Dear Editor,
At least that’s what sociologists call it. It derives from the observation that if vandals break a window and it goes unrepaired, then pretty soon lots of windows are broken and in a short period of time, an entire neighbourhood becomes a slum. The single act of minor vandalism that goes unrepaired is seen as licence to do anything at any time without consequence and so social order breaks down and simple quality of life is diminished for everyone. I mention this because, simply put, it is what is going on here and now and this society as a whole is on the brink of that slippery slope that often has a bottomless cliff at the end of it.
Every day, between 5:30 and 6:00pm, a small white truck winds up an almost impassable dirt road that runs alongside the dump to a clearing. There, he dumps garbage, human waste and dead animals, pours gasoline on it all and lights it on fire. For 30 minutes or so there is a huge tower of toxic black smoke and flame which blankets the whole area.
When it started a couple of months ago, I thought it was the junkyard that’s over there accidentally setting a car on fire or something but then it became a daily scheduled occurrence and the other day I happened to be downtown when it started. So I drove over there to see what was going on.
It took three tries but I finally found the correct side road and followed it to the fire. To get there I had to pass through a village of shacks and homemade shelters with entire families living in the most horrible conditions imaginable. Survivors lucky to be alive and scratching out an existence in unbearable squalor. And just beyond them, down a grass track and into the clearing was the guy in the white truck creating a cloud of smoke that, at best, was killing these poor bastards a little bit more every day.
I freely admit that I went there for selfish reasons. That same smoke, when the wind is right, comes straight through my living room and makes the entire area unliveable. And for sure I am no community activist. If I trip over someone in trouble at the moment, I am happy to help but solving the problems of general poverty and social distress are things I leave to those of the mindset and resources to do it. So ... I carry myself down to the police station and tell them about the burning. They blow me off completely. I was an annoyance to them. Same with the fire department. The Nature Foundation didn’t bother to answer their E-mail.
And so now there is your broken window. An individual doing whatever he pleases, brazenly, in the open for all to see, every day making life miserable for everyone around and patently killing those closest by who are too weak and disadvantaged to protect themselves.
Seen alone, it is a disgrace that government does nothing for these people in general but beyond that it is evidence of a systematic and endemic policy of “head in the sand” governance. They are too busy studying their “rules of order” for elections looking for loopholes than to actually help those most desperately in need, never mind the notion of just stopping this criminal doing the burning.
I didn’t bother with the Prosecutor’s Office since, apparently, it is only open and available for two hours a month. And so it seems that there is no one in authority that cares if the criminal in the white truck is simply putting the poorest and most defenceless citizens at death’s door once a day. What does that behaviour say to every other young criminal?
There is no humorous or ironic tagline to this other than to say “You should be ashamed of yourselves.”
Steven Johnson
Dear Editor,
Such as many times of my predictions saying Sarah will be president of parliament and prime minister. And l also predicted we will have a prime minister from the East in the near future because l saw Government lack of focusing on the East side of the island.
Minister Cornelius which is one of our best Labour Ministers now he is our Justice Minister. l just hope he sees a need for a fast process for a small claim court for St. Maarten people.
Too many times telling the poor man get a Lawyer and many times the poor man cannot afford. A small claim court can help the citizen for sure.
I am willing to see more creativities in the justice system, such as if Donnely owing Cuthbert for a stolen ladder why the police not going to pick up Donnely to make arrangements to pay Cuthbert? All St Maarten Justice Ministers have done their best since 10/10/10. An A-plus for their performance but a small claim court is urgently needed.
Cuthbert Bannis
Dear Editor,
I'm gonna make it short, sweet and to the point. You guys need to step it up a bit. The data service 4G/LTE is super, super pricey and not so super, super excellent. We get no deals on data and our data can't even roll over. And it depends on where you're located it can be good or bad. We are spending way too much and not getting quality service.
SXM needs at least one more service provider to be able to pick up the slack. Sint Maarten has a lot of people. So no business will be lost. Let's keep in mind business thrives on competition. I think CORAL should enter into this phone service business. I know for a fact digicel has been trying to set up shop on the Dutch side. And they're being blocked by some mysterious force. French side has to my knowledge 3-4 service providers. So either step up to the plate or allow another company to come in.
I strongly believe if we had another service provider down here things would be different. You guys would be acting right. You guys wouldn't have to be languishing in pain and pure agony when you try to upload a pic on Instagram or simply browse Facebook at piss poor speeds. And not to mention when you sign up for internet services at your home and business. And you have to wait weeks and sometimes months to be installed. I'm sorry but better has to be done.
So let's step it up. We want fibre optic speed and not stone age dial up phone tone service. Just sharing my humble opinion.
Marc A.C. Frederick
Dear Editor,
St. Maarten must urgently set in motion a process to establish a Sovereign Fund for the country. Its purpose will be to gird and buttress the country’s autonomy and lay the foundation for an eventual future independence should the people so choose.
We call on the newly installed government to begin the process to establish such a Sovereign Fund by establishing a task force to research the issue. Additionally, all political parties taking part in the upcoming elections should include this objective in their political programs.
Known also as a Sovereign Wealth Fund, these entities are essentially investment funds established by national legislation and function much the same as a pension fund as “depositories” of wealth for the country. Their national profile could be on a level equal to that of a central bank. They must operate fully independent of the political establishment and have a professional management and external supervision. It can even be considered to give such an institution a place in the constitution to emphasize its important role of promoting the future wellbeing of the nation.
