By The Creator
Socio-political conditions in South Africa are bad, and getting worse. At present no organisations, in or out of Parliament, appear able to improve this situation. (Most such organisations, from the SACP to AfriForum, appear devoted to making conditions still worse.) What is to be done?
Obviously, the government must be changed. Unfortunately, we have already tried this once. In 2005, when conditions appeared good and getting better, we were told (rightly) that things were not good enough and should be getting better faster, and therefore we should replace that government with a new one. The proponents of the change lied when they told us that the proposed new government would be an improvement. Far too many of us swallowed lies which were quite plain at the time, delivered by people who were obviously liars. (Many of us remain in denial about having been fooled.) This is the source of the trouble we’re in now.
This does not mean that the problem is lies. Our governments routinely tell us lies of various kinds. The Mandela government, for example, yakked on about freedom and justice and reconciliation when it was the product of a squalid (albeit unavoidable) deal with the apartheid government and the white business community. None of its high moral stances were sustainable, but it persistently pretended that they were.
The Mbeki government, likewise, did not trust its audience with the truth. When it decided that the country couldn’t afford an expansionist and redistributionist economic policy, and adopted a policy of deficit reduction, it didn’t say “sorry, folks, we’re broke”, but pretended that deficit reduction would generate foreign investment, low interest rates and jobs, jobs, jobs. Naturally, when the policy didn’t meet its illusory growth targets, the government was setting itself up for ridicule and mistrust. Thereafter, when the same government decided that deficit reduction should take precedence over expanded healthcare, it didn’t say “sorry, folks, money trumps human life”, but instead tried to change the subject to the (partly real) problematics of antiretrovirals and the (very real) nastiness of pharmaceutical companies. Of course it was setting itself up for accusations of genocide, holocaust denial and being unfair to wealthy multinationals. These examples could be multiplied.
However, these lies do not in themselves mean that the Mbeki government’s economic and healthcare policies were wrong. Just because a political stance is justified by lies, it doesn’t make the stance wrong (nor is a stance which is justified by truth necessarily right). Lies do, however, matter, because obviously they are hiding something. Are they hiding something dirty, or just embarrassing or opportunistic? The only way to answer that question is to push the veil of lies to one side and try to assemble the facts and what they mean. This is difficult to do, because the truth is not a simple thing to find in political analysis. It entails making assumptions about the future (if this is what is happening now, is this going to go on, get worse, or change for the better?). The interplay of the systems which underlie politics must be examined (is the world headed for another depression, is the rise of the DA going to make the ANC leadership panic or retrench, does the business community really believe some of the lies they tell, etc).
Most publicly-told lies are told for political reasons. A newspaper doesn’t print misleading information just because the managing editor of the Daily Chutzpah is on the payroll of Anglo American or George Soros (although these days it’s perfectly possible s/he is). However, a person who’s in that position naturally holds powerful political opinions derived from that person’s socio-economic background, exaggerated by the need to please the people holding the purse-strings. Therefore, that person wants to promote those powerful opinions, using any material which comes to hand.
That person — journalist, academic, PR operative, politician, it’s all the same in practice — will spin any potentially relevant fact to make those opinions look good. What’s more, that person will downplay — or even suppress — any fact which makes those opinions look bad. That happens often enough for the receiver of the message to get a false impression of the situation. However, because you’re attending to that particular messenger you probably want to hold that particular false impression (or else you’d not pay any attention). As a result, you connive in being lied to; you do not say “hey, wait a minute, I don’t believe this garbage”, because that garbage happens to sound nice.
Even if it is really obvious garbage, you say “well, it may be garbage, but it’s in a good cause”. That’s why people are suddenly bringing up Jackie Selebi’s malicious damage to property conviction from 1974. It’s got nothing actually to do with whether he’s a crook or not, let alone whether his crookery has properly been exposed, but it makes it easier to pretend that there’s nothing funny about the trial verdict (and, of course, it subtly smears the anti-apartheid struggle from way back when, which is gravy for many commentators).
