EMBED - GLO, USA,UK, GER example page - TIRTravel - Flipbook - Page 30
PERSONALLY SPEAKING
... missed the boat
continued from page 29
South Africa.
But buying a cruise online
is a gamble for inexperienced
cruisers and those with no
knowledge or personal recommendations of specific ships
and cruise lines.
This is one product in
particular where travellers are
well advised to consult faceto-face with a trusted travel
counsellor.
We all get impressed by the
size of airline fleets and the
complexity of their operations. SAA has about 54 aircraft. Delta has around 850.
But, to put it all in perspective, the US Air Force has
more than 5,500 manned
aircraft. Even that is dwarfed
by the US Army Air Force of
World War II. At the height of
the war in 1944, it was operating nearly 80,000 aircraft.
Today’s South African Air
Force has 225, with many
of them in mothballs and
without the pilots to fly them.
So much for the gilt-edged
investment of the arms deal.
I had to laugh at the panic and
chaos in the UK and Europe,
when a bit of bad weather
arrived last month, with chilly
temperatures and a few centimetres of snow.
Schools were closed, people
huddled indoors, roads
were closed, rail and airline
services were cancelled and
dire warnings were issued via
television and radio.
When I lived in Canada, half
the winter was immeasurably
more severe but everything
continued as normal and
there were rarely any disruptions.
What on earth happened to
the stiff upper lip?
There must be more icons, heroes, legends and stalwarts in
South Africa than anywhere
else on the planet. Because
every time anybody goes
toes-up, television, radio and
newspapers breathtakingly
describe them that way.
I will be gazing down on my
obituary in great expectation
– “… that dreadful hack, an
icon of fake news, stalwart of
facetious comment, legend of
misinformation and hero of
misguided opinion.”
Now the Rammer has taken
over the reins of the South
African donkey cart, he needs
to swap it for a Roman chariot
with racing steeds.
For inspiration, he should
look to China, which exported
only US$249-million worth
of goods in 2000. Last year,
exports had rocketed to
US$2.3-trillion.
And Rome has a solution for
the water crisis in Cape Town,
where the people are paying
the price in rands and inconvenience for government
incompetence and neglect
over water management.
The Romans did a much better job with their aqueducts
which they started building
in 312 b.c. Some of those
aqueducts are still operating,
including the successor to
the one which feeds the Trevi
Fountain in Rome.
We are only 1,500 years behind, so it shouldn’t take too
long to catch up!
30 Travel Industry Review | April/May 2018
The ANC naturally made a
complete dog’s breakfast of
the Zoomer’s departure. I
have no doubt that it took so
long to torpedo him because
he has so much dirt on the
rogues gallery in parliament
and he and they are desperate
to avoid a few years wearing
orange pyjamas.
And they have all had their
faces in the trough for so long
that it was only the fear of
losing the next election that
finally persuaded the ANC to
“recall” – known by intelligent life as “fire” – him.
As the Rammer gave his
presidential acceptance
speech, I wonder if anyone
noticed the similarity of his
“South Africa must come
first…” pronouncement with
the Trumpet’s “America
First”!
There were a couple of good
and obvious moves in the
new cabinet, particularly in
finance and public enterprises, two key slots. And Derek
Hanekom came back as a
token in the limited-influence
tourism portfolio.
Many people have expressed
the view that our billionaire
new president should forego
his government salary. Why
not, as the Trumpet has done
in America, and as an example
to his greedy colleagues? He
certainly doesn’t need the
money.
Pay for MPs was only introduced in Britain in 1911 by
Liberal Prime Minister David
Lloyd George, my great, great
something-or-other relative.
It was intended to open up
public service to all, whereas
it had previously been the
preserve of the wealthy few.
The aim was undoubtedly
right but it has inevitably led
everywhere to a breed of professional politicians, who are
mainly interested in personal
advancement and enrichment.
They have continuously
increased their incomes,
perks and pension benefits
way beyond the private sector
and have created a hugely
bloated civil service, also paid
on average much more than
the private sector, to do their
bidding.
Sorry, Uncle David, you blew
it!
I have been highly suspicious
and critical for many years of
the way the United Nations
and many aid organisations
operate. So the hideous Oxfam scandal is no surprise.
You will find aid representatives inhabiting first and
business class cabins and
five star hotels all over the
world. And I recall being on
holiday in Zimbabwe, having
tea at a restaurant on the way
back from Kariba to Harare
when half a dozen shiny new
LandCruisers swept into the
parking lot with a partying
bunch of UN and aid workers
on a jolly assignment in the
country.
I had had previous exposure
to international aid organisations when I had responsibility for corporate donations
at a major corporation. It
convinced me that they were
littered with amoral, hypocritical fatcats. The entire aid
industry needs investigating,
a major shake-up and vigorous oversight.
I am off to the happiest
place in America for a bit of
undeserved R&R. I’ll tell you
where it is and why it is and
why your US-bound clients
shouldn’t miss it in the next
issue of TIR.