South Africa – the expected society by 2010

I have just come across a very interesting document which has as its conclusion the following:

By 2006/7 there seems to be two emerging options for 2010 and beyond.

Option 1: The current governing decay continues. The demands from a distorted society for government support increases dramatically, while Government’s capabilities continue to decline. Eventually democracy and the survival of the state itself come into question. The expected outcome is not a civil war, but rather something closer to a silent, internal implosion – things will just cease to function! The quality of life for the population will decrease as services decline and collapse. Emigration of expertise may increase dramatically en so expedite the process of internal implosion.

Option 2: The current governing decay continues, but society does not only demand; it also starts to provide. Very specific interest groups in society realise that without a form of alternative self-management, society at large will eventually collapse.

Option 2 has not only steadily gained influence since 2000 – when government structures started falling apart – but seems to be the winning option for 2010 and beyond. It seems that the structures which Government cannot supply and maintain, and are needed by interest groups for their own survival, are replaced and regenerated by these groups outside Government.
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In crude terms it seems that a new political dispensation is in the making: what Government cannot do, private sector groupings will take over in interaction with international concerns. It may reflect some kind of political by-pass operation. This may no longer be a party-driven political system, but an interest driven society where expertise will be the dominant factor.

It paints a picture, with references to support documentation, of the state of this country in the years ahead. One form of capital that the document refers to is that of Virtual Capital .

The new virtual society is everywhere and any “accumulated possessions” are expressed, not so much in the traditional perception of fixed assets, but in capital of the mind – ideas, entrepreneurship and expertise that can be applied and relocated with the push of a button. This process forms the driving force behind the process of globalisation. Virtual capital is determined by the competitive advantage of society, not by fixed assets.

I tend to agree woth the document. I think that society, let’s call it private society, is starting to take issues into their own hands. By this I don’t mean vigilantism. The examples used are valid. The security industry is now double the size of the Police etc etc It has to go further than that but it’s a start

Talking to a friend of mine. he put it like this. “We need to privatise the government”. I reallly do feel, given the thinking of this document that me way well find ourselves, in this country, creating an alternate form of government or “interest driven society “. Is it too far fetched to believe? Here is the link for the full doc.

On another note, Read the post “A worthy Cause”, went to the site. They have also asked for people to link to them. So I will and have

~ by nivek on February 2, 2007.