Stop motoring madness

September 18, 2007

Dear Sir,

These are things that I noted in a Drugs & Crime magazine that should be against the law but are strangely not:

1. Driving while talking on a cell phone - It's strange how people still feel that this is "cool" to do. Basically the people who do most of the time don't really think about the safety of others around them.

2. Music blasting - I couldn't care less if they wish to make their own selves deaf by their loud music. But it's unfair to others to have to listen to it as well.

3. Using a cell phone while riding a motorbike - Basically the craziest thing a person can do while riding.

4. Noise pollution ¿ If a party is supposed to end at 1 a.m., should it really continue until 2 a.m.? Or do people really believe it's nothing wrong, with waking up sleeping individuals?

5. Not using an indicator when making turn on a roundabout - I've seen people do this which is sickening because I often wonder if they hit me, would they take the blame or would they look at it as "Oh well, you should've figured I was going to turn"? Also, if an individual were to hit them and come to find out they never indicated they were turning, isn't it really their fault?

6. Super dark tint on windows - Considering I've seen this, plus the driver often has on dark shades, I wonder if they were to hit somebody, what excuse can they give: "Oh sorry, I didn't see that person"? Bad excuse since it's bad enough the car is dark tinted.

7. Stopping at junctions - I noticed reading a Royal Gazette newspaper (not sure if it was yesterday or sometime last week) that it mentioned police presence around Black Watch Pass. This is a good idea providing police cars are actually there. I've seen a woman driver stop at the stop sign heading toward East Pembroke, only to suddenly make a sharp turn onto Black Watch Pass without using the Give Way area by the well. Shouldn't that be against the law as well?

Who's responsible for enforcing laws on the road?

1. The Police?

2. The Judges?

3. Roxanne Christopher?

4. The male individual involved with the Road Safety Council?

5. The Government? Who's responsible? Because with these factors not addressed, he or she isn't doing their job to make these 'Strangely nots not strange any more.

WHO'S RESPONSIBLE?

Pembroke

Station needs an upgrade

Dear Sir,

It's bad enough this station, blinks on and off yet, it also shows the same writing on the screen even after 30minutes.Also,what's worse,is that on the radar screen it never shows which way the wind is moving(unlike what it shows on Channel 23).Yet another factor,is that only on the evening news do you ever see someone doing weather.Huh? If something big was coming our way now it would seem,that we'll have to wait until after 7:00PM. to know what it is(on Channel 23 there's more than one person doing the weather,there's a screen that shows the movement of the wind,rain,even snow within a few seconds which is another thing that ACCU-WEATHER SHOULD TRY). Blue screen with yellow writing,blinking on & off,isn't working well.The station definately needs an upgrade.

The only thing likeable about Channel 04 is when it shows the different continents in green and it's showing where a tropical depression to a hurricane is located(too bad this doesn't last and too bad the screen again blinks on & off).Another thing nice is its showing how the weather is per week however,it's not nice in Bermuda until the weather is about 78 degrees in the day and it's about 68% humidity and at night,the temp drops about 10 degrees with the humidity dropping to about 63% then,it's nice.Right now,it's just plain HOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

CHANNEL 04 NEEDS UPGRADE

Pembroke

Were vandals dyslexic?

October 18, 2007

Dear Sir,

In regards to your vandalism article printed yesterday, I couldn't help but think that those responsible for the vandalism at Mid Ocean might be dyslexic: plp (PLP) backwards is qlq.

What a way to advertise!

LORRIE PENISTON

City of Hamilton

Our humour hurts no one

September 17, 2007

Dear Sir,

To Funny Boned:

Re: C Travel/Quickertix service

Thank you for the letter that appeared in The Royal Gazette on Thursday, September 13, expressing your dislike of our Quickertix.com TV advertisements. We respect your opinion, however I disagree with you.

We are a Bermudian owned company comprising of Bermudians of all races, religions and accents. We are very proud of our heritage and diversity. We also have a sense of humour. We do not see our advertisements as degrading. We see them as caricatures of our own unique culture.

