Cricket World Cup Caused A Drop In Barbados Tourist Numbers When Compared With Last Year!!!!

Let’s See Here…

If Barbados had not been fool enough to buy into the Cricket World Cup we would have had more tourists on the island from January to May, increased business revenues and would now have half a billion dollars more in the bank.

Lord Have Mercy on the poor Bajan taxpayers!

From The Broad Street Journal…

DOWN FOR THE COUNT: Barbados tourist arrivals between January and May 2007 fall by nearly 2% over same period in 2006

Despite a surge of nearly eleven percent in April, when close to 60,000 longstay visitors came mainly to see the six CWC Super Eight matches and Final, Barbados’ tourist arrivals fell by nearly two percent between January and April over the same period last year.

For those four months last year, approximately 207,500 longstay arrivals were recorded, while for the same period just ended in 2007, the figure appears to be closer to 204,000, according to data from the Barbados Statistical Service added to Minister of Tourism Noel Lynch’s estimate for April.

… continue reading this story at The Broad Street Journal (link here)

International Lawsuit Against Barbados Prime Minister Owen Arthur And Others – Update

Lawsuit Is Filed In Canada

Thanks to a few readers we have further information regarding the international lawsuit filed by “Nelson Barbados Group Ltd.” against Barbados Prime Minister Owen Arthur, Chief Justice David Simmons and many other prominent Bajan citizens and businesses.

Barbados Free Press received a heavily processed (or just not very good) digital photo of what purports to be the first page of this lawsuit that says “Ontario Superior Court Of Justice” and “Court File No. 07-0141”.

This lends credibility to a Barbados government source who posted two days ago on an earlier BFP article and also contacted us via email. This source advised that the lawsuit was not filed in Barbados, but in Ontario, Canada and that “Nelson Barbados Group Ltd.” is an Ontario-registered corporation incorporated in 2005. The source also makes various statements about what they call “the arrant stupidity of the whole matter”. You can read their public comment here. We will not be posting their email.

Another source sent us the above photo without comment while someone else provided some insight into the lawsuit by saying…

“The defendants are all claiming that they have never done business in Canada or the U.S. and therefore no court outside of Barbados is allowed to look into allegations of corruption here.”

We don’t know otherwise at the moment but we invite our readers to submit any information ON A CONFIDENTIAL BASIS (ie: not by posting comments in public) so we can keep working on this story.

Barbados Free Press Will NEVER Reveal The Names Of Our Sources Or Any Other Identifying Information

We are not allowing public comments on this story and ask that you email them to us privately at barbadosfreepress@yahoo.com so we can filter them and avoid any suggestion that we are taking sides or defaming anyone. You can email information to us anonymously either from your web-based email account (ie: yahoo) or for true anonymity from a free anonymous emailing service like Anonymouse.org or one of the many others you can find by Googling “anonymous email service”.

When all is said and done we hope to work all of this into our postponed money laundering story which is half written.

Here Is What We Have…

(click on the thumbnail to view full size)

Will Convicted VECO Executives Trade Politicians’ Names For Time Off Their Sentences?

Our Friend Adrian Loveridge Thinks Convicted VECO Execs Should Be Given An Opportunity…

I fully support Richard Sealy’s call for a forensic audit on the construction of the new prison at Dodd’s, and would do so irrespective of which political party he represents.

Clearly, it was wrong for the Chief Executive of VECO and its wholly owned subsidiary Commonwealth Construction, Bill Allen and Rick Smith, the VP of Community and Government Affairs to become involved in offering bribes to politicians and others.

But they have pleased guilty and face up 11 years in jail if media reports are an indication.

Are these gentlemen though, the real villains?

Perhaps, controversially, I do not think so!

In fact, I would go so far as to encourage the authorities to ‘trade’ years for names.

Mr Allen and Mr Smith have admitted their guilt!

What we now need to do is to uncover the other politicians and civil servants that have accepted bribes and favours and ensure they receive the full wrath of the law.

