The Editor, Sir:

In The Sunday Gleaner of September 23, Ian Boyne wrote a near-excellent article on values and attitudes. Then, like the proverbial cow (who gives a bucket of milk ... and then kicks it over), he provided the wrong solution.

He said: "Launch a massive, well-funded-for-the-first-time campaign to restore positive values and attitudes. The Government should ask some of the 'Big Money' interests to put substantial funding behind such a programme and make the creative geniuses who ran the JLP campaign devise a similarly effective marketing programme to captivate the whole country."

My own view is that values and attitudes cannot be taught. They are learned from the examples of leaders who lead well. When people can trust your word, can experience consistency and see that you punish evil doers praise those who do well (1 Peter 2) values and attitudes are being effectively communicated. And they sink in.

Must be consistent, ...

The Government must be consistent, trustworthy and effective via the projects at hand and values and attitudes will be transmitted.

Intensify the effort in community policing initiated in Grants Pen and spread the idea and practice of respect-for-citizens throughout the island. Then people will value themselves and have wholesome attitudes to others.

Support the family court ... so that reluctant fathers can be brought, screaming and kicking, to a sense of responsibility.

Meantime, praise the fathers who are responsible.

Support the schools so that children will experience, first-hand, the care of Government and find themselves growing in self-esteem and in the esteem of others.

I am, etc.,

M. H. ELLIOTT

Mango Valley

St. Mary