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TOO HEAVY TO FLY COST HIM HIS LIFE 400lb Louis died as planes weren’t large enough to move him By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net FORMER Health Minister Dr Duane Sands said despite high obesity rates in The Bahamas, the country lacks an air ambulance system that can safely evacuate people who weigh as much as 400lb. He spoke to The Tribune yesterday as the family of Louis Edward Rolle, a 74-year-old man who died on Tuesday in Bimini after a rapid test diagnosed him with COVID-19, demanded an investigation into what happened. Health officials did not
respond to requests for comment yesterday, but Dr Sands said the episode “speaks to the question about how far could you prepare for every eventuality of every patient.” “As I understand it this patient was not 350lb, but 400lb,” he told The Tribune. “When you get to that point, you are talking about the operating limit of the aircraft. I believe a safe operating limit for an aircraft like that is about 300lb. There is a limit to how much you could put on that plane and operate it safely.” SEE PAGE FIVE
THE latest US State Department Country Report on Human Rights Practices highlights poor prison conditions and the mistreatment of migrants in The Bahamas, revealing in one instance of a prisoner being beaten and
A MOTHER was yesterday brought to tears as she recalled the horrifying moment that she saw a man attempt to steal her sevenyear-old daughter from school. ShawnaKaye Barnett yesterday accused the private school of having poor security after she says a man entered the school’s yard and told the child, “Sweetie, your mom said to come go with me” and reached for her arm. SEE PAGE THREE
TAKING VACCINE MAY BE A GIFT TO ONE’S COMMUNITY
PAGE EIGHT
2,000 NEW VOTERS ON REGISTER
requiring surgery. The report, released yesterday, says conditions at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services were harsh because of “overcrowding, poor nutrition, inadequate sanitation, poor ventilation and inadequate medical care”. SEE PAGE THREE
By KHRISNA RUSSELL Tribune Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net
FRONT PORCH
HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT IS MORE GRIM READING By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net
‘MAN TRIED TO SNATCH MY GIRL IN SCHOOL’
By KHRISNA RUSSELL Tribune Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net LOUIS EDWARD ROLLE, who died after he was unable to be airlifted from Bimini.
NEW CHINA ENVOY SETS HER STALL By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net
THE new Chinese Ambassador to The Bahamas Dai Qingli said she hopes to focus on several key areas while in office, including encouraging more Chinese travel to the region, promoting agriculture and fighting climate change. Ms Dai spoke to reporters shortly after she
AMBASSADOR Dai Qingli shares a toast with Governor General CA Smith. presented her letters of credence to Governor General Sir Cornelius Smith at
a special ceremony held at his office in One Montagu Place yesterday. It was his first in person presentation since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines, Ambassadordesignate Dai spoke of her intention to meet with various government officials to find out some of their top priorities so she can assist “with specific projects SEE PAGE TWO
Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper
NEARLY 2,000 people have been added to the voter register in the weeks following the Parliamentary Registration Department’s launch of several sites to expand the existing register in preparation for the next election. According to acting Parliamentary Commissioner Lavado Duncanson, the number of voters now on the register is 188,762. SEE PAGE FIVE
THE TRIBUNE RETURNS AFTER THE EASTER HOLIDAY. OUR NEXT EDITION IS ON TUESDAY
PAGE 2, Thursday, April 1, 2021
THE TRIBUNE
NEW CHINA ENVOY SETS HER STALL
from page one
of mutual co-operation” between China and The Bahamas. “So, obviously tourism is a huge sector and this
country is very welcoming of Chinese tourists and I have every intention of working (with) The Bahamas government and working with the Chinese government agencies to encourage more Chinese
tourists to travel to this part of the world and to enjoy the (scenery) of this country and what it has to offer. “Another area would be agriculture and trying to work (with) your goals of having greater
self-sufficiency in agriculture and also there are many other areas like renewable energies and disaster preparedness and working together to fight climate change and, to say the least, we have to work
to tackle this enjoyed pandemic a robust together. relation“And I ship based want to say on mutual we have support worked with bilaterally each other and in the very well international during the arena. Our pandemic bilateral and and we have diplomatic helped each relations other in fighthave been ing this virus well served and China over these will continue past 24 years to give whatby the quality ever help of its envoys, that is within AMBASSADOR Dai Qingli. particularly our capacenhancPhoto: Donovan McIntosh/ in ity to The Tribune Staff ing the depth Bahamas in and scope of fighting this these relavirus because tions which as the governor general reflect and take into account said, we are in this together, the global conditions affectso we need to fight this virus ing The Bahamas. together.” “Your excellency, The Ambassador-designate Bahamas highly appreciDai is ninth Chinese ambas- ates China’s assistance sador appointed to The over the years and we are Bahamas. but is the first grateful for the invaluable woman to serve in this role. assistance in the aftermath She arrived in the country of Hurricane Dorian and in March. the ongoing support in the Asked about her fight in the global COVIDthoughts about being the 19 pandemic…as you would first female Chinese ambas- learn the Bahamian people sador to The Bahamas, she are resilient and with replied: “Yeah, for me, it friends like China standhas been a great honour ing in solidarity with us, we to be appointed the ninth know that we will be able Chinese ambassador to to overcome all of these The Bahamas and also the challenges.” first ever woman to serve Yesterday, Sir Cornelius in this role. There are many also assured Ms Dai of woman diplomats in China, his support “whenever but it hasn’t been easy to possible” as she works rise to the rank of ambas- to strengthen the friendsador and to serve in this ship and bilateral relations beautiful island country, so between The Bahamas and many of my colleagues are China. quite jealous of me.” He said: “As we pursue For his part, Sir Cornelius our joint efforts during congratulated the new your call of duty, I want you ambassador. to be assured of my sup“I congratulate you on port and that of my office your appointment as the whenever possible. I look newest ambassador accred- forward to the deepening of ited to The Bahamas and relationships between our first female ambassador on two countries during this China to The Bahamas,” Sir period.” Cornelius said yesterday. Ambassador-designate “Over the past 24 years, Dai succeeds former ambasThe Bahamas and China sador, Huang Qinguo.
THE TRIBUNE
Thursday, April 1, 2021, PAGE 3
US alarm over gaps in law that raise risk of corruption By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net THE United States has released a human rights report that once again highlights the legislative gaps in The Bahamas that allow for possible political and government corruption. “The campaign finance system was largely unregulated, with few safeguards against quid pro quo donations, creating a vulnerability to corruption and foreign influence,” the report by the US State Department says. “The procurement process was
susceptible to corruption, since it contains no requirement to engage in open public tenders. Nevertheless, the government routinely issued open public tenders. The government encouraged value added tax-registered businesses to sign up for the electronic bidding platform, which the Ministry of Finance introduced in 2019 to increase public procurement transparency.” The Minnis administration passed public procurement legislation earlier this month, which, once enacted, will
mandate that all government contract awards will be published online and in newspapers. The public procurement legislation was debated with a compendium of finance bills that Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis previously said will boost transparency and accountability in government operations. Meanwhile, the US State Department also noted there were claims of bribery of officials last year. “The law provides criminal penalties for corruption by officials, and the government generally
implemented the law effectively,” the report said. “There was limited enforcement of conflicts of interest related to government contracts. There were isolated reports of government corruption during the year where officials sometimes engaged in corrupt practices, including accepting small-scale ‘bribes of convenience’ with impunity.” The report also notes that “the long-standing lack of a fully implemented Freedom of Information Act continued to limit citizens’ access to information necessary to inform their political decision making.”
The report says: “The government reported no new cases of corruption in the executive, legislative, and judicial branches. The trial for a bribery case against a former high-level government official, scheduled to begin in March (2020), was delayed due to COVID-19. A second trial for a money-laundering case against a former official was also delayed due to the pandemic. The trials had yet to be held by year’s end. “Corruption in the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services and the Carmichael Road
THE ENTRANCE to the prison at Fox Hill.
Detention Centre was a long-standing problem, with allegations by both detainees and officials. “The Public Disclosure Act requires senior public officials, including senators and members of Parliament, to declare their assets, income, and liabilities annually. The government gave extensions to all who were late to comply. The government did not publish a summary of the individual declarations, and there was no independent verification of the information submitted.” The 2020 report was released yesterday.
Photo: Racardo Thomas
HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT IS MORE GRIM READING
from page one
Designed to accommodate 1,000 prisoners, the correctional facility held 1,617 inmates as of December 2020, according to the report. Inadequate access to clean drinking water remained an issue in the men’s maximum security block, remand and the women’s block and the report notes that up to six men are contained in six-by-ten feet maximumsecurity cells without mattresses, running water or toilet facilities. “Inmates removed human waste by bucket. Prisoners complained of the
lack of beds and bedding. Some inmates developed bedsores from lying on the bare ground. Sanitation was a general problem, with cells infested with rats, maggots, and insects. Ventilation was also a problem, and some inmates complained of mould and mildew. The government claimed to provide prisoners in maximum-security areas access to toilets and showers one hour a day. The women’s facilities were generally more comfortable, with dormitory-style quarters and adequate bathrooms,” the report says. “The availability of clearly labeled, prescribed pharmaceuticals and access
to physician care was sporadic. Prisoners consistently complained that prison authorities did not take their health concerns seriously. Sick male inmates and male inmates with disabilities had inadequate access to the medical centre. One inmate, who requested assistance for a series of medical complications, died at BDCS in October. The inmate’s family had been permitted to provide him with nutritional supplements and healthy meals until the COVID-19 pandemic forced the prison to restrict visitors. Absent outside support and adequate prison care, the inmate died in his cell. “In February a correctional officer beat a
prisoner, causing a leg injury that required surgery. The government stated it charged the officer with use of unnecessary force and referred the matter to a disciplinary tribunal at the Department of Correctional Services,” the report states. However, the report notes that the government has made some improvement to prison conditions. It says: “The government took steps to improve prison conditions, including by introducing biodegradable bags for proper waste disposal, constructing 100 bunk beds, and installing flooring, air conditioning, and masonry in parts of the maximum-security area.
