THERE’S A FEELING of patriotism all across Barbados.
People are connecting to the national symbols, such as the flag, anthem and the pledge. This was very evident during Crop Over, whether at Pic-o-de-Crop, Kiddies Kadooment or Grand Kadooment. I suspect this mood will carry through and get even stronger in November.
For all those who do not want to celebrate the 50th anniversary of this nation in grand style, too bad for you.
So now we have this feeling of pride in our country, we should try to correct a few things before November 30.
We are a proud people so we must show other friends from across the region that Bim is still the Gem of the Caribbean. And, we ain’t looking down on anyone when we say so.
There are efforts by some Bajans to pull the country down, but things aren’t as bad as the doubting Thomases and scaremongers would lead us to believe. Barbados is still the best place to live in the Caribbean.
And even if we ain’t one people, one nation, and are still divided by class and race, we have managed to live together.
So now we have rich white men and very rich black men, poor black men and still poorer black men. But despite these challenges we still are a proud people.
We have Sir Garfield Sobers and Rihanna. We can still make the best rum, and our craftsmen, especially those working with mahogany, are among the best anywhere. And, we still excel in cricket and have some of the best cuisine.
Our Crop Over is undoubtedly the sweetest summer festival.
But we have some problems that must be put right.
So we will ask Archbishop Dr John Holder, one of the imams in Kensington, and the rabbi near Coleridge Street to prayer for changes in those areas where we fall down. We say therefore, Dear Lord, help us find solutions for the following:
· The indiscriminate dumping across the island.
. The urinating in the alleys and streets of Bridgetown.
. The growing numbers of vagrants.
. The public service vehicle operators who don’t care about anyone.
. The drug pushers who don’t care whose lives they destroy.
. The corruption and dishonesty which occurs each and every day.
. The young men with their ghetto look showing their underwear.
. The loud and offensive music played in public.
. The exploitation of people.
. The garbage pile-up throughout the country.
. The horrible conditions which still prevail in City districts.
. The crime and violence.