EDITORIAL: A swift response - now make sure it is a thorough one
WHEN The Tribune reported last week on wood infested with an invasive beetle in Grand Bahama, this column called for swift action.
PETER YOUNG: Vaccines are essential but so is personal choice in a Free Society
SO much has been written recently about the compelling need for vaccinations in face of the new surge of COVID cases in The Bahamas that I hesitate to add to the plethora of comment. But two developments encourage me to offer a few observations – the Prime Minister’s wise and appropriate national address last Wednesday and the action by the Democratic speaker of the US House of Representative threatening to arrest staffers not wearing masks in the building, with many saying this amounts to a reprehensible abuse of power.
FACE TO FACE: A national hero – wait til you meet his mum
Today is the anniversary of one of the most memorable events in all of Bahamian sports history. On August 3, 1992, Frank Garfield Rutherford Jr won a bronze medal in the triple jump at the Olympics in Barcelona. This was The Bahamas’ first Olympic medal in track and field, and the first achieved by an Independent Bahamas.
‘Obey the law’ as crawfish season gets under way
THE Department of Marine Resources is urging fishermen to abide by fisheries laws as crawfish season opened on August 1.
Govt to probe offloading of beetle-infested wood in GB
THE Bahamas Government has launched an investigation into the offloading of wood reportedly infested with an invasive beetle by a Panama-registered cargo vessel at Grand Bahama last week.
Five more deaths and 334 confirmed cases since Friday
THE Bahamas recorded 334 new COVID-19 cases since Friday along with five new deaths.
Police hunt killers in drive-by shooting
POLICE are investigating the country’s latest homicide that took place in the Sandilands Village Road area on Saturday afternoon.
Highway horror
A male driver was killed and his passenger was seriously injured in a traffic accident in Grand Bahama on Sunday evening.
Doctors in 40% public GB hospital ownership
Doctors Hospital is planning to offer at least a 40 percent collective ownership stake to Grand Bahamians in the $15m-$20m hospital it plans to open on that island by the 2022 second quarter.
Minister: 'Extreme frustration' over Grand Lucayan
A Cabinet minister says it is "extremely frustrating" that the Grand Lucayan's sale continues to be delayed by the protracted wait for ITM/Royal Caribbean to close their separate deal with Freeport Harbour Company.
Disappointment for Shaunae Miller-Uibo in 200m final
The 200m final in Tokyo, Japan turned out to be a major disappointment for Shaunae Miller-Uibo as she jogged across the finish line in eighth place.
Bahamian official to be sent home from Olympics
BAHAMAS Olympic Committee president Romell Knowles confirmed that they had to revoke the accreditation of relay coordinator Rupert Gardiner and will send him home because of his insubordination to the team officials at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan.
Cruise line COVID cases ‘are going to happen’
TOURISM Minister Dionisio D’Aguilar said six passengers testing positive for COVID-19 on a Royal Caribbean International cruise which left The Bahamas last week is not a cause for alarm noting the passengers did not interact with locals.
DON’T BLAME US FOR BEETLE CARGO FIASCO: Shipping agents say sub-contractor was to blame for blunder
The Bahamian shipping agent for a vessel that offloaded wood waste containing an invasive beetle species yesterday pledged to fight impending Customs charges and efforts to make it “a scapegoat”.
NACAC chief Sands presents flowers to Jamaican sprinters
AS the president of the North American, Central American and Caribbean, Bahamian Mike Sands was afforded the opportunity to present the flowers to the Jamaican trio of Elaine Thompson-Herah, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Shericka Jackson for their sweep of the women’s 100 metres final.
Algernon Cargill makes history at Tokyo Olympics
WITH the competition already over for the Bahamas’ two-member team at the 2020 Olympic Games, Bahamas Aquatics president Algernon Cargill made history when he became the first Bahamian to be a part of a medal presentation in the swimming competition.
Burger King expanding ‘where it makes sense’
Burger King management say they are always looking to “expand where it makes sense” after the brand opened its latest restaurant on East Street south.
Tourism chief: COVID test tightening ‘right thing to do’
The Bahamas’ top hotelier yesterday said the government’s tightening of COVID-19 testing requirements for incoming travellers was “the right thing to do” in a bid to bring the country’s soaring infection rate under control.
Arawak Cay chief backs loitering ban
The Arawak Cay Association’s president says “one of the good things” about the government’s COVID-19 crackdown is the ban on loitering at the popular Fish Fry destination.
COFFEE AND GLOBALIZATION
ActivTrades
THE etymology of the word offers clues on the history and trajectory of what is, after water and tea, the most popular drink in the world; the English term coffee was adapted from the Dutch koffie, which in turn evolved from the Turkish kahve, itself based on the Arabic qahwah, which I’m told means “dark in colour”. It is believed the plant originates from Ethiopia and Sudan, while the first known reports of coffee being drunk dates from the 15th century, in Yemen, where it had arrived transported by Somali merchants.
