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posted by martyb on Tuesday April 23 2019, @11:10PM   Printer-friendly
from the there's-an-app-for-that! dept.

Once the highly infrastructure developed economic powerhouse of Africa, South Africans these days are more interested in the outlook for rolling blackouts. The country’s most-downloaded app provides schedules, alerts and forecasts for power outages.

Eskom, the state power monopoly, is struggling to generate enough electricity to meet needs, and has re-introduced a byzantine system of rotating outages known as “load-shedding.” On February 11th a whopping 4,000 megawatts of power, enough to power some 3m households, was cut from the national grid to prevent it from collapsing. Some businesses have bought generators and battery systems; others close during outages. In big cities, there is chaos at rush hour as traffic lights go dark. The blackouts suit copper-cable thieves, who can steal without fear of electrocution. And when the electricity is switched backed on, substations sometimes explode, resulting in secondary outages.

https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2019/02/21/why-the-lights-keep-going-out-in-south-africa
[paywall: you can see the whole article in 'anonymous view' through startpage.com]

More on the situation:
https://mybroadband.co.za/news/energy/267263-south-africas-electricity-system-is-falling-apart-and-it-is-much-bigger-than-just-eskom.html

How to bring back the lights in South Africa?


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  • (Score: 2, Funny) by Azuma Hazuki on Tuesday April 23 2019, @11:18PM (37 children)

    by Azuma Hazuki (5086) on Tuesday April 23 2019, @11:18PM (#834095) Journal

    Also calm, rational, and utterly devoid of even the implication of racism, let alone entire boatloads of ACs diarrhea-posting "scientific" racism as Gospel truth. Nope. This one's gonna be as calm and smooth as a frozen lake on a clear February morning.

    --
    I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...
    • (Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 23 2019, @11:36PM (28 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 23 2019, @11:36PM (#834105)

      It seems like Trump's guilt is sinking in. Most seem to have gone a bit silent, but the ones with no shame are ramping up the racism. They're too stupid to realize that it was never OK, even with Trump rubber-stamping their personal supremacy cards.

      • (Score: 3, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:18AM

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:18AM (#834127)

        Or after Obama, the race cards don't get as much mileage as they used to. Maybe the people who like to throw it are just bitching more out of disappointment? Is it OK now not to like you because your a dick, without it being about race?

        Can't be true! /sarc When the Washington Compost runs three pages of "everybody white below the mason dixon is a racist retard" articles on a weekly basis, really they are just enlightening us all to their open mindedness. Which is something I'll have to ponder if ever I am faced with the opportunity to stop a fascist from kicking the shit out of one of their reporters.

        Was racism. Now mostly whinism. Stop pretending to be a freedom rider, it isn't the fucking 60's anymore.

      • (Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:51AM

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:51AM (#834136)

        Hey Libtard.

        "No path to 270"
        You were wrong.

        "Impeachment in 2018!"
        You were wrong.

        "Just wait til the Mueller Report!"
        You were wrong.

        STOP BEING SO FUCKING STUPID AND FULL OF YOURSELF DESPITE THE RAMPANT STUPIDITY!

      • (Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:56AM (13 children)

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:56AM (#834141)

        This situation is just too damn obvious. If you can't accept the truth here, then you are so disconnected from reality that you need medication.

        What is there to argue? There is no insight to be had. Africa is Africa. We all know it, even if some of us are in denial.

        Making the other argument, that Africans might succeed, could be fun. It's like explaining why the Earth is flat, or why the Moon landings were faked. You have to go through some contortions. It is a worthy challenge.

        • (Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:01AM (12 children)

          by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:01AM (#834159) Journal

          Making the other argument, that Africans might succeed, could be fun. It's like explaining why the Earth is flat, or why the Moon landings were faked. You have to go through some contortions. It is a worthy challenge.

          They've improved considerably in the past 50 years. That includes South Africa of today with its rolling blackouts.

          • (Score: 2, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:32AM (1 child)

            by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:32AM (#834180)

            Especially since they started to genocide white people

            • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:18PM

              by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:18PM (#834364)

              They do seem to be the source of many of the non-white world's problems.

          • (Score: 4, Troll) by driverless on Wednesday April 24 2019, @08:56AM (9 children)

            by driverless (4770) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @08:56AM (#834265)

            Eskom, the state power monopoly, is struggling to generate enough electricity to meet needs

            Oh God, where to start on this one. Eskom has no trouble generating power, what they can't do is get it to where it's needed, a problem created by a combination of running down the infrastructure created by a lack of funds due to embezzlement by local authorities (Eskom was once ranked the best-run power company in the world), combined with reverse apartheid that requires they fire all white workers and hire only black workers. Problem is that when you let go all your white engineers with 30, 40, 50 years of experience in running a power grid and replace them with fresh college graduates with degrees in developmental studies you get a power grid that collapses regularly. The only way to fix it is to fly in Siemens engineers from Germany to sort it out because you've fired all the local ones who could have done it, and with no money (see embezzlement above) you can't afford to do that. Result: Eskom goes from the world's top-rated power provider to basket case in under fifteen years.

