Shine the Light on Reason Medley: Reworking the words of one of my favourites

So many of us have been asked the big question. Why are there so few black atheists? Many hypotheses have been put forward each of them with its own weight of merit. Tonight I decided to listen to some of the old gospel tunes and remain convinced that one of the big factors is the music. There are some songs from the church that have come out of our people in America, Africa and the Caribbean that are just sweet, sweet, sweet. Listening to some tonight it was like discovering a lost love. I tell you these songs are infectious and the sound of the Aretha Franklynesque belters or the "in the spirit" choruses of the mass choirs is enough to give you goose pimples. The keyboard riffs and the running bass lines all add to the overall effect.

It is a shame to become an atheist and turn your back on these works of art, but in my new life I have to admit that the lyrics just don't measure up no matter how many times they say "the blessings come down" or "nobody but Jesus."

Well, I think I have found a way out. I have taken a medley produced by a group from the Virgin Islands in the Caribbean known as "Shine the Light." This medley with an infectious calypso beat is a favourite of mine and is popular throughout the Caribbean. I have, shall we say, put a bit of an atheistic spin on it. Singing it with these new words has given the song a whole new meaning and made it more powerful to me than the original ever was. I call it the " Shine the Light on Reason Medley."

Below are my amended lyrics. I have capitalised my additions and put the original words in brackets next to them. Why don't you listen to the medley in the video at the top of the page and sing along with the words below? I hope you have as much fun as I did, because you have to admit that this tune is "sweet for days."

By the way, don't feel guilty taking their tune and using it against Christ. They have done the same thing to songs "of the world" for years. It's why Danny Boy is now "You Raise Me up" and Greensleeves is " What Child is This?"

So go ahead, knock yourself out and remember don't sing the words in brackets.



Shine The Light on Reason Medley- by Caribatheist

1
Goodbye LORD (world)
I'll stay no longer with you
Goodbye JESUS AND (pleasures of) sin
I'll stay no longer with you
I've made up my mind to go MY (God's) way
The rest of my life
I've made up my mind to go MY (God's) way
The rest of my life

Repeat twice

2
OH REASON (My Jesus)
Look where you brought me from
Look where you brought me from
I was down in the CHURCH (world)
TRYING TO BELIEVE (doing what I pleased)
Look where you brought me from

Repeat

3
SOME CHRISTIANS ARE ( The devil is) mad
but I am glad
Glory Hallelujah

THEY (He) lost that soul THEY (He) thought THEY (He) had
Glory Hallelujah

SOME CHRISTIANS HAVE ON (The devil has on)
the hypocrite's shoes
Glory Hallelujah

And if you don't mind THEY'LL (he'll) put it on you
Glory Hallelujah

I don't know why CHRISTIANS (Satan) hate me so
Glory Hallelujah

ONLY EVIDENCE I TRY TO SHOW (He had me once and he let me go)
Glory Hallelujah

BELIEVERS ARE ( The devil is) mad
but I am glad
Glory Hallelujah

THEY (He) lost that soul THEY (He) thought THEY (He) had
Glory Hallelujah

BELIEVERS ARE ( The devil is) mad
but I am glad
Glory Hallelujah

THEY (He) lost that soul THEY (He) thought THEY (He) had
Glory Hallelujah

4
This BRAIN IS MY ONLY BRAIN (train is a holy train)
This BRAIN (train)

This BRAIN IS MY ONLY BRAIN (train is a holy train)
This BRAIN (train)

This BRAIN IS MY ONLY BRAIN (train is a holy train)
NOT GOING TO LEAVE IT TO WASTE AGAIN (Everybody ride it in Jesus' name)
This BRAIN (train ) This BRAIN (train)

This BRAIN (train) is bound for glory
This BRAIN (train)

This BRAIN (train) is bound for glory
This BRAIN (train)

This BRAIN (train) is bound for glory
Ain't GOT SPACE FOR FAIRY TALE STORY (carrying nothing but the pure and the holy)

This BRAIN(train) This BRAIN(train)

5
I can see I can see THE FALL OF  RELIGION (downfall of satan)
I can see I can see THE FALL OF RELIGION (downfall of satan)
I can see I can see THE FALL OF  RELIGION (downfall of satan)
I can see I can see THE FALL OF RELIGION (downfall of satan)

