What an without foundation argument by Comrade Sandy that PM Christie should “relax the law to allow for Bahamians gambling in casinos, provided He or She can prove a high enough net worth ability to sustain gambling for limited periods like over a month or something like that."
I have given thought to my taking on both popular Comrade talk show hosts Comrades Daryl and Ortland, to clarify their true positions on the legalization of the numbers rackets.

The legalization of the numbers rackets will not do away with their connections to politicians. In fact, even with paying the government's taxes, the revenue will greatly increase for the operators, while their operating costs will actually result in an decline.

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OMG NO! Trying to further separate the different classes of people in the Bahamas by giving the rich rights others don't have because of wealth is downright sickening. Taking away rights is never anyone's benefit, they are losing their liberty which doesn't seem to matter to Mr.Sands. Just because something is legal doesn't mean everyone is going to go out and gamble. If you made cocaine legal today people aren't going to flood the streets with white noses and tweaking. The number houses are actually quite genius and progressive thinking whether the people, Christian council, or politicians like it or not, they are most likely here to stay as long as they provide jobs and contribute to the flow of money in the country. So make gambling legal give us our liberties, and maintain our human rights.
My BLOG: http://tis242.blogspot.com/

Im amazed at how Bahamians are so lax about being treated as second class citizens.
Are Americans so much better than us? They can gamble in their casinos, but yet we cannot. In fact, we can go gamble in their casinos but not our own. How ridiculous.
Legalize gambling across the board and give your fellow citizens some credit.

Not second class but fifth class citizens in their own home by bastards that have been authenticated by some institution for supposedly higher education outside this Bahamas, and now pompously assume that they are therefore empowered and enabled to speak for the masses of Bahamians. The need to shut up or feel the real deal which is hot sand slamming...`All I want to do is zoom zoom zoom in you're boom boom.´ And don’t forget the Burma Road riots against injustice.

These high mulatto official Negros are the ones that have consistently espouse the concept that we all need a leader, so long as they are in the driver seat...which inherently endorses the belief that one need not be accountable for their own every action and destiny. In other words, little idiotic boy and girls (as these inflated Negros would like us Bahamians to think of ourselves as) take what you are given and shut up. But believe you me a day of reckoning is almost here and our supposedly well trained policemen will have never seen the likes of what is heading our way, if our politicians and preachers don’t straighten up and fly right.

I say that no beach in the Bahamas should ever be exclusive in that a Bahamian could not frequent it, so long as he does not disturb the peace or destroy real or personal property of other visitors or hotel owners. This is irrespective of whether the Bahamian is a certified official Negro or not. Of course there should be adequate security at all beaches, period.

First things first, give the masses of our people their fair share of income from legitimate jobs in agriculture and fisheries, build fish hatcheries for the future of our ocean, crank up our export markets for our fruits, vegetables, and fresh fish around the world, purchase and install an efficient Tram system in the Nassau and remove all Jitneys from our streets, and preacher to the preacher that they are useless and needless for in that day and hour every man shall be judge on his own merit - not the preacher for his church, nor those that suffered at the hands of a lawyer for the lawyer that made them suffer.

Legalize gambling across the board, now!

Not second class but fifth class citizens in their own home by bastards that have been authenticated by some institution for supposedly higher education outside this Bahamas, and now pompously assume that they are therefore empowered and enabled to speak for the masses of Bahamians. The need to shut up or feel the real deal which is hot sand slamming...`All I want to do is zoom zoom zoom in you're boom boom.´ And don’t forget the Burma Road riots against injustice.

These high mulatto official Negros are the ones that have consistently espouse the concept that we all need a leader, so long as they are in the driver seat...which inherently endorses the belief that one need not be accountable for their own every action and destiny. In other words, little idiotic boy and girls (as these inflated Negros would like us Bahamians to think of ourselves as) take what you are given and shut up. But believe you me a day of reckoning is almost here and our supposedly well trained policemen will have never seen the likes of what is heading our way, if our politicians and preachers don’t straighten up and fly right.

I say that no beach in the Bahamas should ever be exclusive in that a Bahamian could not frequent it, so long as he does not disturb the peace or destroy real or personal property of other visitors or hotel owners. This is irrespective of whether the Bahamian is a certified official Negro or not. Of course there should be adequate security at all beaches, period.

First things first, give the people their fair share of income from legitimate jobs in agriculture and fisheries, build fish hatcheries for the future of our ocean, crank up our export markets for our fruits, vegetables, and fresh fish around the world, purchase and install an efficient Tram system in Nassau and remove all Jitneys from our streets, and preach to the preacher that they are useless and needless for in that day and hour every man shall be judge on his own merit - not the preacher for his church, nor those that suffered at the hands of a lawyer for the lawyer that made them suffer.

Legalize gambling across the board, now!

One thing about you JohnBrown your comments do make sense but we still must realize that as Bahamians, we put ourselves in the position we are in. Just look at our news the other day; teenagers stabbing one another over a dice game. Judge what would happen in a casino. Staff members at our local number houses are being verbally insulted because a ticket WE purchased and left the establishment was incorrect after being urged to check for accuracy before leaving.

Again I stress the meaningful sense of your comment of the beaches but again the attitude and manner of which some Bahamians conduct themselves is having a negative affect on US as the total population. I worked for a few months on a public beach occupied by visitors and locals and again the locals there portrayed a negative look for the entire population. Visitors would be sun tanning wearing their beach-wear and the locals (mainly males in small groups) would stare and in some cases disturb the guests with their annoying and senseless conversations. In most situations besides the female guests requiring security assistance, most of them were with partners which escalated a different level of problem when their partner whom left to go to the restroom or juice-bar would return.

Its sad that the innocent must suffer for the guilty but the best we could do now is to teach our younger generation the 'doos' and 'donts' so that in the future the good would out weigh the bad. Bahamians know better but like I stated weeks back we only tend to do what is inspected of us and not what is expected. For months our law officials have been stressing the importance of the use of seat belts, whereas for years when we travel abroad we always knew. Again, the greater percentage of the population is only doing what is inspected of them, making it hard for the percentage whom know what is expected to participate in various fields.

What an insult to the Bahamian people.

Amazing how the Chinese government are invited by Bahamaland's government to own gambling Casinos, but in their red China they are not legal?

http://tribune242.com/users/photos/2012…

Why are people offended by these comments. There TRUE.

Comrade "Sandy" owes Bahamaland an quick apology for what seems to be his reckless attempt at promoting the biggest of all gambling myths; "If I keep gambling my luck is going to change. I'll win back the money I've lost if I just keep gambling."

Funny he should be saying this at a time when the Chinese government still refuses to license casinos in China, for tourists or locals? First, the Chinese should return our beaches back to the natives?

Unfortunately, his ridiculous statement, follows on the heels of new revelations by local Pastors, who seems to be anticipating some spiritual collection plate awakening toward legalizing the numbers rackets with their as equally reckless statements that they have become "sanitized" to the tax benefits from making an criminal act an legal business? 

What's next for the Comrade Pastors; "Legalized Online Bingo gambling for their Houses of Worship? But would the Pastors be as willing to pay taxes on their new found cash cows? I didn't think so.

I'd suggest these "sanitized" pastors get back to talking with Jesus, instead talking for the criminal numbers rackets operators?

Pastors, try shinning the light on Jesus from your Sunday morning pulpits, not sermons on; "how to dream numbers to hand over your hard-earned wages, to further enrich the already deep pockets of the rackets operators?"

Get real PM Christie. Is placing the eradication of the increased poverty left behind by your former law partner, into the clutches of the Numbers Rackets Operators, what you promised during the 2012 General Elections when you promised that your new government would work to eradicate Bahamaland's poverty? 

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Positiveinput, I agree with you that too many young, inexperienced and mature slimeball men of our ethnicity practice trying to strangle the goose that is here on our beaches laying the golden eggs.

To such disgraceful behaviour, we should pass out fliers to all young and mature persons on the beaches and through out the Bahamas, print it in the newspapers and announce a new law with damming penalty that will be enforced, which states that effective immediately, should any native individual or group of native individuals chose to make a beach user feel uncomfortable with their advances, unwelcome conversation, unwelcome stares or through any aggressive conduct that may be levelled against another peaceful native or tourist while they are recreating on OUR beaches, they will automatically be arrested and placed in jail for ten years, without trial, bail or hope for bail. And if any lawyer or judge opposes this line of treatment of the young and stupid that youth is wasted on or mature degenerates, then impose the same treatment on those cunning resisters to direct positive change. Believe me they will change their line of thinking rather quickly. Nevertheless, if you are male member of our society and you can not read then it was your own fault that you did not hear about the new law, but you will pay with your life just the same. And as government property you will be transported to the Agricultural Chain Gang ACG where you will work while shackled together for ten hours each day in the hot sun raising produce for export purposes, working for the enrichment our economy. There should be no free lunch for voyeurs, free loaders, criminals or want to be criminals, who are decidedly impolite or inconsiderate to other people. As I once hear the president of Brazil say that politicians will only do right when the people give them no other choice. Well, the police and upstanding citizens have to be vigilant in shipping theses want to be thugs along with their lawyers and politicians onto the ACG plantation. Because desperate young people and mature slimeballs will only do right too when they are given no other choice. I have previously spoken about this matter in detail. I say start tomorrow and teach the our Bahamian scum that what we have to offer them as a cure of their undisciplined posturing is unadulterated pain (once each month with three lashes of the cat o’ nine tail per person to help rehabilitate them while at the ACG) and after the first 100 youthful and law nreaking mature members are added to the ACG and the news gets back to their parents, family and the community at large, we shall show no mercy until, after those refurbished men are released ten years later and has learned how to tip toe to sh_t, respectfully in a civil society. Even in Mexico, on most of their beaches they have machine gun toting military and police men continuously monitoring said beaches. Why can’t we arrange something similar?

I am not a wealthy Bahamian....and I do not take offense. Like it or not some Bahamians.... sometimes do not know how to act. Do we really want the tourists to see us acting loud and boisterous in the casinos..maybe even drunk and incoherent. Its sad to say some Bahamians dont know how to act civilized, and letting everyone into those casinos is a bad idea and will embarrass us all.

I am about action not talk. Maybe we do not want tourist to see Bahamians acting out, but they will respect us more if we grab whomever the culprit is and when shackled and placed under arrest, we can then apologize to the tourist while informing them that they can be sure that this uncultured, criminal person will be immediately jailed for the mandatory ten year period and never have the chance to cause such a disturbance again. I spoke on this mater previously. I have witness swift enforcement like this in Atlantic city, and in Los Vegas, Nevada.

Its our right to be able to enter the casino and play in our own country. There is nothing bad about this idea, so long as you have the goon squad visible and ready to transport any and all fools to the ACG. Examples of harsh enforcement must be employed for compliance, period. No Bahamian patronising such an establishment irrespective of the ring they might wear shall be exempt from this system of painful swift justice. No pain no gain!

its as simple as night and day ,if we want to continue to have one of the best standard of living in the region we can not let our hoodlums gamble with our guest ,,,and we can,t have the police at the door turning away the unruley, loud mouth ,dangerous youth of today ,,i,m a realist and we ,not all but many ,don,t act right ...babies bringing up babies today have no idea how to teach manners ,the grandmothers used to do it but now granny only bout 40 yrs old herself ...i was rough when i was young ,i,m 50 now and these young brothers scare the sh,,t out of me ,,can u imagine Mrs and Mrs Smith from Stubbenville Ohio

You're right 'concernedcitizen' but look at our hoodlums when travelling. No one needs to tell them remove their shoes or belt when passing security. No one needs to tell them have a valid drivers licence to rent a vehicle. No one needs to tell them to buckle up their seat belts when a car is in motion. These same hoodlums know how to use yes sir, no sir, good morning, excuse me and so on when appropriate. Yet thats when they are in a foreign country, however when they are in their own homeland all of this training they pocess vanishes. Why, I guess because there is no visible and swift punishment for those who dont know how to act in public. The time for us to part-take in various opportunities have long gone but thankfully if we teach our children now, someday, their children would not be judge because of the actions of the simple minded.

You see concernedcitizen in every gambling establishment that I have frequented in America Europe and the Bahamas, there are rules that one must abide by or visit hell. Now, yes there are loud mouth dangerous young men out here, but they have never had their balls placed unceremoniously in a wise grip pliers and the danger in them tightened straight out of them after repeated douses or this treatment are administered to them once a day for one month, and they are made to do ten years of hard labour on the ACG. We need some examples, quick, period.

Now as far as having the best standards of living in the region, for those that that oppose change like the doctors, lawyers, judges, members of a certain secret order, or other lower members of the illuminate, then yes, you are right. But if such groups only constitute less than twenty percent of the total population, as unemployment skyrocket coupled with crime because of useless soft-belly politicians making bad decision and those barbaric members of big time lodges that support such infantile responses from their politician, then the our standard of living is very poor. Bob Marley said, `I'd rather be a freeman in my grave than be a puppet or a slave.´And believe me one day the organized poor `Wretched of the earth´will rise up and exact swift justice on all those that fumbled the ball over the course of the last forty years - as has been done in countless African countries - and change the entire system even if it becomes similar to that of the Chinese. Then only the strong will survive because America will stand by for a while as the racist beast that she is and let us destroy ourselves, before coming in and taking over this drunk and disorderly group of fourth class citizens and Haitians, who have once again served well as another example to the world of black people's inability to effectively govern themselves. Help! Help! My people do not be hoodwinked, the Chinese government, though powerful businesspersons, have with brutal force taken the land of millions of their own people and left them with absolutely nothing because of greed and the opportunity to deprive farmers and the poor while selling and redeveloping such stolen property into condos which are then sold to stupid western oriented business men and women. I love my Bahamas and as I write this message I am listening to and being moved by Millie Jackson interpretation of “the rap” of `If Loving You (my Bahamas) Is Wrong Then I Don’t Want To Be Right.´ And my response to the politicians of my country in Millie Jackson's own words sung in concert in London in the 80’ she said, `Fuck You!´

Now you little simple minded critics, before you remove this text, be bold enough to see if it’s the TRUTH or not for your own education.