            That's the very, very short version. Longer version of just how fucked-up the whole system is would fill a book, and I'd have to post as AC via Tor once names and financial amounts start getting mentioned.

            • (Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday April 24 2019, @10:53AM (8 children)

              by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @10:53AM (#834284) Journal
              Was this meant to be a reply to another post? I recognize that South Africa is a mess right now. It still doesn't change that it was significantly worse in the past even under the supposedly more benevolent apartheid system.
              • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:29PM (5 children)

                by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:29PM (#834301)

                Actually no..., infrastructure, the lights..infrastructure, etc. used to work in South Africa before. Now they don't.

                This is also why "diversity" is nonsense. The smartest people, most qualified for the jobs, no matter what race, should get the job.

                You don't see basketball teams full of Asians in the United States because everyone knows that generally blacks (and some whites, along with some Asians), are the best for the job. It is by merit.

                Same goes for this.. The people who are capable of running the powerplants (and the government) are no longer in charge, because the majority of the population (which is now in charge), have too low IQs and don't know any better. During Apartheid, they didn't vote, so this wasn't a problem.

                Now this doesn't mean that black people shouldn't vote, or that only white ones should.. because there are plenty of dumb white people too (just not as many as a percentage). Perhaps a very basic IQ test before allowing people to vote, so smart people of any race can vote and dumb ones of any race cannot?

                Not sure what the answer is but basically post-apartheid countries have all become basket cases (like the rest of Africa) and people who are too dumb are now making the decisions. Democracies only work if there is an average society IQ that is high enough. Otherwise, you get this..

                 

                • (Score: 2) by pe1rxq on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:16PM (2 children)

                  by pe1rxq (844) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:16PM (#834316) Homepage

                  It only ever worked if you ignored the non-white parts of the country.
                  Nice try....

                  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:40PM

                    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:40PM (#834353)

                    no..actually, that is exactly the point...it never does..

                  • (Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @05:36PM

                    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @05:36PM (#834417)

                    so it's whitey's fault they couldn't de-black the blacks completely? yeah, fuck off.

                • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:22PM

                  by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:22PM (#834367)

                  While not a perfect solution, this one will work for you:
                  1) Put on an overcoat with deep, reinforced pockets.
                  2) Fill all pockets with rocks.
                  3) Walk into the sea.
                  4) ... ?
                  5) We profit.

                • (Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday April 24 2019, @10:29PM

                  by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @10:29PM (#834534) Journal

                  Actually no..., infrastructure, the lights..infrastructure, etc. used to work in South Africa before.

                  I notice pe1rxq seems to think that wasn't true in the non-white parts of the country. What's your take on that? It also ignores that GDP per capita has gone up significant since.

              • (Score: 2) by driverless on Thursday April 25 2019, @04:40AM (1 child)

                by driverless (4770) on Thursday April 25 2019, @04:40AM (#834615)

                It has nothing to do with the parent, but since it's an actual real response to the article I posted it there to front-run the hundreds of off-topic gibberish US political shitfest / racist comments that the discussion turns into.

                Incidentally, the above was from a former Escom accountant who got fired for repeatedly pointing out what the Guptas were upta with Escom.

                • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 26 2019, @06:08PM

                  by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 26 2019, @06:08PM (#835227)

                  I'll be a American racist before a European dhimmi any day.

      • (Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:57AM (1 child)

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:57AM (#834142)

        It's not when people are talking (even when it's mostly shouting) that you need to worry. It's when people go silent -- when even the last desperate attempts at communication have been abandoned as futile -- that the real trouble starts.

        • (Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:01AM

          by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:01AM (#834143)

          Then I guess it is a good thing my post drew out 3 of the angry white duds.

      • (Score: 2, Informative) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:27AM (9 children)

        by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:27AM (#834176) Journal

        Yes, Trump has been impeached, and he is beginning a lengthy prison sentence for all the crimes he has committed!

        Oh, wait. Sorry, I got sucking into your liberal dream for a moment there. Actually, Trump was all but exonerated of any wrong doing. They can't hang diddly on him. Wake up and smell the coffee.

        • (Score: 4, Insightful) by maxwell demon on Wednesday April 24 2019, @07:39AM (2 children)

          by maxwell demon (1608) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @07:39AM (#834254) Journal

          Actually, Trump was all but exonerated of any wrong doing.

          An interesting case of accidentally saying the truth due to a lack of understanding of the peculiarities of the English language. ;-)

          https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/all%20but [merriam-webster.com]

          --
          The Tao of math: The numbers you can count are not the real numbers.
          • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:22PM (1 child)

            by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:22PM (#834318) Journal

            Well, Trump can't be completely exonerated. He's been a douche for decades, after all. But, you can't send a guy to prison because he's a douche, can you?