Perhaps for every major name exposed, they could be pardoned one year?

Minister Dale Marshall has assured the nation publicly, that VECO will retain the contract to complete the Dodd’s Prison facility, albeit considerably later than previously indicated and if we believe media reports, substantially above budget.

This in itself raises many other questions.

If you visit Commonwealth Construction’s own website (www.commonwealth.ca) under the Projects Controls Systems section they make a particular point of highlighting their IMP2 ACT Project Control Software.

This is ‘to allow the project manager to know his project costs, productivity and progress at all times’.

How then, can any project escalate from an original figure of BDS$100 million to the latest media reports of BDS$292 million?

And why is the project so far behind the original date given for completion?

Also of concern is the exact capacity of the prison. In a website of one on the sub contractors, Rotondo Weirich, mention is made of just 480 cells.

Are ‘we’ really spending a quoted BDS$292 million to go back to having up to three inmates occupy one cell?

The Minister has an urgent obligation to answer these questions.

I urge Mr Sealy, to raise these questions and repeat his call for a forensic audit in the lower house of Parliament every week and also for independent Senator, Sir John Stanley Goddard to do likewise in the Senate.

Adrian Loveridge
28th May 2007

Message To 180 Degree Change

A Message to “180 Degree Change” 

Our week that you provided ends on Sunday June 3rd or Monday June 4th depending upon how you count.

We have not been able to check where you said we should, although we have tried unsuccessfully. Our ability to check closely in that place is not current although you are correct we have been able to in the past because we sometimes have a friend there.

Please send us more about the person who was the subject of your email and the decisions they are making.

Thanks

BFP

Hi Folks

These little messages come and go at Barbados Free Press. As our regular readers know, we often communicate to our sources in public so that we don’t have to send emails.

Sometimes it gets pretty exciting around here!

Cliverton

Owen Arthur Government Targets Bajan Wallets With 2,500 New Video Lottery Terminals – “A Tax On Stupid People”

My Fellow Barbadians… Have I Got A Deal For You!

Listen up, folks! As your Prime Minister, I can assure you that this is the sweetest deal you’re going to find this side of Nigeria…

INVEST TEN DOLLARS with me, and there will be a 93% chance that you will never see any of that money again!

There will be a 6.7% chance that I will give you back three dollars, and you can kiss seven dollars goodbye.

There will be a one third of one percent chance that I will give you back more than your ten dollars… but don’t forget, eleven dollars is more than ten dollars!

Now, Will The Stupid Folks Please Bring Your Ten Dollars And Line Up In Front Of The Owen Arthur Money Collecting Machine…

Hurry Up… This opportunity will only be around for a limited period of time.*

*Limited period of time is defined as “Until we have all your money, you fool!”

From Casino City Times…

CAGE Awarded Barbados Deal

MARYLAND — (PRESS RELEASE) — Today, CAGE Barbados Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Caribbean CAGE LLC, a division of The RLJ Companies, announced that it has been awarded a long-term management agreement for the installation and management of up to 2500 video lottery terminals (“VLTs”) on Barbados. This management agreement will allow CAGE to operate the connected and linked VLTs that will be installed over a three-year roll out period.

“This long term management agreement is an integral step towards fulfilling our strategy of a significant presence throughout the Caribbean and Latin America,” noted Bob Washington, Chairman, CEO and Co-Founder of Caribbean CAGE LLC.

An official spokesperson from the BCA stated, “the Barbados Cricket Association looks forward to a long and successful relationship with Cage Barbados Inc., in the operation of video lottery games in Barbados, which the BCA hopes will redound to the benefit of both the BCA and its partners.”

“We are pleased to enter into a business relationship with Barbados. Our ability to drive returns is good for Barbados and good for CAGE,” stated Bob Johnson, Chairman of The RLJ Companies.