In addition inmates noted repairs to water flow during the year and a reopened prison library. At the Carmichael Road Detention Centre, the government replaced floor tiles in all dormitories.” The report also highlights allegations of corruption against immigration officers, which are described as credible. “One individual, claiming he was born in The Bahamas, said authorities apprehended him and held him at the Carmichael Road Detention Centre for migrants before he bribed several officials to release him,” the report said. “Activists for the Haitian community acknowledged
alleged victims filed few formal complaints with government authorities and attributed this to a widespread perception of impunity for police and immigration authorities and fear of reprisal.” Regarding people who are not automatically given Bahamian citizenship, the US State Department took the position that the “government did not effectively implement laws and policies to provide certain habitual residents the opportunity to gain nationality in a timely manner and on a nondiscriminatory basis. There was little progress in advancing legislation intended, in part, to address the issue of statelessness.”
‘MAN TRIED TO SNATCH MY GIRL IN SCHOOL’ from page one
An emotional Ms Barnett said she was in her vehicle behind two other cars on Tuesday, a few feet away from where the man stood attempting to coerce the young girl to leave. Ms Barnett said on that day she arrived a few minutes later than normal to pick up her daughter. “I am normally there from about 2.50pm waiting, but yesterday (Tuesday) I had something to do so I ended up pulling up there at 3.02pm,” the mother of one said. “When I pulled up I saw this gentleman and about
one or two cars were in front of me and I saw him. To me he looked like when someone doesn’t belong. His clothes weren’t clean, his shirt was dirty and his hair was rough.” What happened next has left Ms Barnett rattled and her daughter terrified. “I saw when he said, ‘Sweetie your mom said to come go with me.’ I heard him with my own two ears. A teacher heard him as well and I took her to the police station with me as a witness. “He then started to reach out for my daughter so I started blowing and screaming and calling her name and then she
saw me and she ran to the car.” Ms Barnett said she does not know the man and is appalled that he slipped past the school’s security. “I was trying to take his picture but he ran out of the eastern gate, which is where the lunch vendors are and then he turned around and walked back on the sidewalk and went west so by the time I got a person’s attention he was already gone,” she said. “Now here is my issue, the security was sitting right there, head down in her phone. She didn’t even see me coming in the gate and when I spoke to the principal, the procedures are
when parents are coming through the gate you are supposed to stop whomever is coming through the gate. She didn’t even see me come through the gate. “I am paying fees for my child to have a good education and to be secured. How would they have explained that to me if I pulled up one minute after my child was missing? How?” The child now needs counselling, Ms Barnett said. “My daughter is traumatised. Last night her dad, a police officer, he had to come there and check the yard with the flashing lights on just to give her some sense of security that it’s
going to be okay. “She has it in her head that the guy followed us home because he ran. She is saying what if he is looking out and what if he is home. I had to close all the windows. She didn’t want to go bathe by herself. She didn’t even go to school today because she is scared.” The mother added: “They have two female securities. I think that’s ridiculous with the amount of children that goes there. I am paying for security. “They need to implement another system whereas only a certain amount of persons with name and identification could pick up a student. Every car
that comes in should be checked,” she also said. The mother said the incident was reported to the East Street South Police Station. However a police spokesperson told this newspaper they had no reports of any incident at a school. The officer-in-charge of the station declined comment. Officials at the school in question could not be reached for comment yesterday. This comes about a week after a man who allegedly exposed himself to a young girl on her way to school was chased away by passing motorists.
PAGE 4, Thursday, April 1, 2021
THE TRIBUNE
Vaccinations begin in Harbour Island By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net
WITH vaccinations set to begin on Harbour Island today, one community official says they are expecting a good turnout from residents due to the recent uptick of positive cases recorded over the last few weeks. Lynton Pinder, trainee administrator for Spanish Wells, Harbour Island and North Eleuthera, told The Tribune yesterday that officials are finding that more and more locals are wanting to take the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine following an increase in infections in the community. The Tribune understands that officials from the Ministry of Health’s surveillance team are currently on the ground conducting an assessment of the contact tracing efforts on Harbour Island. It is not clear how many
NEW PCR TEST REQUIREMENT FOR TRAVEL ANYONE travelling from Harbour Island and Eleuthera to other parts of the country will now have to take a RT-PCR COVID-19 test in order to obtain a travel visa. The stipulation was made in the latest amendment to the Emergency Powers Order, which was released last night. The requirement takes effect today and applies to persons older than 10 traveling from Harbour Island and Eleuthera to other parts of The Bahamas. This does not apply to travel between mainland Eleuthera and its surrounding
positive cases have been recorded for that community to date. However, health officials have expressed concern with the increase in cases on Eleuthera. The island had a total of 189 cases as of Monday. Speaking on Tuesday, Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis noted that “the vaccination programme will
islands and cays, a statement from the Office of the Prime Minister said. “Travelers from Eleuthera and Harbour Island will also now be required to take a COVID-19 rapid antigen test on the fifth day after arrival to their destination within The Bahamas and submit the results to the Ministry of Health online via the health travel website. “The inter-island testing requirements are expected to be eased with the acceleration of the COVID-19 vaccination rollout,” OPM said. Visit www.opm.gov.bs to read the complete order.
be accelerated to address the increase in cases” on Eleuthera and Grand Bahama. Vaccination centres in Spanish Wells and South Eleuthera began their vaccinations on Tuesday, while a site in North Eleuthera started operations yesterday. A vaccination centre identified in Harbour Island
POLICE ‘ISSUED CITATIONS ON CABBAGE BEACH’ By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net
A NUMBER of people who crowded Cabbage Beach over the weekend were cited by police, according to Commissioner Paul Rolle. This week, The Tribune published a photo showing scores of people bunched together at an entryway to the Paradise Island beach on Sunday, most not wearing masks or social distancing. Asked yesterday if police were present at the beach, Commissioner Rolle said action was taken that day. “The police we were called to Cabbage Beach and officers went to Cabbage Beach and we took action. They cited a number of persons that were on the beach and persons were allowed to leave,” he said. Asked how many were cited, he said: “I don’t have that number, but I know a number of persons were – some for not practising social distancing, all the various offences.” This incident comes when there are fears the country is on the brink of a third wave of the pandemic.
Dr Nikkiah Forbes, director of the National HIV/AIDS and Infectious Disease Programme at the Ministry of Health, previously said: “There is a sustained uptick in the number of cases and that is very concerning and there could be an increase in cases after the holiday weekend if we are not following the health instructions. (It) is fully possible.” As for what the public can expect this holiday weekend, the police chief said officers will be at the beaches and in the communities. He added police want people to enjoy themselves on the beaches and just simply abide by the rules, but they will be out to make sure that everybody is safe. In New Providence, Paradise Island and Grand Bahama, people are allowed to congregate on beaches in groups of not more than five. Masks are supposed to be worn when entering or leaving beaches. “I would ask persons within the community who want to have their gathering, whatever is permitted, to do so within the confines of the emergency orders and they need to be mindful.
In recent times, we’ve seen an increase and you know every Bahamian citizen, resident, and visitor must take responsibility, personal responsibility, first of all for their own safety and for the safety of others,” Commissioner Rolle said. “The police are gonna do their part, but I don’t wanna make this a police centric thing because it is the people who are refusing to abide and then you find in few days, later, persons are falling sick. This whole thing is really designed to keep people safe and I think they need to get the message that this is really designed to keep us all safe and hopefully we’ll soon be out of this and you know we’re moving out gradually but just be patient. I’d ask people to be patient and to follow these rules until we get out …we’re still in a pandemic.” The commissioner also revealed two officers have recently tested positive for the virus. Health officials said 22 new cases were recorded on Tuesday. Fourteen of those are in New Providence, six are in Grand Bahama, one is in Abaco and one is in Bimini and Cat Cay.
will officially open today. Yesterday, Mr Pinder said the vaccination process in Spanish Wells has been going “smooth” so far. However, he was unable to give official numbers on how many people have been vaccinated so far. According to community officials, Spanish Wells and Harbour Island are estimated to have a combined
population of over 3,000 people. “The process went very smoothly,” Mr Pinder said. “We received a lot of positive feedback particularly on Spanish Wells and in fact, the vaccine rollout is happening at the hall currently.” Meanwhile, Central and South Eleuthera administrator Margaret Symonette echoed similar comments when contacted by the newspaper yesterday. Mrs Symonette said she and her husband received their first shot on Monday and added that she feels fine. “I could speak to the fact that when I went to get a vaccination and we had a lot of the second homeowners present. It is good response and it’s going smoothly,” Mrs Symonette said. “I feel great and I would encourage others to get it.” Eleuthera is the first Family Island to administer the Oxford-AstraZeneca
TOTAL CASES
doses since the country received the shots early last month. However, the nation’s vaccination programme will expand to several more islands in the days ahead, specifically Abaco and Bimini which are expected to start vaccinations after the Easter holidays. Yesterday, The Tribune contacted several officials on Abaco to get an update on the preparation efforts, but was told that they were still waiting to receive definitive information from the government’s vaccine committee on the matter. More than 7,000 vaccine doses have been administered since the programme began on March 14. The highest number of COVID-19 vaccinations administered in one day was more than 1,000. According to officials, 63 percent of vaccine recipients have been over 60 and 58 percent of recipients have been women.