Experienced political liars are good at making their lies attractive, which makes it hugely hard not to buy into the lies. The politically marginalised (especially left-wingers, who have far less prospect of ever gaining power than the far right) are also tempted to confuse such lies with their own fantasies of gaining power. What’s more, if you realise you’re being lied to, it’s humiliating to have to read lies every day. (Perhaps it’s easier for those of us who came of age under apartheid to cope with this — we had no choice.) It’s tempting to simply say “I will not be lied to” and opt out completely, or else take a headlong dive into the sewers of conspiracy theory and conclude that it’s all fixed up behind the scenes by the Freemasons or Halliburton, and there’s nothing we can do about it so we shouldn’t bother to try.
If we want to change the government (and if we want to understand what kind of government we want to change towards, rather than ending up chanting “Heil Helen!” or “Kiss The Blade!” at vast torch-lit -arty rallies) then we can’t afford the luxuries of withdrawal or fantasy. We have to stick our faces into the filth of our existing, lying political culture and see what we can find there. Granted, it stinks and granted it’s unhealthy. However, it’s the only place we can hope to find anything approximating a truth.
The Creator’s manifestation is occasionally to be seen atop a mountain in the Eastern Cape. The shrieks of The Creator are capable of splitting rocks or sterilising cattle at 50 metres. Fortunately The Creator is easily drowned out by a boisterous blast on a vuvuzela, or a speech by any leadership figure in the tripartite alliance.
“Socio-political conditions in South Africa are bad, and getting worse. ”
Its a matter of perspective, isn’t it? For millions of blacks, and the eyes of the world, we continue to make great strides as a democracy. Hey, we even managed to stage the World Cup successfully- imagine that! Furthermore, for the previously disadvantaged, life is getting better by the day but the previously advantaged on the other hand, things are undoubtedly getting worse. Not surprising at all.
“Perhaps it’s easier for those of us who came of age under apartheid to cope with this — we had no choice.”
WE HAD NO CHOICE – what BS! You were too busy enjoying the fruits of apartheid to protest the lies.
If you think you have a hope of fining the “truth” (whatever that means) within political culture, I’d like whatever medication you’re on. – LOL
A nice interesting read that ended up, like the ANC, going nowhere.
That is the rub. There are various ways to find the real untwisted facts, but none unfortunately available to the (uneducated, unemployed) masses whose vote it is that changes things and who are often most affected by tax theft.
I have come to similar conclusions, perhaps also having come of age under the previous govt. who were masters of illusion, and having had the opportunity to compare them to the present truth embellishers, and I must say, the only difference between the two is, the current lot mostly lack finesse and experience, not at governing, but at entertaining us whilst robbing us blind.
Most political parties in this country have become products, not leaders who have the requisite skills and experience, sold to us as overpackaged, glitzy brandnames. To me there is no difference between choosing a service provider who offers free bytes and goodies, and a political party that offers Twitter and Facebook services. We are emotionally blackmailed by these parties, hoodwinked by advertising and packaging, then we cry when the glitzy packaging once again hides a booby trap.
What does the average person get anymore in return for the various taxes they pay? Loyalty should only stretch as far as the value we receive from our government in exchange for that tax we pay. If the current government does not give the promised value, we should shop around for another government we “hope” will do the job better. If everyone does this, democracy works. It comes down to education.
@Dave Harris – For a while now, I have been suspecting that you have no idea what the truth is. It is difficult to explain to one not acquainted with its factual nature but blind loyalism to ideals and propaganda is definitely not the truth. Try facts, that’s closer. Facts like one Breitling watch can buy 25 RDP houses.
@Harris, that is most arrogant to say, “Hey we even managed to stage the World Cup successfully”. Have respect, please. Fuhrer Joseph “Sepp” Blatter has taken over … of course with his “partners”—Adidas AG, Coca Cola Co., Emirates Airline, Hyundai Motor Co., Sony Corp., and Visa. Why did our justice system post haste form a “kangaroo court” system to handle offenders against FIFA (where are all the judges and prosecutors all of a sudden coming from)? … and the appointment (permanently?) of 40 000 new SA Police officers. Our benevolent JZ stripped of his leopard skin and traditional Afro shirt, sitting quietly propped into western suit and tie in the shadow of the Fuhrer … no praise singer and no singing and dancing role for JZ?.
Spot on!
The attack on Dave Harris is unfair. He raises a great point which points out the lie in the article about lies. Throughout history white people have lied to black people and lied about black people.
