I bank with RBC and the lines are too long. Whenever you go in there they have 9 booths for tellers and only two tellers working. They have no respect for people's time. Oftentimes there is no one at the booth for senior citizens. The customers resent it when I walk up front and jump in front of them for service...When I stand on line, my legs nearly drop off from fatigue due to the long wait. I have often opened my mouth and demanded that the manager come out and take control of the situation but all he/she does is stay in the back and duck the customers...RBC your customer service is awful....shape up....and its not the poor, little overworked tellers to blame but somebody higher up who is responsible for this mess.....the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer. Bahamians do you know what is happening? well you put your money in the bank for safe keeping but instead of your money growing in the bank, it is evaporating.

I must admit that I did not watch the televised church service in its entirety yesterday, but what little I did see did not ring through with genuine concern for our veterans. When these events occur there is so much emphasis on pomp and circumstance and protocol that the actual purpose of the event is lost.. Frankly what happens in this country is that every time politicians and government dignitaries show up, people put the emphasis on showcasing them dressed in all of their finery and splendor and everything else takes a back seat. Until our people learn to stand up to injustices then the pay will be stay the same $11:00 and something cents. Only complain if you are prepared to take a stand. If you want to make a point about the pension next year, simply boycott the ceremonies.

Can we take the blinders off please....this project is too big to succeed and so many things have already gone wrong that we know about and that we don't know about...I feel that this is a problem that we cannot fix. What is the soloution? Out side of prayers and turning to God, I see no other soloution.

I still don't fathom how we are going to get the people to fill 3,000 rooms. And can someone tell me what will attract persons to Bahamar. Personally I don't see what appeal gambling has or how I will be able to afford to purchase items from designer boutiques....sorry J.C.Penney online is what appeals to me... and whatever money I have will be needed for Supervalue and Coste Rite.

A key sentence in the article is "Residents continue to request and plead for assistance throughout the island."

My brothers and sisters throughout the family of islands, please tell me how much longer are you going to beg and plead with successive governments to look after you? We need real local government where the money stays in the communities and family islanders are empowered to look after themselves. There was a time when I looked to other people to employ me but after a certain age and stage in life, I felt that I had the capacity to make it on my own. I did just that and I never looked back!

Make a start family islanders to get the reigns of power into your own hands. This central government does not have the capacity to fully take care of you.

It does not necessarily have to be Andros...It could be Eleuthera or Grand Bahama but the point that I am making is that the government does not have the capacity to service every little rock and bush containing ten persons.

Unless there is complete accountability and transparency, I would advise that no further funds be borrowed.

Having all these persons living in far flung islands is beyond the capacity of any of our governments to service. This is an ideal time to build a brand new island city on Andros....Let's consolidate all of our family islanders in one place; let's give the young people an opportunity buy affordable land on which to build their family homes. Going to Ragged Island, Crooked Island, San Salvador is a stretch and when we are finished half way helping those islanders, they still won't be pleased because we just don't have the capacity to get the job done properly. Dear Lord this country is stuck in a failing model....do Lord open the eyes of the people and give them a new vision of what can be.

Why should I shop downtown when I can sit on my comfortable sofa and use my laptop to purchase fabulous bargain sale items from J.C. Penney? Sorry minister, Bay Street does not have what I need....electronic shopping is here to stay....Need some ideas? Instead of burying our history and culture, let's promote those products for the tourists and locals. Come on let's promote education for a change.

I usually go straight to the blogs now for a more analytical, insightful perspective on the news....straight reporting of facts that have already been posted on Facebook twenty-four hours prior to the newspapers hitting the streets will make for people bypassing mainstream media.

The_Oracle ...I agree our political class has failed the Westminster system but this Westminster system is not the right model for our country and that is why most of our Family Islands are getting left behind.... in another vein this central government that for the most part has representatives who don't live in their constituencies can no longer meet the needs of this archipelago. Unless we empower the local people and make them take responsibility for governing themselves we will not be marching forwards, upwards and onwards. ... In the 60s and 70s we made major steps forwards with Majority Rule and Independence. Can we say that after 50 years have we taken the country to another level? Look around for your answer.