            • (Score: 2) by cmdrklarg on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:38PM

              by cmdrklarg (5048) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:38PM (#834352)

              you can't send a guy to prison because he's a douche, can you?

              Part of me wishes that were true... though I think 10 lashes would be more effective.

              --
              The world is full of kings and queens who blind your eyes and steal your dreams.
        • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:38PM (3 children)

          by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:38PM (#834376)

          Exonerated? The only reason Mueller didn't charge him with obstruction of justice is because of the long-standing rule against indicting a sitting President. At least 10 attempted acts of obstruction were outlined in the report. The only thing Trump has done successfully is obfuscate what Mueller was investigating (links or coordination between Trump campaign and Russia) and the word "collusion". The Mueller report detailed numerous links between Trump and Russia and the Trump Campaign and Russia. They just weren't technically illegal on the face of it. Wow, what a glowing report!

          I think the pResident showed us the truth when he found out about the Special Counsel being appointed: "Oh my god. This is terrible. This is the end of my Presidency. I'm fucked." Then he bitched at Sessions that, "you were suppoed to protect me!" Truly, this is the outburst of an innocent man! /sarc

          • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday April 24 2019, @04:08PM (2 children)

            by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @04:08PM (#834390) Journal

            So - what you're saying is - the president is covered by law. And, that's what you're interested in, right? The law? It's written right into the law. The president can do things that would send you or me to prison. Congress critters, likewise. Senators. Cops, federal agents, prosecuting attorneys - all of them can perjure themselves in court, and get away with it, but if they prove you or I did the same thing, we could see prison.

            Laws, rules, regulations, traditions, custom, on and on it goes. And, Trump walks away from all the shit slinging a free man.

            Now, get over it?

            • (Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @05:01PM (1 child)

              by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @05:01PM (#834408)

              Actually, no, it's not "the law". The Constitution absolutely allows for indictment of a sitting president. It's just an opinion devised by the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel in the 70s. It's selective enforcement of the nation's laws. Also, he can be impeached by the Congress. And he can certainly be INDICTED AFTER he's no longer pResident. Plus we have the SDNY criminal investigations into Trump and the 14 ongoing federal criminal investigations that are likely centered around his criminal family. My guess is regardless of whether anyone else is caught holding the bag, Jared's following in his daddy's footsteps to the Federal Pen.

              • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday April 24 2019, @05:11PM

                by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @05:11PM (#834411) Journal

                Oh yes, of course the constitution allows for the indictment of a sitting president, for "high crimes and misdemeanors". Now, will you kind define "high crimes and misdemeanors"? There's a catch though. Your definition must be approved by 66% or more of all Soylentils. If you don't get a supermajority approval of your definition, then your definition is just more meaningless shitzls.

                I'm waiting with bated breath. (I'm also waiting for someone to tell me that I spelled baited wrong, LMAO!!)

        • (Score: 3, Informative) by ilsa on Wednesday April 24 2019, @05:58PM (1 child)

          by ilsa (6082) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @05:58PM (#834431)

          He absolutely was NOT exonerated. If Trump had been found innocent, the report would have said so explicitly.

          Here is a really good review/summary of what it says, and more importantly, why it was said and why it used the particular phrasing it used.

          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f71Rasj_0JY [youtube.com]

          • (Score: 1, Troll) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday April 24 2019, @06:29PM

            by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @06:29PM (#834446) Journal

            I hear double-good double-speak in that video. When all is said and done, Trump has committed no impeachable offenses, nor has he opened himself to charges of illegalities. If it could be proved beyond a reasonable doubt, we all know that collusion with the Kremlin to "fix" the outcome of the 2016 election would be deemed impeachable. Mueller found no evidence of such collusion, or at the very least, he found insufficient evidence of such collusion.

            I'm really not interested in lawyer speak, or rationalizations for failure, or theories about why evidence was hard to find, or any other leftist excuses for this grand waste of time. The left set out to impeach Trump, and they have failed to impeach Trump. That single sentence sums everything up nicely.

    • (Score: 2) by istartedi on Tuesday April 23 2019, @11:37PM

      by istartedi (123) on Tuesday April 23 2019, @11:37PM (#834106) Journal
      --
      Appended to the end of comments you post. Max: 120 chars.
    • (Score: 3, Informative) by c0lo on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:16AM (1 child)

      by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:16AM (#834125) Journal

      This one's gonna be as calm and smooth as a frozen lake on a clear February morning.

      Feb is end-of-summer in .za.

      --
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
      • (Score: 4, Touché) by black6host on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:19AM

        by black6host (3827) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:19AM (#834128) Journal

        And I feel sorry for those who have to live there and have their seasons all screwed up :)

    • (Score: 4, Insightful) by Hartree on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:23AM (2 children)

      by Hartree (195) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:23AM (#834129)

      No one needs to bring race into it, though, sadly, they probably will.

