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Intellectual Property Rights and the Bahamas

by Adrian Gibson

WITH the continuing layoffs and an economy that’s now in the doldrums, this Yuletide season is likely to feature a spike in crime, the occurrence of fraudulent activities and an increase in the sale of counterfeit items.

Having this in mind, it is rather perplexing how, in the face of widespread breaches of intellectual property rights, the Bahamas has not been sanctioned and is no longer included on the Special 301 list for its blatant abuse of international copyright laws—particularly since it has had a constant presence there for the past six years and has done very little to combat the violation of intellectual property rights.

Like Obama, the setting is ripe for inspiring local leader to emerge in The Bahamas

by Adrian Gibson

BARACK Obama’s remarkable ascendancy to the US presidency should serve as an example to Bahamians as we seek to rid the Bahamas of certain grubby little crooks in our political system, some of whom having already graced the halls of Parliament.

Obama’s election appears to have brought a new political culture to world politics that the Bahamian electorate should also demand, rather than accepting and re-electing many of the same re-packaged, old washed-up do-nothing politicians to the House of Assembly.

Drug Use by Students in The Bahamas

by Adrian Gibson

THE sale and use of hallucinogenic, illicit drugs on local school campuses has had a detrimental effect on the lives of numerous Bahamian students and has adversely impacted their scholastic performance.

The drug trade in the Bahamas has had a costly impact on society, ranging from the negligence of family, pauperism and homelessness, urban/social decay, lack of investor confidence and a weakened economy, sexually transmitted diseases, an upsurge in health concerns/costs and a spike in violent crime.

Problems with the judicial system of the Bahamas & Obama's Election

by Adrian Gibson

THE Bahamas’ judicial system is an unholy mess where there seems to be a lack of transparency and a massive case backlog.

In our adversarial judicial system, the appearance of judicial activism is leaving many Bahamians with the impression that certain members of the legal fraternity may be carried away power.

It is widely acknowledged that in a fair judicial system, no judge should exhibit a predilection or favouritism towards certain cases coming before them; be ill-prepared to hear some cases; give off the appearance of impropriety; and/or seemingly adopt an ill-temperament.

We must find a way to get rid of inept benchwarmers from the Bahamas Government

by Adrian Gibson

IN THE Bahamas, an electoral mechanism should be implemented to remove elected legislative members who sometimes are found to be inept benchwarmers.

After a general election, a majority of locally elected politicians have been known to adopt an air of master-like superiority, suddenly becoming scarce and indifferent or poorly representing the interests of their constituents while seemingly disregarding the notion that they are servants/agents of the people.

Alleged problems at the Nassau Bahamas Prison

by Adrian Gibson

ACCORDING to a well-placed senior official, Her Majesty Prison (Fox Hill) has evolved into a corrupt, hellish den that is “being run like a doll house.” He alleged that corruption is rife in the prison and must be immediately investigated.

I’m told that this week’s uprising at the prison was merely one issue on a long list of queries and unsettling events among the prison staff.

Education in The Bahamas: Poor performance of graduating students

by Adrian Gibson

THE recent backslapping and bloviating of Ministry of Education (MOE) officials about the D-plus national average was conduct that, frankly, was unwarranted and can be interpreted as behaviour that can sometimes be equivalent to that of malignant narcissists.

Like many discerning Bahamians, I am concerned about the poor performance of graduating students in the basic areas of literacy and numeracy. The BGCSE results show that we are failing as a nation, as we are producing youngsters who cannot function in a globalised world and whose academic qualifications do not meet the required standards for enrolment in any reputable tertiary institution, including the College of the Bahamas, where students that were unsuccessful in the national exams must enter and pass continuing education prep classes before college enrolment.

Education in The Bahamas: Poor performance of graduating students

by Adrian Gibson

THE recent backslapping and bloviating of Ministry of Education (MOE) officials about the D-plus national average was conduct that, frankly, was unwarranted and can be interpreted as behaviour that can sometimes be equivalent to that of malignant narcissists.

Like many discerning Bahamians, I am concerned about the poor performance of graduating students in the basic areas of literacy and numeracy. The BGCSE results show that we are failing as a nation, as we are producing youngsters who cannot function in a globalised world and whose academic qualifications do not meet the required standards for enrolment in any reputable tertiary institution, including the College of the Bahamas, where students that were unsuccessful in the national exams must enter and pass continuing education prep classes before college enrolment.

Bahamas Telephone Company Union: Irresponsible and thuggish? And New Radio Talk Show Launched

First published in The Tribune on Friday, August 15, 2008, under the byline, Young Man's View.

THE Bahamas Communications and Public Officers Union’s (BCPOU) irresponsible, thuggish tactics earlier in the week held the public hostage with their obstruction of major thoroughfares and virtually paralyzed our main tourist corridors and hindered our already less than adequate communication system.

Gone are the days of Sir Randol Fawkes as today’s labour leaders behave like "prima donnas", intent on using militaristic tactics to push their political agendas and the avariciousness of their sometimes rapacious unions on Bahamian taxpayers.

On Monday and Tuesday, the BCPOU inconvenienced thousands—both locals and tourists—as they (union) boorishly brought traffic to a standstill on Bay Street and at Port Lucaya (Grand Bahama).

Politics and Prostitution, in The Bahamas

First published in The Tribune on Friday, August 8, 2008 under the byline, Young Man's View.

OF LATE, prostitution and the sexual rendezvous of ladies—and men—of the night has been a hot dish for salacious gossip, particularly now with reports of a chubby, politician “john” (patron) purportedly being caught in a compromising position while seemingly patronising—or at least preparing to patronise—a streetwalker.

Although prostitution is illegal in the Bahamas, the world’s oldest profession is heavily practiced across the social spectrum.

In early June, The Tribune broke an exclusive story outlining the operations of a downtown brothel, ironically located directly above a coffee house known as the Daily Grind—occupying the second and third floors of the abandoned Mayfair Hotel.

On June 16, the brothel which specialised in foreign prostitutes and was practically next door to the Fort Charlotte police station, was raided by police who detained several Jamaican and Haitian prostitutes.