Random News Generator- St. Helena

Sometimes I hate this thing.

This is the second time, according to my records, that I've done St. Helena. (Yes, I have records of this. England, Trinidad and Tobago and the United Arab Emirates lead the pack with three appearances each.) I hated this just as much three years ago, and found that so do the locals, many of which run screaming into the arms of England at the first opportunity because there's nothing on the island and it's boring and isolated and blech.

Back then, I noted that a ship serves the island every other week or so in order to truck in supplies. There is actually a thing happening regarding that: namely, St. Helena is in the process of building an airport. That would significantly reduce the amount of isolation, as supplies could be brought in within hours instead of days or weeks. Construction began in 2012; it's slated to be completed in 2016. Once it's up and running, the ship will be retired.

There is actually some opposition to this. A ship is able to carry different kinds of freight than a plane- the heavier stuff, chiefly, like cars- and so despite funding for the airport winning a referendum in 2002 by a margin of 72-28, it wasn't absolute. The referendum was alleged to have been slanted in favor of the airport, as it stated straight out that money was going to be spent on something. The choice was to spend it on the airport or spend it on a new ship. Some people didn't want to spend anything on anything, and especially do not want the island to suffer from overdevelopment, preferring a slow-paced existence to what modernization would bring.

I know how I'm voting. If it's not for the airport, I'm telling you about coins with birds on them.