Yeh Tal, and you and I are not that far apart in our desire to make things better for our fellow Bahamians. We are just approaching it from different angles.

I would very much like to see us have good health care for all.

But we need a holistic approach. That will include the need to tax the bad foods such as fast food so that we can drop the duty on fresh and organic foods. For those of us who grew up in the Out Islands, as they were then, we got to eat fresh fish and vegetables out of the yard. We had seasons for a number of foods.

Obesity is our biggest problem with respect the NHI and yet no one is addressing it. Yes, and the huge hemorrhaging of cash at PHA.

Already, the UK says that Obesity will bankrupt their health system. We have to deal with it.

You got any ideas on how we deal with it?

Folks, I don't want to rain on your parade but China, the Soviet Union, Vietnam, Cambodia and even Cuba are giving up and joining the capitalist system.

The evidence is very clear, you let government run and own as little as possible if you want to be able to put any food on the table.

Excellent editorial, thank you Tribune.

No, but I am aware of the all the data (audits and losses that have been made public) they have on money loosing government agencies, department and corporations totaling over $200 million a year and do nothing about.

I think that government should take their gloves off and respond by cleaning up the mess that they have helped to create.

I understand that they intend to sign you up involuntarily through the NIB. You will have no choice.

Tal, good point about subsidization. It would be a lot cheaper if government paid a subsidy of say up to 70% of the insurance premium.

They already have $100 million that they are wasting in the current system. The private insurance companies wouldn't waste $100 million.

To do the NHI now is just a political gimmick.

It would appear that the government does not care whether the NHI will work or not just as long as they can say they did it. If they lose the next election they won't have to worry about its inability to provide health care or the financial ruin that it inflicts.

They know that it will take years to stop the financial hemorrhaging in the health system. If they really cared about giving good quality care to all they would fix the system.

To fix the finances of the health system takes political will and leadership, to introduce NHI does not require either.

Thanks Banker.

Tal, Cayman is attracting some big name corporations, some wanted to come here but we were unable to give them the certainty that proper business needs.

It is usually the more shady characters that will look to The Bahamas because they think that they will be able to cut a deal or do something they could not do else where as many of our laws are out of date or not properly enforced.

We also need to get away from our xenophobic thoughts. A good sized portion of New York City and its harbor are controlled by a private company and it seems to work quite well.

Foreign ownership is becoming the norm all over the world.

Just need the right owners regardless of nationality.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/stor…

Tal, you are right about the need to reduce the population in Nassau. The island is burdened by all the people. The infrastructure can't withstand it.

Freeport was designed for 250,000 people and only has about 50,000. But government would have to have a real economic plan like Cayman to encourage the necessary FDI to create the jobs.

That would include opening up immigration with set rules of efficiency, no waiting 3 months for a Work Permit or Residence Permit. I understand that once you have all the paper work in that Cayman produces the permits in 10 days or so.

We would also need to adopt the US Dollar and abandon Exchange Control.