WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 14, 2024
Pintard:
By FAY SIMMONS Tribune Business Reporter
THE government must be more transparent about its spending, said Opposition leader Michael Pintard yesterday, saying that the FNM will not support any “additional revenue measure” until the Davis administration fully implements the Freedom of Information Act and abides by the Public Procurement Act.
• FNM calls for full implementation of Freedom of Information Act
• ‘No more blank cheques’ says party leader for Davis admin
• Says no substantive response given to Green Paper feedback
“First, this Davis led PLP administration should not come to the Bahamian people with any proposed significant tax measure unless it is accompanied by a clear and documented plan to contain government spending and eliminate the wasteful and gratuitous spending by public officials
and public entities,” said Mr Pintard.
“Second, the FNM will not support any discussion on additional revenue measures until this administration fully implements the Freedom of Information Act and begins to follow the provisions of the Public Procurement Act which would provide the public with the details on who are getting government contracts and in what amounts. No more blank cheques for the Davis administration. They must show the Bahamian people
WSC responds after Eleuthera protest
By FAY SIMMONS Tribune Business Reporter jsimmons@
the concerns of our valued customers and to seek to urgently resolve all complaints,” said WSC.
By FAY SIMMONS Tribune Business Reporter
RESIDENTS in Grand
Bahama have “had enough” of rising costs on the island, especially with the island’s economy not being as “robust” as anticipated, according to the local chamber of commerce president.
Speaking to Tribune Business after dozens of Grand Bahama residents protested the Grand Bahama Power Company’s proposed 6.3 percent rate hike on Monday, James Carey, of the Grand Bahama Chamber of Commerce, said a potential electricity rate increase would have a damaging effect on the local economy as it would increase the cost of doing business.
Mr Carey said implementing a rate increase would propel the island into a “vicious cycle” of increased costs as businesses would be forced to increase the prices of their goods and services to maintain their bottom line.
“The residents and businesses are taking the view that they’ve had enough. It’s not simply a direct rate increase that affects them in their own power bill. It
affects a lot of other things. If the supermarkets are paying more for electricity, the cost of food will go up a little bit. Its adding up and it’s a vicious cycle,” he said. He highlighted that the timing of the proposed increase is particularly problematic as Grand Bahama has recently been “plagued” with frequent power outages and some residents have lodged complaints about damages to appliances damages due to power surges. Mr Carey also noted that after Hurricane Dorian, the Grand Bahama Power Company was granted permission to apply a surcharge for restoration work, and there has been no update on when this surcharge will be removed.
THE Water and Sewerage Company (WSC) yesterday said the utility is working to improve its service to Eleuthera residents.
In a statement, WSC acknowledged the frustrations of Eleuthera residents who have suffered through a series of water and electricity outages in recent months and said it is “working closely” with Bahamas Power and Light (BPL) to ensure “reliable power supply to our many systems which are highly dependent on consistent power supply”.
Yesterday, Harbour Island residents held a protest about their electricity and water woes, demanding consistent utility service in Eleuthera.
WSC said they have heard the “very vocal concerns” of residents and is monitoring all of their platforms to “urgently resolve all complaints”.
“The Water and Sewerage Corporation (WSC) observed the very vocal concerns expressed by residents of Harbour Island yesterday and we continue to closely monitor our Eleuthera Hotline WhatsApp group, our various social media platforms and all publicly available platforms to track
“As shared previously, the combination of ageing, very fragile public infrastructure systems, challenging water production contractual arrangements and the rapid increase in the demand for water supply post COVID-19 has severely impacted the reliability of our water supply systems across Eleuthera and the corporation, with the support of the government, is now working assiduously to address these many challenges step by step.”
“The reality however is that while some works have been completed, substantial works are now in progress and further works are being defined to eliminate any weak linkages in our water production, storage, transmission and distribution systems. Residents in some parts of Eleuthera have experienced some incremental improvements already and further incremental improvements will continue across the island as these various works are completed and commissioned.”
WSC outlined several projects that have been completed to improve service including the installation of generators at desalination plants and the transfer station as well
No faith in BPL and govt from Eleuthera residents
ELEUTHERANS have no faith in promises made by BPL and the government in regards to a 50 percent power rebate and additional generation being added to the island’s supply.
“I’m not a believer,” owner of The Islands Spa, Karen Catalyn, said as she vented her frustrations to Tribune Business. “I’m not a believer in anything BPL says. If it happens that will
be great. I do not believe it will. I’m just waiting to see. We get our bills in two weeks, I think.”
Ms Catalyn is not the only doubter. Owner of Nicki’s Signature Nails said she does not believe the 50 percent power rebate makes sense nor will it remedy the constant prolonged power outages and high electricity bills Eleutherans have been plagued with for years.
“I believe that’s a scam,” she said. “It dont make no sense. 50 percent? Well
everybody was complaining about their bill being doubled. So if you take 50 percent off of your bill being doubled, you getting the normal bill. At the end of the day they still going to charge you double your bill in September and October, and November and December. So, in reality you getting charge your original bill just for the month of August and then in September, you gone get it double again, just like it was for the past few months.”
The owner of the nail salon said she invested in a generator a month ago because she could no longer handle the power outages that have caused her multiple customers. She recalled a time when the electricity went out in the middle of her handling a client’s nails. She said the power was out for four hours and she was unable to finish the job. She also complained of
as the installation of water tanks.
The utility said the 200,000 imperial gallon steel tank in Harbour Island is leaking and they have awarded a contract for two new 250,000 imperial gallon glass coated steel tanks to be commissioned.
“At Harbour Island, the old 200,000 imperial gallon steel tank is leaking and works are in progress to urgently replace that tank. A contract has been awarded for two new 250,000 imperial gallons each glass coated
MICHAEL PINTARD
ELEUTHERA residents came out to protest about having to suffer through a series of water and electricity outages in recent months.
