o what a tangled web we've weaved...

O what a tangled web we weave who was it first we intended to deceive ? Small lies and deceptions has led to an international embarrassment a multi national scandal, the largest property in the Bahamas sitting incomplete and unoccupied, thousands of Bahamians unemployed and now a significant threat to the country 's credit rating.

This is not a surprise, the domino's have begun to fall. Who would want to do business in a country governed by a criminal organization?

And now begins the complete unraveling of Baha Mar thanks to the Christie government. Unintended consequences? Election Day can't some fast enough.

Oh no, say this isn't true!! ....But really, who can honestly blame Rosewood? No prestigious international Hotel chain could possibly want to be part of the sorry mess that Baha Mar has become. The blame rests firmly with The Bahamas government who should have supported Baha Mar when they first realized that there were problems with CCA and they should have FACILITATED not OPPOSED Baha Mar's Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection filed in Delaware.

So, we wait and see what Justice Winder's ruling will be. If his ruling does NOT support Baha Mar, expect a "domino effect" as all of the other hotel groups associated with Baha Mar also cut their losses and bail on the project!!

It looks more and more that The Bahamas government have "Burst the Baha Mar Bubble"!!! What remains to be seen is exactly what motivated Cabinet members to embark on this foolish, destructive and disastrous course of action.

So I guess we're all just gonna wait for History to repeat itself on Bay Street too.... http://www.thepointenassau.com/about-us

Dynasty Group, LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of China Construction America, Inc. (CCA). After almost thirty years of doing business in the United States, CCA has established a diverse portfolio of projects...Supported by a series of specialist companies in the China State Construction Engineering Corporation

But it's too big to fail, isn't it?

Remember the old saying, The bigger they are the harder they fall!?

Titanic was too big to sink

The government keeps spreading poison to investors. Just read the statements made by ministers in the last weeks and look how they handle the case. The Bahamas are simply not competitive to global investors with amateurs leading the country. The decision to get out of the Bahamas or the Bahamar has already been made by Hyatt, Rosewood and Melia. In my personal circle i have already seen multiple investments on a smaller scale fallen through in the last weeks (in ranges from 0.5 to 3 million USD).
Your country is rated on how your government handles this case - and sadly the people in charge simply do not do your country any good.

Rosewood has probably given thought to the serious conflicts of interest that both Christie and Maynard-Gibson have in their maliciously meddlesome involvement in the Baha Mar dispute, including the grossly unfair favouritism shown by the corrupt Christie-led PLP government towards the Chinese general contract and Chinese lender, and decided its better to explore opportunities opening up in Cuba. The anti-foreigner sentiment of 'Freddy Boy' Mitchell and 'Bumpy Head Shameless' Shane Gibson no doubt also helped Rosewood decide that Bahamas is no longer a suitable place to do business.

PLP all the way, thanks to it supporters. No lets see what bull.... they come up with to defend their actions. Ass .....

This is the start of the end.

It was sadly inevitable when the PLP stopped chapter 11 being recognised by the supreme court and prevented the debtor in possession financing being approved, as well as failing to pay foreign workers.

It doesn't matter if the building is complete, the Government's and the Chinese will have control of an empty shell, with no one willing to operate the hotels.

It was so obvious this would happen, yet they persisted to follow their own selfish and ego driven agenda. Shame on you Christie and you're gang of hacks. You have failed this country.

Comrade Thomas, the practice of hotel chains pulling out of Izmarlin's Baha Mar does have a long muddled history, having began long before the Chinese pumped their billions into the doomed resort project.
Why would Rosewood Hotel and Resorts International want their good name associated with such a mess.
Soon, all Izmarlin will be left with is a 'dock,' long enough dock every out islands mail boats, at once - but it still ain't got no nighttime lights, for il·lu·mi·na·tion da 'doc.'

Could it be true that someone in the government tem got the contract to build Tal's famous and often talked about bridge???

Get ready for rebranding as "The Beijing Palace".

Fa real!

WHY AM I NOT SURPRISED!!

Still pointing fingers. If Bahamar had its shit together this wouldn't have gone into bankruptcy in the first place. I can't see how people keep blaming the government alone. The folks at Bahamar are idiots and it appears are willing to not take any responsibility what so ever. Only CCA and our government is to blame. Get real Sandy. The executives there sitting up getting a big check and the project hasn't been completed. Some heads should roll.

