Dear Queenie,

I really think that more women should start standing up for themselves, taking control of their lives, and not let men walk over them.

I read today, August 27, of the woman (Still in tears) who got chlamydia from her husband of 15 years. She is right, it could have been AIDS. Lady, buckle your belt, and leave that dog, because the next time, it could be AIDS. Then what? You give your life for a man who has little or no regard for you!

After 15 years, there should be trust and respect, not heartache and pain. You give your whole life, thinking you will reap the rewards, only to be humiliated on this little island where Tom knows Harry and Harry knows Jane and Paul.

I am just sick of going places and seeing these men with other women, while their wives are at home or on vacation. I know so many women who would never think that their man is with another woman. It's a shame, when one partner has so much trust in their relationship, and the other person just spit and vomit on it.

Young women in St. Maarten, leave husbands alone. There are enough single men out there. Or do you think the married ones have more money to support you and all your children?

It's not just the young men who are robbing stores and killing each other that are putting St. Maarten down, that are robbing it of its values. It's also these young women, who are killing off family values and robbing a marriage of any chance.

I used to work in a bar/restaurant with this young girl, and when the men (tourists) would come to the bar, she would actually flirt with them knowing that their wives were somewhere in the hotel. Shameless, I tell you. Today, she is living with a married man. It's these women, that are cursing St. Maarten, and it won't get any better, because they are training their young ones to do the same when they grow up.

Queenie, what went wrong with good old values?—Fed up

Dear Fed up,

I suspect that things have not changed as much as you think from "the good old days." It's just that nowadays people are less secretive about their misbehaviour and they gossip about others out in the open, not just in whispers behind closed doors.

And why do you blame only the women who tempt the men? Do you think men are spineless wimps who cannot be expected to withstand temptation? In many cases it is the (married) men who chase after any women they can get.

As for family values, I lay the blame on the parents, both fathers and mothers, who do not teach their sons and daughters right from wrong.