PCFormat Forum Archive

rustypup wrote:@anakha56: in politics, what is promised is rarely delivered... would be great if it ever came about, but modern governance is about control, not a relaxation thereof....

I know (SA is the prime example) but dreaming can be healthy .

Trying to stay out of this one, but I'm inclined to agree with rusty on most points.

What I find rather silly about this whole thing is how it's compared to Nelson Mandela being elected in 1994. The ONLY vague similarity is that Nelson Mandela is a black man, and most of the world seems to consider Obama a black man. Black enough I guess, if being half black and half white makes you black. So both were the first black men elected president in their respective countries, fine, but when people start saying he will free America in the way Mandela freed South Africa and they can now too be a rainbow nation, I LOL...

I say yup, give him a chance, but I'll reserve any praise until the man does something.

I started this thread not because I believe Obama is America's messiah who will set them free, but rather because for more than a third of my life America has been run into the ground by a useless fool, and I am expressing my excitement and hope for the future now that the US is in the hands of someone who at least seems capable.

I will make one post because I feel politics is an extremely heated topic.

The reason behind the excitement over Obama being elected is because he is not white. In a nation with a majority of white people it speaks volumes that the majority of the US has said colour is no longer an issue. A statement which I think is a lesson for every nation in the world.

I agree with Rusty (which in itself is amazing) with regards to Bush and the economic crisis. One single man cannot be the cause for such a huge event. But his goverment's policies can be blamed. Bear in mind one man is not a government (unless that man is bob mugabe)

I am excited to see what Obama does, his policies with regards to IT/the net tell of a man with a mind on the future.

Be careful when trying to ascertain the degree of an American politicians religious beliefs. The majority of the US is Christian and it is a popular campaigning technique in the US presidential race.

KillerByte wrote:his goverment's policies can be blamed.

the policies responsible were in place long before his father even set foot in the whitehouse... secondly, the yanks did not force those pioneers of credit farming around the world to buy it all up like it was chocolate covered hotcakes on sale for the first time in a million years...

turns out, forcing your banking institutions to issue loans to folks who can't afford them is a bad idea... who knew?

rustypup, so you think that the response to 9/11 had no effect on the global economy?

Tribble wrote:so you think that the response to 9/11 had no effect on the global economy?

why would their oil-grubbing have any effect at all on the value of property? ...

yes, it had an effect, it pumped further funds back into it, (mostly those sectors dealing with the manufacture, care and maintenance of death)... the cost of "rebuilding" has yet to fall due...

And the cost of going to war?

again, the cost of their little campaign against sanity has so far added but the tiniest little drop in the ocean that has been the national deficit in that country for many years now...

it also has nothing whatsoever to do with bad debts being sold between financial institutions... why do you imagine the 'crisis' is global?

Oh my goodness - businesses are closing down all around us and you - like our dear politicians - reason that there is no crisis. Um have you watched the indices lately? Have you seen the drop in shares globally? Surely you don't believe that this has only affected the US and GB?

Tribble wrote:Oh my goodness - businesses are closing down all around us and you - like our dear politicians - reason that there is no crisis.

hmm... where did i say that?... this is not a 'crisis'... it cannot possibly be that big a surprise for all those speculators to discover that they've been trading in bad debt....

this is the result of long term, uncontrolled, profiteering by a small group of unscrupulous sods who have made their killing and scarpered before the fan hit....

which local companies have closed?... i've seen any number of yank and pom companies closing, but not to avert any form of financial 'disaster'. they're being closed to protect the holiest of grails, EBITDA.. .namely, the profit number being reported to the shareholders...

i know you're particularly averse to percentages, but i'd like to share one with you... 70-80% - that's the average GP being pulled through a UK retailer... so they're shutting down stores, flooding the streets with unemployed staff and thereby bleeding the dole just a little more, in the interests of protecting their historically high profit margins...

the financial markets are in turmoil because many financial institutions are founded on property... start muttering about negative equity and all and sundry get their panties in a knot... there was very little actual, hard, evidence for a falling market other than the tried and tested rumour and speculation.. of course, we don't need to look too far now....

this crisis was manufactured... i feel it in my bones...