Following your letter we have been flooded with calls, visits and outside chats from clients of C Travel and other agencies expressing their enjoyment of our commercials.

Due to our commercials, our www.quickertix.com service has far exceeded our expectations. The Geico commercials depicting a "lizzard' or a "cave man" validates the service of the insurance company represented.

Viewers get the message and the company gets the sale. No one is hurt by their sense of humour.

Please lighten up, Funny Bones. Life is short. Perhaps you need a vacation.

CARL H. PAIVA JP

CEO C Travel Ltd.

Vivid drug abuse picture

September 18, 2007

Dear Sir,

I was lucky enough to get a hold of a copy of "Focus on Drugs & Crime" that came with the morning paper. Another initiative.

Peter Backenberg's vivid picture of the descent into drug abuse is a great place to start. It should be portrayed in the educational system to the up and coming generations from Elementary through High School. "Here is the road, these are the way stops and this is the end." and make the information graphic and accurate. It's ugly, and it should be seen to be. Substance abuse causes a lot of pain to a lot of people, including the abuser, and the young ones must feel that pain while learning about it. Sad movies make everyone cry. Make them cry.

Preston Swan along with Sandy Butterfield is at the battle front dealing with things on the ground as they unfold, from minute to minute; they are appreciated and well respected. When the interviewer asked Mr. Swan 'what are some of the drugs his clients use', he listed all of them; with marijuana and alcohol at the end; like it always is. Marijuana actually should have been right at the end.

I am sure that Mr. Swan must have come across the results of extensive research that clearly show that, when compared to alcohol, marijuana has the less harmful side effects. He did say that it has never been proven to be a "gateway" drug.

Instead of costing the country whatever (in human suffering and dollars) to keep a substance that is internationally very popular and proven to be less harmful than what is already legal (alcohol), Marijuana should be legalised and commercialised; and the huge profits can then be ploughed back into the real battle against the highly addictive soul destroying substances that is causing the suffering in our society.

People use Marijuana because they do not want to suffer the harsh side effects one can get from using alcohol, so you must know how they must feel about drugs that are even harsher. There would be a bigger army available and willing to fight the real enemy, 'addictive soul stealing substances'.

The whole thing was well written and certainly outlines many of the intricacies and challenges associated with our drug situation; but there have been initiatives like this before; always covering the same ground in pretty much the same way as the initiative that went before it, and of course the result achieved was pretty much the same. Things got worse.

Maybe this initiative will be different. Maybe bolder even.

AL EASTMOND

Devonshire

We should go electric

September 17, 2007

Dear Sir,

It amazes me that we are about to spend huge amounts of money on emission controls. How can this be in this day and age in a place as small as Bermuda? We should be an example to the world and go electric, or hybrid. No emissions.

There are bikes out there that do 30 to 40 miles on a charge. How far does anyone on this island go each day? That is zero emission on the road, let alone there is no oil to spill and there is no noise, which I feel we could all do without except for those selfish fools who love the sound of their obnoxious, gas guzzling, over-powered monsters.

There are cars out there that run 50 miles on a charge and I am not talking about expensive vehicles. The hybrids are incredible for mileage. When are we as a nation going to change our mindset and step into the future? Save our wonderful environment and wake up.

People buying SUVs in Bermuda should be ashamed of themselves. How much does gas have to cost to stop this foolery?

Why make people richer by doing the stupid thing and having emission controls? Just say all gas guzzling cars will be eliminated in the next five years, because in the next three to five years we are going to see changes in transportation like we have never seen. Hybrids, electric, and hydrogen fuels cells are all coming and they are coming fast, the rest of the world is working on stopping global warming and Bermuda sits here buying the biggest gas guzzling monsters they can find.

We are such a silly people living in one of the most beautiful places on earth and mashing it up as fast as we can. Let's try to make it better. Go to the future. Electric.

Will the powers that be please make some smart decisions?

HUBERT WATLINGTON

EV Bermuda

Pembroke