Flight plight

January 26, 2004

Dear Sir,

Dr. Ware-Cieters has blown another gasket. Not satisfied with criticising Dr. David Wingate she now attacks Stuart Smith, one of the champions of Bermuda's environment for many years. Stuart has used huge personal energy to champion the cause of Bermuda's threatened bluebirds, protect the remaining open spaces in Bermuda and propagate native and endemic flora. He is absolutely right in highlighting the plight of our native birds. Even the Bermuda Biodiversity Team comes in for a lashing ? obviously Dr. W-C was miffed at not being invited to take part in compiling the excellent Country Study that drew on the efforts of hundreds of people, many of them first-rate scientists.

If I am going to bother to read future letters from Dr. W-C, I implore her not to write in such a condescending and insulting tone. She must not continue to mislead the public in giving her opinions without backing them up with scientific evidence. I know of no study suggesting, "half or more of Bermuda will be submerged by the end of the century". I am completely lost as to what possible function feral cats and especially feral chickens can have, as further stated by the doctor. There is no question that feral populations of cats and pigeons are having a serious effects on our native bird populations. Even BFAB themselves state that they will only have succeeded when there are no more feral cats (although cats feeding stations is never going to solve that one!). In Bermuda, the two main threats to our biodiversity are loss of habitat and invasive species. National symbols like the Longtail and Bluebird will only survive if we are prepared to set aside parts of our island to wildlife and eliminate the unnecessary invasive species.

A ludicrous situation

January 20, 2004

Dear Sir,

Just my two cents on the new seat belt law:

I am driving along in my car which has four seats and four seatbelts, and as I pass a bus shelter, I notice my daughter with her two children aged one and four. I stop to give them a ride and I realise that I can't. Why? Because I do not have child seats in my car!

So I say to her, I'm sorry honey, but you will have to ride on the bus. But guess what? The bus does not even have seatbelts! The bottom line is that I can get fined a few thousand dollars for giving my grandchildren a far safer ride then they would have if they used public transportation. If the object of this law was indeed the safety aspect, then the powers that be would have taken the lead and installed seatbelts on every bus.

I am seriously considering breaking this law so that I can have my day in Court ? if for no more reason than to illustrate just how ludicrous a situation our law makers have created.

Stop this abuse

January 8, 2004

Dear Sir,

We all can identify with the familiar case where an abused person continues to love, admire, honour and obey and accept gifts from their abuser. We know that the abused person is in denial and needs help. We know that the abused person is suffering from a psychosis, a psychological illness, if you will, an inferiority complex which will require treatment to correct that illness. Part of the treatment is to remove the abuser away from the abused. So Mr. Editor, separating the abused person from the abuser is seen as an essential part of the treatment in order to cure this kind of psychological illness.

Mr. Editor, it must be said that Bermudians are an abused people and that Great Britain is our abuser. For example, Britain one week was abusing us politically, financially and psychologically, as was the case with their dictatorial appointment of their Englishman, Richard Ground to the position of Bermuda's Chief Justice. Then three weeks later we, in typical abused persons character, we continue to love, admire, honour and obey and accept gifts from our abuser. In this case the Queen's honour awards, like the CBE, The Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire. Make no mistake about it Mr. Editor, history has shown us that there is nothing most excellent about any order of the British Empire. Especially their most recent order, ordering us to accept their Chief Justice.

Remember Mr. Editor, the treatment for an abused person is to separate them from their abuser. Therefore, Mr. Editor part of the treatment for Bermudians is separating our selves from our abuser, Great Britain. In fact Mr. Editor our very own collective national psychological well being, is tied to, and is dependent upon, us becoming independent of Great Britain. In other words, Mr. Editor our independence, sovereignty and freedom from Britain means our independence, sovereignty and freedom from our four hundred year old mental illness, mentacide or our modern mental slavery!

