next five to ten years. So what does all this mean?It means that the ship is sinking, taking on massive amounts of water and probably will sink anyway even if we give them the SDO. It means that giving Tucker's Point the SDO is probably like rearranging the deck chairs or fixing the dining room on the Titanic. It doesn't make sense because it's not going to change the most likely outcome.David Wingate is a straight-shooter and I tend to trust his judgment. We have to preserve woodland reserve, green spaces, caves, and the natural habitat. Has anyone else had a look at Bermuda from the air or a satellite image today and compared it with one 30 years ago? BELCO has such a comparison over at its headquarters. Today's image is all white, with roofs and the 1980s image has more green because we had more land mass and less white roofs.Does anyone else think that all these earthquakes and natural disasters might somehow be related to how mankind is drilling all the oil from the earth's core? We are messing with the universe that God created and it could be that the earth is fighting back, with earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes and all manner of other natural but possibly manmade disasters.That's the preservation argument, supported by DJLT. But back to the business argument, we are just delaying the inevitable and will be giving away some of our prime real estate to an operation that is highly likely to fail. So what happens if the SDO is not approved?The Government, the Lower and Upper Houses should grow a pair and say, “You know what? No! We are not going to do this and we are not going to let Tucker's Point blame the Government for their failure to run a profitable business.”The Government has been very generous with hotels but the Government has to stop thinking that it must bail out every business that might fail. This is part of how we have gotten Government into the position it is in right now, with a billion dollar national debt!If Tucker's Point fails another organisation might just pick up the property, buy it at a significantly reduced price and have a go at running that operation more profitably and minus the debt. The investors will have written the loss off, as they do. The banks will do the same, as they do.And the message to the media, the tourism world, and anyone else who cares to listen, would have to be that Bermuda IS friendly to business, investment in its country and its tourism product, and has demonstrated commitment to the tourism industry in many ways. But the Bermuda Government will no longer bail out businesses that are not able to operate in a profitable manner. Bermuda will create the conditions for tourism-related businesses and other businesses to be profitable and will give concessions, but the Bermuda Government will not pay for ineffective, inefficient, unsuccessful management and leadership. Sorry if this offends anyone but it's my opinion and I can have it. Also, sometimes the truth offends but it is still the truth. So the final answer on this is Just Say No to the SDO..….....……DJLT.