Dear Editor,
While police put their lives on the line daily to keep people safe from harm, there’s also something to be said about other unlikely heroes – dogs. Officers regularly use dogs to sniff out drugs, disarm a perpetrator, or even help on patrol. And I ran across a heart-warming story over the weekend that I just had to share – one that seems like an ideal fit for the movies.
The story tells of an unlikely pairing between a Rhode Island state police officer and a dog he adopted back in 2011. At the time, Corporal Daniel O’Neill had a conversation with shelter worker Patricia Inman to adopt Ruby. This poor dog had seen rough times until Daniel came along, having been adopted five times and then returned shortly after that, on the verge of being put down. However, despite some tough going at first, O’Neill eventually forged a bond with Ruby. “It was tough in the beginning,” he explained, speaking with Inside Edition. “There was a lot of sleepless nights, but it worked out in the end.”
Their partnership had grown so close that Ruby earned the certification of a K-9, or a police dog specifically trained to assist fellow officers in law enforcement, just a year later. And their relationship continued to grow for years to come, with Ruby helping out O’Neill in several situations. But it would be one specific one that would not only forge how much they meant to each other, as well as bring Patricia back into the fold.
In 2017, a teenager ended up missing in the woods. O’Neill and his fellow officers looked for him for two days, not turning up any results. Finally, however, Ruby managed to find him injured in a ravine. The dog never left the teen’s side and barked until O’Neill, and his fellow officers managed to find him.
The interesting tie-in with all this is that the boy turned out to be Patricia’s son. That’s right, the pair that she had brought together in the first place managed to rescue her child at a very crucial time.
Speaking with the Miami Herald, O’Neill explained, “I said, ‘Pat, this was her thank you for saving her life – she saved your boy’s life.’ And we both started to cry. I was so grateful. I was beside myself and overwhelmed. So many things had to fall into place for this to happen the way it did. The universe works in mysterious ways.”
This all sounds like the perfect setting for a motivational movie. And it seems that the folks at Netflix would agree, as it just released Rescued by Ruby, a heart-warming drama that follows the pairing of both O’Neill and Ruby, as well as other characters like Inman and RISPCA investigator Joseph Warzycha and Matt Zarrella to help get her trained for K-9 duty.
Now streaming on Netflix, the movie stars Grant Gustin (of The Flash fame) as Dan, looking to get his start with the K-9 Search & Rescue team. Fate brings him together with Ruby, with the help of Inman (played by Camille Sullivan). Over the course of the movie, we see the ups and downs of the duo, how well they work together, and, eventually, leads to the rescue of Inman’s teenage son. It’s definitely got some motivational spirit behind it, even if some slight things were changed here and there for its transition, such as making the events take place right after the pair teamed up (compared to them having worked in real life for five years beforehand). But it still makes for a captivating story about the spirit of partnership, and how crucial a police dog can be when officers count on them the most.
The story didn’t end there. Real-life spoiler alert: Ruby was named the American Humane Hero Dog’s Search and Rescue Dog of the Year in 2018. And she continues to work by O’Neill’s side to this very day, as they’re working together alongside other members of the K-9 unit for the Rhode Island State Police.
“There’s no end in sight for her,” O’Neill explained in an interview with People. “She can still run around for hours and hours. She’s just amazing. She just doesn’t want to give up. She’s this little mutt that still is kicking butt today.”
If it’s a heartfelt true story you’re looking to enjoy this weekend, Rescued by Ruby is well worth adding to your Netflix watch list. It’ll make you feel all warm and fuzzy about a K-9 being given a second chance and making a difference.
Michael Letts
Dear Editor,
All over the world there are governments that own companies. They are generally called state-owned enterprises (SOEs). All over the world there has been the realization that states running companies can be problematic and unproductive and that in some sectors it is completely hopeless and in other sectors it is a necessary evil if social goals are to be met.
Let’s take two sectors for example: the utility sector and airport ownership.
In the case of the utility sector there remains significant value in state-owned ownership because the supply of water and electricity has such extensive and broad consequences if and when the supply is reduced or not competitively priced. So, many progressive governments have kept the essential control but have also privatized where the risk to the community is at a lower level.
Airports on the other hand are a sector where privatization is extensive and clearly proven that state involvement is unnecessary and unproductive. In the case of a private operator the operator’s interests are identical to the public’s interests to a very large degree and hence privatization in this sector does not bear a risk for the community and generally produces more tax income (rental, dividends, etc.) for the taxpayer and the community. Privatization usually results in greater efficiency and the possible downside of privatization can be a higher cost of capital for the operator.
In every case of privatization the government still retains extensive control through regulation in numerous areas .
In St. Maarten the majority voter view seems to be that “if we own and operate the airport we get more benefits”. In reality, the opposite is very likely true. If we have a private company take the risks and do the management the people of Sint Maarten are likely to have more benefits rather than less.
Whilst the financial logic for privatization is clearly in place, the most likely resistance to such a move is most likely going to be based on antipathy to the direction of foreign directors playing a major role in “our” airport. The fact that in this complex industry a specialized party (local or otherwise) might produce greater value to the St. Maarten community as a whole will not get the breathing space it deserves because of the extensively perpetrated myth of ownership value.
Robbie Ferron
Dear Editor,
NATO, the European Union, the United Nations and CARICOM have got their heads on monitoring Putin and Putin made a wrong move. No way, Putin cannot control Ukraine again (sanctions left, right, east, west, north, south).
