Mum's got the last word

November 5, 2002

Dear Sir,

The letter in today's paper written by Dean Ming prompts me to again write on this issue of equal rights for fathers.

Again, I say that I agree that fathers should play a vital role in their children's lives, however how many of them are willing to go the extra mile for their children? It seems that many of them want to take the easy way out, seeing their children when it is convenient for them, and paying when it is convenient for them.

Do they wonder where their child's next meal is coming from, or if their child will continue to have a roof over their head if the mother can't pay the rent? Many of these fathers are just selfish beyond belief.

They say that the mother withholds the child for spite if the father doesn't pay, yet many of them deliberately withhold money to get back at the mother, essentially taking the food out of the child's mouth. It's then the mother who often sacrifices so much must so the child will be provided for. How can a man say he loves his child if he acts like that?

Although I am not a single parent, I have relatives and friends who are, and what I have seen really disgusts me. How can you blame a woman for withholding a child if she is doing it all in the upbringing of her child-feeding it, clothing it, putting a roof over it's head, etc. with nothing coming in from Daddy?

The father then wants to show up, take the kid to a football game, show off to his mates and take all the credit for how nice and clean and well-dressed the kid is - no thanks to him. Do you call that fair? Can you blame mothers for feeling bitter?

I may be cynical, but I say to all you men out there who are hollering and screaming about equal rights for men regarding children that I have a deal for you. How about if you take turns - your wife or girlfriend has the first baby, and then you have the next one.

Then you can look forward to debilitating nausea and vomiting, dizziness, painful, engorged breasts, backaches, swollen hands and feet, haemorrhoids and stretch marks. After that you can look forward to eight hours or more of agonising, mind-boggling pain, being poked and prodded by complete strangers, and if you chose - the pleasure of an anaesthetist injecting a gigantic needle into your spine - and finally the excruciating pain of something the size of a football being expelled through something the size of a grape.

Or if you're really 'lucky', you can look forward to being taken into an operating room, sliced open by a surgeon, all your abdominal organs being taken out and put inside and the baby being yanked out. Then in two or three years time you can take another turn and look forward to going through the experience all over again! Does that sound good - let me hear from you guys - any volunteers? I didn't think so!

So to all you men, when you're willing and/or able to go through all of the above - never mind the rest of the sacrifices it takes to be a mother - then we'll talk about equal rights for fathers!

A MOM

City of Hamilton

Environmental moves

November 4, 2002

Dear Sir,

I was interested to see the 'Speech from the Throne' in today's Royal Gazette. My particular interest relates to the section on the environment, and I should be grateful if you could please pass on, to anyone who is appropriate, one or two comments.

I last visited Bermuda in January, 2000, and visited many of the national parks on the Island (but, because of bad weather, I did not have the opportunity to visit offshore national parks).

I was pleased to see the proposed amendment ot the 1986 Act so as to deal with non-native, invasive species. I was aware how abundant many of these were during my visit, and how damaging they can be to the native species of Bermuda.

Management, control, or even elimination, of many of these will be hard work and will be expensive of both money and manpower. I hope that when the amendment has been passed Bermuda can rapidly put together a prioritised plan with the necessary funding to achieve the objectives.

I noted also that a Protected Species Bill 2002 is to be introduced. Whilst this is commendable in relation of the Convention on Biological Diversity, it must be remembered that species live in habitats, and that without the habitat the species can only live for while in a zoological or botanical garden. In drafting the Bill, I hope that the Government will focus on the habitats of Bermuda that need protection as well as on the species.

MICHAEL B USHER

Leverhulme Emeritus Fellow

(formerly Chief Scientist, Scottish Natural Heritage)

c/o Department of Environmental Science

University of Stirling

Stirling FK9 4LA United Kingdom

Fifty years of poor service

November 5, 2002

Dear Sir,

While some are of the opinion that the Telecommunications Minister should have been applauded for her handling of the Cablevision fiasco, I had to shake my head and laugh in disgust! Yes Cablevision have to improve their service but the impasse was brought about as a direct result of the Minister's own arrogance and interpretation of the legislation, hence the loss of service and entrance of Allan Dunch with his poker face.

