"*It takes a Category A group a quarter of a million dollars to perform on Bay Street. The average individual Junkanoo performer spends anywhere between $3,500 to $5,000 on his or her costume.”*

Completely made up numbers. The "*average*" performer *might*" pay between 500 to 700, the performers you see with the fully decked out costumes pay around 2000 and they're noticeable because their costumes always stand out, are beautifully decorated and complemented with the more expensive feathers.

Junkanoo as we speak of it is a figment of our imagination. We want it to be fantastic, beautiful and the best show on earth so it is. In reality, it's a long boring show with lots of dead space or space filled with junk performances to trick you into believing there wasn't a space, unfinished hastily constructed costumes but luckily a few bright spots that you can walk away and say wow they were great.

The ironic thing about junkanoo is it suffers from seed money. Somebody gets a 30k cheque as as windfall and gets a group of guys off the street and girls in the neighbourhood to perform the next day. I recall the group whose shack burned down before junkanoo, you never heard a word about what happened with the seed money. Then there was the group that showed up in all newspaper. Seriously? for 30k?

"*his executive assistant came back to me saying: **'I see a new charge on Bahamas charter fees** of 10 percent VAT'. After explaining that it was introduced earlier and had to be paid, they asked: '**What changed in The Bahamas to make that justifiable**?'*

This is at the heart of this nonsensical VAT that the govt had no idea what it was for or what they would do with it then found some convoluted formula to tell the public they were charging 1/3 of what they were actually charging. VAT like the exec assist stated is supposed to mean something improved. In the Bahamas we love PR and fresh paint but it's the same old crappy substance underneath. I see tourism talking about focus on the family islands and bringing more tourists. To do exactly what??? Sit in the dark for the length of their 4 day vacation when the electricity fails again?

"*Just look at our nurses. Look at how sharp they look.”*

This is an odd statement. Someone has pointed out to me how odd it is that our nurses wear white starched uniforms. They said nursing is a VERY dirty job. But our nurses come to work starched and pressed and some with 3 inch manicured nails to do a dirty job. And here we have the GG praising nurses for how nicely thryre dressed... and he wants to know what wrong with PMH?

"*She said she travelled to some countries where the nurses’ shoes were not white. “You will never see our nurses look like that,” she said. “I am saying this because of the pride and respect you*

My God.. white clean shoes, blood, vomit, lifting people. Nursing een pretty

"*The issue of sharks is really being addressed by the Cabinet,”*

Bring the shark in to testify

It's fine for it to be condemned. It's fine to say its immoral. I agree with you. But these are people. A breathing human being. You wouldnt condone 5 men kicking and punching a dog black and blue. One thing I know about Jesus, he went where the sinners were and he tried to win them over with love. *What manner of man is this?*

You dont have to. Noone controls your belief as noone controls this persons right to dress how they please. While any individual can decide to do whatever, you can only "hope" people will be civil in their interaction but you cannot control their belief or their ultimate reaction even if it is inhumane.

I say Miriam led the junkanoo parade.

I dont know what this gentleman's intentions were, I een in his head, maybe to attract the owner... and the owner was attracted to him, that's why he's so upset.

"*A number of groups have agreed to allow gay participants to wine up*"

I did not know that people needed a permission slip to dance. Now if you want to talk generally about vulgarity that's something else. But dancing is a expression of joy particular to being human. Theres nothing more beautiful than someone who's good at it, whatever form, classical, urban, folk, and again I distinguish vulgarity. "*Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances.*" (junkanoo in the bible)

I dont recognize them as a woman, they're a man. Their right to dress like a woman, ok, do as you please. But I do agree that the aggressiveness with which men respond to them is odd. They dont have a contagious disease, you wont feel like suddenly cross dressing too if you're in the same room for any length of time. I think the main problem here was the bartender was actually attracted to them. That's what the issue was. The violence was projection.