TOTAL DEATHS
9,141 188
NEWLY CONFIRMED CASES TUESDAY 22 CASES NEW PROVIDENCE GRAND BAHAMA ABACO BIMINI & CAT CAY
TOTAL TESTS
76,133
14 6 1 1
HOSPITALISED
35
CASES IN ICU
1
RECOVERED
8,620
$20M LOAN TO FIGHT COVID THE government and the Inter-American Development Bank have partnered in a $20m loan contract “to help reduce the morbidity and mortality caused by COVID-19 and to lessen its impact on public health”. According to a press release from the IDB, Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis signed a loan programme to strengthen the Ministry of Health’s response management, improve case detection and monitoring, support the purchase of COVID-19 vaccines and the vaccination plan, assist the actions to break the illness’s transmission chain and improve service delivery capacity. “We congratulate the government of The Bahamas for its unyielding efforts to protect the population. This vaccination facility is an opportunity to better position The Bahamas’ health sector to more
rapidly and resiliently respond to the challenges of COVID-19,” said IDB Country Representative Daniela Carrera-Marquis in the press release. “The global pandemic is not over, so strengthening the nation’s health system has to remain a priority. The IDB remains committed to supporting the government in changing the trajectory of the pandemic and bolstering the economy.” According to the IDB, this programme has four components that include strengthening the response leadership at the country level by enhancing decision-making capabilities, surveillance, assessment, public health management, and multi-sectoral coordination. The programme will improve case detection and monitoring by expanding the Ministry of Health’s capacity for screening, case detection, contact tracing, and tracking
of Covid-19 cases. It will also support the COVID-19 vaccination strategic plan to reach the target vaccination of the prioritised groups as well as the procurement of vaccines, the design, and implementation of a public communications campaign, epidemiological surveillance at entry points, and the necessary supplies. These actions will break the chain of transmission of the illness. Lastly, the programme is expected to bolster service delivery capacity for COVID-19 cases and strengthen essential care services continuity. The programme will be executed in two years and will benefit the Bahamian population through supporting the actions to mitigate the COVID-19 spread, facilitating vaccine uptake, and increasing access to essential care, the IDB said.
MAN MUST PAY $150 OVER MARIJUANA By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net
A 27-YEAR-OLD man who was caught with over $100 worth or marijuana must pay $150 to avoid spending a month behind bars. Police arrested Dwayne Ferguson after they found 24 grams of Indian hemp on him on March 28. He pleaded guilty to one count of simple possession when he appeared before Deputy Chief Magistrate Andrew Forbes. The court heard around 1.40pm that day, officers on mobile patrol were dispatched to a disturbance near Hampton Street.
While conducting inquiries in the area, they walked into a bar where they observed Ferguson standing behind the counter with a homemade cigarette in his mouth. The officers then approached him and told him he would be searched in reference to dangerous drugs and firearms. During their investigation, they found seven green Ziploc bags which all contained a quantity of marijuana. Ferguson was subsequently arrested and transported to the Drug Enforcement Unit for questioning. During his interview there, he owned up to the offence and told officers he bought the drugs
for his personal use. During the hearing, Ferguson was represented by attorney Jomo Campbell. He told the magistrate his client bought the amount he did because he wanted to stay inside for the weekend. Mr Campbell also said the defendant admitted his guilt at his earliest opportunity because he was remorseful for his actions and asked the magistrate to consider the fact that Ferguson had no pending matters or convictions. After listening to his plea in mitigation, Magistrate Forbes accepted Ferguson’s guilty plea and fined him $150 or one month in prison.
THE TRIBUNE
Thursday, April 1, 2021, PAGE 5
‘Time to amend constitution’ By KHRISNA RUSSELL Tribune Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net
A FORMER member of Parliament believes the country’s constitution is long overdue for amending, telling The Tribune the document was never meant to remain “stagnant” as society changes. Loretta Butler-Turner said gender equality in the country’s constitution is a chief issue of concern. In 2016, the former Christie administration held a referendum to amend these issues but voters overwhelmingly rejected four bills touted to spark change in the constitution on June 7. “First and foremost we as Bahamian citizens we hold the constitution in very very high regard,” Mrs Butler-Turner, former Official Opposition leader, told The Tribune in a recent interview. “Obviously it is the highest law of the land. However when it was received in 1972 and we adopted it in 1973 at independence, it was my opinion a document that was a road map that should not have been a stagnant piece of law. It really should have been a living document whereby just as we update our statute laws and
LORETTA Butler-Turner. just how we change and add laws, the constitution works hand-in-hand with laws. “When there is ambiguity in the law, the constitution is the ultimate law. “So, having said that equality is very important and as you know this argument has been going on now close to two decades in regards to the way that women, especially married women in particular, are disenfranchised in terms of being unable to pass on citizenship to their foreign born children with foreign husbands. So, that is something that really needs to be looked at because unless we have an equal society,
which is mandated by our constitution, women are going to still have that albatross around their necks of not being able to have that level of equality with male counterparts. “There are other areas of the constitution that probably need to be examined as well and I have been asked this question whether or not we should become a republic and dispose of the Queen as our head of state and once again we cannot unilaterally do that at the Parliament level. That is something, as you know, our constitutional provisions are entrenched and the only way that we can
change them are through referenda.” Ultimately, the former Cabinet minister insisted that this exercise, and others, failed due to politicisation. “We politicise and the information, we don’t stick to message and with the proliferation of social media many people who put false information out there unfortunately would be believed by those who do not understand the constitution. They are those who are gullible in these arguments and I think a lot of it goes back to one of the largest congregations in our community and that is the church. “So, yes it does get politicised in the first instance, but the entire movement of referendum in my opinion becomes diluted with side arguments and inaccurate information. “I believe that if the purity of the process is held and people understand what will happen without throwing in all sorts of rhetoric and red herrings then I think they would have a greater appreciation but at the bottom of it all a lot of people profoundly believe that the constitution is a sacred grail that ought not to be touched. “They do not look at it
as another piece of law, the supreme law that needs to be tweaked from time to time.” While she agreed that governments shy away from referenda due to their rate of failure, Mrs ButlerTurner, who represented Long Island from 20122017 and Montagu from 2007-2012, said any serious administration should hold the vote early on in the term. “A lot of governments also wait very late in the game to start dealing with it. If you have an election in 2022, which is expected and whether it’s this current administration or a new administration that is brought to office I think that there has to be very early on in their administration to determine if in fact they will deal with it again because any referenda held very close to an election, it’s almost like a taboo for the general election and I think that that’s why many governments will shy away from it.” Referenda are also expensive. The constitutional referendum of 2016 was expected to cost around $1.57m. The first proposed amendment of the 2016 referendum if passed would have allowed children born
abroad to obtain Bahamian citizenship from either their married Bahamian father or mother, in those circumstances where the other parent is not Bahamian. Right now, only married Bahamian men are entitled to pass their Bahamian citizenship to their children born abroad in these situations. Amendment two would have enabled a Bahamian woman who marries a nonBahamian man to secure for him the same ability to apply for Bahamian citizenship – following the same steps, and subject to the same considerations – currently afforded to a Bahamian man married to a non-Bahamian woman. Amendment three would have enshrined into law that an unmarried Bahamian man could pass on his Bahamian citizenship to a child fathered with a nonBahamian woman, if he is able to prove by DNA evidence that he is the father. This right currently belongs only to women. The final amendment would have updated Article 26 of the constitution, so that it would become unconstitutional for Parliament to pass any laws that discriminate based on sex, which is defined as “male or female”.
TOO HEAVY TO FLY COST HIM HIS LIFE from page one
“For these King Air planes, if you add a pod, first of all, the pods can only fit people of a certain size. You have to be able to get people physically in the door. If you are beyond a certain girth, you cannot get safely in the plane and the door of the plane is only about 30 inches. You are dealing with serious logistical and physical limitations. “You can’t get a CAT scan in The Bahamas if you are above 400 lbs. The point is there is a physical limit for equipment and if you go beyond that you will break the equipment. It’s the same with air evacuation. Once you are above a particular size, you can’t access the particular equipment used in The Bahamas.” Rolle’s death came exactly one year after Kim Johnson-Rolle, another Bimini resident who was not airlifted off the island in time, became the country’s first confirmed COVID-19 death. Yesterday Denver Stuart, 30, said his uncle spent four nights in a tent outside a Bimini clinic before he died. “My uncle had to slowly suffocate for days,” he said. “That was worse than being smothered because he was suffocating slowly until he took his last breath. The doctor said he needed to be on the ventilator machine
that they don’t have in Bimini. We need an investigation to give us truthful answers on why outer islands are always left out in the dark.” Dr Sands said the country must grapple with how to handle such episodes and decide whether to get bigger planes or use other resources like boats. “It may be reasonable to expect that the country could provide emergency airlift services to people regardless of their weight provided that we would be able to pay for it,” he said. “If you now say that The Bahamas is going to provide air evacuation equipment to deal with the morbidly obese patient, then that will have a dramatic increase in cost and who is going to pay for it? Already the people of The Bahamas pay up to $2 million, $2.5 million per year in air transportation costs, 90-plus percent of which is not reimbursed. And if you had an unlimited budget you could say let’s increase that to $3 or $4 million. But the overwhelming majority of people who will need to be transported will fall within the current weight limit. So if you now say you are going to provide services that can manage people who are 400 lbs, then what about the people who are 500 lbs?” Rolle’s family questioned why Royal Bahamas Defence Force resources
were not mobilised to move their relative, but Dr Sands said the Defence Force also lacks the air capacity to move someone of Rolle’s size. “They don’t have cargo planes,” he said. “And I don’t even know if the pods can handle someone of that size, I think the upper limit is 350 lbs. This tragedy provides an opportunity to once again look at how do we move forward and perhaps when the next aircraft is purchased for air evacuation, a choice may be made to go with planes that have bigger entry doors and which can take a higher patient load but those decisions are not spur of the moment decisions, you have to plan for that and know that the cost for everyone goes up.” Rolle’s family asked why a ventilator machine was not sent to Bimini along with experts qualified to operate it, but Dr Sands said this would not have been feasible. “You have to have expertise to safely manage the equipment and they need to have the tools in order to function,” he said. “Let’s say you say you’re going to move an intensive care unit to Bimini. I don’t think that’s either reasonable or practical and perhaps this is where the whole discussion of prevention, of management of non-communicable diseases and the reality that people with non-communicable diseases do very poorly when
2,000 NEW VOTERS ON REGISTER from page one
This is an increase of 1,999 from the 186,763 existing registrants ahead of the opening of the registration centres last month. Yesterday, Mr Duncanson said officials were seeing a “steady response” to the registration programme. “We would like to continue to encourage persons within the general public to take advantage of the centres that are available to them,” he said. “Especially during this pandemic season, we would like to encourage people to continue to take advantage of the opportunities available to them because at this time with the centres we have available on New Providence, some seven, Grand Bahama, some six, and then throughout the family of islands at the administrative offices. “The wait time is somewhat minimal because during this pandemic season and for the most part we would have registered
the majority of individuals since 2017,” he also said. In February, officials said they expected about 20,000 new voters to register. The Parliamentary Elections Act 2020, which was passed in January, abolished the five-year register allowing for the 2017 register to continue. Registered voters who are 65 years and older can also vote as special voters in the advanced poll. “Persons registered for the 2017 general election and who have not relocated to a different residence for a period of 90 days or more shall remain registered as a voter entitled to vote at an election on the continuous register unless his or her name has been removed from the register by the parliamentary commissioner,” Mr Duncanson said in February. This also applies to Family Island residents who registered to vote for local government elections. Legal name changes also will be facilitated. Asked how the
department intended to deal with challenges it has had in the past regarding the organisation of the advanced poll and voters being turned away for dress code violations, Mr Duncanson said officials planned to learn from the discomfort experienced in the past, but did not directly address the dress code issue. Applicants applying to register should provide proof of citizenship, must be 18 or older and not subject to legal incapacities. They should have also resided at their place of residency for three months or more. Documentary proof includes a Bahamian passport, which is considered primary, or an old voter’s card. Where this document is used, officials are requesting that the applicant also present a valid birth certificate as proof of citizenship. A Bahamian citizenship certificate or registration of naturalisation is also acceptable, in collaboration with a birth certificate.
