The Third World War - as seen on TV

2011-08-22 09:15

The first battles in the Third World War have started. Lives have already been lost and property destroyed.

The Third World War is being fought between rich and poor - the haves and have-nots.

The Third World War will be fuelled by perception, entitlement, envy, greed, corruption, obscene wealth, selfish political agendas, envy and a flawed global economy.

The Third World War will get uglier, more brutal and destructive with every day that goes past in which the gap between rich and poor gets wider.

We are seeing the first shots being fired in the Third World War. Civil unrest growing all over the world in protest against political despots, dictators and lack of service delivery.

Rioting and looting in the USA and UK for what seems to be no apparent reason but which common sense dictates is simply pent up frustration at governments screwing up and no end in sight for an era of austerity for which the middle classes and poor have to carry the can.

The Third World War in microcosm is clearly evident right here in South Africa where once again, municipal workers resort to violence, looting and trashing of the streets. Is this annual uncivil war just about money or also largely about the fact that the people who sweep the streets cannot understand why they earn so much less than their counterparts who work in the civic offices?

Service delivery protests in our country are becoming increasingly violent. Sometimes it really looks like we are at war. I believe we are.

The Third World War is one in which the downtrodden feel they have no future, no hope and in many cases little chance of getting jobs while they watch politicians cruise by in fancy cars, dressing up to the nines and drinking only the finest of Scotch whiskies. The same applies to the perception of workers who are laid off while boards of directors give themselves increases that take them from rich to obscenely wealthy.

The Third World War is being exacerbated by the have-nots seeing their own kind being jailed for stealing a loaf of bread to feed starving families while the rich always manage to get away with murder - literally and figuratively.

The Third World War is one in which politics is seen to be a major catalyst. With political parties putting far more effort into staying in power than working for the good of their nations. With political parties pandering to those who provide election funding instead of the good of the nation.

Political parties engaging in petty point-scoring instead of concentrating on the good of the nation.

And most of all, political parties making promises at election time and then unapologetically breaking them one after the other with what is perceived to be arrogant disdain.

The Third World War will be fuelled by big business being perceived by the poor to be struggling to appease the appetites of shareholders and laying off thousands of workers just so that the rich can get richer.

The Third World War will be one in which the poor will only see the flaws in the capitalist system and none of the good.

The Third World War will be given bloody impetus by political correctness and nanny state mentalities both of which do nothing more than increase citizen expectations to unsustainable levels.

The Third World War has already become nasty because the poor see recent economic crises result in them losing their jobs, losing their homes, losing all hope while governments do absolutely nothing, except plough billions into propping up the very banks and other financial institutions that caused the economic problems in the first place.

The Third World War, when you think about it, is one in which just about every incident of violence we see on our TV screens these days has got some direct connection with the increasing gap between the haves and the have-nots.

The Third World War is being sparked by dysfunctional politics and a global economic system that is quite clearly unsustainable.

The Third World War has only just started and it is going to get a lot uglier.

My apologies for totally screwing up your Monday.

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