tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post115399147642213709..comments2024-02-10T09:55:04.396+02:00Comments on The Death of Johannesburg: This is What Remains of the Wits Drill Hall….The Real Realisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14512197893435107223noreply@blogger.comBlogger59125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-67420844381361898642014-08-27T20:33:58.853+02:002014-08-27T20:33:58.853+02:00You hit the nail on the head. No respect for anyt...You hit the nail on the head. No respect for anything, especially if they did not have to pay for it! Break down and burn, the mantra of the new South Africa. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-7912920749753033122011-01-10T15:32:42.089+02:002011-01-10T15:32:42.089+02:00JHB Sucks!
I am qualified to speak up about it.
I ...JHB Sucks!<br />I am qualified to speak up about it.<br />I was born here and have lived here for 48 years 18/01/1963 - 10/01/2011<br />The Mine waters are rising, houses that were solid years ago are developing foundational cracks.<br /><br />My houses water supply was cut off 37 months ago, because I was unemployed, and unable to pay, yet could not get a job (Thanks to BEE and Reversed Apartheid) I was forced to sell my house to pay for the debts, My fault? Can't get a job (To old and white)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.mg.co.za/article/2010-07-21-johannesburg-on-acidic-water-time-bomb" <br /><br />Well now I am leaving JHB, hope the whole God Forsake sh*t hole gets swallowed up by a giant sink hole<br /><br />Otto W.F. BrinkmeierOtto Brinkmeier (Plebware Founder)https://www.blogger.com/profile/10340160741708328785noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-14579860567925229652010-10-28T16:20:47.426+02:002010-10-28T16:20:47.426+02:00I don't understand how the Johannesburg CBD ca...I don't understand how the Johannesburg CBD can move to the Sandton CBD? First of all Sandton and Johannesburg are different cities. What people are probably trying to say is there is no CBD in Johannesburg any longer. RIP. I assume everybody is hence commuting to Sandton to do business. This would also explain the constant traffic chaos. I remember quitting on driving to Sandton during business hours before I left the province.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-38249005504844635752009-05-14T04:59:00.000+02:002009-05-14T04:59:00.000+02:00Thank you for your devastating photos. What an ey...Thank you for your devastating photos. What an eye opener.<br /><br />I left South Africa 12 years ago to escape the threat of violent crime and white racism and from time to time I do become very homesick. However, the Johannesburg I was raised in doesn't exist anymore. <br /><br />The Doors nightclub was where I spent my Matric dance afterparty and every Tuesday, Friday and Saturday night thereafter. To see it as it is now is heartbreaking. That was where I first felt free and grown-up. And I will always have those wonderful memories.<br /><br />Thank God I now live in a country of real freedom from racism where my chances of being a victim of violent crime doesn't give me sleepless nights. I'm saddened by the racist comments that I have read and as a white South African it infuriates me that all this energy is being spent hating South Africans who aren't white.<br /><br />Yes, it's awful that the buildings have been ruined but they are just buildings and repairing them will not repair the spirit of South Africa. Bricks are not what is important - people are. Please use your energy constructively or come and join me where the grass is greener.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-54951092675679366272009-04-30T08:31:00.000+02:002009-04-30T08:31:00.000+02:00Johannesburg certainly reflect an African City - A...Johannesburg certainly reflect an African City - An African city is one classified as a city where the infrastructure has collapsed, no public health standards exist, lawlessness is abound and the people running the city is sitting in the pound seats wasting the taxpayers money and no srervice delivery is the order of the day. it is so disgusting it makes you sick. <br />This site and other like this reflects the appalling situation. no wonder we are facing more and more deseases rearing its ugly head. Keep up the good work of displaying to th cicilized world what happened to South Africa since the misrule of the ANC started.cityholhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16966362572753075445noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-90191506998387254522009-01-07T00:40:00.000+02:002009-01-07T00:40:00.000+02:00It would be even more spectacular if you could pos...It would be even more spectacular if you could post a picture of the Drill Hall in its prime.<BR/><BR/>Sorrel Jakins<BR/>Provo, Utah, USAAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-39305199514851785502008-04-24T16:02:00.000+02:002008-04-24T16:02:00.000+02:00Just leave the poor k4s to do what they do best .....Just leave the poor k4s to do what they do best ....destroy..there is no nation run by k4 that is performing or growing... the whites leave SA the k4s totally destroy what is left then 40 million k4tjies go where the whities is !! Look at all these black nations in africa . London is black Paris is Black !! 