Garth Rattray | Buju, dat nuh right!

Greetings Buju, bless up. When mi see yuh bashing masks and COVID-19 restrictions, mi did shock and vex bad. Yuh done know seh it tek mi ‘bout six hours fi cool off. Mi start wanda, “Ah wah dis Buju go do now Fadah God! Jah know, star! Wi salt to rahtid!! Many gonna believe him, many gonna get sick, some ah go dedd because of dis! Mek mi remind you of your words, mi general.

“Well someone sight I an ask I if everyting alright, I tell the bredrin, no, everything nah alright … everyting cyan alright. Wi waan done wid dis maas wearing bull*** inna Jamaica. Who it fi dedd ah-go dedd, an who naah go dedd haffi juss live. Wi tyad ah you intellectual fools tryin to tell us how fi live our lives. If you are so smart why yuh nuh find di cure for cancer?

“You’re ‘bout all touting a line an putting di Jamaican people inna abject fear and (stutter) driving us all to poverty. What have you done for all those who you have [been] laid off and made dem business close early? Jamaican people need to wake up! And mi done wid the F****y, Jamaican people need to wake up! Mi naah wear no maas. A man nuh fi … maas no mek fi man! So hear dis, ah from September an January wi deh bout an a f*** wid di people dem. Free mi people. FREE my people now!”

GOING TO DO HARM

Buju, there are things that you don’t know. A wise man tries to learn about the things that he does not know or understand before he passes judgement. Your video is going to harm the very same brethren, sistren and children that you think you are helping – and some will die because of your words!

Responsible and thoughtful people who care about their health and about the health of everyone else wear masks. There is no effective or reliable cure for COVID-19, and vaccines are far from ready. The best way to deal with COVID-19 is to try to avoid getting it. Buju, you must have people who you love, so when you say, “Who it fi dedd ah-go dedd …,” ah wah kinda ting dat?

A pity you can’t see the dying moments of some of its victims struggling to breathe or on a machine as their organs fail one by one. Sorry you can’t see the tears or hear the bawling of their friends and loved ones. It’s a scary, hellish and very lonely death, Buju – and, because some people believe in you, your video post made things more dangerous for hundreds of thousands of them.

If someone is carrying the virus, masks are fairly good at keeping it from spreading. But some might escape and, as long as you are not very close to that person, your mask will keep most of it from entering your respiratory system.

But, if some gets through or around your mask, we know that you are likely to get a small dose and your chance of survival is pretty good. No mask means big doses, big sickness, and perhaps death – no matter how strong your immune system is.

Additionally, the longer people keep businesses open, the more people congregate. The less they wear masks, the longer the virus will be with us, the more sickness, the more deaths, and the more our entire country will suffer.

Buju, mi ah beg yuh fi not only withdraw your words but also use your celebrity status to save lives. With great power comes great responsibility, so become an advocate for anti-COVID-19 measures.

By the way, Buju, some cancers can be prevented and many can be cured. So, intellectuals are not so foolish after all. As I said mi fren, there are things that you don’t know or understand. Nuff respek.

Garth A. Rattray is a medical doctor with a family practice. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and garthrattray@gmail.com.