I read with great interest a letter from a concerned student, Mia Finsness, pertaining to the standard and manners exhibited by Members of Parliament during the debate in the House of Assembly on June 9. Ms. Finsness listened to the debate on the radio and wrote that she was shocked at the "ugly'' tone of many speakers. She also wrote that this was not the first time that she had been shocked by the conduct of members during debates.

For those who read letters to the Editor and remember this one, I am sure you will agree that this young lady has lost confidence in the Island's leaders.

Her closing comment was "Every day Bermuda faces more problems which need to be dealt with quickly yet sensibly, and so I must then ask the question, how can our Government control Bermuda when they cannot control themselves?'' As a Member of Parliament myself I agree wholeheartedly with her comments. On my way home from the House of Assembly that night I was thinking the same thoughts. It is not necessary to treat other members with contempt, disdain or to show no respect. It is also not necessary to attack others members personally or be rude. It is possible to make your point during a debate by sticking to the facts or developing an opposing opinion by a convincing argument.

As Members of Parliament we are leaders in the community and thus we are expected to act like leaders. We must lead by good example in all that we do and in how we carry ourselves. We must show humility, compassion and listen to the views of others. There is no reason why, even as political foes, that we need to act anything other than honourable.

There are unfortunately Members of Parliament that need to brush up on their speech and decorum inside and outside the House of Assembly. I am pleased to say that there are also many members that are a shining example to any young student looking for leadership and guidance. I hope the letter by Ms Finsness will stimulate improvement by members when and where necessary.

I appreciate her taking the time to voice her concerns as I value feedback whether it is positive or negative.

MICHAEL H. DUNKLEY, MP Devonshire South Partnership is working May 31, 2000 Dear Sir, The article in Wednesday's Business Section on the graduation ceremony at the College of Insurance was terrific. Unfortunately it was in the business Section that is not read by many people. Certainly Bermudian Gino Smith's graduation at the top of his class at the prestigious College of Insurance, at a ceremony attended by our Premier and the CEOs of ACE and XL, was surely more important than the front page coverage of a potential rat problem that even the experts can't agree exists.

There were 12 Bermudian graduates from the College of Insurance this year, all of whom received scholarship support from the Bermuda Foundation for Insurance Studies (funded by international companies and Bermudian and non-Bermudian individuals), the International Chamber of Commerce or directly by individual international companies such ACE, AIG and XL.

This article clearly demonstrates what can be achieved when international business and Government work together to prepare young Bermudians to participate in the New Bermuda.

There is such negativism in the paper and on the airwaves about international business and expatriates. We need to remind ourselves that if we respect each other and work together, this country has the resources to accomplish almost anything.

Congratulations to all 12 of these outstanding young Bermudian graduates.

WALTER A. SCOTT Paget Not a good performance May 20, 2000 Dear Sir, On Saturday May 13, I had the pleasure of attending in Motion's School of Dance's annual performance at Ruth Seaton James Auditorium.

The show opened with a high energy foot stomping number to the delight of the audience. Dance after dance displayed the versatility and growth of the school which is commendable. However, when attending a performance such as this, one should be mindful of the correct and acceptable protocol for such an occasion.

Applaud -- Yes.

Calling out to friends/family -- No.

Entering/exiting before and after intermission -- No.

Throwing objects on stage (confetti) -- No.

Barking like a dog -- No.

The screaming out and loud laughing only intimidates the very youngest of performers, not to mention the ones hearing their names being screamed. If you were to attend a dance recital/production overseas, i.e. New York, Boston, Philadelphia etc. you would be escorted to the nearest exit for such obnoxious behaviour. Save the accolades for the end.

DOG CATCHER St. George's Vet was not consulted The following was sent to Environment Minister Arthur Hodgson and copied to The Royal Gazette .

June 4, 2000 Dear Sir, It has come to my attention that during the debate on the proposed amendments to the Dogs Act on Friday June 2, 2000 that you referred to a report from the Animal Control Committee. Apparently you read off the names of the members of that committee as those consulted prior to the introduction of the amendments to the Dogs Act being presented that day. As I was the chairman of that committee my name was one of those given as being consulted.

I am not sure where you received your information from but it is not accurate.

The Hon. Irving Pearman formed the Animal Control Committee when he was Minister of the Environment several years ago. The committee has not been active for an equally long time.

This committee was formed to address all animal related problems at that time and specifically excluded dog issues as it was felt that the Dogs Act at that time had adequate legislation. We did mention briefly, in that report, three issues that we felt weren't being addressed adequately.

1. Dogs defecating in public places.

2. Dogs being walked off-leash.

3. Dog fighting.

I can assure you that I was not consulted as a Veterinarian, as S.P.C.A.

Shelter Chairman or as Chairman of the now defunct Animal Committee. The first I heard officially about these amendments was the Wednesday before the debate and it was from a non-government source.

I am not writing this to be critical but I do not wish the public to be misled into thinking I had any input into these amendments. I am encouraged by any efforts to improve the conditions in which our animals live and am hoping that your ministry will continue to pursue improving the legislation and enforcement of animal related laws.

As such, I am always available to discuss any animal related issue with you or any ministry representatives.

ANDREW MADEIROS D.V.M.

Warwick Thank you for the help June 16, 2000 Dear Sir, On Sunday, June 11, I was in Dockyard with my sister, niece, cousin and eight-and-a-half-month-old son when my son had a seizure near the Albert Row apartments. Not knowing what was happening to him and starting to panic I called 911.

