Squandering resources

The golf lobby is becoming increasingly irrational in its arguments in favour of a second golf course. John Mifsud is grateful to the British for building the existing course at the Marsa. He might be as a golfer: it's a very nice wee course.

But Marsa was built by the British military for use by the British military and the British administration.

Mr Mifsud is, of course, right that there was no preparatory discussion about land use, or water supply or other agricultural issues.

This is because the British military, as the colonising power, was not in the habit of giving even a first thought, let alone a second one, to the wishes or the needs of the colonised.

Does Mr Mifsud really want to return to those days?

While it is undoubtedly true that the Marsa golf course is a credit to the island, Mr Mifsud might like to take a comparative look at the state of the rest of the Marsa complex Malta inherited - for example the mini-Maghtab that the Maltese rugby teams are expected to play on... and they, after all, are the sportsmen who make up Malta's most successful international team (possibly Malta's only successful international team) of the moment.

If the country cannot look after what it has already acquired (for virtually nothing) where's the argument for squandering resources which you do not have on something for which there is an extremely limited demand?