Sometimes there is benefit in a bunch of conch being strung together and not venturing to a grassier bottom overnight. They remain so the fisherman may have conch to sell the next day or the vendor can sell scorch conch or conch salad. And it the union is the string that keeps the conch tied together, management is the knot in the string that keeps the conch secure. Unfortunately, over the past few years, the knot keeps coming loose, conch slip away and get lost and the union to go on a hunt to bring more conch back and to firm the relationship with staff and management. You cannot keep the conch strung together indefinitely and feed them mostly empty promises.

Many have skipped over posting on this article simply because it is difficult to comprehend why so many young men are dying. And so tragically. And how difficult it is to offer condolences and support when the sting of death has struck you and your family. But is is not an empty and veiled statement to say once again ‘ lean not to your own understanding.’ God is still in control band he knows what we know not. Weep in sorrow for the loss of your loved ones, but joy will come in the morning. Jesus also wept.

Is this a case of ‘when you live in a glass house you should not throw stones’, or ‘when you throw stones you should not live in s Glass House.’ Not only as opposition did the FNM not uncover the lease of the property but they saw fit to continue on the lease for some 2 1/2 years.

Whenever the shootings tend to die down , then this!

What Balan Nair needs to explain is why so many CEO's and other senior personnel have come and gone from BTC after it became Liberalised. BTC no longer has a soul or a personality. It is like a bus stop or train station, where you always meet a different set of people and hardly ever the same. The family spirit has been consumed and the working environment has become cold and harsh. There have been persons at BTC who have tried to revive and maintain the 'family' structure at BTC, which has paid dividends in the past. But they have been cut and shredded like kast week's newspaper and discarded at the earliest opportunity. And so what you see at the front desk in terms of service, attitude, performance and productivity is what has trickled down from the numerous CEO"s that headed the company in the past few years. A young boy once asked a vet what should he do to make his dog a better guard dog and more protective. The vet response, "make him feel that he is in control of the home and a part of the family. His natural instincts will tell him to guard what is his and to protect those who show him love and affection.' Some people teach a dog to be vicious and attack on command, but after that he doesn't give a shit about who he attacks because he only working for his reputationand a lil bit of food.

Obviously, you reflect exactly what you are saying about the Bahamian children. At your age you are still both ignorant and arrogant with your double, Bahamian hating, no despising, personality. Try sucking lemons.

And the small businesses that sell BTC and Aliv products are and some other goods and services are faring no better. With the phone companies, for example, only giving a 5 or 6% commission on the sale of their products, small businesses are actually subsidizing BTC and Aliv. They keep 91% of their sales and share 9% between resellers. A retail store has to sell 1,000 worth of top up to pay a staff 1 day's pay at minimum wage. And because of competition, prices on many other items have been driven down while the cost of doing business including taxes, wages, utilities, booking and account reporting requirements have increased. So many businesses are operating out of their owner's pockets. And when the pockets run dry or the owners realize it doesn't make sense, they close the business down. And it gives foreigners easier access to the market or consumers no choice but to shop abroad. and so the economy shrinks and shrivels along with the middle class.

Even in London where they are a minority, young bBlack men are being slaughtered, allegedly at the hands of each other. Many are being stabbed to death, some as young as 16. And the ones who do the killings in London, are mostly teens or persons in their early 20’s.

So what is the chances of surviving an attack by three sharks? When major limbs have been detached? The reason shark attacks used to be rare in The Bahamas is because Bahamians learned to respect sharks and not trust them. When they show up you get out the water. Right away. When someone, especially a family member or a loved one dies tragically like in a shark attack or a car or airplane accident, those in mourning will always feel more could have been done to save that person’s life. And in this case maybe more first aid should have been available. It may not have saved the person’s life but it would give comfort knowing everything was done to save them. So what will be the outcome of the helicopter crash where seven people, mostly young, lost their lives? Speculation is that the helicopter may have had some structural issues. Will there also be lawsuits against the manufacturers or against the estate of the owner? The problem with storing the antidote for snake bite is it will most likely be expired when time comes to use it.

There are several things need mentioning: First off the majority of Bahamians live from hand to mouth and there is little left to go towards a pension plan. Secondly, many businesses are operating barely by the skin of their teeth and to place another financial burden on them in the form of a employee pension plan will definitely sink their ship. And since the work force is so mobile how would a company manage such a plan.? The average worker will contribute to National Insurance for at least 50 years. Many workers who have contributed will not live to draw retirement and for many, retirement is the only benefit they will ever receive from NIB. So there should be no problem with a retired worker getting the equilavant of his salary when he or she retires. Private pensions should be gravy.