WeblogBahamas.com

"Proper Time" for tax reform in The Bahamas

Rick Lowe

Mr. James Smith, former central bank governor and finance minister told The Tribune Business on December 3, 2009 that The Bahamas needs to restructure the tax system and move away from excise or import tax to a Value Added Tax regime. [More...]

He spoke about a 'lack of revenue buoyancy' which in layman's terms means government revenue cannot support the current level of expenditures.

Lessons in Freedom: Hope versus Reality

Tibor R. Machan

"...There is an element about public choice theory that economists do not emphasize often enough, namely, that the objectives of regulators are often very obscure, unclear, even contradictory."

In his column in The New York Times on June 25, 2009, Judge Richard Posner wrote that "The most promising reform would be to give the Federal Reserve, the National Economic Council or the president’s Council of Economic Advisers the ability to collect and analyze financial intelligence and do emergency planning. Regulators failed to prevent the financial collapse not because they lacked adequate powers but because they lacked information, a culture of inquiry and a contingency plan." But then he immediately adds that "There were abundant warnings of impending economic disaster. Had they been investigated rather than ignored, we might not be in the fix that we are in today."

Bahamians, do you know your constitutional rights?

Adrian Gibson

First published in The Tribune on Tuesday, September 22, 2009 under the byline, Young Man's View.

IN THE Bahamas, it appears that many Bahamians display a complete ignorance of their Constitutional rights and the country's laws. Today, unless it is a right given under the numerated rights of the Constitution, the only supreme instrument that gives and guarantees the right of every citizen is the Constitution.

Going green in The Bahamas? The big announcement

Mind you, I am not opposed to being more conscious of the environment but I wish there was some official tracker of government promises to see how far these grandiose plans get before the mission changes.

Many times these announcements amount to little more than hyperbole to excite a certain segment of the population.

Remember this green light bulb distribution plan?

Finally, we can announce all the great plans we wish, but without a proper cost benefit analysis they amount to little more than wish lists.

SC McPherson: a bright light on a hill of despair in Bahamas Education

Adrian Gibson

First published in The Tribune on Saturday, September 12, 2009 under the byline, Young Man's View.

Champions do not become champions when they win the event, but in the hours, weeks, months and years they spend preparing for it. The victorious performance itself is merely the demonstration of their championship character.

— T. Alan Armstrong—an excerpt from last week’s edition of SC McPherson newsletter to teachers “From the principal’s desk.”

LAST Friday, I bid farewell to my comrades at the SC McPherson Junior High school as I departed the school and my beloved students to pursue my law studies. Today, with all of the issues facing the educational system, SC McPherson continues to stand out as a bright light on a hill of despair.

The Bahamas Government and Judiciary does not hold the patent on lunacy

Sidney Sweeting, DDS

Most Bahamian citizens have been complaining for a long time about the lenient sentences given to the criminals who are destroying the very fabric of our society and fearing that the day is not far off when the rent in the fabric will be beyond repair.

Prominent in the news the past several days has been the case of Maurice Clemmons who shot four policeman in a cafe in Washington State. Let us consider his prior history. He was first incarcerated at the age of 17 facing sentences totalling 108 years. His sentence was reduced to 47 years by Governor Mike Huckabee of Arkansas which then made him eligible for parole. The Governor was interviewed today and stated that "if he had known that he would do something like this he would not have pardoned him." Pardon me Governor, but did some kind of light not go off in your head when you read his history of felony charges? What do these rapists, murderers and pedophiles have to due to give these judges and Governors some clue that they are evil people and should never be allowed in the presence of civilized people, ever.

A new marketing message is needed for the Bahamas

Adrian Gibson

First published in The Tribune on Friday, September 4, 2009 under the byline, Young Man's View.

IN ORDER to encourage notable investments to drive the local economy, we must develop a new marketing message for the Bahamas--one that highlights the synergies of business and leisure opportunities.

As the debate about land usage and crown land continues, it is clear that our governments must seek to use the land to attract native (and foreign) investors to invest in boutique hotels, luxury apartments, housing estates, shopping centres and office premises. In promoting economic diversification and moving towards first-world developmental status, the government and all economic stakeholders throughout the archipelago should set aside industrial development zones that cater to blossoming economic ventures such as fisheries processing, information technology (IT), eco-estate projects, research and development, and so on.

Lessons in Freedom: Why We can But You or I cannot be Great

Tibor R. Machan

The evidence for this is overwhelming and out there for most to observe. Take the Academy Awards, where those receiving Oscars routinely disclaim personal credit but claim it aplenty for the team, the association, the group. Or take most team sports where any mention of one's own superb contribution is suppressed in favor of how great the team has been.

Finally Some Justice in The World!

Jerome Pionder

I just learned with relief, watching the nightly news on ABC, that Maurice Clemmons was shot and killed today by a Police Officer.  If the name does not ring a bell, Maurice Clemmons is the thug who executed four police officers in Parkland, Washington. 

If we had effective Justice in the world today, including the United States of America and the Bahamas, Maurice Clemmons would either have been behind bars or dead long ago, and four police officers would still be alive.

Bahamas Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham and Environment Minister Earl Deveaux should consider "Climategate" when voting at the upcoming Climate Change meeting in Copenhagen

Rick Lowe

For several years now, if one has been sceptical of the global warming come climate change debate, the tongue lashings have been hard and furious from supporters of the idea that governments must do something about this major problem and do it now.

All of a sudden the debate has changed, and the focus is not on climate change, but on a few scientists who seem to have cast aspersions on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change data and recommendations.