CAGE currently operates VLTs in the Turks and Caicos Islands and St. Kitts. CAGE, headquartered in Puerto Rico, is well positioned to take advantage of the VLT market in the Caribbean to generate superior returns.

CAGE anticipates beginning operations in Barbados by the 4th quarter of 2007.

… read the article online here.

Not Only Does VECO Bribe Politicians – They Fund Journalists and Newspapers Too!!!

But Don’t Worry Folks… VECO Only Bribes Politicians And Journalists In Alaska: Never In Barbados!

from KTUU.com News…

Voice Of The Times Goes Digital

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — The Voice of the Times will soon be at your fingertips, but not in your daily paper.

Effective Friday, the conservative viewpoints appearing on the opinion and editorial page of the Anchorage Daily News will be found online at voiceofthetimes.net.

In a written statement, the editors of the Voice of the Times said they’re grateful to the Daily News for what they called a “cordial and professional relationship” over the past 15 years. The Daily News recently announced it would not renew the Times’ contract for another term.

The Times will retain most of its current columnists and will still be funded by VECO Corp.

… from KTUU.com (link here)

VECO Built This House For An Alaska Senator – What Are They Building In Barbados?

ANCHORAGE, Alaska –The recent FBI corruption investigation has widened to include U.S. Senator Ted Stevens.

Late last year a federal grand jury heard testimony regarding a remodeling project at the senator’s Girdwood home. The project was overseen by the top executives at VECO Corp.

Stevens’ home in Girdwood underwent a major remodeling seven years ago. It was lifted up and an entire new first floor was added.

Contractor Augie Paone of Christensen Builders did most of the work, but said he dealt with VECO, not Stevens.

“The people that contacted me were some VECO personnel that I knew from some past work I did for them,” Paone said.

Paone said among the VECO people contacting him was company CEO Bill Allen. Allen recently pled guilty to bribery charges that implicate one current and several former state lawmakers, including Ben Stevens, the elder senator’s son.

Paone said the FBI questioned him about six months ago and he testified before a federal grand jury in December.

Paone said while VECO hired him and he sent the invoices for the project to VECO, he doesn’t think Sen. Stevens did anything wrong.

“The senator doesn’t know me, so some of the people I had contacts with were more familiar with the senator, so they kind of took over his interests and they kind of overviewed the billings. After they saw them, it was just faxed over to the senator and the senator a few days later just mailed me a check,” Paone said.

Paone says he did about $100,000 worth of work on the home. Stevens was in Girdwood today for a library groundbreaking, but did not want to comment on VECO’s involvement in his home remodel.

“I put out a statement, the statements there and it says I do not comment on things that are under investigation. Thank you,” Stevens said.

The FBI will not comment on whether Sen. Stevens is being investigated. But when the agency served search warrants on lawmaker’s office last August, one search warrant was served in Girdwood.

Agents said it wasn’t at the senator’s home or office, but they won’t say where.

Paone said VECO executives initially contacted him, saying they were in dire straits trying to quickly finish the project. He said the remodeling was started by what he described as a group of friends working on the weekend, but the project required more expertise.

… read this story online at television station KTUU’s website KTUU.com (link here)

Over 1 Million WordPress Blogs – Barbados Free Press Is #33 Most Popular !

Article On Barbados Prime Minister Lawsuit Garners Worldwide Attention

Thanks Mr. Prime Minister! We couldn’t do it without you!

Is that the New York Times emailing us?

Oh… it is.

My-o-my this is surely getting interesting…

(We moved up since the screensnap was taken. We are now at #33 most popular WordPress blog worldwide in any language. Check out the stats here)

Barbados Underground Cartoon Hammers Home – UPDATED and Question For Barbados Underground

UPDATED – Someone Asks For Changes To This Article – Barbados Underground Please Respond

A commenter on this article asks…

“I would appreciate it if you would remove the photo of houses in your comic strip with Miss .Thompson and Miss.Mottley. If you have this information that you imply put the correct houses. I can assure you that the houses you have pictured are being paid for every month .”

