BERT Unpingco, Mr. Tourism on Guam, and someone who loves the United States, said on the “Tourism Show” on April 7 that “we are getting crumbs” from Uncle Fed. (Remember this is a person who says we are not American enough. Maybe we can start paying into Uncle Fed.)
So if we get the steak and potatoes, things will be better? And he says he has been here 74 years as proof (that the U.S. has short changed Guam). This is the prevailing sentiment among Guam leaders, both formal and informal, that feeds into the ‘red meat’ thrown at the masses come every election season to drive a wedge between the natives and other ethnic groups and at a different level, GovGuam and the federal government.
People on Guam should ask themselves if their lot in life is better than their nearby neighbors. There is a reason why folks come here instead of us going there (even if reciprocity). Surely folks don’t think that Guam is attractive to them because we did something fantastic that made us a better place to live and work, do they?
Remember that the people who come here from neighboring island nations (large and small) are DISGUSTED with their own leaders for the most part. The same reason why the middle-class clans on Guam also left and I believe continues to pack up and ‘git’. Because they too are DISGUSTED with local leadership (both Dems and Republicans and their political machines).
If you minus the amount of money Uncle Fed has plied into Guam over 50 years, Guam will look like one of the impoverished island in the South Pacific. Does this mean there are no outstanding gnawing issues that lie festering? Of course not. With a Democratic Congress, your chances to get war reparations, radiations compensation and land compensation issues are much brighter. If it gets blocked, remember it is the Republicans who will do so as they don’t care and don’t want to spend. Much like the local tight-wads we have here. And if you want more “crumbs,” vote for liberal Dems.

MATT PHILIPS
Mangilao, Guam