they get respiratory failure from COVID-19 needs to take place.” Mr Stuart, a boat captain, said he was denied the chance to take his uncle to New Providence or Grand Bahama by a vessel. Dr Sands, emphasising he does not know details of the request, said Mr Stuart’s request nonetheless raises complex questions. “Here we are 188 deaths later and in Bimini again
another COVID-related death with real logistical challenges,” he said. “Modifications were made after the first death, but you’re dealing with a complex evacuation issue. So who is going to be covering the insurance for the people participating in the mission? What happens if the boat sinks? All of that is already dealt with in the existing air ambulance system, but when we
talk about a non-certified vessel that now is going to be used for evacuation, if all goes well it’s no big deal, but if it doesn’t go well, fingers point and people say ‘why did you allow it? You know it wasn’t certified, you know they’ve never done it before, why didn’t you stop them?’ We went through this discussion with that first case. Logistically it’s not that simple,” Dr Sands said.
PAGE 6, Thursday, April 1, 2021
THE TRIBUNE
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We know the problems - where are the solutions? PERHAPS the most shocking thing in the latest report on human rights in The Bahamas by the US State Department is that so many of the problems are already known. Are we surprised that Fox Hill Prison is overcrowded, with poor sanitation, poor ventilation, poor medical care and poor nutrition? Not at all. Are we surprised at reports of mistreatment of migrants at the Carmichael Road Detention Centre or that a man said he bribed several officials to be released from there? No. Is it news that people continue to face problems in receiving their Bahamian citizenship with little progress made in legislation to tackle statelessness? Again, no. How about efforts to tackle corruption? The US criticises the political campaign finance system and the lack of safeguards. They say it creates “a vulnerability to corruption and foreign influence”. Indeed, what’s to stop the next Peter Nygard from wielding influence as allegations of bad behaviour build up and go unheeded? You don’t need to be told that the Freedom of Information Act continues to twist in the wind without being fully implemented – despite promises, promises, promises. The Public Disclosure Act is something The Tribune has repeatedly taken officials to task over – and yet as this report shows, individual declarations have not been published, and there is no independent verification – while everyone who filed late got an extension. These are rules with no bite, regulations with no punishment. So while some may bristle at our failings being called out by another nation, what we should be asking is what we are going to do about it. There has been some progress, it seems, with improvements to prison conditions to some extent. But too many of these problems have existed for years and, it would seem, are likely to exist for a long time yet. Some of these items require long-term solutions – such as whatever remedial
work is needed to fix the structural problems at the prison. Others can be carried out as soon as the government is ready to show willingness – such as campaign finance or freedom of information. Corruption remains a shadow – and it remains disturbing that we see allegations of corruption without seeing a crackdown on suspects in these cases through the court system. The US report at least shines a spotlight on our failings. The question is, will we do anything about that – or will we let these problems fester for another year, and another, and another?
Obesity concern
The story of Louis Edward Rolle is a tragic one. The 74-year-old died on Tuesday in Bimini after being diagnosed with a rapid test with COVID-19. He was unable to be airlifted for treatment because he weighed too much. We simply don’t have an air ambulance that can evacuate people who weigh as much as 400lb. There was no ventilator machine to help him on Bimini, it seems, and no way off for him. We have spoken often in this column of the need to tackle health problems that affect Bahamians – one of which, sadly, is obesity. Former health minister Dr Duane Sands has spoken out on the issue too. As he pointed out with regard to the airlift in this case, there’s always a limit to what you can do. If you have a 300lb limit, what do you do for those who are 400lbs? If you have a 400lb limit, what about those who are larger than that? It’s difficult – and expensive – to prepare for everything. Mr Rolle’s death raises questions about whether there could have been other ways to treat him or to transport him – but we must also be aware of the questions this situation raises for us all as a society. As we look to see if there was a better way, we must not neglect the greater problem that affects so many – and consider what we can do to tackle that too.
Open letter to the PM DEAR MR MINISTER
PRIME
I listened with bated breath recently while you were on a trip to Ragged Island, where you were asked by a reporter to state your opinion on oil drilling in our archipelagic waters. Your response was one of great admiration for me and anyone whose desire is to pass these pristine and national waters on to future generations totally unspoiled. There was absolutely no equivocation in your words. Your passion was such that none could possibly judge them as simply utterances from the lips of a conflicted leader. Your words were such that anyone of keen perception could judge them only to be directly from the heart which tells no lies. Undoubtedly and unquestionably, your expressions carried enormous wisdom, knowledge and knowingness. You, spontaneously and succinctly, put forth all the elements to the country, primarily, and to any other entity which would fancy any notion to venture into the sacred area of the bosom, the breast, belly
and womb of our mother ocean to knowingly or ignorantly cause havoc in our greatest and most precious and treasured natural recourse. Albeit, I would further venture to state that, you, as prime minister of an independent and sovereign nation must have been misguided by legal entities in this nation who advised your government to honour whatever permits were and those still standing to be possibly renewed. This whole matter comes off as one of the most repugnant, egregious and ill contrived schemes this nation has ever allowed thus far. It reeks of a foreign entity and a handful of local profiteers to benefit from an action which potentially spells doom to our most sacred, God-given heritage of this nation of mighty, plentiful and abundant waters. These forces predicated on greed and selfishness are not worthy to be even heard. It’s in the range of the old Biblical adage, selling our birthright for a bowl of porridge. This action, of almost national betrayal, with its secret schemes, is putrid, and smells to deep hell in the minds and hearts
of those who care for the wellbeing of our future generations. Our greatest wealth is that of our people and our sacred ocean which has benefitted our nation and all citizens for many, many years. In light of climate change and accompanying sea level rise, we owe it to our present and future generations to nobly and conscientiously safeguard this ocean heritage which will be the basis of sustenance for many in the future, even as we lose land mass to ocean surge. Anyone considering leading this country must exemplify these concerns and take steps to protect its people. This is the type of forward-thinking leadership needed at all fronts for a climate-threatened country. Leadership and forthright thinking that will make sound decisions for current and future generations. Be blessed, dear sir, as you continue to create a sustainable and dignified path for our ocean heritage and our people. JOSEPH DARVILLE Save The Bays chairman, Grand Bahama
Vaccine is not the mark of the beast EDITOR, The Tribune. THE following is my exposition of Revelation 13 and the dreaded mark of the beast, which many Bahamians have wrongly assumed to be the OxfordAstraZeneca vaccine. This faulty conclusion is due to them disregarding the time text indicators in the opening and closing sections of the Apocalypse (Revelation 1:1,3; 22:20). In Revelation 13, John, while on Patmos, sees a seven headed composite beast emerge from out of the sea, of which Bible interpreters from the Futurist, Historicist and Preterist schools of thought believe to be the Mediterranean Sea. The beast had subsumed elements of the first three beasts of Daniel 7:4-6, which symbolizes Babylon, MedoPersia and Greece. Based on my Partial-Preterist understanding of Revelation, the beast, specifically speaking, is none other than Nero Caesar, while generally speaking, is the first century Roman Empire. The cryptic number 666 is the numerical value of Nero’s name. With the mention of the Herodian temple in chapter 11 of Revelation, one can then deduce that the Apocalypse was composed prior to AD 70, notwithstanding the late first century date allegedly postulated by Patristic father Irenaeus in his Against Heresies. The ancient writers Tacitus, Clement of Rome, Suetonius and Apollonius of Tyana mentioned Nero’s vile character and his state-sponsored persecution of Christians, which coincidentally, lasted for approximately three and a half years or 42 months, from November, AD 64 to June, AD 68 (Revelation 13:5). The seven heads on the beast represents the first seven Caesars: Julius Caesar, Augustus (Octavian), Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, Nero and Galba. The ten horns represent the ten imperial provinces of the Roman Empire. In Revelation 13:3, the wounded
LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net head that was healed miraculously is interpreted as the suicide of Nero in AD 68 and the subsequent bloody civil war involving Vespasian, Galba, Otho and Vitellius for the empire – known as the Year of the Four Emperors. With the Flavian dynasty under Vespasian wresting control of the empire, stability was restored. The revivification of Rome under Vespasian is the fulfilment of the prediction of the healing of the wounded head. As for the second beast with the two lamb horns of Revelation 13:11-18, it symbolises apostate Jewry, and in all probability, the Sanhedrin that lobbied Pontius Pilate for the execution of Jesus Christ. As for the mark of the beast, it is no more a literal mark or tattoo than the seal that was placed on the 144,000 of Revelation 7 and 14. Whereas the seal symbolises the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13-14, 4:30; 2 Corinthians 1:22), the mark is seen as a mimicking of this seal and a parody of the law of God in Deuteronomy 6:6-8. In the New Testament Greek, the word for mark is charagma, which means a tattoo. In biblical times, slaves and livestock were tattooed. Consequently, the technology existed in John’s day, 2,000 years ago, for the mark of the beast. The imperial cult of emperor worship was particularly strong in Pergamum (Revelation 2:12-17), in which the church faced immense persecution for its refusal to worship Caesar (i.e., taking the mark of the beast). Failure to do so would result in not only physical harm and death, but also economic deprivation. Students of church history would be familiar with the volume titled The Martyrdom of Polycarp, in which the aged Patristic father was executed for refusing to say Caesar is Lord. John was not talking
about AstraZeneca or the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID19 vaccine or a computer chip. Ask yourself this question: is a mark a vaccine? Moreover, how would a 21st century COVID-19 vaccine be relevant to the seven churches of Asia Minor, who were the original recipients of the Book of Revelation, two millennia ago? These irresponsible Bahamian Bible prophecy “experts” are twisting Scripture, which could have disastrous consequences for the entire country from an economic and health standpoint, which would prevent the nation from achieving COVID-19 herd immunity status. With their deeply entrenched Scofieldian eschatology, they are unable to view themselves as not living in the last days. This is where the Bahamas Christian Council, Bishop Fernander, Pastor Mario Moxey and the COVID Vaccine Investigative Committee should step in, with the aim of educating Bahamians on the proper methodology in interpreting Scripture. With Revelation being a highly symbolic book, one can state dogmatically that the mark of the beast is simply a symbol of identification with the first century Roman Empire and Satan, who influenced Nero to launch the first imperial persecution of the Christian church and the murders of the apostles Paul and Peter. The apostle Paul spoke about handling the Word of God deceitfully in 2 Corinthians 4:2. I think this is an apt description of those using Revelation to warn Bahamians about the AstraZeneca vaccine being the mark of the beast. Those who are opposed to AstraZeneca will have to use medical science to argue their case, not biblical prophecy. The Bible offers no help at all to them. KEVIN EVANS Freeport, Grand Bahama. March 29, 2021.
