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We have a lot to learn from our friends in the South.

Last Saturday night, the Speaker of the Cayman Legislative Assembly Mrs. Edna Moyle, gave a speech to a collection of Bermuda's leaders. We also got a brief glimpse into the potent intellect couched in her wry humour.

She pointed to our legislature's role in preserving and strengthening our society, and of our obligation to insure our parliament is provided with intellectually capable individuals. She encouraged the audience to "put every resource to work for us in strengthening" our Houses of Parliament. While she was speaking to mostly parliamentarians, the message holds for the media too. Endless tearing down of our leaders not only discourages the existing crop, it discourages those who might well serve us better.

This is a message the public should hear: Whether dealing with our children, our youth or our leaders, their good qualities need as much recognition as, or more than, the ones we want them to change. What we give attention to is what is likely to grow. We cannot afford to have only the negative get our attention.

In her speech, Mrs. Moyle shared a quote from 19th Century author and Unitarian minister James Freeman Clarke who said: "A Politician thinks of the next election, a Statesman thinks of the next generation." Even this is relatively near-sighted when compared to the "primitive" native peoples of the Americas who, in their Iroquois Six-Nations Federation Constitution, decreed that policies must take into consideration the effect they would have on the seventh generation.

I don't believe that many of our leaders are thinking to the next generation when they allow lax policing of noise and speed on our roadways; permit increasingly large vehicles on our un-expandable roads, allow drivers from other jurisdictions to get a Bermuda driver's licence without doing a road test. (That 75 per cent usually pass the test is a bogus reason to dispense with the test. So many pass because they practice in preparation for passing the test. If in the future they don't have to take a driver's test, then there'll be no need for them to practice.) Allowing too-rapid expansion of the economy is not sustainable. It results in a detrimental effect on housing availability and prices, and an overheated construction industry. This is not a next generation-friendly policy.

The sometimes petty squabbling that passes for debate on The Hill isn't done with the next generation in mind, nor is the absent debate on weighty issues. But then, there have been good moves by leaders in both government and the opposition: The setting up of an Office of the Ombudsman was a move worthy of leadership. As was the appointment of a Bermuda Independence Commission as a step in providing factual education about the pros and cons of independence. The initiation of a Sustainable Development Project was a very important move with future generations in mind. Opposition initiatives for Whistle-blower protection, Freedom of Information legislation and an examination of the Rules of the House also show a leadership extending their vision beyond the next election.

Mrs. Moyle's speech was a model of statesmanship. It touched upon some issues where caution is needed, but focused on innovations to elevate the quality of leadership in her home, in ours, and in the region as a whole.

This was done with enough humour to keep our spirits light while digesting deep thoughts about our democracy.

The Speaker's Dinner was altogether an elegant affair.[[In-content Ad]]

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