There is nothing so easy as to simplistically and selectively paraphrase your opponents' argument for them and then to proceed to demolish their position. Peter Espeut, however, exemplifies this facility when discussing the draft flexi-time legislation now tabled.

Let us put aside the reverence that he has for the progressiveness of the emperor, Constantine. That is the subject for other debates although he himself (the emperor) must have known how to write a law or two that favoured his own position!

If the deacon wants to reserve a single, specified day for worship, let's decide now what the day is - Tuesday! That will inconvenience absolutely everyone and we can all agree to hate the wicked capitalists. It seems as though not all the followers of Christ even agree on the great leap forward of the Emperor Constantine in assigning the 'correct' day of the week! He, however, did not brook such silly dissent or 'democracy' - Sunday was the day of rest - and if you didn't like it - tough! Some progressive leader!

Nothing wrong in that

When we have finished the silly rhetoric, let us get down to what is actually not proposed. It is not proposed that anyone be required to work more than 40 hours per week. There is nothing in the new law that forces an employee to work on a Saturday or a Sunday unless the job for which he is applying requires that he do so. There is no compulsion on existing employees to work on either day. There can be nothing wrong in that.

Whilst the deacon stands in church under a gently rotating fan, he presumably does not think that the electricity that is turning the fan is being generated by a servile engineer at work at the power station. I want to hear every Christian preacher clearly state that they will conduct a service without a microphone, loudspeakers and electronically generated music. Get real! Is it all right for a non-believer to do servile work whilst a believer benefits from these immoral acts?

Espeut seems to think that employers employ people on terrible days just for the 'hell' of it. They employ people to work on a specific day because it is needed. Remember, the speakers in church MUST be on.

Profit is such a dirty word to those who are recipients of others' profit. Every dollar in the collection tray is profit - sometimes freely given but profit nonetheless. Every worker is a capitalist who makes a profit (the surplus left over from the pay that they receive after they have paid the expenses of performing the work).

Many workers in Jamaica do not make enough profit in order to spend enough on the things that they had a choice to acquire and now have to pay for - like children, entertainment and the latest clothing! Unfortunately, too many are spending their profit on food, shelter and basic clothing.

The problem is how to ensure that the country as a whole and at least the majority of workers increase the profit from their labour without killing the means of obtaining that profit - the business.

Capitalism

This problem, however, does not seem to exercise Espeut so much as the need to ensure that the greatest number of 'taxpayers' are available to pay their tithes at the appointed time (Sunday, Saturday or some other self-determined time) so that 'ministers' can use other peoples' resources to distribute scarce benefits and spoils on others' behalf - sounds familiar?

One of the reasons why we are as a nation so under developed is that we promote to positions of leadership, individuals who are not themselves leaders of the nation as a whole but purveyors of special interests. We like lobbyists - we just prefer to listen to the ones who promise something in the immeasurable future and are not concerned with the here and now.

If capitalism is defined as seeking reward, how can you have a greater reward than eternal life? How can you have a greater capitalist than a Christian?

I am, etc.,

David Farquharson

david@nfevents.com

Hampden Estates

Hampden P.O.

Trelawny