THE TRIBUNE
Thursday, April 1, 2021, PAGE 7
Jail term upheld for police boat chase By FARRAH JOHNSON Tribune Staff Reporter fjohnson@tribunemedia.net THE Court of Appeal yesterday affirmed the fouryear sentence of one of two men who led officers on a high speed boat chase after he and his partner were caught sailing on the open seas with a quantity of dangerous drugs. In the early hours of November 8, 2017, officers patrolling the area of Highbourne Cay, Exuma, observed Billydee Robinson Jr and his co-accused on an unlit grey boat speeding on the open water. The officers gave chase and identified themselves by microphone and beacon lights; however, the boat did not stop. During the chase, the fleeing vessel sought to ram into the police boat several times. At one point, both men were also seen throwing bags overboard into the water. According to a judgement posted on the Crown’s website, upon Robinson Jr’s arrest, he was charged with possession of dangerous drugs with intent to supply, conspiracy to possess dangerous drugs with intent to supply and assault with a deadly instrument.
In July 2019, he was convicted on all charges and was sentenced to four years in prison for possession with intent to supply and conspiracy to possess and three years on remand for the assault with a dangerous instrument charge. In February, the appellant applied for an extension of time to appeal his conviction on the dangerous drugs charge as well as his sentence for the charge of assault with a deadly instrument. However, the appellate panel of justices Sir Michael Barnett, Jon Isaacs, and Roy Jones dismissed his appeal yesterday. In their judgement delivered by Sir Michael, they noted: “Here, the magistrate had to decide whether the appellant’s agreement or common purpose with his co-accused to possess and transport drugs late at night included, if things came to it, the commission of ramming a police boat which was intended to stop and capture them in order to prevent being apprehended. “It was reasonable for the magistrate to conclude that (the) enterprise would have (included) taking necessary steps to avoid capture.
In this case, after the boat in which the appellant was an occupant, rammed the police boat, it continued at a high rate of speed to avoid capture by the police. It was only after they rammed the police boat and tried to escape did the appellant and his co-accused start to throw the bags overboard. “On that evidence, it is difficult to see how the magistrate was wrong or erred in finding that the appellant was also guilty of assault as part of the joint enterprise of committing possessing dangerous drugs and taking steps as were necessary to avoid detection and capture.” In his dissenting view, Justice Isaacs said in view of the evidence produced, he did “not find the magistrate’s inference that the appellant joined in with the driver’s attempt to assault the police officers as reasonable.” “It is inconceivable that the appellant, in associating himself in a clandestine drug run with no weapons on board, would have agreed inferentially or otherwise to ram a police vessel of indeterminate size, at night in the open sea thereby imperiling his own life,” he stated.
MAN TO FACE TRIAL OVER KISSING GIRL, 10 By FARRAH JOHNSON Tribune Staff Reporter fjohnson@tribunemedia.net
A MAGISTRATE is set to determine the fate of a 25-year-old man who was accused of kissing a tenyear-old girl on the lips during a game of spin the bottle nearly two years ago. Brian Johnson first appeared before Senior Magistrate Carolyn VogtEvans charged with the indecent assault of the young child in June 2019. At the time, he denied the allegation and the matter was adjourned for trial. During the course of the proceedings, the child’s mother, the minor and the interviewing officer gave evidence for the prosecution, while Johnson called his sister to the stand to testify on his behalf. Yesterday, the accused and the prosecution offered their closing arguments in the matter. The court heard the child’s mother knew Johnson because they lived in
the same neighbourhood and would sometimes play dominoes together. When she testified last month, she said she did not give the defendant permission to touch her daughter at any time. During his submissions, prosecutor Kendrick Bauld also noted the child and her mother had told officers and the court that she was approached by Johnson while playing a game with other young children. He said the then ten-year-old also testified that Johnson had stopped them in the middle of their game and said he was changing the rules of spin the bottle so that the “girls could kiss the boys”. Sergeant Bauld said at that point, the bottle landed on Johnson and the little girl, so he kissed her on her lips, which he stated made the young child “feel bad”. The court was told after the child’s mother reported the incident, Johnson was arrested. When officers arranged a confrontation
between Johnson and his accusers, the little girl maintained her story. During his closing arguments yesterday, Johnson maintained his innocence. He claimed the little girl’s mother “told a lie” and said on the day in question, he was at work when his sisters came to his job and told him he had to “come home now”. He said when he asked them why, his older sister stated: “You ain’t know what they trying to jick on you now eh (sic)?” The defendant said he then told his boss that he would be back in 30 minutes and left for home. He said when he arrived there, he was arrested. Insisting he never indecently assaulted the young child he stated: “They say I touch the little girl and kiss her on her lips which was a lie.” After listening to arguments from both sides, Magistrate Vogt-Evans adjourned the matter to June 24 to deliver her decision.
COUPLE IN HOSPITAL AFTER SHOOTING By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net A GRAND Bahama couple is in hospital with serious injuries following a shooting incident in the Freeport area on Tuesday evening, police reported. The incident occurred shortly after 11pm in South Bahamia, where a man and woman were shot in their vehicle. Both victims sustained injuries
about the body and were taken to Rand Memorial Hospital. Police are searching for the gunman. Superintendent of Police Terecita Pinder reported that police received reports of a shooting at Lunar Boulevard and Santa Maria Drive. According to reports, a male and female told police that while pulling into the driveway of an apartment, a male gunman approached
the vehicle they were in and opened fire, shooting the vehicle numerous times. Supt Pinder said both occupants inside the vehicle received gunshot injuries about the body. They were taken to hospital and seen by doctors who listed their injuries as serious, but stable. Anyone with information on this incident is asked to call 350-3106 through 12, 911/919 or the nearest police station.
THREE ACCUSED OF ARMED ROBBERY By FARRAH JOHNSON Tribune Staff Reporter fjohnson@tribunemedia.net THREE men were charged with armed robbery in the Magistrate’s Court yesterday. Bradwin Johnson, 23, Lamar Wilchcombe, 22, and Clydon Stubbs, 24,
appeared before Deputy Chief Magistrate Andrew Forbes after they were accused of using a handgun to rob a man of a $50 car part on March 25. Due to the nature of the charge, none of the accused were required to enter a plea and the matter was adjourned to May 3 for
service of a voluntary bill of indictment (VBI). In the meantime, Johnson, Wilchcombe and Stubbs were denied bail and remanded to the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services. They all have a right to apply to the Supreme Court for bail.
COMMISSIONER Paul Rolle speaking at the rededication of St Michael’s Chapel at Police HQ. Photo: Racardo Thomas
ROLLE ‘OFFENDED’ BY VIDEO
By FARRAH JOHNSON Tribune Staff Reporter fjohnson@tribunemedia.net
POLICE Commissioner Paul Rolle said he was “offended by the comments” made by an individual in a video that circulated on social media this week. A statement released by the Royal Bahamas Police Force on Tuesday revealed the Commissioner reported the video, which makes “spurious allegations” against him, to the Criminal Investigation Department as he “takes these attacks on his reputation seriously”. While speaking on the sidelines of the dedication service of the new Police Chapel at Police Headquarters yesterday, the police chief further commented on the allegations. He said: “My comment is that blessed are those who are reviled for righteousness sake when men will rise up and tell
all manner of lies against you. So I feel blessed, I’ve turned the matter over to CID and I believe CID will do what they have to do. I don’t indulge in nonsense.” When asked if he denied the allegations, he responded: “I say I don’t indulge in nonsense, you understand me? CID is investigating it. I have nothing to deny. If he made the allegation, he should bring his facts and in the absence of that I think we have to be respectful. I don’t want to go any further with that because I’m offended by the comments and I’ve made the complaint.” The police statement indicated that although the Commissioner stresses people have a right to free speech in the country, “they do not have an exclusive right to make malicious and defamatory statements about anyone, so as to cause hurt or unnecessary pain”. Police previously noted the individual who made the video was not in custody.