When I look to my right I see GODS JUST (satan) falling falling
When I look to my left  THE PROPHETS THEY (satan) crawling crawling
When I look to my back THE DEITIES (I see satan) jumping jumping
When I look to my front  THE SAVIOUR HE  (I see satan) running running

Repeat

6
REASON OH (Jesus name) so sweet
AND EVIDENCE OH (Emmanuel name) so sweet
REASON OH (Jesus name) so sweet
AND EVIDENCE OH (Emmanuel name) so sweet

Everybody walk and talk about REASON (Jesus)
REASON OH (Jesus name) so sweet
Everybody walk and talk about REASON (Jesus)
REASON OH(Jesus name) so sweet

REASON OH (Jesus name) so sweet
AND EVIDENCE OH (Emmanuel name) so sweet
REASON OH(Jesus name) so sweet
AND EVIDENCE OH (Emmanuel name) so sweet

Everybody walk and talk about REASON (Jesus)
REASON OH(Jesus name) so sweet
Oh walk and talk about REASON (Jesus)
REASON OH(Jesus name) so sweet

Oh walk and talk about REASON (Jesus)
REASON OH (Jesus name) so sweet
REASON, REASON, REASON, REASON (Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus)
REASON OH (Jesus name) so sweet

7
LIFE'S EVOLVING (It is raining) all around me
I can SEE (feel) it
IF I USE MY BRAIN (in the latter rain)
Ride on REASON (Jesus)
IT'S MUCH MORE PLAIN (Give us more rain)
DON"T YOU FORGET FAITH IS A JOKE(Til we are wet and we are soaked)
LET THE LOGIC REIGN (with the latter rain)

I GOT A BRAIN (Send down the rain)
YOU GOT A BRAIN (Send down the rain)
WE GOT TO USE OUR BRAINS (Send down the gospel rain)
I GOT A BRAIN ( Send down the rain)
YOU GOT A BRAIN (Send down the rain)
WE GOT TO USE OUR BRAINS (Send down the gospel rain)

We need the BRAIN (rain)
WE need the BRAIN (rain)
WE need TO USE OUR BRAIN (the gospel rain)
We need the BRAIN (rain)
WE need the BRAIN (rain)
WE need TO USE OUR BRAIN (the gospel rain)

LIFE'S EVOLVING (It is raining) all around me
I can SEE (feel) it
IF I USE MY BRAIN (in the latter rain)
Ride on REASON (Jesus)
IT'S MUCH MORE PLAIN (Give us more rain)
DON'T YOU FORGET FAITH IS A JOKE (Til we are wet and we are soaked)
LET THE LOGIC REIGN (in the latter rain)

LIFE'S EVOLVING (It is raining) all around me
I can SEE (feel) it
IF I USE MY BRAIN (in the latter rain)
Ride on REASON (Jesus)
IT'S MUCH MORE PLAIN (Give us more rain)

DON'T YOU FORGET FAITH IS A JOKE (Til we are wet and we are soaked)

DON'T YOU FORGET FAITH IS A JOKE (Til we are wet and we are soaked)
DON'T YOU FORGET FAITH IS A JOKE (Til we are wet and we are soaked)

DON'T YOU FORGET FAITH IS A JOKE (Til we are wet and we are soaked)

DON'T YOU FORGET FAITH IS A JOKE (Til we are wet and we are soaked)

DON'T YOU FORGET FAITH IS A JOKE (Til we are wet and we are soaked)
LET THE LOGIC REIGN (In the latter rain)

LET THE LOGIC REIGN (In the latter rain)
LET THE LOGIC REIGN (In the latter rain)
LET THE LOGIC REIGN (In the latter rain)
LET THE LOGIC REIGN (In the latter rain)
LET THE LOGIC REIGN (In the latter rain)
LET THE LOGIC REIGN (In the latter rain)

God's Plan?: Death of PM opens door for wife

It's a beautiful thing. To see someone who three months ago was devastated by tragedy now basking in triumph is enough to bring a tear to the eye of even the most hard-hearted observer. That was the story in Barbados last week. Mara Thompson, the widow of the late Prime Minister David Thompson, swept to victory in the by-election held in his former constituency. This means she takes over as Member of Parliament for the parish of St.John where her husband was revered for 23 years. It's jubilation not only for Mara but no doubt for many in the rural community that would have been gutted by the sudden loss of their popular leader. This photo from the Nation newspaper captures a bit of the mood.

