Brighter side of power cuts
The candle flickers as my breath strikes the flame
I wait in the darkness until the lights come again
It's hot and sweaty without the fan
But we have to endure this powercut so wan
***
No TV or radio, what a cruel blow
No books can be read in this candle glow
To sit and wait for three and a half hours
Is likely to turn the best martyr sour
***
When will this torture ever end?
It leaves us all at our wit's end
Having to cope with this terrible power cut
Is definitely going to make me an insane nut
***
Of course, there's plenty for us to do
Like talking freely to the people close to you
Or getting plenty of healthy exercise
To bring down that extremely big size
***
You can take a while to stop and look
At the sky and try to read it like a book
Count the number of meteors afar
And try to catch a falling star
***
So the power cut may have its downside
But we should always look at the brighter side
There's always a silver lining
Through the dark power cut shining
Thilini Weerasuriya
Ratmalana
Peace at what price?
On September 19, the business community held a campaign to show political
leaders the need for peace in this country.
Many people who are sceptical about this campaign raised several questions.
* The business community is supposed to be efficient. How come it took
such an exasperatingly long time for business leaders to be enlightened
on the need for peace?
* Is the need for peace purely for the sake of the country or simply
because the business community cannot make enough money due to the prevailing
situation? (Apparently even the budget-packs are not selling!)
* Are we to believe that the business community needs to show solidarity
this way, when even the beggar on the street knows that it has direct and
solid links with all shades of politicians? Couldn't the business leaders
do this over a couple of cocktails?
* How do they expect to achieve peace when Prabhakaran is not prepared
to come to the negotiating table, rejecting every overture made by the
government with some flimsy red herring?
* Finally, what is the solution proposed by the business community to
bring about peace?
Let the business community be clear and precise before it spends all
this money in showing off its "solidarity".
Non-businessman
Enderamulla
Civilised response
Sri Lanka has faced many terrorist attacks and lost one president, several
politicians and many civilians, but never have Lankans demanded immediate
retaliation, revenge or indiscriminate bombing and killing of civilians.
The behaviour and conduct of the people of Sri Lanka show how civilised
we are and how much we respect human life. We do not claim to belong to
a superpower and thus be superior to all others.
But our very actions, time and again, have proved that we are not barbarians;
nor are we cowboys. We are just proud to be Sri Lankans.
Sakeen
Colombo 1
From hospitality to hostility
Whenever there is a drop in the influx of tourists to the country, locals
are encouraged to patronise tourist hotels. But what happens when a star
class hotel does not have the decency to refund the amount paid for an
extra buffet ticket?
I bought six buffet tickets from a Wadduwa hotel recently. But when
I realised I had bought one extra, I phoned the hotel to ask for a refund.
I was asked to contact the Public Relations Manager who put me onto someone
else. He told me that no refund was possible.
Being myself an employee of a star class hotel, we are taught to hold
customers in such high esteem that if they complain that the food is not
upto standard, we would not charge.
Later I went to the hotel to meet the PR Manager, but he avoided me.
It is not about getting a refund. It is a disgrace to the hospitality
trade, when all hotels are trying to woo Sri Lankan guests.
Disgusted Guest
Colombo
Missing links in human chain campaign
The human chain peace campaign sponsors were in the main the business community.
It is true that Sri Lanka First was conceived long before the terrorist
attack on America. But the war on terror by the United States and Britain
has brought our own war into sharp focus placing us on the horns of a dilemma.
It is not only the business community that hankers for peace: we all
do, and most of all the down trodden masses in border villages who have
witnessed the brutal slaying of their family members.
It is important to discover whether these almost-forgotten people will
join hands as a demonstration of unity in their quest for peace. It is
believed that a smaller amount of money than the rumoured 20 million rupees
spent on the advertising campaign by Sri Lanka First would have been sufficient
to ascertain the views of the average villager whether he or she prefers
a well planned military solution or more overtures of peace.
The anxiety of the business community to conduct their legitimate, commercial
ventures without let or hindrance in a climate of peace is justifiable,
and should be encouraged by the government and everyone in all sectors
of society.
It is probably improper to offer seemingly gratuitous advice to the
experienced leaders of the business community. It appears, however, that
even at the risk of incurring their displeasure a word of counsel is not
out of place. In this regard it may be useful to follow the lead of their
counterparts in the US and be defiant and aggressive, opting only for a
military solution in the face of several atrocities experienced by the
suffering public. This was Adlai Stevenson's belief when he said 'making
peace is harder than making war'. This is perhaps the only time that all
should follow Bush, and take the LTTE leaders dead or alive.
Kent Farmer
Nawala |
