You are correct concernedcitizen. It is wrong to abuse anyone however the FNM should not think this is a "win" for them; instead it is a lose for the Bahamas period. In fact if I were the parent or family member of any victim of brutality from authorities I would ask the FNM where they were when my family member was beaten to DEATH?! not beaten and lived to tell about it ..... to DEATH! I heard nothing from anyone. Now that it seems to make the PLP look bad this is going on and on. Wake up FNM, wake up!

While I agree with the school's right to cancel the graduation, I think they should have returned the money to the parents; especially the parents of children they KNEW were not a part of it. I think that would have been best from a PR standpoint and just being fair. Next year the contracts should state something like "funds are not refundable" so there is complete understanding of what these "contracts" are implying.

FYI, that hotel is very old and is a maintenance nightmare. It SEEMED like the perfect idea but in actually both parties have played political games with the hospital. If you think buying a broke down hotel right before election and claiming THIS is the going to be the hospital knowing full well the true state of the building is very misleading. Both parties have historically been unable to properly budget a project and stay within that budget. I am happy this was cancelled because it would have only been waist of money to try and "fix up" that hotel because what really needs to be done is the place needs to be demolished. However to demolish and re-build the ROI will probably be to little. Again, I am glad this is one case where we avoided good money being thrown after bad.

*"expressing concern that a group of lobbyists were using their monetary influence to pressure the democratically elected government to legitimise their personal interests at the expense of the people."

Isnt this the same thing the Christian Council does ALL the time. The only difference is they use their "religious" influence. I hope they see how it feels. The more the Christian Council becomes politicised, the less relevant they become. What Miles Munroe and the CC fail to realize is it was THEM that showed exaclty how to "lobby" a govt. over the past decades. It only sucks now because another lobby group they disagree with got in on the game. everyone sees this but them. I will laugh at anyone who says its different with them because God is involved.

MartGM, there is no need to dig because the situation in Singapore is still different than here. The problem is there is a blurred vision to your analysis. You say "numbers .... gambling .....whatever" in your comment but it is wrong to lump them together as if it is the same thing when it is NOT. People dont "play numbers" in Singapore, they gamble in the casinos now. Also I agree with SDRFC an increase in incidents doesnt mean an increase in participants. Sad to say, but our "exponential" growth in gambling happened years ago under both govts and was the worst kept secret in the Bahamas. This is why it is so entrenched in the economy now. You did ask a good question, "what are the implications". But it really should be "what are the implications of bringing whats in the dark to light". We are not starting from scratch here. To say NO now is like being against the legalization of mirrors because you dont like the way you look, forgetting the obvious point that everybody sees you already.

I cannot wait until this is all done and the public makes a decision which I think will be YES. After this has passed and WE ALL realize the rate of social decay will be the same as before legalization what will be the story then? I have yet to see objective proof that legalization of numbers will cause a net negative on a society where it was already happening and entrenched in the economy.

I agree with you Ironvelvet. They will be here for two days the most. Just let them come in spend money, enjoy themselves and leave. We need that type of press right now.

I think you should be asking "Where is God?". Hint -- God doesnt have a political party.

I cant believe he let the picture leak ...... or was that intentional. Hmmmm. Ya know the girls can't resist good hair. lol. I wonder if he put activator in that?

True, there are definitely some bad apples in the bunch. I agree with you whole heartedly. The point I am trying to make is the Moody's report was going to come no matter who is in charge ..... the downgrade itself by Moody is far more serious than a warning report they gave. In any event it all leads to the same problem. The govt is not collecting enough money to tend to the needs of the people. If we had money coming in from various stable sources there would be no Moody's downgrade or report.