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document.write("USER COMMENTS >");
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And the law is...
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document.write("\"Thou shall not steal from the people\" and \"Thou shall not lie and deceive\" and..... jonathan");
document.write("AA
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document.write("I can understand the knee-jerk reaction by PDP's that AA is crucial to address the inequalities of apartheid.
I would argue that they are throwing away SAs only chance of being Africa's first success story (No, Botswana is NOT such a success story).
In SA we, as a nation have the greatest number of highly educated and experienced people on the African continent. A god-sent in any context!
They are white, but they have committed themselves to SA and are keen to help SA become a winning nation. Other African countries would give everything for such a human capital!
Not South Africa under ANC.
Whites are made to feel they are unwelcome in their own country. Why not acknowledge that the experience & skills to run a modern state and economy are mainly white and then use them! Let the whites mentor the upcomming blacks. Let us show you how to run a sewerage plant or a coal procurement-line for power stations, etc. etc.
There are blacks comming thru, but there are simply not enough yet, mainly due to the unbelievable collapse of public education system.
The whites are diminishing naturally anyway and in a generation or two the black will be by far in the majority.
Why not in the meantime use the whites capabilities to their utmost potential?
Why not make them feel welcome, safe even wanted?
You don't have to thank them, but don't make them feel dishearted, unwelcome, even despised.
They are leaving at such an unprecedented rate - SA is losing unbelievable human resources by the day!
And all the ANC does is fuel the frenzied packing of bags by such comment as above by Zuma.
How unbelievable short-sighted - its actually a catastrophe!
In just a few years, historians can mull over why the shining light in Africa dimmed and was deliberately extinguished.
Let whites help to set up the systems which are totally lacking in most of the rest of Africa.
Whites are the mystery ingredient in SA potential success. That is why we are not like the rest of Africa.
Here Zuma is so un-leader like: what does it mean to have half this or half that filled by black??
How does that improve anything? How does that create the 1/2million jobs needed a year???
The ANC should drop their racist stance and embrace all of its citizens.
It could make SA the success story of the world!
. Peter");
document.write("AA and Land Reform = Failure
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document.write("White managers happen to be in positions of seniority because they know what they are doing and have the skills. Sticking blacks in the same position because of the colour of their skin is a recipe for disaster. Rather grow the cake and make room for new managers Mr Zuma!
Land reform has contributed to RSA becoming a net importer of food for the first time in two decades! Again rather grow the cake and give land owned by the state to blacks. If they fail we don't lose our ability to feed ourselves. Think about it Mr Zuma!. John");
document.write("Zimbabwe-esque
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document.write("This makes me so angry, to think that a guy with such a backward mentality is a very likely candidate for a ruler of such a promising country. I cannot believe he has so many supporters. Apartheid screwed us over royally, i see that when i look at my family. But bitter people like Jacob Zuma and his idol Robert Mugabe should never have been allowed to come to power. Peter has put into words my thoughts and i hope that people see through the ANC's cr#p and dont follow Zuma over the cliff like lemmings!. JB");
document.write("Another Zimbabwe in the making...
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document.write("I don't agree with what happened during the apartheid; however that is not cause to now shove black people with no skills into high profile positions with no idea how to run it just because its now \"the black person's time\".
Take Eskom as a prime example! A member of my family was one of the main brains in the company and was retrenched for a black man to take his place with no clue on what to do there.
This country has absolutely no clue on how to run its government and even is willing to add a criminal to the mix.
Do not get me wrong, there are loads of black people that are well educated and work harder than most whites so this is not racial at all! The difference is, they are clever enough to see through Zuma's facade and will not be voting for him. The uneducated thieves that hold us up in our houses will rule the majority of the votes and thats the only way he will win.... Anonymous");
document.write("AA
");
document.write("peter, you saved me a lot of time-you said it all!its people like you that are needed to save our country. if only we could get this through to those stubborn little heads.also, of course 70% of redistributed land is non productive-those unsuspecting people thought that they would get help with the running of the farms. without education,resources & skills how does the government expect them to keep the land productive? the ruling government are stealing votes- with their \"look how we took land from the whites & gave it to you previously disadvataged blacks\". well they are still disadvataged because the total package stopped short of what was promised! . cheryl");
document.write("aa to stay
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document.write("as long as Zuma and the ANC think with emotions and not try some logical thinking,so long will SA stay poor.White males dominate top posts still because the black males havent reached that spot yet.White males worked hard to get there.AA cant help this country by putting uneducated blacks in top posts.it only cripple and stun the economy. . frikkie botes");
document.write("AANC
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document.write("Well lets hope Mr Terror’s new party can take some power from the ANC, as more Black voters become aware of where this country is heading they will start voting for a more logical approach. The very people that are complaining about racism and injustices are actually the ones creating these problems. I agree with Peter ask the Whites to help and you will get much better results. . Jack");
document.write("AA
");
document.write("Politicians in a democratic system will always appeal to the majority for their votes and support. History will show that even the Nats utilised affirmative action in the parastatals to get the Afrikaaner vote. Whites going...... hell, I'm coming back, there's probably more racism and \"Unofficial Affirmative Action\" out here than I ever saw in South Africa. Good businesses will always get around and manipulate government policies. . David");
document.write("AA
");
document.write("Foreign investors are motivated by a return on investment; not benevolence. They want to know that skilled managers and employees are looking after their interests. To know that managers are there because of a quota system (which AA surely is)must be an incredibly inhibiting factor to anyone wanting to invest in this Country. Our leaders are driven by voter appeasement in order to stay in power. But its a double-edged sword as only foreign investment is ever going to achieve their objectives of employment and housing. The only criterion must be merit! Just as by far the vast majority of white South Africans are thrilled to see black sportsmen excelling in rugby, cricket or any other sport, because of their talent and ability, so they feel about blacks in top positions in the business world. Anything other than merit is foolhardy! . Peter Breeze");
document.write("AA
");
document.write("There has been some improvement since Thabo and his largely dysfunctional cabinet left (not saying that Zuma and his evolving leftist ANC/SACP/Cosatu monster is any better).