OK… that is a fair request IF the homes in the photo are not the subject of some problem with government corruption etc.

Barbados Underground, could you please clarify this issue? Are the homes in the photo directly connected with your story on government corruption or were they just to illustrate the issue?

Please let us know so we can consider our reader’s request.

NOTE TO OUR READERS – would someone kindly head over to Barbados Underground and make a comment on the story or otherwise let them know that this issue has been raised? I am writing this from one of our “posting” computers and we don’t visit other websites while using this PC.

Thanks!

Marcus

Original Story…

What’s it all about?

Check out Barbados Underground’s top post for May 2007 HERE

Who Did Barbados Prison Consulting?… VECO Paid Alaska Bribes Through “Consulting” Contracts With Politicians’ Relatives!!!!!

Extreme Makeover: Veco Edition

by Laura McGann – May 29, 2007, 12:24 PM

Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) jacked his house off the ground, inserted a new first story and placed the old first floor on top, thanks to the help of a top executive at local oil company Veco Corp. who hired at least one key contractor to complete the feat of a job.

Veco is entwined in a broad federal investigation that has led to the indictment of four current and former Alaska politicians and ensnared former Alaska Senate President Ben Stevens, son of Ted Stevens. Local press concluded that Stevens was state “Senator B,” listed in the charging documents of two former Veco Corp. executives who pled guilty to federal bribery and conspiracy charges, saying they gave the younger Stevens $242,000 in illegitimate consulting fees.

Neither Stevens has been charged with a crime.

It’s unclear how the senior Stevens’ home doubling is connected to the broader investigation, but the Feds are now eyeing the construction job according to the Anchorage Daily News , which noticed a line in the Veco executives’ plea bargains that could link the senator to the probe:

The sentence, preceded by a listing of a dozen Veco-related enterprises around the world, said: “Veco was not in the business of residential construction or remodeling.”

Maybe they dabbled.

… from TPM MuckRaker.com (link here)

Barbados Politicians Love Those “Consulting Fees”

We have always said (and everybody seems to know) that in order for a foreigner to build much of anything on Barbados there must first be many “studies” and “consulting” workups to make sure the project can be built in a proper manner. Yes, sir – there must be much “consulting” done – usually by a friend or relative of someone who is involved in the approvals process, you see!

Readers will remember that waterpark developer Matthew Kerins complained about spending millions in “consulting fees” on Barbados with little or no result. That’s life on the rock for foreign developers. (Hey Matthew… it would have been ok had the Prime Minister and his crones “consulted” with the voters before you paid the “consulting fees”, but as we told you before – now that the voters have their backs up about the waterpark at Graeme Hall, you can kiss that “consulting” money goodbye!)

As shown in the Alaska newspapers’ accounts of the FBI investigation into VECO – the company that is building the new Barbados Jail – Veco has a corporate culture of corruption where politicians were regularly bribed to achieve company goals.

Knowing Barbados, it is beyond the imagination to suggest that VECO’s corporate culture of bribery was not welcomed here by some.

Faced with all the above, we expect the Attorney General of Barbados to launch an immediate investigation into all “consulting” and “sub-contracting” fees paid out by VECO in the past 13 years – during the building of the Oil Terminal, the Jail and any other work performed by VECO or associated companies on Barbados.

The people of Barbados demand to know if any “consulting” or “sub-contracting” fees were paid to companies owned or controlled by politicians or their families or friends.

How Much Is The Prison Over Budget? YIKES!

FBI’s VECO Corruption Investigation Includes “Hundreds Of Hours Of Recordings, Thousands Of Documents” – How Many Mention Barbados?

FBI corruption investigation includes audio, video

Evidence in the corruption case against Rep. Vic Kohring, R-Wasilla, includes thousands of pages of documents and hundreds of hours of audio and video recordings, Kohring’s lawyers said today in federal court.

