Whilst social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook normally contain the worthless tweets or status updates of the not-so-newsworthy man on the street and brand punting celebrities of the world, they nonetheless maintain their Switzerland status as neutral ground.
In contrast, news sites like News24 have the power to hit home when people start debating on the current affairs of the world.
Issues like racism, poor governance, maladministration and corruption normally fill the topics people write and comment about, simply because an online news forum supplies relative anonymity and subsequent safety to blast off controversial opinions and vented frustration.
One only needs to browse the comments on any new story that is published to gather a feeling of the general public’s reaction to news and opinions.
This scenario inclined me to ask the question... is there such a thing as good news out there?
Obviously most news stories have a flip-side, with some people being elated and others dumped in misery, especially considering political issues.
Some people have even managed to give a flip side to crime, depending on the criminal’s race and social stance in the world, raising the next question I asked... why are there always people that have to criticise everything?
Why is everything racialised and politicised?
It would seem then that we have become a nation of moaners and critics, always seeing the negative to everything, and always ready to get involved in a heated debate over... nothing...
Most of these debates end in politics or racial divide in anyway, so let’s just have a debate on that...a debate that would find a solution to all our problems; once and for all. As most people manage to conclude that this country’s troubles are caused by poor governance, and racial tensions, maybe we should accept that they are.
As the international case study on racial relations, South Africa should surely be the one who finds a solution, as we are quite overdue in surprising the world with what can be achieved, when little is expected.
Generally, whites feel that the onus is on them to bridge this gap between races, due to the past, whereas blacks are far more content with white people than most would think.
Sure, every now and again someone would make a sweeping statement that all whites are racist launching a torrent of responses in kind that always lead nowhere.
It's simple, white people are construed as racist, because we have a superiority complex! The rest of the world have been saying so for years!
It doesn’t make everyone racist, but it’s quite an indication of the opinion we as whites generate.
Then, the rest of the world also says that Africa is a consumer continent, and do not have to ability to organise a piss-up in a brewery!
So... is the world correct in their deductions, or does the people of this country know better? The rest of the world also expected S.A to implode after 1994, yet it became a benchmark of what a developing economy should be doing.
Somehow, somewhere, we lost our cohesion in this country. Our international competitiveness is plummeting, industry is failing and even the black brains trust of this country, in its bankers and intellectuals are told that they are in the service of the imperialists, when they raise the legitimate concerns every South African should have.
All we as the people can do, is embroil ourselves in petty race wars that isn’t leading anywhere, and only creates more fear and division, granting the irrational leaders of this country power over us, in contrast to the power we should have over them.
If you think the Zuma administration is dong a bang-up job, then you’re not reading the stats. Personally I don’t care which political party rules this country, as long as they do it well. It’s not necessarily an ANC problem, it’s a Zuma problem... not because he’s black, but because he’s incompetent! I think there are brilliant leaders in the ANC that would take this country to massive heights.
Our squabbles over the last word on a news forum, and critique on all that is not our race, is forcing this country to its knees, and it would seem that online news media has managed to divide, rather than inform.
Maybe it’s time we got over ourselves, and the colour of our skins, and started worrying about our collective, much larger problems in the manner they should be addressed...together.
Maybe it’s time ideology moves over, and logic, reason and justice could fill the gaps that so desperately need filling.
Maybe it’s time to stop criticising for the sake of being a critic, and progressively start finding solutions... by making certain concessions.
We’ve all been caught up in our own issues and concerns for too long to actually realise that we all share them... collectively, and that we can only solve them... collectively.
We are a nation of mixed races, and we have been for years... it’s time we started to deal with that and realise everyone has a part to play in our game against the world, a game we are losing at the moment, and surely can’t afford to.
So, are you a critic because everyone else is, or do you actually have something progressive to say to the world?
Disclaimer: All articles and letters published on MyNews24 have been independently written by members of News24's community. The views of users published on News24 are therefore their own and do not necessarily represent the views of News24. News24 editors also reserve the right to edit or delete any and all comments received.
