Every good thing must come to an end and even those that are not so good. Well, those too. And this column is one of them. For the past four and a half years, I occupied this small room bequeathed by the likes of Morris Cargill and the recently departed Hartley Neita. Now, although I still trod the land of the living, I must make my own ride off into the sunset and disappear.

This is almost reminiscent of Cargill's own Jamaica Farewell, published in 1978 as he was forced into exile.

It is uncertain if one will find me in the whirlwind or whether my presence will be heralded or simply very obvious to the keen observer. One thing is certain though, is that as in the American economy there are going to be contractions here and no entity is unaffected. As the tsunami comes, some of us will either stand firm or be swept away. As the storm increases in intensity, Jonah and others just have to jump overboard to prevent the ship from capsizing. Hopefully, I will not be in the belly of the fish for too long.

Sadness but fortitude

As I write my last column for this newspaper, it is with a deep sense of sadness, but fortitude as it has been one of my greatest privileges to share space in one of the largest pieces of Jamaican history. After all, The Gleaner was there four years before we got full emancipation. This newspaper reported on the end of slavery, the arrival of the Asians, the struggles for nationhood, the rise of political parties, independence, the black power movement, the insidious advent of garrison politics and the present crime wave. This newspaper has consistently brought the news and along with it, the truth.

Indeed, it is this very column that has given me entrée as a main player in the shaping of public opinion and my sortie in the electronic press. And, for that, I am grateful. It has been a great responsibility, attempting to balance right from wrong while being honest and respectful, but not too much in awe of anyone in particular.

Still, there is much about Jamaican society that needs to be fixed and our politicians have to finally start taking responsibility for the mess that we have created since universal adult suffrage was granted in 1944. A resilient crime rate capped by a homicide figure that averages 1,500 per year makes no sense as we boast lower illiteracy, poverty and unemployment rates than 20 years ago. These factors are normally associated with lower levels of social problems. Far too many myths abound as we seek to explain how we go to this point.

For some, it is the wave of deportees that has led to the spurt in crime. However, there is nothing in evidence to support this. Others clamour about the 'breakdown of the family' although, black families were broken down since the plantation period. It is not about the increasing family sizes or the incidence of teenage pregnancies, because all of these have declined.

The truth is that the country is where it is today due to poor choices we have made in selecting governments who subsequently made decisions that destroyed communities on the altar of political expedience. Simply put, politics 'mash up Jamaica'.

We stand on the cusp of another great chapter in history. On the one hand we have seen the first obviously black president of the United States. This presents an awesome sense of hope. Yet, as this 'first' in black history is with us, the 'race' is still far from being won. In fact, data and the current pattern of most things about black people suggest that we are heading towards the path of extinction, just like the Neanderthals and more recently, the Tainos. Right across the world poverty rates are rising among Africans everywhere except in the English-speaking Caribbean.

If poverty does not take us out it will be the increased violence and of course, HIV/AIDS. Interestingly, those countries with the highest rates of violence have the highest infection rates. Unless, there is a radical change in black culture and governance we are going to disappear in the space of just over a century.

Optimism

Nevertheless, there is optimism and there are two things that it is hoped that my weekly writings will have contributed to the uplifting of Jamaican society and to the black race in general. The first is a sense of candour that must instruct all that we say in print or electronically. One who holds the public 'mic' or pen has an obligation to call a spade even if it causes much 'shovel'.

Second, we must continue to strive to close the gap between the academy and the youths, especially young men. Far too many of them have little interest in reading. Part of this lies in the uninteresting way that we have written, making knowledge unattractive.

Although, it is a common source of humour, it is indeed, true that the best place to hide money or knowledge from black men is in books. They avoid literature like superman evades kryptonite and much of it is the fault of our teachers, political and economic leaders and of course, the press.

Alas, this chapter is written. There was no Santa Claus, no reindeer, nor bags of goodies. Perhaps, it because I have not been good. Walk good readers and thank you for taking me into your homes and minds over the years. Happy New Year!

Dr Orville Taylor is senior lecturer in the Department of Sociology, Psychology and Social Work at UWI, Mona. Feedback may be sent to orville.taylor@uwimona.edu.jm or columns@gleanerjm.com.