The Editor, Sir:

Without boundaries, without limits, almost every human being would behave in a selfish and uncivilised manner. That is why a civilised and well structured society employs measures to ensure compliance to their laws.

We have allowed indiscipline and boorish behaviour to grow unhindered for all these years. Indiscipline (no boundaries, no limits) is the father of crime, with its evil twin violence. We must realise that "great oak trees from little acorns grow". Our police force is filled with "super cops", no one pays attention to the 'little acorns' - so we now have huge oak trees over which we have no control. This cancer has now spread to every inch of the fabric of our once loving society.

Pull back

Things have gone horribly wrong, but I still think we can pull back from the abyss. We don't need any "super cops", we must stop trying to climb the tree from the top; we must use consistent enforcement to take back our streets. The streets are the best learning centres for our children; that's where they learn the disgusting behaviour from the adults.

They see them contravene every law in the book without any consequence. Our drivers, they do the most outrageous things in plain sight of the police without any enforcement. But if those same drivers go to Miami, in a minute, they are law abiding - why? Because the law enforcers there pay attention to the "little acorns", because they know if they don't they would soon have another Jamaica on their hands.

Let me hasten to say we don't want excesses - we want the rule of law! We want good governance - not anarchy.

I am, etc.,

ABRAHAM D. FERGUSON

aberoy48@yahoo.com

22 Cargill Avenue

Kingston 10