Chapter 9 bankruptcy stares us in our faces. Despite six task forces, adept advisors, competent professionals and widespread support for just solutions and lasting formulas for our rehabilitation, we are living a crazy life in the Virgin Islands.
The austerity measures to be adopted are well known, and they should have been implemented en el primero dia — the first day of the Turnbull-James Administration.
The problems are well known, the conditions that led to these problems are even better understood, and the solutions have been reiterated ad nauseam.
What else will it take for our political leadership to act on the well-known formula of sacrificing now and reaping later — three wise men and a bright star from the east? Please, not another hurricane!
My brother Kankan tells me we need some divine stuff to wake us up, but we've had six hurricanes in 10 years and we still cannot make tough choices, stick by those decisions and implement them. I do not mean to sound blasphemous to the devout crowd, but after a while, even spiritual guidance cannot rescue such hardheaded people.
Around us everything is changing but our foolish mentality and us. Cuba will be re-integrated in the world capitalist system within five years, and the United States will normalize relations with that island state within two years — if not sooner.
The cruise ship industry will increase calls within the region, but passengers will spend less than half of what they used to in our local stores. Our petrochemical and aluminum refinery plants on St. Croix will be subjected to the volatile conditions of global production more than ever before. Hence, we cannot expect consistent flows of production or profit.
North American Free Trade Agreement and World Trade Organization regulations will limit the preferred market status of our local Cruzan Rum on the U.S. mainland, and within five years we will be engaged in Rum Wars just as our sister Caribbean neighbors are now fighting Banana Wars.
But here in the Virgin Islands, our political leaders are silent on these issues. Most appear overwhelmed by the fiscal crisis that confronts the territory and unable to tie the larger economic trends that will create economic disasters to the small issues of balancing the budget and growing the economy.
I do not want to be mistaken as an esoteric academic more concerned with coffee beans in Colombia than the price of rice in Pueblo, but for too long our leaders have been unaware of the real world of global economics.
As an exception, Tourism Commissioner designate Michael Bornn honestly said that the Virgin Islands needs an advertising budget of about $20 million instead of $1 million. (I read it is less, but I do not believe that our government could be so unwise). Many past and present legislators have used tourism advertising funds as a "partner hand" or "slush fund." Whatever hot event was on for the year, they spent tourism advertising dollars on it.
What is disgusting during these annual raids on tourism funds is the illogical logic politicians use to win Mr. or Ms. Popularity: that investing in anything that promotes the Virgin Islands promotes the tourism product.
That logic was used for the Sinbad's Soul Music Festival. Give Sinbad just about everything, and we will automatically benefit because Sinbad will promote us because he was here.
"Nuthin t'all go so."
We need to hire economists who understand economic development. We need to elect political leaders who understand business management, accounting, economics, political science and public administration. The present approach of collective denial and procrastination will compound our problems. The solution is simple: (1) balance the budget; (2) get all of our excise taxes gasoline and rum).
Concerning the gasoline excise taxes, we need to be brutally honest. Let those political leaders who are unwilling and unable to fight for what is due to our people, step aside; we shall deal with you in the 2000 election. For those who talk the talk, you must walk the walk, and get busy researching how to get our money.
The 20th Century will end with the Virgin Islands people in the most insane predicament:
- We shall be the most conspicuous consumers in the Caribbean but the least productive.
- We shall have the best possible political conditions to make this territory a beacon of democracy but do nothing except engage in stupid, petty personality conflicts while the political system rots.
- We shall have all the material conditions to resolve every socio-economic problem but due to our ideological and moral bankruptcy we will cannibalize our children's future while we get our grooves on.
- We shall impose tremendous difficulties on future generations of Virgin Islanders by failing to make the difficult choices, the severe sacrifices, today, in order for our children to benefit tomorrow.
- We will live la vida loca until our society collapses and we learn to place our priorities in the right order. Our children will never forgive us despite our mental condition(s).
