7 May 2014

Dear Sir

I refer to your correspondent Rise and Shine (RG of May 7). Unbelievable how far the delusion has spread. It could be pure ignorance or it might be complete and unadulterated passion for a PLP government or it might be a person who just can’t sort the facts from the fiction.

He suggests that both governments have put Bermuda in this mess. The UBP left the PLP with a $200 million surplus and the OBA is cutting costs like there is no tomorrow. What part of the equation is missing here, Rise and Shine? Which Party did you vote for all those years? The PLP and the PLP alone put the economy where it is today and you and the marchers are reaping those rewards.

What responsibility does the private sector bear? Well, I must admit, as a born and bred and older white Bermudian I completely agree that the private sector should be encouraged in the strongest possible terms to stop laying off Bermudians because they want to be more efficient or boost profits. Frankly, I am a businessman and I see the point, but we all live in a small community and I don’t see any reason that the shareholders of those businesses which are laying people off can’t be a whole lot more reasonable.

But I digress. The private sector, which the writer is clearly unfamiliar with, is not only bearing responsibility but taking an income hit as well.

The big difference is that the private sector demands that its people work and are held accountable. Personally, I work an average of 10 hours a day and I have not had an increase in salary or bonus for five years ... and I’m OK with that. Seriously, the civil service is, to a great extent, the PLP answer to unemployment insurance.

There’s one more issue. There are jobs out there but you have to be competitive and want to work. R+R, go ask almost any landscaping company, restaurant or even grocery store owner — Bermudians DO NOT apply and when they do, they are hired but they do not last. They seem to still have a sense of entitlement to work 9-5, Monday through Friday.

By the way, this letter isn’t meant to be political but the marchers, the writers like you and many others simply cannot go and tell the public that we got here without one hell of a lot of work on behalf of the PLP. You want to be political, racial, criticise the wealthy, the ex-pats ... go right ahead. It will get you nowhere. It might make it more difficult for an OBA to do its job because they’re spending time trying to educate a public that is being deluded by PLP propagandists. Or maybe that’s the point?

I ROSE AND SHINED