Garth Rattray
WHILE WALKING past two middle-aged men recently I overheard them talking about retaliation killings taking place within their community. Their tone had the surreal stoicism typically indicative of the emotional detachment (a defence mechanism to maintain sanity) evident in many traumatised individuals. One man sported a wry and boastful smile as he shared what he had learnt through the grapevine. He announced, "Ah six fi dead" with a matter-of-fact air of knowledge that belied the seriousness of his statement. As I continued along my way I realised that human life had become so devalued that murders were being discussed nonchalantly.
Criminals incapable of rational thought are sentencing many people (including the innocent) to death. This has led to an unprecedented increase in heinous crimes and a soaring murder rate. People are therefore clamouring for the state to resume hangings (which is something that I oppose). But whether we hang them or not, what I find interesting is the fact that people who give young men guns are also giving them each a death sentence. And, in like manner, young men stupid enough to take up the gun are sentencing themselves to death.
OPPRESSING THE YOUNG MEN
Whenever someone offers vulnerable young men guns for their so-called survival, they are not doing them any favours or rendering assistance, they are not giving them a way out of their hardships, they are not empowering them, they are not offering them a means of self-defence and they are not uplifting them. Whenever a friend, relative, area leader, gang leader or political activist coerces or otherwise encourages young men into taking up guns, they are doing them a great disservice.
The gun has become a symbol of power for many under-privileged inner-city youth. This instrument of death and destruction substitutes for money, education and possessions, (the things and tools that bring contentment, acceptance, security, self-actualisation, female admiration and social respect). This cruel device gives the illusion of power as it surreptitiously beguiles the user. Guns only bring murderers, "shottas" and other gun-toting criminals the tenuous camaraderie of their brothers-in-arms, the fearful respect of the immediate community, the scornful fear and disdain of society and a guarantee of a miserable life and an early grave.
LIVING FOR THE MOMENT
It is difficult to understand the inner workings of the minds of violent criminals. However, it is obvious that they feel as if they have no control over their own lives, they have no respect for themselves and many find life more challenging than death. They, therefore, live for the moment and find no sanctity in anyone's life. These are the people who are easily turned into cold-bloodied killers. They see members of society as exploitative, oppressive, selfish impediments to their prosperity. It was this type of thinking that led a bunch of buffoons to ambush and rob a contingent of TVJ reporters at gunpoint during the storm rains. These fools (and others like them) don't seem to realise that their self-defeatist attitude is their real impediment to prosperity and that the acquisition of a gun only brings grief and death. The vast majority will never live to see middle age.
Our country only seems interested in the underprivileged when it's election time, when it wants to exact taxes or when they run afoul of the law. More of our politicians need to save lives by spending more time at the grass roots level promoting education and self-help programmes. I encourage those young men who feel helpless and desperate to seek out their political representatives for training and job opportunities (ask for a hand up not a handout). I also implore those who think that the gun is the key to their survival to wake up to the reality that it only sentences them to an early and ignoble death.
Dr.Garth Rattray is a medical doctor with a family practice.