Defense lawyers asked for more time to sift through all that information, and U.S. District Judge John Sedwick agreed, delaying the trial from July 9 until Oct. 22…

… continued at Anchorage Daily News (link here)

Some Folks Are Having Sleepless Nights Wondering What Is In Those Recordings

How many of those folks who are pacing the floor tonight are on Barbados or associated with building the new Barbados jail?

The United States has Freedom Of Information laws and sooner or later someone is going to post everything on the good old internet.

I’ll sleep well tonight – but can all our readers say the same?

Previous BFP VECO Bribery Stories…

Barbados Attorney General Makes “Inaccurate” Statement About VECO Bribery Scandal

How Much Cash Did Corrupt VECO USA Executives Provide To Barbados Labour Party As “Campaign Donations” ?

BREAKING NEWS: U.S. Politicians Indicted For Taking/Arranging Bribes In VECO Scandal – Involves New Barbados Prison

Caribbean Development Bank Happily Holds Annual Meeting In Venezuela As Media Freedoms Are Dismantled

Two stories about Venezuela are in the news this morning. The Caribbean Development Bank is holding the annual meeting of it’s Board of Governors in Caracas on May 30 and 31. The Nation News does it’s “turn press release into boring story” treatment here.

In the real world though – meaning outside of the diplomatic pate-eaters – Venezuelan riot police are using teargas and water cannons to clear protesting crowds from burning barricades after strongman Chavez closed the opposition television station RCTV. (Yahoo News story here)

The Nation News has not seen fit to mention the closing of the television station or that the iron fist of Chavez has come down heavily on journalists. The Nation News has, however, published many positive articles about Chavez. Check it out yourself at the paper’s archives and see if you agree that The Nation News is presenting only positive stories about the dictator while totally ignoring his human rights violations.

Barbados Lawsuit Names Prime Minister Owen Arthur, Chief Justice Simmons And Many Prominent Citizens And Businesses

Barbados Free Press Publishes List Of Accused In Civil Lawsuit

As promised we are publishing what we have been able to confirm about the lawsuit against the Prime Minister of Barbados, the Chief Justice and many other prominent Barbados citizens and companies.

We received the following list of names from more than one source, but CAUTION SHOULD BE TAKEN as we have not yet seen the court documents. One of our sources has been 100% reliable in the past and states that a copy of the court document will be sent to us possibly as early as this evening, so we believe that this list we received by email is accurate.

According to our sources, the lawsuit has been launched by a Barbados company named…

Nelson Barbados Group Ltd

We have searched for this company on the web, phone books etc and have not found any address or listing for it.

Allegations Of Corruption

According to our sources there are allegations of corruption and behind the scenes dealings contained in this lawsuit. Once again we remind our readers that a lawsuit is only a lawsuit and everyone named in a lawsuit is presumed innocent until proven otherwise.

We will publish more details when we receive the court papers. Here is the list of the accused…

Richard Ivan Cox
Gerard Cox
Alan Cox
Philip Vernon Nicholls
Eric Ashby Bentham Deane
Owen Basil Keith Deane
Marjorie Ilma Knox
David Simmons
Elneth Kentish
Glyne Bannister
Glyne B. Bannister
Philip Greaves, A.K.A. Philp Greaves
Gittens Clyde Turney
R. G. Mandeville & Co.
Cottle, Catford & Co.
Keble Worrell Ltd.
Eric Iain Stewart Deane
Estate Of Colin Deane
Lee Deane
Errie Deane
Keith Deane
Malcolm Deane
Lionel Nurse
Leonard Nurse
Edward Bayley
Francis Deher
David Shorey
Owen Seymour Arthur
Mark Cummins
Graham Brown
Brian Edward Turner
G.S. Brown Associates Limited
Golf Barbados Inc.
Kingsland Estates Limited
Classic Investments Limited
Thornbrook International Consultants Inc.
Thornbrook International Inc.
S.B.G. Development Corporation
The Barbados Agricultural Credit Trust
Phoenix Artists Management Limited
David C. Shorey And Company
C. Shorey And Company Ltd.
First Caribbean International Bank (Barbados) Ltd.
Price Waterhouse Coopers (Barbados)
Attorney General Of Barbados
The Country Of Barbados
And John Does 1-25

Previous BFP Stories About This Lawsuit

May 24, 2007 – Heard On The Streets Of Bridgetown, Barbados – Fact Or Only Rumours?

