as the chime of a clock goes tick and tock so my mind chimes with thoughts sublime and as I rhyme in time with lines designed to …
September 20, 2023
September 20, 2023
COMMENTARY — ‘The rule of capital’ explained
Capital is resources that drive social and economic growth: finance, machinery, land, technology, labour, skills and management. Those who control capital and how capital is managed rule society. If Virgin …
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September 18, 2023
EDITORIAL: Prospect has prospects
We are glad that the new government is jump-starting long-delayed plans to redevelop the Prospect Reef Resort. To hear Premier Dr. Natalio “Sowande” Wheatley tell it, leaders seem to be …
September 13, 2023
REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK (September 14 ,2023)
Recovery newsletter A Beaconite was pleased to see that the Recovery and Development Agency recently launched a “Recovery Matters” newsletter focusing on the impact of the agency six years after …
September 13, 2023
COMMENTARY — Brit recalls his early married life in VI
I described in my Aug. 31 commentary, “A VI wedding and Captain Wagner,” how an amusing incident after my wedding on Tortola in 1983 led me to discover my Virgin …
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September 11, 2023
EDITORIAL: Six years after Irma, all is not well
The past year has seen the most progress yet on the government’s protracted recovery from hurricanes Irma and Maria. Unfortunately, that’s not saying much. First, though, the good news: The …
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September 6, 2023
COMMENTARY — ‘A hard lesson for a generous community’
A community coming together to aid one stricken by personal financial crisis is admirable. However, that assistance must come with safeguards for those who contribute their cash. There are caveats …
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September 5, 2023
EDITORIAL: Airport project won’t work without full transparency
For more than a decade, a disturbing lack of transparency has surrounded multiple governments’ unsuccessful efforts to expand the Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport. The new government must turn over …
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August 30, 2023
REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK (Aug. 31, 2023)
Whale of a time The float of a humpback whale that dazzled crowds at the August Monday Parade with its working blowhole, recorded whale songs, and immense scale has found …
August 30, 2023
COMMENTARY — A VI wedding and Captain Wagner
In my Aug. 17 commentary “Captain with VI links remembered,” I described how Polish sailor Wladek Wagner’s epic voyage to promote the reborn Poland started in summer 1931 when he …
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August 28, 2023
EDITORIAL: Deadly Hawaii fires a wake-up call for VI
The heart-breaking wildfire in Hawaii this month should serve as an urgent warning to the Virgin Islands. The two archipelagos, after all, are very similar in many important respects. Both …
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August 23, 2023
COMMENTARY — Emancipation reflections
At the annual August Emancipation Festival in late July and early August, the people of the Virgin Islands have traditionally celebrated emancipation and the basic freedoms we enjoy today. But …
August 23, 2023
COMMENTARY — ‘A festival, not a carnival’
Commentator Dean “The Sportsman” Greenaway recently made an important point about August Emancipation Festival. “We celebrate a festival, not a carnival; & rise ’n shine, not j’ouvert,” he posted on …
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August 22, 2023
EDITORIAL: Make the most of slow season
Following a busy tourism season that harked back to pre-Covid years, we are now encouraged by signs that the first post-pandemic slow season may not be so slow after all. …
August 17, 2023
REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK (Aug. 17, 2023)
Miss BVI Beacon Beaconites are pleased and proud that frequent Beacon contributor Anika Christopher won the Miss BVI Pageant on Aug. 6. They also applaud her platform of spreading climate …
August 17, 2023
LETTER — Activist defends LGBTQ+ rights in region
The recent diplomatic spat between Jamaica and the United States over Jamaica’s refusal to accredit the same-sex partner of a US diplomat posted to the island highlighted the truly bizarre …
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August 17, 2023
COMMENTARY — Polish captain with VI links remembered
I was introduced to Poland’s tragic history in my early teens when I read about the origins of the Dulwich Picture Gallery (as I recounted in my July 20 commentary, …
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August 5, 2023
EDITORIAL: Much to celebrate, much to remember
In the coming days, we hope that everyone will partake in a post-pandemic August Emancipation Festival that promises to be one for the record books. But amid the revelry, the …
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August 2, 2023
REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK (August 3, 2023)
Printing schedule Because of the August Emancipation Festival holiday, the Beacon will not print next Thursday. Printing will resume Aug. 17, and advertising and editorial deadlines will return to normal …
August 2, 2023
COMMENTARY — More calypso memories shared
One of my most memorable calypso moments happened not in a calypso tent or in the Festival Village; not in the cultural centre or in the courtyard at Prospect Reef …
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July 31, 2023
EDITORIAL: A vote for election reform
The recent report from election observers should serve as a reminder for the new government to tackle long-needed reforms before voters head to the polls again. We were pleased that …
July 26, 2023
REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK (JULY 27, 2023)
Celebrating D’Moi A Beaconite has called Cane Garden Bay home for more than three years, and she was moved by the astounding support her neighbours gave to D’Moi Hodge as …
July 26, 2023
COMMENTARY — Engineer weighs in on minimum wage
I heard about the call for comments in the news on increasing the minimum wage, and there is so much here that I don’t know where to start. I think …
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July 26, 2023
COMMENTARY — VI calypso memories shared
Following my recent post on the Facebook forum Real BVI Community Board questioning the omission of a calypso show or competition from the August Emancipation Festival line-up this year, I …
July 24, 2023
EDITORIAL: Are Virgin Islands airports in crisis?
Something is terribly wrong at the territory’s airports, and the BVI Airports Authority owes the public a full and candid explanation. On July 17, for the second time in less …
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