I think that we have seen the "end" of the American response to Fweddie's pathetic attempt to spit in the eye of the US giant. The reason that I say that, is that the USA was concerned about Crisco Butt's love of the Chinese, and any strong arm tactics might increase Chinese influence on America's doorstep.

However, since Crisco Butt gave the Chinese Izmirlian's resort for Christmas, and the rice slurpers reciprocated by screwing him, the US doesn't have to mind its p's and q's so much. So now the US could really retaliate if Fweddie gets his bloomers in a knot and tries to posture and rattle his saber again. We could lose pre-clearance and other stuff, as eloquently iterated by well_mudda_take_sic.

I have a theory as to why the Chinese still haven't moved on Baha Mar, is that they are still trying to back out of the driveway. However, I did see some Chinese, Haitians and Cubans riding in a truck, and you wouldn't believe who was driving -- Immigration !!

If what we have is "being blessed", I would hate to see what happens when god gets p!ssed at us. Come to think of, maybe we are seeing exactly that.

I checked with an actuarial friend about the insurability of a vacant property. According to actuarial guidelines:

*Insurance policies offer limited coverage for vacant properties due to the increased risk of potential damage. Policy conditions vary but there is typically no coverage for vandalism, theft, water escape, or glass damage once the ownership changes. After the property has been vacant for 30 days with no distinct oversight by the owners, the any policy becomes void and there is no coverage for any damage, not even fire or windstorm.*

So, it is in the realm of reason that the whole project is truly uninsurable. It is also probable that there is no insurance on the buildings now. It is also probably that if a fire or hurricane swept through the complex, it would be a complete financial loss.

A building left unfinished and vacant would require complete interior remediation, assuming the exterior construction was up to code in the first place.

This is like BAMSI on steroids and the bill will be over a billion to fix it. Also the buyer is not legally obligated to pay the bills of the Bahamian contractors once in bankruptcy -- that is the function of the receiver to pay the claimants after the property sells.

I am surprised at all of the fairy tales floating around by both Raymond Winder and the government.

Carey is right about Canadians exiting. I was recently talking with a Canadian expat who is exiting the Bahamas and closing his accounts. He is doing it for two reasons:

(1) They do not feel safe either in New Providence or the Family Islands. The expat cited the elderly Canadian killed in Freeport, the British dive instructor killed on his boat in Stuart's Cove, the death in Exuma of the Toronto couple who were hit by a drunk driver and killed (the potcake rescue couple) and didn't get satisfaction from the police or the country, and the retired doctor from Vancouver who was killed in his home of 30 years by a man who robbed him.

(2) The banks do not offer him the capabilities to effectively and efficiently manage his investments and actively trade his accounts. A cheque takes forever to clear compared to overnight or next business day in the US and Canada.

He was saying that they no longer felt welcome in the Bahamas, and the deteriorating conditions were troublesome. They voted with their feet.

Interestingly enough, when I asked him where and how he would escape the cold Canadian winters, he replied that he bought a riverfront house in rural state of Georgia (USA) for $78,000.

>The company's principals include a Bahamian named Een Colebrooke and a South African venture capitalist named Gerhard Beukes, with experience in valuations, restructuring, and offshore funds. He was a client of Brave Davis as part of the previous ownership of the British Colonial Hilton. There was no Request for Proposals issued by the government for the landfill contract.

>Renew was formed in July 2012 - right after the election - and registered by Davis & Co. By November 2013 the government was finalising the terms of a five-year contract, and the company took over the landfill last summer. However, its contract has not been made public - even though it is for public goods.

More PLP cronyism. The website of Beukes Adurion Capital has been taken down and his LinkedIn profile has been removed. Tings dat make you go hmmmmm..

Or you call it economic stimulation by infrastructure renewal, rather than a PLP kleptocracy where public monies line the pockets of PLP cabinet ministers. I like new roads that were neglected by years of PLP plundering. The roads have something that the PLP government needs to have done to it -- being driven over by Bahamians.

What you don't understand my dear Tal, is that infrastructure plays a huge component of economic advancement and forward motion. Have you seen the streets of failed African states?

I truly admire your sophistry and ability to turn a partial truth into a political argument. You're the best. The only victim is the Truth when you do that, but you are slick and quick at it.

It's not Moody's job to look at BoB. BoB was in violation of capital requirements set forth by the Central Bank, and the culprits who should go to jail are Paul McWeeney and ex-Governor Wendy Craigg who were PLP shills who had their hands in the till handing out monies to PLP cronies. She totally abandoned her fiduciary duty to insure that BoB was on the straight and narrow as the regulatory agency of record. You can't spin it any other way, even though the PLP (P1ss-poor Lowlife People) will try.

Paul Adderley is a cousin of mine. There are sins on his soul that defy comprehension.

>They are not hired by the Bahamas in the first place.

Actually they are. Credit rating agencies are a necessary evil if you are a sovereign state and you want to contract external debt denominated in a "hard" fiat currency like the American dollar.

There is a near duopoly of credit rating agencies. Moody's and Standard & Poor's own about 78 -80% of the credit rating market.

If a country or a company wants to apply for credit, they must pay a "recognised" credit rating agency to get the funds. The Bahamas, I believe, pays both Moody's and Standard & Poors to do economics research to create a credit report. You simply cannot float a non-domestic bond or borrow money without it.

Standard & Poor's owns 42% of the ratings market. If you want to float some debt, they charge 4.95% of the bond offering or loan or if the fee is below $80,000, you must pay the $80,000.

Moody's owns 37% of the market. They charge 5% or $73,000 which ever is greater.

So Smith is saying that we should fire Moody's. Unfortunately for debt denominated in the millions (amounts over $20 million) a lot of lenders or bond market makers require credit rating research and reports from both of them, or one of them and Fitch's which is another player. Many of them trust only Moody's or S&P, so you can't get away from not having Moody's rate you.

Actually I do "knows" Mr. James Smith, and in spite of his holding the governorship of the Central Bank, his grasp of economics is ... shall we say ... deficient?

I recall listening in to a friendly but spirited argument between him and another ex-Central Bank governor. Mr. Smith was having his clock cleaned by the other individual, realised it, and still didn't know when to quit. It was a sad display of dogma over facts, but I have since come to realise myself that this is a PLP trait. The PLP hate to be confused and contradicted by the Truth.