So, tell me Stepdius, what exactly were Baha Mar meant to do when CCA downed their tools in February and left?

There was serious issues surrounding wanton disobedience of the building code, which makes the hotel unsafe as it cannot be properly accessed by emergency vehicles. In my mind there is no justifiable reason why things would be built wrong intentionally, other than conspiracy. These same Chinese banks were doing construction work at J.J. Airport in Guyana, and guess what...................... SAME DAMN THING..... only no Sarkis or Bahamar to blame there

Apparently you do not understand bankruptcy laws or how they work. Izmirilian, the owner of Bah Mar is not broke. He is just refusing to pump any more money in to the project under the terms and conditions the Chinese are forcing on him. He filed chapter 11 to prevent the Chinese from taking what was already invested in the project,but the government, for whatever reasons, took of fence to his actions and chose to side with the Chinese and force Izmirilian out. Do you think anyone in their right minds would continue to invest under a government that acted so wild, Wild West, so viligante and even communist?

That's what all those PLP supporters get, dumb ass TALRUSSELL and BIRDIE to start with. Defend their gods. Now TAL go blame the red shirts while you at it. Party over Country. I am dedicated to no party as I have voted across the two of them but this shit is UNBELIEVABLE. On my way to the US of A. Where there are checks and balances a little bit vs NONE AT ALL.

This is going just how China and the Bahamas Government wants it. They must be giving high-fives behind the scenes.

Welcome to Little China! Our Government must be so darned proud!

Lets protest for election on the next meeting of the HOA

A comrade leader such as Izmarlin, when facing possible exile from his country - one of the most important tasks facing the endangered leader - is where can he go into exile to - and will the county's leader accept him.
Izmarlin has already tried to gain ground against PM Christie, by corporately running to Delaware for protection - and he done exhausted the mobilization of the "citizens" of his
Baha Mar nation.
Him soon runs out options - whilst he awaits permanent ouster order, signed by
Minister Freddy.

http://tribune242.com/users/photos/2015…

Tal,

You make no sense at all.

None!

Great -- you and your odious, repugnant, non-patriotic comrades can communally congress with the male and female yardies in the rotting hulk of Baha Mar, while dining on the finest pigeon and coconut.

This is so sad. :( The country is going to become a 5th world country soon if things don't change.

Yet certain PLP members are swearing on their mamas' graves that Baha Mar will be opened before the end of the year which suggests to me that the PM has already slipped Justice Winder a note 'recommending' what his rulings should be with regards to this debacle.

Anyone that votes PLP after this needs to have a 'psychological test'!

PS: Nygard has been pretty quiet lately. Perhaps he now realizes hat he has been bamboozled and hoodwinked by the swing train Generals who says, "thanks for that election campaign donation. We still working on that stem cell thing for you!"

Perhaps that is it?

Stem cell center on Cable Beach!!

That's "dead good" news!

"PS: Nygard has been pretty quiet lately. Perhaps he now realizes hat he has been bamboozled and hoodwinked by the swing train Generals who says, "thanks for that election campaign donation. We still working on that stem cell thing for you!"

You guys are cracking me up! If you don't laugh, you'll cry! (shakes head)

Well with the recent announcement of 36% reduction in financial services workers (that is 4 in 10 workers for the PLP math-retarded) and more cuts coming, and add the Baha Mar workers, and maybe the building can be used for emergency shelter of the 60,000 unemployed people soon to populate the Bahamas.

How long before citizens take to the streets and loot the grocery stores? Mark my words -- civil unrest will surely come. Crime will increase even more than the levels now. With the economical slowdown that the VAT has caused, Nassau will look like The Mud in a short year or two.

Comrade Banker, your kind of talk serves but one purpose and that is its an calculated attempt to instill fear and the loss of all hope, among the people. That my Comrade friend is how a nation blindly turns to a strongman - once you can convince everyone that things are falling apart. That my Comrade Banker, not only makes for wonderful rhetoric but it can also turn into being recklessly scary talk.

