“The absence of condemnation of the threat of physical violence against another being or entity is tacit agreement that the physical violence threatened is entirely justified.”
Discuss. (12 marks)
(Note: the threat of physical violence against another being or entity is never justified.)
(Except when it is.)
Well, with the mask rules changing and lockdown easing from this morning, this was a prophetic image to include in yesterday’s blog post, wasn’t it?
Look, there’s very limited chance of you contracting Covid outdoors, anyway. And given the huge disregard for mask-wearing rules here already – including those who don’t seem to understand that their nose holes also connect to their lungs – I can’t honestly see this new approach making any negative difference.
Of course, I can’t see it making any positive difference either.
You’d never go there as a Capetonian, because it’s tourist deluxe, but we had a nice wander along the beach – which wasn’t too busy – and a lovely lunch there today. Because we too were tourists for a little while.
We’re approaching the end of a Covid-disrupted holiday season, so it wasn’t packed, but there were still a healthy number of foreign accents and languages around, enjoying the sunshine and the weak Rand.
We were too early for most of the Cape Town rich and famous post-“work” party set, although there was a noticeably loud table full of surfwear-clad 20-somethings laughing and slapping each other’s egos, every sentence beginning with “100s!” and ending in “bru” or “am I raart?”.
The beach was hot, the water was (as is traditional) very cold and once we avoided the sunglasses salesmen, (who were surprisingly respectful today), we had a pretty chilled few hours.
I know that South Africans aren’t exactly known for following the rules. And I know that it’s ever so cool and trendy to “stick it to the man” by breaking the speed limit or ignoring that sign or wandering into or onto somewhere you’re not supposed to. You rebels, you! Consequently, I’m also well aware that it’s deeply uncool to i) follow the rules, and ii) comment on people not following the rules.
So here’s me, being doubly deeply uncool.
I don’t care.
The thing is, while ninety-something percent of the time that people not following the rules won’t kill, harm, damage or otherwise impede or inconvenience people; the other something percent, will. And a small percentage of a big number is still a big number. Things would run much more smoothly if people didn’t ignore the no entry sign or whatever. It’s there for a reason.
But even so, that’s not my main problem with SA’s rule breakers.
No, it’s not so much the actual breaking of the rules: it’s the attitude whereby individuals consider themselves somehow above the law, that that sign doesn’t apply to them, that they’re more important than that. That attitude pervades everything in South African society, and it is the root of many, many serious problems from excessive road deaths through to corruption.
No, I’m not saying that you parking illegally outside the pizza place “because it’s only for 2 minutes” is going to somehow influence Jacob Zuma to take a phat bribe to build a nuclear power station for Vladimir Putin. But I am absolutely saying that they are very much the same mindset: there are rules that say you shouldn’t do that thing, but conveniently, they don’t apply to you.
To say that there is no easy way of out this attitude is wrong. There is literally no way at all that we will ever be free of this mentality in the this country and it will forever hold us back.
So I’m not even going to try.
Take that self-important way of thinking to another country and you’ll soon be shut down, possibly by the authorities (in the nuclear power station example), but more likely simply by the rest of the population (in all the others) who just won’t understand why you think you’re so damn special. And I’m not saying that their country (whichever one it may be) is perfect, but I’m betting that it’ll be a whole lot less of a mess than this one.
I don’t think it’s unreasonable to suggest that the SA attitude to breaking rules is one of the fundamental reasons behind the seemingly never-ending gemors in which this country finds itself.
What? No. Not some brilliantly simple new way of making your morning cup of java. No-one needs to mess around with long-spouted pouring vessels, organic linen-based filter papers and hermetically sealed coffee bean capsules.
No need. Stop it.
Just keep making your coffee the way you like it each morning. It doesn’t have to be a four hour long religious service. Honestly.
But like I said, this isn’t about that.
My details got exposed (careful now), thanks to… Nespresso. Wow.
I got an email.
We are writing to you concerning your personal data. Your name, phone number, and email address may have been temporarily exposed through a third-party supplier.
Yikes.
Please be reassured that this issue has been immediately fixed and your personal data is fully protected.
Well, apart from the stuff that got leaked, obviously, right? Those being my name, phone number, and email address. All the information I gave you, in fact.
Additionally, there are no reports that any of the data has been misused as a result of this incident.
“Yet.”
We sincerely regret this unfortunate situation. We take our obligation to safeguard your personal data very seriously.
Our survey said… [Family Fortunes ‘X’ Wrong Answer ‘Uh-Uh’ Buzzer/Sound Effect]
see?
Seriously though, it’s not great, but actually, what are those people going to do with that info that was temporarily exposed? Call me up and tell me “it’s not real coffee”?
Yeah, well maybe not, but it’s all fun and games until I’m getting on with my day and you’re still stuck there in the middle of your pre-morning drink preparation incantation rituals.
Jeez. I need a coffee.