Garth RattrayTHERE IS only one thing of which we can be certain and that is 'death.' We could engage in deep philosophical debate about the definition of death and the belief that the soul never dies but undergoes transition to a spiritual realm. We could also debate that our physical bodies may cease to sustain our soul but it too undergoes transition and reverts back to the simpler elements that make it up. Whatever your definition, the fact remains that from our point of view death is unpleasant, sad and final.
We grieve for our loved ones, as well we should but we must also attempt to learn what we may from their lives. We are born and therefore must inevitably die. The only real important thing in all of this is what happens between birth and death and not so much the events of birth and death. All of life is a schoolroom and we must learn from our own experiences as well as the experiences of others.
The tragic death of Mr. Hugh Crosskill Jr., is indeed sad. He was an extraordinary individual, gifted with intelligence and a winning personality. He was a hard worker and received plaudits wherever he was employed. The circumstances surrounding his cocaine addiction were no secret. He spoke about it openly in the hope that listeners may beware. This in itself was a supremely unselfish act. He hoped that by his disclosure others so inclined would turn away from the cocaine monster. The message was clear; don't even start. Hugh struggled with his personal demon for many years. If any of you ever had a nicotine or alcohol addiction then you would understand how hard it is to fight such a monster and win.
Those among us with weight control problems would also empathise with people caught within the inexorable grip of an addiction. The battle is endless and sometimes it seems futile. The addiction monster elicits a somatic response, inhabits every fibre of your being and demands to be fed continuously. It usurps your very thoughts, commandeers your will and hijacks your conscience. You become an unwilling slave to a self-serving master intent on self-destruction.
The psychological and physical addiction caused by cocaine torments the user. First comes the hunger, then it escalates into a craving. It too passes from a want to a demand and very soon into a primal need. Finally, it becomes as basic as a matter of survival. Now your primal needs are air, cocaine and sustenance (water/food). All self-worth, pride and even morality become quaternary. You become a mere memory of a shadow of a human being, enslaved from within, betrayed by chemistry. After the high comes the crashing, crushing low. In lucid moments you remember your former self and you grieve as one would for the loss of a parent or a child. Fuelled by a feeling of helplessness and hopelessness the post-high blues become depression and then that too gives way to despair. Amid the searing hunger, amid the agonising pain in the eye of the storm waits cocaine, your best friend, greatest foe and indomitable adversary.
In the USA the National Household Survey of Drug Abuse reported that (from 1994 to 1997) 70 per cent of illicit drug users, age 18-49, were employed full-time and 6.3 million of full-time workers were illicit drug users. Over 10 years ago the Indiana Prevention Resource Centre reported that 1.6 million North Americans reported they had used cocaine in the past month. These statistics seem distant and impersonal to most of us, but the life and subsequent death of someone as bright, personable and famous as Hugh Crosskill Jr., serves to bring tangibility to drug addiction.
We are inclined to look upon drug addicts as depraved, weak-minded husks who possess a penchant for sacrificing their own family and for stealing whatever they can just for a 'fix.' Now many will realise that if a mind as gifted as Hugh Crosskill's could have been so hopelessly ensnared by cocaine then the message is clear: although drug use is initiated by poor choice, drug addicts are unfortunate, unhappy victims; it could happen to anybody.
Another grave situation that has been brought to the fore is the use of deadly weapons. We don't know the details about the actual (accidental) discharge of the security guard's weapon but we must speculate that the weapon was drawn. A weapon that goes off accidentally while in a holster is very unlikely to kill anyone. I for one, believe that all security guards, members of the defence and police forces must be taught self-defence techniques. They should be able to subdue the average unarmed assailant. If this were the case then I dare say that Mr. Crosskill would still be alive today. We must engender a much greater respect for each and every life and find ways to preserve this sacred gift at all cost.
We certainly extend our heart-felt condolences to the family, relatives and friends of Mr. Crosskill but we should never allow his death to be in vain. The shooting death of just any unknown vagrant would not have sparked such public grief. The demise of an obscure derelict human being would never have received such high-profile press coverage. The loss of the life of some nameless itinerant would never have reached the hearts of everyone from leaders of state to the man in the street, we must look for the deeper meaning behind this tragedy. We must use this as a valuable lesson and endeavour to use his life for the good of others. One unfortunate 'poster-boy' is more than enough.
Jamaica has become an illicit drug transhipment island because of our geographical position. Our cocaine use and addiction is no longer merely sporadic, it has been increasing throughout the entire society. More emphasis has to be placed on our young and those who have not yet started on the destructive path that cocaine ensures. We need to establish easily accessible drug rehabilitation centres at strategic points across the island. Perhaps now our society will look at our addicts in a different light.
Dr. Garth A. Rattray is a medical doctor with a family practice.