Mr. Cox set an example

January 26, 2004

Dear Sir,

These comments were prompted by the letter of January 24, 2004 by Dr. Tamerry . I knew Mr. Cox and had several conversations with him. I did not know him intimately. In retrospect I considered praiseworthy his steadfast and committed association with Sandys Middle School even after the PLP won and his ascendency to the Minister of Finance. There was nothing about that association to feed his ego. I compared his consistent support of Sandys with the sporadic association of other individuals with the Berkeley Institute and their lack of support once they either became "integrated" or took on more "important" or "significant" roles.

Nevertheless, I was frankly astounded at the outpouring of appreciation for Mr. Cox , after his death, since I had heard none of this during his lifetime. I could not recall that he had even had one of those honorary banquets of appreciation when he retired from either his Belco position or his chairmanship of Sandys (?) If that is so it says something about those who now publicly profess such admiration and respect for the man but never initiated such during his lifetime.

However, regardless of his skin colour or African features, Mr. Cox was more fortunate than many of his generation of African descent of any hue. He was given an important and significant role of influence and an opportunity to contribute in his field of expertise and training and rewarded accordingly with an appropriate salary. Many others were denied such recognition or such an opportunity to contribute significantly in their field of expertise and training, and those who built those barriers were often aided and abetted by others of African descent of various skin colour.

Dr. Tamerry should know that I have been personally chastised, condemned and mocked by some with a black skin because I have attempted to instil, or stimulate, black pride in those of African descent and to consistently challenge the destructive racism directed at all of those of African descent whether their skin colour is black or "High Yellar " and their features were African or Graecian because my own skin colour is not black. I can assure him that some of those with black skin and African features can be just as arrogant, vindictive and "uppity" as any of a lighter hue. They, too, can suffer from delusions of their own superiority for a variety of unhealthy reasons.

The real tragedy of Mr. Cox 's life may be that those who have publicly professed such appreciation for him in his death did not find some way to do so during his life time nor have they necessarily emulated his integrity, consistency and humility.

A tribute to dolphins

January 10, 2004

Dear Sir,

If we all acted like dolphins all the hatred would cease and you wouldn't judge skin colour and we would all live in peace.

They don't have to drive around with cellphones and fancy jeeps, just watching them in the water I know their love's for keeps.

They don't turn people away within cruelty and hard shell. It doesn't matter to them if you are Phillip or Michelle. You may be in the water but they won't let you drown... they are not about skin colour whether you are white or brown.

They are creatures of innocence and their hearts are pure ? they don't discriminate and they don't need cure. They don't worry about big houses because the water's their mansion ? its people with the problem because their minds need expansion.

They don't put the phone down and say "good luck". Dolphins aren't about greed and chasing the buck. They don't worry about the latest satelite dish... they are contented all day just to swim with the fish.

They are not assistant managers full of arrogance and pride...when you need to leave the water their sure to give you a ride.

Dolphins never complain, do you ever hear their moan? They don't worry about looking good by carrying a cellphone. I've seen them at Dolphin Quest they don't follow de mas., they are all about love and have plenty of class.

RICHARD MARX

Somerset

Keeping us posted?

January 25, 2004

Dear Sir,

Some of your readers might find the following interesting if not enlightening.

Three times in the last week I received mail that was posted in England a month previously. Direct mail via British Airways rarely takes longer than four to seven days; there has been no snow on London airports and no problem with the airline schedule. So why the abnormally long time getting to my post office box which is located in the general post office?

Well, I can't tell you the whole story but I can inform you that for between nine and 13 days these pieces of mail were in limbo somewhere within the post office building after having been opened, examined and declared duty free by Customs. It is bad enough having to suffer a long Customs delay but it is outrageous for the Post Office to take almost a further fortnight to complete the delivery to the customer.

I have written to the Postmaster asking for an explanation. There is obviously a serious communication problem between Customs and the Post Office with regard to forwarding and/or collection of opened and resealed mail.

PETER J. WILLCOCKS

Smith's Parish