Jamaican Attitudes: Gossips and Rumours

I remembered how Brother Man described the tongues clacking in the street. It was an illustration of the power of wind moving across vocal chords. Humans have built kingdoms and destroyed nations simply by using their mouth. 

The Ghetto is no different. Mouth kill cock is a popular adage among elders in the Ghetto. It is a place where contriving stories, spreading lies and permeating gossip can land you in a coffin. People embrace a philosophy that if a story don't go so then it near fe go so. It's a profound perspective that rumours and gossip are half truths. News spreads like wildfire. 

Bars, trees, restaurants  and grooming parlours  are havens for replaying and embellishing the life stories of others. Tragedies are recounted with amusement and every story, regardless of how grisly or tragic is verbalized with colorful  characterization. 

The tongue is a venomous weapon. Its serpentine appearance is consistent with the poisonous utterances that often flickers off its pink exterior. 

Within the cackle of malignance, there are always voices of reason. People who are dedicated to teaching, healing and helping with the aid of their tongue unlike others whose main concern is creating drama. 

People who use their mouth too much never quite understand the effect that blathering away can have on any society. Many a men have died because of things others have said, sometimes  innocently and others deservingly. The tongue is as lethal as any tangible weapon on this earth.