But the Land Expropriation Bill has been shelved, the Medicine Amendment Bill has been thrown out, etc.
So not all is gloom;and there are some seriously competent ministers.
But AA is so entrenched by statuary laws - it will require a political will to revert the damage done by AA.
And to ask a politician to repeal a popular policy to its voters - that's a tall order.
I think it is therefore important for whites to prove to the ANC what damage they are doing to SA's economy, investors, long-term sustainable job creation, not to mention good-will of the whites.
How this is done I don't know, but I think we need to become more vocal, more involved, more positive, offer our help, etc..
All I know is that I will not leave SA.
This is my country and no one has the right to refuse me my existence here.
We must also not do the normal Afrikaaner thing and simply \"pak ons goed en trek Ferreira\".
The world is no longer the same as during the Groot Trek or those bitter-einders who left for Argentina in 1900.
We must get involved and together with our fellow SA'ns work out a plan that will make us proud to be here.
We especially need to vote next and stop saying,\"I'm not interested in politics\".
We have to be - otherwise we must not complain that we have become unwanted strangers in our own country.
. Peter");
document.write("AA
");
document.write("I agree with you Peter Breeze.
I'm encouraged that there are so many level headed comments here!
For me it demonstrates that the whites are not giving up just yet and that we do see our and our kids futre is here!
We are disappointed but we must make it work too.
That's very positive!
btw the weather in Cape Town today is great!
going for a run later & then drinks at Bloubergstrand! . Peter");
document.write("Balance
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document.write("Ag nee man, mense, jirraaa!
Its embarrasing - when the rand slumps, you lot come out predicting the end is near, when it goes back up - no comment.
Same with anything bad/good in SA.
As a white male in SA, I dont believe AA has gone far enough.
The loopholes should be tightened, so we dont have unsuitable people in important positions, but guys - we need balance.
And Zuma is talking about AA, putting his ideas out there - he is not hiding. He is saying we are not done with it - yet.
So he is talking in terms of phasing it out.
And while us whiteys are whingeing about things, as we get served by a black guy at restuarant, and a black guy looks after our car for R2(Ok, I am generous - R1), and the garden boy (black) arrives at the same time as the black maid - we don't see the progress around us.
Zulu kids now surf in Durbs - and well, not floundering around in the surf.
The Gautrain is a marvel, the 2010 stadiums are ahead of schedule, the infrastructure projects countrywide are protecting us whilst most of the world economy goes tits up.
Tourism is booming (again, as most of the world struggles in this department).
There is plenty of good stuff - you crew and the media( generally speaking) just dont want to see it... . Chris");
document.write("Not All Black & White but Grey!!!
");
document.write("AA!!!
I have taken some time to go through BBBEE and AA policies.
There are certain things I feel I must point out.
1st of all these ill-conceived policies are badly designed.
I could go on forever about why they are ill-conceived,but that would take ages.
Simple example....White population is small and not growing at the same rate as the other races.Read into that.
Anyway, most important fact is that the greatest Resource in the world is not Gold,Oil or Platinum ...but the HUMAN RESOURCE!!!
That is something only SA is trying hardest to squander in the name of righting imbalances.
All this in the face of neglecting a necessary Education System Overhaul.
Now this is at a crucial time when we are squealing about a skills shortage.
The sad side of this is that all this breeds a culture of entitlement amongst us Blacks, disenfranchises our white population and starts a vicious cycle that is going to be really hard to break if over looked.
2ndly!!!
Now for the buster,..and I really must point this out.
Like most policies,..these are so badly designed and not applied on concensus that I am surprised at how people jump at them.