10 year ago it was still white !!! Run away now to run away tommorow !!!Renaissance Manhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12300982197722109621noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-19217232242385841672008-04-24T16:01:00.000+02:002008-04-24T16:01:00.000+02:00Just leave the poor k4s to do what they do best .....Just leave the poor k4s to do what they do best ....destroy..there is no nation run by k4 that is performing or growing... the whites leave SA the k4s totally destroy what is left then 40 million k4tjies go where the whities is !! Look at all these black nations in africa . London is black Paris is Black !! 10 year ago it was still white !!! Run away now to run away tommorow !!!Renaissance Manhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12300982197722109621noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-20555439882226578262008-02-19T00:04:00.000+02:002008-02-19T00:04:00.000+02:00I went to the Drill Hall today to take photographs...I went to the Drill Hall today to take photographs for a varsity assignment and it still looks exactly the same! Feb 2008Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-54402883961297909802008-02-11T12:41:00.000+02:002008-02-11T12:41:00.000+02:00The updated pictures of Drill Hall completely unde...The updated pictures of Drill Hall completely undermine your argument, which is as far as I can ascertain that black people are uncivilised ... in my experience urban decay has nothing to do with race and everything to do with poverty. Now, if this were your argument, and you presented a more balanced picture of what is happening in South Africa, this site would be worth engaging in. But as it stands, this is nothing but racist, sensationalist, biased banter.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-13464838482710481362007-10-04T15:44:00.000+02:002007-10-04T15:44:00.000+02:00I gotta start by saying that...you clearly dont li...I gotta start by saying that...you clearly dont live here!<BR/><BR/>Have you been down to the drill hall? coz what you have is some old pictures.<BR/>You forget that our country went through a hard struggle that left scares in basically everthing, yes even buildings.<BR/><BR/>Dude you really gotta up grade your archives.<BR/>And its clear that you so many issues that you have to deal with, coz even you, yourself dont see things in an optimistic approach.<BR/><BR/>ITS CLEAR THAT YOU COULD LIVE IN THAT SCUM, COZ YOU SO TRAPPED IN THE DIRT...MOVE ON AND GO SEE NEW PLACES.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-21223391425965755562007-10-03T00:33:00.000+02:002007-10-03T00:33:00.000+02:00I stayed at the Kontinental Hotel, near Joubert Pa...I stayed at the Kontinental Hotel, near Joubert Park, for 2 months over 1975-6. I would drink there or to a nearby pub called the "Bender's Arms" (cool neon sign), unless I was invited to the private "Summit Club." That was prior to the Soweto Riots, but the high crime rate didn't touch the inner city. On average, there were 7 murders per day in the black areas. I liked to read the "Star." Once, when I bought the black paper, "The World," the white shopkeeper said: "You are from out of town." Apartheid was in season, but Diagonal Street gravitated into a mixed race area (saw police investigate a murder there). I ate mostly stews in the restaurants, and a "packet of chips" for a snack. Although I never liked "Whimpy Burgers" they set up at the top of Carlton Place, so it was worth it to go there for the view. At the time, it had the largest skating rink in Africa. Skating was unknown to the Blacks, so large groups of them would enjoy watching rink events as a spectacle (the rink was "Nie Blankes"). Hillbrow was lively and safe. Ironically, I was able to watch the instant when TV came to Jo'burg. As an experiment, they put 1 hour of English and 1 hour of Afrikaan programming, each day. I was watching when they went to regular service, at 5 hours a day. My favourite radio station was: "Radio 5." They ran the "American Top 40" show.<BR/><BR/>Was the military "Drill" centre near the Kontinental?; I remember seeing something like that from my hotel window. Weekly rate at the hotel in 1975: R49. Dirt cheap for me, and it had a swimming pool. Flew to London by "Icelandic Air." Cost almost nothing, and I could see Mount Kilimanjaro from the plane.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-30876584784853869072007-08-10T23:00:00.000+02:002007-08-10T23:00:00.000+02:00Anonymous said... I can't help feeling that the fa...<I>Anonymous said... <BR/>I can't help feeling that the fact that the Drill Hall is now a stunningly restored and redeveloped cultural space </I><BR/><BR/>Yes, it has been rebuilt since the pictures were taken. But you miss the point: the Drill Hall was burnt down by squatters and then vandalized in the first place... and I don't give the new place a long lifespan, something which anyone who is familiar with the surrounding area, will most likely agree with...The Real Realisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14512197893435107223noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-90277577849202147872007-08-10T21:32:00.000+02:002007-08-10T21:32:00.000+02:00I can't help feeling that the fact that the Drill ...I can't help feeling that the fact that the Drill Hall is now a stunningly restored and redeveloped cultural space (see the picture at http://www.eternalnetwork.org/<BR/>kinbejozi/index.php?art=23) undermines the central thesis of your blog...