Comrade PopoulacesOrdinary at large are left get their coronoavirus updates by having to join the Facebook page of we Colony of Out Islands and Cays health minister. In the meantime, Jamaica's prime minister, has just this very moment - declared all of his Colony's likewise dependent upon tourism's Jamaica a disaster zone area amid the Coronavirus. The Jamaican prime minister, also added all travel from the UK to its list banned countries. Is it time to call for influential red shirts to step forward for an Intervention of the health minister? Not making this up. Just, can't.

Sheer greed and complete disregard for human safety resulted in the cruise lines building bigger and bigger ships, to the point where they cannot both be operated profitably and properly cleaned between cruises. To be competitively profitable these monstrous floating hotels must spend a minimum number of days each year at sea loaded with as many passengers as possible. In other words, to continue profitably operating these gigantic ships they must remain as ***un***clean as possible without detection of their filthiness by the human eye. And that's the conundrum the cruise lines now face as public health officials all over the world are coming to the realization that these grossly over-sized ships cannot possibly be profitably operated safely.

These monstrous floating hotels are doomed by their sheer size alone to always be the ideal breeding ground and transmission environment for harmful and/or deadly pathogens like Covid 19. Hopefully public health officials the world over will now put an end to this industry if the foolish patrons of these cruise lines up to now do not do so themselves. And to think Minnis and D'Aguilar have been working over-time since May 2017 to put all of our country's fragile economic eggs in this filthy and greedy industry's basket.

And while they make billions in profits, The Bahamas and other host Caribbean countries continue to drown in debt

now, over due decisions must be made. Gucci or grocery, $9 movie or $15 movie, $1200 cellphone or $200 cellphone, expensive restaurant or wendy's . we can get through this, but logical decisions must be made from the public and the government whom seems to spend more than 10 times the amount of money they have.

Excellent analysis Well muddo.

“The cruise ships currently pay $18 per passenger “head tax” to the Public Treasury, now that rebates ceased from June 30 last year, plus an estimated $3-$4 per head in docking fees. This takes the total levy imposed on them to around $21-$22 per passenger.“ The Tribune.

So the government gets $21 per passenger, the average passenger spends $15 in port. Total $36 per passenger x 10,000 x 365 days per year = $131,400,000 in loss taxes and retail business. Using an economic multiplier of 4 and considering the loss of hard currency to the Bahamas then the impact is $500,000,000.

Assuming a $10 billion economy this will equate to a 5% shrinkage in GDP.

As Well muddo says the business model of these sea monster is to pack as many ppl on each cruise, clean to the minimum standards and dump as much garbage in the ocean where no one is watching and there is zero penalties compared to the recycling.

I would be shocked if the CDC comes out even after CoVID 19 passes in a couple of months and says it is now safe to put 3,500 on a cramp dirty boat.

If these monsters stop operation it will put a dent in sea pollution and global warming.

After corona passes (months from now), no one will be getting on cruise ships. The cruise industry will not recover for many years. That part of our economy is gone for a long time to come. Flights are also coming in close to empty now. The stop over passengers are going to be gone for a long time too. This is going to be an economic catastrophe for the Bahamas. Prepare for some dark times.

I agree Newcitizen. This will be an "economic catastrophe" bigger than Dorian for the Bahamas.

As usual, our leaders are not addressing the fast moving events nor have they diversified the economy away for big box tourism projects...which are now "dead in the water". With Dorian knocking out Abaco and Grand Bahama and CoVID 19 knocking out Nassau is this the black swan we were praying never comes?

Some statistics about tourism found on the www.tourismtoday.com website:

1.Just under 50% of all persons in The Bahamas are directly employed in tourism.

2. If you add those who are indirectly employed in tourism, the percentage increases to 70%.

3. Tourism provides foreign exchange (US dollars) which allows the government to pay bills

4. Approximately 1.5 million stopover visitors and 3.5 million cruise visitors per annum. (Canada has advised its citizens to stop non essential travel abroad and to self quarantine for 14 days when you return).

Added to this is the CRITICAL part.commonly known...4. Par value of Bahamian dollar with US is the Bahamian having to keep US reserves kept to maintain stable interuse.
5. Addid is the Bahamian use of US currency to transact merchants purchases of US goods etc.
6. Banking customer transactions medical, school fees etcetc...

SERIOUSLY??? Being questioned by Wolf Blizer, the governor for Ohio was ask how come they only had 1,000 test kits for such a large population like Ohio. The response was, ‘We believe that there is going to be so many cases of Corona, eventually we will have to stop testing and focus on treatments.’ Wow! Currently the number of cases worldwide doubles every six days.

