What a week - what a write off!!

Perhaps a reflection on this week would be the best medicine especially after a Friday the 13th has come and gone and a week best left never remembered.  It has been a week of significant importance and high emotions both personally and in general. Our country continues to stumble along and yet what amazed me that for the first time in many weeks, even Eskom, did not grab all the media attention.  They seemed to keep the lights on for once, when in many ways as a South African, I wished that we could have had the national blackout, so that we could hide the insanity, which took place during our state of the nation address.  This was surely a year where, with 38% unemployment, massive corruption, continued violence, extremely poor matric results and infrastructure standing on the point of collapse, that South Africa could have done with some positive news.  Instead the happenings in Cape Town went a very long way, to persuade most of the world, that this is a country which cannot be taken seriously.  From an economic point of view, we have continued wildfire strikes like the JHB bus services and even the Gautrain buses, our rand is performing poorly against major currencies, our power utility continues to burn a hole in sentiment to the country and now it looks like foreigners, won't be allowed to buy property in this country and can only get long term leases.  It must have been very strange for the president to stand almost alone in a parliament, without representatives (except for the lady that was asleep after 2 minutes already), but lets face it, he should stand alone when his actions are those of a megalomaniatic dictator, or in simple English, an utter fool.  He read his speech page after page and thankfully got through the numerical components better than usual, but there was no flair and leadership anywhere to be seen.  The country wept from embarrassment, sadness at the way he and his party conducted themselves and I am sure rather lost, because we have come 20 years beyond democracy and nothing gave the impression, that we have held on as the powerhouse of Africa.  Our president continues to run this country into the ground and yet the majority still accept it and do nothing to change the status quo.  Any family in this country would be forgiven for questioning the future of raising children in this place and the immense beauty and diversity of people and weather and lifestyle, are no longer enough to hold South Africans together, because things simply don't work, crime never goes away, employment issues persist labour and education remain pathetic and corruption and stealing is at the highest level in the country, which means that the normal man on the street, can only but follow suite.  A sad week indeed and a very special (and sarcastic) thanks to our president for leading us into a darker (literally) time, instead of showing an ounce of respect for the people and stepping down from his ever growing castle (or nkandla) while his people flounder around, like a ship without a rudder.  I should have rather gone to see the Fifty Shades of Grey, than the 90 minutes of Torture.