Clearly drilling for oil in this day and age is a huge mistake by The Bahamas.
However, so many people have sold their souls that the talk is all about the money, nothing more. This money does not exist yet. But, our pristine waters, our fabulous beaches, and our abundant fisheries do. It amazes me that some people are willing to risk it all for the promise of a handful of dollars. I suspect that these people are unfamiliar with, and spend little time out of their offices. As the letter writer says, haven't we been down this road before. Will we never learn? Especially troubling is the silence from our supposedly science based Prime Minister. All of the science suggests this is a bad idea. So, there must be something we do not know about that is silencing Dr. Minnis. As to the commenters here who continue to support oil drilling in The Bahamas. Sad. Hey Columbus, are you Bahamian, or just a paid shill for BPC? The others just seem to lack an education.

Columbus,
Like your namesake, do you think all people in the Caribbean are stupid and deserve to be enslaved?

https://www.seafoodsource.com/news/envi…

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petrotrin…

https://oilnow.gy/tag/trinidad-oil-spil…

moncurcool and Columbus,
Both of your arguments lack logic.
We are asking for an official change in policy. That is the role of leadership. We can all do our part. But, calling people hypocrites because they don't ride a bike to work is a canard. The abundance of emerging science, and tons of it, all point to the reality that burning fossil fuels is bad for us, our planet, our economy, our political well being. If you can't gather this and be honest about it, get out of thinking people's way. Your thinking is behind the times. Or, maybe you have a personal stake in the drilling, or you are lying due to greed and ignorance. Smart responsible and environmentally conscious people no longer argue for drilling. They can get away with it in the comments pages in a newspaper in an obscure tiny country the size of a small city. But, among scientists and thinkers, your thinking is almost dead now.

You appear clueless.

Or, by treating people with an iota of respect?

Is this an epitaph? For us as a country? For any semblance of good faith, trust, cooperation, by those who are elected and paid, by us, to look out for our own best interests? You don't have to pick sides. All you have to do is to understand that, at some point, none of us wants to feel disposable. Eventually, for any of us to get "involved" is to put yourself up for being considered disposable. This administration is no different from any that came before. All the same.

I agree.

Agree 100%.
Antiquated thinking is what we specialize in.
Time to start thinking anew.

Good column, Inigo.
I agree with all of what you say.

Sorry, religion is the problem. Spend enough time traveling, or on a university campus and it doesn't take long to figure it out. There are literally thousands of religions in the world, and most followers believe theirs is the right and only one. Someone is wrong, wouldn't you say. How is it that the vast majority of Bahamians are Christians. Everyone intellectually arrive at the same conclusion. Or, was it brainwashing from birth? You decide.