REMEBER A COUPLE YEARS AGO AT MARINA VILLAGE WHEN ALL THE KIDS WERE HANGING OUT ,SOME SECURITY TRIED TO CONTROLL SOME TROUBLE MAKERS AND THEY SHOT THEM ,,IT IS TOO IMPORTANT AN INDUSTRY TO RISK OR EXPERIMENT WITH ,WE HAVE A HIGHER PER CAPITA MURDER RATE THAN NYC ....J BROWN WE DON,T KNOW HOW TO BEHAVE AND ITS US ,LETS STOP DITCHING RESPONSIBILTY ,THERE ARE NO AMERICANS HERE KILLING US OR CHINESE ,,ITS US ROBBING, RAPING, STEALING AND KILLING ONE ANOTHER

i agree it is too important an industry to try some social experiment in ...lets stop babies having babies ,and start teaching manners ,but these two generations 15 years old to 35 can,t be around civilized people...its too risky to our livelyhood

This is not an experiment concernedcitizen, I say that if our policemen are truly bigger than life as they purport to be when giving out a traffic citation to a harmless member of society, while grandstanding as gods, then Let’s lose about 200 hundred of these windbags in death, if need be to bring a screeching halt to violent crime. They knew the risk to life and limb when they joined the force, so let them pay with their lives while trying to benefit the masses, and not the politicians that probably deserve death. I say use fully armed POLICE ready to kill or be killed backed up by strong laws to stop the murderers, and then said police step out into our wild, wild west 21 by 7 and take over, shut down any area and arrest any and all criminals even potential criminals and give them ten years on the Agricultural Chain Gang, hard labour will break the hardest heart - on questions asked. Sorry. I believe and know that this mess can be stopped with the drop of a hat; violent crime can be terminated quickly. But are you willing to stand up and take on the politicians that are the biggest profiteers from crime, concernedcitizen? The problems of unemployment and being without can make any woman or man's heart go cold. People who relinquish their rights while comparing the numbers of crimes in the Bahamas to NYC are cowards. In fact, the casinos mobsters, if given a free hand by our police wimps and government officials could instil so much fear in the hearts of the native criminals through mass slaughtering, again, if given a free hand, so much so that there would never be even a pick pocket lurking around the casinos. Believe me, Buddy! I know what I’m talking about…

Washington D.C was labelled Death City USA once. Looked at happened, why, and what was done to elevate real estate value and bring violent crime to an abrupt halt. Next came Detroit as Death City. It’s politicians playing games with the citizenry’s lives. And the police who only to serve and protect the politicians lives, and then are we supposed to feel one iota of grief when one of them die in disservice to the people, while protecting only the politicians.

As far as ditching responsibility is concerned, show me the monetary gains that Bahamians have made since the election as far as new none politically biased economic recovery programs that’s benefiting the masses of Bahamian youth, to date? To all idiots, if a people are not able to meet their basic needs for food cloths and shelter, they will not be ready to assume responsibility for instilling quality social values within their offsprings. They are not ducking moral responsibility they just don't have any reason to teach such madness when so disenfranchised from the main stream financially.

Concerning Chinese and American you have a very limited understanding of world past and recent history, crime and war; and how our country has been sold from under our feet without protest while we have slept. Open up your eyes!

NO ONE HERE IS STARVING ,QUALITY SOCIAL VALUES BRINGS U FOOD CLOTHES AND SHELTER ,NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND ,DUDE ARE U SERIOUS MASS SLAUGTHERINGS,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,LMAO

In the hands of a great master all materials are useful: so we lost two generations like the USA, then lets make sign post out of our criminals for the next generation to see what happened to the big and bad criminals, as was the case with the defiant ones that died on Alcatraz. Face the economic issues first not with words but deeds. Now, how many babies do you have all over the place untrained and without hope, concerned citizen? If not then grab some that’s out there stranded and give guidance, as I have been doing for many years, and shut up with the crying. Enough already... Do! Do! Do¨!

JOHN BROWN YOU HAVE CALLED ME A COWARD AND QUESTIONED THE WAY I RAISED MY TWO CHILDREN THAT OUR NOW LAW ABIDING ADULTS .I HAVE NO BABIES ALL OVER THE PLACE .WE LIVE IN A FREE DEMOCRATIC SOCIETY THERE IS NO ONE HOLDING ANYBODY BACK OR DOWN ...THERES IS NO GRAND COSPIRACY TO KEEP THE MASSES DOWN ,ALTHOUGH THERE ARE CROOKED POLITICIANS ,POLICE ,PLUMBERS ETC .WE ARE FREE TO MAKE WHATEVER WE WANT OF OUR LIVES ..IF SOMEONE DOESN,T FEEL THEY ARE GETTING A GOOD EDUCATION READ AND BETTER THEMSELVES ..IF YOU WANT TO UNLEASH OUR HOMEGROWN MONSTERS ON OUR GUEST THATS GREAT .NO LEADER FNM OR PLP WILL EVER CONSIDER IT SO THE POINT IS MUTE ..

Many of you with your complacent comments are a sad excuse for being Bahamians with brains. There is no easy way out of this mess unless you are willing to make all of our industries a priority and then together restore some semblance of sanity to your system of government with swift hard justice

You amaze me to no end, in that I sense that your feathers a being ruffled a bit. Now, what have you done for those that are less fortunate, Concernedcitizen? When you see a basketball or tennis superstar, what you are really seeing is the results of a village of persons shaping that individual that could have otherwise become a full fledged home grown monster. When you see a home grown monster and you have had an opportunity to encourage or guide one of them into the correct path, but you retreated into me, myself and I for my children only posture, then what you have sown or not sown due to a lack of wisdom you will reap. There are countless examples of those that have been awaken by the pains of prison to achieve relative greatness (jail, which many like you might have avoided through your secret order affiliation during your rough years) but sometime for order to be established extreme pain has to be administered, and Nassau need not restrict our rights and the rights of our people, but be prepared sufficiently so as to beat criminals brains in and then place them on the ACG farm. It is time to administer absolute pain with no surrender until violent crime has been stopped. If our police are faking then they need to feel the cat o’ nine tail to rejuvenate them, too, before they are taken out by none lackadaisical criminals on the prowl. Its face to face confrontation time, with no excuses. police should simply tighten up on ever person that they feel suspicion towards before a event in bad taste occurs at a casino where they have the right to debar anyone at anytime. See, I remember back in the day people like Corporal Marks and others that I could name, they placed fear in hearts of criminals and was ready at any time night or day to go and die for the law. Bear in mind that PLP, FNM and DNA are all one and the same and can be replaced or abolished, if the people only knew the power that they have in their hands and did not take it for granted.

HOW DO YOU KNOW WHAT I DID OR DIDN,T DO WITH ANYBODY ,BRO YOU BASICALLY ADVOCATE A POLICE STATE ,THEN YOU ADVOCATE MASS SLAUGHTERINGS ATS THE HANDS OF THE CASINO OWNERS ,YOUR WORDS NOT MINE ,,THAT WAS ENOUGH FOR ME ,,I,M A REALIST , I,M NOT INTO POLICE STATE SOLUTIONS THAT WILL NEVER BE ...

LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING JB ,I ONCE GOT ARRESTED ON A FRIDAY NIGHT AND THE POLICE OFFERED A DEAL BUT I WAS TIRED AND WANTED TO GET OUT OF THE GAME ,,I RODE IN THE VAN MOST OF THE NIGHT AS THEY TRIED TO UP THE DEAL ..A THERE WAS A FUNCTION ON BAY STREET THAT NIGHT ..ALL NIGHT THIS SQUAD RODE JUMPING OUT ON GROUPS OF YOUNG MEN COMING FROM THE INNER CITY HEADING FOR BAY STREET .THEY GRAB THEM BEAT THE SH,,T OUT OF THEM WHIP THEM SADISTICLEY WITH TAMARIND SWITCH AND TOLD THEM CARRY YOUR SO AND SO ASS BACK OVER THE HILL ..THIS WENT ON FROM 9 AT NIGHT UNTIL 2 IN THE MORNING ..EVEN I ,A BAD DUDE WAS AMAZED BY THE SHEER BRUTALITY OF IT ..THE ONLY THING ALL THAT VIOLENCE DID WAS PROMOTE MORE VIOLENCE ,,WE DISCIPLINE OUR CHILDREN W/ VIOLENCE ,THAT ONLY TEACHES PEOPLE THAT WHEN THINGS DON,T GO YOUR WAY USE VIOLENCE.

So police been doing that from Go...wow!

I could not sit by and allow myself and my great Bahamian People be attacked!
Part 1

*Happy Independence to all of the real Bahamians, not the imposters, the real Proud Bahamians especially to you John Brown, Tal Russell, Jason Cooper456, Xmana, Former Expat.

What is so ridiculous is the fact that on this 2012 Independence Day, there are persons on tribune242.com spewing statements that are classic examples as to why Slavery against many (The Jews/Women/Children/Blacks/Asians/Indians) lasted so long, why the KKK and other organizations with the same message of demeaning an entire race/class/nationality as a whole that are still lingering by a thread today who as a whole have been so successful in the past rather than existing with a state of mind to judge a man or woman individually by the content of his or her character but guess what, those of you with that message will fail because the Bahamian people who clearly do not include you whom you clearly do not know are made up of the most hard working, loyal, dedicated law abiding citizens on this planet.

Crime and other forms “Unsavory Behavior” are not limited to any Nationality or the Bahamas.

I do not know who you imposters are claiming to know the entire Bahamian population of 300 plus thousand to say (especially robert sands) that being a Bahamian means that we are not “Disciplined” but let me tell you that I and many other Bahamians are contributing positively to this society and we are quite "Disciplined".

That fact that you feel that I as a Bahamian should not have the right to pull a slot machine or to sit at a table in a casino on the side of a foreigner (whom you clearly feel are more human than I am) because of other persons who happen to share the same nationality that I have choose on their own to act uncivilized is the greatest insult you can ever state to me and every other law abiding Bahamian and is completely ridiculous.

In the hotels with Casinos in the Bahamas, Bahamians eat at the restaurants, party at the night clubs, drink at the bars, occupy the hotel rooms, use the water facilities, why do you people have a problem with a Bahamian playing in the casino especially if they are occupying a room at the very same resort with a casino?

LISTEN ,HE /SHE I AM A BAHAMIAN ,WHEN YOU ARE CUFFED IN THE BACK OF A VAN WITH THE POLICE PUNCHIN YOU IN THE STOMACH EVERY !/2 HOUR TO TRY TO GET U TO PAY THEM MORE ,THERES NOT MUCH YOU CAN DO ,SECOND ,YOU CAN WRITE A THOUSAND WORDS THEY ARE STILL NOT GOING TO LETS US GAMBLE IN THE CASINOS ,,THIRD ALTHOUGH IT BRUISES OUR TENDER LITTLE EGO,S TO ADMIT IT WE HAVE VERY LITTLE WITH OUT FORIEGNERS ,NO MATTER HOW MANY TIMES THE POLITICIANS TELL US HOW GREAT WE ARE ..YOU KNOW WHY WE GET BAD REVIEWS IN TOURISM ,WHITE PEOPLE AREN,T DUMB THEY CAN TELL WHEN WE DON,T LIKE THEM AND OUR SMILING IN THEIR FACE JUST FOR THEIR MONEY ..GROW UP FACE IT,WE ARE A LITTLE TINY COUNTRY THAT SURVIVES BECAUSE OF PROXIMITY TO THE U/S .WITH OUT THOSE RICH WHITE THAT COME HERE FOR OUR BEACHES ETC ,WE HAVE VERY LITTLE ,IF WE DIDN,T HAVE THE BEACHES THE SAND AND SUN AND GAMBLING HOW MANY PEOPLE YOU THINK WOULD PAY TO COME HERE TO SEE JUNKANOO ...

Part 2

You might as well ban Bahamians from the Casinos and while you are at it, ban Bahamians from associating anywhere a foreigner would associate, fire all of the Bahamians out of the hotel and casinos and hire foreigners and Ban Bahamians from the Hotel and casino grounds completely since you Robert sands positiveinput, Islanbatman, bri, concernedcitizen, proudloudandfnm all feel we are to stupid and uncivilized to pull a slot machine in a casino on the side of a tourist because you feel Stabbings and gun fights would become the norm in our casinos?

What is wrong with you people?

There are over 300,000 Bahamians in the Bahamas and many more living all around the world, how can you say that each and every one of us should be barred from playing in a casino in our own country because you don’t want us around the tourists?

You should be ashamed of yourselves and to you robert sands in addition to you positiveinput, Islanbatman, bri, concernedcitizen, proudloudandfnm, you owe all of us law abiding Bahamian citizens an apology.

What about the tourists, do the tourists have a problem with me and the other civilized Bahamians playing in the casino with them?

I can post the link of a Video on Youtube to prove that the tourist who were asked if they have an issue with Bahamians playing and even owning a casino have an issue with it, they said no.

Have you ever asked the tourist what their opinion is before making these comments?

The tourists are just as human as I am and every other Bahamian living in the Bahamas or abroad.

The tourists face the same issues in their countries and in some cases more issues that we face in the Bahamas?

Stop demeaning the Bahamian people as a whole.

The next time you robert sands in addition to you positiveinput, Islanbatman, bri, concernedcitizen, proudloudandfnm travel to any other country and you try to rent a car, go to a restaurant, go to a shopping mall, or better yet, go to play in one of their “CASINOS” I want you to come back on this website, tell the truth and state how it you felt when the government of those countries (who also depend on tourism) you visit decided to “BAN YOU” from spending your hard earned money as adults in their establishments where other tourists and locals visit because the previous “BAHAMIANS” who on their own individual accord chose the road of being unruly, did not pay their bill or acted in a way that warranted them from being banned from coming back?

Tell us how it feels to be barred because of complete strangers who share your nationality and then hopefully you would understand how your comments are beyond belief?

You owe all of us an apology and to the rest of us Bahamians especially on this Independance Day 2012 who do not share the same state of mind as robert sands positiveinput, Islanbatman, bri, concernedcitizen, proudloudandfnm , again, Happy Independence to you.

