by Colin Hyde

Dr. Henry Anderson, the author of “Ode to the One-Eyed Lady”, which my dad, CB Hyde, described as the best storm story ever written, invited me to share one of my old columns in his and his wife’s newsletter; and I agreed, on condition that they didn’t name the books I had written. As per my not wanting my books named, here’s the story behind that.

Years ago, maybe in 2006 or 2007, I was invited to a NICH powwow, at which gathering I suggested that NICH should try and take care of the international side for those of us in the book-writing business. Never mind that a student in one of Dr. Silvaana Udz’s classes had told her that they didn’t think I would be appreciated outside of Belize. Of course, I respected that observation. Still, we know there are more Belizeans out there than in here, and quién sabe, some of them might not have allowed international sophistication to ruin their appreciation of fu we flavor. 

Ouch, 15 years later and those of us who are not especially tech savvy and have no real international connections, remain in limbo. I got a little help and got one of my books in an international bookstore. I know I sold a copy, because the person who bought it told me so. So, I should have US$2 out there. And I want it, but can’t get it.

When I was a young man, I went to sea. I had spare time, sometimes, and being a lover of football, I toyed with the idea of playing. But I couldn’t see a man who wasn’t working an 8-to-5 chasing a football for free. I thought, if after expenses all that the club had for me was 25 cents, well, I wanted it. I want my $2.

This banking thing, I think we have to come together. NICH should set up an account out there and administer it for artists who aren’t big enough to go it on their own. In the lobster business, the lobster fisher who brings in 10 pounds has the same level of access that the one who brings in a thousand or 3,000 pounds does. When the payment comes, everyone gets paid according to what they contributed. I mind that I only have $2. I have use for money, and that won’t go very far. But it’s my $2. And I want it.

Hey, thanks to Doc Anderson and their newsletter. If you haven’t read that Ode yet, brace yuself, so you don’t get blown over or washed away. Finally, I might need a correction. It might be $3.  

Only the parents and close relatives
 
The authorities have decided to charge the Pletts of Spanish Lookout over the circumstances that led to the horrific death of little Ayanna Bennett, a precious 4-year-old child whom they were fostering. A postmortem report says the child was physically abused. Outside of that, there are only a few snippets. A story out there is that the child was beaten to death. It is reported that the child had been whipped. 

I will say that an incident like this calls for more than one pathology report. Until such time that more facts are known, only the parents and close relatives of the child have the license to let their emotions run free. They must be devastated. The rest of us should be very careful about what we say.

Because a lot, too much, has already been said, I insert that any number of things could have happened here. The first thing that came to my mind is roughhousing, an activity that is a concern, especially when there’s an age or size differential between children. I don’t know anything about the Plett household and neighborhood. I’m just saying, that is the first thing that came to my mind. 

Let me give a few examples of why that is never far from my mind whenever anything bad happens to a kid. You’ve seen little children being ferried on the handlebars of bicycles by bigger children. And we don’t wear helmets in Belize. You’ve seen big boys absolutely bully little boys on the sports field. When I was a boy, my younger brother had a little friend, the son of an expatriate from India. The tears gushed in our home when we learned that the boy had drowned in a swimming pool. He was horsing around with some bigger boys, and they held him under the water too long. 

I will close by saying this: not many people will foster a child. The thought that fostering should be confined within cultures, well, I don’t know where that one came from. I will have to go Googling to see what the experts have to say about that, but I don’t see it as an issue.    

Hamas and its attack of an Israeli dance party
 
I am still puzzled by the story, that Israel was caught so off guard by Hamas. Lindsay Dodgson said in Business Insider that lookouts at the Israel border with Gaza reported all kinds of suspicious activities to their commanders — military type maneuvers, but they were ignored. According to Dodgson, those lookouts have reported being told, ”I don’t want to hear again about this nonsense. If you all bother us again with these things, you’ll be court-martialed”; and there were reports that “commanders told their lookouts Hamas were ‘just a bunch of punks’ who wouldn’t ‘do anything’ when they reported what they had seen.”

We know the vicious Hamas attack played into Israel’s long-term goals. So, why did Hamas do what they did? There are many questions we can ask. Was Hamas provoked by this party on the border, and was Israel so uncaring about these partygoers that it let down its guard, are two that intrigue me.

Looking at the security side, the security in Israel is tight, vaunted. And Hamas walked right in and opened fire on the dancing youth. Recently, one of my in-laws watched me close a padlock and remarked that after I locked it, I went back and checked that I had secured it. When I close a door, I always recheck. When you moor a boat or attach a rope to an anchor, you always go over the knot a second time. Anyone who knows anything about security will understand that. If you are a human being, you can err, so if you are not in a particular haste, you retrace your steps before moving on. This was a door left open by people who were trained to close it.   

How was it that Israel was caught “off guard” at this festival on the border between oppressed Gaza and wealthy Israel? The party was referred to in the media as Supernova Sukkot. After we look at this Supernova Sukkot, it isn’t likely it could have been held anywhere else in Israel. 

I found this 2005 piece, “Stay away devil worshippers”, at Psynews at the website psynews.org. The author, unknown, says they had noticed new groups on the scene, calling themselves names such as Hell Raver, Circus of Terror, Sadistic Intence, and South of Hell, and while they believed their scene “should make room for all kind of people no matter who they [are] and what religion they have”, they thought “the limit has been reached here.” The author said they don’t deny that their scene was built on totally ”different values”, but “NOT on dark devil worshipping.” 

Five years ago, Sameer Prabhu wrote on Quora: “Israeli tourists arriving in Goa (late 80s/early 90s) after military service found an escape in the budding music scene already sown by the hippies since the early 70s. Electronic music by then had already found roots in the Full Moon parties in Anjuna … and Industrial rock was a staple at these parties and a new wave of electronic was emerging as a culmination of these genres.”