has taken a battering recently.

Two stories in yesterday's newspaper highlight the problem.

In one, a taxi driver is alleged to have issued racial epithets at a cruise ship visitor who is alleged to have accidentally hit his taxi. The driver is also alleged to have held a knife to the man's throat.

It should be noted that a man has now been arrested in connection with the incident and it would be dangerous to comment further on the specific incident. There are always two sides to every story and the accused man deserves to have his say.

Transport Minister Ewart Brown has called the alleged incident an aberration which is not normal and customary in Bermuda.

He is right, but incidents of the kind alleged to have occurred are becoming increasingly common. They are not isolated to any particular racial group, but they do demonstrate a general lowering of tolerance and politeness in the community.

These kinds of incidents throw into question Bermuda's ability to survive, let alone thrive, as an ethnic melting pot. Given the Island's history, there have been and will be resentments between the races.

In any society where one race has placed itself in a political and economic position of superiority above the other, the oppressed race (or races) will rightly feel anger. And it is also likely that the oppressor will find anecdotal evidence to support the idea that it is still superior. Such is the nature of racism -- the real question is how to solve it.

The answer is surely not violence and insults. The answer lies in education, in ensuring that all people have equality of opportunity and that dialogue continues. Bermudians, white, black and of other heritage, have to learn to embrace this idea instead of taking their anger out on each other.

The costs to the community if it cannot do this are high, as the second story which appeared in yesterday's paper demonstrate.

Sam Geist is a self-made Canadian businessman turned business trouble-shooter who emphasises the importance of service to customers.

Arriving in Bermuda, he had to wait 45 minutes to clear Immigration. Then he went for lunch at the Hamilton Princess where he had to wait 15 minutes for a waiter to acknowledge his presence.

"Everyone is comfortable in Bermuda today but it's not going to continue that way. It's a global world, there are no borders.'' Tolerance. Friendliness. Service. As Mr. Geist notes, there is an economic imperative for Bermuda to embrace these ideas again. More importantly, there is a moral imperative; our survival depends on it.