<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<rss version="2.0"
	xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"
	xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/"
	xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"
	xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
	xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/"
	xmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/"
	>

<channel>
	<title>Crucians In Focus &#187; Guest Opinion</title>
	<atom:link href="http://cruciansinfocus.com/category/guest-opinion/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
	<link>http://cruciansinfocus.com</link>
	<description>&#34;We knew the job was dangerous when we took it.&#34;</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Tue, 22 May 2012 03:48:03 +0000</lastBuildDate>
	<language>en</language>
	<sy:updatePeriod>hourly</sy:updatePeriod>
	<sy:updateFrequency>1</sy:updateFrequency>
	<generator>http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1</generator>
		<item>
		<title>Term Limits Would Remove &#8220;Entitlement&#8221; Approach Of Elected Representatives</title>
		<link>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2010/09/28/term-limits-would-remove-entitlement-approach-of-elected-representatives/</link>
		<comments>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2010/09/28/term-limits-would-remove-entitlement-approach-of-elected-representatives/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 28 Sep 2010 12:04:20 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Website Administrator</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Guest Opinion]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://cruciansinfocus.com/?p=8357</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Guest Opinion by J. J. Estemac I have come to the conclusion that term limits are critical for the survival of true democracy. The democratic system of government in its truest form involves the broadest representation of the populace; all strata of the society are expected to be represented. However, I have seen both in the local politics and particularly in the national politics an aberration of the system &#8211; individuals making a career of elected office, particularly in the legislative branch of government. Elected office becomes another form of public service career. On the national level and the local level we have term limits for the executive branch but not for the legislative branch. On the national level there are term limits only for the executive branch and not for the judicial and legislative branches. If we say our republican form of government consists of three equal branches of the same government; why the disparity between the branches in terms of terms limits? If the three branches are truly equal in power they should have the same limitations as it relates to consecutive terms in office. Beside the argument for parity between the three branches of government; we have [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2010/09/28/term-limits-would-remove-entitlement-approach-of-elected-representatives/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>5</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Don&#8217;t Blame the Children: Look At Their Role Models</title>
		<link>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2010/08/11/dont-blame-the-children-look-at-their-role-models/</link>
		<comments>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2010/08/11/dont-blame-the-children-look-at-their-role-models/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 11 Aug 2010 11:09:34 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Website Administrator</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Guest Opinion]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://cruciansinfocus.com/?p=7458</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Guest Commentary by Ivan Butcher II I remember as a child being told, &#8220;Do as I say , not as I do&#8221;.   So to me this meant that I was to wait until I was old or big enough to do what the adults were doing, which back then there seem to be an understanding that certain things hard working, law abiding, GOD fearing adults would not say or do in the presents of children. The next thing this statement meant to me was not to get caught doing what they did, so when I was with my peers we did whatever we thought we were big enough to do.   Today, these children are exposed to and subjected to life situations that was hidden from my generation. Look at their role models: parents, relatives, neighbors, teachers, doctors, lawyers, police, politicians, preachers, now reflect on what is in the newspapers and what is all over the television about adults misdeeds and short comings. Think of all the faces right here in our own community that our children can attach to the worst of human nature and decency. In the past if someone in the village brought shame on all, they were [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2010/08/11/dont-blame-the-children-look-at-their-role-models/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>31</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Alice In Wonderland</title>
		<link>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2010/05/06/alice-in-wonderland/</link>
		<comments>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2010/05/06/alice-in-wonderland/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 07 May 2010 00:03:58 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Website Administrator</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Guest Opinion]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://cruciansinfocus.com/?p=5545</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Guest Editorial by Jeffrey B. C. Moorhead, Esq.  I read Delegate Christensen&#8217;s recent contribution to a local publication and, on first reading, thought it to simply be another lame effort to present herself as the national guardian of our territorial interests. But as I read, again, her defense of the &#8220;Diageo debacle&#8221; I found it self-serving and demeaning to those in our community that live, work and die in our community without ever having the opportunity to see &#8220;the big picture&#8221; that Delegate Christensen believes we must all appreciate. I found Delegate Christensen&#8217;s comments offensive and demeaning to the people of our islands and felt compelled to publicly respond on their behalf. As Delegate Christensen well knows &#8211; and yet seems to forget- it is these same people she so easily degrades who are the ones she has been elected to serve, hi that regard, she is not alone but she symbolizes much of what is wrong with our political system in the Virgin Islands. In recent years it has become too easy for the people&#8217;s elected servants to sacrifice the &#8220;interest of the many&#8221; for the &#8220;interest of the few&#8221;., and then try to make them believe it was a [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2010/05/06/alice-in-wonderland/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>57</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Future Shock: Could The VI Be &#8220;For Sale&#8221; By Transfer Day 2012?</title>
