Everybody is talking. I met my old friends Mr & Mrs Smith in Sainsbury’s the other day. I came to know them while we worked at the same hospital in Glasgow. The husband is Scottish, the wife is Indian; they were talking with another couple, Mr and Mrs Indersingh. The wife is Scottish while the husband is a Sikh.

Mrs Smith called me over and introduced me to her friends. Then immediately the conversation turned to the Big Brother programme.“What a shame, a disgrace!” she commented, “Did we ever treat you like this?” she asked. Mr Indersingh said the Indian girl is a “cultured person”; “by her very presence she is teaching them real values, decent behaviour in a tight place.”

The Big Brother programme is the talk of the day. Newspapers and TV stations are reporting and discussing the current development. The Indian member, Shilpa Shetty, was the target of abuse, ridicule and bullying by certain others. This has sparked an international incident. Gordon Brown in India is having to defend the way of life in Britain to save the day. Shilpa is experiencing in a small dose what many non-whites have always experienced up to the present time in England.

Despite all the social problems in Scotland overt racism is a rarity. Civility is the order of the day. Here there is a big drive to ensure the concept of One Nation, Many Cultures is a reality. The First Minister Jack McConnell said in a St Andrews Day message,2004, that the worldwide reputation of the Scots is the envy of many small nations … Scotland is a welcoming nation, one that is open to new ideas and people.

I recall also the word of Communities Minister Malcolm Chisholm speaking of this same special day: “this year we are celebrating Scotland’s many cultures on our national day. Scotland is a modern, diverse country - proud of its heritage while embracing many cultures, religions and backgrounds.”

The Scots would not tolerate such a farce that is playing in front of our eyes in Big Brother to increase viewer’s rating. They would put an immediate stop to such a programme to highlight the importance of the need for decency in our way of life. However, the Big Brother programme is a scientific lab; important experiments are being conducted in life and living in front of our very eyes. Maybe many of us need to learn something from this current experiment.

The presence of Shilpa on Big brother has really bought out what living in tight places means. Some people have a lot to learn. This is an opprtunity for them to live and learn important lessons from what is being screened daily.

Of course ordinary, decent people will be upset by what is being shown in their living-room. Let’s allow the characters to learn and teach other; let’s allow the public also to realise how their words and behaviour can cause offence to others no matter where they come from.

The East has a very rich civilization and cultures that are really all-embracing. Many western people are now prepared to broaden their knowledge of such a way of life by learning another language, wearing their style of dress, by visitng/holidaying in these countries.

There is still hope for a lot of people to learn and change their set pattern of behaviour through the Big Brother programme. Shilpa Shetty is broad shouldered enough to take the knock and serve as the teacher for the participants.

I am in full agreement with Mr Indersingh who said the Indian girl is a “cultured person”. Indeed, “by her very presence she is teaching them real values, decent behaviour in a tight place.”

Have your say. Over to you, Big Brother screen watchers.

<B>Dr David B. LINGIAH</B>