[Experiment] AA/EE/BEE: How much longer?

[HavocXphere]

This is a two part question, please answer both. Firstly, how much longer should it last in your opinion? Secondly, how much longer will it last in your opinion?

Clearly there are currently imbalances in the country. Just looking at the crowd in a random restaurant or a private school & its obvious that the money is not distributed anything close to representative of the demographics of the country. Looking at the Gini Coefficient (an economic measure of inequality), inequality is bad & has been worsening since 1996. Thats for the country as a whole & not split by race so its not exactly ideal for this discussion but essentially it says the poor are getting poorer. And since the poor happen to be predominately black in this countries this leads me to believe that the situation is getting worse instead of better despite BEE/EE/AA. I'm not even sure we'll ever get there with the current measures...they seem totally misguided anyway: A few BEE fatcats/consortiums get richer while the man on the street wonders what happened. This is all from a purely economic point of view. The living standards of the poor I think, we can all agree have increased dramatically in the past few years (Water, electricity etc). Its a bit tricky because the stats are distorted by AIDS so we didn't see a rise in life expectancy as would be expected. Also, this post is purely a test to see who reads before commenting. So if you've read this far end your post with a comma instead of a full stop to indicate this & keep quiet about it. Naturally over the long term, balance will return to the wealth distribution even if the current systems are completely ineffective. No idea how long that will take seeing how better education etc can presumably maintain the status quo for quite a while.

Note: This is BEE/EE/AA in its current form. If you're envisaging any modifications in your predictions then please make that clear.

 

[copacetic]

I don't think it should exist at all.

I think it will last until the well runs dry.

That being said, I don't have a huge issue with the concept of helping out those who were disenfranchised during apartheid, but clearly, as you say, a couple of fat-cats are enriching themselves while the poor still suffer, which is a damned slap in the face to anyone who fought for the end of apartheid.

I think the best thing we could do in this country is stop thinking in terms of colour, in all respects, it serves no damned purpose and concentrate on putting the best people for the job in the job, so as to get the whole system running well. Kick the ass of the education system and shoot politicians who talk the talk but don't walk the walk.

*shrug*

 

[R13...]

It should only stop once we have a true equal equal opportunity landscape. When that happens is up to the people living here.

It's a fallacy to think AA is meant to help the poor. The poor uneducated are in the welfare system, AA addresses inequalities & discrimination that result from our long history of institutionalised race imbalances. That legacy sits and is entrenched in the minds of many in control of the economy still.

 

[DreamKing]

in year(s)
1) 0
2) inf.

 

[Kornhub]

It shouldn't exist and secondly probably till I die They should seriously come up with a new solution to actually help the poor and not the selected few,maybe some workshops to teach them some certain skills in industry etc ,

 

[nakedpeanut]

I understand where you coming from. And it certainly does appear like that. I'm middle - high class, and the schools I went to (private) are definitely getting more black students. And you do notice more middle class black people. I think it has been effective to a degree, only because those people that worked for what they have, were determined and never expected it, or thought they were just entitled to it.

my estimates... As long as the fat cats keep getting richer, they'll stick to what works.
SO ya,

 

[HavocXphere]

I don't think it should exist at all.

And hope the imbalances disappear on their own?

 

[bullzeye.za]

I think AA/BEE is a good -idea-, however the execution of the idea has been done so incredibly wrong that nobody except 1-2% will ever actually benefit from it,

I'd say that there should be a proper incentive to involve more colored people (tax break? Subsidised salary?), rather than a law forcing you to employ them, or else,

As for the answers,

Should it last: another year, maybe two
Will it last: Another ten or twenty years

 

[scud]

I think that BEE/EE/AA should be scrapped, the whole business of corruption and "tenderpreneurs" has tainted everything for me.
I'm now think that a "free market" without BEE/EE/AA would enable the country to grow much faster, and move faster towards a more more equal society.
It feels like it's just holding us back, it certainly affects my business strategy , i'de be happy to pay more taxes if it did'nt exist

 

[porchrat]

I think AA/BEE is not a good idea. I have no problem with helping people but people should be helped based on their economic situation not the colour of their skin. People who are trapped in poverty but have the natural talent to rise above it if given the opportunity should be given that opportunity whether they're black, white, indian, chineses, japanese, coloured whatever.

Giving people a leg up based on the colour of their skin is a stupid system.

 

[AstroTurf]

It is not working nor will it ever work.

In my opinion it should end today
In reality it will last till our children are close to retirement.

Replace it with Affirmative education and social economic empowerment so that it targets the poor instead of the cadres.

 

[Happy Camper]

This will not be going away for a VERY long time, if at all.

 

[copacetic]

And hope the imbalances disappear on their own?

Not sure what else to say, that I didn't say in my post already.

 

[MickeyD]

1. Until 29 February 2012 (end of current tax year)

2. Another 25 years (unfortunately)

 

[Voicy]

I think AA/BEE is a good -idea-, however the execution of the idea has been done so incredibly wrong that nobody except 1-2% will ever actually benefit from it,

In theory, communism works as well.

 

[Arthur]

It will last until SA crashes. At least the internet is the flight recorder.

Crash, you ask? It's what happens when equality trumps justice.

 

[MegasXLR]

Until Jesus comes (ANC)

 

[HavocXphere]

I think that BEE/EE/AA should be scrapped, the whole business of corruption and "tenderpreneurs" has tainted everything for me.
I'm now think that a "free market" without BEE/EE/AA would enable the country to grow much faster, and move faster towards a more more equal society.
It feels like it's just holding us back, it certainly affects my business strategy , i'de be happy to pay more taxes if it did'nt exist

Sure, but who gets the benefits of this improved growth? I'd agree that its holding the country back as a whole, but I'm not so sure that improved growth in itself would equalize things.

It's a fallacy to think AA is meant to help the poor.

If not the poor then who? If its purely based on skin colour then we aren't fixing inequalities but rather simply discriminating. Personally I don't think a BEE fatcat needs more help, nor should he/she be entitled to an artificially created advantage. Such a person should compete on a level playing field.

 

[STS]

ah yes, the plight upon our world that is AA/BEE. almost as bad as abortion and genocide

i don't like it, but it's not like military service. you can work around it

 

[scud]

A weird byproduct of AA/BEE, is it makes everyone feel guilty for being successful. It just feels so negative to me. There must be a better more positive way to turn things around.