PAGE 8, Thursday, April 1, 2021
THE TRIBUNE
THE ARRIVAL of the latest batch of vaccines this week. “While modern society places more importance on one’s own interests regardless of or even to the detriment of others … [true Christians] ban individualism in order to encourage sharing and solidarity.” - Pope Francis, General Audience, June 26, 2019 IN THE preface of a 30-page study on the pastoral care of people displaced by climate change events drafted by the Vatican development office, Pope Francis urged the global commons to work in solidarity to protect “creation, our common home” and not “hunker down” in individualism. He stressed: “I suggest we adapt Hamlet’s famous ‘to be or not to be’ and affirm: ‘To see or not to see, that is the question!’ Where it starts is with each one’s seeing, yes, mine and yours. “We are not going to get out of crises like climate or COVID-19 by hunkering down in individualism but only by ‘being many together’, by encounter and dialogue and cooperation.” Pope Francis called for a broader moral imagination that goes beyond personal autonomy and a corrosive
and self-absorbed individualism, blind, deaf and insensitive to the needs of others. Much of the debate on COVID-19 vaccines has been mired in an overemphasis and at times fixation prioritizing the desires and needs of an individual over the common good. While many people, in a spirit of community and the common good worked in unison during the pandemic, one of the reasons that COVID-19 has become so virulent is because of the self-absorbed and often selfishness of those who refused to or were cavalier in following public health guidelines. One young lady on spring break in South Florida was incensed that there was a curfew in place. Her need to party, her rugged individualist needs, were more important to her than the compelling need to slow the spread of the SARS-COV-2 virus.
LAXNESS
The US will likely have another serious wave because of opening too soon, vaccination hesitancy and the laxness and opposition of many to public health
‘TAKING THE VACCINE MAY BE AN ACT OF LOVE, A GIFT TO ONE’S COMMUNITY’ guidelines. Many individual choices have led to mass death and illness globally. Though the US is vaccinating at a high clip, vaccines alone won’t stop the coming wave. People must be willing to take the vaccines to
protect the general health. A good image for the selfabsorption by some during the pandemic is like the proverbial ostrich with its head in the sand. The truth is that ostriches do not bury their heads because they would be unable to breathe. They do dig holes in the sand but only put their heads in the hole to turn their eggs, a lesson for humans. A friend noted that he would advise some students in medical school to make COVID management their specialty as the disease and its long-term effects will be around for quite some time. There may be tens of millions globally who will suffer the long-term physical and mental effects of the COVID-19 disease. While personal autonomy and individual choices are a part of a moral dialogue, excluding the greater good, especially during a global pandemic in which we need to act in concert to protect others, is morally limited. While various religious leaders have issued a clear and compelling clarion call to help to advance the greater good by taking a vaccine, even the Bahamas Christian Council seems to have given priority to individual choice. Thankfully, the Council did not oppose vaccines. In a recommendation it stated: “Whether or not a citizen chooses to take a COVID19 vaccine is a matter of personal choice.” But ethically and morally it can be argued that it is more than a personal choice, especially because not taking the vaccine if one is medically eligible may pose health risks to others. The council’s stance is morally weak and disappointing. It was not an example of moral leadership. And it was a failure of moral imagination. The task of the Christian community is “penetrate and to perfect the culture” and not to allow certain materialistic mindsets to adulterate the spirit of Christian witness. Imagine during the Sermon on the Mount if Jesus told those gathered to go fend for themselves as rugged individualists.
SOLIDARITY
At the core of Christianity is communion and the promotion of the common good which issues forth in the spirit of solidarity. Caritas is the New Zealand Catholic agency for Justice, Peace and Development. Of the principle of solidarity, the agency notes: “The Catholic social teaching principle of solidarity is about recognising others as our brothers and sisters and actively working for their good. In our connected humanity, we are invited to build relationships … to understand what life is like for others who
are different from us. “Being in solidarity is recognising others as our brothers and sisters and actively working for their good… “In our connected humanity, we are invited to build relationships … to understand what life is like for others who are different from us; to help us understand what life is like for the poorest, most vulnerable, most overlooked, wherever they are in the world. “As a human family we commit to work together for the well-being of all to ensure everyone has what they need to live with dignity.” In Galatians 3:28 we are reminded: “There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male or female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.” In 1 Corinthians 12:26 we are told: “If one member suffers, all suffer with it; if one member is honoured, all rejoice together with it.” Writing on the Spiritual Exercise of St Ignatius, the founder of the Jesuit religious order, Fr Daniel Ruff, S.J., recalls the great act of love of the Trinity and the self-donation of a member of the Trinity. “The Exercises begin at the beginning of the life of Jesus; the first contemplation is of the moment of Jesus’ conception. … The prayer, as Ignatius envisions it, is a diptych. The first ‘panel’ is God’s decision and offer; the second ‘panel’ is Mary’s human response. “The first part of the meditation emerges not from the Gospels, but from Ignatius’s imagination. After collecting him or herself, becoming aware of God’s presence, and asking for ‘what he or she desires … the retreatant is invited to enter into God’s viewpoint.’ Allowing the Spirit to guide, the person praying is asked to imagine the triune God, before the moment of Jesus’ conception: “Looking upon our world: men and women being born and being laid to rest, some getting married and others getting divorced, the old and the young, the rich and the poor, the happy and the sad, so many people aimless, despairing, hateful, and killing, so many undernourished, sick, and dying, so many struggling with life and blind to any meaning. “With God, I can hear people laughing and crying, some shouting and screaming, some praying, others cursing. “Try to pay attention to the Trinity’s affective responses to this complicated, messy mass of humanity. Pay attention to your own feelings as well. If you pretend in your imagination to be back in the time before Jesus’ coming, how do you feel looking down ‘from where God sits’
at the mixed, complicated messiness of the unredeemed human condition? “Would you respond as the Trinity did? Then, let the miracle of divine love unfold in your mind’s eye. “The leap of divine joy: God knows that the time has come when the mystery of salvation, hidden from the beginning of the world, will shine into human darkness and confusion. It is as if I can hear the Divine Persons saying, ‘Let us work the redemption of the whole human race; let us respond to the groaning of all creation.’ “The Trinity’s response – O, wonder of wonders! – is to incarnate the Divine Word, the second Person. God the Son will take human flesh as Jesus of Nazareth and become Emmanuel, ‘God with us’.” St. Ignatius invites us to view the world through the eyes of the Trinity and to respond in kind through a self-donation which embraces the needs and the well-being of others, which may include public health in a time of great suffering and death. Taking the vaccine may be an act of love, a gift to one’s community and a means to helping the common good, while rising above our limited choices. It is an act of the moral imagination to see how our choices affect others, especially those medically vulnerable. The passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, which Christians commemorate at Easter, is the self-donation and redemptive sacrifice made by a member of the Trinity. This sacrificial love is what should animate Christians in the love of others and service to a shared humanity. This love is the basis of a common good and spirit of solidarity. At our second Easter in the pandemic, let us recall the example of Christ who made the greatest sacrifice so that others might have eternal life. For Christians and others a decision to take the vaccine may in its own way be a source of life, light, healing and recovery for a world groaning during this terrible pandemic.
THE TRIBUNE
Thursday, April 1, 2021, PAGE 9
You had to pinch yourself - this isn’t really the America we know YESTERDAY was cool and breezy in the midAtlantic region of the US. Rapidly scudding clouds foretold of rain to come later in the day, but for winter-weary Americans, the springlike 60-degree temperatures were a most welcome reminder of winter’s passing. Along the Tidal Basin, an eddy of the Potomac River in Washington DC that is notably adorned with the majestic Jefferson Memorial honouring America’s third President, the scene was familiar to locals. It was cherry blossom time. Each year around the beginning of the month of April, hundreds of Japanese cherry trees emerge from the gloom of March to brighten swaths of the US national mall in Washington. Their mostly snow white (but occasionally pink) blossoms all come out at the same time, and a visitor’s eye is easily distracted from the gnarly 109-yearold trunks and branches of these small, very mature trees that were originally a gift of the Japanese government. Often, as is the case this year, Washington’s Cherry Blossom Festival coincides with public primary school spring breaks for American kids. The result is that downtown Washington and the Tidal Basin are overrun with kids, parents, regular foreign and domestic tourists and the curious from nearby regions. It’s an amiable mess of traffic and people. Yesterday was both different and the same. It was different because there weren’t any schoolkids on the sidewalks and paths around the cherry trees. There also weren’t very many tourists from other nations. Notably, there didn’t appear to be any Chinese visitors – a startling departure from the norm. There weren’t any Northern European blondes with long hair and backpacks either. Nor were there the ubiquitous classic American family units – mom and
SILHOUETTES of travellers at Salt Lake City International Airport - as tourism is left a shadow of its former self in the US.