JAMES CAREY
Wall Street rallies to one of its best days of the year after inflation report
By STAN CHOE AP Business Writer
U.S. stocks rallied Tuesday to one of their best days of the year after the first of several highly anticipated reports on the economy this week came in better than expected.
The S&P 500 jumped 1.7% for its third-best day of 2024 after the U.S. government reported inflation at the wholesale level slowed last month by more than economists expected. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 408 points, or 1%, and the Nasdaq composite clambered 2.3% higher.
High inflation has been the scourge of shoppers and financial markets for years. It finally looks to be slowing enough to get the Federal Reserve to ease up on high interest rates, which the Fed has been keeping at economy-crunching levels in order to stifle inflation.
Treasury yields eased in the bond market following the inflation data, as traders remain convinced the Fed's meeting next month will bring the first cut to interest rates since the COVID crash of 2020. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 3.84% from 3.91% late Monday.
All is not clear, though.
On Wednesday, the U.S. government will deliver the latest monthly update on inflation that U.S. consumers are feeling, which could be less encouraging. And on Thursday will come a report showing how much U.S. shoppers are spending at retailers.
A growing worry on Wall Street is that the Fed may have kept interest rates too high for too long and undercut the U.S. economy by making it so expensive to borrow money. The economy is still growing, and many economists don't expect a recession, but a sharp slowdown in U.S.
hiring last month raised questions about its strength. Such questions weigh because even cuts to interest rates haven't been enough for stocks to rise significantly in the ensuing 18 months if a recession hits, according to Chris Haverland, global equity strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute.
Home Depot on Tuesday delivered stronger profit for the spring quarter than analysts expected, but it also said high interest rates and uncertainty about the economy are keeping some customers from spending on home improvement projects.
The retail giant lowered its full-year forecasts for an important measure of sales and for profit, even though it topped expectations for the second quarter. Its stock rose 1.2% after flipping earlier between modest gains and losses.
Elsewhere on Wall Street, Starbucks soared 24.5% after it convinced Brian Niccol to leave his job as CEO of Chipotle Mexican Grill to take over the coffee chain. He will start as chairman and chief executive next month and will replace Laxman Narasimhan, who is stepping down immediately.
Chipotle, meanwhile, dropped 7.5%. Niccol has been its chief executive since 2018 and its chairman since 2020, and he helped its stock rise more than 240% for the five years through Monday. That tower's over the S&P 500's 96% return including dividends. Chipotle said its chief operating officer, Scott Boatwright, would be its interim CEO. In stock markets abroad, indexes were modestly higher across much of Europe and Asia. Japan's Nikkei 225 was an outlier and jumped 3.4%.
Japan's market has been viciously volatile recently, including the worst drop
for the Nikkei 225 since the Black Monday crash of 1987. It's been swinging since a hike to interest rates by the Bank of Japan forced many hedge funds and other investors to abandon a popular trade all at once, where they had borrowed Japanese yen at cheap rates to invest elsewhere. The forced selling that followed the surge in the Japanese yen's value reverberated around the world.
But a promise last week by a top Bank of Japan official not to raise rates further as long as markets are "unstable" has helped calm the market.
Another worry that's made Wall Street so shaky the last month is concerns that investors went overboard in their mania around artificial-intelligence technology and took the prices of Big Tech and AI-related stocks too high.
Nvidia, the company whose chips are powering much of the move into AI, has been at the center of the action. After soaring more than 170% through the year's first six and a half months, it plunged more than 20% over the ensuing three weeks.
On Tuesday, Nvidia rose 6.5% and was the strongest force pushing upward on the S&P 500. All the other stocks in the small group known as the "Magnificent Seven" also climbed. They almost singlehandedly pushed the S&P 500 to dozens of all-time highs earlier this year, even as high interest rates weighed on much of the rest of the stock market.
Unlike much of the early part of this year, it wasn't just the Magnificent Seven rising Tuesday. Wall Street's rally was more widespread, and nearly 85% of the stocks in the S&P 500 rose. The smaller stocks in the Russell 2000 index also climbed 1.6%.
AUTO WORKERS UNION SEEKS NLRB INVESTIGATION OF TRUMP AND MUSK COMMENTS ABOUT FIRING STRIKING WORKERS
By TOM KRISHER AP Auto Writer
THE United Auto Workers union has filed unfair labor practice charges against Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk after the two discussed on social media about Musk supposedly firing striking workers.
In documents filed Tuesday with the National Labor Relations Board, the union alleges that both men interfered with workers who may want to exercise their right to join a union. The NLRB said it would look into the charges, which are a request for the agency to investigate.
UAW President Shawn Fain, whose union has endorsed Democrat Kamala Harris, said in a statement that Trump is anti-labor.
"Both Trump and Musk want working class people to sit down and shut up, and they laugh about it openly," Fain said.
Brian Hughes, a senior advisor with the Trump campaign, called the allegations "frivolous" and a "shameless political stunt" designed to erode Trump's strong support among American workers.
The NLRB said it would investigate the complaints, one filed against the Trump campaign and the other naming Tesla Inc., the electric vehicle, battery and solar panel manufacturer based in Austin, Texas, and led by Musk.
The charges stem from statements made by Trump Monday night during a conversation between the two men on X, the social media platform Musk now owns.
The former president spent much of the discussion that lasted more than two hours focused on his recent assassination attempt, illegal
immigration and plans to cut government regulations.
But during a discussion about government spending, Trump praised Musk for firing workers who went on strike. The UAW contends this could intimidate workers for the Trump campaign or at Tesla who might want to join a union.
"You're the greatest cutter," Trump told Musk. "I look at what you do. You walk in and say, 'You want to quit?' I won't mention the name of the company but they go on strike and you say, 'That's OK. You're all gone.'"