THIS INDEPENDANCE DAY WHEN WE PRATTLE ON ABOUT WOMENS SUFFERAGE AND THEY STILL DON,T HAVE EQUAL RIGHTS TO PASS ON THEIR CITIZENSHIP ..WHAT WOULD YOU PROPOSE ARMED POLICE AT THE DOOR TO WEED OUT THE UNRULYS ,DIE STUBBS ETC ETC

***And to you robert sands, your own boss Mr. Sarkis Izmirlian is requesting that Bahamians be allowed in the casinos, your own boss disagrees with your opinion, in fact his statements are on this very same website, shame.
Sarkis Izmirlian supports legal gambling for Bahamians
By CANDIA DAMES ~ Guardian News Editor ~ candia@nasguard.com:
Baha Mar Chairman and CEO Sarkis Izmirlian said he would welcome Bahamians gambling in the Crystal Palace Casino at Cable Beach and thinks the government would benefit substantially from a national lottery.
In an exclusive interview with The Nassau Guardian, Izmirlian said given the substantial revenue shortfall being experienced by the government, a national lottery could be the way to go.
"It happens everywhere in The Bahamas," he said, referring to gambling. "You might as well legalize it and let the government benefit from those tax revenues."
Asked whether he would welcome Bahamians gambling in his casino, Izmirlian said he already welcomes Bahamians everywhere on the properties at Cable Beach.
"One thing that we've done, not just in the design of Baha Mar, but in the hotels today, is we've tried to embrace the community," he said. "I feel that some of the other resorts have turned their backs a little bit on Bahamians and some didn't even use the word Bahamas in their advertising. We're different from that; not only did we embrace the design and culture, but we want Bahamians to come in our resort."
Izmirlian said there are very few jurisdictions that don't welcome locals in casinos.
He added that gaming in The Bahamas continues to be hurt by outdated laws that fail to make the jurisdiction competitive.
"Our gaming laws in The Bahamas are just not competitive versus other jurisdictions in the U.S. and other places in the world, and we really need urgently to address our gaming regulations here in The Bahamas," he said, adding that Baha Mar supports a list of recommendations the Bahamas Hotel Association presented to the government.
"It's a detailed list of recommendations which we believe should be implemented as soon as possible. We need to be competitive on the types of games we can offer [and] how quickly we can implement new games as they become available on the market. And we also need to realize that there are certain residents here, whether it's permanent residents or others, who should be allowed to gamble."
He pointed out that American entertainer Patti Labelle was unable to gamble in The Bahamas because she was on a work permit for a concert.
"These sorts of things are hurting us and there are many examples of this," Izmirlian said.
"I think if the government wants The Bahamas to be competitive [in gaming], they need to implement these changes. Today, it doesn't make sense that we can't compete with jurisdictions that are right on our doorstep. If we're going to have gaming then we should be competitive and that's what I hope that the government will implement."

What a Shame.

Wow, we truly have some passionate Bahamians out there and that is a great thing. Now I must admit that I have known Mr. Sands for many years but this is one time I have to disagree with his statement. While we all agree that there are indeed some Bahamians out there who may not know how to act, I agree with the pro-rights comments above because why would anybody agitate to ban them self from a business. I have personally been a victim of discrimination over my years as a young lad right here in the Bahamas because there was a time when I could not as a black man walk downtown or visit the Savoy Theatre. That is a time that many of you young persons may not know about but believe me, it was and still is not a good feeling. Also, I have read some of the anti-rights arguments above and I dont know who you are John Brown or Sands Marco but you are both spot on, especially due to the fact that some of the anti-rights comments are the same used by the oppressors back in the 1950's 1960's Bahamas. The oppressors also said to keep the black Bahamians from downtown around the white tourists because they dont know how to act, I personally heard it said over and over. Segragation was not only custom during those times but also law. My mother on numerous occasions had to walk through the back door of many establishments with me just because we were black. Again, to say that once you are a Bahamian, you should be auto-matically disqualified from playing in a casino because you are un-disciplined is dis-heartening especially coming from a Black Bahamian so my brother, Sandy, I have agreed with a lot of statements from you over the years but I have to disagree with you 100% on this one.

I have no intentions personally on gambling in the casino but who knows, if a relative or friend of mine from abroad were to visit the Bahamas and ask me to join them in a few games in the casino, it truly is silly that I have to tell them that I cant go because I am a Bahamian, I have never been to jail, I work, pay my taxes but because I am Bahamian, I cant play in the casino with them.

This is how we Black Bahamians were treated before Majority Rule Day and its unfortunate to hear some of you that may not have experienced it first hand promote what you know nothing about personally.

Anyway, I hope some of you anti-rights proponents reconsider your thoughts.

Sidney Strachan Esq

YOU CAN GO WITH YOUR FRIEND ,YOU JUST CAN,T GAMBLE...READ WHAT I WROTE ABOUT WHEN I WAS ARRESTED ,THAT WASN,T BEFORE 1973 ,THAT WAS ABOUT 10 YRS AGO ,AND THERE WAS NOT WHITE PERSON WITH IN MILES OF US .THOSE POLICE RODE WHAT WOULD HAVE BEEN COLLINS WALL ALL NIGHT WHIPPING OUR BLACK BROTHERS BACK TO THE INNER CITY , I DON,T PARTICULARLY LIKE THE WORD GHETTO ...I,M SEEN ENOUGH TO BE A REALIST

Happy Independence Day Sands Marco you are a beautiful spirit, and peace and blessings go out you Mr Sidney Strachen Esq for your contribution. I thought for a moment that I was out there alone doing battle with Lucifer’s bad seeds and no one was paying attention. But now I am not searching for the light, because now I can see the light shining bright from the voice of people that are my age. Thank you all for your comments and positive position statements especially from old dogs like myself. I remember when the PM first came back from London, even then he looked whiter that the white man...shocking but true. That was from his slicked down white-man-looking-hair, coupled with his almost white features and demeanour. Then he gradually started to change and look more like a normal light skinned Bahamian should with peas and corn in his head, like his great father the taxi cab driver looked, as opposed to looking like a son of Sir Stafford Sands or one of those Bay Street Boy. Nevertheless, in him, while in that London temple, the seeds of greed were sufficiently sown and began to flourish within him, so as to eventually try and seize control and repress average Bahamians rights for pecuniary compensation from outsiders, because that type of shameful desire was already rooted within him. It is from that egomaniacal position that he now has the heart to try to exclude more decent and less dirty Bahamian citizens from casino gambling by refusing to even give such matter consideration during the national lottery referendum; this was a convenient way of placing our rights on the back burner indefinitely. Well, I can definitely tell you one thing as a promise Mr PM, and not as a threat, that you had better not try to bring forth a Bahamian oil referendum no time during the next four years and 9 months, and believe that Bahamians will sit idly by and be easily deceived once again. You had better establish numerous world class fish hatcheries quickly, buy a fleet of trawlers to pump up our fishing industry to a world class level, instead of giving away our fish under the cover of night for possible kick backs from the Chinese and other poachers, like you past law partner in crime. And then make our Agriculture industry prosper with the energy of shackled youthful criminals, without discrimination or the use of your ring insofar as their placement on the ACG is concerned. If we have oil we need to hold on to it for another ten years and allow yourselves a chance to benefit from the fishing, agricultural, casino, hotel and recreational sport industries and then we might consider selling our oil at a premium at a future date subsequent to next ten years time frame.

FIRST I,M A FISHERMAN AND ANOTHER 30 HARD WORKING BOATS OUT THERE WOULD COLLAPSE OUR INDUSTRY ,THERES NOT THAT MUCH FISH,CRAWFISH ,SECOUND THERE WILL BE NO REFERENDOM ON OIL THATS ALL READY DECIDED ,THIRD BECAUSE OF SOIL CONTENT YOU CAN GROW A TOMATOE IN THE DR SHIP IT TO MIAMI THEN HERE ,CHEAPER THAN YOU CAN GROW HERE IN BULK .WE DON,T HAVE THE VOLCANIC SOIL AND YOUR NOT GOING TO GET OUR PRISONERS TO WORK HARD LABOR ,ITS JUST NOT GOING TO HAPPEN ,,,,CAN WE PLEASE START LIVING IN THE REAL WORLD AND GIVE REAL SOLUTIONS ,,LET ME GIVE U A SCENERIO ,START SAVING UR MONEY ,IF CUBA OPENS UP ,AND SOMEDAY IT WILL, THOSE CUBANS WILL JUMP AND SMILE FOR THAT YANKEE DOLLAR AND ALL OUR ARROGANCE AND PRECIEVED SPECIALNESS WILL DISSAPEAR INTO POVERTY AND MAYHEM ...IF WE LOSE A HALF MILLION VISITORS A YEAR WE CAN NOT SERVICE OUR DEBT AND PAY OUR CIVIL SERVICE,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,..THE REALIST

ITS TOO BAD U DON,T LIKE WHITE PEOPLE ,SINCE THEY ARE 90% OF OUR GUEST AND WE ARE DEPENDANT ON THEM....I LIKE ANYONE IF THERE NICE AN HONEST,GOD MADE ALL OF US,

#1
You can try your endeavour best concernedcitizen to justify segregation and discrimination against all Bahamian citizens but at the end of the day you are wrong concerned citizen.

Firstly, no worries John Brown, there are billions of people in the world who agree that discrimination and segregation is wrong and your additional comments are again spot on.

As it relates to you concerned citizen, you say robert sands never said all Bahamians, Really?

Where in the article does robert sands say all Bahamians who are over 18, civilized and know how to behave “Should” be allowed to gamble in a casino and on the other hand, all Bahamian citizens who are either under 18 along with all Bahamians who chose to act uncivilized and unruly and who break the rules should not be allowed to play in the casino?

Where does robert sands say that concerned citizen?

robert sands stated the following:

“BAHAMIANS are not “disciplined” enough to be able to gamble in casinos locally”

“he is not an advocate of BAHAMIANS being allowed to gamble in casinos”

He also stated the following:

“persons who come on short term work permits”

“persons of high net worth who have permanent residency in the country and people with second homes”

“I do not support BAHAMIANS gambling in the casino.”

A 5 year old reading this can see that he is not stating some Bahamians, he is stating “BAHAMIANS” and guess what, if you are a Bahamian, then you too in the eyes of robert sands are not disciplined enough to play in a casino if you wanted too but yet, you are defending the comments of a persons who is directly insulting you, that is off course if you are indeed disciplined.

How can you not understand that concerned citizen.

What is more ridiculous is the fact that persons who come on short term work permits and permanent residents, supposed they were to fall in love with a Bahamian, (you included), what about that because that is reality since you are one who speaks reality.

#2
How can Mr. Sands agitate for my Aunt-In Law who is a legal foreign resident to have the right to play in a casino but yet, her husband (a DISCIPLINED BAHAMIAN CITIZEN) that’s runs his business in GB with over 100 employees working for him, who pays his taxes, always donates to the community, proudly pays NIB and most of all, has a clean police record cannot go in the same casino his wife can.

What kind of nonsense is that?

Again, you may think that by only discriminating against “DISCIPLINED BAHAMIAN CITIZENS” only they will be affected but no, when a legal foreign resident or another visitor working on a short term permit decides to exercise their right and marry the Bahamian person they love, they are automatically disqualified from playing in the casino as long as they are married to the Bahamian. On the other hand, robert sands is now going to say that my aunt in law should have a right to play in a casino but my uncle should not?

If you don’t believe me, read the Lottery & Gaming Act Chapter 387, here is the link below:

(d) being the husband or wife of any such person as
is mentioned in paragraph (b) or (c) of this
section,
shall take part in gaming to which this Part applies on any
premises in respect of which licences under this Act are for
the time being in force, and any such person who takes part
in gaming as aforesaid is guilty of an offence and liable to
a fine not exceeding five hundred dollars:
Provided that taking part in gaming

http://laws.bahamas.gov.bs/cms/images/L…

In addition, Mr. Izmirlian is still Mr. Sands superior whether you want to accept it or not.
As for Mr. Strachan, I can only imagine what you have gone through personally.

I cannot relate as I have never directly received clear cut discrimination due to my skin colour but on the other hand, if I were to walk into a casino in the Bahamas right now with my friends from Haiti or Jamaica that visit when we have our insurance seminars, I would experience first hand discrimination not due to my skin color but due to the fact that I am a Bahamian in my own country.

Amazing.

In addition, it is obvious by your statement that if a friend or relative asked you to go in the casino to play with them, obviously that would be a waste of time because you would have to stand there as if you are in time out like a big child because not only can you not sit at the tables, you cannot say a word to the dealers or other players without being escorted of the property.

#3

It is obvious that when you say you cant go, it due to you not being allowed to play just as robert sands makes it clear that he speaks of all of us Bahamians as a whole.

Also, what does the police being on the streets arresting persons they suspect have to do with a casino.

The police have the right to interrogate anyone they suspect, that is not limited to the Bahamas, that occurs everywhere, when I was in Charlotte, I was a passenger in a car that was pulled over by a black police officer who made it clear that he suspected us of leaving the scene of an accident but it was discovered shortly there after that we were not the offenders.

That’s the job of the police but what does that have to do with a “DISCIPLINE BAHAMIAN CITIZEN” having the right to gamble in a casino in the Bahamas?

Since you concerned citizen want to make a point as it relates to the races that are affected:

Ethnic groups: African 85%, European 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3%.[1]

That is the ethnic break down of the Bahamian Citizenry. You say Whites that reside here or who are on a work permit here cannot gamble too, that is obvious, however, ethnic group of Bahamians makes up the majority of persons directly affected by the ban against Bahamian casino gaming?

I,M A REALIST ,ITS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN ,WE WILL FOLLOW THE NORM OF THE OTHER COUNTRIES IN OUR REGION ,WHERE THE RESORTS ARE MORE AND MORE BASICALLY CLOSED SHOPS FOR THE GUEST ,,LESS AND LESS CASH ON PREMISES AND MORE JUST ROOM CHARGE /CREDIT CARDS ..IT CUTS DOWN ON THIEVERY ..OUR LEADFRS WILL GO ALONG WITH IT IF THEY WANT TO CONTINUE TO PROVIDE JOBS FOR US ,BUT YOU CAN BELIEVE WHAT EVER YOU WANT .MONEY AND THE MARKET DRIVE LIFE NOT IDEALOGY ..I LIVE ON A FAMILY ISLAND ,THE GUEST THAT HAVE BEEN COMING HERE FOR YEARS ARE NOW RENTING HOMES FROM FORIEGN HOME OWNERS ,,THEY SAY THE PRICESS IN THE BOUTIQUE HOTELS COMBINED WITH THE BAD SERVICE IS NOT WORTH IT ...THATS CALLED SUPPLIE AND DEMAND ,YOU THINK ANY GOV GONNA CHASE THEM OFF OR TELL THE FORIEGNERS DON,T BUILD HOMES TO RENT ,,SH,,T THEN WE WILL BE BACK TO EATING GRUNTS GRITS AND GRAVEY 3 TIMES A DAY..WHEN WE HAD OUR DOPE MONEY ROUND HERE YOU THINK ANY OF USE BUILT SENSEBLE HOMES WE GOOD RENT TO FORIEGNERS ,,NO WE BOUGHT CARS ,GOLD ,BUILT ILL DESIGNED TASTELESS HOMES ..WE ARE NO MORE SPECIAL OR NO MORE BLESSED THAN ANY OTHER SOUL ON THIS PLANET,,,

PLEASE BECUASE I HAVE A DIFFERENT OPINION THAN YOU STOP QUESTIONING IF I AM A BAHAMIAN OR NOT............................I WAS REFERING TO IZMERLIAN SAYING ALL BAHAMIANS SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO GAMBLE .THAT IS NOT WHAT HE SAID ....IF WE ARE STILL AROUND IN 20 YRS LOOK ME UP AND WE,LL DISCUSS IF THE RESORTS HAVE BECOME MORE OPEN TO US OR NOT ..................

SandsMraco you have done a great service to Bahamians and the Bahamas as a whole in having the GUTS to stand up and be counted in defence of our rights - using common sense which is not common - against that ever present unified colonialist mentality which seek to deny us in principle of our God-given rights.