      Incompetence, crony-ism and corruption are equal opportunity. Look at any of several of the former Soviet republics for examples.

      • (Score: 3, Insightful) by PartTimeZombie on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:47AM (1 child)

        by PartTimeZombie (4827) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:47AM (#834134)

        Incompetence, crony-ism and corruption are equal opportunity

        Along with the stupid promises the ANC made to the people of South Africa when they came into power.

        They were never going to achieve half of what they promised, and now it's been 25 years and things are no better for most people the ANC is starting to lose it's grip on power.

        There will be real trouble when they actually lose their parliamentary majority, and that day is coming.

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @06:57PM

          by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @06:57PM (#834457)

          That's crazy, socialist governments NEVER fail!

    • (Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:35AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:35AM (#834182)

      How many south africians does it take to screw in a lightbulb?
      Just one, but only if a white person gave him a lightbulb.

    • (Score: 2, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:41AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:41AM (#834187)

      Well! Since you brought it up, maybe you should think about what kind of people made South Africa the powerhouse that it was, and that now it is running on pure inertia as it all crumbles like an abandoned inner city housing project. Think about what kind of people it takes to make THAT happen! Oh yes! It's all the bank's fault! Right?

  • (Score: 1) by Yaa101 on Tuesday April 23 2019, @11:22PM (4 children)

    by Yaa101 (4091) on Tuesday April 23 2019, @11:22PM (#834098)

    Uhm... Investment?

    --
    No comment...
    • (Score: 3, Interesting) by bob_super on Tuesday April 23 2019, @11:54PM (2 children)

      by bob_super (1357) on Tuesday April 23 2019, @11:54PM (#834115)

      How could a capitalist economy ever deal with a shortage of a resource driving its price up, the ability to produce more of that resource with proven techniques requiring building new facilities, and a high unemployment driving labor costs down ? One really wonders ...

      I know !
      Ask the Communist Chinese to come in solve your problems, with money and workers, and totally-disinterested attitude.

    • (Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:17AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:17AM (#834147)

      you can't do that without local and foreign corporations and banks cashing in you insensitive clot!

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 23 2019, @11:45PM (3 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 23 2019, @11:45PM (#834109)

    They could formalize the informal reaction already described in the summary--by promoting the use of devices that incorporate batteries for when the grid fails. It can work well for low powered applications: LED lighting, phones, tablets, laptops, radios all work well this way.

    For high power applications like washing machines, they could use a kind of smart meter that only allows increased load during certain times.

    If they had the money to do all that though, they'd probably have the money to fix the grid. "It's the economy, stupid" has become a cliche for a reason.

    • (Score: 5, Interesting) by datapharmer on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:07AM (1 child)

      by datapharmer (2702) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:07AM (#834122)

      Yep, and for a few cents extra you could have a backup watch battery with 1k of ram to store the wash cycle settings to pick up where it left off when the power failed. Yet my high tech Samsung fridge resets the temp every time the power flickers, which is extra absurd since it stores the child safety lock setting...

      • (Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:25AM

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:25AM (#834149)

        > Samsung fridge resets the temp every time the power flickers

        Good to know, this is something that could be tested at the store. Get them to plug it in, set temp, unplug, replug, check to see if the computer readout held the setting. Now that I know to check for it, I'd never buy a fridge that didn't pass this test. I wonder if Consumer Union (Consumer Reports Magazine) or the equivalent operation in other countries include this in their testing?

        Our Kenmore (Amana) is 11 years old now and we've been through a number of power failures of up to about a half a day. Within the first week we had it we settled on freezer at "4" and fridge at "5" on the digital thermostat and haven't touched those buttons since.

        One tip we got from the repair guy who tried to fix the previous fridge--all the computerized/electronic-thermostat fridges can be damaged by a power line surge. The Kenmore went on a surge protector from day one. A few years later, we had the electric service re-done (it was ~50 years old) and added whole-house surge protectors on the new panel as well.

    • (Score: 2, Troll) by Tokolosh on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:57AM

      by Tokolosh (585) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:57AM (#834213)

      Smart, pre-pay meters are used extensively. However, many of the poors get their electricity from the local municipality. They do not pay their bills, which means the municipalities don't pay Eskom in turn. And everyone is to scared to cut off the defaulters. Only the rich, most white people, and big business and industry pay their bills.

  • (Score: 5, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:17AM (37 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:17AM (#834126)

    Though totally politically incorrect, it is based in fact that the average IQ of a country relates to its economic success.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IQ_and_the_Wealth_of_Nations [wikipedia.org]
    and

    https://brainstats.com/average-iq-by-country.html [brainstats.com]

    Due to apartheid, South Africa had been batting way above its weight (at 'handover' it was a fully industrialized country with infrastructure at par with the United States and Europe). So was Zimbabwe (Rhodesia) before their handover..

    Sometimes 'helping' just makes things worse..

