Hashtag: #JonathanStarlingColumns

Column: Tips On Reducing Plastic Consumption

Column: Tips On Reducing Plastic Consumption

[Opinion column written by Greenrock’s Executive Director Jonathan Starling] Greenrock would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a happy World Environment Day! World Environment Day has been marked by the United Nations on June 5th since 1974, with the aim to promote worldwide awareness and action for the protection of our environment. Every... Read more of this article

Column: 5 Amendments, Municipal Obsession?

Column: 5 Amendments, Municipal Obsession?

[Opinion column written by Jonathan Starling] Municipal Obsessions? Since the OBA came to power in December 2012, they’ve displayed something bordering on an obsession concerning our municipal governments.  Our municipalities have been subject to more legislative reforms than any other issue, which has led to instability and controversy. In their... Read more of this article

Starling: Shouldn’t Every Child Be Born Equal?

Starling: Shouldn’t Every Child Be Born Equal?

[Opinion column written by Jonathan Starling] Shouldn’t every child be born equal? The birth of a child to Mr Wales Windsor-Mountbatten and his wife Kate Middleton recently highlighted that within Britain [which includes Bermuda], not every child is born equal. The birth of any child is a wonderful thing and certainly something for the family to celebrate. However,... Read more of this article

Jonathan Starling: Thoughts On Airport Emails

Jonathan Starling: Thoughts On Airport Emails

[Opinion column written by Jonathan Starling] Whether one agrees with the questions being raised by the People’s Campaign or not, I think we can all agree that their initiative in obtaining these documents – through the Canadian Freedom of Information laws – has greatly contributed to our understanding of how this particular deal has progressed... Read more of this article

Opinion: Time To End Breed-Specific Legislation

Opinion: Time To End Breed-Specific Legislation

[Opinion column written by Jonathan Starling] I would like to commend the group that has launched a petition calling for an end to breed-specific legislation in Bermuda. They quite rightly point out many of the flaws inherent to breed-specific legislation, and stress that no one breed is inherently more violent than another – the key is in the training... Read more of this article

Gender Representation In Decision-Making

Gender Representation In Decision-Making

[Opinion column written by Jonathan Starling] Today, March 8th, 2015, marks the 104th International Women’s Day, and is celebrated as an official holiday in around 27 countries, while observed in other ways elsewhere – including Bermuda. Each year a different theme is adopted for the day, either by local organisations or by international organisations.... Read more of this article

Closing Recycling Centre Is “Step Backwards”

Closing Recycling Centre Is “Step Backwards”

[Opinion column written by Jonathan Starling] It is extremely distressing to hear that the Government has decided to close the recycling centre for at least a year. While it is understandable that we continue to be looking at ways to improve efficiencies, closing the recycling centre is absolutely the wrong way to do this. It sends a very worrying message... Read more of this article

Opinion: Allowing Prisoners To Vote In Elections

Opinion: Allowing Prisoners To Vote In Elections

[Opinion column written by Jonathan Starling] As the UK gears up for its first general election under their new fixed-terms election system [which raises another question of where the OBA’s promised political reforms on this are…], the issue of voting rights for prisoners has flared back into the news. This, too, was an issue that was raised in... Read more of this article

Opinion: Jonathan Starling On Cabinet Shuffle

Opinion: Jonathan Starling On Cabinet Shuffle

[Opinion column written by Jonathan Starling] “Hegel remarks somewhere that all great world-historic facts and personages appear, so to speak, twice. He forgot to add: the first time as tragedy, the second time as farce.” – Karl Marx, The Eighteenths Brumaire of Louis Napoleon. So reads one of Marx’s most famous quotes. And it is a quote that... Read more of this article

Opinion: Starling On USA & Cuba Relationship

Opinion: Starling On USA & Cuba Relationship

[Opinion column written by Jonathan Starling] I cautiously welcome the normalisation of relations between the USA and Cuba. While this does not include the lifting of the criminal embargo regime against Cuba – which requires congressional approval – this is a welcome step forward and will make it easier for Cubans living overseas to visit... Read more of this article

Opinion: Starling On Ending The PitBull Ban

Opinion: Starling On Ending The PitBull Ban

[Opinion column written by Jonathan Starling] The pit-bull ban, or to be exact the prohibition on certain breeds of dogs [there are actually ten prohibited breeds, twelve if you include ‘wolf’ and ‘wolf hybrid’] is one of those pieces of legislation in Bermuda that I think can properly be called examples of ‘panic policies’. These are laws... Read more of this article

Opinion Column: Starling On Casino Gaming Act

Opinion Column: Starling On Casino Gaming Act

[Opinion column written by Jonathan Starling] The Government tabled the Casino Gambling Act 2014 last Friday, November 28th. It is a 117 page act, and has been tabled with the explicit purpose of being passed by parliament before Christmas. The OBA was not elected to introduce casino gambling. Rather, they were explicitly elected – as regards casino... Read more of this article

Opinion Column: Day of Persons With Disabilities

Opinion Column: Day of Persons With Disabilities

[Opinion column written by Jonathan Starling] Today, December 3rd, is the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, which has been observed annually since being proclaimed by the General Assembly of the United Nations in 1992. The purpose of this observance is to help promote an understanding of disability issues and mobilise support for the dignity,... Read more of this article

Opinion Column: Starling On After The Storms

Opinion Column: Starling On After The Storms

[Opinion column written by Jonathan Starling] With the recent announcement by BELCO that they have restored power to all households that went dark in Fay and Gonzalo, Bermuda is finally approaching full normality again. Of course there are still signs of these storms, primarily in our vegetation, with our city parks remaining closed, along with two... Read more of this article

Opinion: Starling On Negative Campaigning

Opinion: Starling On Negative Campaigning

[Opinion column written by Jonathan Starling] So, we’re in election season. Well, a by-election at least. Disappointingly, all the signs are that this by-election campaign will be an overwhelmingly negative one – one in which the OBA seems to be taking the lead on, in terms of negative campaigning that is. This is all the more disappointing as the... Read more of this article

Opinion: Time To Lower The Voting Age?

Opinion: Time To Lower The Voting Age?

[Opinion column written by Jonathan Starling] The recent Scottish independence referendum has been inspiring on many levels, not the least for the 86% turn out, or the national conversation [and resulting UK wide discussion now on constitutional change] related to the referendum itself. One of the key lessons that one can draw from the independence... Read more of this article