What you say has a vague ring of realism to it - but look here Job cuts sweep through SA - Fin24.com

Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) numbers show that more than 70 000 jobs have already been lost in the third quarter of this year and unions are fearing even more job losses.

Source

How can you doubt that we are affected by what has happened. And to say that the economic state of the first world countries does not affect us, is rather a short sighted view.

To say that the companies are only closing down to save their stock prices must surely be fantasy. I agree - it is one of the benefits of their closure - but I do not think it is the reason for the closure.

Tribble wrote:How can you doubt that we are affected by what has happened.

quantify those losses...

you can expect a damn site more closer to 2010... turns out, once a stadium's built, there's not much need for the contractors...

i'm not saying we aren't affected..... my question was which south african companies have closed their doors as a result.. not too many, i'll wager....

statsSA

Right, so I actually just read through the entire thread. How sad.

On another topic: I know you cannot judge a politician by his speeches, but no-one will convince me that Obama did not impress thus far. He has not set a foot wrong, and he points out decent ways to solve problems he at least acknowledges. On the other hand, it is also true that he has not quite achieved anything, yet.

I for one am positive about him, especially compared to poor mister B.

Oh, and the American president has a huge effect on the entire world, on our morale's, if nothing else.

OT - rusty, you really are fond of ellipses'...

Hmm, looks like he is, in fact, doing something...

Obama is freezing the salaries of some White House Aides

Not 24 hours in and he is already doing something...

I dislike Obama less than anyone else who tried out for US Prez - with the possible exception of Sarah Palin but she was going for 2IC anyway.
I wouldn't want to be in the poor man's shoes for the next few years though....

@rusty - brilliant troll

I for one think that Barack Obama will make a better president that 'ol bush. My girlfriend watched a episode of Oprah, where she interviewd Barack, and he looks like a very capable person. That was a while ago when he first started his campaign.

For one, he lived in the dodgy part of his home town, in a torn down building amongst the homeless. So he knows what the less fortunate is going through.

That makes him a man of humility. He is not power hungry or sadistic. He's simple.

That is what makes good presidents. A person that will look after his people.

pienkie wrote:How sad.

really?... you're that emotionally involved in america?...

pienkie wrote:no-one will convince me that Obama did not impress thus far.

poltical speeches are not written, or created, by politicians... and you're using these to devine his true intentions and character? spend 5 minutes thinking about this and then submit an essay of no less than 500 words explaining your reasons for believing whatever propaganda you're exposed to ...

pienkie wrote:the American president has a huge effect on the entire world, on our morale's

really, now... so you base your morals in life on the antics of a foreign dimbulb.... does this mean you've done the monica? i ask purely for scientific reasons

doo_much wrote:I wouldn't want to be in the poor man's shoes for the next few years though

precisely... he has inherited one truly hot potatoe...

honestly, the only way i'm impressed is when i see one of these gits place the welfare of the population they're responsible for before their politcal survival..

rustypup wrote:honestly, the only way i'm impressed is when i see one of these gits place the welfare of the population they're responsible for before their politcal survival..

Indeed! One only needs to look at our own politicians. Too busy filling their own pockets, taking personal trips for hundreds of thousands of rands of tax payers money, organising government positions for their family members and cronies, all the while rallying behind the lead clown and ringmaster of the circus, who happens to be a criminal himself...

What a great read, I am waiting for Zapiro's opinion.

Well...

Obama has overturned the secrecy on the former president's records

Guess that's another good thing.

Not to mention halting all still-pending Bush Administration regulations pending review

On today's agenda, he intends to sign an order to close down Guantanamo Bay within 1 year.

Now, I'm not saying that this proves that he is, indeed, the saviour many claim him to be, but you've got to be honest; so far he's doing a pretty good job on coming through on his promises...

lancelot wrote:What a great read, I am waiting for Zapiro's opinion.

ROTFL Bwahahahaha

and so it begins - naysayers pay attention... sometimes the hype really is just hype....

rustypup wrote:i'm not saying we aren't affected..... my question was which south african companies have closed their doors as a result.. not too many, i'll wager....

statsSA

My friends mom worked for bull brand, not sure what their whole company name is. She lost her job and it closed down. She said that the company was running for 50+ years.

Thats to name 1