The recent experiences the country has had to endure since the passing of hurricanes Irma and Maria, exposing its dependency on The Netherlands for financial assistance and having its autonomy questioned, must serve as a wakeup call that autonomy is not just a status on paper, a benevolence given in response to the choice of the people, but autonomy must be secured by proper foundations that can withstand any such attempts at its undermining.
This recent antagonism between St. Maarten and the Netherlands relating to reconstruction funds, that led to a political crisis in the island and resulting in the breakup of the governing coalition, and the forced removal of Prime Minister William Marlin, tells us that something is gravely wrong, incomplete, or unsound, with the autonomy the island has been granted. Country St. Maarten was basically put to shame, unable to defend its autonomy in the face of Dutch pressure and having to succumb to The Hague’s demands for the sake of reconstruction dollars; with some even questioning the island’s ability to continue in this status. Failing compliance the government risked an uprising by the depleted and disheveled masses. It is clear the current status has left a back door open for others to infiltrate the local constitutional state.
In the world we live in today, money rules, and if one truly wants to be autonomous and later perhaps independent, it is imperative that a proper financial basis is created. This is a long-term project but the work must start now. Since the Second World War newly independent countries in our region and elsewhere have been relegated to the control of many international organizations who all are supposedly working to improve the lives of people in these regions. We must agree much has been accomplished, yet the social, economic problems seem to only get worse; not just in number but in their intensity in the way they impact lives.
For this reason our region needs to take greater control in finding solutions that really solve our problems. To do this we need not invent the wheel but rather use the instruments the wealthier countries, businesses, and individuals, are using to create wealth. This is the only solution, wealth creation on a long-term basis. And, there is no reason to delay this. Failing this we are condemning ourselves to be beggars for the rest of our lives and this is what we will bequeath to future generations. It is time to stand up and turn the tide.
Join other small countries in the world such as Singapore and Hong Kong that have sovereign funds that underpin their (financial) independence and autonomy respectively.
Of course, right now the focus in St. Maarten is on recovery and rebuilding after the hurricanes, but at the same time it is necessary to start planning for the future. A sovereign fund is a long-term project that could take as much as fifty years to reach a level where it can supply the country’s needs. With that in place the country could simply access its own resources rather than being bullied or blackmailed in a way that disrespects St. Maarten and its people. This is only possible now because there is no alternative in place.
What goes for St. Maarten also applies for the other islands of the Dutch Caribbean; those that already have an autonomous status like Aruba and Curaçao, and those aspiring to such like Bonaire and St. Eustatius. The process must start now without delay to establish such a fund.
We also look forward to the wider Caribbean moving in this direction in order to extricate itself from the position of dependency that does not serve to free ourselves from foreign domination. These islands must become more assertive in establishing their own terms of reference for their future rather than having it dictated by outside governments and multilateral institutions.
The country of Norway currently owns the largest known sovereign fund with over one trillion dollars in assets. This, of course, is funded primarily by the income from the large oil and gas reserves exploited in that country. Many, if not most, sovereign funds are funded by income from various mineral mining activities across the globe, but some are funded from other sources including taxation or other type of revenue.
The funding and the specific purpose of fund resources and how and when these are distributed, is a matter of national decision-making. In Norway, for example, the fund actually takes the function of a pension fund with the purpose of providing income to the citizens long after the oil and gas resources run out.
Other funds in other countries have the purpose of funding education, health care, or other activities.
We encourage the St. Maarten government as well as the entire Caribbean region to seriously take steps to move in this direction. We cannot condemn ourselves and future generations of our peoples to continue living a “life of total subjection” as the songwriter puts it. Caribbean people must arise and become owners and masters of their own universe; but it takes positive action and that must start now.
Homeland Statia is a political movement on the island of St. Eustatius. We support the goal of autonomy for all our islands in line with the United Nations edict of “full measure of self-government.” we encourage our people to hold fast to these ideals and actively work toward them.
On behalf of Homeland Statia,
Glenn Schmidt, President
Dear Editor,
Healthcare is difficult task for all ideologies.
Liberals throughout the world favor the European healthcare system.
The liberal philosophy, based on moral principles, attempts to balance the needs of the individual with the concerns of the entire population.
Elements of the liberal health care perspective include a belief that health care is an equal right of all people, equitable financing of health care, and provides universal health coverage.
Conservatives, on the other hand, disagree with this notion and contend that the government is unequipped to take on such a huge endeavor, and even if it were, the resulting bureaucracy would be terribly inefficient like most government programs. Conservatives plan is more optimistic in tone because they believe the current system can be fixed with reform measures such as promoting competition between health insurance and pharmaceutical companies, reforming the medical payment system, establishing clear standards of care.
When consumer insurance companies receive the bills for these high-cost services, it is in their best interest to find reasons not to pay or reimburse the insured. In many cases, these companies are unable to successfully avoid payment (because in most cases the services are medically necessary), so not only the consumer but the insured consumer's employer experiences a rise in health care insurance premiums, as well.
Between physician fees, expensive pharmaceutical fees and expensive health insurance fees, consumers often cannot afford the health care they need.
Many conservatives believe families, individuals and businesses should be able to purchase health insurance nationwide to heighten competition for their business and provide a variety of choices.
Liberals want to create a public health insurance program that competes with private companies, and at the same time, makes it harder for private companies to stay in business. Conservatives, meanwhile, fear that the legislation could lead to an entire takeover of the health care industry, thus implementing a model of European socialism.
Healthcare is one of the most difficult tasks for all governments. On a personal note every individual must take good care of his or her health and body as much as possible. Stay tuned as we continue on another topic.
The Patriot Miguel Arrindell