    You want to fix it, people with high IQs have to be in charge (doesn't matter what race..can be whites, East Asians, or a selection people of any racial group that happen to have high enough IQs to run things properly)

    This also doesn't forebode well for the United States with all the illegals flooding in the border, who generally have low IQs (which is the real reason this is a problem.. if it was Japanese, Chinese, or others with high IQs coming in, people would probably have much less of a problem with it..). The USA 50 years from now will end up like every other screwed up Latin American country if this continues. Just ask the South Africans (or Rhodesians) when they end up in charge..

    [yes, it is 'racist', but absolutely true, and we all know it..]

     

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:46AM (1 child)

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:46AM (#834133)

      You want to fix it, people with high IQs have to be in charge (doesn't matter what race..can be whites, East Asians, or a selection people of any racial group that happen to have high enough IQs to run things properly)

      You know that groups with high IQ's can also have stupid people amongst them. The average is just a measure of center, but the spread can be very large. It is probable that the people in charge are all around the same ballpark IQ regardless the racial group. (Truly smart people stay away from politics, Einstein is an example)

      • (Score: 5, Insightful) by jmorris on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:29AM

        by jmorris (4844) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:29AM (#834204)

        Yes people vary, duh. They call it the Bell Curve after all. The problem is if you have a population one standard deviation down there simply won't be enough smart people to make everything keep going, so you end up having to sacrifice some things, interconnectedness rears its head and things go sideways. Work it out for yourself. Imagine all of the jobs in a community that need people to be smarter than average. If your average is a whole deviation down and you are trying to have the same distribution of jobs everybody gets shifted down. The engineering types are a standard deviation down, the plumbers are a standard deviation down, and so on. If your first though is that a dumb engineer is a disaster waiting to happen, it means you have probably failed to realize just how much damage a stupid plumber can create. Because once you stop to think it through it can't work any other way. So how does that work? It can't, a population a deviation down simply can't have a society patterned after Europeans. Because too many jobs require an absolute intelligence level to safely perform them and you won't have enough smart people to go around.

        They are going to have to (or more likely smart people elsewhere do most of the work) develop models for societies that can exist and sustain themselves with the human resources available to them. They have to be willing to abandon technology that requires too much skilled labor to maintain safely, or entirely reimagine it into a form they can use. Advanced medicine goes. Extensive electrical grids go, massive transportation infrastructure has to go. Trains from town to town could probably be sustained, freeways and complex interchanges not so much. If the foreign exchange credits can be maintained to import the hardware, cell phones and limited Internet are probably sustainable, just the towers and a few fibers. Thousands of miles of wired infrastructure probably not.

        Or accept colonialism back.

        And yes it works on the up side of the curve too, and other factors influence things. For example Japan can successfully deploy social structures and technology we in the U.S. couldn't hope to sustain. They are, on average, a bit smarter and have the advantage of still having a high trust society with low diversity.

    • (Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:53AM (2 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:53AM (#834139)

      Noticing that certain races aren't as good at certain things is BAD. You have been mass downvoted by SN's cabal of fags, trannies, betas, and other generally incompetent Hillary voters. Hopefully you have learned your lesson, otherwise we'll all gang up on you and call you names because of your lack of tolerance.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:45AM

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:45AM (#834155)

        Ooooh sick burns, slurs and projection. Please don't kill anyone when you finally have your mental breakdown.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:05AM

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:05AM (#834161)

        Yep, but it doesn't change the fact that it is still the truth.. as politically incorrect as it maybe.

    • (Score: 2, Informative) by PartTimeZombie on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:03AM (15 children)

      by PartTimeZombie (4827) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:03AM (#834144)

      aaaannnnd, there it is.

      I'm a bit surprised I had to scroll down this far to find it, but there it is, pretending IQ has any bearing on anything. Why don't you go ahead and tell us about state's rights now, and how much happier "those people" were when they had no responsibilities or whatever the justification is this week for being an arsehole.

      yes, it is 'racist', but absolutely true, and we all know it..

      Yes, it is, and no, we don't.

      • (Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:07AM (5 children)

        by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:07AM (#834163) Journal
        How about we look for the smart conversation instead? I see the reason to care that someone is racist on the internet.
        • (Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:09AM (4 children)

          by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:09AM (#834166) Journal

          I don't see the reason to care

          FTFM. And such people aren't going to become less racist by you feeding their appeals for attention either.

          • (Score: 2) by PartTimeZombie on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:27AM (3 children)

            by PartTimeZombie (4827) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:27AM (#834175)

            And such people aren't going to become less racist...

            No, I suppose not. This is a place to discuss things though.

            • (Score: 2, Touché) by khallow on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:31AM (2 children)

              by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:31AM (#834179) Journal
              I think what got me wasn't that you were engaging the trolls, but rather that you looked through the whole thread for the trolls. What's the point of that?
              • (Score: 2) by PartTimeZombie on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:10AM (1 child)

                by PartTimeZombie (4827) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:10AM (#834198)

                No, I was just scrolling through the comments.

