Breezeblog

I’ve been catching up with work so I didn’t weigh in on Doc Brown’s recent decision to hire an overseas PR firm to polish up the Island’s image, which he says has been damaged by the Opposition, the media and basically anyone who has an opinion that differs from his. How pathetic and cynical is this, let alone a waste of taxpayers’ money? Doesn’t the Government already spend millions on PR and marketing? What are those guys doing – and if they’re not doing their job why are we still paying them?

If there’s a problem with Bermuda’s image, maybe the Government should try looking in the mirror first. This continual and divisive whining and blaming everyone but themselves for every single problem is getting tiresome.

I could go on but other Bermuda bloggers have been far more articulate on this than I could be. Check Global Voices for a recent round-up.

I didn’t know Rhiana Moore, the 14-year-old Bermudian student found dead in at Blue Hole Hill Park on Saturday morning but as the father of two girls, my heart goes out to her family and friends. Having lost a brother at 19, I know the pain and anguish at losing a young person – but her family’s pain must be even greater knowing that (in all probability) she was murdered. I can’t even begin to think about what sort of person decides to rob such a young girl of her life. All we can hope is that the Police and our justice system who so spectacularly screwed up the Rebecca Middleton case, get it right this time.  For all our sakes. 

A quick plug for my friend Richard Simon and his recently-launched web service, BDATIX, which is a joint venture with the good folks at eMoo and Transact. Basically it’s an online booking service like the established Boxoffice.bm but with one big difference: you can print out your tickets at home complete with barcodes which are scanned at the event. You can also pick them up from BDATIX box offices around the Island. Signed up so far are the Little Theatre, the World Rugby Classic and Richard’s own Just For Laughs comedy festival (highly recommended but note the summer dates this year, August 21-24). Expect more to follow. 

Another useful service BDATIX is providing is an online donation and membership facility for charities and non-profit rganisations. We found this useful for one of our clients as the process saved them the expense and hassle of setting up a merchant account with a local bank. BDATIX handles the credit card transaction, deposits the money in our client’s account (minus a $2 fee) and  automatically forwards the membership information.  What we in the trade call a win-win situation!