Dear Editor,

Discrimination due to religious differences, cultural practices, race, class, and location has led to some of the world’s deadliest disasters.

Millions have died due to man’s inability to find a peaceful solution to the things that divide us. One can just imagine what a different world it would be if we were to share our knowledge, mathematics, science, agriculture, music, and understanding of spiritual things with each other. Each day would be a dawn of new ideas, different experiences, and development.

In a world in which we know so little, we believe in things that were handed down to us by our ancestors, never questioning for a moment if they were wrong. Have we ever wondered if there is, in fact, a universal creator, a great architect, whether he or she would want us to fight with each other and/or seek dominion over others instead of sharing our knowledge and resources to improve not only our lives but the Earth that we inhabit.

Deep in the crevices of our minds, we know the answer. We know that we should be seeking peace rather than war, sharing instead of hoarding, and ways to make life on Earth better. But we are also confronted with the excuse that it is not us, we can do the right thing, it is the others who are forcing us to be the way we are.

We kill because we believe it is a way of preserving our own life. We protect our resources for fear that others will take what we have away from us. And we are always suspicious of the other person. In our personal relationships, we hold back on loving totally because we believe that our love will not be returned with the level of sincerity that we possess.

We came into the world alone and will leave alone. We are the only ones who can do that which is necessary for the overall picture to change. One ought not to love or act in a certain manner because of an assumption that others may not act in concert with us.

The right thing is not what religion teaches or society assumes to be correct, it is what does not harm, what builds, what loves, what inspires others to various levels of happiness, and what one feels as correct deep within one’s soul.

When I think of the Caribbean, I think of the tremendous potential for this beautiful region to be among the best places on Earth to live, if only we can get past our inherited distrust and seek to improve quality of life for all.

One can only hope.

Steve Alvarez

Trinidad and Tobago

bilcoa@hotmail.com