                I expected to find a comment like that, and others did too. The first comment in the thread is

                "I predict this thread will be entirely civil. Also calm, rational, and utterly devoid of even the implication of racism, etc...

                • (Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday April 24 2019, @10:36AM

                  by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @10:36AM (#834282) Journal

                  I expected to find a comment like that, and others did too. The first comment in the thread is

                  Exactly my point. People were trolling for bad comments and they got what they wanted. Who knew?

      • (Score: 5, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:08AM

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:08AM (#834164)

        I wouldn't count on it..

        Actually I was in South Africa once, and asked our black Taxi Driver that now that apartheid is over, things are better now right?
        He said no, it was much better in the apartheid era. Stuff (like the lights) worked.. it was safe, there was work and money to be made... not like now.

        This was a black guy saying this.. in South Africa.. years after apartheid was over..

      • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:12AM (5 children)

        by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:12AM (#834168) Journal

        pretending IQ has any bearing on anything

        Actually, intelligence and education has a helluva lot to do with almost everything. Yes, of course GP is doing his racist thing, implying that all dem blackies is just dumber than monkeys. Still, intelligence is a necessity, and so is education. Ideally, intelligent people are always educated, along with a lot of less intelligent people. But let's not pretend that intelligence is meaningless. You know better, I know better, and racist GP knows better. You'll have to state your case better, to refute the obvious racism above.

        • (Score: 2) by PartTimeZombie on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:21AM

          by PartTimeZombie (4827) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:21AM (#834172)

          Fair enough. What I should have said is "IQ is almost always poorly measured" which is (almost) always true.

          Your points about intelligence and education are entirely correct.

        • (Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:46AM (3 children)

          by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:46AM (#834209)

          Intelligence is a function of education.

          Education is a function of culture.

          Culture has a lot of momentum. It takes generations to change it. How smart you are has a lot to do with how fertile the environment is during your developmental years.

          It's not about race. It's about the culture of a people. White American rednecks are about as dumb as any uneducated third-world people of color. They just happen to have been born in a more affluent place. That doesn't make them smart. In fact, it proves how much dumber they are considering the immense opportunities within their reach.

          • (Score: 2) by Tokolosh on Wednesday April 24 2019, @04:12AM

            by Tokolosh (585) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @04:12AM (#834223)

            Sadly, the South African government has done for the public education system what it has done for the electricity business.

          • (Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @11:57AM

            by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @11:57AM (#834293)

            Intelligence is a function of education.

            Knowledge is a function of education. Intelligence is part hereditary and part environmental. You're claim would be that taking someone with Downs syndrome and giving them the same education as an individual of average intelligence would result in equal outcomes. That is wrong.

          • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @05:45PM

            by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @05:45PM (#834422)

            you're ignorant or dishonest. in a general sense: hillbillies are ignorant, but not stupid. blacks are ignorant and stupid. there is a difference.

      • (Score: 2) by Tokolosh on Wednesday April 24 2019, @04:03AM (1 child)

        by Tokolosh (585) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @04:03AM (#834217)

        I understand you disagree, but he at least proposed a solution. We'd like to hear your solution, not your opinion about his -isms.

        • (Score: 2) by PartTimeZombie on Wednesday April 24 2019, @09:52AM

          by PartTimeZombie (4827) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @09:52AM (#834273)

          he at least proposed a solution

          Oh come on now, no he didn't.

          My solution? There isn't one. I am pretty sure that when the ANC begins to lose their grip violence will happen in South Africa, and it will be bad.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:11AM (11 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:11AM (#834167)

      Oh, it's another fascist blaming a different demographic (racial/sexual/etc) for the systemic problems of capitalism. (Would you like to know more? [marxists.org])

      • (Score: 4, Insightful) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:24AM (3 children)

        by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:24AM (#834173) Journal

        Yes, because, as we all know, there is no corruption amongst the commie bastards. Just look at the utopia in Venezuela!!

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:38AM (2 children)

          by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:38AM (#834184)

          Also see here for South Africa [blackagendareport.com] and here for Venezuela [blackagendareport.com].

          • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:52AM (1 child)

            by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:52AM (#834190) Journal

            Half-truths presented in an emotional manner to paint some demographic as inferior or superior? Where have we heard that kind of thing before?

            “The darker peoples of the world understand clearly that what is at stake is the sovereignty of nations and people’s right to self-determination.”

            • (Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:01AM

              by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:01AM (#834193)

              The white European ruling class has quite a track record. All must rise against it, including working class whites.

              n.b. The working class cannot be divided along racial lines or it will be forever enslaved.

      • (Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:06AM (3 children)

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:06AM (#834194)

        Oh, it's another fascist blaming a different demographic (racial/sexual/etc) for the systemic problems of capitalism.

        Oh, it's another communist trying to attack anything that can actually oppose the most death filled ideology on Earth, Communism.