May 25, 2007 – WordPress.Com Reaches 1 Million Hosted Blogs – Our Post About Lawsuit Against Prime Minister Is #60 Most Popular Worldwide !!!!

May 28, 2007 – Update: Lawsuit Against The Prime Minister Of Barbados And Others

Barbados Advocate Sides With Police, Not Journalists. Defends Government. Poo-poos Calls For Freedom Of Information Legislation

Journalists Roughed Up By Police? Barbados Advocate Says No Big Deal – They Got What They Deserved

The current editorial in the Barbados Advocate argues that whenever the police give anyone an order – that order should be complied with.

Nothing about whether the order is legal or not.

Nothing about citizens’ rights.

Nothing about police exceeding authority or using unnecessary force.

Nothing about journalistic rights, the public’s right to know.

Nothing about transparency, accountability.

Nothing about a free media being the guardian of democracy.

Nothing about why THIS TIME journalists were dragged from the hospital and OUTSIDE the hospital when they have covered hundreds of stories from the QEH in the past.

Nothing about why just the week before journalists were happily accommodated by the hospital when it was politically expedient for them to cover a certain story.

Are We Surprised?

Not a bit…

From the Barbados Advocate… a paper that is fully accustomed to a slave’s mentality…

Just Shadow, No Substance … No Exemption Under Law

IN the excitement following the recent confrontation between police and civilians, it was all too easy to lose sight of where individual rights may sometimes need to be tempered with deference to law enforcement. It seems similarly easy to confuse such power as is vested in parliamentary positions with what may be conferred on persons outside that august body or what they are entitled to claim.

Excessive excitement and confusion are clearly in play when one states or implies that confrontation involving the constabulary and Press freedom may be remedied by amendment to a Freedom of Information Act. We see no basis for agreeing with that notion.

How does the specific incident become an issue for Government? If a police officer makes an order and a member of the public disobeys it, how does that become a concern for the Freedom of Information Act?

Is that Act going to say that when a police officer gives an order to someone engaged in a particular profession, that person is exempt, unlike other citizens, from complying with the order?

Freedom of information means liberalising access to official records. It has nothing to do with jettisoning the principle of equality before the law.

Priority on safety, health

Where there is a mishap resulting in injury even to a single person, priority must be given to safety and health. Logically, therefore, there would be that much greater urgency in a mass casualty event to prioritise protection and health services for the victims.

When told by a uniformed officer, say, in Broad Street, not to act in a particular way, does the ordinary citizen have a right to ignore that instruction?

Without reflecting on any specific incident, we are obliged to state in a general way that one of the necessary incidents of the rule of law is to obey the laws, and if a police officer says not to do a particular thing, one is obliged to follow that command.

One may thereafter challenge the order through an appropriate channel, but disobeying the officer’s instruction raises the possibility of chaos a free-for-all. The police officer says one thing, the citizen does the opposite. Our heart is with anyone who feels unfairly treated, but rules are made to be followed, whether one agrees with them or they appear ill-conceived. Without them, the system of governance will break down.

… read the editorial here before the Barbados Advocate removes all trace of their stories as they normally do.

A Reader Asks Barbados Prime Minister Owen Arthur About The Apes Hill Development…

Dear Mr. Prime Minister,

Is it true that all those purchasing land at Apes Hill – Phase II will have duty free privileges for all building materials, appliances, etc? Apparently only motor vehicles will attract duty. Do we need to be so generous in order to attract “foreign investment”?