I would like to use the space in your newspaper to thank the 911 operator, P.c. Harris and Sgt. Pratt of the Somerset Police Station (who were passing by on patrol), the Port Royal Fire Service crew, KEMH VII ambulance crew, Dr.

Richards and emergency department staff for all their help.

With their quick response and efficiency my son is doing fine.

FONTELLA & K-CI (SON) SMITH St. George's Accident's cause ignored June 11, 2000 Dear Sir, Recently, I was involved in a fender bender at the junction of Parsons and Glebe Road. I, unfortunately was the offending party who rear-ended the car in front. Nevertheless, we came to an amicable resolution with regard to this incident.

However, the driver of the car I rear-ended decided to call in the Police based on the fact that the driver and passenger of the car in front of her were physically fighting each other while driving. And clearly the passenger in the car was intoxicated (she was right in my face screaming obscenities and smelling of alcohol); meanwhile the driver's eyes were red and glazed.

These peculiarities were brought to the attention of the officers at the scene but we were told that since this car was not hit in this accident nothing could be done. One could argue that the frequent stops and starts of the vehicle were a major contributing factor to the accident.

Later on that evening I telephoned the acting Sergeant and mentioned the incident and wondered if anything could be done to address this situation. I was basically told that I should be lucky that I was not charged with due care, and furthermore if I insisted on having this matter investigated I would be brought up on charges by the Police for reckless driving.

It appears to me that public disorderly conduct and driving under the influence is now an acceptable form of behaviour, at least in the eyes of these officers and the acting Sergeant on duty that evening. I thought that public insobriety and DUI was an offence under Bermuda law. I could be wrong! MARK R. PERRY Hamilton Parish Explain PLP principle June 5, 2000 Dear Sir, Rolfe stirred the pot today when he upset the oil cart of John Deuss -- the big financial `cheerleader' of the PLP. Then PLP executive and PR man, Cory Butterfield jumped into the stew on ZBM TV and supplied an excuse for all the rotten South African ingredients supplied through Transworld Oil during an UN embargo.

Stating "we all have a past and this is a new Millennium with new deeds done that we should be judged by''.

Could Cory Butterfield explain that PLP principle to PLP supporters who insist on living in the past? SAY WHAT Devonshire Education problem May 31, 2000 Dear Sir, Minister is making assumptions! Your front page article "Expat Impact'' clearly shows an attitude taken by Arthur Hodgson on foreign workers! Trying to blame employers for the lack of skilled workers available is unfair.

It is not an immigration problem! It's an education problem! It's the same assumption that a Minister is qualified because of a title! R. SMITH Pembroke Sustainable growth June 13, 2000 Dear Sir, The idea of sustainable growth has cropped up quite a bit of late. So the question becomes, what level of growth is sustainable? At this point I would say that if the economy grew at the same rate as the fiscal budget then you would have a growth rate that could be sustained over time. So if we decide to make the real long term growth rate of the economy two and a half percent, then the long term growth rate of the Budget must be two and a half percent in real terms. IF the real growth rate of the budget is more than the real growth rate of the economy, then this situation will not be sustainable.

Why? Because if you are spending more money then you are earning then you will have to take on additional debt. Increased debt creates an increased interest burden. This increased interest burden increases taxes and interest rates themselves. Higher taxes and interest costs crowd our investment, leaving you with a lower tax base then before.

The cycle of compounding interest is not a pleasant one.

BRIAN WAY Paget Cable TV lets down client The following was sent to the managing director, Bermuda Cablevision Ltd. and copied to The Royal Gazette .

June 5, 2000 Dear Sir, Never even vaguely satisfactory, your service over the last few weeks and months has been appallingly bad, with somewhere near ten or twelve different faults and distortions chasing themselves around the channels. I think that it would be true to say that at no time during the past year (at least) have all the channels for which I pay (through the nose) been available in any kind of acceptable fashion.

The reporting of an unacceptable channel or channels sometimes leads to correction after some days (or weeks) only to be replaced almost instantaneously by some other distortion, usually on another channel. At such times it would appear that the telephone on your service number is off the hook for hours on end -- a great way to do business! You must thank your stars daily that you have no convenient competition or you would have been out of business some years back.

So, I have given up the unequal struggle, and will no longer be forwarding a cheque to your address at each month end (very regularly and promptly, I would add) and when the month ends, if reception across the board is as unacceptable as usual, you can sever the connection between your place and mine and I will find some more reliable method of receiving TV signals.

ALAN BAINBRIDGE Pembroke See related story, Business, Page 17 Praise for reporter June 11, 2000 Dear Sir, I am especially pleased to say that the recent series of articles by Stephen Breen in The Royal Gazette on Bermuda's environmental dilemmas were laudable.

As an interviewer, Mr. Breen was interested, sensitive, challenging in his questioning but driven more by a desire to suss out the essence than the inflammatory. When interviewing me, while he did come with his own mindset on several issues, he was willing to see a different view than his own and to adjust his thinking when presented with new information or insights.

As a writer, Mr. Breen tied in relevant comments from his several interviewees in a logical and quite readable style. The series, I thought, presented a fair and comprehensive view of the issues facing Bermuda and its people. Most important, Mr. Breen preserved the dignity of each of his interviewees and, in the process, enhanced the dignity of his pieces and of the paper: he treated our contributions with respect; he represented what I (we) said fairly; he did not attempt to extract controversy where there was none; and he did not sensationalise.

This is just the kind of reporting I would like to see the daily paper adopt as its trademark.

STUART J. HAYWARD Pembroke