- Concernedcitizen, you are a fisherman. Well, good for you! I suggest that you keep fishing and until we require more fish from you. In truth, if a fool keeps quite he too might be counted as a wise man, but the minute he opens wide his mouth he loses all advantage. Remember that. If there is a big decline in certain types of fish then why the hell is our government not leading the restorative charge by establish hatcheries for the sustenance of said fish? And I put it to you, that if there is substantial decline in the numbers of particular fishes within out fish beds, it's due to the continued raiding of our fish stocks over the past 39 years by the poachers that were allowed in here during the night and day. Thanks to our lovely politicians.

- I treat every man as man with the utmost respect until he disrespects me. And I chose to view the words of "Sandy" and the PM on this matter as being unconscionable and disrespectful to each and every Bahamian. We easily forget that the policeman/woman is my servant and where necessary they must also be disciplined by us accordingly. They puts on their pants one leg at a time, and so do I. On whatever spot of ground that I might lawfully be occupying at any point in time, on any part of this rock called earth, I shall not willingly surrender my rights to a mentality of greed, exploitation, discrimination, segregation, bigotry, xenophobia or malicious intent that has been the methodology of most plantation owners, big business men, politicians, the Bay Street Boy locally and globally, who for the most part happen to be white not only in skin but in the mentality of mass repression, oppression and destruction of a people. Again, I say to you that you are found lacking in world history, concernedcitizen.

we pratice discriminate everday in this country ,women can not pass their citizenship as men can ,,where is the out cry ,,none,, in a referendum we the people voted to continue to to treat women as second class citizens ...jb we have self rule the bay syreet boys are a minor part of our society ,the power brokers now are Wilsons ,Williams,T Wells ,the Davis ,Finlynsons ,,etc ,,all the baystreet boys do now is run business and pay thier national insurance if they didn,t the people would picket them in mass ,can u imagine the Kellys pulling what the two consecutive owners of city market did ,B sands ,J fritzgerald and then B tiger ..if we are so sanctified because of discrimination that happened years ago how come all the trade guys ,i,m a carpenter too ,on the island i live rather work for foriegners cuase we know we will get paid ,,,if you want to know about world history ,there is more black on black killing ,maming ,chop off feet and hands ,in africa now in one year then went on in ten years of the slave trade .presently in the middle east and africa there are 20 million people inslaved againts their will ,the whole slave trade in the 1800 was 10 to 12 million people ..there are good white people and bad white people ,as there are good black people and bad black people ....

the people enslaved in africa in the middle east now are enslaved by people of their own skin color where is the outcry ,young boys enslaved and then loaded down with uzi,s to kill one another ,where is the out cry ,,,,Mr Sands spoke the truth ,because of our behaivour we are not wanted in the casino,s ..it has nothing to do with the white man ,lets stop blaming him for everything and take responsibilty for our own behaivour ....

funny not one reply about women being second class citizens in thier own bahamas ,but a bunch of bad whitey nonsense ,in a hundred years with the races mixing and the latin migration we wil all be brown ....wheres the outcry about women being second class citizens in our Bahamaland ????????????????????????/?oh i forgot we voted to keep it that way ,one of only a hand full of countries in the world that still discreminate againts women in that way

MR JOHN BROWN ET ALL, MAYBE THIS CAN END THIS BACK AND FORTH .YOU KNOW MY POSITION ON US GAMBLING IN THE CASINOS ;HOWEVER ,IF YOU FEEL SO STRONGLEY THAT WE ARE BEING DISCRIMINATED AGAINTS BECUASE OF COLOUR AND NOT BEHAIVOR ,HERE IS A SUGGESTION .HAVE SHIRTS PRINTED SPELLING OUT AN ANTI DISCIMINATION MESSAGE .THEN PROCEED TO THE CASINO ALONE OR EN MASS ,WHEN YOU ARRIVE SIT DOWN AND GAMBLE .UPON YOUR ARREST MAKE USE OF THE MEDIA ,PRINTED AND ELECTRONIC ,TO SATE YOUR CASE ON DISCRIMINATION . I HAVE BEEN INVOLVED WITH THE LAW 3 TIMES IN 2 COUNTRIES OVER ISSUES THAT I FEEL STRONGLEY THE GOVERMENT HAS NO RIGHT TO INTERFER IN..,AFTER MY ARREST I STILL VOCALLY AND IN WRITING EXPESSED MY DISAGREEMENT WHILE ACCEPTING MY PUNISHMENT , I PROPOSE YOU DO THE SAME IF YOU FEELL SO STRONLEY FOR YOUR CAUSE ,I SHALL LOOK FOR REPORTS ABOUT YOUR STAND IN THE MEDIA ..

thank you ,it is not a colour issue ,it is a behaivor issue !!!!and to you john brown i support fish hactheries ..but its not just the poachers ,im out there ,,what about us skinning up all those baby conch behind chub cay ,what about us getting crawfish out of season and saying i,m just taking for a meal .multiply that times 5000 people ands thats alot of crawfish that don,t breed ,,what about us putting a bunch of inner city boys on the defence force that come down the cays port to port ,under land while the hatians are 12 miles out on the bank ,,,,quite taking everything back to racism or our youth will have an excuse to never be responsible ....

c citizen,you are a strong and truly patient person.love the way u keep from alowing them to hide behind pityfull corney talk about black vs white.keep freedom indipendent speech alive.

thank you ,i just get so tired after 39 years of independance of some of us blaming everything on the white man ,it removes us from personal responsibilty ,why did we strive for independance if we still want to blame all our woes on white people ,,its 2012 america has a black president ,come on enough with the shackles and chains rhetoric ..

concernedcitizen: I,M A REALIST ,ITS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN ,WE WILL FOLLOW THE NORM OF THE OTHER COUNTRIES IN OUR REGION ,WHERE THE RESORTS ARE MORE AND MORE BASICALLY CLOSED SHOPS FOR THE GUEST ,,LESS AND LESS CASH ON PREMISES AND MORE JUST ROOM CHARGE /CREDIT CARDS ..IT CUTS DOWN ON THIEVERY ..OUR LEADFRS WILL GO ALONG WITH IT IF THEY WANT TO CONTINUE TO PROVIDE JOBS FOR US ,BUT YOU CAN BELIEVE WHAT EVER YOU WANT .MONEY AND THE MARKET DRIVE LIFE NOT IDEALOGY ..I LIVE ON A FAMILY ISLAND ,THE GUEST THAT HAVE BEEN COMING HERE FOR YEARS ARE NOW RENTING HOMES FROM FORIEGN HOME OWNERS ,,THEY SAY THE PRICESS IN THE BOUTIQUE HOTELS COMBINED WITH THE BAD SERVICE IS NOT WORTH IT ...THATS CALLED SUPPLIE AND DEMAND ,YOU THINK ANY GOV GONNA CHASE THEM OFF OR TELL THE FORIEGNERS DON,T BUILD HOMES TO RENT ,,SH,,T THEN WE WILL BE BACK TO EATING GRUNTS GRITS AND GRAVEY 3 TIMES A DAY..WHEN WE HAD OUR DOPE MONEY ROUND HERE YOU THINK ANY OF USE BUILT SENSEBLE HOMES WE GOOD RENT TO FORIEGNERS ,,NO WE BOUGHT CARS ,GOLD ,BUILT ILL DESIGNED TASTELESS HOMES ..WE ARE NO MORE SPECIAL OR NO MORE BLESSED THAN ANY OTHER SOUL ON THIS PLANET,,,

**Mr. Marco Sands:
Incorrect, where are you getting your information from concerned citizen? The Bahamas is the only Country in this Hemisphere in which its own citizens of all ethnic groups are “Not” allowed to play in the casinos? I challenge you to prove where in the gaming acts of these countries including Aruba, The Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Curacao, Martinique, St Marten, the US Virgin Islands, Guadeloupe, St. Kitts – Nevis, St. Lucia, St Vincent – Grenadines, Trinidad – Tobago & the Turks – Caicos where hundreds of casinos are located, ban their citizens like the Bahamas does? Locals in all of these countries have the same rights to access every sector of the resorts just as the tourists do. Bahamians also have access to every sector of the hotels in the Bahamas as guest of the local resorts (and in many cases when they are not guests) “EXCEPT” for casino gaming, not due to the hotel policies but due to the law. In addition, it is a known fact that there are more opportunities throughout the year where Bahamians receive better rates to stay in the local resorts than tourists.
Who is going to deny that hotel operations are not in the business to target tourists? No one. In addition, the later portion of your above statement was never disputed on my part, the world will always function on Supply & Demand, that’s Economics, that’s Commerce but I do not see what that has to do with a “Disciplined Bahamian” having the right to play in a casino in the Bahamas which is the subject of discussion?**

Concernedcitizen: PLEASE BECUASE I HAVE A DIFFERENT OPINION THAN YOU STOP QUESTIONING IF I AM A BAHAMIAN OR NOT............................I WAS REFERING TO IZMERLIAN SAYING ALL BAHAMIANS SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO GAMBLE .THAT IS NOT WHAT HE SAID ....IF WE ARE STILL AROUND IN 20 YRS LOOK ME UP AND WE,LL DISCUSS IF THE RESORTS HAVE BECOME MORE OPEN TO US OR NOT ..................

**Mr. Marco Sands: Did you not read the article, Mr. Izmirlian clearly stated he supports legal gambling for Bahamians and said he would welcome Bahamians gambling in the Crystal Palace Casino at Cable Beach in addition to stating that he agrees some of the other resorts have turned their backs a little bit on Bahamians and some didn't even use the word Bahamas in their advertising. He also states that his operation is different from that; not only did we embrace the design and culture, but we want Bahamians to come in our resort. You clearly have not read everything in detail that the head of Bahmar has said. Where does Sarkis Izmirlian state he does not want Bahamians to gamble in the casino like how is employee robert sands clearly otherwise opposed?**

concernedcitizen
we pratice discriminate everday in this country ,women can not pass their citizenship as men can ,,where is the out cry ,,none,, in a referendum we the people voted to continue to to treat women as second class citizens ...jb we have self rule the bay syreet boys are a minor part of our society ,the power brokers now are Wilsons ,Williams,T Wells ,the Davis ,Finlynsons ,,etc ,,all the baystreet boys do now is run business and pay thier national insurance if they didn,t the people would picket them in mass ,can u imagine the Kellys pulling what the two consecutive owners of city market did ,B sands ,J fritzgerald and then B tiger ..if we are so sanctified because of discrimination that happened years ago how come all the trade guys ,i,m a carpenter too ,on the island i live rather work for foriegners cuase we know we will get paid ,,,if you want to know about world history ,there is more black on black killing ,maming ,chop off feet and hands ,in africa now in one year then went on in ten years of the slave trade .presently in the middle east and africa there are 20 million people inslaved againts their will ,the whole slave trade in the 1800 was 10 to 12 million people ..there are good white people and bad white people ,as there are good black people and bad black people ....

**Mr. Marco Sands:
Let me make this clear, DISCRIMINATION IS WRONG, whether it be against Bahamian Citizens not being allowed to gamble in the casinos in the Bahamas, whether it be in a case of a married woman who was born in the Bahamas who has a child for her non-Bahamian husband in which the child is born outside of the Bahamas resulting in that child automatically taking the citizenship of the father and “Not” the Bahamian citizenship of his mother until that child applies for citizenship after the age of 18, it is also wrong for robert sands and yourself to promote discrimination against my uncle from being able to play in the very same casino that you and robert sands feel my aunt-in-law should be able to play in just because she is a legal foreign resident, at the end of the day, the very same persons who you promote a message to discriminate for their benefit will still negatively affect them, case and point, under the present laws, my aunt-in-law who was a tourist has also now been banned by law from playing in a casino because she is married to my Bahamian uncle. It’s also good to know (sad, but still good to know) that you would rather work for foreigners who will pay you as Bahamians will not pay you, very good to know. Yet you focus on “there are more Black Killings, Maming, Choping of Feet & Hands” and then state ..there are good white people and bad white people, as there are good black people and bad black people ...., what does this have to do with “Disciplined Bahamian Citizens of all ethnic backgrounds” having the right to play in a casino in the Bahamas?**

concernedcitizen: the people enslaved in africa in the middle east now are enslaved by people of their own skin color where is the outcry ,young boys enslaved and then loaded down with uzi,s to kill one another ,where is the out cry ,,,,Mr Sands spoke the truth ,because of our behaivour we are not wanted in the casino,s ..it has nothing to do with the white man ,lets stop blaming him for everything and take responsibilty for our own behaivour

**Mr. Marco Sands: What white man, what are you talking about? I am a black Bahamian man who does not have the right to go into the casino because of my country of citizenship just as every other ethnic group who are also Bahamian citizens. You’re the one who brought “White” into this discussion by stating “ALSO REMEBER WHITE BAHAMIANS AND WHITE FOLK HERE ON A WORK PERMIT CAN NOT GAMBLE EITHER .DO WE WANT POLICE W/ UZI,S AT THE DOOR TURNING A WAY THE LIKES OF DIIE STUBBS ETC”
Does your statement mean all white persons share the same mentality of an alleged criminal who’s name you chose to share?
Does your statement mean all black persons share the same mentality of an alleged criminal who’s name you again chose to share?
The fact is as I stated earlier, there is a greater number of black persons living in the Bahamas thus a greater number of black Bahamians are being affected that any other ethnic group, that is fact and has nothing to do with blaming another ethnic group.
What is your point, yet you are stating that “it has nothing to do with the white man ,lets stop blaming him for everything and take responsibilty for our own behaivour”
Since you are 100% sure on who to blame, which race is at fault for all the right in the world and all the wrong in the world concernedcitizen, what is it you are trying to say?
My answer, no race is greater responsible, every race is equally responsible for the state of this planet.**

Concernedcitizen: funny not one reply about women being second class citizens in thier own bahamas ,but a bunch of bad whitey nonsense ,in a hundred years with the races mixing and the latin migration we wil all be brown ....wheres the outcry about women being second class citizens in our Bahamaland ????????????????????????/?oh i forgot we voted to keep it that way ,one of only a hand full of countries in the world that still discreminate againts women in that way

**Mr. Marco Sands: You say we. Incorrect, you voted to keep it that way, I voted for equality for Bahamian Women & Bahamian Men just as I would vote for equality for all Bahamians and all non-Bahamians as it relates to the gaming laws of the Bahamas. Again, you chose to lump all Bahamians in the same box, every Bahamian is not the same, there are “Disciplined Bahamians” and there are “un-Disciplined Bahamians”, there are Bahamians who feel all Bahamians should be treated equally with non-Bahamians (me included) whereas there are others who feel Bahamians should “Not” be treated equally with non-Bahamians, (yourself, robert sands and all other names I already mentioned included) that is fact, it’s unfortunate but again, that is fact. How can you agitate on one hand against discrimination and then agitate for discrimination on the other hand, your comments are very contradictory.**

Proudloudandfnm: Man Sands Marco!?!?!? Bro where do you live!?!?!? Can't possibly be the Bahamas!! I am Bahamian and I state without hesitation that our young and middled aged men are not to be trusted, there are way too many that are for lack of a better word, ANIMALS! Keep them out of the casinos and yes out of anywhere our tourists congregate. You cannot ignore our reality, our young men (and some of our women too) are not adult, they are not trust worthy, they'd rather fight than f-ck. No sir we cannot white wash the fact that the Bahamas has an extraordinary crime problem and that it is a result of the actions of our young men! TIme for strict measures, time for some serious zero tolerance laws, time to lock these young men up for a long time.