You are absolutely right. Another operator will take over the leases tomorrow. Baha Mar will be open by October. Crime will stop because people will realise how stupid it is. The guns will be donated to BAMSI to make ploughshares and unemployment will drop to 1%. The Haitians will all leave by September, everyone in the Bahamas will be making $50,000 a year by November, and maybe Jesus will come and rapture the PLP.

How could I be so stupid not to see this???? It must be the work of Satan in me. My relatives are not having problems making ends meet. My aunt doesn't need a wheelchair that costs over two thousand dollars. She needs a healing at the PLP headquarters. There is nothing wrong with her. It's all in her head.

How could I have been so blind, as to not recognise that our Dear Leader is not all wise. And our unmarried cabinet ministers are so masculine that woman are afraid of them. And the chairman could have been a Rhodes scholar if he could have found the right road in his youth. And the cauliflower ears of the attorney general are that way from the wisdom that drips from her orifices. Dear me. I am so wrong.

How could I have been so blind? Quick, cut my head open, and implant the chip before I change my mind.

No my dear Tal, you chide me because I voice your secret fears. And you do not have the intellectual honesty to admit it.

Thank you, Banker! One of the most astute, funniest, spot-on posts ever.

Trying still to get up off the floor from falling off the sofa laughing. Your post is well worth the price of another keyboard.

Not to worry, Baha Mar open on time and the VAT tax will fund a space program which will make the heavens rain green beer every Friday night.

Oil will be discovered beneath The Caves, while Batelco's Delaport Point Forward Scatter reflector antennas will miraculously reconstruct themselves and allow extraterrestrials to contact us with good news that they will shortly land and hand out checks to everyone.

Things are great, and getting better.

Comade Paul_Vincent, before you posted I was thinking that it was only Banker, who
was the only one yet to regain full mobility of the upper part he body - he brain.

Oh Tal stop it! You lost this one hun. Banker is making sense.. it's widely known by everyone; man, woman and child that things are very bad and not likely to change any time soon. Many are still here (in The Bahamas) still trying to lead honest, productive lives under such a strained economy. There is no hysteria being incited by stating the OBVIOUS truths of our society to date. It is, what it is! The fact that you still have loyal but frustrated Bahamians here, riding out this storm says a lot. THERE LIES HOPE FOR A BETTER TOMORROW. There is not much one can do until we go to the polls. So leave us be to 'beat our gums' as much as wish until that time. Change will come but we must realize and SPEAK truth or how will we rectify the problems and issues we seem to be plagued with year in year out?!

P.S. I'm not cloaking my 'MA' if she did wrong by someone, much less any of these goons that call themselves cabinet ministers!

Tal -

You're too kind. Lost what people laughingly refer to as my 'mind' years ago!

Hey, watch what you say about The Caves. It is the site of miracles and a magical place. It can feed you. I had some banker friends from Toronto, and I was showing them out west and we stopped at the Caves. Amid the graffiti and bottles, we saw movement in the shadows. In the dark recess of the back of the cave, was a cowering goat. It was injured and its back leg was bleeding and broken. Prolly hit by a car. I kid you not, the first thing that I thought of was catching and cooking the goat. Reluctantly I had to leave it there, but as sure as a gussie mae likes donuts, I am willing to bet that it ended up as souse somewhere.

Comrade Banker, some concerned pet lover is going be phoning the Bahamas Human Society's Animal Control to see if they need speak to you to see if there is some kinds conspiracy going on to commit goat abuse. You can expect a visit from a uniformed goat protection officer da early parts next week.

Tal and banker -

Good thing the goat was gone when my wife and I went into The Caves last Wednesday, nothing down below but a puddle toward the rear. I'd have been driven to rescue it, get it to BHS for treatment; poor creature.

The Caves is a beautiful place, first saw it as a small boy ca. 1961 when Uncle Foti showed it to me and stated that pirates had buried their treasure there and by scratching around in the sand, one might find it.

You know the rest. This kind gentleman had already thrown a few coins into the sand for me to 'discover' - what a thrill.

Well, last Wednesday we stop by and guess what? First thing exiting the car, I find a Bahamian coin, first thought was Uncle Foti's kindness and as you say, The Caves are a wonderful place.