Musk said, "Yeah," and laughed while Trump was talking.
It wasn't clear what employees Trump was referring to.
In June, eight former workers at SpaceX, Musk's rocket company, sued the company and Musk, alleging he ordered them fired after they challenged what they called rampant sexual harassment and a hostile "Animal House"-style work environment at the company.
In addition, the NLRB determined that a 2018 Twitter post by Musk unlawfully threatened
Tesla employees with the loss of stock options if they decided to be represented by a union.
Three judges on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans upheld that decision, as well as a related NLRB order that Tesla rehire a fired employee, with back pay. But the full 5th Circuit later threw out that decision and voted to hear the matter again.
Sanjukta Paul, a law professor at the University of Michigan, said the UAW charges have real substance because the comments from Trump and Musk could "chill" efforts by workers to act collectively, including union organizing, or just getting together to improve working conditions.
Marick Masters, a business professor emeritus at Wayne State University who follows labor issues, said the UAW's move "puts the spotlight on Trump and attempts to put him on the defensive in terms of his attitude and demeanor toward unions." He added that the union is watching Musk's comments because it has targeted Tesla's U.S. factories for organizing drives.
THE NEW York Stock Exchange is shown on Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024, in New York.
Photo:Peter Morgan/AP
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP, right, talks with Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk at the White House in Washington, Feb. 3, 2017. Photo:Evan Vucci/AP
How X owner Elon Musk uses his social platform to amplify his right-wing views
By BARBARA ORTUTAY AP Technology Writer
As X's owner and most followed user, Elon Musk has increasingly used the social media platform as a megaphone to amplify his political views and, lately, those of right-wing figures he's aligned with. There are few modern parallels to his antics, but then again there are few modern parallels to Elon Musk himself.
Of course, none of this should come as a surprise.
Back in 2022 when he was trying to buy Twitter, Musk said he was doing so because it wasn't living up to its potential as a "platform for free speech."
Protecting free speech — not money — was his motivation because, as he put it, "having a public platform that is maximally trusted and broadly inclusive is extremely important to the future of civilization."
Musk often ruminates on the future of civilization.
For one, he appears fixated on a coming " population collapse," threatening to wipe out humanity. And he joined prominent scientists and tech leaders last year in warning the world about artificial intelligence doing the same. Musk has framed threats to free speech as yet another existential crisis looming over the world.
And he is going to try his best to save it.
"Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated," Musk said in an April 2022 post, adding hearts, stars and rocket emojis to highlight the statement.
Two years on, the platform — now called X — has indeed become a haven for the type of free speech Musk has come to champion. In the U.S., he's spread memes — and
sometimes misinformation — about illegal immigration, alleged election fraud and transgender policies, and he formally endorsed former President Donald Trump's presidential bid this summer. In May 2023, he cohosted Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' official presidential bid announcement. That turned out to be a disastrous rollout marred by technical glitches but it underscored Musk's desire to turn X into a "digital town square." After the event was marred by technical difficulties, Musk
extended an open invitation to any other presidential candidate who wants to do one. Trump took him up on it, agreeing to an interview with the billionaire Tesla CEO on Monday evening. The conversation started with technical glitches with people unable to join in and began some 42 minutes late.
"I've not been very political before," Musk said during his conversation with Trump. Overseas — where most X users live — he's feuded with top officials in Australia, Brazil, the European Union and the U.K. over
ESLA and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk speaks at the SATELLITE Conference and Exhibition in Washington, March 9, 2020. The British government on Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2024, has called on Musk to act responsibly after one of the world’s richest men used his social media platform to unleash a barrage of posts that risked inflaming the violent unrest gripping the country.
the balance between free speech and the spread of harmful misinformation.
And he accused a political party in his native South Africa of "openly pushing for genocide of white people."
"Elon Musk is a master of the media and controls one of the world's largest microphones. Musk understands the power of social media in shaping a political narrative," said Emarketer analyst Jasmine Enberg.
"The concern is that as he pushes his own political agenda, X could suppress viewpoints that oppose Musk's own, either intentionally or by nature of the platform becoming more partisan. That could turn off users who feel marginalized on the platform, and disillusion some who may have earlier bought into his free speech mantra."
Musk's political shift playing out on X comes as other social media platforms, notably Meta's Facebook and Instagram, are shying away from politics. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has never
Photo:Susan Walsh/AP
endorsed a presidential candidate — and in February, the world's largest social media company announced it would avoid recommending political content to people who don't already follow such accounts.
Lately, Zuckerberg appears to contrast Musk in other ways too. While as recently as January, the Facebook founder was testifying before Congress about the harm his platforms have caused children, he seemed to have embraced a more stylish look that includes gold chains, longer curls and a beaming confidence coupled with slightly selfdeprecating humor that seems to embrace his eccentricities. On July 4th, for instance, he posted a video of himself riding an electric surfboard, wearing a tuxedo and holding a can of beer in one hand and an American flag in the other. The online response was far more positive than to a 2021 surfing photo, where he's seen slathered in so much sunscreen it looks like he is wearing a white mask.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom nudges school districts to restrict student cellphone use
By SOPHIE AUSTIN Associated Press
CALIFORNIA
Gov.
Gavin Newsom sent letters Tuesday to school districts, urging them to restrict students' use of smartphones on campus — a move that comes amid an ongoing nationwide debate about
the mental health impacts of social media on teens and young children.
In South Carolina, the State Board of Education took up guidelines to tell local districts to ban cellphone use during class time, but postponed a final vote until next month to take more time to craft the proposal.
