criminals who use machetes or baseball bats in violent crimes is timely.

Violent criminals are increasingly turning to weapons -- from sticks to machetes to knives -- and the Opposition believes that stiffer penalties will keep dangerous people off the street and will also act as a deterrent.

There is some merit in this. Parliament passed a raft of legislation raising the penalties for firearms offences some years ago which, if they did not eliminate robberies and other crimes with guns, at least reduced the number.

The same may hold true for baseball bats, machetes and knives. One of the difficulties with these offences is that bats and machetes are not and should not be illegal in and of themselves.

But when they are used in a crime, judges and magistrates should have powers to give higher sentences.

However, much more needs to be done to prevent these kinds of offences from occurring at all. Violent crimes take place because people are either angry, desperate or greedy, and the community must do its part to ensure that there is no need for these kinds of offences to take place.

Some of the peer mediation and anger management programmes in place in the schools may reduce these crimes in the long term. In the short term, providing more drug rehabilitation and prisoner rehabilitation will help to reduce anger and desperation.

ELECTRIC CARS EDT Electric cars There may be a solution to the ongoing row over Ministers' over-size cars.

Why not have the Cabinet, some of whose members have been promoting the notion of sustainable development, and civil servants for that matter, drive cars powered by electricity or propane gas? In this way, Government could lead by example, and if it was prepared to convert the bus fleet to propane gas as well, they could help make Bermuda a cleaner place as well.

Apparently one of the problems with electric cars is having a sufficient number available to make a central charging facility viable. Having all GP cars converted to electric power would provide the fleet.

This really would impress visiting dignitaries; putting your money where your mouth is is the best possible form of leadership.