I say this only to draw attention to a company that has always lead the way in poor service and being that the Minister has been some what mute as of late maybe I can get her to sharpen her sword on this issue.

This company is the leader in the field of second rate service has existed in Bermuda for more than 50 years, is a virtual monopoly and majority shareholder in Cablevision. I give you Telco.

Bermudians, being so complacent will complain when (TV channels) BET or Y&TR goes offline, but won't question how a long distance call was made to some stranger in Borneo from their residence at a time when no one was home, will pay $130 annually for equipment rental instead of purchasing a phone (note to myself) how we drop quarters into a pay phone instead of two dimes, that we are consistently disconnected from our ISP which increases our overcalls and continue to suffer through out dated dial-up internet service because Telco can't get their thumb out and provide residential DSL service in a timely fashion.

Personally I feel that Telco isn't interested in providing DSL service to residential consumers because they are making a mint on dial-up services. Thanks to the competition in ISP's you don't have to pay an exorbitant amount on internet dial-up costs "Thank you FKBNet" albeit too long in coming, yet still the drop-offs continue and nothing is ever said, how is it that I can reside less that a mile from Telco's main station yet still not have DSL service or even an inkling of when it may be provided? (check velocity website). I'm sure someone should have a reasonable idea when the service may be provided beyond saying that its "Not Available".

As service goes, Telco need to re-think the promotional use of the word Velocity.

THE SPECTRE

Pembroke

P.S Here's an interesting link on local internet charges

www.bermuda-online.org/internet.htm

Numbers solve nothing

November 3, 2002

Dear Sir,

Re: Your front page of The Royal Gazette, Saturday November 2, "Man stabbed in park area".

"Residents in Middletown last night asked for greater Police presence after a man was attacked in broad daylight about 4.15p.m. (between) Union Street (and) Parsons Road.

"When detectives and Police officers arrived on the scene just moments later, the victim was gone, but about 100 people were gathered around the area. However, not one of them said they had seen a thing.

"...a man from Middletown, who again said he saw nothing, said, '...We need more of a Police presence. That's all the Police needs to know.'"

Maybe I'm missing something here, but I'd be interested to know the answers to the following questions:

1: In this particular instance, how long exactly was "moments"?

2: How did "about 100 people" get to hear of what had happened in such a short time?

3: How come so many people heard about the incident, but none of them saw it? Surely Somebody must have seen it, or how did everybody else know what had happened?

4: What is the point in having an increased Police presence in the area if people aren't going to tell them anything anyway?

The Police simply can't be everywhere at once. For one thing, current thinking seems to be against any increase at all in establishment (in fact, Police numbers have actually been reduced by about 50 personnel in the past ten years!), and, for another thing, you'd need one Policeman per head of population to guarantee a totally crime-free environment, and I can't ever see that happening!

DAVIE KERR

St. George's

Teachers taken for granted

October 29, 2002

Dear Sir,

I am writing to you in support of fellow teachers and to defend our profession. Too often teachers are taken for granted, and not given the respect they deserve. Teachers are 'jacks of all trades.'

Teachers wear many different hats in a day including that of educator, caregiver and counsellor. Teachers have a tremendous responsibility - to meet the social and academic needs of all of the children in their care. But who is meeting our needs?

Do you honestly think we do not want to be in our classrooms working with our students? We have taken action because we have to, not because we want to.

Contracts might state that teachers only work 35 hours a week, but what about all of the time spent planning, marking papers, decorating bulletin boards, attending workshops and meetings? What about all of the supplies teachers have to buy out of their own pockets?