****Mr. Marco Sands: I have lived in the Bahamas all my life, been to every major family island in the Bahamas, I bleed 242 however where & when has it been disputed on my part that there are no “un-Diciplined” Bahamians in the Bahamas?
Just as “Disciplined” persons are not limited to any Country, “Un-Discipline” persons are not limited to any Country either.
Why would anyone want an “un-Disciplined person/s” in a casino or any other business regardless of their nationality?
My question is do you want “un-Discipline Non-Bahamians” in the casino?
Is that what you want because your statement clearly shows that you have no concern for “un-Disciplined Non-Bahamians” in the casinos.
Simple, any person of any nationality who is “Discipline” and over 18 should have the right to play in a casino due to their “Disciplined” nature rather than banning a “Disciplined” human being because of their nationality.
My question to you (even though your user name describes how much of an extravert you are which is a good thing once done responsibly, are you PROUDANDLOUDFNM a “Disciplined” Bahamian?
If your answer is yes, should you be banned from every business and/or every tourist area as a “Disciplined” Bahamian because some other “un-Disciplined” Bahamian person?
On the other hand, if your answer is no, please disregard?
What is your answer?
Should we all become hermits, have the terrorists won?
Should we shut all the business down in the Bahamas and tell the tourists not to come to the Bahamas?
Are the police, defense force, security guards wasting their times since we need to keep Bahamians isolated from the rest of the world since your statement does not say “Some” but rather “our young and middled aged men are not to be trusted, there are way too many that are for lack of a better word, ANIMALS”?
While at it, I will again ask are you included in the group of Bahamians who you refer to as being “Fighting Animals”?
Can you provide the stats indicating out of the 300 thousands plus Bahamian Citizens, how many are what you refer to as “Fighting Animals” and on the other hand, provide that stats that indicate how much Bahamian Citizens are “Disciplined” seeing that you have the answer?**

Concernedcitizen: thank you ,it is not a colour issue ,it is a behaivor issue !!!!and to you john brown i support fish hactheries ..but its not just the poachers ,im out there ,,what about us skinning up all those baby conch behind chub cay ,what about us getting crawfish out of season and saying i,m just taking for a meal .multiply that times 5000 people ands thats alot of crawfish that don,t breed ,,what about us putting a bunch of inner city boys on the defence force that come down the cays port to port ,under land while the hatians are 12 miles out on the bank ,,,,quite taking everything back to racism or our youth will have an excuse to never be responsible ....

**Mr. Marco Sands: “,it is not a colour issue”

“WHITE PEOPLE AREN,T DUMB THEY CAN TELL WHEN WE DON,T LIKE THEM AND OUR SMILING IN THEIR FACE JUST FOR THEIR MONEY ..”

WITH OUT THOSE RICH WHITE THAT COME HERE FOR OUR BEACHES ETC

THERE WAS NOT WHITE PERSON WITH IN MILES OF US

WHITE BAHAMIANS AND WHITE FOLK

ITS TOO BAD U DON,T LIKE WHITE PEOPLE

,there is more black on black killing ,maming ,chop off feet and hands

there are good white people and bad white people ,as there are good black people and bad black people

.it has nothing to do with the white man

blaming everything on the white man

blame all our woes on white people

america has a black president

Again, this discussion has nothing to do with the issue with colour, amazing.
All human beings of all Ethnic Groups, Gender & Nationality which have all been addressed in this topic of discussion should be treated equally, no blame on any ethnic group, equal treatment for all.
The fact that one still agrees one should be discriminated for any reason (in this case, Country of Citizenship) is wrong no matter who one may try to create numerous identities to agree with one self one a blog or to try to divert attention away from the subject at hand or ones attempt to categorize all Bahamians as being “Fighting Animals” to distract from the right of equality being afforded to “Disciplined Bahamians” it’s truly sad to know justifying discrimination for one’s own self-gratification still exists but that’s a part of life.
You will always have people who believe in right and people who believe in wrong however for the sake of humanity, wright will always prevail, if that were not the case, the world would have been in a much worse state today.
I am a Proud Bahamian, I am no Lesser or no Greater than a non-Bahamian. Myself and every other Bahamian should be treated individually by the content of our own individual character rather than classing all Bahamians into on box.**

Pfunkf: c citizen,you are a strong and truly patient person.love the way u keep from alowing them to hide behind pityfull corney talk about black vs white.keep freedom indipendent speech alive.

**Mr. Marco Sands:
Freedom, really? If you Pfunkf possess/require a permit to engage in gainful occupation to make money in the Bahamas under the provisions of any statute regulating immigration, is the holder of a permanent residence certificate granted under any statute regulating immigration, is ordinarily a resident in the Bahamas, is engaged in any business or profession, is employed for gain, is in the employment of the government of the Bahamas, go into a casino in the Bahamas and insert your money into a slot machine and then see how much freedom you have, come back and let us know seeing that you believe in freedom existing with the present laws.
Also, all Bahamians of all ethnic groups are equally discriminated?
Why post comments if you have clearly not read what was written above?**

concernedcitizen: thank you ,i just get so tired after 39 years of independance of some of us blaming everything on the white man ,it removes us from personal responsibilty ,why did we strive for independance if we still want to blame all our woes on white people ,,its 2012 america has a black president ,come on enough with the shackles and chains rhetoric ..

***Marco Sands:
As you said to Mr. John Brown, I will ask the same of you, “MAYBE THIS CAN END THIS BACK AND FORTH” seeing that there is no need to blame anything on anyone based on whatever occurred in the past and we are moving forward on a clean slate Forward Upward Onward & Together, do you concernedcitizen have any issue what so ever with all ethnic groups of all nationalities equally having the right to play in any casino of choice in the Bahamas once the individuals are over 18 years old and “”Disciplined”?
I truly would like to know your answer?***

are we going have some kind of magic machine to weed out the disciplined and undisciplined amongst us ???have you ever been in any big or small time gambleing games with us and seen how we carry on when we lose ..i have and it gets real ugly ,cursing ,name calling ,stabbing ,,the police had to go to the numbers house on my island 2 days ago cuase a patron wanted to beat up the employee for a ticket the patron lost,,,

yadda yadda yadda ,get your t shirts made up about discrimmination ,trott over to P,I ,sit down and gamble ,upon your arrest ,use the media, printed and electronic, to shine the spotlight on discrimmination in our gameing laws ....i will wait to see your protest on the news ,,,,i think j,brown and s strahan brought up the race issues ,,i stand by my opinion and agree with Mr Sands ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

i,m fifty years old ,i think marijuana should be legal .i have been arrested for it 3 times since i was 20 years old . Each time i went before the judge stated my beliefs and took my punishment .i don,t hide it and went to court with a legalze it pin on my shirt ,thats called skin in the game .anybody can type and say anything but until you put skin in the game ,its just that words on paper ,perhaps eloquint words ,perhaps words with proper spelling and puncuatation ,but alas just words....

Without education, the world will never move forward:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgP3hiFR…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssupZDsc…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JObMhysy…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8a_o8dj…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCXoOOyb…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_gjiw4e…

a referendum is really a no win for the PLP ,if it is passed it will hurt their support in the church,s ,but church members seem to overlook alot ,the real fear for them would be if it doesn,t pass . their is really no way to close it ,it will just go a little bit underground like the old days .. the realist

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18kh1Dwx…

WHAT DO YOU EXPECT ATLANTIS TO SAY ,ITS NOT THEIR COUNTRY AND THEIR NOT THE GOV ,PLUS ITS EASY FOR THEM TO SAY PGC HAS ALREADY ASSURED THEM ITS NOT EVEN GOING TO BE ON THE BALLOT ,,,

Really concerned citizen?
Atlantis has released statements, Bahmar has released statements long before PGC was in the equation.
What is your next excuse to justify discrimination:

******→→→→→→→→→→August 4, 2009←←←←←←←←←←***

By CANDIA DAMES ~ Guardian News Editor ~ candia@nasguard.com:

With the Atlantis Resort & Casino suffering a downturn in business, President and Managing Director of Kerzner International Bahamas Ltd. George Markantonis told Guardian Business he would be open to the idea of locals being able to gamble at the property.
But Markantonis said he realizes the idea is a controversial one.
He said Kerzner International fully supports a list of recommendations made to the government by The Bahamas Hotel Association (BHA) to ease stringent requirements on gaming. The proposal, however, does not call for the government to make it legal for Bahamians to gamble in local casinos. The association has asked the government to widen the net of people who can gamble legally, including permanent residents and people on short term work permits.
Markantonis said there is a need for an urgent review of the regulations to make The Bahamas a more competitive gaming jurisdiction.
"There were some recommendations made and we contributed to those recommendations," he said in a recent interview at his Paradise Island office. "I think any new segments of potential business that could be opened up would be useful for the casinos, whether it's permanent residents or legal residents or whether it's all Bahamian citizens. It is a complicated and controversial subject. I'd like to see more people allowed to game in the local casinos, but I realize there are two sides to this story, or certainly two opinions."
He said Atlantis has been hurt substantially by gaming in Florida and Pennsylvania.
"The minute that table games were allowed to be installed at the Seminole Indian casinos, the Hard Rock Casinos in Florida, and gaming was added into all the race tracks in Florida, it certainly impacted us here because people from Florida who used to come down every weekend for a little fling, now instead of every weekend maybe they'd come once every two months because it's easier to just drive from their house down the street, so we've really been impacted there," Markantonis said.
He said that in some cases the recommendations made by the BHA would be just enough to keep the casino at Atlantis operating on an even keel.
"You have big jurisdictions like Atlantic City that are suffering very, very, badly. In their case, in Atlantic City, also because they have been tied down with very stringent regulations and frankly they've strangled the industry," Markantonis said.
The Kerzner president's statements were similar to statements made to The Guardian in late May by Baha Mar CEO Sarkis Izmirlian, whose development company also backs the BHA proposal***

That was Atlantis, this additional statement was made months before Atlantis made their above statement:
→→→→→→→→→→Tue, June 2nd, 2009←←←←←←←←←←
***By CANDIA DAMES ~ Guardian News Editor ~ candia@nasguard.com:
Baha Mar Chairman and CEO Sarkis Izmirlian said he would welcome Bahamians gambling in the Crystal Palace Casino at Cable Beach and thinks the government would benefit substantially from a national lottery.
In an exclusive interview with The Nassau Guardian, Izmirlian said given the substantial revenue shortfall being experienced by the government, a national lottery could be the way to go.
"It happens everywhere in The Bahamas," he said, referring to gambling. "You might as well legalize it and let the government benefit from those tax revenues."
Asked whether he would welcome Bahamians gambling in his casino, Izmirlian said he already welcomes Bahamians everywhere on the properties at Cable Beach.
"One thing that we've done, not just in the design of Baha Mar, but in the hotels today, is we've tried to embrace the community," he said. "I feel that some of the other resorts have turned their backs a little bit on Bahamians and some didn't even use the word Bahamas in their advertising. We're different from that; not only did we embrace the design and culture, but we want Bahamians to come in our resort."
Izmirlian said there are very few jurisdictions that don't welcome locals in casinos.
He added that gaming in The Bahamas continues to be hurt by outdated laws that fail to make the jurisdiction competitive.
"Our gaming laws in The Bahamas are just not competitive versus other jurisdictions in the U.S. and other places in the world, and we really need urgently to address our gaming regulations here in The Bahamas," he said, adding that Baha Mar supports a list of recommendations the Bahamas Hotel Association presented to the government.
"It's a detailed list of recommendations which we believe should be implemented as soon as possible. We need to be competitive on the types of games we can offer [and] how quickly we can implement new games as they become available on the market. And we also need to realize that there are certain residents here, whether it's permanent residents or others, who should be allowed to gamble."
He pointed out that American entertainer Patti Labelle was unable to gamble in The Bahamas because she was on a work permit for a concert.
"These sorts of things are hurting us and there are many examples of this," Izmirlian said.
"I think if the government wants The Bahamas to be competitive [in gaming], they need to implement these changes. Today, it doesn't make sense that we can't compete with jurisdictions that are right on our doorstep. If we're going to have gaming then we should be competitive and that's what I hope that the government will implement."***
What is the new excuse now concerned citizen?
Is it going to be HAI also "ASSURED THEM ITS NOT EVEN GOING TO BE ON THE BALLOT?

no excuse ,no wall of words or video,s ..and i voted for equal rights for women ..i do not think us gambleing in the casinos is a good idea ,for many reasons ,one the money leaves the country ...the son in law of perhaps the most powerful political family here doesn,t think its a good idea ,the current PM PGC said it won,t be on the ballot ..you won,t change my mind ,if you write something as long as war and peace....the minds you will have to change to vote on it will be in the house on the 25th of august ..i look forward to seeing your placards and signature drives to get the goverment to put it up for a vote ...

Let me add my two cents to this issue, as someone who is Bahamian and worked in the casino industry for over 25 years.
Mr. Sands . despite the outpouring of rhetoric from various readers, is totally right in his statement. Here is why; the Bahamas is too small a community to support locals playing in the casinos. Why you ask ? Simple. There are scenarios that would develop that would and could cause huge problems for the casino if for example Bahamians played on specific tables, won thousands of dollars and then it was revealed ( innocently ) that the dealer was in some way related to the player(s). Think what management is going to infer.
You know how Bahamians go , ' das my cousin, man lemme play on her table '
To add to this many Bahamians do not know what casino etiquette is and that could lead to many incidents on the table that the casino would wan to evade.
Lastly the conduct of many Bahamians , particularly the young is offensive to many. You only need look at their conduct in the nightclubs to see what might possibly happen on the tables. Management knows this and would want to make sure locals never played along side their million dollar players.

thank you ,it would create a number of problems that we don,t need to deal with ,numbers you can lose money ,but sit down in a casino and you can go thru thosands in minutes .have you ever seen all the people with out a penny to play a number, that slouch around the number house for that contact high ,at least the coke man runs you off when you broke ..can u imagine all the busted out bahamians hanging around trying to bum 20 dollars to get back on a table ..

no excuse ,no wall of words or video,s ………………...

