Dear Editor,
Every generation has a picture of success and that picture causes us to behave in particular ways and do particular things. The generation born in the late 60s and early 70s has not done something properly in providing for our children this picture of success. Therefore, we see our young people doing things which the nation finds so unacceptable.
One of the guests on TVJ's All Angles aired on Wednesday, July 23, said that life was hard and he saw that girls got what they wanted. He was told he looked like a girl so he began wearing a dress and he became his picture of success. Is it possible that those involved in scamming are victims of the same thinking? Is it possible that those who are involved in praedial larceny are victims of the same thinking?
I certainly do not want to trivialise the situation or make it seem that the solutions are easy. If only it were so, then we have solved the problems already. The time and place we find ourselves in, as a nation, demand that we sit down and be very honest about the causes and then work towards a solution or solutions. Defining the cause will ensure that history is never repeated and it will cause the solution or solutions to be more than a photo opportunity and nice words.
The truths of this country are hard to face, and we have come to the place where they must be faced. Once upon a time standards and order where the guiding principles; that has changed. At the beginning, it may have appeared to be the right thing and the generation of that period championed the possibilities. The challenge of reordering the foundation of a society is that the change almost never stops at its optimal level.
Jamaica has well passed the optimal level of change and now it's time to stop. We are heading into decline and we see the backlash. The change requires more that a token demonstration, no matter how large that demonstration is. It requires an action like the creation of Jamaicans For Justice; made up of people who see the need and are prepared to step out of their comfort zone and commit. It's time.
Christopher Givans
Christopher.givans@gmail.com
If we are to see success...
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Every generation has a picture of success and that picture causes us to behave in particular ways and do particular things. The generation born in the late 60s and early 70s has not done something properly in providing for our children this picture of success. Therefore, we see our young people doing things which the nation finds so unacceptable.
One of the guests on TVJ's All Angles aired on Wednesday, July 23, said that life was hard and he saw that girls got what they wanted. He was told he looked like a girl so he began wearing a dress and he became his picture of success. Is it possible that those involved in scamming are victims of the same thinking? Is it possible that those who are involved in praedial larceny are victims of the same thinking?
I certainly do not want to trivialise the situation or make it seem that the solutions are easy. If only it were so, then we have solved the problems already. The time and place we find ourselves in, as a nation, demand that we sit down and be very honest about the causes and then work towards a solution or solutions. Defining the cause will ensure that history is never repeated and it will cause the solution or solutions to be more than a photo opportunity and nice words.
The truths of this country are hard to face, and we have come to the place where they must be faced. Once upon a time standards and order where the guiding principles; that has changed. At the beginning, it may have appeared to be the right thing and the generation of that period championed the possibilities. The challenge of reordering the foundation of a society is that the change almost never stops at its optimal level.
Jamaica has well passed the optimal level of change and now it's time to stop. We are heading into decline and we see the backlash. The change requires more that a token demonstration, no matter how large that demonstration is. It requires an action like the creation of Jamaicans For Justice; made up of people who see the need and are prepared to step out of their comfort zone and commit. It's time.
Christopher Givans
Christopher.givans@gmail.com
If we are to see success...
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