The efforts mark a broader push by officials in Utah, Florida, Louisiana and elsewhere to try to limit cellphone use in schools in order to reduce distractions in the classroom. But progress can be challenging. Cellphone bans are already in place at many schools. But they aren't always enforced, and students often find ways to bend the rules, like hiding phones on their laps. Some parents have expressed concerns that bans could cut them off from their kids if there is an emergency.
Districts should "act now" to help students focus at school by restricting their smartphone use, Newsom said in the letter. He also cited risks to the well-being of young people, a subject which garnered renewed attention in June after U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy called on Congress to require warning labels on social media platforms.
"Every classroom should be a place of focus, learning, and growth," Newsom, a Democrat, said in his letter. "Working together, educators, administrators, and parents can create an environment where students are fully engaged in their education, free from the distractions on the phones and pressures of social media."
Newsom said earlier this summer that he was planning to address student smartphone use, and his letter says he is working on it with the state Legislature. Tuesday's announcement is not a mandate but nudges districts to act.
Newsom signed a law in 2019 granting districts the authority to regulate student smartphone access during school hours. The debate over banning cellphones in schools to improve academic outcomes is not new. But officials often resort to bans as a solution rather than find ways to integrate digital devices as tools for learning, said Antero Garcia, a professor at Stanford University's Graduate School of Education.
"What I'm struck by is society's inability to kind of move forward and find
other kinds of solutions other than perpetually going back to this 'Should we ban devices?' conversation as the primary solution to something that hasn't worked," Garcia said.
"Suggesting curtailing cellphone use in schools is a great thing to say," he added. "What that means for the middle school teacher come next week when many schools start is a very different picture."
But some parents say banning cellphones would help their kids focus during class. Jessica French, a parent of a 16-year old and a 12-year-old living in the Northern California town of Palo Cedro, said her son has played games on a classmate's phone while at school, further distracting him from learning. There should be a statewide ban on phones in class, she said. Nathalie Hrizi, a parent and teacher in San Francisco, said phone bans can help minimize distractions in class and that parents would still be able to get in touch with their children if needed by calling the school.
Some schools and districts in California have already taken action. Los Angeles Unified, the second-largest school district in the nation with more than 500,000 students, recently passed a ban on student cellphone use during school hours that is set to take effect in January. District staff are working out how to implement the policy, but the goal is to avoid the onus of enforcing it to fall on teachers, school board Member Nick Melvoin said in a statement. Troy Flint, a spokesperson for the California School Boards Association, said decisions about student device access "are very specific to certain schools and certain communities" and should "be made at a local level."
It's important to limit distractions in class, but cellphone bans that don't have parameters could burden some students who are learning English as a second language, said Laurie Miles, a spokesperson for the California Association for Bilingual Education. For example, some teachers allow phones in class for help with translation, she said.
South Carolina lawmakers this summer passed a one-year rule in the state budget requiring schools to ban student cellphone use or lose state funding.
CALIFORNIA Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks at the opening ceremony for Panda Ridge, the new exhibit at the San Diego Zoo, Aug. 8, 2024, in San Diego.
Photo:Derrick Tuskan/AP
Starbucks CEO replaced by Brian Niccol, a fixer who revived Chipotle when the chain was in distress
By DEE-ANN DURBIN AP Business Writer
IN 2018, when Chipotle was reeling from multiple food poisoning outbreaks that had sickened 1,100 people, the company called Taco Bell CEO Brian Niccol to turn things around.
As Chipotle's chairman and CEO, Niccol beefed up marketing and product innovation, added a loyalty program and improved store operations. He also instituted employee benefits, like a program that pays employees' college tuition costs at certain schools.
Chipotle's revenue since then has nearly doubled.
On Tuesday, Niccol answered another call, this time from Starbucks. The Seattle coffee giant named Niccol as its new chairman and CEO, hoping he can revive fading sales and re-establish Starbucks as a destination where customers are willing to pay premium prices.
"I am excited to join Starbucks and grateful for the opportunity to help steward this incredible company, alongside hundreds of thousands of devoted partners," Niccol said.
Starbucks shares jumped 24.5% Tuesday on the news, recapturing all of their losses for the year.
However, Niccol faces far larger and deeper challenges at Starbucks, which has 38,000 stores worldwide compared to Chipotle's largely U.S.-based chain of 3,500 restaurants. Niccol has to figure out how to get inflation-weary U.S. customers back into stores for its pricey drinks.
"I will pay $9 for a burrito. I'm not sure I'm going to pay $9 for a cup of Venti shaken espresso," said Nancy Tengler, CEO of Laffer Tengler Investments, which owns shares in Starbucks and Chipotle.
In the U.S., Starbucks has struggled to balance demand for mobile orders and faster service with its more traditional role as an upscale cafe where customers can gather and relax.
Tengler said long wait times and a deluge of mobile orders have damaged the in-store experience at Starbucks, and Niccol will have to develop a plan to flip that around.
Starbucks — along with other big brands like McDonald's — is also confronting U.S. consumers who are increasingly looking for value and deals. Niccol will have to convince drinkers that a medium Starbucks iced coffee — now more than $5 in Manhattan — is worth paying for.
In China, Starbucks' second-largest market with 6,500 stores, customers are increasingly opting for coffee from lower-priced rivals. And in the Middle East and some countries in Europe, Starbucks is seeing boycotts related to the Israel-Hamas war.
Niccol replaces Laxman Narasimhan, who is stepping down immediately after spending a little more than a year in Starbucks' top job. Niccol will become Starbucks' chairman and CEO on Sept. 9. Starbucks Chief Financial Officer Rachel Ruggeri be the interim CEO until then.
Narasimhan succeeded Howard Schultz, the longtime Starbucks leader and chairman emeritus, in March 2023. But investors and the company's board quickly soured on the longtime PepsiCo executive, who trained as a barista and worked monthly in Starbucks stores but had little retail experience.