STATESIDE
with Charlie Harper
dad and two or three kids, all similarly attired in colourful t-shirts, shorts with cameras slung around the neck. Some French and Japanese was overheard, but almost everyone was speaking English. There was no Russian. No Spanish. No Chinese. No German. The crowds of people were obviously, overwhelmingly American. Those who responded to an observer’s queries almost unanimously said they had come from within 100 miles of Washington DC. Many simply drove in from the nearby suburbs. The area was nevertheless
crowded, and the usual traffic barriers were in place to limit pedestrian access to the busy streets and to channel the slow-moving traffic through various bottlenecks. Many were there to pose for pictures against the spectacular backdrop of the blossoms. There were many young couples, self-consciously smiling together for a wedding planner’s photographs. Groups of young women flitted about, chattering excitedly from behind their masks and taking dozens of pictures of each other with their cell phones. Some couples had
BIDEN ALREADY SHOWING HE’S PLAYING HIS OWN GAME
NOT too far away from Jefferson’s Tidal Basin in Washington on Capitol Hill, a familiar scenario is being handled differently by the two major US political parties. Twelve years ago, the eight-year run of President George W Bush’s presidential tenure ended as he was replaced in the White House by President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden. Obama, clearly feeling that he had been elected to remedy America’s domestic sociological ills and inequities, prioritized wider and more accessible health care. For the next two years, armed with a Democratic majority in the American House of Representatives and Senate, Obama pushed the Affordable Care Act, now and then known as Obamacare. And it became law. Another high priority for Obama was securing support for his ambitious legislative agenda from the Republican Party in Washington. In this, the inspirational US President failed. Not only did the Republicans not support his legislative vision, but they also came to see Obama’s wish for bipartisanship as an exploitable weakness. The Republicans racked up some impressive electoral gains in the 2010 bi-elections while managing not only to sabotage the rest of Obama’s legislative priorities but also to plant the seeds of “liberal, leftist, socialist” doubts in voters minds about the overall direction of Obama and the Democratic Party. Many still feel that Mitt Romney and the GOP squandered some major advantages in wasting a
golden opportunity to retake the White House in 2012. Obama’s search for elusive bipartisan support, while praiseworthy in theory, thus became a cancer of weakness on both his presidency and his political party. Donald Trump’s election in 2016 was arguably a direct result. Now, Joe Biden has retaken the White House with slender House and Senate majorities. He was a first-hand witness to the mistakes of 2009. Many observers saw in Biden’s initial, stated hope for bipartisan government a worrisome reminder of “Obama’s folly”. But while Biden is still talking a bipartisan game and is still reaching out to more centrist Republicans especially in the Senate, it is already apparent that he has no intention of wasting time hoping for cooperation from Kevin McCarthy in the House or Mitch McConnell in the Senate. The barometer of Biden’s thinking on this issue may be the filibuster, a dilatory oratorical device used by members of the minority party in the Senate to impede passage of legislation favoured by the majority. While senators were originally obliged to deliver interminable speeches in their effort to delay undesired legislation, more recently a senator can save his or her breath and simply signal their intent to invoke the filibuster. A renowned Senate traditionalist who spent decades in the US upper chamber, Bident initially favored maintenance of the filibuster rule. But as it becomes clear that the
Mitch McConnell of 2021 is no more inclined to cooperate with a Democratic President than was the Mitch McConnell of 2009, Biden’s view seems to be evolving. First, he said he favoured the filibuster but only if senators actually reverted to delivering exhausting speeches to delay legislative action. Now, there is increasing speculation that he will heed increasingly loud calls from his own party to abandon the filibuster and cram his ambitious infrastructure, voting rights and other initiatives down Republican throats with the simple 51-50 majority that Georgia’s January election provided to him. Meanwhile, Republican leaders, seemingly almost entirely bereft of ideas to offer for solving the nation’s problems, continue to focus on painting the Democrats as large-government socialists whose policies will destroy forever the American way of life as voters may imagine it still is. As he digs in for another campaign of entrenched obstruction and obfuscation, McConnell and his Republican colleagues in Washington must still believe that this is the best course for his party. Still, like everyone else, he reads the polls that show even significant numbers of registered Republicans favour the massive government-funded pandemic relief being rolled out by the Biden administration. But he also knows that he destroyed Obama’s initial advantage a dozen years ago and managed to blight Obama’s presidential legacy by employing the same strategy. It’s up to Biden now to change the script.
planned ahead and planted their cell phone sticks in front of their cheery, cherry poses. Others asked the favour of a photo from a passerby. It was all so normal. Except that it wasn’t normal at all. In the lee of the imposing stone memorial to Dr Martin Luther King, Jr, no black face was visible. Almost no foreign faces were present.
Instead, what was on display seemed to be Donald Trump’s America. Most people were in their ’20s and ’30s, white, American, and to judge from appearances, reasonably prosperous. The throngs of visitors were notable most of all for their startling lack of diversity. There was, however, one other thing that stood out in the crowd: everyone was wearing a mask. No sociological, political, religious, moral or other expressions of defiant freedom or independence were visible. It made a nice contrast with the day’s news reports of America’s coronavirus death toll passing 550,000 and governors in several states including
Photo: Rick Bowmer/AP Florida persisting in prioritizing commerce over public health as COVID restrictions are widely lifted – and just as pandemicrelated hospitalisations and deaths start to surge again. Maybe the homogeneity of normally diverse crowds was simply the result of cancelled school trips, pandemic-related travel curtailments and the financial exigencies of rising domestic unemployment. Maybe the all-white allAmerican pastiche among the alabaster blossoms is a one-off, not to be seen again in Washington until at least the next global health emergency. Or maybe not. We can all only hope the explanation is the first one.
PAGE 10, Thursday, April 1, 2021
THE United States’ offshore wind industry is tiny, with just seven wind turbines operating off Rhode Island and Virginia. The few attempts to build large-scale wind farms like Europe’s have run into long delays, but that may be about to change. The Biden administration announced on March 29 that it would accelerate the federal review process for offshore wind projects and provide more funding. It also set a goal: develop 30,000 megawatts of offshore wind capacity this decade – enough to power 10 million homes with clean energy. To put that in perspective, the US has just 42 megawatts today. Several wind farm developers already hold leases in prime locations off the Eastern Seaboard, suggesting plenty of interest. So, will the government’s new goals and promise of additional funding be enough to finally launch a thriving offshore wind industry? As engineering professors leading the Energy Transition Initiative and Wind Energy Centre at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, we have been closely watching the industry’s challenges and progress. The process could move quickly once permitting and approvals are on track, but there are still obstacles.
WHY OFFSHORE WIND PLANS STALLED UNDER TRUMP
THE TRIBUNE
Change in the air as Biden targets huge wind power initiative
By ERIN BAKER, Professor of Industrial Engineering applied to Energy Policy, University of Massachusetts Amherst and MATTHEW LACKNER, Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering, University of Massachusetts Amherst Vineyard Wind, which is likely to become the nation’s first commercialscale offshore wind farm, had planned to begin construction in 2019 about 15 miles off Martha’s Vineyard. A ruling by the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management under the Trump administration stalled it, and also cast a shadow over other wind farm plans. The agency ruled that the developers needed to address what is called “cumulative impacts” – what the East Coast will look like when there are not one or two, but 20 or 40 large-scale wind farms. That part of the US coast is ideal for wind power because of its wide, shallow shelf and proximity to cities that are looking for renewable electricity to reduce their climate impact. Many researchers studying offshore wind, including some of our colleagues, urge planners to take this perspective. But, thinking carefully about the far future does not justify a delay in the first utilityscale wind farm. That first large wind farm should be an opportunity to learn, including about how wind turbines will interact with marine
Jersey recently announced a plan for a new offshore wind port that will start construction in 2022. States are also investing in training. New York state announced a $20 million offshore wind training institute in January 2021 with the goal of training 2,500 workers for the industry and maintenance. The Biden administration envisions 44,000 people employed in offshore wind by 2030 and many more in communities connected to offshore wind power activity. ecosystems. Right now, there is almost no data on the impacts of offshore wind on marine wildlife – birds, bats, whales, fish – especially on wildlife that is native to New England. The knowledge gained will be invaluable in moving forward responsibly.
IS FAST-TRACKING FEDERAL APPROVALS ENOUGH?
Speeding up federal approvals for offshore wind farms is an important first step, but those aren’t the only hurdles for offshore wind farm developers. A large number of state environmental and coastal agencies still must approve, and the communities where cables come ashore will also have a say. Many of the Northeast states have their own offshore wind energy goals, so they’re likely to support wind farms, but
some wealthy communities and the fishing industry have pushed back on wind power in the past. The federal approval process, even fast-tracked, is also time-consuming. The government conducts reviews and requires site assessment plans, including geological, environmental and hazard surveys. From planning to construction, the entire process can take five to six years or more.
IS THE US READY TO BUILD OFFSHORE TURBINES?
Some other big questions revolve around construction. Under a 1920 law known as the Jones Act, only USregistered vessels operated by US. citizens or permanent residents can move cargo between US ports. In December 2020, Congress made clear that this law
YOUR
applies to wind turbine construction, too. When companies build offshore wind turbines today, they use special vessels for the installation of the most common offshore turbine designs. The US doesn’t have any of these vessels yet, and the Jones Act makes it difficult to rely on vessels from Europe to do the job. There is promise, though: the first US-made version of this vessel is being built in Texas right now. That’s one – the country will need several to meet the new goal. A thriving wind power industry will also need ports for storing and deploying the long turbine blades, plus a trained workforce for construction and turbine maintenance. A few coastal states have a head start on this. Massachusetts started laying the groundwork early and already has a port terminal in New Bedford to support the construction and deployment of future offshore wind projects. New
WILL OFFSHORE WIND PAY OFF?
In Europe, where many governments have reduced regulatory risk, the cost of offshore wind energy has come down rapidly, much faster than experts expected, to around $50 per megawatt-hour. If the Biden administration’s new approach allow US wind farms to achieve costs like this, then offshore wind, with its proximity to large urban centres on the East Coast, will be competitive. It’s also important to recognize other benefits. Every year of delay for a large-scale wind farm costs the US hundreds of millions of dollars in climate benefits. The Biden administration calculates that its new wind power goal would avoid 78 million metric tons of carbon dioxide, roughly equivalent to taking 17 million cars off the road for a year. • Originally published on theconversation.com
CHOICE FOR THE FAMILY WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/JOYFM1019
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By KIERSTEN FORMOSO PhD student in vertebrate paleontology, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences THE 2021 film “Godzilla vs Kong” pits the two most iconic movie monsters of all time against each other. And fans are now picking sides. Even the most fantastical creatures have some basis in scientific reality, so the natural world is a good place to look to better understand movie monsters. I study functional morphology – how skeletal and tissue traits allow animals to move – and evolution in extinct animals. I am also a huge fan of monster movies. Ultimately, this is a fight between a giant reptile and a giant primate, and there are relative biological advantages and disadvantages that each would have. The research I do on morphology and biomechanics can tell us a lot about this battle and might help you decide – #TeamGodzilla or #TeamKong?
LARGER THAN LIFE
First it’s important to acknowledge that both Kong and Godzilla are definitely far beyond the realms of biological possibility. This is due to sheer size and the laws of physics. Their hearts couldn’t pump blood to their heads, they would have temperature regulation problems and it would take too long for nerve signals from the brain to reach distant parts of the body – to name just a few issues. However, let’s assume that somehow Godzilla and Kong are able to overcome these size limitations – perhaps because of their radiation exposure they have distinctive mutations and characteristics. Based on how they look on the big screen, let’s explore the observable differences that might prove useful in a fight.
