Thank you for questioning the wisdom of drilling for oil in The Bahamas. We need to have the vision and regard for the science that says it is a very bad and all too risky proposition.

Agreed 100%. Thanks for speaking up.

Thank you for this letter. For many, many good reasons there should never be drilling in Bshamian waters. Ever.

Mr. Mossman,

Yes, we lack leadership. Not only that, while complaining that we are suffering economically, too many behave as if they are the only ones on the planet. We do as we wish, and then wonder why our cases of Covid have exploded lately. Presently, no healthy person should visit The Bahamas. The virus is rampant here. But, you are right, our leaders have no sense of reality.

This is a great example of why politicians do not want an educated populace. Simple math is out of the question. Who cannot see where this is all headed? What will be sacrificed when we are unable to meet these payments? What national assets will we have to forfeit? What national decisions will be out of our hands? What about taxes? What about our obligations to maintain services to our people? All of these issues will come after the "investors" get their pound of flesh. Nothing good can come out of this massive borrowing. The politicians and bankers cannot be honest about it. Their careers and salaries are on the line. The Bahamian people are being led to the slaughterhouse.

This 1.2 billion dollars will not be paid back. Our politicians and bankers know this. How will The Bahamas pay it back? We couldn't meet payroll and pensions nor pay down our debts when the economy was roaring. Now what? The simple math suggests that even if tourism bounces back, which it won't, we are in a much worse situation with this loan. Forget about the principle, we won't even be able to keep up with the interest. We will need to borrow more not to default. This is about financing, and the unholy alliance between bankers and the people. Mr. Turnquest's salary depends upon his staying in office. He knows that while there are few other alternatives, this borrowing is dooming the future of The Bahamas. He knows this.He along with every other opportunist politician has been setting money aside for their exit from this country. For his own family's sake, he is willing to sell our collective soul. Does a drug addict really believe they will pay off their "borrowed" money? Or, will they use every last dollar getting their next fix? These financial gurus are no different. When The Bahamas is forced to dramatically cut back on salaries, pensions, social services, environmental protection, and all other services they provide, these guys, our politicians will be long gone. Living conditions in Nassau will become unbearable, and wholly uncivilized. We are not paying attention to what many countries go through when forced into this predicament. The writing is on the wall.

An excellent article.
Our hope for the future.

Anyone who understands basic math, can pretty much sum up that this country is finished. Those who negotiated these loans will likely be long gone by the time they start coming due. Those who remain in The Bahamas, our children, will be forced to pay interest on these loans before a penny goes to improving this country. These loans are being taken out due to mismanagement, nothing else. At some point in time, an individual, a family, a country starts saving money, not continually borrowing it. The loans and interest payments are unsustainable. What I want to know is what collateral is there for them to take when we fail to repay these loans. I think our default is a given. These politicians are painting a rosy picture of something that should spell doom for the jobs and credibility. Thankfully for them, there are precious few in this country that can do the math. The Bahamas as a country is finished.

I agree

And it will only get worse with AI.