South Africa - Going Down The Pan?

[Officer Dibble]

I?ve seen more than one article in the Sunday Times about naive, white, middleclass, South African communists regretting how it?s all turned out. They have either been fucked off by the regime that they helped put into power or they have been victims of the growing anarchy, disorder and lawlessness. Can?t say I?m all that sympathetic to their ills.

Anyhow, here are some facts and figures suggesting South Africa now has one of the world?s highest rape and murder rates.




Here are more facts and figures from an earlier article.

?There were more than 56 murders per 100 000 people during the first eight months of 1994 compared with an average of 18 in Russia and 9.8 in the USA. In KwaZulu/Natal the murder rate was 145 per 100 000. In the PWV area 60.24 per 100 000. Four out of five elderly people in central Johannesburg have been mugged, some of them as many as six times. Police report what they describe as an horrific surge in the numbers of child abuse cases and assaults on the elderly and infirm.

According to the standard FBI time-clock calibration system: 1 murder takes place somewhere in South Africa every 29.12 minutes; a robbery every 5.42 minutes; an assault with grievous bodily harm every 3.38 minutes; a rape every 18.23 minutes; a house breaking every 1.53 minutes; a theft from a motor vehicle every 3 minutes and a theft of a motor vehicle every 5.39 minutes.?




Officer Dibble

[stripeysydney]

Dibble, I was living there under the apartheid regime, you know when 'the Blekks' weren't in charge and I bet the crime statistics were probably the same. So no I don't think that South Africa is going down the pan and I bet they (Christianaction) wasn't compiling statistics then.
Everybody in the world came from the place and all the Africans want is a level playing field, reductions on subsidies on things like Cotton, Vegetables, wheat, Corn, etc, the very foodstuffs that fuckwit george Bush refuses to countanance; because of his fat redneck mates with their snouts in the trough.
Don't get me wrong though, I think that Mugabe is a first-class C**t.

[Flat_Eric]

>>


Which (if true) doesn't say a lot for the ANC's success in sorting the place out.


>>>


Just not improving then?


- Eric

[one eyed jack]

When i think of Africa and its history it reminds me of a woman who has been repeatedly raped and forced into slavery.

That woman is mentally damaged and like most women who become dysfunctional they end up hurting those they most care about and hurting themselves more if seeking revenge.

I wonder then, if that woman was never raped how she would have turned out as a normal person?

Thing is no one really cares more for that answer because as an adult they feel you should know what right and wrong is.

Then I look at Africa and I see a nation lost.

But who cares, shes damaged goods right, so lets all fuck her in the arse.

Terrible thing to say but in my view it comes down to the same thing.

I should win a Nobel prize for that analogy.

[Officer Dibble]

Sidney, I?m all for fair play. But don?t get carried away with the idea that subsidies all emanate from the Bush regime. Our very own socialist Peter ?Very Middleclass? Mandeleson recently slapped a tax some cheap clothing items (shoes if a remember correctly) from impoverished third world countries, so as to protect European fat cat shoe workers and proprietors. We?re all guilty of wanting stuff for nothing, while at the same time wanting to protecting our own interests and wads of wonga.


Regarding crimes pre Apartheid -

Here's a report that suggests that South African crime levels in the ordered 1970's were comparatively low, but began increasing during the mid 80's and early 90's when police resources were diverted to dealing with political unrest. They shot up again after the end of Apartheid in 1994 and have been on a generally upward trajectory ever since. A couple of quotes -

" The expectation which many had in 1994 that crime ? especially violent crime ? would decrease has not materialized. Crime figures for 1999 indicate that the number of recorded crimes is at an all time high?.

official statistics significantly undercount the number of crimes that are committed. Victimisation surveys ? which ask a random sample of the population whether they have been victims of crime ? are estimated to uncover between 60% and 70% more crime than that reported by official statistics"




And look at this - A South African government minister suggested that those who have had relatives raped or murdered should stop whinging about crime or pack their bags! What a git!






Officer Dibble

[beutelwolf]

> Terrible thing to say but in my view it comes down to the same
> thing.
>
> I should win a Nobel prize for that analogy.

No, you should be fucked in the arse for that analogy. By the sounds of it it could not do you any further mental damage.

That argument is just making excuses, taking away any kind of self-responsibility from the entire continent, without any time bounds. That is just as patronising as the worst Victorian-era colonialists were.

[one eyed jack]

Whoa..You lost me dude.

[Sam Slater]

Not a bad analogy; I certainly don't think you should be fucked in the ass for it........lol.

I must say though, that the Vikings and Romans enslaved plenty of tribes around Europe & North Africa for hundreds of years as well. The Jews have suffered for thousands of years, from Christian, Pegan, and Islamic oppressors alike. Japan has continually raped China for hundreds of years also, but all these slaves sorted themselves out -some more than others- once their days of slavery ended. You could argue that the above tribes that were enslaved, raped and pillaged, for hundreds of years, didn't get the help Africa gets now.

I'm not saying Africa is Africa's problem, but taking responsibility for yourself is the first step to rehabilitation, is it not? Continually blaming the 'others' is not the answer.

[one eyed jack]

sam wrote:

I'm not saying Africa is Africa's problem, but taking responsibility for yourself is the first step to rehabilitation, is it not? Continually blaming the 'others' is not the answer.

I think somewhere in my analogy is the answer to this. To put it anther way. If a woman is continually raped and beaten, her soul is destroyed and she becomes numb inside with no love for anyone.

How can you love anyone when you cannot love yourself?. How can you have respect for others if you have no self respect for yourself.

A nigerian friend of mine said to me once: You do not go to Nigeria for a holiday. You go there for adventure.

Pretty much summed it up to me.

Us in the West maybe quick to blow up people in Iraq for oil but not necessarily when it comes t crazed despots inflicting genocide because they are not perceived as a threat because they do not have weapons of mass destruction.

The way some people go on here about this subject makes yo uthink they want all of them to killl each ther quick so we can all move in and take over like the good old Americans did from the native Indians.

Its all the same thing if it isnt exactly the same story isnt it?

Thank god for the humanitarians out there and Bob Geldof who got off his arse in a major way and helped to do something about it where the leading world governments did not.

Mind you Africa is a huge continent and will take a damn lot of work to get on an even level let alone see right.