Just perhaps and just perhaps, this word to the wise might yet reach the fine folks in the United States of America who wage the wars that cannot be won/ and just perhaps and just perhaps, the word might yet reach my people in the Bahamas that they are not fighting against flesh and blood – but against evil in high places – and against princes and principalities.
And just perhaps and just perhaps, some of our people will come to their senses and end their dialogues of the deaf and understand that while men and women can and are abusing each other in abusive relationships, their matters should be mooted in Family Court and in camera; thus protecting the institution of marriage from rape itself at the hands of wicked men and women.
As things moon-walk their way to disaster, some of our people are becoming more and desperate by the day. Some have become so addled that they are trying to find a way to show how rape is not rape when it takes place at home.
Some others, who say that they are opposed to capital punishment, now tell themselves and others that a few killings might well do the trick and stop some others from doing their share of killing.
And with that sleight of hand maneuver, each of us is supposed to say, "Hey rev, you gat a purnt", or some other naively dumb Negro kind of thing.
For what it’s worth, I think that our time and our resources and our ingenuity and our Christian charity – taken together – now demand that those who know better should do better and get on with the job of bringing this nation of ours into the light of God’s grace and favor.
We need a new deal for the Bahamian people.
And for sure, our people need better schools, better courts, and better everything.
Surely, if they live better, they will think better and if they think better, they would be more disposed to doing unto others as they also wish to be treated.
And then, we could dispense with all this nasty talk about popping necks, wasting lives and raping wives.
Now take a whiff of this fulmination.
Here Bethel notes that, pastors, preachers, prophets, apostles, bishops and other anointed ones have hereof late treated themselves to a wonderful feast of tasty morsels and nuggets, all whipped together in some of the strangest kind of logic I have heard in a long, long time.
Some are talking about how it comes to be that they are baffled by the fact that evil is on the hoof; that wickedness abounds in high and low places; and that they are truly puzzled that mankind – in its fallen state – still yields to the mystery of evil.
And for sure, and clearly, these baffled and befuddled ones are absolutely right to be as confused as they are in the face of an ungodly onslaught of violence against men, women and children.
They are right to be confused for the simple reason that when the money flowed and when the wine flowed and when the blood flowed in that same bloody, wine-drenched time, most of us and practically all of them did what they had to do – they shucked, hustled and jived their way through.
Sadly, they now have to think.
And gladly, they now have time to get on their bended knee and call on the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. But even though they may have the time, I suspect that few of these good folk have the guts and gumption to confess that when they should have done, they did not/ and that – wretched men and women that they are- would confess that when they did what they thought they should do, they did wrong.
In a way, this is also the story of those others who would minister – namely those whose ministries and self-imposed miseries landed them in government; they too omitted where they should have committed/ and they too committed when they should have omitted.
At the root, the nation’s parents did likewise; thus the distress their children suffer wherever they land/ you know the rest of the story about the sour grapes and what they do to children’s tender teeth.
But I wander and I also meander.
The fact is I wanted to unburden myself of a piece of writing that clearly demands that each of us should begin the hard task of thinking; that is directed thought directed at trying to help solve a problem that in and of itself might well be the tap root of some of this world’s greatest distresses – namely drug use, drug abuse, drug addiction and the money that comes with dealing in drugs.
Bishop Simeon B. Hall might wish to wrap his head around this one.
Clare Wilson, a dear friend of mine put forward a thesis to the effect that, "…Far from protecting us and our children, the war on drugs is making the world a much more dangerous place..."
Wilson explains that, "So far this year, about 4000 people have died in Mexico's drugs war – a horrifying toll. If only a good fairy could wave a magic wand and make all illegal drugs disappear, the world would be a better place.
"Dream on. Recreational drug use is as old as humanity, and has not been stopped by the most draconian laws. Given that drugs are here to stay, how do we limit the harm they do?
"The evidence suggests most of the problems stem not from drugs themselves, but from the fact that they are illegal. The obvious answer, then, is to make them legal…"
After presenting a cornucopia of supporting evidence, my good friend Clare Wilson concludes that, "By any measure, making drugs illegal fails to achieve one of its primary objectives. But it is the unintended consequences of prohibition that make the most compelling case against it. Prohibition fuels crime in many ways: without state aid, addicts may be forced to fund their habit through robbery, for instance, while youngsters can be drawn into the drugs trade as a way to earn money and status.
"Making drugs illegal also makes them more dangerous. The lack of access to clean needles for drug users who inject is a major factor in the spread of lethal viruses such as HIV and hepatitis C.
"So what's the alternative? There are several models for the legal provision of recreational drugs. They include prescription by doctors, consumption at licensed premises or even sale on a similar basis to alcohol and tobacco, with health warnings and age limits. If this prospect appalls you, consider the fact that in the US today, many teenagers say they find it easier to buy cannabis than beer.
"Taking any drug – including alcohol and nicotine – does have health risks, but a legal market would at least ensure that the substances people ingest or inject are available unadulterated and at known dosages.
"Much of the estimated $300 billion earned from illegal drugs worldwide, which now funds crime, corruption and environmental destruction, could support legitimate jobs.
"And instead of spending tens of billions enforcing prohibition, governments would gain income from taxes that could be spent on medical treatment for the small proportion of users who become addicted or whose health is otherwise harmed.
"Unfortunately, the idea that banning drugs is the best way to protect vulnerable people – especially children – has acquired a strong emotional grip, one that politicians are happy to exploit.
"For many decades, laws and public policy have flown in the face of the evidence. Far from protecting us, this approach has made the world a much more dangerous place than it need be…"
Think about it!
