WHAT WILL IT TAKE to bring under control the epidemic of lethal violence now afflicting us? When will the current wave of madness subside? As we hear of and read about the daily body count, a kind of numbness is setting in. Some persons say the debate about the publication of the toll should really be about the “how” of changing a situation, which is “reducing us to the least”.

When the figures are carried on the front page it annoys some persons, not only because we are frightened by the overwhelming cruelty, but because it makes us “look bad”. What will the tourists think of us? some ask. What about the investors? others fret. Will they really stay away because of the body count of those fallen in our stupid and senseless battle?

We’re upset because the figures do just that – upset us by reminding us of our vulnerability and our continuing impotence to do anything about this scourge. Of course, it is not the first time that we have found ourselves held hostage by a disregard for life and property. “We thought the 70s were as bad as it could get, but little did we know that worse was to come,” someone said to me this week.

Each day the wound gets deeper. No one feels safe, especially when the bullet hits nearer home. As journalists, we weep with colleagues Paget and Angela deFreitas whose son Mark was added to the statistics a few days ago. Daily, we write the stories of suffering felt by families. When it comes nearer home, it is an assignment we would rather avoid. Words are in no way adequate to express our full sympathy to our colleagues. Paget described his son to me as “a happy person; he was full of happiness”. Who would want to take the life of a happy young man?

It is said no parent expects to bury a child. Today, we are seeing the order reversed when our friends are called on to face the challenge. Our prayers and thoughts go out to them. Meanwhile, the dead-count continues. By Tuesday of this week it had exceeded the 500 mark. Where will it end?

SOME PERSONS who question the point of publishing the numbers argue that if it does not propel our leaders and the security forces to some kind of action, then the publication is a waste of time, merely cosmetic. Others, including the publishers, believe that the nation must be alerted, to do whatever is possible to stem the evil tide. Do what? some people retort.

It doesn’t help that relations between citizens and the police are at an all-time low. The many instances of corruption and abuse of power by rogue cops have turned the minds of many citizens against the very persons in whose hands our safety lies. Trust has been replaced by cynicism. So who is to protect us now?

The finally confirmed Commissioner of Police Mr Owen Ellington has asked for the cooperation of the public to take back the society from the destroyers. Even he must have been surprised to hear the idea scoffed at and rejected. The police should get on with their job, some say. Stop all this nonsense about citizens fighting crime. That’s what the police are paid to do…Yes, it has come to that.

Public opinion, reflected in correspondence to the newspapers, shows that some persons are no longer willing to assist the police in the battle against evil-doers. We need to know now whether it is just a few who are disillusioned or a significant majority who are on the law’s side. Among other questions to be asked is why Neighbourhood Watch has almost been abandoned. The fact is that persons who are known to co-operate with the cops are shunned as informers, and informers are targets for elimination. So good people remain silent and cowed while the wicked speak through their weapons.

Some persons adopt a spiritual perspective and insist that we should stop talking about the negative. If we’re to survive, they say, we must put fear aside and surround ourselves with positive thoughts. Don’t elevate the death-count to a central place in our lives. Just think good thoughts and all will be well, they say…The publication of the toll, the headlining of the lurid stories, all this is giving in to the evil, they warn. So, what then? Good will triumph, they insist. I’m all for the good, but I believe there is still something we have to do.

SCRAP IT: Street signs, household gates, window frames, satellite dishes on roof tops, railings from bridges, casings of wells, parts of cars parked overnight – all have fallen prey to the scrap metal crooks, a new variety of parasites which now moves among us… as if we didn’t have enough crosses to bear already. Not everyone sees the evil. Some people seem to see nothing wrong, so long as it provides work and earns foreign exchange… den ah nuh nutten.

QUESTION: How could the metal traders not question the source of the objects brought to them…metal from well casings and identifiable parts of expensive machinery, like pumps which bring water to the community? Such items should be recognisable to anyone claiming to have knowledge which qualifies them to be a dealer in metals. There had been talks about this on the street for some time. Finally, a halt has been called. So, why did it take so long to call the cops? Ahh sah…How long shall the wicked reign over my people!

SAY WHAT? I wonder how many persons actually bought the story which Mr Samuda, the JLP’s general secretary, has given about the party’s role in the Manatt, Phelps and Phillips drama…the bit where the leader (Mr Golding) didn’t know what was really going down? While we’re at it, who authorised the hiring of that certain law firm to check on that delicate matter? You know what Old Timer says, “Belief kill and belief cure”. So in this instance, who has been terminated and who is on the way to improved health? Whatta Jamaica!

gloudonb@yahoo.com