In the opinions of most Barbadians it would have been a miracle had the result of the election been anything different given the history of voting patterns in this constituency as well as the emotions surrounding the government's choice of candidate. It's interesting though that when the word "miracle" is used in such contexts it is really shorthand for, " It ain't going to happen." Of course when we say it will take a miracle to heal a dying person, the faithful just use that as a cue to ramp up the prayers to make it happen.

According to scripture, earnest prayer from even a few faithful opposition supporters could have caused God to influence the minds of the electorate. God could have made his presence felt in the voting booth and guided constituents to vote according to His will rather than their own. That shouldn't have been hard since there aren't too many atheists in that area, most of the folks there will declare that they pray to God to direct them in all that they do. Of course the results went totally with all the statistical predictions. So, I suppose God doesn't intervene in elections, although Mara was at church two days later presumably to thank God for blessing her with a win. Oh well, I guess it's just more of God's mysterious ways, getting involved and not getting involved at the same time.

Anyway, seeing how things have unfolded since the PM's death, I am sure it won't be long before people point to the illness and death of the former Prime Minister as part of God's plan. It's clear that the opportunity that Mara now has would not have been there if David Thompson was still alive. Regardless of the abilities Mara possesses she would have remained in purely a supporting role to her husband. Suddenly she has the chance to make her own way. Who knows ? She may one day be in the position to become Prime Minister of the nation. However, to suggest that God deliberately made the prime minister his family and country suffer would seem callous in the extreme.

How often is life like this? One person's demise makes the way for another. Many great sportsmen got their first chance to play in a team due to a last minute injury to someone in the starting line up. Falls of gymnasts, hurdlers and ice skaters in Olympic competition have regularly handed gold medals to ecstatic rivals. Understudies in musicals have risen to the occasion due to throat infections of superstars. In all these occasions the beneficiaries have pointed to what they often refer to as "blessings in disguise" and regular credit God with setting up things to be the way that there are. But this way of thinking does open up a troubling "can of worms." If we accept that God made the way for us we must accept that he also deliberately created the obstacles for our competition. It really is a zero sum game. Sporting arenas and election polling stations make this obvious but it happens everywhere in life. Whenever you get that dream job there is someone out there with head in hands cursing under the breath at a missed opportunity. For every couple that get together there are others on the sideline wondering why they didn't manage to make the catch. Indeed, every blessing we have in life is a damning for someone else somewhere even if in most cases we can't see him or her.

People regularly point to the situations where things have worked out in their favour as proof that God is blessing them. However, these stories only serve to underline how inequitable is God's sharing. It's like saying someone is a great government representative because he gave ME a job even as hundreds remain unemployed. If God blessed everyone equally, blessings would effectively become non existent, because there would be nothing one person got that others didn't get. It wouldn't mean that everyone would end up equal but at least we would all start from the same point.

Well, atheists do not have this conundrum. We embrace the simple philosophy that "shit happens." When we take our lemons to make lemonade we don't thank God for denying us oranges. We recognise that from any terrible situation opportunities are inevitably created and it is natural for us to try to make use of the chances that come our way. We do this without the need to feel guilty about having to say thanks to God for slamming the door in another person's face.

So, good luck to you Mara. I can fully understand why you would call your victory in St. John "bitter sweet " but your story may one day become an inspiration. Throughout history there are so many who have used adversity to build something better than what was there before. It is this that keeps me going as an atheist when things are especially tough. There may be no God anymore to get me through but there is enough evidence from history to give me confidence that if I hang on and keep fighting, more often that not things will turn around.

The New Maths : 1 / 10 = miracle

We've heard it for the first time this year and we know for sure it won't be the last. It's the phrase that the media just love to scream at us, whether it's a miner in Chile or a pilot on the Hudson River. " It's a miracle!" The story this time is the heinous shooting tragedy in Arizona which took the lives of six. In the midst of such bloodshed it is natural to look for the upside. Thankfully this story provides such an opportunity; for in the midst of it all, Rep. Giffords the target of the attack has been recovering from her gun shot wound to the brain. Don't get me wrong, I am extremely happy that things are turning out well for Giffords so far but this story taken from the Associated Press on January 13th caught my attention. Here are the opening sentences from the article :

"Even Gabrielle Giffords’ doctors are starting to call her recovery a miracle.
Few people who take a bullet to the brain — just 10 percent — survive such a devastating wound."