***Thank goodness for democracy and guess what else, Bahamians also spend money in the restaurants, conventions, rooms, night clubs and all other areas of the casino hotels and guess what else occurs, the same monies they spend in those areas also leave the country as the casino in one of the local resorts who I am absolutely sure of accounts for less than 30% of that operations revenue where as the bulk of the monies made in that operation comes from F&B, Rooms and Conventions but again, Bahamians spend monies there and that money Bahamians spend leaves the country. Ok, so let’s tell the Bahamian people to simply not spend their money in any business in the Bahamas where the money will leave the country, let’s do that then concerncitizen. Amazing***

Response to 1pnewman Part 1:

Let me add my two cents to this issue, ………………………….

***Excellent, I would always prefer to converse with one who is clear on where they stand no matter how wrong they may be. No here is my “5” cents. You say the Bahamas is too small? To small compared to what? What or who are you comparing the Bahamas with as the Bahamas has approx 300 plus thousand citizens? Where are the facts from your study? Since we are going there, the fact that all of the countries listed above that I mentioned who do legally allow their citizens to gamble are either the same size or smaller than us with the exception of 2. Lets focus on TCI since we are talking about small. TCI allows their citizens to gamble in their casinos, they are smaller than us, why can TCI function and the Bahamas cannot if their citizens can gamble and are cannot? So what if your cousin, sister, mother, father or other relative is on the table that you are playing on? That occurs everywhere, my cousin is a dealer works at the Seminole Hard Rock Casino in SF and when we as a family group went to SF two summers ago, on one occasion he was the dealer at the table my uncle chose to play on? If I want to go to my cousin who is the ticket agent at the airport, the customs agent at the airport, when I check into the hotel, when I go to the pool bar, when I go to the restaurant, when I go to the casino, the host at the night club at the door, that is my right. Since when in any business is it a policy that your relative cannot serve you? Since you have also joined the anti-Bahamian Bandwagon in an attempt to try to use such an excuse in the casino by prejudging, that’s what surveillance is for, that what’s security is for, when it is proven that you win, you get your money, if it is proven that ethics violations were committed, you are penalized by the policies of the business and the laws of the country? If the casino decides to go further and triple check to ensure that the jackpot winner is legit, that is their right, whether it was your relative who dealt to you or not. You cant be serious to use the excuse that because someone is related to you in a business, you should not be allowed to support that business, what kind of nonsense is that?***

Part 2:

***Just because they are your relative does not increase the probability that ethics violations will occur? A hotel employee who is a complete stranger can just as well violate an ethics violation for any numerous reasons that are too much to share. The front desk agent can upgrade you under the table, the bartender can give you more quantities of alcohol, the dealer can slip a card under the table literally, come on. No matter who much “Rhetoric” a small minority chooses to use to attempt to justify Discrimination against Bahamians will “Fail”. Then you say Bahamians dont know Casino Etiquette? Are you reading what you are typing on tribune242.com? What is Casino Etiquette 1pnewman? In my years of walking through the casinos in the Bahamas, I don’t see anyone sitting down humming Kumbyah? It is a loud festive atmosphere where people are screaming every other second, what casino etiquette? Again, Bahamians all already in the casino, they are not playing but they are everywhere else fully accessing the amenities of the casino resorts? What about you 1pnewman, are you included in the Bahamians whom you state as fact that don’t have Casino etiquette and are you an "un-Disciplined Bahamian?"***

Part 3:

***Answer that question honestly. The same security officers that dealt with many unruly spring breakers when I was in a casino this past spring break are quite capable of dealing with any person (including Bahamians) who chose to act “Un-Disciplined”. Are you saying that in your “25 Years” of Casino Etiquette Experience, the casino security team that protected you and all others in the casino are incapable of removing any “un-Disciplined” Bahamian? Do you have that little confidence in your own casino security team? The same team who is supposed to be providing security for the non-Bahamians? I will ask all of you who are spreading an anit-Bahamian message?***

Part 4:

****Are there any Bahamians that exist on this planet (including yourselves) who are the opposite of the following:

1) “teenagers stabbing one another over a dice game”

2) “verbally insulted”

3) “drunk and incoherent”

4) “hoodlums”

5) “unruley, loud mouth ,dangerous”

6) “look at our hoodlums”

7) “ look at our hoodlums”

8) “These same hoodlums”

9) “THERE ARE NO AMERICANS HERE KILLING US OR CHINESE”

10) “ROBBING, RAPING, STEALING AND KILLING”

11) “not disciplined”

12) “Stabbings and gun fights would become the norm in our casinos”

13) “ trying to kill someone”

14) This one is really interesting “can,t be around civilized people”

15) “MASS SLAUGHTERINGS”

16) “WHITE PEOPLE AREN,T DUMB THEY CAN TELL WHEN WE DON,T LIKE THEM
AND OUR SMILING IN THEIR FACE JUST FOR THEIR MONEY”

17) “ ARMED POLICE AT THE DOOR”
Even one of your anti-Bahamian comments were removed, it is sad when one cannot show respect for a people despite the disdain they feel for them “1 week ago concernedcitizen This comment was removed by the site staff for violation of the usage agreement.”
We have to follow the rules and guidelines of this website tribune242.com and respect their policies as it relates to what we post on their website especially if any posting is fiction, defamatory and untrue especially due to the fact that a law suit can occur and personally I comment the moderators of this website for ensuring that they uphold civility.
Again, another comment was moved: 1 week ago concernedcitizen This comment was removed by the site staff for violation of the usage agreement.
But yet, you feel that the rest of us Bahamians are “un-Disciplined”.

18) “WE HAD OUR DOPE MONEY ROUND HERE”

19) “rather work for foriegners cuase we know we will get paid”

20) “our young and middled aged men are not to be trusted”

21) “ANIMALS! Keep them out of the casinos and yes out of anywhere our tourists congregate.”

22) “not trust worthy”

23) “ they'd rather fight than f-ck”

24) “real ugly ,cursing ,name calling ,stabbing”

25) “beat up the employee”

26) “You know how Bahamians go”

27) “Bahamians do not know what casino etiquette is”

28) “make sure locals never played along side their million dollar players.”

29) “ busted out bahamians”

30) “bum 20 dollars to get back on a table”****

Part 5:

***I could post more of your comments which would possibly slow down this website but Wow, talk about being proud to be a Bahamian. With the above comments said, why would anyone want to apply to become a Bahamian citizen or visit the Bahamas? If it were up to you, not one tourist would come here based on your description of the Bahamian people and thank God. Not only that, are all of you included in your own above comments highlighting the Bahamian People whom “YOU KNOW HOW THEY GO?”
What about the staff and the moderators of this website tribune242.com who are also Bahamians? Are they included in your above comments and are they also un-Disciplined?
Are there at least “2” I repeat “2” things any of you can state that highlights the Bahamian people positively? What’s worse is the very same behavior you claim you want to prevent due to how you chose to prejudge what would occur if Bahamians were allowed to play in the casino is the same behavior you are engaging in with your comments of disdain against the Bahamian people. Not one positive comment about the Bahamian people. Not one. And yet, you are supposed to among the “Disciplined” Bahamian persons like robert sands who is in a self appointed position to state that myself and every other Bahamian is “un-Disciplined” and due to him being “THE SON-IN-LAW OF THE MOST POWERFUL POLITICAL FAMILY” he has the right to determine who is ‘DISCIPLINED” and who is “UN-DISCIPLINED”, that is Gospel? To the moderators of tribune242.com, I applaud you for allowing us an opportunity to share our opinions on relevant pertinent issues in the Bahamas in spite of some of the comments posted however, just as these select few persons who are consistently perpetuation anti-Bahamian slurs, please don’t punish the rest of us like how a small minority of persons sharing the same citizenship that I have are negatively impacting our society as I can say without any doubt that I Mr. Marco Sands publically state on my life that there are more Bahamians positively contributing to society than those who chose the wrong path and I will never lump any race, gender, nationality, religion in the same boat due to the individual actions of a few. Thanks God for Democracy because the Bahamian people are quite capable enough to decide that they want to be treated equally with non-Bahamians. I am done because I will not continue to dialogue with persons who believe that Bahamians are un-civilized and most worst of all “un-Disciplined”.***

VERY GOOD ,GOOD LUCK WITH THAT OCD THING ,I STILL SAY NO TO CASINO GAMBLEING ..HOWEVER I LOOK FORWARD TO YOUR PUBLIC PROTEST AND GLAD MY WORDS SO INVIGORATED YOU ....WRITE ON MY FRIEND ,HOWEVER I QUIT READING YOUR THESIS LONG RAMBLINGS DAYS AGO .WHENEVER I SEE C/C I KNOW YOU WANT TO MAKE ME A RACIST OR AN UNCLE TOM ......YOU DECIDE OH WISE ONE,,,,, LMAO

JUST AT A CURIOUS GLANCE IN YOUR POINTS 17 THRU 30 U ATTRIBUTED THINGS TO ME I DIDN,T SAY ,NOW NOW ,LETS PLAY FAIR ...I DON,T WANT TO TAKE CREDIT FOR SOMETHING SOMEONE ELSE SAID OR SOMETHING I QUOTED FROM JB LMAO

@sandsmarco

Your attempt to portray me as some kind of Uncle Tom or sellout is pitiful. You assume that because I didnt make one positive comment about Bahamians then ergo I must be a self-hating black person , deeply ashamed of my own people. Get real brother !!
You ask whom I compare the Bahamas with, well it aint TCI for sure. The casino down there aint Atlantis with the same calibre of players and turnover. I am comparing Bahamas with its PEERS - Las Vegas and Atlantic City. I stand by my position that the island is too small for locals to get involved. Lets get real here for a minute. You claim that Bahamians can control themselves and conduct themselves like any other nationality. Yes they can- but that would be the MINORITY. That would be decent people who like myself are afraid to go out on weekends to fish fry, to bars, clubs because of the young, barbaric hordes of young people who will shoot, stab or kill with the slightest provocation. Now if Im exaggerating please check your daily newspaper tomorrow and see if Im lying. Decent Bahamians are scared to go out at night in their own country , yet you with your head in the sand seem to believe that these scum will waltz in the casino and behave themselves just because there is security present. You ask about etiquette and how it translates to the casino floor , your keen observation being; ' where people are screaming every other second ' and to the ignorant it might seem that chaotic but it isnt. There is specific interaction on casino tables that can get aggressive and confrontational. Again mature and intelligent Bahamians would be able to navigate these moments, the average 23 year old from Kemp Road, drunk and wanting to show off and impress his friends on a Friday night will not. There would be serious conflict because in case you didnt know this generation of young Bahamians doesnt know about non-violent conflict resolution.
To reiterate and without putting words into Mr. Sands mouth, his comments were aimed at a specific portion of the Bahamian society. Unfortunately sandsmarco you have used this forum to promote your own agenda of racial pride and the whole anti-segregationist topic to create the notion that this is some kind of Apartheid in our country. Its not . Its common sense that Mr Sands knows will protect the jobs of Bahamians and future generations to come. Please leave the racial grandstanding for another time.

Part 1:

***Your attempt to portray me as some kind of Uncle Tom or sellout is pitiful. You assume that because I didnt make one positive comment about Bahamians then ergo I must be a self-hating black person , deeply ashamed of my own people……………………….
O really,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Out of respect for you my fellow brother/sister in humanity, I will respond.

1) You are not comparing a chain islands in the Atlantic Ocean to other islands in this hemisphere with a similar amount of citizenry as you say the country is too small, you are comparing a chain of islands to the United States of America with a population of almost a billion citizens whose casinos have been open from the time that Bugsy Seigel, Lucy Luciano and Meyer Lansky opened the Flamingo before I was born? What an excellent comparison,,,,right?

2) You used the words “Uncle Tom or sellout.”

3) I do not have the ability to edit your comments, what you put on the internet is there for all to see and in your post, this is what you wrote which sums up how you feel about Bahamians as robert sands clearly state “Bahamians ‘Not Disciplined Enough’ To Use Casinos, robert sands did not say “Some Bahamians” he said “Bahamians” …..scroll up and read the headline of this topic again, and worst of all, you agree with that statement “Bahamians are not Disciplined” referring to an entire nationality despite the fact that if you are a Bahamian like I am, then roberts sands is also referring to you 1pnewman as being “un-Disciplined” no matter how many years of experience you have in a casino or how “Disciplined” you may think you are, in the eyes of robert sands, if you are a “Bahamian” you are “Undisciplined” 1pnewman but let’s move on to your own comments as you chose to join the discussion and want to carry it further:

“Let me add my two cents to this issue, as someone who is Bahamian and worked in the casino industry for over 25 years. Mr. Sands . despite the outpouring of rhetoric from various readers, is totally right in his statement. Here is why; the Bahamas is too small a community to support locals playing in the casinos. Why you ask ? Simple. There are scenarios that would develop that would and could cause huge problems for the casino if for example Bahamians played on specific tables, won thousands of dollars and then it was revealed ( innocently ) that the dealer was in some way related to the player(s). Think what management is going to infer. You know how Bahamians go , ' das my cousin, man lemme play on her table ' To add to this many Bahamians do not know what casino etiquette is and that could lead to many incidents on the table that the casino would wan to evade. Lastly the conduct of many Bahamians , particularly the young is offensive to many. You only need look at their conduct in the nightclubs to see what might possibly happen on the tables. Management knows this and would want to make sure locals never played along side their million dollar players.”.***

Part 2:

***Again I ask what scenarios?

Because one’s family member works on the tables, “ALL Bahamians should not be allowed to play in the Casino”? Do you hear yourself? Why don’t we then agitate for a law to prevent relatives from providing services to other relatives then, excellent economics, because if your relative serves you, what is going to happen, what will management (who also consists of Bahamians in the casino) “Infer”? Then you say “YOU KNOW HOW BAHAMIANS GO” again classing all Bahamians in a box, “HOW DO WE BAHAMIANS GO”? again, so what if I chose to go to a table where a relative is playing at, so what if a non-Bahamian choses to go to a table where in many cases that non-relative dealer is more closer to them than their own relative. That is your right to go to any table you want whether the dealer is your relative or not. If the dealer violates the companies code of ethics, they are fired and depending on the severity, they are prosecuted by the law, if the dealer choses to through their job and their life away, they will have to suffer the consequences. Then you move on to the “LACK OF CASINO ETIQUETTE” and “LOCALS ALONG SIDE THEIR MULTI MILLION DOLLAR PLAYERS” you claim you worked in a casino for 25 years yet you should know (at least if you were a pit clerk, pit boss, shift manager or dealer) again I would expect you to know that policies exist in casino all around the world which clearly states that there are various entry requirements for Table Games and the Slot Machines regardless of ones “NATIONALITY”. What casino is going to allow a 5 dollar minimum bid player alongside a 100 or better yet, a 1000 dollar minimum bid player. You need to “Get Real.” You then use the word “THEIR” to describe Bahamians conduct, “look at THEIR conduct in the nightclubs”.
You are responsible for how the world reading your posts look at you based on your own merit, you are responsible for how all look at you as.