Starbucks' revenue dropped 2% in the first three months of this year, the first quarterly sales decline for the company since the end of 2020. The decline prompted a rebuke from Schultz, who wrote in a LinkedIn post this spring that company leaders should spend more time in stores and focus on coffee drinks.
Revenue fell again the next quarter. A new summer drink with boba-like raspberry "pearls" drove strong U.S. sales, but the company had to pull back on marketing after it ran out of ingredients.
Andy Barish, an equity analyst at the investment bank Jefferies, said investors didn't feel Narasimhan was effectively addressing Starbucks' issues, including increasingly complicated operations for store employees and ineffective marketing. New products — like a line of energy drinks — were also lackluster, Barish wrote Tuesday. Starbucks' same-store sales — or sales at stores open at least a year — fell 2% between April and June. During the same period, same-store sales at Chipotle jumped 11%.
Chipotle bucked the slowdown in consumer spending by offering popular limitedtime items like Chicken al Pastor. The company also emphasized value. When some customers began complaining on social media that they were getting smaller portions, Niccol said the company would retrain workers at the 10% of Chipotle stores that were making meals too small.
Elliott Investment Management, an activist firm with a significant stake in Starbucks, said it began talking about a change in leadership with Starbucks' board two months ago. In a statement Tuesday, the firm called Niccol's appointment a "transformational step forward."
"We welcome the appointment of Brian Niccol and we look forward to continuing our engagement with the board as it works toward the realization of Starbucks' full potential," Elliott Managing Partner Jesse Cohn and Partner Marc Steinberg said in a joint statement.
HELP WANTED
Established technology company based in Nassau is seeking candidates for the position of Network Administrator
Ability to work effectively within a team, along with good oral and written communication skills are important.
Minimum of five years’ experience with ability to deploy, configure, maintain and monitor all active network equipment in order to ensure smooth network operation.
2-5 years of working with Windows Server 2008 and up, supporting Exchange Server 2013 and up and O365/Hosted Exchange, strong Windows 7 & 10 desktop support.
Knowledge of VMware ESXi and Cisco routing and switching a plus.
Must have your own transportation.
Please send responses to resourcesit2@gmail.com
Older Americans prepare themselves for a world altered by artificial intelligence
By DAN MERICA Associated Press
THE students — most with gray hair, some with canes, all at least in their 60s — couldn't believe what they were hearing.
"Oh, my God," whispered a retired college professor.
"Does it come with viruses?" wondered a bewildered woman scribbling notes in the second row.
A 79-year-old in a blackand-white floral shirt then asked the question on many minds: "How do you know if it is fake or not?"
This is how older adults — many of whom lived through the advent of refrigeration, the transition from radio to television and the invention of the internet — are grappling with artificial intelligence: taking a class. Sitting in a classroom in an airy senior center in a Chicago suburb, the dozen students were learning about the latest — and possibly greatest — technological leap in their lives.
And they are not alone. Across the country, scores of such classes have sprung up to teach seniors about AI's ability to transform their lives and the threats the technology poses.
"I saw ice boxes turn into refrigerators, that is how long I have been around," said Barbara Winston, 89, who paid to attend the class put on at the North Shore Senior Center in Northfield. "And I think this is probably the greatest technical revolution that I will see in my lifetime."
Older adults find themselves in a unique moment with technology. Artificial intelligence offers significant benefits for seniors, from the ability to curb loneliness to making it easier for them to get to medical appointments.
But it also has drawbacks that are uniquely threatening to this older group of Americans: A series of studies have found that senior citizens are more susceptible to both scams perpetrated using artificial intelligence and believing the types of misinformation that are being supercharged by the technology. Experts are particularly concerned about the role deepfakes and other AI-produced misinformation could play in politics. Winston left the class to start her own
LOAN RECEPTIONIST
- High School Diploma Required
- One year of clerical experience
AI journey, even if others remained skeptical. When she got home, the retired professor downloaded books on the technology, researched the platforms she wanted to use from her kitchen table and eventually queried ChatGPT about how to treat a personal medical ailment.
"This is the beginning of my education," she said, her floral cup of coffee nearby.
"I'm not worried about protecting myself. I'm too old to worry about that."
Classes like these aim to familiarize aging early adopters with the myriad ways the technology could better their lives but also encourage skepticism about how artificial intelligence can distort the truth.
Balanced skepticism, say experts on the technology,
is critical for seniors who plan to interact with AI.
"It's tricky," said Michael Gershbein, the instructor of the class in Northfield.
"Overall, the suspicion that is there on the part of seniors is good but I don't want them to become paralyzed from their fears and not be willing to do anything online."
The questions in his class outside Chicago ranged from the absurd to the practical to the academic.
Why are so many new shoes no longer including shoelaces? Can AI create a multiday itinerary for a visit to Charleston, South Carolina? What are the geopolitical implications of artificial intelligence?
Gershbein, who teaches classes on a range of technological topics, said interest in AI has ballooned in the last nine months. The 52-year-old teaches an AI course once or twice a week, he said, and aims to create a "safe space where (seniors) can come in and we can discuss all the issues they may be hearing bits and pieces of but we can put it all together and they can ask questions."
During a 90-minute-long session on a June Thursday, Gershbein discussed deepfakes — videos that use generative AI to make it appear someone said something they did not. When he played a few deepfakes, the seniors sat agog. They could not believe how real the fakes seemed. There are widespread concerns that such videos could be used to trick voters, especially seniors.
- Minimum of two years’ experience working in a fast-paced financial service industry
DATA PROCESSOR
- High School Diploma Required
- One year of clerical experience
- Minimum of two years’ experience working in a fast-paced financial service industry
SECRETARY
- High School Diploma Required
- One year of clerical experience
- Minimum of two years’ experience working in a fast-paced financial service industry
HEAD TELLER
- High School Diploma Required
- A minimum of four years experience in a fast-paced financial institution
- A minimum of three years tellers experience
Interested persons should email a cover letter and resume to edavis@pwccul.com
To be received no later than 5pm on FRIDAY, August 30th, 2024
Only short-listed candidates will be contacted. NO telephone calls will be accepted!