I had to read this over and over again. Ten percent survive such injuries and doctors, DOCTORS, not ordinary Joes in the street, are calling it a miracle? Wow!!! I know that we have been told by Christians that God doesn't do those really incredible old testament things anymore like part Red Seas, send plagues and turn people into pillars of salt but in 2011 a 1 in 10 chance event is a "miracle."This is a level of devaluation far worse than any developing country's currency has had to face at the hands of the IMF in the last two decades. It's definitely a head scratcher but in the new maths of the 21st century, 1/10 = miracle.

With this new ultra low bar for miracles I now recognise how many miracles I experience everyday of my life. I just need to think of my regular visits to the supermarket. There are 10 checkouts for groceries and I have to pick one. It's quite a random thing and the probability of picking any cashier is of course 1 in 10. On any given day there would be a ninety percent chance that I avoided the one I happened to be at. I never really thought twice about it before but now I know that each time that happens it's a miracle. A miracle in the supermarket with every visit, isn't that something?

I thought about it further and realised this "1/10= miracle" changes so so much more. I mean, think about the different activities that you do each day. Anything that is done less often than once every 10 days would have to be classified miracle. This means every day that I have stayed home sick from work has been a miracle and a huge one too, since that would be less than 1 in every 100. Vacation days by the same reasoning would have to be miracles as well. So next time you are on a cruise ship with tourists from around the world, take a moment to reflect, you're smack in the middle of a mass miracle. Because, with the exception of the crew, that is not how any of those people spend one day of every ten.

You could just go on and on to find more miracles and the scary thing is that with the rate of devaluation of miracles, things are not likely to end here. In the future we are likely to see 1in 5 miracles maybe even 1 in 2 miracles. Indeed, I have heard that successfully predicting the gender of an unborn child has been described by some as a miracle. If this is true then the era of the 50/50 miracle may well be close at hand. This raises of course an even more interesting question will the "miracle line" one day shoot below that "50/50" axis? Could we one day see a situation where a miracle is actually more probable than no miracle? We could very well one day have miraculous expected events. Getting out of bed, eating breakfast, not getting into an accident on the way to work, these could all one day be miracles.

All of this makes me think about the Centre for Inquiry (CFI) advertising campaign about to begin here in Canada. Perhaps reflecting the more conservative nature of the average Canadian compared to those south of the border , there are no claims of people knowing anything is a myth or a scam. It's a simple restatement of that old Carl Sagan adage, " Extraordinary Claims Require Extraordinary Evidence." The ad goes on to list some examples of claims such as Bigfoot, UFOs, Christ, homeopathy and Allah. I rather like it, it's sure to stir some emotional responses but yet it's not saying any of these things are not real. It's just asking them to " show us the beef" so to speak.

Still , notwithstanding that the CFI message is good for today, we have seen above that many things referred to as miracles are nowhere near as extraordinary as Bigfoot or UFOs. What can we do to address this changing reality? I don't know, but maybe the next bus ads should say something like this:

" Ordinary Events require ONLY Ordinary Explanations."

Stains that just won't come out

I think it's the dream of many atheists. The use of the tool of logic to chip away at a person's belief so that eventually they abandon faith and lean instead on reason. Often I hear atheists' excitement when they make a religious person start to doubt. They believe that this is the first step to out and out non belief. I am quickly realising that this is usually not the case. I think it's important to keep pushing people into looking at the logic of their beliefs, since many will never do so on their own. I personally find it fun and it can get people to engage in more critical thinking which is important in all aspects of life. Guy P. Harrison in his book, ' 50 Reasons People Give for Believing in a God' does a great job in breaking down the fallacies in theists' reasoning. However, I recognise that people can live with serious doubts for years without ever getting to the point where they accept that belief in a God is unjustified. I myself was a doubting Christian for more than 20 years.

I think the problem is that whereas many atheists see questioning a believer's dogma as leading to the eventual collapse of their wall of faith, religious people tend to view the contradictions, questionable morals and scientific implausibilities pointed out by atheists like stains on a carpet. Stains that must be immediately removed. Doubts are not things to make them think twice about religion, they are nuisances that need to be eliminated so that they can get back to worshipping their God in peace.