		<link>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2010/03/31/future-shock-could-transfer-day-2012-find-the-virgin-islands-for-sale/</link>
		<comments>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2010/03/31/future-shock-could-transfer-day-2012-find-the-virgin-islands-for-sale/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 31 Mar 2010 10:54:44 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Website Administrator</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Guest Opinion]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://cruciansinfocus.com/?p=4844</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Editorial by Ivan Butcher II If History repeats itself, then it is not too farfetched, especially with the chronicle of the Virgin Islands, that one day the Virgin Islands will again be up For Sale. The weak economy and the bleak forecast for the future, the United States, just like Denmark who sold because of their weak economy, may have to sell. What happens if China, America’s biggest credit holder, calls in the Debt? Does America posture and refuse to pay, or does China make an offer that the United States cannot refuse?  It seems as if the principles of the Monroe Doctrine, which is designed to protect the United States’ backyard from any Nation establishing a military foothold in the Caribbean, are obsolete. In my life time the Monroe Doctrine was enforced in 1962, by Kennedy’s face-off with Russia in Cuba, and again when Reagan’s conflict with Cuba in Grenada, in 1983. Yet today, China is establishing an economic strong hold on many of the Caribbean Islands.  Being a Territorial possession, and a For Sale is a feasible possibility; how does this new Constitutional Draft protect the citizens of the Virgin Islands? Share on Facebook]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2010/03/31/future-shock-could-transfer-day-2012-find-the-virgin-islands-for-sale/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>17</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Editorial: Draft Constitution Ignores Contributions Of  &#8220;Non-Native&#8221; Population</title>
		<link>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2010/03/27/draft-constitution-ignores-contributions-of-non-native-population/</link>
		<comments>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2010/03/27/draft-constitution-ignores-contributions-of-non-native-population/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 27 Mar 2010 14:24:44 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Website Administrator</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Guest Opinion]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://cruciansinfocus.com/?p=4818</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Guest Commentary By Ivan Butcher II    After 40 Years I Am Still Not Accepted.  Listening to the position of the Constitutional Delegates and many in the community, who are in support of the disenfranchising those of us who have migrated here and many of us who were invited to come and be productive members of these Virgin Islands, remind me of when I listened to the proud position the Maroon Chief Council Elder had when he gave his history presentation while in Jamaica.  I came to St. Croix from New York, in 1969, not too long after Martin Luther King was assassinated. I had just turned 22 and this was the first time I had not felt intimidated being Black. The Elders here were nurturing and supportive, especially those from elsewhere, the same way they were nurtured by the elders when they first came.  Today, their descendants are sounding more like the Maroons, who in order to protect their collective self-interest, now want to turn away those of us who have been contributing  to this society 10, 15, 20, 30, 40, 50 years. Our children and grandchildren were born here; some of us have married in to many of the [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2010/03/27/draft-constitution-ignores-contributions-of-non-native-population/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>45</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Point Blank: Golden Grove A &#8220;Hell Hole&#8221;</title>
		<link>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2009/12/31/point-blank-golden-grove-a-hell-hole/</link>
		<comments>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2009/12/31/point-blank-golden-grove-a-hell-hole/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 31 Dec 2009 18:25:42 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Website Administrator</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Guest Opinion]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://cruciansinfocus.com/?p=3001</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Retired Guard Paints Bleak Picture of Prison Conditions By Winston Nugent Christmas night I went to the festival village in Frederiksted just for nostalgia&#8217;s sake. I wanted to meet some of my friends who I haven’t seen for quite some time. I remembered the days when the village was a place where you could go and meet long lost friends or those friends who had gone to the main land for school or for employment purposes. Many of them would return for the festival celebration, the food, and that cultural feeling that seems to come only once a year now.  Well it so happened that I ran into one of my school mates. I was glad to see him, so we began to talk. It was a surprise when he told me that he was retired after serving twenty-five years as a prison guard at Golden Grove. My surprise was a result of the fact that we both are into our fifties and from my perspective, the idea of me retiring frightened me in the sense that it made me feel old.  Another thing was, I had forgotten that this friend of mine, after graduating from high school had immediately went [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2009/12/31/point-blank-golden-grove-a-hell-hole/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>4</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Leadership Gap Hurts Law Enforcement</title>
		<link>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2009/12/29/leadership-gap-hurts-law-enforcement/</link>