        Leftists in the USA and other Western nations don't know the evil they side with, they are so poorly educated and brainwashed. They, like you, fight against that which has brought the world to the forefront of science and technology to drag us into the clutches of a repeatedly failed ideology that has killed well over one hundred million people. Disgusting!

        • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:13AM (2 children)

          by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:13AM (#834200)

          The death toll of capitalism [wordpress.com].

          150,000,000 African Slave Trade

          Grand total is an order of magnitude higher. Disgusting!

          • (Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:00PM (1 child)

            by Phoenix666 (552) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:00PM (#834295) Journal

            Technically you can't lay that at the feet of capitalsm because it was mercantilism. If you mush definitions together as you have you wind up with absurdities like claiming the Roman trade in slaves was capitalist, and that shogunate Japanese villagers were proto-communists.

            --
            Washington DC delenda est.
            • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:24PM

              by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:24PM (#834319)

              Ah. It's a good thing that the USA Constitution doesn't include something like a three fifth clause then.

      • (Score: 2) by Tokolosh on Wednesday April 24 2019, @04:06AM (2 children)

        by Tokolosh (585) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @04:06AM (#834219)

        The ruling ANC is in a partnership with the South African Communist Party. Eskom is a state-owned, vertically-integrated, monopoly power company and a Marxist's dream.

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @11:59AM (1 child)

          by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @11:59AM (#834294)

          So you're saying that Eskom workers have a democratic voice and are able to vote to raise their own wages and change business policies, and that the larger working class is able to do things like deciding whether or not to accept parasitic IMF loans for example, by direct democracy? Yes? No?

          • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @05:46PM

            by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @05:46PM (#834423)

            Name a socialist state that remained democratic in the face of economic reality. I'll wait...

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @10:21AM (1 child)

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @10:21AM (#834279)

      Its education, not IQ that drives evolution. Education will sooner or later also increase the country IQ, but education is the root that makes a country work.

      So even low IQ, low education people can bring lot of benefits by educating then (yes, it's slow, it'll takes some time always) and then their children, where you will see the full benefits of it.
      If you ignore the parents education, probably their children will also suffer from bad education (after all their parents did "well" without it) and you do not fix the problem

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 26 2019, @06:16PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 26 2019, @06:16PM (#835230)

        Education is just another innovation made by smarter people. When you have less smart people you can't develop these innovations as easily.

    • (Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday April 24 2019, @10:56AM (1 child)

      by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @10:56AM (#834285) Journal
      Or do the education thing. There's a considerable education effect to IQ despite it supposedly not being about education.
      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:45PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:45PM (#834333)

        think that the brain is just a muscle, without training, it goes soft and weak. with training, it gets harder, bigger, stronger and more resistant.
        Its exactly the same with the brain, if you do not use it, your IQ may drop, if you use it, your IQ can get better. Of course, like the muscle, everyone have their own limits.

  • (Score: 2) by Snotnose on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:21AM (5 children)

    by Snotnose (1623) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:21AM (#834171)

    SDG&E is running all sorts of commercials on how earth friendly they are. Problem is, they are charging energy use based on when you use energy. Expensive 10 PM-6AM, really expensive 6AM-4PM, and fuck you this is stupid from 4PM to 10PM. In other words, you work all day, come home, cook dinner, run the dishwasher, and do a load of laundry? Bend over, grab both ankles, and forget about SDG&E noticing that tube of lube right in front of their face.

    Retired? Work at home? Laid off looking for work? Hope you like being up from 10PM to 4AM, cuz that's when your energy usage costs what it did a year ago.

    --
    Why shouldn't we judge a book by it's cover? It's got the author, title, and a summary of what the book's about.
    • (Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:36AM (2 children)

      by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:36AM (#834183) Journal
      Well, there is a reason that they're the only electricity utility business that hasn't gone bankrupt yet. I think you're giving them short shrift.

      Retired? Work at home? Laid off looking for work? Hope you like being up from 10PM to 4AM, cuz that's when your energy usage costs what it did a year ago.

      Or you could just figure out how to use less power at a time when supply has serious trouble keeping up with demand.

      • (Score: 2, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:06AM (1 child)

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:06AM (#834195)

        Is that an obvious rebuttal or did you just confirm that capitalism requires large numbers of people to have sleep schedules that are completely at odds with human need?

        • (Score: 3, Informative) by janrinok on Wednesday April 24 2019, @08:04AM

          by janrinok (52) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 24 2019, @08:04AM (#834260) Journal

          It is not a ridiculous proposal. I can set the washing machine and dishwasher to switch on during the night to benefit from cheaper electricity. And it is cheaper because the utility companies want to encourage us to use power when the demand is low. My hot water for the following day is heated during the night - it will top up if necessary during the following day but that is rarely required. Electric cars (not that I own one) can be charged overnight. That is part of the reason that they are ecologically better for us and they will be more economic when sufficient numbers are in use to cause the purchase price to drop.

