Dismantling the Island

January 24, 2010

Dear Sir,

Get ready Hamilton and St. George municipalities – Minister Walter Roban is about to wear the historical chain and top hat when he becomes the Mayor of Bermuda.

"The Minister stated the report would not necessarily be made public but added that he expected the process would be 'open and transparent'." What kind of double talk is this? Spending $800,000 from the public purse and not revealing the entire contents suggests to us that only those things that favour a "takeover" will be made known and the consequences of political interference will never be made public. And then he has the audacity to say he has "No preconceived notions". (This) is a similar comment made by Judas Iscariot.

We all know governments around the world are not good at management and this Government has already demonstrated they are incapable of handling financial matters but good at dividing the country. Let's not forget the utter destruction of merchants in the City of Hamilton and the creation of a ghost town in St. George. We hope those in need such as housing for the Salvation Army, senior citizens and the nine hundred or so presently unemployed, thank the Government for getting their priorities straight especially since the country is wallowing in a burden of debt that our children's children will inherit.

Nothing is more simple than this – the community must be in control of their future and not the other way, whereby this Minister is directed to dismantle our country piece by piece. Our reasons for not trusting the leadership of our government:

The dismantling of the Department of Tourism in North America, firing all the Bermudians; banning subscriptions to and advertising in The Royal Gazette as well as advertising; setting up of their own Government TV Station; limiting work permits; the GPS fiasco; air services issues which cost the taxpayer almost a million dollars; overruns in capital projects by the millions and much more.

Bermuda needs leadership it can trust!

TOPPY AND SAUNDRA COWEN

Southampton

Open, frank and candid

December 21, 2009

Dear Sir,

Please allow me to comment on statements attributed to the Solicitor General of Bermuda Mr. Barrie McKay. The leaking of a Cabinet memo to the press about a secret deal to buy the Swan Building for $24.5 million "threatened the Democratic governance of the Island!" Also he added that "Cabinet secrecy is crucial"!

Please excuse me, Mr. McKay, but the views of Ministers, it seems to me, should be or are the views of their constituents! They (Ministers) are in office to represent the people of Bermuda, not themselves. Their personal views, if they have to be expressed in secrecy, must be in conflict for what is best for Bermuda and her people. The Hon. Premier of Bermuda expresses interest in and favourability towards transparency.

I would suggest, Mr. McKay, that transparency goes hand in hand with democracy and the democratic process. Transparency, Sir, is without guile or concealment; it is open, frank and candid! Sir, I would agree that secrecy is important if Ministers were dealing with issues of war or security for the Island. Unless the Ministers are at war with the taxpayers of Bermuda then this issue is nothing more than "Let's make a deal" at the taxpayers' expense.

MICHAEL E. PITTS

Inverness, Florida

Looking for Janice Bell

December 17, 2009

Dear Sir,

You carried a story earlier this week about the Christmas tree on display in, I believe, Washington Mall. The article mentions a Janice Bell who is involved in charitable activities at this time of year. I am carrying out family history from my home in the UK and am trying to trace a Janice Bell, who I hope may be one and the same as the person mentioned in your article. My reason? In 2001, she posted a message on RootsWeb asking for descendants of William Anderson and Charlotte Ann Whitecross who were married in Pembroke in about 1870. These are my great-grandparents and Janice Bell is also a descendant by marriage.

This has become of particular interest to us in England as my oldest son and his wife have just had a new baby who is named "Alberta" after one of William and Charlotte's daughters. We understand that the original Mary Alberta in Bermuda married Antonio Joseph Muniz in 1911. My grandfather Joseph Frederick Anderson came to England in 1901 after completing his apprenticeship at the Bermuda Dockyards. He always said that he came here for "his health" which we all found totally hilarious given the damp British climate.

