Barbados is facing the the most challenging period in its history.
It appears that all of the guiding principles put in place to steer our destiny in a positive direction, have been dismantled and cast aside, replaced by personal agendas that have no links with the former values that were representative of what our country stood for.
Morals, work ethic, religious standards and definitive economic planning seem to have been replaced by a tactic better known to the world of draughts – go as you please. It is almost impossible to recognise the Barbados that is ambling along almost without social or political direction. We seem to have lost that desire to excel.
In the past, our political leaders appeared to have been motivated by challenges which sought to move us continuously forward, seeking always to lift the masses upward and onward. Education was being advocated at every level; not only as a personal social motivator, but as a means to teach usable values that would prepare the masses for the forward movement of the least endowed but equally ambitious citizens who only needed an opportunity.
Governments – whether Bee or Dee – worked assiduously, often putting aside partisanship deals to maintain the common good.
From Adams to Barrow to Arthur [Governments] fought passionately to maintain the values that made Barbados the gem of the Caribbean, a gem that saw international agencies seeking to emulate the standards that in some cases were above their own, but never seeking to exploit the people who made this country what it was, not what it has become.
The road back is not going to be easy. The socio-economic potholes which have made our mental landscape almost impossible to navigate without causing irreparable mental injury, are creating an environment which is conducive to forcing usually balanced individuals to seek to take matters into their own hands. More and more people are ignoring the long-term consequences of their actions, just seeking immediate satisfaction, indifferent to the damage they are causing. Today’s Barbadian is no longer believing that the political structure has the answer; they are losing faith in all of the things that added hope and balance to their lives.
Parents are slowly becoming hard to identify using the old heterosex standards, and are slowly being adjusted to meet the new acceptable homosex standards.
Our children are now confused as they see their teachers fighting against authority while asking them [the children] to accept authority. They are awakening in a fatherless world where daddy’s wife is a man and mummy’s husband is a woman. The mental pressure is almost unbearable for children who have no societal boundaries.
If I sound frustrated it is because I am, as I see the values and the ones held in high esteem slowly being devalued by their actions. The church, the education system, the political structure all seem to be losing direction. This must stop if we are going to resume progress in the next decade.
Yes, the challenges are real, but we can overcome them if we regain the respect of our youth. This can only be done if we once again begin to respect ourselves.
We must cease being afraid of what the newly designed structure will think. We must get back to not only believing in God, but to believe God. You would be surprised to see how values will become valuable again.
