Latest update January 5th, 2025 4:10 AM

Guyana's largest selling daily and New York's most popular weekly

Latest News

What exactly is going on?

Jul 09, 2014 Editorial

Whatever happened to the “War on Bad Manners”? Like most attempts at setting standards, it appears to have desultorily petered out in the desert of indifference by the ordinary people. Are they more concerned with grinding out a living to keep up the niceties?
Is life too nasty and brutish and short for the average Guyanese to buck the rising tide of surliness? What exactly is going on?
In life, there is always the possibility that something or other may go wrong. In fact, after careful observation on what actually occurs in real life, some fellow named Peter came up with, well, “The Peter Principle”. This principle was pithily stated thusly: whatever can go wrong, will go wrong. Maybe this twist explains the easy loutishness of Guyanese life.
We really can’t blame persons for getting frustrated when their plans go awry. And then we know that frustration begets anger and depending on one’s personality, anger does tend to encourage churlish outbursts. Hence, ipso facto, bad manners, if not stark, raving rage.
With the Peter Principle in operation with a vengeance in Guyana, one would have thought that those responsible for delivering services at specified times would have become aware of the chain of cause and effect we outlined above, and would have deployed some tactic to head off the more destructive expressions of frustration, for self-preservation, at least.
One approach that we thought was pretty obvious would be for responsible officials to inform the affected folks in question about delays that they the officials know about. And it is quite obvious that in most cases those who should know, do know.
Take the departure of airplanes from Guyana. In almost every instance, the craft has to first arrive from some foreign destination before it picks up passengers from our dear old mudland.
Now if the plane is delayed, from say, New York for whatever reasons, one would think that the staff in Guyana would be aware of how late the flight from Guyana would be. It’s the duration of the delay in New York. It’s a no-brainer. You would think that the staff in Guyana would then inform the mothers with screaming and fretful children of the delay.
So these mothers can take valium or some such sedative for the extra harassment.
But no. That never occurs. After being pestered for the millionth time by junior as to “where’s the plane, Mom?” the secret is only revealed to the mother when she lurches over to the clerk lounging at the counter, with wild-eyed junior hanging on to her knees like a limpet.
Can one really blame her for the bad mannerly (and unladylike) shriek? Or why don’t receptionists of doctors (or officers of any government department) work out a system to inform their waiting throngs on an ongoing basis as to when the next (literally “long-suffering”) victim will be seen? What’s going on?
Hasn’t some foreign consultant (seconded by the World Bank, say) calculated the loss to our national economy caused not only by the sequestration of the trapped souls from turning the wheels of commerce, but by the product of the bad manners (or worse) precipitated by the frustration?
Wouldn’t it save all and sundry a lot of grief to simply keep people posted when things go wrong?
One theory is that the attitude of indifference to the waiting masses goes back to our colonial past. It was simply infra dig to acknowledge the presence of the slimy native waiting for the audience with the representative of the Raj.
Well it’s high time that our government, run by a party that elevates the working masses to the top of the ladder, put their foot (feet?) down, at least in those areas that they control either directly (government employees) or through regulation (airlines etc) so they could lead by example and ensure people are kept posted.
Apart from defusing frustration, we may even make a dent in the war on bad manners.

Similar Articles

The Glenn Lall Show | December, 2nd, 2024

Follow on Tik Tok @Glennlall

THE BLUNT OF THE DAY

Sports

Kellman’s 3-goal brilliance inspires Sparta Boss’ title victory

Kellman’s 3-goal brilliance inspires Sparta Boss’ title victory

Jan 05, 2025

…GT Kanaimas stun Lady Royals 2-1 to lift inaugural K&S Futsal title kaieteur Sports- Exactly one month after the kickoff of the Kashif and Shanghai/One Guyana National Knockout Futsal...
Read More
Bossalina wins feature event at Rising Sun Turf Club New Year’s meet

Bossalina wins feature event at Rising Sun Turf...

Jan 05, 2025

GBBFF boss reflects on milestones and leadership transition

GBBFF boss reflects on milestones and leadership...

Jan 04, 2025

National stars shine in GCF End of Year Chess Tournament

National stars shine in GCF End of Year Chess...

Jan 04, 2025

Two more young cricketers benefit from Project “Cricket Gear for young and promising cricketers in Guyana”.

Two more young cricketers benefit from Project...

Jan 04, 2025

Tonight: Sparta Boss goes up against Bent Street ‘A’ for K&S National Futsal title

Tonight: Sparta Boss goes up against Bent Street...

Jan 03, 2025

Features/Columnists

Publisher’s Note

Freedom of speech is our core value at Kaieteur News. If the letter/e-mail you sent was not published, and you believe that its contents were not libellous, let us know, please contact us by phone or email.

Feel free to send us your comments and/or criticisms.
Contact: 624-6456; 225-8452; 225-8458; 225-8463; 225-8465; 225-8473 or 225-8491.
Or by Email: [email protected] / [email protected]

Weekend Cartoon

Bridge Watch

Demerara Harbour Bridge

> Berbice Bridge […]