(Curaçao Chronicle)

“If you refuse to convert to Islam, then the only thing between you and us is the sword.” (Muslim leader in Trinidad, Abu Sa’d at-Trinidadi, proclaimed this fatwah repeatedly to all Christians, and again on February 3, 2017).

In our world of radical uncertainty, the religiously faithful are certain. Devotees of any God believe in their Almighty Divine Entity and whatever related gospel that Entity may preach. To them, it does not matter that none of the statements, stories and events can ever be verified, or tested. No matter how delusional, utterances proclaimed by their God are the Holy Truth and nothing but the Truth.

Presently, about 3,000 gods are worshipped around the world, not counting a large array of demigods and adjuncts. All faithful followers are equally convinced that only their God is the One and Only True One, and all others are false prophets. Since none of the faithful are open for rational debate, any conversation is a waste of time and effort, so leave it for what it is. Anyone has the right to believe whatever he, or she, wishes.

That peaceful tolerance changes when non-believers have to face aggressive evangelizing, intimidation and terror by fanatics. In today’s world, many non-believers are forced by the sword to adhere to the ethical and religious values of one or another fanatical religious group.

ISIS displayed the horror of intolerant and of radical, Islamic Jihad on the world stage, for all to witness. Executions in public, often broadcasted via the media, are to intimidate as many as possible. In the meantime, tens of thousands died in the fervour of religious delusion of ISIS.

But the ISIS’ case is neither unique nor exclusive for Muslims. Jahin or John Calvin (1509-1564)---no, not today’s Calvin Klein, the underwear designer but the Protestant leader and Potentate of the City-State of Geneva, in the 16th century---was much on the same footing as today’s Al-Baghdadi, the leader of ISIS.

Calvin was set to convert Geneva into the first Kingdom of God on Earth, just like ISIS was preparing Raqqa, the capital of the Islamic State for the Mahdi to return. The Anabaptist, Jantje van Leiden, had tried to establish his Kingdom of God in Munster, in 1634-1635, but he failed.

Calvin reigned over Geneva with terror. He had no desire that others should love him as a brother. Calvin was a ruthless dictator who did not hesitate to burn his adversaries in public, alive on the stake, over unimportant theological disagreements.

Infamous became the case of Servetus (1553), a Spanish, Protestant leader, who disagreed with Calvin on such obscure theological issues as child baptism and the Trinity. Servetus was arrested after Sunday church services in Geneva, imprisoned and, after a fake trial that did not allow the accused any defence, condemned to death.

Death-at-the-stake by roasting with a slow fire is the most agonizing of all modes of execution. Even in the Middle Ages, famous for cruelty, it was seldom carried out. Servetus was only one of thousands who was labelled a heretic and met a horrible death in the name of the One-and-Only-God and his Holy Word.

The horrors of the Inquisition, of Tomás de Torquemada (1420–1498) a Castilian Dominican friar and the first Grand Inquisitor in the late 15^th century may be well known, even today, but the Protestants were no better. Tolerance of deviating ideas about the interpretation of the Holy Scripture could not exist, not even with Protestants who claimed that each faithful had the right to have a direct and unique relationship with his God. Calvin was certain, only he was right, as right as ISIS-Baghdadi is today.

In Calvin’s Geneva, cheerful and unconstrained enjoyment was sinful. To give humanity precedence over discipline was inconceivable. Calvin had a father thrown in jail for smiling in the church at the baptism of his child. Ethics patrols searched houses and frisked citizens in the streets of Geneva for the correctness of dress, colours, food, church attendance, prayer and searched for any possible glimpse of frivolity. Unsympathetic severity was fundamental in Calvinist doctrine.

Calvinism still rules a large number of Protestants in Northern Europe, especially Holland, the former New Netherland in the USA, white South Africa, and South Korea. The lifestyle, as Calvin preached it, is still dominated by asceticism and literalism of every word in the Bible. Abstinence from worldly pleasures, identical to that of ISIS today, still goes to extents of absurdity.

Religious fanaticism, no matter which God you pick, remains extremely dangerous to peace and happiness in our world. Would not you rather suffer from radical uncertainty than being certain with blood dripping from religious intolerance?

Jacob Gelt Dekker

(Curaçao Chronicle)

“A Mark, a Yen, a Buck, or a Pound is all that makes the world go round.” (Film Cabaret: Kit Kat Klub, 1930, Berlin).