		<comments>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2009/12/29/leadership-gap-hurts-law-enforcement/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 29 Dec 2009 17:39:17 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Website Administrator</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Guest Opinion]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://cruciansinfocus.com/?p=2958</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Guest Opinion by J. J. Estemac The recent trial of a police captain, a police sergeant and a civilian in district court revealed some disturbing facts. Though it is not new, the fact is that the police department, as so many other law enforcement agencies of our government lacks adequate leadership. We the residents, the taxpayers, need to demand better accountability from our elected and appointed public servants. Police Commissioners come, Police Commissioners go and the conditions within the Department remain, administration after administration. We have the head of the executive branch, the Governor, where the buck stops as far as the accounting of the executive branch. We have the legislative branch with oversight responsibility over the other two branches of government. The two branches have failed in their fiduciary responsibility for the people of the Virgin Islands. How long the police department has had a sub standard forensic and evidence unit. The physical plant of the principal police headquarters needs upgrading for some years, but we only hear the politicians talk about increasing salary, purchase of more vehicles. Yet there is very little accountability for those vehicles and their maintenance. Have you not noticed on bright sunny days the [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2009/12/29/leadership-gap-hurts-law-enforcement/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>10</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>POINT BLANK: Can&#8217;t We Feed Ourselves?</title>
		<link>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2009/12/14/point-blank-cant-we-feed-ourselves/</link>
		<comments>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2009/12/14/point-blank-cant-we-feed-ourselves/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 14 Dec 2009 04:10:51 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Website Administrator</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Guest Opinion]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://cruciansinfocus.com/?p=2773</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Is Agriculture In The Virgin Islands a Dream Deferred? By Winston Nugent  Some day ago I asked  Manjack, a fellow co-worker of mine when we were in Freedom City, Frederiksted, eating fungi and salt-fish with okra on the side, why is it that we in this Territory are so nonchalant about the global food crisis? He said to me, “That’s the way we are about everything.”  The fact that we grow no significant food to supplement our consumptions, left me wondering, is it because we are reliant on the United States that we are beyond starvation? I thought with the pending hope of producing a constitution of our own, the notion of “self-reliance’ would have been a consciousness implanted within our psychic. In this case, it seems like a passing black cloud. It is said that the global food crisis has reached the U.S. as big retailers began rationing sales of rice in response to bulk purchases by customers alarmed by rocketing prices of staple food.  Has any one of us gone shopping to any of our local supermarkets lately and shocked to see the kind of prices that we are now paying for food. And yet, we act like [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2009/12/14/point-blank-cant-we-feed-ourselves/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>5</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Our Law Enforcement Challenge</title>
		<link>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2009/12/08/our-law-enforcement-challenge/</link>
		<comments>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2009/12/08/our-law-enforcement-challenge/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 09 Dec 2009 01:49:22 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Website Administrator</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Guest Opinion]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://cruciansinfocus.com/?p=2720</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Guest Opinion by J.J. Estemac Anyone who is conscious of their surroundings, who is a casual observer, can see the lack of law enforcement in our community. The agencies and people charged with the enforcement of our laws and regulations are blatantly derelict. Does the current administration consider law and order in our community a priority? Daily we see people violating all kinds of laws and regulations and no one to enforce them. Is it that we have already lost our sense of good governance? Our republican form of democratic government where we have three equal branches of one government, they are coequal by statute, in theory, which is supposed to provide balance in our government. If each branch maximizes their statutory authority and responsibility then we ideally would have a truly balanced government. It is up to us the citizens of this nation, this society, who believe in law and order, in an orderly society, govern by laws, to organize ourselves and demand that our representatives in government fulfill their oath of office and apply all our laws consistently and fairly. The legislature passes bills which becomes law. The executive is required to follow and enforce our laws. The [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2009/12/08/our-law-enforcement-challenge/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>5</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Is The Governor Listening?</title>
		<link>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2009/12/06/is-the-governor-listening/</link>
		<comments>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2009/12/06/is-the-governor-listening/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 07 Dec 2009 02:26:32 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Website Administrator</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Guest Opinion]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://cruciansinfocus.com/?p=2665</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Guest Opinion by J.J. Estemac Many people I have spoken with have expressed their disappointment with the deJongh/Francis administration. Some had entertained some lofty expectations, some idealistic expectations, when they expressed their disappointment with the preceding  administration. The basis of their high expectations, as expressed, was that the de Jongh team was going to accentuate family values being a husband and a father; he was involved in the private sector as a business person;  he also worked in government as an executive in different posts.  He was young and energetic and projected some positive prospects for improvement in our government. While the governor made some apparent blunders in many of his selections for his administrative team, he apparently picked some that are still attempting to do a good job. But where is the vision? Any good leader should have a vision that is articulated and shared not only with his team of administrators but with the populace, that they may share the vision. Many of the Governor’s appointments have been a disappointment; some of the persons removed from office were performing. In a community as small as ours, common wisdom would dictate that appointing individuals to certain key posts in government, based only on political expediency, can be disastrous [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://cruciansinfocus.com/2009/12/06/is-the-governor-listening/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>31</slash:comments>
		</item>
	</channel>
</rss>

