A nation of cowards, a nation of fools

In all that has happened in our streets recently, and in the subsequent actions and statements of the Government and its officials, we can safely say that we are not prepared to engage in open debate about the problems that the people of this Nation are facing.

The calls for stability and moderation masks our fear to face homegrown problems with the maturity that a Nation of 50 years should possess. Instead we are more than happy to continue with our daily lives and push the problems to an indeterminate date in the future. Meanwhile the Government tries to window-dress the impact of the issues by throwing crumbs and making unofficial concessions in the hope of cooling frayed tempers down.

Cowards all of us, for being so willing to let our problems continue unsolved, so that they may one day be unceremoniously dumped on the laps of our children.

Each time we see a child, lets remember that we are the gutless wonders that hide our fears behind catch all phrases like "racial unity" and " public safety".

We are fools, because we believe that peace lies in the words of leaders and in the gavels of Judges.

Peace lies in concrete and long term solutions to the many ills that plague us, the greatest of which is our habit of choosing Leaders not based upon his intelligence ( Brain ) or courage ( Heart ) but rather by the colour of his skin.

We are the only Nation on this planet that values the dermis as a greater creation than the contents of the cranial and cardiac cavities, and they might as well be empty in our leaders and in all of us, for we use them but sparingly. Cheers and have a Happy New Year.

Jeevindra Kumar