KONG: THE BEST OF APE AND HUMAN At first glance, Kong is a colossal primate - but he’s not simply a giant gorilla. An upright human skeleton next to a gorilla skeleton on all fours. One of the most striking things about Kong is his upright, bipedal stance – he mostly walks on two legs, unlike any other living nonhuman apes. This ability could suggest close evolutionary relationship to the only living upright ape, humans – or his upright stance could be the result of convergent evolution.
WHO WOULD YOU BET ON? R O G N O K ? A L L I Z D O G Either way, like us, Kong really separates him from has thick muscular legs Kong. It is massive, and geared toward walking anchored and moved by and running, and large free huge muscles attached to arms with grasping hands, his legs, hips and lower enabling him to use tools. back. Dinosaurs like Humanity’s bipedal, Tyrannosaurus rex stood upright posture is unique horizontally and used in the animal kingdom and their tails for balance and provides a slew of biome- to help them walk and chanical abilities that Kong run. Godzilla, in contrast, might share. For exam- stands vertically and keeps ple, human his tail low to torsos are ‘Though Kong is the ground, highly flexible probably for a and particu- a little bit smaller different type larly good at than Godzilla, of balance. This rotation. This both are more or vertical posture feature – in is unique for addition to our less comparably a two-legged loose shoulder massive in size reptile and girdle – makes and neither has a more resemhumans the bles a standing best throwers clear advantage kangaroo. in the animal here. So what Godzilla stands kingdom. on two muscuabout their Throwing is lar, pillar-like helpful in a fighting abilities?’ legs similar fight, and Kong to those of a could probably throw with sauropod dinosaur. These the best of them. would provide stability and Kong is also, of course, help support his gargantuan massive. He absolutely mass but would also bolster dwarfs the largest known the strength of his tail. primate, an extinct oranIn addition to his powgutan relative called erful tail, Godzilla carries Gigantopithecus that was three rows of sharp spikes a bit bigger than modern going down his back, thick gorillas. scaly skin, a relatively Kong does have many small head full of carnivogorilla-like attributes as rous teeth and free arms well, including long muscu- with grasping hands, all lar arms, a short snout with built onto a muscular body. large canine teeth, and a Taken together, Godzilla is tall sagittal crest – a ridge a terrifying and intimidatof bone on his head that ing adversary. would be the anchor point for some exceptionally strong jaw muscles. So now that we’ve Strong, agile, comfortable on land and with the unpar- looked a little closer at alleled ability to use tools how Godzilla and Kong and throw, Kong would be a are built, let’s imagine who might emerge victorious in brutal force in a fight. battle. Though Kong is a little bit smaller than Godzilla, both are more or less comparably massive in size and neither has a clear advantage here. So what about their fighting abilities? Godzilla would likely Godzilla appears to be a favour his robust tail for giant, semiaquatic reptile. both offence and defence – Like Kong, Godzilla has much like modern-day large the traits of a few different lizards that use their strong species. tails as whips. Scale up that Recent Godzilla movies strength to Godzilla’s size, show him decently mobile and that tail becomes a on land, but seemingly lethal weapon – which he much more comfortable in has used before. the water despite his lack However, Kong is more of overt aquatic features. comfortable on land, faster Interestingly, Godzilla is and more agile, can use his depicted with gills on his strong legs to jump, and neck – a trait that land possesses much stronger vertebrates lost after they arms than Godzilla – Kong emerged from the sea probably packs a wallopabout 370 million years ago. ing punch. And as an ape, Given Godzilla’s terrestrial Kong would also likely use features, it’s likely that his tools to some degree and species has land-dwelling reptile ancestors and reevolved a mostly aquatic lifestyle – kind of like sea turtles or sea snakes, which can actually absorb oxygen through their skin in water. Godzilla may have uniquely re-evolved gills. Godzilla’s tail is what
READY, FIGHT!
GODZILLA: AN AQUATIC LIZARD TO BE RECKONED WITH
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might even capitalise on his throwing ability. Both would have a gnarly bite, with Kong likely getting a slight advantage. However, Godzilla’s bite is by no means weak, and all of his teeth are flesh-piercing, similar to crocodile and monitor lizard teeth. On defence, Godzilla has the edge, with thick scaly skin and sharp spikes. He might even act like a porcupine, turning his back to a
Thursday, April 1, 2021, PAGE 11
rapidly approaching threat. However, Kong’s superior agility on land should be able to offer him some protection as well. I will admit I am #TeamGodzilla, but it’s very close. I may give a slight edge to Kong in broad terrestrial battle ability, but Godzilla’s general mass, defence and tail would be hard to overpower. And lest we forget, the tipping point for Godzilla is that
he has atomic breath! Until researchers find evidence of a dinosaur or animal with something like that, though, I will have to reserve my scientific judgment. Regardless of who emerges victorious, this battle will be one for the ages, and I am excited as both a scientist and monster movie fan. • Originally published on theconversation.com
PAGE 12, Thursday, April 1, 2021
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IN this image from store video, George Floyd, right, is seen inside Cup Foods on May 25, 2020, in Minneapolis.
Accused cop told onlooker Floyd was big, ‘probably on something’ MINNEAPOLIS Associated Press AFTER the ambulance took George Floyd away, the Minneapolis officer who had pinned his knee on the Black man’s neck defended himself to a bystander by saying Floyd was “a sizable guy” and “probably on something,” according to police video played in court yesterday. The video was part of a mountain of footage and witness testimony at Officer Derek Chauvin’s murder trial that all together showed how Floyd’s alleged attempt to pass a phony $20 bill at a neighborhood market last May escalated into tragedy one video-documented step at a time. A security-camera scene of people joking around inside the store soon gave way to the sight of officers pulling Floyd from his SUV at gunpoint, struggling to put him in a squad car as he frantically said he was claustrophobic, and then pinning him to the pavement. When Floyd was finally taken away by paramedics, Charles McMillian, a 61-year-old bystander who recognised Chauvin from the neighborhood, told the officer he didn’t respect what Chauvin had done. “That’s one person’s opinion,” Chauvin could be heard responding. “We gotta control this guy ‘cause he’s a sizable guy ... and it looks like he’s probably on something.” Floyd was 6ft 4in and 223 pounds, according to the autopsy. Chauvin’s lawyer said the officer is 5ft 9in and
140 pounds. Chauvin, 45, is charged with murder and manslaughter, accused of killing the 46-year-old Floyd by kneeling on Floyd’s neck for nine minutes, 29 seconds, as he lay face-down in handcuffs. The most serious charge against the nowfired white officer carries up to 40 years in prison. Floyd’s death, along with the harrowing bystander video of him gasping for breath as onlookers yelled at Chauvin to get off him, triggered sometimes violent protests around the world and a reckoning over racism and police brutality across the US. Events spun out of control that day soon after Floyd allegedly handed at cashier at Cup Foods, 19-year-old Christopher Martin, a counterfeit bill for a pack of cigarettes. Martin testified that he watched Floyd’s arrest outside with “disbelief - and guilt”. “If I would’ve just not tooken the bill, this could’ve been avoided,” Martin lamented, joining the burgeoning list of witnesses who expressed a sense of helplessness and lingering guilt over Floyd’s death. Martin said he immediately believed the $20 bill was fake. But he said he accepted it, despite believing the amount would be taken out of his paycheck by his employer, because he didn’t think Floyd knew it was counterfeit and “I thought I’d be doing him a favour”. Martin said he initially
planned to just put the bill on his own “tab” but then second-guessed himself and told a manager, who sent Martin outside to ask Floyd to return to the store. But Floyd and a passenger in his SUV twice refused to go back into the store to resolve the issue, and the manager had a co-worker call police, Martin testified. Martin said that when Floyd was inside the store buying cigarettes, he spoke so slowly “it would appear that he was high.” But he described Floyd as friendly and talkative. The defence has argued that Chauvin did what he was trained to do and that Floyd’s death was not caused by the officer’s knee, as prosecutors contend, but by Floyd’s illegal drug use, heart disease, high blood pressure and the adrenaline flowing through his body. After police arrived that day, Martin went outside as people were gathering on the curb and yelling at officers. He said he saw Officer Tou Thao push one of his coworkers. Martin said he also held back another man who was trying to defend himself after being pushed by Thao. Eventually, Chauvin and Thao arrived on the scene, and Floyd thanked officers as they pulled him out of the squad car and put him on the ground. As Floyd was pinned down by Chauvin and other officers, McMillian can be heard on video repeatedly saying, “Get up and get in the car” and “You can’t win.” Floyd replied: “I can’t.”
IN this image from video provided by Darnella Frazier, Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin kneels on the neck of George Floyd in Minneapolis on Monday, May 25, 2020.
FLORIDA’S GAETZ ACCUSED OF SEX WITH 17-YEAR-OLD WASHINGTON Associated Press REPUBLICAN Rep Matt Gaetz, a prominent conservative in Congress and a close ally of former President Donald Trump, said on Tuesday he is being investigated by the Justice Department over a former relationship but denied any criminal wrongdoing. Gaetz, who represents parts of western Florida, is accused of having a sexual relationship with a 17-yearold girl and paying her to travel with him, and he is under investigation to determine if he violated federal sex trafficking laws. The probe has been underway for nearly a year and Gaetz has been aware for months that he was under investigation, the person said. The Justice Department has also been looking into whether Gaetz, 38, may have also been involved in relationships
REP MATT GAETZ with other underage girls. Gaetz told Axios his lawyers were informed he was the subject of an investigation “regarding sexual conduct with women” but that he was not a target of the probe. He denied he ever had a relationship with any underage girls and said the allegations against him were “as searing as they are false”. Gaetz’s comments came shortly after The New York Times first reported the investigation. It is a federal crime to transport a minor over state lines for sex.
Gaetz said the allegations were part of an extortion plot by a former Justice Department official. “Over the past several weeks my family and I have been victims of an organised criminal extortion involving a former DOJ official seeking $25m while threatening to smear my name,” Gaetz said. Gaetz said his family has been cooperating with the FBI and said his father was wearing a recording device, at the FBI’s direction, “to catch these criminals.” He demanded the Justice Department release the recordings. The Times said the scrutiny was part of a broader Justice Department probe into one of his political allies and fellow Florida politician, Joel Greenberg, who was indicted last summer on sex trafficking and other charges that he stalked a political opponent.