BRIAN NICCOL, named the chairman and chief executive officer of Starbucks on Aug. 13, 2024, is shown during an interview on June 9, 2015, in New York.
Photo:Mark Lennihan/AP
BARBARA Winston uses a computer at her home in Northbrook,
on Sunday, June 30, 2024, several days after taking an introduction to artificial intelligence class at a local senior center.
Photo:Teresa Crawford/AP
PINTARD: GOVT ‘MUST BE TRANSPARENT’ ON SPENDING
how they are spending their tax dollars before asking for more.”
On Monday, the Davis administration released its draft domestic minimum top-up tax bill for consultation revealing its plans to implement a Pillar 2 corporate tax.
The 15 percent corporate tax on profits will apply to large multinational enterprises (MNEs) with at least €750m in annual turnover and is intended to ensure
The Bahamas complies and fulfills its obligations as one of 140 countries that
have signed on to the G-20/ Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD). The consultation process will end on September 16, with the bill anticipated to be submitted for Parliament approval on October 9. Mr Pintard criticised the Davis administration for not undergoing “robust public consultation and education” about the corporate minimum tax since its green paper was published last year and said the FNM did not receive a “substantive” response
when it offered feedback on its implementation.
“This Green Paper was supposed to be the start of a fulsome national conversation and dialogue on major tax and fiscal reform. As is convention, the Green Paper ought to have been followed with robust public consultation and education – after which a White Paper should have been published with a clearly articulated policy and related strategy for tax and fiscal reform that would be informed by the outcomes of the national discourse and debate,” said Mr Pintard.
“Unfortunately, after we in the opposition and other stakeholders provided written feedback on the Green Paper as requested, the government abandoned the national consultation. We never received a substantive response. No public engagement was undertaken. No White Paper was prepared.”
In a letter addressed to Simon Wilson, Financial Secretary on July 31, 2023, Mr Pintard said he did not oppose a corporate income tax in principle given the international pressures and The Bahamas’ commitment to the G-20/OECD 15
GB ‘had enough’ of rising costs
FROM PAGE A22
“In Freeport particularly, we’ve been plagued with a lot of power outages, unusually so in recent times. So, to talk about a rate increase, it’s certainly not the best timing given the number of power outages and persons’ claims of having lost equipment,” said Mr Carey.
“After Hurricane Dorian, the power company had permission to add a surcharge for restoration of the outside power plant, laying poles and lines to East Grand Bahama. That’s still in effect, I believe, and there’s no talk about when that comes off. So, the impact is there, obviously.”
He said although the Grand Bahama Port Authority and the Davis administration have boasted of the $2bn worth of investment slated for the second city its impact is not being felt by the community.
He explained that most of the investments such as the
Grand Bahama Shipyard expansion will not result in direct spend on the island and the economy is not as “robust” as expected.
“Persons have just had enough and Grand Bahama although there are promises of things moving ahead, and it was moving a bit, but it’s just not resonating where it is impacting the economy that much all at once,” said Mr Carey
“I hoped that things would be more robust by now. There was a promise of things being robust. The Port Authority continues to talk about the 2bn in investment that they have secured. A lot of that 2bn won’t be spent on the ground in Grand Bahama. Things like the Shipyard included in that were a substantial part of that investment is the acquisition of new dry docks, which will be spent elsewhere.”
He argued that although the Prime Minister, Philip Davis, has indicated
that the ongoing dispute between the government and the Grand Bahama Port Authority has not had an effect on investor confidence it has affected the island’s growth.
“I don’t think this spat between the government and the Port Authority is helping any. I think the Prime Minister indicated the other day that it’s not making any difference. I beg to differ. I think it is caused some persons who may have been thinking Grand Bahama to pause. I don’t think they’ve gone away, but it all impacts the economic trending upwards that we hoped would be taking place by this time.”
Grand Bahama’s electricity supplier managed to unite politicians of both parties in opposition to its application for approval by the Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA), its regulator, despite asserting that light bills for 75 percent of its customers will either
WSC responds after Eleuthera protest
steel tanks,” said the WSC statement.
“The first tank is substantially completed and the pipework contract preconstruction meeting is scheduled for tomorrow. The materials are on site and we expect works to commence shortly. Once this first tank is commissioned, the existing tank will be demolished and the second tank constructed on that site given the very limited land availability.”
WSC noted that $7m of “intensive works” are in progress to increase water storage throughout Eleuthera including repairing leaks and acquiring new tanks at the Bogue and Naval Base plants.
They said a leak in the Tarpum Bay tank will be assessed for repair and they will address the storage tanks that require “urgent
repair and maintenance works” at Waterford during contract negotations with the contractor.
“The Waterford (South Eleuthera) storage tank requires urgent repair and maintenance works and these will be addressed as part of our ongoing negotiations with the desalination contractor regarding the future of this facility.” said WSC.
“As part of the recently commenced Road Paving Public Private Partnership (PPP), a $30+ million component is included to address water transmission and distribution mains. The scope of works includes the installation of 49.8 miles of water mains across seven different locations on island.”
Other projects slated for Eleuthera include a new naval base pumping station; North Eleuthera pumping
and transmission assessment; additional desalinated water production for Central Eleuthera; new deep supply well for Bogue facility; exploring increased sustainable groundwater production and additional technical support.
