ESKOM - welcome to darkest Africa!

[Gabriël]

how dark can it get?

https://businesstech.co.za/news/energy/301496/eskom-looting-could-be-as-much-as-r500-billion-report/ 

[___]

There is one small thing that worries me about the whole state capture investigation. So one thing that is becoming clear is that there wasn't just one gang going about stealing... there were several. There was the Tobacco smugglers, the Diesel sellers, and then there was coal, dairy and (possibly) Uranium gang otherwise known as the Guptas. This last one was the most well known.

But the Guptas got caught because of Waterkloof, or rather, that is where it started to unravel. So if I was a member of one of the _other_ gangs, my tactic would be to attempt to lay as much blame as POSSIBLE on the Gupta gang so as to divert as much attention away from the others (and myself).

So when it is reported that Eskom was the main theater of all the corruption... while it is very believable... I worry that as bad as it is, it might in fact be a way to hide the other "productions" that were running elsewhere... whether it was in  theater or not. Sorry to be this pessimistic... it just smells funny to me.

[Gabriël]

44 minutes ago, plonkster said:

Sorry to be this pessimistic...

this is not pessimism, it is realism and you do not have to apologize - 'society' wants to tag those addressing reality as pessimists and 'unrealistic' in order to advance its own corrupt agenda and downplay constructive criticism!

 

47 minutes ago, plonkster said:

it might in fact be a way to hide the other "productions" that were running elsewhere...

indeed! where do we stand with the stolen oil reserves of 2015 - not a word regarding any investigations in cp's SONA - could it be that the fact that his buddy of long standing's company 'bought' most of it have something to do with the absence of this topic? is this matter investigated? is it sub judice ? if the latter than that is just another way of covering the real issues for political purposes - see linked pdf.

1 hour ago, plonkster said:

There is one small thing

now THAT'S an understatement 

[phil.g00]

 Let me ask a sensible question, of people that are punch drunk with mis-directional propaganda.

Do you you really think that people tasked with the logistical nightmare of getting R500 Billion worth of coal to where actually it should go, were hood-winked for years by an ultra-efficient underworld that whispered it away without anyone knowing until yesterday. 

There isn't a legal SA company capable of such a task without screwing it up.

C'mon lads, keep it together, you're are milking strawberry milk from radio-active cows on area 51.

In fact, the closest bovine connection to this story is BS.

Edited February 25, 2019 by phil.g00

[Gabriël]

3 hours ago, phil.g00 said:

Let me ask a sensible question

the only way to answer your question is with another one... how is it possible that this country was 'run' by a semi-literate polygamist criminal for about eight years?

Edited February 25, 2019 by gabriel

[phil.g00]

45 minutes ago, gabriel said:

the only way to answer your question is with another one... how is it possible that this country was 'run' by a semi-literate polygamist criminal for about eight years?

That's easy .....Because the majority of SA citizens voted for it.

Edited February 25, 2019 by phil.g00

[Gabriël]

i hope i misunderstand you

@phil.g00, your question presupposes some kind of conspiracy. your statement/question is also spiced with adjectives and conjectural suppositions implying that the facts at hand are in fact figments of the 'radiated' fringe victims of propaganda - i.e. people like myself.

or if i have been misled by what i have perceived to be fact, kindly lead me to the path of truth.

[phil.g00]

@gabriel,

That there has been looting at ESKOM is clear.

Sorry, I was conflating your article with contemporary articles that blame the looting of coal as the reason for ESKOM downfall.

I saw your headline, and thought it was the article I had just read which put ESKOM's woes down to the theft of coal.

It would take a massive, super efficient organization to steal the amount of coal it was supposing, to have put ESKOM in the hole it is through blue collar crime.

In the last two days, this has been the narrative, (although I should have followed your link).

And I wasn't buying it.

 

[Gabriël]

15 minutes ago, phil.g00 said:

Sorry, I was conflating your article with contemporary articles that blame the looting of coal as the reason for ESKOM downfall.

no sweat - re the coal though it is interesting to note that sa is selling off its best coal via richards bay whilst using the lower grades for power generation. these lower grades cause damage which in turn leads to....

my hypotheses regarding the sudden pre xmas and new year availability of electricity - i.e. no load shedding up till a point about two weeks ago is that by 'executive order' of the sp's office the good grade coal was made available for local consumption as an emergency measure - this temporary measure though will not be able to 'quench the fire' until election nor will it be able to sugar coat the inherent chaos and break-down of the energy infrastructure.

[phil.g00]

I have no doubt that the timing of the recent load-shedding was a machination of the SP's office.

[___]

1 hour ago, phil.g00 said:

In the last two days, this has been the narrative, (although I should have followed your link). 

And I wasn't buying it.

That is sort of what I was getting at too. Every now and then you get this vibe where everyone seems to latch on to one "bad guy", thinking that finally they found the one broken part of this car and replacing this will make it go again...

No my friends. When you're done with the glow plugs, you're going to find that the injectors are shot, the fuel pump needs a recon, and the tank is full of gunk...

[Guest]

1 hour ago, plonkster said:

When you're done with the glow plugs, you're going to find that the injectors are shot, the fuel pump needs a recon, and the tank is full of gunk...

Makes two of us.

And the ones that are facing the "music", or are going to face it, small fry being offered up as "sacrifice" for the voting populace: Look here, we "cleaned" up the problem.

