The Editor, Sir:

Gordon (Sandals) Stewart and Bill (Microsoft) Gates have at least one thing in common in today's highly troubled and desperate world: At best, all they can do is throw money at the social problems they want to help solve in the failing societies around them.

Unfortunately, the idea that men of wealth, men who have reached such grea in business, have any 'real solutions' to our problems, solutions that will be any more effective than any other men's solutions, is most likely just 'nonsense'.

For example, recently, Mr. Gates offered his thoughts about the problem of illegal immigration in the United States suggesting that a 'come one, come all' notion and an amnesty for their crime was the best approach. At the same time, Mr. Stewart offered the idea that the rampant school violence and what seems to be almost out-of-control violence in general in Jamaica today would best be solved by having jobs for all the troubled and directionless men and women involved.

Not personal condemnation

It's hard to believe that such approaches are going to solve anything, since the reality is that we will always have more people and that those people will always need more jobs. This letter is not meant to be a personal condemnation. Of course not. We can all be certain that both individuals are fine people, good people with the finest of intentions and we thank them.

But just as great men, men with specific talents and skills, are often out of touch with the common-sense problems and needs of ordinary people, sometimes the real answers to our dilemmas are to be found elsewhere.

I am, etc.,

ED McCOY

mmhobo48@juno.com

Bokeelia, FL

Via Go-Jamaica