“The love of money is the root of all evil.” 1 Timothy, 6:10

“Nothing impresses people quite like a huge wad of cash. Having a gangster bankroll is an excellent way to let everyone know you're the life of the party. If you love to show off, a gangster bankroll might be just the tool you need. “But we no longer need flat currency- cash - to buy “stuff.” Most “stuff” today is purchased with debit and credit cards; internet shopping depends only on electronic transfers.

A large proportion of cash, or banknotes, are used for illegal transactions, to evade tax and for other criminal activities. More than 75 % are in the form of notes of the largest denominations, the US $100 bill, and the Yen 10,000 note.

In the shadow economy of the underworld, bank notes are popular. The demand for anonymity is high and so is cash. The world of crime is based on cash; the narco industry could not exist in a cashless society. Money laundering, with suitcases full of cash, has become an even larger form of crime, than the crime itself.

Cash thefts in shops at their check-out registers account for the biggest fraud and theft proportion of all cash transactions. A cashier stealing cash from one customer's payment and covers it up by taking cash from the next customer's payment, is called lapping. It is a hidden cost that is passed on to the consumer, and a bleeder of margins to the entrepreneur. Therefore, an increasing number of shopkeepers no longer take cash.

Even old-fashioned bank robberies have diminished. They halved in the US between 2004 and 2014, to be replaced by the explosive growth of cybercrime. Sweden, Denmark, and Norway are leading in the world as cashless societies, with Sweden as the forerunner.

Swedish public transportation systems have not taken cash for years. Retailers are legally entitled to refuse coins and notes. Street vendors, even churches, increasingly prefer card or phone payments. In shops, cash is used for barely 20% of transactions, half the number of five years ago, and way below the global average of 75%.

According to Central Bank of Sweden, the Riksbank, cash transactions made up barely 2% of the value of all payments made in Sweden last year – a figure some see dropping to 0.5% by 2020. About 900 of Sweden’s 1,600 bank branches no longer keep cash on hand or take cash deposits – and many, especially in rural areas, no longer have ATMs.

Circulation of Swedish krona has fallen from around 106bn in 2009 to 80bn in 2015.

Money is not only a means to buy “stuff” but is also a way to deal with an uncertain future. We all remember the pictures in the media of bank vaults in China and Saudi Arabia, hoarded full of US dollars, supposedly as a buffer against radical future uncertainty, but in the meantime causing deflation.

Björn Segendorf, an adviser at Riksbank’s financial stability department, is dealing with the complaints of elderly, who are still uncomfortable with the new cashless society. “[Cashless advances] have been beneficial, but as with every change there are certain groups who experience problems,” he said. “We see the supply of cash services being too small, and that is what we want to address.”

Segendorf seems to be administrating the last rites to a dying breed of cash cows that will be extinct soon. Do we need to place them first on the list of endangered species?

Jacob Gelt Dekker

Dear Editor,

Now that the current yes-government of tolerance has come to an end the opportunity rises for Bonaire to have a government that follows the direction that the Bonairian people indicated in the referendum of December 2015, where as never before the Bonairian people united and massively rejected the actual colonial status.

Fact is that shortly, beginning March, the Dutch Second Chamber elections will be held and after the elections the new government of Holland is free to make the second reading to finalize the embedding of us as a colony under legalized racism and apartheid conditions in their constitution.

Meanwhile, it has been clearly exposed that Dutch politicians did not and will not let loose of their past and roots as colonizers and has not shown signs to have consciousness or human feelings, and neither are respecting democracy nor the rights of the BES peoples, including the Bonairian peoples. We are left with no other possibility then to seek for other alternatives, other avenues to realize our rights anchored into international treaties.

After the Bonairians and people of Sint Eustatius have spoken clearly in their referendum that they do not want to continue this direction – the current colonial constellation, we have noted and experienced that on Sint Eustatius their government has followed the mandate of their people and has started the process to exit the BES and are aspiring and are working on their own constitution for a new autonomous and associated relationship with Holland in the Dutch Kingdom, according to norms and standards of the United Nations. On Bonaire, the opposite is the case where the yes-government, which had campaigned publicly against the decision of the Bonairian people, which with 65 per cent of no-votes has rejected the actual status and together with the Dutch government has decided to violate the rule of law and democracy and start the process to anchor, embed unilaterally the Bonairian people against their wish and decision, in the Dutch constitution. The actual governments of Bonaire and Holland are violating and are not complying with their duty as government to respect, protect and fulfil the treaties, resolutions and human rights of self-determination and right to development of the Bonairian people.