Many parents send their children to school assuming that all of the supplies are readily available, which they are not. We spend much of our money purchasing pencils, paper, and other materials to meet the needs of our students. This is the money that we work hard for and are giving back to the government.

There are many lessons we cannot teach because the materials are not available. For example we cannot have computer literate students if they do not have access to computers, or the computers are so out of date they do not correspond with the curriculum. Could you imagine if you started an office job and they offered you a set salary, but then stated that you had to pay for all of the supplies you use? I am sure many people would find this ridiculous.

Teachers are leaving the profession because they can use the same credentials and make more money in a less stressful environment. What incentives are teachers offered?

Many teachers worked hard for their degrees and continue to work hard for Bermuda's future, but do not get any credit. You can reach the end of the pay scale long before retirement, and you are at a stand still. Teachers were offered a 2.8 percent raise and the cost of living has increased by 3.3 percent. That is not a raise, it is a way to get by, not get ahead.

As teachers, we are being leaders because instead of following the government and being silent we are standing up and fighting for what we believe in. Without teachers where would we be? Teachers have played a vital role since the beginning of time and will continue to do so well into the future.

A SUPPORTER OF THE CAUSE FOR TEACHERS

Pembroke

Retracing our roots

October 17, 2002

Dear Sir,

On Sunday, October 13, at 4.30 p.m. the Walburn Gibbons Family attended a special service at St. John's A.M.E. Church. Approximately 300 family members were present.

The reunion was made possible by a culmination of many spiritual events. In February 2002, Tall Oak, the Pequot Native American Indian, visited Bermuda for a gathering in St. David's to establish his family background.

He found out that my family heritage also extended from a Native American Indian. I informed him that my Great Grandmother, Bernice Walburn, was a Native American Indian who married Bermudian Robert Gibbons.

From this union there were four sons and four daughters. On learning that my Great Grandmother was a Walburn (spelt with an "a"), he put me in touch with Ron Welburn (spelt with an "e"), a professor at the University of Amherst in Massachusetts.

Ron Welburn, a Cherokee Indian, was excited when he was asked to come to Bermuda to attend the Walburn Gibbons Family Reunion, to learn more about his Bermuda connections. He arrived on the Island on October 10, with his wife Cherie.

The reunion was a resounding success with guest speakers Ron Welburn and Dianne King Steede, a descendent of the Walburn Gibbons clan. Ron spoke of the connection between the Welburns in Virginia and our descendents in Bermuda.

Dianne, who has done many years of research, spoke knowledgeably on information acquired about our family history, which included the marriage certificate between Robert Gibbons and Bernice Walburn dated August 27, 1843.

A special thanks to Dianne for an enlightening historical journey of our ancestors, for which she received a standing ovation.

It was rewarding to know that the pastors who were officiating at the service were members of the Walburn Gibbons family. Special thanks to Pastor Allan Walker, the Rev. Dr. Sydney Gibbons, Pastor Eugene Gibbons and the Rev. Dr. Milton Burgress.

Uplifting musical selections were provided by Mrs. Ismay Philip and Mr. Horace Gibbons, M.B.E.

Let the mud slinging begin

November 7, 2002

Dear Sir,

In reference to yesterday's front page article: 'The PLP demands an apology from the UBP.

My questions are as follows;

1: Whatever became of the illegal political broadcast that took place in February of this year? Where negative comments were made about Mr. David Dodwell, MP?

2: Can the people of this country get an explanation regarding the continuing fiasco at the BHC?

3: Can the people get an explanation as to why we suddenly find ourselves in a deficit situation?

The Smith Government must be aware that we are in election mode. After witnessing some of the campaign ads in the United States, Jamal Simmons' comments are by far very tame.

In addition to being a member of the United Bermuda Party, he is a tax-paying citizen of this country and has a right to formulate his own opinion, as does anyone else in the Smith government.

Let the mud slinging begin and if you can't stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen.

ELEANOR SMITH

St. George's