INSIGHT: Time to rock the boat
AS a small island state, The Bahamas is often subject to the whims of other nations. It’s rare that we get to impact world affairs.
WORLD VIEW: Good journalism is like a toothache: it hurts but it warns
REPORTERS Without Borders (RWB) just released its 2018 press freedom report, and, apart from two of them, the lowest mark for rated Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries is “fairly good”. The worst rated, as “problematic”, are Haiti and Guyana. Jamaica is the only CARICOM country rated “good”.
GAIN AN EDGE: Scholarship that opened doors
Lyford Cay scholar Justin Jack didn’t always envision himself going to college when he was growing up in the small settlement of Bluff, South Andros. His community was modest and unassuming. Some neighbours cooked their food with a wood fire and most provided for their needs through self-employment in fishing and crabbing. A college education was not one of Justin’s early aspirations.
POLICE ADVICE: How to resolve conflicts in a peaceful manner
Conflict resolution is when two or more parties find a peaceful solution to a disagreement amongst them.
INSIGHT: The hate-driven society
My more than 41 years of human rights work has led me to the conclusion there is a single underlying force which disproportionately influences the various attitudes, opinions and presumptions which make up the modern Bahamian psyche. Though in outward appearance its manifestations are diverse, this undercurrent can be encapsulated in a single word: hatred.
INSIGHT: An incurable case of foot-in-mouth disease
THERE is seemingly no end to the embarrassing statements that leave the prime minister’s mouth. Although during his tenure as Opposition leader there was no shortage of strange utterances from Dr Minnis, in his capacity as prime minister he has seemed to up the ante on the big stage now that he has a megaphone that reaches out to the rest of the world.
INSIGHT: The growing problem of junk food and obesity
Bahamian athletes taking part in the Commonwealth Games in Australia earlier this month represented - like their fellow competitors - the best of their nation. Amid the training and the competition few would have had time to sit and read a newspaper. If they had, in the columns of The Australian they would have found an article by writer Ruth Ostrow which would have rung many bells. Ruth wrote about the problems of child obesity and its growing impact on developing nations. As Health Minister Duane Sands embarks on a crusade to change Bahamian diets - through education and changing the price of bread basket items - Ruth’s article is worth reading just to know we aren’t alone with obesity crisis The Bahamas faces and how other nations are sharing our experience.
INSIGHT: Britain’s secret biological weapons tests - in The Bahamas
THE little-known fact the country was once used as a site for biological and chemical warfare testing by both American and British governments has resurfaced with local activists drawing links to the need for a functioning Freedom of Information Act.
INSIGHT: Who turned off the lights in Maynard’s head?
BAHAMAS Electrical Utility Managerial Union (BEUMU) president Paul Maynard unleashed a fiery rebuke of the Bahamas Power and Light (BPL) management last week when execs at the utility company said they would be downsizing, effectively making 233 people redundant over an 18-month period.
VIEW FROM AFAR: Liquified gas - a life saver
Finally! Electricity generated from Liquified Natural Gas is on its way to Nassau. It is already being used in Jamaica. The cost benefits have been substantial by reducing the price of electricity. Substantially larger generating capacity is currentl
WORLD VIEW – For a change: Welcome World Bank advice
ATTENDING a World Bank meeting on April 16, I was shocked to hear a senior official of the organisation say that, in addressing fiscal deficits, Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries should not make “shock adjustments”.
POLICE ADVICE: Men are victims of abuse too
IT’S hard for some men to say “I need help”. While the majority of domestic violence victims are women, abuse of men happens far more often than you might expect. Typically, men are physically stronger than women but that doesn’t necessarily make it easier for him to escape the abuse or the relationship. Whatever your circumstances, you can overcome these challenges and escape the violence and abuse.
Hard questions which demand answers
University of The Bahamas Northern Campus has hosted its first Sustainable Grand Bahama conference drawing people from many walks of life including the ministry of Tourism, Environment and Bahamas National Trust, as well as private sector agencies and companies.
INSIGHT: Finding a Bahamian at The Pointe is like playing ‘Where’s Waldo?’
LAST week’s revelations into the lack of native labour representation at New World One Bay St have created quite the punchline. Many concerned citizens across the nation are understandably irate and bewildered as to what the phantom Bahamian labour component is doing on The Pointe’s construction site.
GAIN AN EDGE: Steady hands and a leap of faith
It’s not every day one hears the story of how an undergraduate Bio-Chem major – in pursuit of a career as a cardiothoracic surgeon – is not the optimal choice for the ambitious young heroine, but the story of Candilaria Thompson is just such a story. It’s a story about jumping off cliffs. It’s an adventure story.