You can't expect test kits for a new disease as it's already widespread. You know if you're sick with flu-like symptoms where you'd be doing the same thing anyway.

Sorry. Disagree. We have too many praying and not enough thinking. Sometimes they are mutually exclusive. Like now.

Word has it that the **7 imported** republican strategists and sister Erica - operating out of the PMO are planning the beginning April as the **official launch date** for the holding of Out Islands wide pre general election campaign rallies for the Imperialists red shirts governing party's House MP's and aspiring election candidates to be introduced to rally the {troops} behind the government's **river of nonsense** {response} to the new coronoavirus. **Uniformed Immigration officers** needs sprungs surprise call on PMO? This is just too serious a health and **mystery** issuance surrounding **7** Work Permits to be making Fake News stuff up. Just, **shouldn't.**

For 70 years ……….. we put all our eggs in ONE basket ……… Now, it's time to find some other (straw) baskets.

Good thinking sheeprunner. The reasons among many... is that there are not many other businesses here is that 1. Many politicians look at the nationalist issues and dont want foreigners 2. Some dont seems to want the othet political side to bring in companies that would not benefit their political echlons and cronies. 3. Some gets through and brings in companies with knowingly dertimental effects. 4. Foreign investments are just plain to jump through impossible hoops. 5. Investors dealing with highest costs living in worlds sixth most expensive nation. 6. crime (actually time ago had friend whose house got entered burgulars just short of bedroom door iron door and next day wife told him they are moving and left country and company wound up and closed) 7. Lack seems of seeking possible clients with concerns to diverse economy 8. and on and on...classic non investors example to have some 25% of Mayaguana and almost all the island's beaches and was reversed by following political party

Coronavirus Live Updates: Trump Says He’s Been Tested and Extends Travel Ban to Britain and Ireland, and France Closes Businesses

New York reported its first death from the virus, and a cruise that departed Florida is hunting for a port after two passengers test positive.

RIGHT NOWFrance will close restaurants, bars and cafés at midnight on Saturday as the number of cases in the country nears 4,500.’

Also, Spain just closed it boarders.

Catholic Church in New York cancelled mass tomorrow.

**Let's be serious, okay?** The memories of we comrades helplessly watching as the rolls toilet papers go flying off store's shelves, and right before we very eyes, just as we're about's reach out grab that last 24 or 48 rolls Jumbo package toilet tissues will become interrupted by a whole new set ordeals to come to we Colony of Out Islands and Cays. Just Pray as this ordeal too shall passes?

So is that why America is closing shop and hunkering down? China is now accusing the US army of spreading the Corona virus in China. So is the US now expecting some retaliation from China? Is this a trade war gone viral or virus?

by Joel Gehrke
| March 12, 2020 05:10 PM
A senior Chinese diplomat accused the U.S. Army of spreading the coronavirus to China hours after his colleagues complained that efforts to assign blame distract from efforts to counter the pandemic.

“When did patient zero begin in US?” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lijian Zhao tweeted Thursday. “It might be US army who brought the epidemic to Wuhan.”

it happened with the "Spanish" flu... which should have correctly been called the "US G.I." flu.

I really do hope that this government and all future govts finally get it.

1.We cannot depend on tourism.

2.In time of need the foreign man will flee with his business. All we'll have is Bahamians.

3.They need to get serious about investing in Bahamian owned (not fronted) businesses. Businesses with global reach, ones that are scalable and have links to future trends

4.The PR focus (eateries, landscapers and barbershops) of the sbdc must change so that it becomes the engine to drive #3. Yes there will be risk. That's the nature of knowledge economy startups. Yes there will be some losses. But If we get 5 of these businesses going, we could have a multi billion dollar industry. We don't need to wait for 5 year olds to learn to use tablets. We can get moving today.

The key here is Bahamians must be driving the technology not outsourcing creation to the foreign man.

Please don't listen to whoever advised on the "tech hub", right idea but wrongheaded foreign focused strategy. A complete waste of 2 years that coukd have been full fledged investment in Bahamian human capital.

5.The wasteful spending and overpricing on contracts has to stop immediately

6.Incompetent party loyalists appointed to key positions must be done away with. Who do you want making the decisions that could sink or float the country come Monday morning? Omar Archer?

7.We need a research program in natural remedies. I heard Dr Sands mention something of that nature last year, push that up.