The staging of the World Cup is a great example of how black people are just as capable, and even better at organising and managing than whites are.
Right on, brother Harris!
South Africa’s main problem is that we no longer know where or what the truth is. Lies and spin doctoring have become so much a part of our system that the truth seems strange.
We hope to uncover some of the lies, waste of taxpayer money and the reasons for these in a book soon to be published. The title will be: Tincture – passing the buck and bucking the system (Authors are Andre Gadfly and Peter Smacker).
One truth that everyone should realise is that human development can only be done by the individual human being, him or herself. Simply throwing money at people will not ‘teach them to fish’. When aid is given it should be done very judiciously so that it merely assists the developmental process, but does not cause people to sit back and enjoy what is happening to them.
We really have to start understanding some of the phenomena such as BEE and Affirmative Action and that giving persons fancy jobs does not automatically bring about their development. All we achieve through some of the current lies and politically correct statements and actions is to make people more materialistic, less competitive and lazier. It is eventually only about satisfying short term needs, not development.
Perhaps we should stop here.
@Harris and @ Kweku, Here is the rub. How can you say that we staged a great world cup when the chickens have not come home to roost? We do not know the real cost to SA? This has been swept under the carpet for now.
What great news to read that the world cup was perfectly staged but then ride into a squatter camp and see the need. Does this not make a lie of that success.
Blind hatred for realist commentary and support for your cause makes a lie of your support for the people.
If you really believed that people come first you would not have supported the world cup. How many hospital or homes could have been built with the money spent on Stadia? The same number of jobs could have been created.
Another lie is the refurbished infrustructure, when it is sorely needed and already paid for through the petrol levy.
I hear whispers that at least two new stadiums are to be demolished unused because the muncipalities in which they were built cannot afford to maintain them. That’s job creation in South Africa.
To be honest, CT and Dbn couldn’t afford to build their new stadiums either. The ratepayers will pay and repay that debt. And already the twinkle of the Olympics is flashing in the eyes of both cities.
You cannot be a poor country deserving of aid if you squander billions on nice-to-haves but totally unnecessaries. Sure, our kids need sports development and empowerment programmes, but there are cheaper ways of providing those needs and it should not be left to the voters to provide them. That’s why we vote; for good management.
@Kweku, Eish man that was not an on attack on bru Dave Harris. Merely putting his words “If you think you have a hope of finding the “truth” (whatever that means) within political culture, I’d like whatever medication you’re on” in true perspective.
I must agree with bru Dave that “Truth” is the non-existent colour in our “Rainbow Nation”. We have many shades of white and black (which is also a lie!) but most of us find identification with a specific individual (the colour is not as important as the person is). There are many ‘individuals’ standing out from the grey morass of humanity. Dave Harris would have done well to recognize individuals such as Danny Jordan who together with Sepp Blatter orchestrated the spectacle, the inspiring presence of Archbishop Tutu. The monumental completion of the King Shaka airport, on time and within budget is something to be proud of.
There are morsels of truth out there. That ought to be praised.
“The staging of the world cupis a great example of how black people are just as capable ,and even better at organising and managing than whites are”
You organised nothing…Fifa organised everything and you just carried out the work! Reminds me of pre 1994…..
The last soccer players and fans have not even left and the back and forth bitching is returning to normal. Try and embrace the fact that something special has happened over the past four weeks. Try and make it the new normal. Try and use it as a springboard to improve the lives of those less fortunate. Try and perpetuate the goodwill that has been created
@getta grip
FIFA organized very little, fortunately. FIFA affiliate MATCH made a total mess up of the accommodation booking.
FIFA set the specs and requirements. It was largely South Africans, who delivered.
It is SA construction companies that built the Stadia. Telkom put in the high bandwidth links (20 Gigabits/s per stadium).
A key player working behind the scenes, was Indian IT co. Mahindra Satyam, which handled all IT and booking systems excluding MATCH accommodation booking.
The SA Govt did very little, apart from such like as creating these kangaroo courts, and hiring some more “police”. Of course, national and provincial govt took taxpayers money, to pay for all the construction work done by the private sector.
The SA Govt has very poor organizational capability. It can’t even deliver school books on time at the beginning of each school year.