Cyril / Gordhan and Co KNOWS where the skeletons are buried. We are being entertained by a carefully crafted "Days of Out Lives" soapie.

[___]

2 hours ago, The Terrible Triplett said:

And the ones that are facing the "music", or are going to face it, small fry being offered up as "sacrifice" for the voting populace: Look here, we "cleaned" up the problem.

So if I may derail this again and veer off into philosophical domain... this is why the basic Western Judaeo-Christian doctrine of original sin is so powerful (whether you believe in such a thing or not), because it casts that net wider. It goes to the next guy and asks: Well Cyril, you were there... what did you do? And you, John, did you not vote for these people? And you, Johan, did you not pay your employee so poorly so that he he voted for a better life in desperation? It comes right to your own door and asks of you: You think you're better than these people? Let me tell you, you are the worst!

So yeah, that is a bit dramatic, but I was heading somewhere with it, somewhere fairly uncontroversial, which is this: That society as a whole allows such things to happen by a cumulative adding-up of bad things, and this nonsense doesn't stop until you start thinking that way, which involves starting at home (making your bed in the morning) and ending with holding accountable those who are in charge.

[Gabriël]

31 minutes ago, plonkster said:

holding accountable

!

[seant]

Accountable, well that's the thing those with their fingers in the cookie jar should be held to book. But I have my reservations as to whether this will happen. There might be one or two folks that end up as scapegoats, but honestly with the amount of theft and corruption we should have a near complete change of parliament.  They should be stripped of their state pensions and parliamentary benifits and locked up . No not locked up , infact they should be made to work to give back to society at mimimun wage. As I would hate to see one of my tax cents being wasted to house them in a prison.

[seant]

What happened the Shabir who was on deaths door step and set free. Was he not found guilty for having corrupt dealings with Zuma, so would that not make Zuma guilty too? And travel gate weren't all those politicians going to pay back the money. Well I wonder. And the we could all go on with a long long list, but it seems that you really have to be a scecial kind of corrupt to be held accountable .

[Gabriël]

3 hours ago, seant said:

But I have my reservations as to whether this will happen...

only one way:

Jeremiah 13:23 "Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his spots? Then also you can do good who are accustomed to do evil. "
 

[Gabriël]

1 hour ago, gabriel said:

Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his spots?

remember to quote this verse in context guys, the important part is "...Then also you can do good who are accustomed to do evil.", referring to being changed by Christ... ok i know i might step on some toes - but are we not dealing with facts? 

[seant]

During Zimbabwes liberation struggle the was a group of former terrorists that defected to the otherside. During their training there were constant accidental discharges of their weapons while on parade etc. The group took it upon themselves to discipline the guilty parties with sever beatings. Needless to say the mishaps continued. It was only when they literally took they own lives in their own hands did things change. During parade a few random soldiers were chosen and their weapons put to their heads and the trigger pulled. The result was everyone made sure their weapons were cleared. That's the type of realisation our population needs to realise, our actions affect us and not making it the next guys problem cause I don't care.

[Gabriël]

16 minutes ago, seant said:

During parade a few random soldiers were chosen and their weapons put to their heads and the trigger pulled.

discipline! take the 1st church discipline in acts 5, ananias and his wife conspired to steal money from God, immediate death was their reward, same with adam and eve in genesis 3 - it is the only thing which works and must always be enforced from the outside; even the present german 'discipline' was enforced from outside forces over millennia.

there is no easy way, least of all bringing about change from the inside of an already corrupt entity.

[Guest]

1 hour ago, seant said:

During parade a few random soldiers were chosen and their weapons put to their heads and the trigger pulled. The result was everyone made sure their weapons were cleared.

WOW, I like that!

First you explain / teach.
Then you shout and threaten with a "opfokkie" or two.
Then next level ... you weapon is clear? Pull the trigger.

 

[___]

1 hour ago, The Terrible Triplett said:

Then next level ... you weapon is clear? Pull the trigger.

Man... this is something I drill into my kids (well, the one so far). It doesn't matter if it is clear. It doesn't matter if the action is lying on the table next to you... your respect for a firearm is such that you NEVER point it at anyone or yourself.

(You see... that is the difference... you teach your kids to have respect for firearms... that way they won't become either 1) dumbasses who gets someone shot or 2) dumbasses who think they can solve all society's problems by banning legal weapons...).

[Guest]

7 minutes ago, plonkster said:

... banning legal weapons ...

Don't make me go down this rabbit hole!

 

I say, like a car license, everyone should have the right to easily get a firearm licence. You want to keep your weapon concealed? That is your business.

Allow PnP, Woolies etc to sell bullets for the weapon on your license, must 18 years and older, after producing your license.

Now that gives a lot of people the grills. So many people with guns!? NO!!!

My common sense says as long as criminals have weapons, no banning of anything is going to solve THAT problem. So arm the rest.  

[Guest]

On 2019/02/25 at 3:00 AM, phil.g00 said:

Do you you really think that people tasked with the logistical nightmare ... of coal to where actually it should go, were hood-winked for years by an ultra-efficient underworld that whispered it away without anyone knowing until yesterday. 

YES!!!  

https://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/608/187688.html

[Gabriël]

11 minutes ago, The Terrible Triplett said:

YES!!!  

 

i had a lot to do with mine security, albeit gold i can just imagine the proportions of crime in especially the coal/eskom scenario... jou ore sal tuit