Many of us know that getting stains out of a carpet is an onerous task. Blood stains are often the worst, they leave a deep colour and are extremely hard to cover up. Surprisingly, many Christians don't see, until skeptics point them out, that there are blood stains all over the fabric of their faith. Stains seen through things like the order from God to kill the Amalakites, the numerous animals sacrificed whose burnt blood is "pleasing to Yahweh", the negotiated sacrifice of Jephthah's daughter, the plagues of the first borns in the exodus story, the genocide of the global flood and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah . All this on just the first half of the carpet!

Beyond these, there are other more subtle but just as persistent stains. There are logical contradictions in the gaps between between the carpet's threads that jump out at you when you look at the fine details. Contradictions that hold that prayers of request from believers have power to influence God but still insist God has a plan set from the beginning of time that cannot be altered by mere humans. When you step back a little further other contradictions enter your field of view, such as the one that holds that God is everywhere and has been with us from the beginning, yet is undetectable to us since he exists entirely outside of space and time. These stains, may not be as horrible as those bloody ones but they are pesky little annoyances nonetheless.

On the surface, believers and non believers admit that regardless of their genesis all these stains are ugly, but Christians are confident they can fight them. They just know that they must be some "solution in a bottle" that can work. So, they hurry off to the " Apologetics Hardware Store" to find the right concoction. There are many brands you can get off-the-shelf sold by popular distributors such as Lee Strobel, Josh McDowell and C. S Lewis. More recently Christians have been opting to order their " Apologetic Solutions" online. Whatever the case, the believers always seem to have faith that pouring these neatly packaged arguments on the stains will make them go away like the magic of Oxyclean. But, just like the late night infomercials the cleaning agents never quite work as advertised.

One of the popular "apologetic solutions" is known as " Might Makes Right." This, the marketers claim can deal with most stains, the idea is that God can do whatever he wants because he is God. If God feels that a people should be wiped out who are we to question? Well, it doesn't take long after application to realise that this one just doesn't penetrate through the stain even though it's a powerful concentrate. Having ultimate power does not make every action you take good. Might does not make right after all. So that's a solution they always have to take back for a refund. Still, the Christians keep trying, but the frustrating thing is that rather than stains coming out, more and more stains appear in the process. If an apologetic solution removes one stain it inevitably creates another one, which we atheists are always right on hand to point out.





The fact is that the more we show them the stains the harder they work to get them out and this constant cleaning makes them more determined to keep the carpet. This is exactly the opposite response that the we atheist "carpet inspectors" are hoping for. It often takes them a while but eventually the theist will realise what we have been saying all along. "Them stains just ain't coming out." So we say to them, "Now you'll throw it out right?" No! The stains suddenly change their character and become a part of the carpet that the believer admires. They tell us that every stain is a mystery and mysteries are beautiful. It is just amazing that whatever they do to the stains they never disappear. They say that the whole experience reminds them how weak and lacking in understanding they are as humans, but it illustrates how great God is in comparison. For, he could remove all those stains with just a simple wave of his hand and he of course will do just that, when he's ready, in his time. They go on to remind us that indeed Jesus removes stains every Sunday at church. Doesn't the priest say he removes from us every stain of sin? If God can remove sin stains he can also remove trivial stains like logical contradictions. From carpentry to carpetry, Jesus can make any living room perfect.


So, the end result is that their stained carpet will stay. Well, at least most of the time. There are some shrewd entrepreneurs that will watch the failed stain removals and offer the believer a quick remedy. They will sell the disappointed Christian a brand new carpet which they will guarantee is stain resistant. It could be a a Muslim "prayer mat" carpet, a Mormon gold plated carpet or the Adventist "seven day wonder" carpet. At first the believer feels great about having a new product that is stain free. Predictably,the euphoria doesn't last as they soon realise that the new is just like the old. The colours may be different, the texture smoother but the logical contradictions are still there along with the same questionable morals. Still, many will keep changing their carpets all through their lifetime, some even change back and never get satisfaction. Hours cleaning and hiring experts but no results. It's just stain after stain after stain.

So, what can the non believer do about this irrational love of stained carpets? Well, some have tried going the hard way. Recently the American Atheists have tried to pull the carpet straight from under the believers feet with statements like, "You know it's a myth" or " You know they are all scams." These no doubt cause pain when the faithful topple haplessly to the ground. The fall does bring some to face reality, but in other cases it creates animosity to those that induced the fall. So results are likely to be mixed.


