What happened to courtesy

September 15, 2008

Dear Sir,

I am writing to you as a frustrated bike rider and car driver on the road. I admit I break the laws sometimes, but what frustrates me is that I can be pulled over at a bike parking on the road side in Hamilton with my indicator on and pushing my bike back into a bay and cars vans or trucks are brushing up next to you while you are trying to back up into a parking space and refuse to give way. If I was a car trying to back up into a parking spot on Reid Street, they would surely have to stop for a few seconds to allow the car to manoeuvre into a bay, why can't they give way to bikes trying to do the same thing? It just takes a couple of seconds.

What has happened to the courtesy of our road users? Nobody cares anymore; it's about you trying to get to where you have to go and to hell with anyone else. Nobody has patience anymore. This mentality is going to get someone seriously injured or killed.

When the traffic lights were out at the end of August on Front Street outside Supermart, traffic would not give way to pedestrians trying to cross the road. People were stepping off the sidewalk to try and cross because they had the right of way. You would literally have to step out in the traffic to get someone to stop. Vehicles should give way at pedestrian crossings, especially when they see a sign up that the lights are out. You should always be cautious at any crossing because pedestrians sometimes do not pay attention themselves.

And on another note about pedestrian crossing, pedestrians also have to take into consideration, yes you have the right of way at a crossing, but it does not give you the right just to step out on the crossing and expecting traffic to stop abruptly causing an accident, make sure the traffic sees you first before you start walking out. Sometimes a driver's view is blocked due to parked vehicles on the road side and they cannot see you until you are immediately in front of them. I have seen were people walk up to the crosswalk and step right onto the crosswalk without even the slightest thought that there is oncoming traffic that might not see you. Large vehicles carrying sand, rubble and landscaping cuttings: I have seen various trucks carrying this stuff without them being covered. It is very frustrating driving behind these vehicles whether in a car or bike with their debris falling off the back of their trucks.

About Slow Down – these larger vehicles on the road – the construction vehicles and trailer vehicles, the cement trucks – Biermans & SAL – they move at high speeds on our roads. I have seen on several occasions many times and have travelled behind them doing 50 kph on our narrow roads. At the speeds they are doing, and the size of the vehicle and weight load, there is going to be serious consequences if they had to stop short, or get a tire blow out. I have seen a cement truck coming around the corner past Elbow Beach Public Beach Entrance going down the hill with a load of cement and they are going so fast that their driving cab totally leans to one side while the cement load is up right. One day they won't be so lucky, they just might tip over.

Just this morning a lady was parking her cycle at the corner of King and Reid Street, pushing the bike back into the cycle bay when a small blue car came ripping around the corner off King Street, turning onto Reid street extension and where a cross walk is. The car driver starting telling off the lady parking her cycle. How rude. I shouted back at him that he needs to slow down and take his time because he was travelling awful fast around the corner not knowing if any traffic would have stopped around the corner. Boy did I get an earful of interesting language.

People talking on cell phones while driving their vehicles: I have seen quite a number of people driving while talking on their cell phones. Just on Tuesday afternoon I witnessed a lady running an already red light at the junction of Church and Parliament Street. Our light from Parliament Street heading north was already Green to go and she ran right through the light, with a cell phone in her left hand looking panicky when she realised what she had done. This could have been a serious accident. I know the Police can't be everywhere at the same time but I would like to see more Police presence at these trouble spots.

BERMUDA MOM

Warwick

Surely there's an alternative

October 3, 2008

Dear Sir,

I am writing to note my utter frustration with the overdone teacher strike. I, as a young woman myself not long out of school, totally understand the value of our teachers; however, to strike is more than teachers striving to get what is due. Time and time again when teachers strike (for whatever the reason: valid or not) the children are those who are directly affected.

As much as teachers may feel empathy towards the children, the steps they choose to take to resolve their financial conflict causes complete pandemonium. I have seen parents nearly fired because they had no choice but to leave in multiples and the establishment is left under staffed. I have seen parents catch buses to the ends of the Island where their children await, frowned upon as if they are negligent. Surely parents can't sprout wings and fly?