A no-fly zone is needed while the entire world is watching China’s moves. Any wrong move China does, there will be an uprising against Chinese worldwide.
Wow! Hurray, Russians are even protesting Putin’s wrong move and his days are over.
Cuthbert Bannis
Dear Editor,
Last week, I lost a dear friend who was a long-time resident of Sint Maarten. His name was Antoine Jurczenko, or Tony, as many people called him. Many people knew him as the former owner of Antoine’s or Da Livio’s restaurant in Philipsburg, or as one of Sint Maarten’s finest fishermen. I got to know him several years ago thru Island Water World. At the time I had my boat there and they knew I wanted to fish the Sint Maarten waters, but was not good at it. They knew of Antoine, as Antoine had to sell his small boat for medical reasons and could no longer go out to sea to fish. So, they introduced me to Antoine.
It was a match made in heaven. I would take Antoine out to sea to fish and he would teach me how to fish and a great relationship was started. Antoine was an incredible fisherman. We would go to sea and he had a technique where we would anchor about two miles off the coast and fish for Tuna, Wahoo, Mahi-Mahi or Kingfish on the surface and while we waited for a big fish to hit our bait, we would bottom fish in about 220 feet of water for Red Snappers. We always came back with about three big fish and 25 to 30 Red Snappers. We could not eat all the fish and I enjoyed giving what I could not eat to many people.
Antoine was uncanny about finding the right place to fish. He had several great spots to fish and when we went to one of them, without any GPS tools, I would get set to drop anchor and he would sometimes say, drop it 100 feet in this direction or that direction, which I did and he was always right. Once we got everything set up and were ready to fish, we would talk and share stories. There was never a dull moment. Antoine told me about the restaurants he owned all over the world with his wife, who also recently passed away.
In all the locations around the world he either went fishing with a rod and reel or caught fish by spear fishing. He taught me how to tie the right knots, properly bait a hook, how to properly reel in a big fish, because we always used light fishing line to give the big fish a fighting chance. Catching a big tuna on light line sometimes took an hour to get the fish in the boat. We would play games, once a big fish was on the hook to see who could tell what type of fish was on the line, before we got it in the boat. He always won. He even taught me the proper way to pull up a 20-pound anchor from 200 feet without killing myself. He had a technique for everything.
We would bottom fish with four hooks on each line and sometimes catch 3 or 4 fish at a time. One time Antoine brought his line up with four hooks and there were five fish on the line. That was Antoine. He was amazing. I joked with him and said that when he passed away, I would remember him as the man who caught five fish on four hooks. Antoine was a kind and private person and he was a giver. After several years, as we became closer, he told me many stories about himself and they were not only stories about fishing. The one I remember the most was during WW II. Antoine was Polish and during his teenage years he joined the French Resistance and used to run messages between the resistance groups. He was caught twice by the Germans and was held captive, but escaped twice, once by sliding down a rain pipe from the building where he was held. After the war he was awarded French citizenship for his efforts during the war.
Back to fishing. We needed bait for our fishing exploits and the best way to get the best bait was to fish for Ballyhoo off the many jetties in Sint Maarten. Of course, he had his favourite places and we went to them all. Again, his fishing skills did not let him down. We would sit side by side fishing for the small Ballyhoo using his amazing techniques. He would prepare a special cake of garlic bread crumps and oil to attract the Ballyhoo. There we were sitting side by side on top of our bait buckets catching Ballyhoo off the rocks. We would fish about six feet apart. At the end of our fishing, he would have about 30 to 40 Ballyhoo and I would usually have about six, but that was Antoine. He always beat me and, of course, give me all the fish.
At the end of his life, Antoine would fish for Snook along the shores. He told me how much the island had grown over the years and how sad it was that he was often chased at 90-plus years old from his Snook fishing spots. Fishing was truly in his blood. Well, I hope you get a glimpse as to who Antoine was. He was a dear friend and I loved him. A few years back, I had to sell my villa on Sint Maarten but I returned several times and visited Antoine. I miss him very much.
Tom Metz,
Formerly from Point Pirouette
Dear Editor,
I am a firm believer that the truth will always come out. It might take some time, but eventually it appears somewhere along the line.
To be told that I did not tell the truth does not sit well with me because with all my faults (yes, I have a few) I will not intentionally give out false information. I refer to the story of the introduction by the Dutch of the Mammoetwet in 1968, where the MULO system was changed. Why would the Dutch change their education system just because students from the Antilles had a better passing rate?
That made me wonder. It is, however, correct that Russell never implied that the Dutch could not cope with the MULO system, and I apologise for making that assumption.
Reading Russell Simmons’s letter on March 10th, I decided that due to my lack of knowledge on the subject to check out the Internet, and after reading various articles on the subject I had to respond with facts. It is true that like the news, you cannot always believe what is written on the Internet and unlike Russell, I was not part of that schooling system at the time. I tend to accept information that is provided online because you would think otherwise somebody would have complained about it.
As for delivering newspapers as a child (not selling them), the point I was trying to make, and which obviously did not come across is the fact that if you want to improve your living standards, you need to get off your backside and work for it.
I wanted my Dad to pay for the item I wanted, but he quite correctly told me to help myself by working for it. You feel empowered by the fact that you achieved this by yourself.
It might be just a small thing, but it changed my mindset in a lot of ways.
Rene Lammerse