One of the big lies during and shortly before June, was that there is no serious threat of a major flare up of Xenophobia related violence just after the SWC ends.
Well, we now even have “police” beating up foreigners and telling them to leave SA after the end of the World Cup.
http://www.mg.co.za/article/2010-07-09-the-end-of-this-story-may-be-very-sad
Today I saw lots of people, with lots of baggage, along one of the N1 on-ramps just outside Pretoria. More people than one sess Easter time of at the beginning of the XMas holidays. “Must be Zimbabweans fleeing the threatened attacks”, my wife said. Sadly, I think she is right.
I hat it when people cite the world cup as a success. all we succeeded in doing was exploiting the poor to construct a new infrastructure to benefit the rich. This idea that it was the best illustration of our prowess as a nation is fallacious. any country with enough money could do it, and its easy for us, because the money is concentrated amongst the wealthy. this should highlight our ruling class’s decadence, not be some beacon of hope. The worst part is that even those who have not seen a penny of the profits are led to believe that they have won something. I will be proud of the world cup when i see that money going to infrastructure and welfare – why couldnt we have invested in something better?
Refreshing to see opinion about conditions in demise, that government might have a role in changing that, and acknowledgement that lying and governance go hand in hand and is to be expected. The lying in South Africa government seems to be in the experimental phase. The lies as time go on are changing as expected as cultures meld. Communism becomes tribal and mixed with capitalism. Propaganda as lies typically pave the route to easy power, providing answers and fast solutions to intractable problems. South Africa’s socio-political lies are indeed a rainbow conglomeration of the lies of the integrating cultures and changing times, while a free press may have its own interests and self-censorship, or, to put it another way sensitivities, all the while under the pressure of any business. What is to be done? What is clear, is that without a free press that one may need to read between the lines of, and without a functioning and independent as possible judiciary, corruption and inaction will dominate and perfect itself. The intractable problems are poverty and lack of education and that there is not enough wealth to distribute to a quickly reproducing population to make for more than a weeks partying. So one must begin with just not making it worse, this ‘openness’, this tolerance of obvious untruth, by keeping things as above board as possible, and see if education or propaganda wins out and if change is doable or if a system essentially ‘the same’ becomes permanent.
Why not have a government governed by competent people, as one would run a successful business. Everywhere in the world politics stink. Why do we allow these wicked politicians to rule our lives, our world. They seem to be in the business of running the country for personal gain only, only because we allow it. Abuse happens only where it is allowed. Please could someone stand up and say enough is enough?
@Marie – You just did, well done. So does more and more ordinary people every day. It takes a critical mass of informed, annoyed, ordinary people to replace one entrenched government though. The last government jumps to mind as a good example.
Regarding Mr. Harris:
Contrary to your claims, things are getting much worse for the poor (with the massive spike in unemployment) whereas they are getting better for the rich. Claiming otherwise is fantasising.
Those who lived consciously under apartheid are better-equipped, it would seem, to challenge obvious lies than people like Mr. Harris, who evidently did not. Because we had no alternatives (since the media was muzzled and the opposition jailed) we had to face the lies we were told on our own terms. Today we have greater freedom and can struggle towards the truth.
Unfortunately, Mr. Harris chooses not to exercise this freedom, preferring to bombastically paraphrase the malignant mendacity of the Zuma junta.
(Rests case.)
It amazes me how disconnected from reality some comments are whilst others cant keep their racist sentiments in check, in the words of juju, dont come here with those white tendencies. I,m not blind to the shortfalls of our current government, infact the whole lot need to get fired. But to refuse praise for the successful hosting of the wc is total hogwash, as the english would put it ” bloody bollocks” give respect where its due. South africa hosted a great wc, the fact that s.a. is governed by the anc is secondary.
All this blame on the black government reveals people’s inadequecies in dealing with challenges in their lives.They are coming up with all excuses to cover for the short comings and helplessness. We all know that the lifestyle (with all its challenges, imagined or real) that people enjoy in this country would be far expensive in the “civilised world”. We also know that this government doesn’t hold down people to stay in this country against their will. It is opportunities that make people stay, but then again I’m told the most industrius create their opportunities. Which lead to the conclusion that the whingers are average Joe’s like me.