WSC is engaged in a $190m plus capital works programme aimed at improving water supply throughout the Bahamas
“These recently completed and ongoing works outlined above are part of a much larger $190 million plus capital works programme, the largest in the history of the corporation, aimed at bringing about transformative improvements to the water and sanitation sector across all of Eleuthera and indeed throughout The Bahamas over the next several years,” said WSC.
remain unchanged or enjoy a slight decrease due to the base rate hike being offset by reductions in the fuel charge.
The matter has set the stage for a clash with the central government as it purportedly conflicts with the Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority’s (URCA) regulations. In July, the Davis administration amended the Electricity Act to clarify that URCA is responsible for regulating utilities nationwide.
The Davis administration has firmly rejected the proposal, asserting that it violates the law. Meanwhile, the port authority indicated that related conflicts are currently being addressed in the Supreme Court.
Fred Mitchell, minister of foreign affairs, PLP chairman and Fox Hill MP, said yesterday it is “very curious” that the Grand Bahama Port Authority is considering the request as
percent “global minimum tax” drive. However, he added that the implementation of such a tax must be accompanied by “fulsome reform.... that would abolish” the current business licence fee regime that is levied on companies’ gross turnovers as opposed to net profits. Mr Pintard added that The Bahamas has an “obligation to get it right” on tax reform through wide consultation, conducting the necessary empirical studies and seeking expert advice. Also calling for a system of tax credits and incentives to be created for Bahamian
they are currently engaged in court proceedings.
Mr Mitchell asserted that central government is the only “sovereign power” and is within its rights to pass laws for all entities within the Bahamas to follow.
He said: “It’s very curious to me that people who have lawyers who instruct them should know better. There’s a case which is before the courts right now. That case the judge has to decide the issue of jurisdiction.
“The law, from our point of view, is quite clear. The Constitution gives parliament the power to pass laws for the good order and peace of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. There is not a sub-sovereign power. There is not a competing sovereign power.
“That issue is settled, there’s only one sovereign power. That power resides in Nassau and in the parliament in Nassau, not in Freeport, in the Grand Bahama Port Authority.”
Mr Mitchell said it is “clear” that URCA is the regulator for the electricity sector as mandated in the
firms that hire more workers, or invest in expansion, under a corporate income tax, Mr Pintard argued that should such a levy be implemented it must “respect” Freeport’s free trade zone status and not be imposed on the city’s businesses. And the Opposition leader added that any tax reform, whether corporate income or otherwise, needed to align with the government’s fiscal targets and objectives of eliminating the annual deficit and cutting the debt-to-GDP ratio to 50 percent by generating sufficient revenues.
Electricity Act 2024 and he is of the opinion that consumers should file an injunction against the port authority considering the rate increase.
He said: “The law has been passed. It is clear that URCA has the jurisdiction the Grand Bahama Port Authority has licensing authority, but they do not have the power meaning to give you a business licence to operate Freeport, but they do not have the power to regulate power supply and the cost of power supply, because that vests in URCA.
“Now I started out by saying there’s a court case now, they should not have commented on it. They should have declined the jurisdiction until that case is settled. My own view is some individual consumer in Freeport should simply injunct the Grand Bahama Port Authority right now from considering this matter, because it is improperly before the Grand Bahama Port Authority.”
NO
FAITH IN BPL AND GOVT FROM ELEUTHERA RESIDENTS
uncomfortable conditions during outages.
“I was sweating bullets,” she said. “You doing a pedicure and the power just cuts off.”
Ms Catalyn said the outages have also caused tourists to leave her establishment in the middle of spa treatments. She said a few years ago during the American Independence Holiday weekend, “masses of tourists”, left the island due to outages. She said during that time the power was out for four days. However, she said that recently, the electricity had been off for, “an entire day”.
The owner of the salon said she wasn’t present during the protest and Ms Catalyn said if she had been on the island she would have been part of the protest.
FROM PAGE A22 LEGAL NOTICE NOTICE
She blames the government for BPL’s behaviour in regards to power outages and high bills, stating the government “are the managers”. She also claimed no one came to the island to speak to her and other business owners until after residents protested.
“We made it quite clear that we were going to do a demonstration,” Mrs Catalyn said. “Had somebody come speak to us it may not have been necessary. That’s what I’m talking about. They come after the fact.” Mrs Catalyn describes one of the “biggest grievances” as BPL not reimbursing customers after power dips and outages damage appliances. She claimed the motherboards of the washer and dryer at her spa were blown about a week ago, due to dips in the power. She said she asked BPL for
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In Voluntary Liquidation
Notice is hereby given that in accordance with Section 138 (4) of the International Business Companies Act, (No.45 of 2000), Evry Ltd. (the “Company”) is in dissolution.
The date of commencement of the dissolution is the 8th day of August, 2024 Inigo, Melanie, is the Liquidator and can be contacted at of 825 BRICKELL BAY DR, APT 948, Miami, Florida, 33131-2918, United States.
All persons having claims against the above-named Company are required to send their names, addresses and particulars of their debts or claims to the Liquidator before 7th September 2024
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reimbursement once before but nothing came of it.
“I had to bring proof to show where there was a spike or dip in the electricity at that precise time,” Mrs Catalyn explained. “Something like that, they said. Mind you, there’s ten other people outside waiting with similar complaints. People have large complaints and have gotten nowhere.”
Mrs Catalyn underlined the role Harbour Island plays in the economy of The Bahamas, reminding BPL and the government that Eleutherns deserve better.
“I’m sure you’re aware of the amount of funds that is generated, not on Eleuthera, on Harbour Island alone,” she said. “We have eight major hotels on Harbour Island. We have summer resident and winter resident homes. It is extremely hurtful that we have to be plagued by the modern day outages. It’s not acceptable.”
Mrs Catalyn did want to leave a few positive words about the company and said she must give BPL credit for alerting residents when outages occur but she calls for more transparency.