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-76514599312549359802007-06-25T18:10:00.000+02:002007-06-25T18:10:00.000+02:00After reading additional comments that have been p...After reading additional comments that have been posted here, I have the following observations:<BR/><BR/>1) Apartheid was a monstrosity. There is no denying that fact, no getting around it with excuses and "explanations" as to how it was necessary in order to maintain a First World nation on a Third World continent. It was an abomination -- period.<BR/><BR/>2) Blaming every problem in South Africa on apartheid -- talking about "the legacy of apartheid" or "the harvest of apartheid" does absolutely nothing to fix the problems that are destroying South Africa. Calling people "racists" if people point out the hard fact that Johannesburg specifically, and South Africa generally, is going downhill, does nothing to fix the problems. Referring to all white South Africans as "racists" does nothing to fix the problems. Telling anybody who complains that they are a "racist" does not solve the problems.<BR/><BR/>3) SOUTH AFRICA IS DETERIORATING -- the streets of Johannesburg are filthy, violent crime is so prevalent that tourists are being warned not to visit, people with money (who are mostly white) live behind 10 foot electrified fences topped with broken bottle glass and guarded by multiple alarm systems and attack dogs, South African Airways is going to hell in a handcart, the Universities are deteriorating and are no longer internationally accredited....<BR/><BR/>4) WORK THE PROBLEM, NOT THE PEOPLE -- instead of calling each other "racists" and comparing and beating up each others' civilizations and backgrounds, IDENTIFY THE PROBLEMS and SOLVE THEM!<BR/><BR/>5) Revenge for the past is not going to get anybody anywhere. If black South Africans want to drive economic and technical expertise out of the country, then keep on demonizing white South Africans. If all South Africans wish to retain skills and experience, then cut the bullshit and treat each other with respect. Nobody can go back to the past and undo it. We can, however, change the present and the future.<BR/><BR/>That is simply my personal opinion.<BR/><BR/>PHILIPPhilip Chandlerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09658216673436740031noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-4612903607967850092007-06-25T17:17:00.000+02:002007-06-25T17:17:00.000+02:00"Yes, things have changed. Cities change, and as m..."Yes, things have changed. Cities change, and as much as you seem to be crying about the so-called 'death' of a city, you are crying for a lost piece of your life."<BR/><BR/>************<BR/>Response:<BR/>************<BR/><BR/>I left South Africa in 1986, nine months after obtaining my B.Sc. degree from Wits, due to my belief that apartheid was an obscenity and that it was immoral for me to remain in the country. I last returned to South Africa four years ago -- and nearly wept when I saw what had happened to the campus of the University that I loved for four of the best years of my life.<BR/><BR/>The old building housing the Great Hall, with its once-beautiful pillars at the top of the stairs, had been reduced to a filthy, decaying structure. Graffiti had been sprayed everywhere -- the building housing the School of Psychology was littered with trash, and the stench of urine hit me as I entered this building from the lawn on which I used to sit with my friends. Paper and trash was strewn everywhere. The grass had not been mowed or maintained properly. The toilets were filthy. This beautiful campus had been reduced to an island of squalor. There was once a time when this campus was beautiful, safe, and orderly. It is now a dirty, unkempt shambles.<BR/><BR/>I have remained in touch with a lecturer of mathematics, who shall remain nameless. This person tells me how standards have fallen; how this person is called upon by the Engineering department to lower the standards, time after time. Wits was once one of the best Universities on the African continent, and was internationally accredited. Now, the immigration authorities in the US demand to know the year during which an applicant for a skilled work permit graduated from Wits, so as to determine whether the applicant's degree is worth a damn.<BR/><BR/>I visited Braamfontein and passed the building in which I had rented a flat after graduating. The streets of Braamfontein were filthy beyond belief; the pavement sidewalks were crumbling and decaying, and I felt unsafe on foot, despite the fact that I am 6'7" tall...<BR/><BR/>Hillbrow was squalid beyond belief. The streets were unpassable -- "vendors" cluttered the sidewalks with trashy "products," and landmark buildings had been desecrated with graffiti. It was obvious that nobody gave a damn about cleanliness, order, or maintaining a decent standard of social order...<BR/><BR/>You can tell me that I am whining, or that I am reflecting on personal loss -- but this does nothing to change the fact that Johannesburg -- and parts of Johannesburg such as Parktown, where I used to walk freely and without fear -- are decrepit, filthy, dangerous, and decaying. As an earlier commentator said, this is about standards, not personal discomfort or nostalgia. It is about the breakdown of any semblance of order and common decency.<BR/><BR/>It is about seeing a country go to hell, as standards deteriorate in the name of "political correctness" and "affirmative action."