When reading these pages it is sad to see that political partisanship in the Bahamas has devolved to the point where the public disclosure on heinous acts or outrageous failures by the serving government are first denied even in the face of overwhelming facts to the contrary, but then - and here is the sad part - are excused, on the flimsy grounds that the other party, sometime in the past, did some allegedly heinous things as well.

Doesn't the Bahamas deserve good government? Don't Bahamians of all political points of view deserve serving cabinet ministers and a serving Prime Minister, who are serving their interests honorably? Shouldn't errors, particularly errors that are compounded by cover ups and the intentional dissemination of misinformation, be challenged by all Bahamians? Wouldn't the serving government of whatever party do a better job if that were the case?

What seems to be the state of Bahamian political discussion, both in these pages, as well as in the country at large, is a kind of silly beauty contest where the test of government is relegated to an argument over whether your candidate or your party has more warts than mine does. Is this the path to good governance?

I have no idea what bones some of these writers have to pick with the Ingraham Administration, but based on my observation, the level of transparency, and attention to trying to solve real problems by the former PM and his party make the current operation of government look like amateur hour and corrupt amateur hour at that. Who can suggest such a government is good for this country, and in any event would not the current government do a better job than it has done so far, if it were challenged from all quarters over its glaring misdeeds?

Pray tell, how does someone wire his mouth shut?

Anything to change the subject!

"Cuban Ambassador has said twice there have been no reports of abuse." This is sited as evidence that no abuse took place?

You really have to be kidding.

All purely Bahamian aspects of this story aside, how can anyone be so credulous as to believe that the current Cuban authorities have any regard for these persons who are fleeing the tyrannical state they have imposed, any more than they have any regard for the truth?

Whatever you choose to believe about what went on at the Detention Center, or what you think should be this country's policy regarding such refugees, certainly we don't have to stoop so low as to credit what the Cuban Ambassador has to say on this topic.

So, Comrade Fred has another "ongoing probe".

Word is that he has an ongoing probe to determine whether the sun rises in the morning.

The results of this probe into the Detention Center goings on, can be expected about the same time as his probe into whether his appointee as Ambassador to the U.S. was credentialed or not. That "probe" went on for months and Comrade Fred issued the same hyperbolic responses to legitimate inquiries about why the country's Ambassador to its most important foreign government was sitting in limbo.

Launching probes is apparently a far easier course that admitting to an endless list of unforced errors.

Well there is the proof. All of Mr. Nygard's posturing cannot get around the facts. He says the accretion to his land is "natural" when there are hundreds of photos showing his crews dredging the sea bottom day in and day out, to build up his land.

The government has the evidence, yet each time this comes up there is the pretense of action by someone suggesting: "let's get some expert to study this".

There are concrete structures built onto the coral on the north side of his property. No one needs an expert, Mr. Christie, please just go look!

Mr. Nygard claims he is not against the protection of Clifton Park's seabed, but of course that is exactly what he is against. All of Koed Smith's nonsense is just a smoke screen. If the seabed next to the park were put under the auspices of the BNT, they know Mr. Nygard's depredations would have to stop.

The FNM government gave him a cease, desist and restore order. So far the Christie administration is giving him a green light.

Who owns the Bahamas? Is it Peter Nygard as he claims in his notorious video? Is it a few PLP insiders who think they can sell the sea for some get out the vote cash? Or, is it the Bahamian people?

No doubt. Maybe a state of the art Stem Cell Research facility and seabed turbine generator at Nygard Cay can be approved in record time and King Nygard can sell "his Bahamas" back "his government" in small monthly installments.

No doubt. Maybe a state of the art Stem Cell Research facility and seabed turbine generator at Nygard Cay can be approved in record time and King Nygard can sell "his Bahamas" back "his government" in monthly payments.

Spoltier, Rory and This is Ours:

You are all right.

It is a good idea to go out of your way to alienate a very important political faction in the country that supplies approximately 95% of your gross national product, just because you love the Castro Brothers.

Excellent service to the Bahamas by its Foreign Minister.

I mean never miss a chance to stick your thumb in the eye of your best customers. Good policy. Oh, did the bad old U.S. tell you to take your nominee for Ambassador and stick him someplace else? Don't be embarrassed or humiliated. Who needs 300,000,000 potential tourists when you can attract all those "traveling Cubans" who subsist on $5 a day in their workers paradise.

Will we ever learn what was behind all this. What a national embarrassment!