It would be great to find out if we have any distant cousins still living in Bermuda and so I would be very grateful if you could publish this letter, or indeed forward it to Janice Bell on my behalf. I look forward to receiving information via my email address: mary.griffiths@blueyonder.co.uk

DR. MARY GRIFFITHS

United Kingdom

Poison for the community

December 21, 2009

Dear Sir,

I have been thinking about the causes of the youth violence and disrespect. I think it's due in part to the angry racial rhetoric of the Premier's appointed Race Relations Consultant. Mr. Commissiong, it's always white people's fault and making blacks victims. The constant disrespect for other races and the historical Bermuda institutions has contributed to black youth frustration and anger. It may be a great political platform for Mr. Commissiong's political aspirations but it is poison for the community. I am sure Mr. Commissiong passionately believes much of what he is saying but he is wrong.

The Premier's appointed race relations advisor must go before he does more damage. Before he leaves he needs to apologise to the public for discharging a firearm while he was robbing a bank, leaving a still terrorised lady who to this day is still suffering from that trauma. Mr. Editor, things don't just happen, we create the mess; and I call for an investigation into who and what's behind this continued polarising and politicisation of the racecard by the Premier's appointment of Mr. Commissiong.

CHARLES SPANSWICK

City of Hamilton

Fog lamps are dangerous

December 21, 2009

Dear Sir,

Anyone recovering in hospital after a crash caused by being blinded by fog lamps may care to read Bermuda's Motor Car (Construction, Equipment and Use) Regulations, specifically sections:

16(1)(d) no headlight shall be carried in such a manner that the centre of the lamp is more than four or less than two feet above a plane surface upon which the motor car is standing; and

16 (6) (a) "headlight", in relation to a motor car, means any lamp carried on the motor car capable of projecting a beam of light of an intensity exceeding 4 mean spherical candle power, and which is designed to illuminate objects at a distance from the motor car.

Doing so may not speed your recovery, but may make you wonder why TCD isn't picking up on the hundreds of cars out there breaking this law by using low-slung fog lamps, and in a country with no fog. Yours not seeking enlightenment,

ANDREW R. DOBLE

Hamilton Parish

Colonising from within

January 28, 2010

Dear Sir,

The hypocrisy and sad irony of the PLP Government's attempt to gain control of the Corporations of Hamilton and St. George's is ridiculous. How can a political party which supports and promotes the idea of an independent Bermuda be so hell bent on effectively colonising from within? These actions only serve to reinforce what most Bermudians see as nothing more than a pillaging of our own resources by a financially irresponsible and intellectually spent PLP Government struggling to keep pace with their own political and fiscal shortcomings that have, without question, burdened future generations of Bermudians with hundreds of millions of dollars of debt (and this is before we even take the next Budget Statement into consideration).

KEG

Pembroke

A letter to a thief

December 18, 2009

Dear Sir,

This letter is directed at the individual who broke into our bike last night and stole my rain pants. Dude, what did you think was under the locked seat, a pot of gold? Why cause so much damage (busted seat and lock) for a cheap pair of rain pants? It didn't even rain last night so what did you do with them, wear them on your head as part of your Christmas outfit? To my neighbours in St. George's, if you see someone walking around with a pair of old, oversized (XXL), yellow "Pro Rainer" rain pants, ignore the Christmas spirit and push him into the hedge for me.

KENT SMITH

St. George's

P.s. I should also warm you that my dog peed on those rain pants.

PLP has lost my vote

December 18, 2009

Dear Sir,

As our beloved Island descends into chaos and mayhem as a result of the recent gun violence, the lack of a unified, confidence building response from the Progressive Labour Party stands in stark contrast to the grassroots efforts being put forth by the very electorate who put the PLP in power.

Other than the sounds of frustration being expressed by Colonel Burch, who to his credit is at least trying to do something, the response to the crisis from the remaining members of the PLP, including the Premier, has been tepid at best. I am now officially an ex-PLP member who in the past, voted for the PLP my entire adult life. No more. The relative silence emanating from our current government is deafening. As Bob Marley once said: "So soon we find out who are the real revolutionaries."

SYLVAN RICHARDS JR.

Paget