Bahama Pundit

Regulatory Issues Need to be Addressed as Interest in Medical Tourism Surges

by Larry Smith

In a soon-to-be published book (Is it Really Better in the Bahamas...for Bahamians?), local eye surgeon Dr John Rodgers argues strongly for the development of medical tourism in the Bahamas.

""If the Bahamian GDP could receive the $2 billion that Cuba receives annually from medical tourism, not only would our national debt be reduced, but Bahamians would have true ownership of this segment of the economy," he writes.

Rodgers complains about the inertia and obstructionism of both the government and the Medical Association, but this mindset seems to be changing. The pent up investment demand of wealthy physicians is fueling a range of medical tourism initiatives, and more are lying just under the radar.

Medical tourism is said to be a multi-billion-dollar growth industry that hospitals, doctors and tourism marketers around the world are eager to tap into, but there are few reliable statistics. According to one estimate, as many as half a million Americans travelled to other countries for treatment in 2008 - and rising US healthcare costs are expected to grow this market over the next several years.

When Good Men Talk Foolishness

by Simon

We dipped to a low point in our public discourse a few weeks ago.  It came in the weekly commentary by Philip Galanis in the Nassau Guardian entitled, When Good Men Do Nothing.  Mr. Galanis wrote on various matters relative to whether Cheryl Grant-Bethel should have been appointed as Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).

Hyperbole and some overblown rhetoric are expected from partisans.   Still, there are boundaries of decorum and civil accord.  When a commentator compares an opponent to Hitler and the Nazis, those bounds have been trashed. 

Mr. Galanis cannot lamely excuse himself that he was making a larger point, that this was just a bad analogy.  That excuse has been attempted as many times as it has spectacularly failed.  Mr. Galanis did not simply go too far.  He broke one of the cardinal rules of public discourse.

The Threat from The Bahamas

by Simon

“One day Henny Penny was scratching in the farmyard looking for something good to eat when, suddenly, something hit her on the head.  ‘My goodness me!’ she said. ‘The sky must be falling down.  I must go and tell the king’.”

Henny Penny’s frenzied cry, “The sky is falling”, has become the battle cry of some fretting that the apparent normalizing of relations between the United States and Cuba will be a disaster for our tourism industry.

There’s a reason that this reoccurring folktale in several cultures is further titled in its English version, Chicken Little.    Henny and Chicken are so fearful of the threat from Cuba that they’re overlooking compelling facts and offering silly judgements.  They also fail to realize “the threat” The Bahamas poses to other Caribbean destinations.

Peter Nygard and Sinister Events at Lyford Cay in the Bahamas

by Larry Smith

In the Bahamas, everything is a plot and everyone has an agenda.

We are conspiracy mongerers of the worst kind - a tendency that is amplified by the anonymity offered by the internet, the difficulty of accessing accurate information, the lack of professionalism of many in the media, and the inability of some to think critically, which is a legacy of our failed education system.

The plot at Lyford Cay these days is that behind the gates of this sinister private community are rich, white foreigners who are getting away with murder and deploying advanced weaponry with impunity.

Well, there are certainly rich, white foreigners living at Lyford Cay - along with many members of our own black and white elite. And it is most definitely a private community. I have been admitted only twice in the last two decades - on both occasions to attend a social event.

But the narrative subtext that has lately been attached to the activities of this very reserved community is best captured by the word "sinister". One poster on the popular Bahamas Issues website put it this way:

Peter Nygard Embroils Lyford Cay in Controversy

by Larry Smith

A bitter dispute that has been simmering below the surface for years finally exploded this week when police raided the Lyford Cay home of billionaire American financier Louis Bacon, 52, apparently based on a complaint from his neighbour, 66-year-old international fashion mogul Peter Nygard.

Ten armed plainclothes police officers entered Bacon's home just after noon on Monday in search of lethal "ultrasonic weaponry". Although the owners were not present, police handcuffed and body-searched household staff for over three hours, before confiscating a set of industrial loudspeakers. The speakers were returned the same day.

