Study ‘hard’ (never smart) and you will get a job in the future; that has been the old adage of most adults to the blossoming youngsters. There are numerous occupations that we seldom take time to notice the nature of the danger involved in their execution. Take your pick from the jobs below. Sweeping is usually a harmless task and sometimes known to be therapeutic for those who love to clean up. However, it ceases to be anything but soothing when you are at a risk of being hit every time you start sweeping – the street. Other very notable jobs which pose hazards to health are rescue workers such as fire fighters and those in the medical arena. Faced with danger, they do not hesitate, but instead, bravely step into the crisis to try and save others at the risk of losing their lives. Closer to home, the men, and sometimes women, that climb up electricity poles to fix them or adjust the wiring are at an all-time risk whenever they go up because anything could happen; the electricity pole could collapse, the lines could electrocute them and so on! What a job. Top of the range are those who work with toxic material, right from the recyclers of things like computer parts that ooze poisonous gases, to the ones who manage storage of things like nuclear gases – imagine one tiny whiff of the escaped gas and you are finished. Ever seen a job advert which has danger written all over it, but somebody has to do it. The job of being somebody’s bodyguard or a soldier is more than a job. Every day may be your very last one; every assignment means that your life is at risk. It is true that there are some very dangerous jobs but teaching is my number one pick for the danger it poses, not to the teachers per se, but to the learners under their influence. If one teacher decides to ‘poison’ the children with whatever attitude, ideology, or theory they uphold then these students are affected not only in this life but for eternity. What can be more deadly than that? Good news is that the reverse is also true. Hurray for the good old teachers. editorial@newtimes.co.rw
