@ rory- of course you completey ignored two of my most major points:

1. How do we discriminate between a "law abiding citizen" and a "criminal scumbag" in this country ? My point was that I doubt this would be able to be properly policied and quite frankly , I don't trust the average person with concealed weapons at the ready for any conflict. Just look at the way you've exploded with cuss words in this very forum- seems to be your trademark.

2. An armoured truck and security guards should be able to carry guns as they are trained to do so. The issue I have is that I don't believe Mr. Albury's suggestion for him and every joe-blow to carry gun makes sense. I don't believe it will solve the problems but to each their own.

No one is saying bahamians shouldn't have the rights to defend themselves but if laws were properly enforced and we all stopped crying 'not my good child' , we would be able to slowly rid the country of crime over time. Increased focus on education and well-rounded extra curicular activites with purpose is where we should begin. Once we remove the importance of material things and switch to a mindset that doesn't involve the constant lying, stealing , judging and cheating we may get ahead. My opinion is that more guns will not help in the interim.

PS- Bahamians don't run red lights becausw they're scared for their lives- they run them because no one is enforcing the laws for them to do otherwise and they simply don't care. i bet when they reach the US they buckle up though- why cuz the law is enforced. anyway, i digress. peace.

To piggyback on another's post- an armoured truck should have been used. It's not worth it in this day and time to take chances depositing large amounts of cash by hand. Whether he trusted this employee or not, in my opinion, a car service is a much safer bet.

Ben Albury is an idiot. I'm sorry but I am of the view that guns create more havoc. If he is so convinced that this was an inside job, what good what it do to have a gun ? Just more shooting up in the street at "11:30 in the morning". Law abiding citizens ? How does Mr. Albury propose we allocate these gun licenses? I could bribe my daddy's cousin's uncle's sister to give me a permit because I know someone . C'mon man, half the problems are caused due to the excessive number of guns in this town--We don't need more !

It's unfortunate what happened to the company but I don't think more guns are the answer, and even those who believe they are can't deny that there would be many off- the- books exceptions to such a law. Bahamians in general have anger issues, we have not been taught conflict resolution and believe the answer to most issues are to become violent and fight. Couple that with more guns on the street and use your imagination.

I guess Perry Christie isn't too tired to put on a festival. Looks like the only time we hear from this great leader of our country is when it's time to throw party.

Wow,something to rival Carnival ? Sorry, I can't see it. Carnival and caribana are huge caribbean events and while they are great, I can't see this being a pressing issue to focus on during these tough times. We all like to party and the bahamas has great culture to promote, but I neither think this is the time nor do we have the financial resources to spend on something like this. The government is crying everyday about the lack of funds that they have but they have time to plan something like this?!

crime is out of control, our economy is down and on the verge of being severely taxed, our national grade average is, what, E? and we throwing party.

Maura makes some excellent points in her letter- specifically as they relate to the issues surrounding a national stable. As she said, we can barely keep government buildings clean that house humans much less animals.

the animal problem in this country is scary and huge; something must be done. The Humane Society is definitely spread too thin and would not be able to afford the care on their own, but as others have pointed out, perhaps more awareness could be brought to the situation and fundraising could be an option. The government should definitely have a large hand to play in this financially....the surrey rides have never been properly regulated and now we are paying the price ( as with most other social issues in this country). If a ban cannot be immediately enforced, then the enforcement of laws should be the next best thing. Allow animal rights groups the authority to monitor these horses and their surreys and the government and police should push to enforce the laws on the books- not just shrug them off as we do everything else.

Either way you look at it, a solution involves action and not simply talk. Laws are not enforced here and that is the bottom line. A ban and a lovely life of retirement for these horses would be ideal but if that is not an immediate option , I would hope that the government would take measures to ensure these animals are treated humanely and work hand in hand with animal rights groups who can devote the appropriate attention to this matter.

This is absolutely ridiculous and disgusting- How many incidents like this will it take before we do away with the surrey rides and take the right steps forward to protect these poor horses. These horse owners/ surrey drivers have no regard for these animals. The housing area at Prince George is littered with glass bottles and men talking trash and using profane language.
As pointed out by Kim Arhana of BHS, owning a horse comes with serious expenses; their care is not cheap. The attitude and behavior of these surrey /horse owners clearly show just how important these horses are to them. If horses are the "livelihood" of these men , you would think they would take more care in doing right by them. Animal rights groups need more authority when it comes to these matters in order to properly monitor situations such as these. I suppose not until a huge tragedy happens on the streets will anything happen.........but I'll hope for the best.

Of course they'll deny The Tribune- we can't have all our dirty little secrets out for the public to see! After all the flip-flopping and back and forth from Fred and the rest of the PLP; all the drama this has caused both locally and in the US, you'd think we could do better as a country. We will have a hearing, oh yes, but will only provide you with what you need to know. Nevermind thinking for yourselves as individuals and drawing your own conclusions.....As if this case wasn't suspicious enough, as if it wasn't already so poorly handled- let's just make it even more shady.

No party is perfect, but if the government had come out from day one and said that we would persecute any offenders of the law should something come out of the investigation- we would be in a different position today. In the long run, wouldn't it look better and be more ethically sound to admit to a fault of a few, punish them publicly so the world can see and then move on ? All these cover-ups are only drawing more negative attention to the Bahamas and creating more problems.

So, Fred thinks people are intentionally coming into this country to "destabilize" us. Does he mean in light of the alleged beatings at the detention center? I'm quite sure that if they knew about what went on there, they would jump ship before risking a trip to the bahamas, at least I would. This man has time to rush an investigation on something like this, yet he has not a minute to focus on the accusations against officers who, according to reports, went out of their way to beat the sh*t out of Cubans in our custody. Hmm....excellent job, keep up the good work.

i guess we should just drop everything since we bahamians spend so much money shopping in Miami, that excuses any and everything, of course.

Agreed- they are all acting like idiots- the minister and wilson included. Fitzgerald should have ddealt with any issues beforehand (i.e. during summer months) and things hadn't been addressed , he should not have released the statement he did shortly before school began saying that all concerns were addressed and school can proceed.

Meanwhile, Wilson and the union are taking full advantage of his slip-ups and seem to be milking the situation from all its worth. I'm not saying they may not have legitimate concerns but it looks like in a week's time all public school teachers will be on strike. No one is setting a good example for these young students behaving the way that they are, in particular the teachers.

Change definitely starts at home. An entire lifestyle/ culture change needs to occur in order to curb crime. Kids are having kids and the morals and values just aren't there. This idea could be a good start but the law need to be enforced- consequences must be there or else there is no point. Parents need to realize that children are not doll babies or "things" that can get them money....If you want to have a child, proper responsibility should apply. Raise your child correctly or simple- don't have any