Again – Barbados Government Workers Not Being Paid For Months, Weeks

Hey Delisle!

We’re a little short of cash this month so call up the bank manager and tell him that he and his employees will have to wait a few weeks to be paid because we overspent on that big cricket party last month. And how’s the construction projects coming along?

What’s that you say? The bank manager and international finance guys won’t wait?

OK then.

Who’s next on the list that we can stiff? Government employees?

Sucks to be them!

Now where’s my scotch, old friend?

Barbados Underground: Barbados Spends Millions On CWC 2007 And Other Projects But Ordinary Workers With Children To Feed Continue To Wait Over Two Months For Wages

Barbados Tourism Minister Noel Lynch Just Can’t Help Himself…

Noel Lynch Spins Like A Top

To respond to the front page Daily Nation article headlined ‘The Best by Far!’ by Roy Morris dated 28th May 2007.

‘Stating repeatedly he would not back down from his assessment that CWC represented Barbados finest hour’, Lynch noted that 63,480 long-stay visitors were on the island in April, the highest number ever since the country started recording tourist arrivals’.

‘This figure, he added, represented a 19.6 per cent increase over the previous April, which had itself seen a 13 per cent jump over the year before’.

… from The Nation News The Best By Far! 

What is critically missing from the equation is of course, our long stay arrival visitor performance for the first three critical months of the year.

In it’s economic review for the first quarter of 2007. the Central Bank said ‘that that real tourism value added had declined by approximately 3.8 per cent compared to the same period last year’.

‘The Bank added that ‘preliminary estimates suggested that long stay arrivals contracted by 6 per cent’.

With ‘a total arrival figure for the first three months of the year of around 143,000, down close to 10,000 on the nearly 158,000 long stay arrivals for the same period last year’.

For lets look at the total four month period overall…

Down 10,000 in the first three months and up 19.6 per cent or 12,442 persons for April alone!

So a increase of just 2,442 long stay visitors during the first four months of 2007 when compared with 2006.

Mr Lynch also stated ‘that the island earned an additional US$16.75 million’ in April.

But based on the Minister’s economics, the 10,000 fewer long stay visitors that did not come in the first three months of the year, would have written some US$13.46 million off the April figure!

Therefore a net gain of just US$3.29 million!

It is really quite misleading to the public to describe this tourism performance as ‘The Best by Far’.

Adrian Loveridge
28 May 2007

Note: The main and lead-in titles of this piece were created by BFP for the letter received from Adrian Loveridge.

Update: Lawsuit Against The Prime Minister Of Barbados And Others

Thanks to all our readers who have been emailing rumours, information, comments and advice about the lawsuit naming the Prime Minister, cabinet ministers, judges and businessmen.

Tomorrow morning (Tuesday), Barbados Free Press will be printing what we have confirmed so far.

Previous BFP Stories On This Topic…

May 24, 2007 – Heard On The Streets Of Bridgetown, Barbados – Fact Or Only Rumours?

May 25, 2007 – WordPress.Com Reaches 1 Million Hosted Blogs – Our Post About Lawsuit Against Prime Minister Is #60 Most Popular Worldwide !!!!

Daily Mail: Rihanna Likes British Men, Not So Keen On The Irish

“The men over here are so charming,” Rihanna says with more than a little twinkle in her apple-green eyes. “I’m drawn to tall men with a quirky sense of humour and a touch of the bad boy about them.

“I’ve met loads of men like that in Britain. British men tend to be very forward, too, and I find that very attractive.”

She gives me a saucy Babs Windsor wink – and then suddenly deflates.

“But then I visited Dublin recently and didn’t get chatted up once! That was so disappointing. Not that there’s much I could have done about it. I’m so busy that I’ve got no time for a boyfriend right now.”

… from the Daily Mail (link here) 

How much of what Rihanna says is all about publicity? Probably most of it.

We still love ya, girl. There’s little you could do wrong in our eyes. Silly Irish fellows!