This article is one of the most brilliant I have read in a long time. The ideas in it are VERY interesting. I have my doubts that our DoC (Department of communication) has the required skills to come up with solutions quickly enough to make a radical change in the telecoms environment possible. Things are changing, but VERY slowly. Too slow. Our minister is clearly not qualified and the Lord only knows why our President is protecting her position. We need somebody there who understands the pressing issues at hand, who knows something about how the world is adapting all around South Africa. The main thing for me is the fact that the first world is empowering their people for the future by affording them cheap and fast mechanisms for communication. This encompasses entertainment and business, which is what people want. Broadband is more than just a tool. It is supposed to be like running water and electricity in the world of today, yet our government seems to oppose it somehow. I don't know if our government isn't perhaps suffering the "Chinese syndrome" by which it wants to prevent the masses from accessing this wonderful tool. Perhaps the education benefits of a government pushed spread in broadband are exactly what this government fears most. The Chinese are worried about the cultural impact of an open web accessible by all without restrictions.
Perhaps our government is just as fearful for other (but related) reasons. Perhaps our government (not wanting to look like a conservative or even repressive government opposing some freedoms) is quietly letting the digital age come and go with as little fuss as possible. If the masses cannot afford it, they cannot use it. If they cannot use it, society cannot evolve to a possible state where they might choose somebody else in power...
Just a theory. Don't blame me for pondering the reasons why things are not moving quicker here. It is not like government came out with a statement saying "this is why we are taking it easy". The list of possible reasons why government is so slow is very short:
1. Corruption.
2. Incompetence.
3. Fear of the Internet.
Either way, the way our government is responding to the telecoms issue in SA is not boding well for our future.
Perhaps our government is just as fearful for other (but related) reasons. Perhaps our government (not wanting to look like a conservative or even repressive government opposing some freedoms) is quietly letting the digital age come and go with as little fuss as possible. If the masses cannot afford it, they cannot use it. If they cannot use it, society cannot evolve to a possible state where they might choose somebody else in power...
Just a theory. Don't blame me for pondering the reasons why things are not moving quicker here. It is not like government came out with a statement saying "this is why we are taking it easy". The list of possible reasons why government is so slow is very short:
1. Corruption.
2. Incompetence.
3. Fear of the Internet.
Either way, the way our government is responding to the telecoms issue in SA is not boding well for our future.
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If there's any country in the world who should be afraid of the internet it's the US. Here it's more a matter of incompetence and government not wanting to relinquish the control they have by means of no longer needed regulation. The world is mature enough to be taken care of better by much wanted competition rather than regulation.
