#BTSpeakingOut – More than a touch of madness

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the author(s) do not represent the official position of Barbados TODAY.

I have been following a campaign of sorts being carried out by a former musician and well-known teacher against a brave and to be quite frank, completely accurate radio personality, over the past few weeks. He has called for the public and advertisers to distance themselves from the radio station because HE says so. How utterly ridiculous!

I am in complete agreement with the decision made by my Prime Minister for civil servants basically to return to work in person. But this goodly teacher is making a case that teachers should not do so at this stage for a number of nebulous reasons.

There is the suggestion that teachers are special cases. What utter rubbish!

Teachers are no more special than police officers, nurses, sanitation workers or members of the drainage unit. They are all special and needed to make this country work. Teachers have been at home conducting classes virtually for two years and this man has the temerity to question their return to the classrooms at this juncture.

I wonder what he would say if sanitation workers decided they would stay home as well and collect our garbage via the internet. Perhaps firemen could extinguish house fires remotely. And when that burglar enters one’s home at 3 a.m. just turn on the computer and let the police officer scold him virtually from the police station. At some stage we all have to face the reality that Covid-19 cannot be allowed to dictate our lives ad infinitum. We will adhere to protocols but we must return to some form of normalcy at some stage. And what better time to do so than right NOW.

What is particularly troubling, though, is that this man is a teacher and would seek to take the bread out of someone’s mouth because the lady disagreed with him and took him to the task. When last I checked Barbados was still a democracy and people had the right to agree and disagree. But I guess this is March and a bit of madness is permissible. Good luck to the children that will come under his influence; they will need it.

P.s. I taught myself to play the guitar via google. No teacher was needed.
D. Goddard