“Being on the island for so many years, it was good at one point, I must say,” she said. “Then something happened where maintenance was let go or the wrong type of transformers were used. It’s a number of excuses. I’ve heard all the excuses. I’ve lived through it. I was here when the power plant burned up 40 something years ago. I was here after Hurricane Andrrew when we had no electricity and water and compared to what is happening now, this is definitely the worst.”
As far as the promised added generation that should be available by the end of September, the owner of the nail salon said it’s just that- a promise. She said she hopes it’s one they fulfill.
STORES AND SHELTERS READY FOR DEMAND IN CASE OF HURRICANE
By Annelia Nixon anixon@tribunemedia.net
WITH what meteorologists have termed “an active hurricane season”, residents, hardware stores and hurricane shelters have been gearing up in preparation for any possible weather disturbances.
Chief meteorologist Mary Butler, told Tribune Business that The Bahamas lies in the hurricane belt. She said this means meteorologists expect at least two or three storms to hit The Bahamas during hurricane season. She added that Dorian was the first hurricane in history to sit over any Bahamian island for 48 hours and since it happened once it can happen again.
“Having a cat [category] five at any time of any year moving forward is evident,” Mrs Butler said. “We can possibly have one. We have had cat [category] fives before. That’s nothing new to us but the impacts from Dorian was such that at that time, Dorian, unlike any other storms or cat [category] fives we’ve experienced before, remained in our area for 48 hours. Which made it very destructive for us. In the past with cat [category] fives they would come into our area but they move very quickly
out so the impact has not been that devastating for us like Dorian.” Residents of Grand Bahama, since experiencing catastrophic hurricane Dorian five years ago, seem to have begun early preparations for the season, according to the general manager of Dolly Madison Home Centre, James Rolle. He said the store has experienced an increase in sales even before the hurricane season began, noting that hurricane supplies were the items being bought in high quantities. “From a business point of view and my observation, I’ve realised that the residents of Grand Bahama in particular are very cognizant of the dangers of storms,” Mr Rolle said. “Because of experiencing Dorian, I have seen the exercise of awareness from our customers in terms of purchasing hurricane supplies. One of the things I have noticed is that, even prior to the hurricane season, persons were picking up items that were generic to hurricane preparedness and it continues to go on. Persons have been securing on a more convenient basis instead of waiting until a storm becomes more eminent and the rush is on to purchase all those things in bulk.”
Mr Rolle said customers are purchasing batteries in bulk, portable stoves, portable gas, candles, matches and other hurricane essential items. He also mentioned customers purchasing cutlasses and chain saws so they can prepare their yards for a possible storm. Although Dolly Madison Home Center also sells generators, he said he has not seen an increase in sales in them
“Sales on generators is slow,” he stated. “I think what has happened is, during the aftermath of Dorian, a lot of generators were actually given away. So, a lot of residents would have probably benefited from the free generators and so there really isn’t a rush for persons to go out there and buy generators.”
Currently, forecasters are tracking tropical storm Ernesto, which chief meteorologist Orson Nixon said is expected to pass to the east of the southeast Bahamas the night of August 14 through the morning of the 15th.
“The current models have the system passing to the east of the southeast Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands on Wednesday night through Thursday morning,” Mr Nixon explained. “We don't
expect any significant direct impacts at the moment. However, we do expect with definite certainty indirect impacts, such as swells, affecting the Southeast Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands as the system moves past our islands.”
Mr Nixon said he does not expect the storm to bring catastrophic damage to The Bahamas.
“As the system reaches North of Puerto Rico, and starts that northward track, it will contribute to some enhancement in shower and thunderstorm activity but not to a sever extent,” Mr Nixon said. “But there will be a brief period where we have an increase in activities across the South East Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands. We do expect it to strengthen into a hurricane by early Wednesday and this will be on the lower end of the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane scale.”
Although models show Tropical Storm Ernesto traveling east of the southeast Bahamas, Mr Nixon called storms “unpredictable” and said it could change directions at any time. He said, for this reason, he urges residents that, “any time a system is coming close to their vicinity, they should prepare as
if that system will pass over them.” According to the chairman and the past president of the Betsy Bay Social Club in Mayaguana, Mario Murphy, that is exactly what residents on the island are doing.
With Mayaguana being one of the islands in the southeast chain, he said he is keeping an eye on the storm. He added that the Betsy Bay Community Center, which the organisation oversees, has been utilized as a Hurricane Shelter for ten or more years and that it is the strongest structure on the island. He said that this year would be no different.
“We are a nonprofit organisation so we have limited resources,” Mr. Murphy said. “We do our best to maintain it.”
He said the shelter has a full kitchen, a drink cooler, restrooms, ductless AC units and he mentioned that NEMA has installed a backup generator at the center. He said the shelter will be open to those who need it, noting that there aren't many other options if a resident lives in the Betsy Bay area.
“We are in the middle of nowhere and we only have two flights a week. Bahamasair comes here twice a week so you don’t have
much options- Monday or Friday,” Mr Murphy said. “So when it comes to the storm, either you have to wait it out in your house or come to the shelter.”
Mr Murphy said he is waiting on both NEMA and Social service to help with donating supplies for the shelter. He said they normally do so when a storm is traveling.
With the hurricane season in full effect, a representative of Storm Frame Windows and Doors Ltd, Henry Lightbourne, is urging Bahamians to be prepared. Mr Lightbourne said business is picking up and the store is receiving many inquiries about its services, including its hurricaneimpact windows collection.
“We’re getting a number of calls asking if we have windows,” Mr Lightbourne said. “We have taken a very aggressive approach to the market although sometimes we run up against a lot of headwinds. There are people calling us from all over The Bahamas from as far south as Inagua, to as far north as Abaco and Grand Bahama and all points in between. So business is healthy.”