Surely there can be an alternative than to strike? Even the student march on Parliament in 2004 demonstrates that nowadays these impulsive actions haven't gone unnoticed by the students. That march was saying yes, the teachers deserve what they are asking for but look at the bigger picture. The students, our future, they are the bigger picture. This same situation has been going on for years and this déjà vu needs to end and a new way of thinking is beckoning.

Clearly there needs to be a change or an alternative way to handle these situations. At the end of the day you can't hinder our future of a valuable education to chase the almighty dollar. In the eyes of a child how does this look?

I can assure you that almost everyone has had occasion where a pay stub has had an erroneous amount. This is nothing different from the norm and yet it has spiralled in to an over exaggerated tantrum and whoever stomps the loudest wins.

When Union meetings develop, perhaps each school can appoint advocates to avoid the entire school having to close. These resolutions to such simple problems are not hard to find and there are many to choose from.

These strikes discourage new parents from considering Government schools as an option if they cannot be reliable. In closing, the service teachers provide is no less than priceless. They sculpt and mould our children and quite frankly spend more waking hours with them than parents have a chance to. Please change, make some provisions, and look at the bigger picture.

FRUSTRATED PARENT

Pembroke

Colourful thoughts

October 4, 2008

Dear Sir,

Mr. Alan L. Gordon's letter regarding the use of the word 'black' is interesting. He alleges that it is institutionalised racism that affects our language and hence we end up with words and phrases that include the word "black".

I hope, Mr. Gordon, that my letter doesn't upset or annoy you; that really is not my intention please believe me. I do worry, nonetheless, where all of this ends? Presumably, Mr. Gordon has no problem in my writing to Barak Obama and telling him that when he makes president of the United States of America, he will not be living in the White House, and that whilst there, he will not be enjoying a white Christmas when it snows.

And to think that Santa will not be delivering gifts this year either. Well, how can you without Rudolph the Red nosed reindeer?

I was going to look up a phone number in the Yellow Pages – but then thought better of it. Instead, I went for a swim in the – erm … blue (?) sea. Wowee, that water was cool and I looked as white as a sheet when I came out believe me.

I soon warmed up, thankfully, and soon felt in the pink. I sat on the green (?) grass for a while and enjoyed the late afternoon sunshine (goodness knows what colour that was). I dropped into Harbour Front for dinner. I was thinking of having a Martini before eating – but the choice of which colour olive to have became too much for me, so in the end I had just had a pink gin. No – sorry – scrub that, make it a Red Bull…erm…. oh forget it, I'm giving up alcohol anyway.

Mr. Gordon, I am seriously getting tired of living in this sensitive little place they call Bermuda. We went through the politically correct phase some years ago in other parts of the world, when Chairman became Chairperson, when 'manhole cover' became 'person-hole cover', where 'old' became 'senior', where 'throwing up' became an 'involuntary protein spill' and so on and so forth.

Mr. Gordon, I am at the stage frankly, where I am frightened to open my mouth in case I upset either a person or a piece of road furniture. Let's all just agree to live in a bland world can we? The only thing I ask Mr. Gordon, is that you pick the colours!

SMITH'S

A drastic solution

October 2,2008

Dear Sir,

I walk past the National Stadium every morning and today I had to stop and check to see if I was on the right road or not. I could not believe how clean the area was around the venue and also along Montpelier road. I remember last year that the same thing happened, but I put it down to be just a coincidence that the scheduled cleanup of that area happened to fall during the Music Festival. I know now that this was no accident. The W&E staff were out in full force to make sure all of the "VIPs" did not see any overgrown hedges or grass longer than two inches. If this can be done on such short notice, why does the average citizen have to endure the thorns and branches and weeds that prevail the rest of the year. I would suggest that the public picket the Cabinet Office and demand that we have a Music Festival every month in a different parish so the roadsides can return to their former pristine state. As far as the term VIP goes, I believe every living thing on this planet is very important.

BILL NEARON

Pembroke