What I am trying to say is that there are loads of white people that have benefitted from BBBEE and AA, simply because they took the time to analyse and implement the same.
I personally know some guys that have made millions out of BBBEE and they are whiter that white.
3rd!!!
Legal Aspect of BBBEE!!!
A white Male in his 20's can legally claim not to have been previously advantaged.
If this can be proved in a court of law then it would open up doors for a lot of young white South Africans and force AA to be redifined instead of being some vague concept.
What defines us as Black or African???
A white SAn that speaks fluent Zulu???
What about a white male married to a Black female or Black male & White male???
There are so many technicalitioes that have not been explored and yet most white people use this as an excuse without contesting the possible abuse of their very own rights.
I am Black and yes I am against these policies because I dont think they are whats best for this country and they smell like the old stuff that we had to go through.
2 wrongs do not make a right.
And for black folk out there BBBEE is not really empowerment but disempowerment,...hence 70% of reallocated land is unproductive!!!
This is just simple politicking at the expense of the electorate.
Land Affairs just admitted this week that there is no way they can achieve that target of 30% by 2014 because of poor implementation.
Poor Planning,..bad management,...and lousy strategy.. Pappa");
document.write("AA
");
document.write("Quite clearly the remarks attributed to Zuma are a receipe for exactly the same disaster that has befallen Zimbabwe. When will they learn? NEVER
We will have to fight them on the beaches, on the land and in the air,we shall never surrender what we built and sweated for. The gov. are the cause of everthing that turns out bad and they are too stupid to acknowledge it.
. Bedin");
document.write("AABEE
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document.write("I am in agreement with the second opinion proferred by Peter. I'm a 24 year old white male, about to graduate as a Chartered Accountant. I love my country and contribute where I can, but I cannot help in believing the country (black majority) doesn't really want me here. It's in parliament, in our laws, in the newspapers, in opinion columns and on the street. I feel like a liability. Merely tolerated and also only until I voice an opinion that rocks the boat. My opinion doesn't matter, my (developing) skills don't matter, my passion for the coutry doesn't matter, but most important of all: I, as a person, don't matter. I feel despised and marginalised. No one would willingly stay where it is made clear they are not welcome. So I'm leaving to gain international experience. And if after 5 or 10years, the racist fervour of the majority has subsided I will reconsider taking up the South African flag.
. John");
document.write("Read between the lines
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document.write("John, the country wants you, pal! If you asked Zuma personally, he would beg you to stay.
Remember, there are many agendas being vomited onto our front pages by the press.
For example, why are we not bombarded with the fact that we are ahead of schedule for 2010, that our new Integrated Rapid Transport systems are rolling out, airports beautifully expanded and rebuilt.
In short, the infrastructure building boom we are experiencing is providing thousands of jobs, and insulating us from the worst of the financial crisis.
But what do we get - Oh no, a hole has appeared in Oxford st because of the Gautrain!
More than two years in on this monumental project, with state of the art engineering and technical methods - and the only time you hear about it is if there is a mishap.
My point is, the story on the ground is often very different to what we read in the press.
I am positive you will find good employment here, but going overseas is cool as well. You have to go for the best option.
Aus just recorded its biggest ever emigration figure - as thousands go overseas for better opportunities.
Thats the way the world is, its not unique to SA.
But whatever you choose, know that the vast majority of this country, Black and White, wants you and your skills, and there are plenty of employers willing to put their money where their mouths are.... Dean");
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document.write("Very interesting the comments from 'Not white/black but grey', weird! thanks.
And John,going overseas to get experience would be amazing, it exposes one to other ways of thinking, interactions, cultures, etc.
It however would be great if you would come back after 2 or 5 years. But don't make it dependent on what the 'mood' of the country is - as we all know by now, we are prone to being negative (to just about suicidal)!!
I've done a few stints overseas but this is my home, and it will remain my home.
While John is oversees the rest of us will work it out!
:)
. Peter");
document.write("AA/BBBEE
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document.write("Just some quick knee jerk reactions, yes I can understand some of the need for these policies and I can understand that white people don't want to commit economic suicide/genocide to themselves either. When do we start moving to selection on merit instead of race?
We've seen the success of AA policies in government, we've seen how successful our government institutions are, very productive, very successful, high on service delivery, low on corruption, Low on incompetence, nepotism and cronyism, shining beacons of excellence and service.
If government was a private company it would have been out of business a long time ago. But hey lets do to the private sector what government has done to government. A bit like what Zim has done to their agriculture sector.
A white male starts a business and then gets penalised because its another white male in a senior manager position. Of course there's more white males in senior managers, because they have the skills, ability and desire to start their own company and do business. I would also guess that there are thousands of black owned companies that are not registered, don't pay taxes and that these black managers are not included in the statistics that we hear from government.. Michael");
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