THE EDITOR, Sir:

ONE OF our country's biggest problems is the dualistic nature of our society, which is the coexistence of stark contrasting conditions, for instance, the existence of affluent upscale communities and inner-city communities. Consequently, what we have is a situation of a few having a lot and many having little or nothing. Evidently, the trickle-down effect is non-existent or infinitesimal. There-fore, with the flow of funds from the affluent to the indigent, the oppor-tunity to close the gap between the rich and the poor, the prospect of creating a vibrant middle class are lost.

Economic opportunities are skewered towards a few and denied to many. Poor people are forced to eke out the basic necessities of life. The resultant low self-esteem leads to a vicious cycle with present and future generation being unable to break the chain of poverty.

What is needed to lessen the impact of dualism are opportunities for the poor to access cheap funding. This would, thus, afford persons at the lower end of the economic scale to establish small businesses and ultimately improve their standards of living. Hopefully, this should effect changes in the income disparity between the rich and the poor; improved self-esteem and better economic opportunities for poor people.

I am, etc.,

RAYON STORER

Savanna-la-Mar

Westmoreland

ramzon74@yahoo.com