Perhaps, the best thing we atheists can do is to invite the faithful to visit our homes and see our carpetless abodes, with a framed message on the wall simply saying " We are good without God." We can let them know that despite what Disney may say, there is nothing magical about a carpet. In our homes, they will see that the floor may be hard and cold but we don't have to worry about stains. We have no cushion under our feet to make us feel protected, nothing we can use to sweep things we don't like under, but we have reason to believe that we are standing on solid ground.

My first atheist Christmas

Well, I've just completed my first atheist Christmas . The American Atheists' billboard on the left is absolutely right. I have known it was a myth for many years now, but this year I was truly able to celebrate the season rather than just the son. It has been a time for me of much reflection as I wondered whether I would get the same buzz over the festivities as I did when I was in the church. Would I yearn for the church bells and the merry organ? Would the emotion of the season get to me and would the call to "come let us adore him" be too much to resist? It hit me sometime in early December that I didn't really know how to do Christmas as an atheist.

I am learning everyday as a new member of the "non believers" club, that the rule of thumb is there is no rule of thumb. Some atheists embrace the myth fully and celebrate as strongly as any born again Christian, because it's what they grew up with and love. Others down play the sacred but fully embrace the jingle bells, ho-ho-ho, Santa and gift giving. Then there are the "grinches" who just can't stand to hear even a carol on the radio. There's maybe a silent majority who just shrug their shoulders and live life as usual seeing no reason for a season even if it's to celebrate reason. Then there are some free spirits that have told me there's no need for reason while sharing a beer and that free thinking and free drinking go hand in hand.

So, what did this all mean? It meant I had to make my own holiday, decide what was in and what was out for me . In the end it was a pretty typical Christmas, some getting together with friends, a little gift giving. I didn't do church but I did make a point of listening to some of my favourite carols on Christmas Day and yes I included " Hark the Herald" and " O Come all ye faithful." I wondered how I would feel inside listening to these tunes now. Reflecting on lyrics that I now clearly accept refer to the triumphal arrival of an imaginary saviour. But it didn't matter that morning, I was able to suspend my disbelief for at least a few moments and get a bit of that emotional lift that I have always got from those songs. I did have to recognise the feelings for what they were, which were as another song says" nothing more than feelings." But it was ok, just a break to enjoy something purely coming from inside me. It was not evidence of a supreme being smiling down and warming my soul, it was all chemicals and neurons, but I didn't care. Anyway, I supposed this means I still kept " the baby" in Christmas and didn't throw him out with the bathwater , so to speak. I now feel that celebrating the Christ myth at Christmas is fine.

My view is that many of the religious rituals are ok so long as you recognise what the reality is. I smiled when I heard about the " You know it's a myth" billboard because I knew it would be seen as a great insult by the faithful. But, why should it be? Myths can be very powerful stories that can teach us so much about ourselves. They can inspire, as indeed many great works of fiction do. Myths can give great insight into the culture of a people and what they truly value. A myth surrounding birth is a great metaphor encouraging us to start afresh with renewed vigour in whatever we are doing in our lives. The fact that the festival coincides with the meteorological "new sun birth" of the winter solstice and the new calendar year, doesn't dilute this message it actually reinforces it. So, long live Christmas and all the other end of year festivals! We really can't have too many.

Well, what lies ahead in 2011? I guess it's time for the resolutions. I am happy to say I kept my 2010 one, which was to publicly identify myself as an atheist. Though I am not fully "out" I am well on my way. After all, this time last year nobody on the outside knew. Today I have a number of atheist friends in my local circle and lots more in the online world. I thank all of you who have been part of my journey in 2010. I can only hope that in 2011 we all grow stronger in our lack of faith with every passing day.

Undue pressure on polite pig

This year there is a character trying to make his way into the hearts of children in Barbados and it's not jolly old St. Nicholas. His name is Percy; Polite Percy. Yes, the government's National Initiative for Service Excellence (NISE) in Barbados has launched this mascot as part of a promotion to encourage the nation to be more mannerly. In short, say "please" and "thank you" and keep the smiles on.