My wife and I photographed The Caves and as well, Sullivan House out on Rock Point, where some of Thunderball was filmed, for benefit of those uninitiated into Bond lore. Also stopped as usual at The Perfume Shop, clearly seen in the film as well.

We realized that we pulled off the road just west of Sullivan House and parked and went in the water to snorkel in '03, what a pleasure.

This situation with Baha Mar is worrisome to say the least, hope and pray for the sake of the Bahamian people it is resolved.

I did notice the massive parabolic reflectors called "Forward Scatter" out at Delaport Point had at last fallen to advances in undersea cables.

A pleasure to read your posts, gentlemen, thank you for taking time to reply to mine.

Stopped in City Market out by Melia to pick up a few snacks, needed some change, didn't have loose coins. A very kind lady behind us right away volunteered hers. Kindnesses such as this you remember always.

Having visited the Bahamas and Nassau in particular, it's like going home. The islands are beautiful and people are welcoming, hospitable. What more could one want? It's a bond which remains forever.

Still cracking up; Banker you deserve 10👍* for that one!!!

*"thumbs up" for those who cannot see the symbol...

HAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!

Does anyone smell a rat? Wonder who's cooking. While Bah Mar has come to a complete standstill and sits baking in the sun guess what : Ground gas been broken for The Pointe Plaza to go up down town and the Lucayan Hotel in Freeport has announced plans for expansion (it's one of the very few full service properties in Freeport that remain open. What do both of these properties have in common? They are both owned by Izmirilian! And you thought you smelled Chinese food!

You meant that they are both owned by the Chinese.

The Chinese owns those properties, not Izmirlian.

John Donne (1572-1631), Devotions Upon Emergent Occasions, Meditation XVII: Nunc Lento Sonitu Dicunt, Morieris:

"Perchance he for whom this bell tolls may be so ill, as that he knows not it tolls for him; and perchance I may think myself so much better than I am, as that they who are about me, and see my state, may have caused it to toll for me, and I know not that.

The Rosewood Bell and all that is happening now is a death bell tolling for All of us in the Bahamas.

A Scottish client of mine speaking of a once very wealthy family, noted that the children had taken a small fortune AND MADE IT SMALLER. What the Bahamas Government has done is to cut more than fifty percent of the value of this project away. We can no longer refer to a 3.4 Billion Dollar property because it is now, ( if that even ) a 1.5 billion dollar project. The Bahamas Government would have difficulty raising that kind of money in the Capital Markets of the world and I doubt seriously than even the China Exim bank will put any more money up. So there it will sit. I think it could work as a new detention center though. Or an upgrade to the Defense force base. It has a nice dock as Tal keeps telling us. Freddy can assign rooms to the Haitian Refugees as they are brought in.

On my Bloomberg screen yesterday, I found this little nugget:

The central bank on Tuesday completed putting $48 billion (£30.6 billion) into the China Development Bank and $45 billion (£28.6 billion) into the Export-Import Bank of China, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

With the recent collapse of the Chinese stock market, the capital injections were necessary.
At its peak, the Shanghai Composite Index was 152pc higher than a year earlier. Yet after that colossal bull run, shares plunged by 32pc in less than three weeks.
The total value of equities listed in China dropped by around $4 trillion (£2.6 trillion).

So you are right, the Exim Bank will not put any more money up. They were foolish not to let Sarkis use his money to finish the project.

If the Bankruptcy had gone its course Rosewood would still be in the game.

They now have a clear indication of how this country is run and all the conflicts of interest, secret deals so they found an excuse to get out.

All the idiots, oops I mean our "leaders", had to do was to allow the chapter 11 process to proceed and the development would open before Christmas. Anyone who knows anything about this project knows that CCA is a disaster and is the sole cause of this problem. Had they met their contractural obligations the resort would be opened. The idiots, oops I mean our "leaders" are just too dense to see this. God help us.

Plenty of blame to go around, including most definetly the incomptence of Izfailian and his "trusted" expert Directors, Managers, Advisors and even "supposed" Friends, who combined to releave this Heir apparent of his Family fortune by failing to manage a Project of this magnitude and in the process create what may well become the largest Jail/Detention Centre in the Western Hemisphere, as opposed to Resort.

