By Al Seymour

There has never been a shortage of words on both sides of the political divide, when it comes to seeking public support by making sweet sounding statements, about pooling our best resources for the good of Bermuda and its people.

However, deep beneath the surface of those numerous pledges to work closer, lies a fear of openly joining hands as a result of years of doubt, and mistrust, which is a two-way street in the political and social arena.

Few would deny there has been tremendous progress in recent decades, in efforts to tear down deeply held racial and political barriers, stemming from our past of social injustice. The struggle to break through invisible walls of mistrust is far from over, but with more young Bermudians from different races, and backgrounds, sitting together in class rooms, and later learning to work together, the walls are getting thinner, and it will only be a matter of time before they crumble.

It will probably take generations before the clouds of discrimination in every form disperse making way for clear skies of trust, and togetherness, regardless of race, creed, or religion.

Although there have always been conflicts between nations over various forms of ideology, leading to bitter wars, at the moment the free world finds itself confronted with groups in the Middle East that could threaten stability across the globe.

The situation is so serious, that there is a scramble well under way to combine strengths between nations in the Middle East, along with the United States, Britain, France, Canada, and several other nations to halt a group mainly known as ISIS, which has been labelled as one of the worst terrorists groups ever.

The US administration has embarked on a new bold imitative to go after this group which shocked the world with two beheadings of American journalists, and vowing to execute others in captivity in response to America’s bombing of ISIS forces in Iraq. President Barack Obama knows that unless such a group is eliminated, America itself could become a key target. It will be no easy task, and without unification of allies in this war, the struggle would be far greater.

There is a lesson somewhere here for our Island. Political trench wars over various issues do little to build a unified approach to some problems that need to be worked out in no man’s land, after all, both political trenches are on the same piece of land dear to us all. Although most of us value democracy, and the freedom it provides, there are times when common sense and integrity, should override bitter political clashes in seeking solutions.

In the world of politics, the them and us syndrome, continues to hurt efforts to tackle highly sensitive issues collectively, without scoring points as a priority. Most Bermudians from all walks of life ponder this on a daily basis, hoping that at some stage, the true focus will be on greater unification, both within communities, and on the political front to truly move forward.

There is a great deal of work to be done in areas of education, crime, domestic violence, increasing recklessness on our roads, and our economy, with little time to spare. Yet, we often become bogged down in nasty verbal exchanges over whether this or that group should be deciding on our future.

It is a time for the electorate to remind representatives, that the good of the island far outweighs whatever ambitions exist for any political group. Bermudians want a healthy and progressive society with a spirit of unification as its anchor.

Unless we can shake off the fear of working closer together, despite our differences, whether they be political or social, many crucial problems will be much harder to solve.