I have to say that I am all in favour of promoting good behaviour. However I had to wonder if emphasis is on the right place when I heard a discussion on television bemoaning that it is a shame that young people are using the texting shortcut" thnx" instead of spelling out the word "thanks" when they communicate. For me, service excellence is not only about saying " good morning, how are you today?" It is about giving the client or customer what they ask for as efficiently as possible. We can all attest to the fact that those automated messages that tell us how important we are, thank us continually for "holding on" and beg us to "please wait a little longer" tend to rub salt in the wound rather than cheer us up. So, hopefully NISE will look at service in a broader sense as time goes on.

Having reflected on Polite Percy as an outsider now living in Canada, it didn't surprise me that Barbadians at home also had some reservations about the program. What opened my eyes a bit though was the reasons I heard for their disapproval. It wasn't that there was too much emphasis on the cosmetic rather than getting to the root of service excellence. It wasn't that in difficult economic times government should put its emphasis on more critical programs. What I have been seeing on facebook comments and local letters to the editor is disgust that NISE chose a pig as a mascot to promote good behaviour. I must admit that this never even crossed my mind when I first heard about Percy. I thought his name was a nice alliteration and children tend to respond to those things. Still, maybe the people protesting had a point. At school if you pushed in front of the line in the canteen you were commonly called a " bore pig" and many of the bad behaved boys coming in class after running around the pasture were accused of " sweating like a pig." It's true, a pig was never something you looked to as a model of behaviour. Eventually NISE responded to the criticisms by saying that the whole point of Percy was to show that even a pig could be reformed to become polite.

I thought long and hard about the objections of the public and about the government's response. The more I reflect the more I feel that there was a great teachable moment lost here. Why do we associate a pig with bad behaviour? Is it something based in fact? They might be out there, but I have not read any comparative animal behaviour studies that suggest that pigs are any worse in their conduct than other animals. I am sure cows, goats, horses, ducks and many other farm animals can be just as feisty, especially when provoked. No, the pig association with bad behaviour is primarily cultural, a stereotype essentially. It would have been great if NISE had instead responded with something like the following:

"We know that traditionally the pig has been associated with bad behaviour in our culture. However, we should all be careful at how we put labels on categories of things, stereotyping is not a good thing. Instead of looking at Percy, let's take a look within ourselves and see whether the negative associations we make in life, often without thinking, are really fair."

I know many will think that this is taking things too far. After all, we are only talking about a pig here. I disagree, it's about mindset and of course we do exactly the same thing when it comes to humans. We have seen this "pig" come in many forms over the years, black people, women, disabled, immigrants from neighbouring countries. Percy is the latest in a long list. What do we do when one of these "pigs" defies our expectations in a positive way? We do just like what NISE did. We take the individual out of the group and say he or she is exceptional. One that has risen above the others in the herd. We exalt the individual but our prejudices regarding the group remain. It goes without saying that as a non believer I am one of those most detested "pigs." "Even an atheist can be a moral person," we have all heard it. Just like the popular " even a caveman could do it." In all these cases you excel inspite of being part of marginalised group "X." Once we keep doing this, prejudices in society in its many forms will always remain.

This week articles like this one and this one in the Barbados Nation have distressingly emphasised this point. Here, the "pig" in the crosshairs is the homosexual. All the clergy in the two articles claim with absolute certainty that homosexuality is a sickness that needs a cure, having nothing to back them up other than " My God-book tells me so."  They go on to pat themselves on the back, proclaiming they are being tolerant for wishing to help homosexuals turn from their "dirty" ways. They no doubt think gays too can become reformed like Percy and one day teach others about good behaviour; of course in this case the sexual kind.

My word to Percy, is to hang in there. I congratulate you for keeping your composure in the face of such unwarranted pig persecution from the public. If I were you I know I would be a pretty peeved Percy. As I said before I can't help you because my species is probably even more despised than yours. However maybe YOU, being a specialist in politeness, can help ME. You see, I just can't seem to find a polite way to tell the people in Barbados that the God whom they love, serve and worship is no more real than you.

Great to be Independent

Today is Independence Day in Barbados. The island has reached 44 years of being free of British rule. It's one more year that I won't be there to join in the celebrations which may mean a little bit more than usual since this year has undoubtedly been a challenging one for the population. Congratulations are therefore in order for all "Bajans" at home and abroad.

For me, I can't help but reflect on my own journey to independence over the last year. I see myself as having broken ties every bit as significant as the one my country . It's as if my flag with the big Scarlet " A" is being raised as I watch the lowering of the cross I bore and the crown I wore with pride for so long. Independence really is a great feeling!