I am certain, that any day now, some political or journalistic personality will finally announce that Rome was indeed built in one day and further, it was built by one man, the Rt. Hon Hubert Ingraham. This news shall in turn comfort all of my fears and concerns regarding the future of our Country. We will all be able to rest comfortably being led by this larger than life, immortal “fire god” whom, at his earliest convenience will provide the remedy for crime and all of our other social ills; he will inspire our youth to play a greater role in the advancement of an instantly developed Island nation with a burgeoning economy; Long Island, Exuma, Cat Island and San Salvador would have rebounded from the effects of TS turned Hurricane Noel; while the leaders of the World, including Musharraff of Pakistan, will come from far and wide bearing expensive gifts for counsel from our esteemed Prime Minister, that is if Speaker of the House, the Honorable Alvin Smith, would allow.
It is important for me to be silly at this very important moment in our development as a Nation, as a people, if only to prove that a senior journalist and a budding political pundit can publicly disagree on any given subject matter and still remain civil. Like that famed, American comedian Red Skelton once said, "I live by this credo: Have a little laugh at life and look around you for happiness instead of sadness. Laughter has always brought me out of unhappy situations. Even in your darkest moment, you usually can find something to laugh about if you try hard enough." Certainly there is great sadness but also great humor in the attempts by some to mislead the public on the facts surrounding the negotiations of the sale of the Royal Oasis, just as the attempts to mislead us with respect to the preliminary groundwork performed by the former administration on the Economic Partnership Agreement with the European Union negotiations.
At a time when democracy and civility are being violently threatened in the honorable Halls of Parliament, when a life has been tragically lost to the fury of mother-nature, and thousands will find it difficult to sing about the “the first noel” as Christmas will find them worried about how to rebuild their lives and their homes post Hurricane Noel, more of us must cling to the tenets of joy and peace. This is a time of the testing of our humanity and our commitment to the Christian faith. The naked, the thirsty, the hungry, the homeless in our Southern Islands, need us to respond, urgently. Our leaders are all being faced with the great challenge of learning to “speak the truth in love” and when necessary, “turn the other cheek.” And every solution to our social ills lay in the ability of all of us to once again love our neighbors as we love self.
The reality is that Rome was not built in a day. And, the reality is that the responsibility of building a great Bahamas is not in the hands of one or even a few. This Country’s successful future is dependent upon us finding the unity, the togetherness to move forward. This togetherness begins with the acceptance that there are times more often than not, when some will disagree. But we must all now commit to agreeing to disagree, peacefully.
It is important for me to be silly at this very important moment in our development as a Nation, as a people, if only to prove that a senior journalist and a budding political pundit can publicly disagree on any given subject matter and still remain civil. Like that famed, American comedian Red Skelton once said, "I live by this credo: Have a little laugh at life and look around you for happiness instead of sadness. Laughter has always brought me out of unhappy situations. Even in your darkest moment, you usually can find something to laugh about if you try hard enough." Certainly there is great sadness but also great humor in the attempts by some to mislead the public on the facts surrounding the negotiations of the sale of the Royal Oasis, just as the attempts to mislead us with respect to the preliminary groundwork performed by the former administration on the Economic Partnership Agreement with the European Union negotiations.
At a time when democracy and civility are being violently threatened in the honorable Halls of Parliament, when a life has been tragically lost to the fury of mother-nature, and thousands will find it difficult to sing about the “the first noel” as Christmas will find them worried about how to rebuild their lives and their homes post Hurricane Noel, more of us must cling to the tenets of joy and peace. This is a time of the testing of our humanity and our commitment to the Christian faith. The naked, the thirsty, the hungry, the homeless in our Southern Islands, need us to respond, urgently. Our leaders are all being faced with the great challenge of learning to “speak the truth in love” and when necessary, “turn the other cheek.” And every solution to our social ills lay in the ability of all of us to once again love our neighbors as we love self.
The reality is that Rome was not built in a day. And, the reality is that the responsibility of building a great Bahamas is not in the hands of one or even a few. This Country’s successful future is dependent upon us finding the unity, the togetherness to move forward. This togetherness begins with the acceptance that there are times more often than not, when some will disagree. But we must all now commit to agreeing to disagree, peacefully.
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