You have no idea of what actually went on with that project. It's amazing how many "experts" are out there who continue to express their uninformed opinions!!!

It seems to me that the Bahamian government made the same mistake that George Bush did in Iraq. They looked at a situation, said this isn't the best and we need to act. Fine. But then they looked at how much money they could make. Pretty soon how much money they could make overrode all strategy. So they put forward all kinds of neat arguments for how easy it would be to accomplish a particular goal. Depose one man and drop another one in and everything would come up roses. What they actually ended up doing was breaking everything into a million pieces, something that they could have easily predicted if they weren't blinded by greed. Perry Christie, Brave Davis, Fred Mitchell, Shane Gibson and Allyson Maynard Gibson's *"Iraquian" Humpty Dumpty.

Banker: I don't think for a minute that CCA has the money itself to develop Hilton Pointe and with the tide changing in China's fortunes, they may decide that global expansionism is not really for them. Then we will have a tourism desert from Bay Street to Cable Beach. Has our government asked for any guarantee's on completion, I doubt it, they done got the private payouts so why should they care ? .

This is a very good point. We should continue to watch how China plays with its currency. I wonder if the Baha Mar loan was in the yuan or the dollar???? The latest devaluation impacts that loan I'm sure.

Here is the interesting thing about Exim Bank. It is run by the Chinese State Council-the administrative arm of the Government of China. Their 1994 charter was for the development of the export of heavy machinery & electronic goods to the world. Needless to say, the export market is in decline. (The CEO of WalMart -one of China's biggest customers, announced a new plan to source American goods & foodstuffs, & to economically diversify from Chinese goods.)

The 2nd area of Exim's charter was on-lending to foreign governments. On-lending means that they have borrowed the money & re-lend it out to foreign governments. This serves 2 purposes. It can be an arbitrage, where the lower the Moodys/Standard & Poor rating, the higher the interest & the more profitable the loan is. If a country like the Bahamas has an outstanding debt of over 66% of its GDP & other lenders shy away, the Exim bank will borrow money at perhaps 1.5 - 2% , & re-lend it with an interest rate of 5%.

They are also the bank for Chinese government concessional loans. What that is, is a soft loan with long periods of repayment. They offer these loans on behalf of the Chinese government with govt money. They have the power to do this, without a profit motive - if the government deems it best for its interest in foreign affairs - like creating a Chinese influence place on America's doorstep.

It is highly unlikely that the Bank does have further funds to invest with CCA, given the fact that they needed a $45 billion dollar cash injection this week. Presumably this was just to keep operating with their commitments around the world to concessional & on-lending loans.

The Chinese will keep blustering & keeping up a good front, but they probably would have to borrow the money to finish Baha Mar and be left with a potential white elephant. At this point, they may just try to claim Baha Mar & if they win it, they will sit on the land, and let the buildings rot.

Or even worse than that, they will keep their interest in the buildings & Perry will give the project to the Snake to run as his own. Given the level of conspiracy proven by the senile Baltron Bethel, who still hasn't learned how to use email, my guess is that this whole fiasco is a knee-jerk reaction with no planning. First they tried to follow ole Cauliflower Ears, Mayonnaise Gibson's repo plan & when the corrupt attorney general proved to be legally inept, they are now stalling for a viable plan to satisfy the Bahamian courts, Delaware courts & even the Privy Council, as they gave Corrupt Damian, the Arch-Homophobe's son the heave-ho & hired a British lawyer as well.

So the soap opera continues. The only thing that you can bet on, is that Fred will have more pepper in his vaseline & hence more vitriol coming out of his mouth & the government will continue to be the dishonest anencephalic retards & kleptocrats that they are, and keep stumbling from one anti-democratic travesty to another.

Banker you have a sharp sense of Humor!
No, we assign all sorts of motive to the Ruling Clique, but if and when they succeed at what evr their objectives they will show their hand, perhaps it is as simple as a new group of "Sunshine people" divvying up the assets of Sarkis.
Initially i believe they panicked. Nothing more, but the inevitable scheming ensued.
Seems to be nothing more than the well used way of gaining wealth,
Steal it.

"The asylums of Calcutta are filled with westerners who tried to outhustle the East."
- Rudyard Kipling