I NOTICED in the report of the public consultation

(Chronicle's edition of August 7) that 263 responses were

received by Monmouthshire County Council. If, as

suggested, this was a good response, then the vast

majority of residents must be happy to let the council

decide the whole process.

Perhaps this state of indifference or lack of concern for

the community is indicative of the lethargy that seems to

affect many members of society when issues beyond their

immediate compass are concerned. Many individuals seem

totally absorbed by the minutiae of daily life and their

concerns are more likely aimed at insignificant matters.

Throughout so-called 'civilised society' police and other

emergency services are reporting increasing numbers of

irrelevant calls from folk who have no perception of what

constitutes an emergency. "My Channel 4 signal has

disappeared, how can I watch Big Brother?" is not life

threatening. "What has happened to the 9.20am bus to

Skipton, it's 9.25am and it hasn't arrived?" is hardly

cataclysmic.

Even Japanese police are now pleading for their citizens to

accept that emergency calls must only be made for

genuinely serious situations. Japanese police have

published examples to highlight the problem just as

British police have. "My ice-cream is melting" screamed on

Japanese housewife, "I need urgent help, as my guests

arrive shortly." Or imagine the terrible scene as one man

sought emergency help for treading in a cowpat in the

street that created a stain on his new shoes.

The Japanese have termed this - youchi-ka (or creeping

"infantilisation") a phenomenon where trivial and mild

inconveniences have acquired a worryingly

disproportionate sense of urgency. This has been

attributed to a fundamental shift in the balance and sense

of responsibility, a belief that the state must solve all

problems for the individual.

The Japanese authorities have ordered a mass pamphlet

campaign encouraging people to deal with life's little

problems themselves rather than call emergency services.

Perhaps the British authorities should have instigated

such a mass re-education programme some years ago, as

too many people in Britain now believe that the minutiae

of their lives has far greater importance than almost

anything else and all problems must be solved by anybody

but themselves, a complete abrogation of personal

responsibility.

John Wheater

Llangenny Lane

Crickhowell