4) I never knew your ethnicity until you just revealed that you are indeed Black however all Bahamians of all ethnic groups are not legally allowed to casino gamble in the Bahamas.

5) You say “You assume that because I didnt make one positive comment about Bahamians then ergo I must be a self-hating black person” I will go on record and say there is no assumption there, That Is Fact, You have yet to say one positive thing about Bahamians in your post that I responded too, no doubt about that whatsoever.***

Part 3:

***6) Here is where it gets real interesting, “You claim that Bahamians can control themselves and conduct themselves like any other nationality, Yes they can- but that would be the MINORITY. That would be decent people who like myself”. Do you realize what you just said? You are saying that the “MAJORITY” or Bahamians are not like you. You are saying that the “MINORITY” of Bahamians quote “That would be decent people who like myself” which in turn indicates that the majority of Bahamians are “INDECENT” yet you chose to begin your rebuttal by chastising me for implying that you are a self-hating black person , deeply ashamed of your own people and a sellout Uncle Tom and yet, you just stated on this website that you 1pnewman are in the “MINORITY” of Bahamians who are decent people like yourself? You have just solidified what you portrayed yourself to be on your own. As for me, I will state again over and over that “THE MAJORITY OF MY BAHAMIAN PEOPLE” conduct ourselves accordingly and the same majority of Bahamians will never allow the “Minority” who do no conduct themselves accordingly from dictating our lives. Yet, because of the “Minority” that I feel accounts for persons who chose the wrong path in life, you feel that us “THE MAJORITY” must ban our own selves from the fish fry, the bars, the clubs, out of fear of the “Minority” you might as well be the founder and create The Hermit Organization of the Bahamas. That is what using common sense is for as an adult, that is what using your street sense is for as an adult, that is what the security and police and defense force officers are for. There is no crime free country on this planet but yet because of crime, we must becaome a hermit? You might as well stay in your home, lock away from the rest of the world, The Bahamas is not the only country with young persons who negatively impact society, you might as well forget travelling, you might as well be a paranoid hermit in a straight jacket if you are going to allow the minority to dictate your life. I would not talk about the internet as a 5 year old can search ones IP address to see where one is located.
Are you truly listening to yourself?

7) Any person can “Waltz” into the casino now as we speak and if they are not following the rules and policies, they are thrown out an not allowed to return whether it be due to not paying their dues, fighting, drunkenness, dress code, cheating, that is nothing new, that is the case all over the world.

8) Which newspaper is not in the business to sell papers? Sensationalism is what sells papers, that is fact? Again, every excuse you use to justify discrimination is not limited to the Bahamas? Just how I can go onto www.tribune242.com , www.thenassauguardian.com , I can go onto any news website all over the world where casinos exist and where casinos do not exist where crime is also their headline story. You can’t be serious.***

Part 4:

9) Again, the persons “Screaming” can be due to numerous causes: Winning, Losing, Drunkeness, just plain ole screaming, but where does that not occur in a party atmosphere with high energy? It’s a Casino, not a library? Again, what is your point?

10) Now you chose to refer to the young man from Kemp Road, why Kemp Road 1pnewman? What about the young man from any other part of the Bahamas who happens to be in the casino with his friends? Is it because the young man is from an area in your eyes that is looked at in the light you chose to look at it, you in great zeal chose to use the area of Kemp Road? Fact, the same way the young man drunk and wanting to show off and impress his friends on a Friday night is to be dealt with the same way the young man from fro “KEMP ROAD” is the same way the young man from Fox Hill, Eastern Estates, Carmichael Road, Venice Bay, Gambier, Tropical Gardens Eleuthera, Inagua or any other part of the Bahamas would be dealt with by security. Wow, let’s sum it down to the young man from Kemp Road, amazing. By the way, I was born and raised in both Bain Town and Cable Beach, which area of New Providence will you 1pnewman chose to use when describing me?

11) BOL, BOL, BOL, “To reiterate and without putting words into Mr. Sands mouth, his comments were aimed at a specific portion of the Bahamian society.” But yet you are doing the very same thing you claim you are not doing, you are putting words in robert sands mouth, where does robert sands say he is speaking about a specific portion of society if he is saying that all Bahamians should not be allowed in the casino?

It is clear that you have not even read roberts sands comments, the comments you support as he again refers to “Bahamians” being undisciplined and guess what, that includes you too, where in the article does robert sands say his comments were aimed at a specific portion of the Bahamian society? You have not read his comments but for your sake, please read below Bahamas:

“ROBERT “Sandy” Sands, senior vice-president of external and governmental affairs at Baha Mar, said yesterday Bahamians are not “disciplined” enough to be able to gamble in casinos locally.”

“Mr Sands said while he supports regularising number houses, he is not an advocate of Bahamians being allowed to gamble in casinos”

He clearly supports gambling for foreigners who are here on short term permits and to other foreigners homes here with permanent residency oh and yes, foreigners with “High Net Worth”see below:

“I support gambling for persons who come on short term work permits, especially in the entertainment business. I also support gambling for persons of high net worth who have permanent residency in the country and people with second homes,”

Worse of all, he feels “WE”?

I would like to know who the we consists of but again, but there are some rights “WE”

Who is the we 1pnewman?

Are you included in the we 1pnewman?

Part 5:

Then robert sands continues:

“WE” have to take away from individuals for “Their” own benefit.

Who is the “Their” 1pnewman?

Seeing that you are in a position to speak on behalf of robert sands without putting any further words in his mouth, can you advise us, the Bahamian people who the “WE” consist of and who the “Their” consist of? I and I am sure many other have no interest in the attempted distractions on persons part to detract from the subliminal messages being sent by bobert sands, these are the questions that need to be answered, who are the “WE” and who consist of “Their”?

Do you have the answer for these 1pnewman or not?

Apartheid? Interesting choice of words and I am so happy that you were the one to bring it up? Do you 1pnewman know what an Apartheid system is? An apartheid is any system or practice used to separate people according to race, religion, nationality, gender, political persuasion. You have just added to the point that an Apartheid Law exists in which one of the sectors of persons affected, in this case due to our “NATIONALY” is being kept separated by law from legally engaging in something that another “NATIONALITY” can legally engage in. You have just added to the pro-Bahamian message and further solidified the pro-Bahamian argument and I thank you for that as many others who may have never realized that, including my fellow Bahamian “concernedcitizen” hopefully now open their eyes to see that the Lottery & Gaming Act Chapter 387 section 50 is an law that promoting an Aparthied system and no matter how any of you on this website try to justify Discrimination it for your own “MOTIVES” it is wrong and you ideology will be defeated after a Bahamian other than the present PM is out of office.

Thanks for your support in the "Agenda" of the pro-Bahamian message 1pnewman, truly appreciated!

TORONTO ,A MULTICULTURAL CITY OF 2.5 MILLION PEOPLE ARE IN HEATED MEETINGS AS WE SPEAK BECUASE THEY HAD 18 GUN RELATED MURDERS ALREADY THIS YEAR .THE BAHAMAS A COUNTRY OF 350,OOO PEOPLE ,AND WE HAVE HAD 60 GUN RELATED MURDERS ALREADY ..YEAH ,YEAH LETS ALL GO TO THE CASINO ...I AM PRO BAHAMIAN ,THATS WHY I DON,T WANT TO RISK SOMETHING BAD HAPPENING AND MESSING IT UP FOR ALL THE GOOD BAHAMIANS ...

@sandsmarco

You really have dissected this issue havent you ? Let me spell it out for you as you seem to think we live in a pluralistic society here in Nassau . We dont. This is a nation divided. Whether you believe that or not is not debatable. It is not divided by race as much as you would like to believe but by socio-economic levels. There are the haves and have nots. The have nots see no future or jobs for themselves and live their lives accordingly. The haves go to work, try and educate their children etc and try and stay alive in this town. Again I say to you that most people in this country are scared to go out at night. You being a man of the people aint scared, the rest of us are. The casino does not want certain bahamians in the casino because they dont know how to act. If you find that proposition racist, ungodly whatever then just look at the bars and nightclubs here on the weekends and the amount of gun crime etc. The irony is that these same Bahamians that you want to defend CAN act civilized when they want to, ie in Florida. When they go to Florida they put on their seat belts, they obey the laws etc Once they get back to Nassau its back to acting how they feel.
You keep on about this anti -Bahamian sentiment that you feel is behind this move to keep locals out the casino. Its nothing to do with being anti-bahamian. Its protecting a very lucrative industry that employs thousands of bahamians and doesnt need the revenue or the issues that would come with allowing locals to gamble. If you are so certain that people feel so strongly about this issue then canvass those Bahamian employees in the casino and see if they want Bahamians to be allowed in the casino. I worked as a dealer and supervisor and know what they are going to tell you . They are going to tell you that they dont want Bahamians in the casino. They will tell you that MANY of them , NOT ALL act like jack asses on the occasions when they come in and that if they were allowed to gamble next to the tourists they could and would piss off some of them, resulting in less TIPS for the staff. LESS MONEY FOR THE BAHAMIAN STAFF. A direct and negative impact. If you think this far fetched and racist then that would be your take on the matter. Do you really believe that black bahamians feel that strongly on this matter ? They dont. Its a minority who believe there is an issue that needs to be addressed. The issue is nothing to do with the rights to play in a casino but rather furthering their own petty agendas.

sandsmarco ,i could see you getting in a loud debate with our guest ,tourist ,over some percieved racial slight ,with the same energy you put into your writing ..i could imagine you verbally brow beating someone,bahamian or foriegn, that has a different opinion than yours with ever increaseing volume and gesturing .....lmao

Truin, I ga tell all a yall haw it go. I dont care what you say marco, all Bahamians are undisciplined, it een no small group like how who you is king, 1newman, all Bahamians da same and i dont tink its no way no bunch a lazy drnuk do no how to act Bahamian should be in no casino, I am a waitress and I does see how Bahamians, every single one does act when dey all tank up, i dont know who you is king but sandy sands say it right, keep all Bahamians out, out and stay out, go buy ya family pampers or go play numbers, een no bunch a do no how ta act Bahamians need ta be in no casino around my guest because all Bahamians who does come in my hotel where i work is an embarrasment i dont care how any a yall round hya talkin biut civilized, sandy should a say all Bahamians to uncivilized to be round da guests.

naw das my 5 cent ta all yall

souljagirl ,you get to the point with out all kina fancy smacy talk ,i agree.we dont need no experiment with the thing that feeds most of us ,tourism .............

Let me add something before I leave this topic. There are thousands of hard working, well mannered, courteous Bahamians who do our country proud on many levels. These same Bahamians are not who Mr Sands is referring to , or myself for that matter. These same Bahamians are disciplined, mature enough to use the casinos in our country. Most sensible Bahamians know this deep down and are not caught up in all the rhetoric being thrown around about segregation, racism etc. We have come too far down the road to start going back down that pointless avenue. Unfortunately many of our society do not know how to behave and it is because of this that the casinos do not want them on their premises . Its as simple as that.

it is as simple as that!!

Part 1:

***Excellent job.
All three of you have proven that every Bahamian is not the same.
That is the one thing I am happy that you three have proven.
“all Bahamians are undisciplined’ ,,,,Amazing and what’s more amazing is again, you (concernedcitizen) are given kudos to another person who is outright insulting you and every other Bahamian by calling you “undisciplined” and “the same as every other Bahamian”, its beyond laughable to the level of being truly sad but there is still hope though for you.
Despite it all, you three are afraid (seeing that you solja girl joined in), you are afraid of yourselves, you are afraid of change you are afraid of the in-evitable.
Why?
I have no idea why and the proof of that is that none of you have the fortitude to state the truth. The very simple questions I asked of you, you all are afraid too answer because you know what the answers are and if you state what the answers are, every point you are all making on this website will in turn become null and void, you are afraid, but there is no need to worry, once you educate yourselves and prepare yourselves for the change that is coming, you will look back at all that was said between us with a new perspective.
How do I know that, I was once there where you 3 and robert sands was, I too was of the thinking that foreign was better, that we Bahamians were second class and we deserved to be treated as second class, that we Bahamians need not apply, that the tourists are more important than us Bahamians because that is all I used to hear coming from some other Bahamians, I was once there too, yes I am man enough to admit it.
But you know what happened?
Change.***

Part 2

***I educated myself, I studied and decided to seek further knowledge about the Bahamas and about my Bahamian people, I listened to the people on both sides, persons with your ideology and others who do not share your ideology and in time, I realized that I am a Bahamian, there are millions of people all around the world who too wish they were Bahamian, that’s why they come here, that’s why they want to work here, that’s why they want to invest here. They also want to be a Bahamian and that’s when my eyes were opened and I finally understood why others who used to share the same message I am sharing with you never gave up on me, and yes they told me there will be backlash, there will be persons who will consistently highlight all the negatives about being a Bahamian stating that the more a person with your ideology were to highlight the negatives of Bahamians and consistently pick the first negative thing that comes to mind about the Bahamian people, that explains the more they are afraid of themselves.
See, this goes much deeper than the gambling issue, this is an identity crisis ideology that some in this country are facing and sadly, some posting on this website, not all, but some and what does it all boil down to, this boils down to the mentality of “Servitude” that some do not realize they may be faced with but it is not too late, why, proof of that is myself and many others who in their past shared the same mentality that you have and in some cases, I have met persons who were 10 times more extreme with the same ideology than you three share but they even they eventually changed.
It is clear all around us.
I truly admit to the three of you that I did not realize it at first until I showed some of my Bahamian colleagues at work earlier in the day in addition to 3 of my non-Bahamian colleagues who are visiting us and guess what, while we were on a break and I asked them to tell me what they think when they read some of your comments, they all said you cannot be Bahamians but I still said yes they are (at least you professed to be) and I admitted to them that sadly, I also used to share the same mentality that you do before I opened my eyes.
After reading some of your comments (especially you concerned citizen) do you know what all three of my non-Bahamians stated was most puzzling about your comments; they highlighted the fact that you support banning yourself from a place where others can go which to them was unbelievable as prior to this trip, they had no knowledge that Bahamians could not gamble in the Bahamas in the casino.***

Part 3:

***One on hand, I was embarrassed as a Bahamian when I showed them some of your comments but on the other hand I said to myself that it is not only in the Bahamas where some experience an identity crisis, this occurs all around the world and one of my foreign colleagues stated they have the same thing going on back in Barbados where many of the locals feel that the tourists are better than them based on how they treat the tourists compared to their own citizens. She said you can listen to how some of the locals talk to each other and treat each other compared to how some of the locals talk to the tourists and treat the tourists in which she said in many cases, it is night and day difference.
My American colleague said he has experienced different treatment himself right here in the Bahamas because when they went to a restaurant for lunch yesterday, he felt un-comfortable because he could tell he was getting a little better treatment than my other two colleagues who are from the Caribbean stating that the other 2 colleagues were pretty much ignored, and they did not care as much as he did but he admitted he was very uncomfortable.
Maybe the employee thought the other 2 colleagues were locals, who knows, but I told him that not all Bahamians are the same (if it was a Bahamian who was serving them) just as in their respective countries, not all of their citizens are the same in which they all agreed.
I told them I made my points quite clear and I was pretty much done with this subject but all 3 of my foreign colleagues insisted that I respond to your 2 comments (I guess its 3 now as I have just read Ms. Solja Girls comments which is really sad) but again, after they convinced me to do so, I said ok and now I am here now but to wrap this up, I again will say don’t worry, you 3 have absolutely nothing to worry about for the next 5 years as the PM stated he has no intention on allowing Bahamians adults the right to decide if we want casino gambling.
No need to worry.
But I can tell you one thing though, change is eminent, it is clear that you are afraid of it but change is coming.
Who knows, maybe the present PM himself may read this blog or other blogs addressing the same issue and weigh in the pros and cons which exist for everything in life and say to himself, you know what, maybe I should allow all Bahamian adults the right to choose if they wish to have the right to casino gamble?***

Part 4:

***Who knows?
While we are on this subject, in case you 3 did not know, (especially you 1pnewman) there was a time in the Bahamas when Bahamians were not allowed in the casinos period. The PM at that time Sir Lynden Pindling said himself that there will never be a Bahamian employee in any casino in the Bahamas working or playing, there will never be a Bahamian Pit Boss in the Casino, there will never be a Bahamian Shift Manager in the Casino, there will never be Bahamians occupying any job in the casino in any capacity.
But guess what?
Change came, the very same man who said there will never be a Bahamian in the casino under his watch changed his mind and thus, the Lottery & Gaming Act was revised for all Bahamians “including you 1pnewman” to have the opportunity to say on this website that you have 25 years of experience as an employee in a casino in the Bahamas.
If change did not occur, who knows where in life you would be right now along with every other Bahamian who supports their families, Churches, communities etc from casino gambling.
That is the only thing I can guarantee (well of course excluding the time when we will all face judgment because we are also all guaranteed that our time will come but again) change is coming, I hope you will eventually see it, there was a time when the thought of a Bahamian having the right to gamble in any form was un-questionable, but look at what is happening now, there is a proposed referendum knocking at our door, it’s around the corner, change is coming.
Who in the world would have expected the owners of the casinos to say (whether you chose to believe them or not) that they are now opening the doors to welcome Bahamians in the Casino to do what?
To “PLAY” in their casino, not someone else’s casino, in “Their” casino in which they have invested Billions, the Foreign Investors, who would have ever expected that, especially knowing the history of this country, but guess what, they did, Bahmar and Atlantis stated they are welcoming Bahamians in their Casinos to play?
Change is coming.***

Part 5:

***What’s even more amazing than Atlantis and Bahmars open invitation to Bahamians to play in their casinos is the fact that the absolute last person in my mind on this planet which was again was one of the biggest shocks to me in all my years of existence was a man who on the radio stated today, (well yesterday due to the time that I am posting this) that he, the former PM Hubert A Ingraham feels it is unbelievable that the present PM will present a referendum to ask the question of whether Numbers should be decriminalized and whether we should institute a Nationality Lottery but why is the question of Bahamians having the right to Casino Gamble is not a part of the referendum?
He also admitted that he would have had all three questions mentioned above had he won the election and put it to the Bahamian people.
While I would have said prior to today that the former Prime Minister is no different than the present PM due to the fact that for the past 15 years under his rule, he too had the opportunity to allow the people to decide, I must commend him based on his recent comments because again, as much as I totally disagreed for many things he stood for which was probably 98% of the time, he has shown that he has the respect of the Bahamian adults to allow us the right to decide on this subject and this is one time (which is unbelievable to me) but I must give kudos where it is due to the former PM.
I can state now that me and the former PM share many, many, many differences but to actually hear him state that, which I would think that he would be one of the last persons to ever state that, that goes to show that I am not the only Bahamian sharing these thoughts, just as you have persons with your ideology, you also have those who feel the Bahamians should have freedom of choice as it relates to the right to casino gamble, it’s all over the news, it’s on the talk show, by goodness, we are having this discussion on this website, who would have expected this 10, 20 or 40 years ago that the laws relating to gambling are be considered to be revised?
Change is coming, again, 5 years (unless the PM changes his mind) it is guaranteed that the law will remain the same as it relates to casino gambling but remember, no matter how much you chose to disagree with the message that many Bahamians and non-Bahamians share with me, “Change is coming”.***

Part 6:

***It’s been a pleasure dialoging with you and I will state that I hope you open your eyes.
If the PM changes his mind, then Ill be back to chat with you but if not, I guarantee you that in 5 years time if a new leader is elected, Ill be back.

As some of my fellow Bahamians say, “ITS AS SIMPLE AS THAT”

I will leave this with you:***

Part 7:

***The best way to control a people is to divide them.
The political satire Animal Farm by George Orwell pens a story of a group of animals who became tired of their human masters and decided to stage a coup, overthrow them and take over the farm. The plan worked, the coup was successful and initially there was peace and harmony on the farm with all of the animals working together in unison. Then subtle differences began to appear.
The pigs, who were the intellectuals, galvanized themselves and declared since they were the ones with the intellectual prowess and in control of the decision making, they should be entitled to more than the other animals who were just mere workers. When some of the other animals began to realize that the Pigs had placed themselves in a position of superiority they began to murmur; the Pigs reacted immediately. The Pigs gathered up all their loyal followers, the sheep, and gave them a message to spread continually to all of the animals. When someone would voice a concern the sheep chanted louder and drowned them out. The Pigs also turned to the dogs, who were originally the security force to protect the farm against an invasion by the humans, to now silence and squelch any dissenters or “trouble makers”. For their loyalty to the Pigs the dogs themselves became an elite class and were rewarded handsomely. The Pigs through their actions mimicked the behavior of the very humans that the animals sought to escape.
I remember as a naive impressionable teenager reading Animal Farm and being completely amazed and confused by this book. I did not understanding how such a scenario could exist. How could those who were once liberators now themselves restrict and imprison those who they once liberated? How could the other animals just stand by and allow this?
How; because a show of power is never an overt act, as illuminated in the book, but a covert systematic plan that is done incrementally. First establish yourself as the elite, separate yourself from the masses (whether it is tangibly or intangibly), galvanize your loyal sheep who will say and do whatever you desire without hesitation. Create your own enforcement squad to “deal” with those persons who dare to dissent and stand up for injustice.***

Closing Remarks:

***Many of you reading this probably surmise that I am inferring that our governmental leaders are the Pigs. They are NOT; they are the Dogs, the enforcers. The persons who are put in place to keep the masses in check by getting their sheep to chant their talking points, and drown out all intelligent probing conversation. No the Pigs are the monopoly holders, the foreign investors, the foreign entities and the invisible nefarious money men who hold the true power in this country. Our government, yes our elected government are simply the house negros keeping the field negros in check for the elusive master. If you were to do a critical analysis of politics in this country you would see that this hypothesis is indeed true. Deals, contracts, partnerships never truly enrich or empower the masses but rather the select few. Some are given a few crumbs to keep them controllable but there is never a nationalistic plan to firstly and fore mostly benefit the Bahamian people. Until some Bahamians stop treating each other like second class citizens and wake up, we will always be treated how we deserve to be treated by others.
I can only imagine what is coming but no rush, I can assure you that unless the PM changes his mind before 2017, I have no intention on reviewing what is said there after but I will check back in 2017 or maybe the next one in 2022 or however long it takes before a leader is elected who truly believes in Bahamians.***

sansmarco ,you will check back , with your ocd and grandiose opinion of your intellect you can not stop yourself ,you may not ans ,but you will look ,,

you can tell your foriegn friends ,i love my country ,but i am not enthralled with our youth ,.i,m a common man i don,t work in an office ,.yesterday we had a disscusion under the tree .of the nine males there 8 thought it was alright to beat a women and used bible references againts me when i disagreed .then we were talking about the 44 yr old man that got aquited of sex w/ the 15 yr old girl ,they all said how the girl could take money ,and phone from him then claim rape .the women of our country are progressing ,not the young men,not all but a great %,.there is no great conspriracy to hold the masses down ,we have self rule ,also if everyone were business owners ,who is going to work ..did you als tell your foriegn friends that the hatian children do better in school than our own ,something that bothers me greatley ,all the kids should be doing better ...

sanmarco ,were our three PM,s house negroes ,your words ,is president Obama a house negroe ,once again your term .what a horrible thing to say about strong,intelligent black men ,even if you disagree with any of the four on political policy ..

and stop all this nonsense bout foriegn collueges vistin you ,if they do excist ,they right there in that office on work permits working with you ,how you w/ all your pro bahamian talk can work in a place w / foriegners doing jobs we could do ,. my the sacrifices you make lmao

This is most interesting. It took me a while but I read everything above and man, Marco Sands, you have truly made your points and I 100% agree with both you and John Brown. My name is Raquel and there is a group of us (presently 41 official members) who are a part of the group The Bahamas Gaming Association. We are dedicated to the cause of all Bahamian adults having the right to casino gamble. We have constantly been in talks with the former minister VVW and will resume talks with the present minister MR. Obie Wilchcombe. The same battle you and John Brown and all others who feel discrimination is wrong on this site are facing, it is the same battle we are also facing. In fact, many in our group are on numerous blogs facing the same persons like those who you are battling with here but not only do I commend you, I hope you do come back to this site and read my comments because we would like you to make contact with us asap, we are primarily based in Grand Bahama but we still have persons who are all over the country with more and more persons asking to contribute. As soon as you can, email us at: bahamasgamingassociation@yahoo.com. I will also let it be known that I have no interest in battling with any of you who oppose Bahamian adults being treated like non-Bahamian adults but to the writer by the name of concerned citizen, even though it seems he added some of his own points at the end, I noticed Marco stated that he will leave you with this and shared the story of The Bahamian Animal Farm and for some odd reason, you actually believe he is the author of that story lolol? I am not sure if you make your rounds on the various Bahamian based websites but the original author is from www.purefawkery.com: http://www.purefawkery.com/2012/07/baha…
The portion I don't see on the above link is (until some Bahamians stop treating each other like second class citizens and wake up, we will always be treated how we deserve to be treated by others) which is assume is Marcos actual comments is in my opinion well said. Marco, please make contact with us.

Mrs. Raquelle Rolle
Bahamas Gaming Association

i never thought sansmarco was the author of bahamian animal farm or the original animal farm ,that i think george orwell wrote ,if my memory is correct .....sansmarco said our leaders are not the pigs ,they are the dogs in the story ,not me ,,what after sansmarco says i leave you with this ,no one can comment , i,ll bet you a dzen dounuts sansmarco has already read this ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,lmao

news flash,, you can take animal farm ,and adapt it to any town,city ,country around the world ,,high school kids have been doing it in plays for decades !!!

come on sandsmarco ,you know what you really want to say to me ,its right there under the surface ,you have read through every word i wrote to try and figure it out ,your just not sure ,,put your big boy pants on ,take a risk ,,,say it ,say it

Ms Rolle I respect your position on this issue and I admire you and your group for trying to gain favour with the govt to allow Bahamians to gamble in our own country. Please understand that I dont denigrate my fellow Bahamians with one large brush. What my point is that we have a sizable portion of our population that the govt, the casinos , the casino staff and more importantly right thinking Bahamians dont want in the casinos ,possibly damaging the product for the country , embarrassing us and creating an atmosphere that might endanger this very lucrative industry.
You said something very interesting at the end of your post; ' we will always be treated how we deserve to be treated by others' . That is exactly what will happen if Bahamians of a certain disposition are allowed to gamble in our casinos. They will tar us all with the same brush and we will be ALL seen in the same light as these same boorish, unmannered , uncivilized persons. Sandsmarco wants to turn this discussion into a discourse on racial dynamics and segregation when the simple truth is that this is simply about a very large portion of our society that is a liability to us, and we need to make sensible decisions about whether we allow them to ruin our reputation and tourist related industries.

I have read some articles in by time but none as ridiculous as the comments from Mr. Robert Sandy Sands.

What I would like to know is seeing that "Bahamians are not disciplined enough to use casinos", which nationality is disciplined to use casino Mr Sands?

What a bunch of utter nonsense.

I don't support the many forms of gambling but I would take Robert Sands remarks one step further by saying that the majority of Bahamians lack self-discipline period.

i don,t think the majority ,but far too many .i realize i now talk daily to great granparents that are not fifty years old yet ,and all three generations gave birth out of wedlock ..i sometimes wonder if some of the people that post reside here or are bahamians that have been abroad a long time /?

i,m against us in the casino ,but if you are going to do it ,set up parametors . if a bahamian wants to gamble in the casino they have to put up a 10,000 dollar bond, either bank guarantee or bank draft ,when it gets down to 500 they have to re post to continue to play ..this will keep out the riff raff and the working people that cant afford to lose their whole weeks wages in 20 mins ..

It is amazing that a lot of people are arguing for the right to lose money and enrich the owners of the casinos. The cliche, "the house always wins" still holds true based on my last statistical course. The government should setup a casino only for Bahamians into to benefit those who believe the odds are in their favour. I would love to see the same level of enthusiasm towards improving our educational or judicial system.

many of us are screaming for the gov to take back btc ,so we can have the oldest technology and highest rates in the region ..how long do u think it would have takin the gov to bring us 4g ,,

Can someone please tell me which nationality is made up of disciplined citizens since Bahamian are not?

we are very disciplined in our sexual habits and illegitimacy rate ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,lmao

@ BaystreetTrader?
Really? you want the government of the Bahamas to open a separate casino for Bahamians only? The government, running a casino and for Bahamians only?
Supposed the tourists want to play in the Bahamians only casino?
Plus you want to put the odds in the favor of the Bahamians who are gambling in the Bahamian Only casino rather than the house and then tell the tourists who want to play (who would also be aware that the odds would also be in their favor) that they (the tourists) cannot play?

lolololololol good one lolololol

I'm sorry you didn't see the sarcasm in that statement!

Sarcasm on "Right" Sarcasm off lololol

Casino gambling in the casino is a no no for us Bahamians...that my opinion, but the webshop gambling is ok.

What general population is "disciplined" enough to have unfettered access to casino gambling? Please indicate one country / society where casino gambling has not resulted in significant social issues?
The gambling industry is to enrich a few, leaving a wake of (quantifiable) social devastation.
Another example of a small group being allowed to exploit the masses.