This is a crucial moment in our history looking at what is ahead of us, and because of the burden and consequences of embedding of our people in the Dutch constitution we are making a dramatic and urgent call on the fraction of Democratic party, especially their leadership, to put aside their personal and internal issues and unite with the people. Unite for Bonaire and together with fractions of UPB and Raphaela, which are not supporting anymore the yes-government and start the process same as Sint Eustatius to re-enlist as a non-self-governing territory and get guidance and protection of the United Nations and exit BES which has resulted in a complete failure, and realize the wishes, decision and rights of the Bonairian peoples.

You can count on the support of our brothers in the Kingdom and also from the international community to help the Bonairian peoples with a fair and just process to realize their right to self-determination and realize their self-government same as Sint Eustatius in the Kingdom with alliance and protection of our brothers and according to norms and standards of the United Nations.

Respecting, protecting and fulfilling as government the Bonairian people’s inalienable rights to self-determination and right to development, we finally could experience and enjoy our fundamental right to freedom and equality that will ensure the welfare and happiness of the Bonairian people in the Dutch Kingdom.

James Finies,

Nos Kier Boneiru Bek

Dear Editor,

On January 31 we were happy to read in the news that finally the emergency repairs will commence at the Leonard Conner School in Cay Bay. Since the month of October it was clear that something had to be done about the air pollution with sulphur dioxide caused by industrial activities generated by GEBE, SOL and BLS laundry in the Cay Bay area. For a few weeks at that time students and teachers from the School where complaining about the smell and effect of toxic gasses in the air around the school environment.

The smell of the gasses caused students, teachers and visitors to experience illness, shortness of breath and other symptoms.

The Fire Department, and Inspectors of VROMI and VSA had carried out several investigations for a few weeks and were not able to conclude that any alarming levels of toxic gas were recorded in the area. But a deeper and more comprehensive study was needed to ascertain exactly what is causing the rising distress as well as what can be done to alleviate such. Finally, the decision was made by Minister Sylveria Jacobs of Education to close the School and relocate the students to various other schools over the island.

The emergency repairs to the Leonard Conner School consist of upgrading the electricity network and installing of air-conditioning in each classroom, meaning that after completion of the emergency repairs the students and teachers will be moving back to the same unhealthy environment. Now that makes us wonder what will happen if GEBE is load-shedding or has a total blackout like they had recently.

Having air-conditioning in each classroom is not the solution; it will only be affective if the students remain in the room the whole day. That means they are not protected when playing outside or during sports classes on the school square because they still will be exposed to the air pollution with the toxic gases from the three companies.

The parents and teachers were told that the results of the measurements of toxic gases in the air taken by the Fire Department, and Inspectors of VROMI and VSA are not high enough to establish a connection between the measurements captured and the symptoms experienced by students and teachers at the School. Fact is no investigation was done to determine what the long-time effect of exposure will be to toxic gases in the air even when the air pollution is below the permitted quantity in the air. This is not only affecting the health of the students and teachers of the School, but the health of all people involved living, working and recreating in the area of Cay Bay and surroundings.

Health effects of exposure to sulphur dioxide on human beings are: Corneal haze, breathing difficulty, airways inflammation, eye irritation, psychic alterations, pulmonary edema, heart failure and circulatory collapse.

Air pollution with sulphur dioxide is also associated with asthma, chronic bronchitis, morbidity and mortality increase in older people and infants. Government and the companies mentioned are claiming there is a hindrance permit in place in connection with the air pollution! Bravo, our question is when was the last time these hindrance permits were updated?

The best solution for all parties involved is that GEBE, SOL and BLS laundry take their responsibility and acknowledge that they are the cause for the air pollution with sulphur dioxide in the Cay Bay area and install Flue-gas desulfurization (removes sulphur dioxide from the fume before being exposed to the open air) on their generators and chimneys. Government of Sint Maarten needs to update their probably expired hindrance permit policies, which are maybe based on policies and environment issues from the sixties last century.

Rein and Mireya Torrenga

Cole Bay

(Concerned parents of a student attending the Leonard Conner School)