          None of these require me to change my sleep cycle.

    • (Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:41AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:41AM (#834188)

      Dishwashers often have delay timers. Ours is quiet enough that we can tell it to start in 4 hours (in the low price hours) without being kept awake by the noise. Not so easy with other appliances, but at least this one can be time shifted.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:55AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:55AM (#834212)

      Welcome to San Diego... Owned and operated by SDG&E.

  • (Score: 1, Troll) by realDonaldTrump on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:48AM (1 child)

    by realDonaldTrump (6614) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:48AM (#834210) Homepage Journal

    This didn't have to happen, folks. They ran out of beautiful Coal. And they're trying the Renewable, which doesn't work. Kills all your Birds & gives you Cancer. Nobody told them, they can buy Clean Coal from America. As much as they want, as much as they need. As much, as they can afford. Where was Cheatin' Obama? He came to our Country from Africa. And when Africa was having a big problem, he could have solved it very easily for them. With 4 little words, Buy American Clean Coal. He monkeyed it up, he didn't say the magic words. And Nambia is having Black Outs all over the place. When the sun goes down and the wind stops blowing, their whole country turns black. No TV, no Lights, can you imagine? Talk to me Nambia, I'll get you a GREAT DEAL!!!!

    • (Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:41PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:41PM (#834305)

      A good implementation of renewable do work, just check:

      https://www.electricitymap.org/?page=country&solar=false&remote=true&wind=false&countryCode=PT [electricitymap.org]

      And Portugal is still very late for solar energy, but for wind energy, it works great.
      Of course, when there is no wind, we have to turn on gas powered generators, increase the hydro output, but in the end, from several years already, my electric bill shows that more than half of the electricity comes from renewable, being the wind almost 50% (and sometimes more then 50%) of the total

      Portugal already had several days where it produced more wind electricity than it could use. Also notice that excess (or cheap) eletricity is used to pump water back to higher dams, so it could be converted later again back to electricity when needed. Basically renewable energy storage.

  • (Score: 3, Interesting) by Phoenix666 on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:04PM (1 child)

    by Phoenix666 (552) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @12:04PM (#834296) Journal

    When the Iron Curtain fell the Warsaw Pact countries thought they could sell their copper telephone lines to Africa. Africa opted to jump straight to cellular instead. This could be like that. Instead of the time and expense of a robust centralized grid South Africa could choose policies that encourage distrbuted power generation with rooftop solar and wind power. Pretty sure Cape Town gets pretty good wind.

    --
    Washington DC delenda est.
    • (Score: 2) by Freeman on Wednesday April 24 2019, @04:03PM

      by Freeman (732) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @04:03PM (#834389) Journal

      All of that distributed power generation requires capital to build out. Somehow, I'm doubting there will be a whole lot of that going on. We've been looking into buying Solar Panels for our house and while the price has dropped considerably over the last few years. It'd still cost us about $15,000 to get enough panels up to supply our house. It cost about double that a few years ago for my Father-in-Law. It may be a good alternative to central grid dependence, but it's not going to be cheap.

      --
      Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"
  • (Score: 3, Interesting) by Phoenix666 on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:53PM

    by Phoenix666 (552) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @01:53PM (#834338) Journal

    It seems we're getting a second lesson from the same region of the world about the importance of rules, work ethic, and teamwork. Zimbabwe/Rhodesia had been the breadbasket of southern Africa. Then Mugabe and his forces took over and opted for corruption, cronyism, and kleptocracy over an economic system guided by capitalism and rules. South Africa had been the powerhouse of Africa and its only nuclear power, and now it's sliding into this.

    By rights Africa should be the global superpower, with its rich resources and proximity to other markets, but because its people remain divided by tribalism, petty localism, superstition, and banality it remains a target of exploitation by others. Material advantages and native genius can be defeated by malfunctioning politcs and regressive culture.

    --
    Washington DC delenda est.
  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:10PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @02:10PM (#834345)

    Bless the liiiiiiiiiights in South Aaaaaaaafricaaaaaa!

  • (Score: 3, Interesting) by DavePolaschek on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:41PM (1 child)

    by DavePolaschek (6129) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @03:41PM (#834380) Homepage Journal

    See the documentary Power Trip [pbs.org] which discusses similar problems in Georgia (the former SSR). Turns out capitalism is hard.

    • (Score: 2) by Alfred on Wednesday April 24 2019, @08:49PM

      by Alfred (4006) on Wednesday April 24 2019, @08:49PM (#834484) Journal
      Actually it's not. Pretending you have a free market while trying to carefully craft a crap ton of regulations and legislation (in your sneaky self interest) while still appearing to have a free market is hard. Compared to a free market, being a parasite on a free market without killing the host is hard. It is a wonder the USA still thinks it has a free market.
  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @05:54PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 24 2019, @05:54PM (#834427)

    when the monkeys are running the zoo, only the lions eat.

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