Although an official police report was promised yesterday, the Tribune was unable to speak to senior officers, including the commissioner, on this matter despite numerous calls.

But Lyford Cay residents are incensed that someone could induce the police to act in this way. According to one email seen by the Tribune, "from the moment we heard of this action by a police team on the property of Mr. Bacon, we have vigorously expressed our strong objections and concerns to the highest level in government, and to various levels of police, including the commissioner. We will continue to pursue this matter in the strongest possible way."

The Great Mayaguana Land Give-Away!

by Simon

The contribution to the 2010/11 budget debate by the Leader of Opposition Business in the Senate was one of the more egregious examples of neo-colonial claptrap by a Bahamian political figure in the nearly four decades after independence.

It merits the Bait and Switch Award.  It would be granted to Senator Allyson Maynard Gibson on behalf of the PLP for using the bait of progressive rhetoric to camouflage a regressive mindset and then switch to reactionary policies. 

From women’s rights to land policy, the once progressive and liberal PLP continues to betray its roots.  It does so while ritually thumping its chest about a legacy it long ago abandoned and now mostly uses as window-dressing.

What's in Store for the Turks & Caicos Islands?

by Larry Smith

For those who were shocked at the recent Budget, be thankful for what we have. The Turks & Caicos Islands, which share the same archipelago with us, are politically and financially destitute, and no-one knows when or how they will be able to climb out of the hole.

The British suspended the TCI's constitution last year to clean up systemic corruption and political malfeasance. And now matters have worsened to the point where the TCI cannot meet its basic financial commitments, even though civil service pay was cut by 10 per cent in April.

Under the premiership of Michael Misick, public finances in the TCI were an absolute mess. Spending was consistently over budget and without prior legal authorisation, according to the 2008-2009 commission of inquiry. Public money was being used to support extravagant ministerial lifestyles, Crown land was being sold off to generate revenue, and public debt was skyrocketing.

Now the British are being forced to bail out TCI. "Without immediate UK support, TCI would fall further into economic crisis," Development Minister Andrew Mitchell said recently in London. "Our aim is to restore and firmly embed the principles of sound financial management, sustainable development and good governance."

Ethics and the Numbers Business – Again

by Simon

Much of the commentary in the series of Front Porch columns on the numbers business has focused on moral arguments offered by various denominations.

The views of religious leaders are important.  Still, they do not have a monopoly on moral wisdom or an automatic veto on public policy.  In a pluralistic democracy they do not take de facto precedence in the formation of public policy.

The Preamble to the Constitution highlights our Christian heritage in a poetic flourish which introduces the prose that enshrines certain constitutional guarantees and the rule of law. 

The Preamble does not enjoy the force of law.  It is ironic that many of the religious leaders who invoke the Preamble often fail to take account of the rest of the Constitution on a range of issues. 

Middle-Aged, Middle Class Humanitarians Gather in Montreal

by Larry Smith

MONTREAL, Canada - This week I attended one of the world's greatest gatherings of downright decent, mostly middle-aged, and thoroughly middle class folks.

It was a tough call for an old cynic like me. To borrow a quote, I usually lump organized religion, organized labour, and service clubs together. But Rotarians do get points for having the most entertaining meetings.

More than 18,000 of them from around the world clogged the streets of Montreal for their annual international conference this week. Everywhere you turned there were earnest Africans, Asians, Latinos, North Americans and Europeans flashing their logo shirts, badges, pins, flags and business cards.

Forward Never, Backward Ever

by Simon

Last October’s lopsided result in the race for PLP Leader was another defeat for the progressive and reformist elements in the party.  Dr. Bernard Nottage, trounced by Perry Christie, fared significantly worse than many of his supporters predicted.

The party dumped Glenys Hanna Martin as Chair. Fred Mitchell was blacklisted from speaking at the convention.  Now, Alfred Sears, their fellow progressive, is reportedly considering an exit, stage left, from frontline politics.

In addition to being some of the more progressive and reformist members of the PLP, the aforementioned are also among the deepest thinkers in its parliamentary caucus, particularly the House of Assembly.