<BR/><BR/>Change was needed. The country had to undergo profound social nd political change. But any freedom that has been won has been won at the cost of basic quality of life for everybody. Dirt and decay are NOT prerequisites for freedom. Filth is NOT a necessary condition for equality to flourish. Decay is NOT a necessary result of majority rule.<BR/><BR/>Squalor is NOT something that can be excused.<BR/><BR/>PHILIPPhilip Chandlerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09658216673436740031noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-80640931933785283142007-06-11T06:09:00.000+02:002007-06-11T06:09:00.000+02:00This comment has been removed by the author.Durrrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07121815967335974268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-76799558924007815502007-06-08T14:27:00.000+02:002007-06-08T14:27:00.000+02:00interesting, when I was there this is what it look...interesting, when I was there this is what it looked likeAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-33190140668964168722007-03-11T09:39:00.000+02:002007-03-11T09:39:00.000+02:00I live in the heart of the most beatiful piece of ...I live in the heart of the most beatiful piece of world. Surrounded by game farms, sugar cane & pineapple fields, and yes, millions upon millions of people. I think there were 7 or 8 hijackings here in Jan, more every week. There was national coverage on the tourist hijackings. I came upon this site while investigating these crimes, as I know someone who has ended up with a camera. The camera has happy pictures of a large family enjoying themselves around a camp fire. It makes the blood in my veins run cold when I imagine how there holiday must have ended for there camera to end up in the bush with locals. Taking the camera to the police is not an option in case you're wondering. This is rural KZN.<BR/>I escaped from SA once before when I was too terrified to stay after the murder of a friend. But then I found myself living with a fear far greater than the fear I felt at home is SA, the fear for those I love. So, we came home. We had made it after more than 3 years away, now we stuggle on at home again. Life is just too short, home is where your family is.<BR/>PS. How has SA ended up with so many ignorant white city dwelling, head-in-the-sand, morons?<BR/>White AfricanAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-69462317518784559712007-02-22T21:12:00.000+02:002007-02-22T21:12:00.000+02:00Just discovered your blog. So sad that it is all b...Just discovered your blog. So sad that it is all basically true and getting worse all the time, not better.<BR/><BR/>As for the "if you don't like it, fuck off" lot, I thank God daily that as my partner had a British passport, I was able to do just that 4 years ago. We are now helping others who we care about in SA to do the same. The Greater London area has now in excess of 500,000 ex South Africans living there - how many more world wide?<BR/><BR/>These are the people who were the energy, brains and spirit that made SA an economic success. When they are all gone (or murdered like more than one of our friends)SA will fast mirror the rest of Africa.<BR/><BR/>My paartner and I are trying to help as many people we care about as possible to escape the dismal future that awaits the F-off brigade.<BR/><BR/>BruceAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-18850210774366137532007-02-19T09:38:00.000+02:002007-02-19T09:38:00.000+02:00I saw the pictures of Jhb last night for the first...I saw the pictures of Jhb last night for the first time and woke up with the same images in my mind. My partner and I left Jhb 5 years ago because of the way things were going and I am shocked yet not completely surprised at the way things have gone. Two things come to mind, what does not belong to you you will not look after as though it was, this is outright plunder. Secondly, it seems that if the whites cannot be wiped out, whatever represents or represented them is being willfully destroyed. the whole of Africa is covered in shacks and the whites are not exactly responsible for that, here they are held responsible and the punishment does not fit the crime. What amazes me the most is that instead of building peace and good neighborliness, the race card is still being played to justify the continued plunder and its working very well. When there are no whites left who will they turn on then? Each other of course, its already happening. "Mona" or jealous in English is one of the biggest viruses this country has to find a vaccine for. The ostentatious fashion show that is parliament is simply outrageous. How could they put on such a spectacle in the face of the so called "struggle" and all it promised to address? Mandela said in '94 that there would be no fat cats in an ANC government. Yeah right, it looks like a cat show up there. History repeats itself. Thats about all I am sure of. Bob Dylan said it, "Ring dem bells, for the chosen few, who will judge the many, when the game is through.." There is no such thing as democracy when there is an outright majority who equally hate and fear the minority.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-64718747964406707102007-02-12T00:43:00.000+02:002007-02-12T00:43:00.000+02:00Keren said... If your aim is to present the 'reali...<I>Keren said... <BR/>If your aim is to present the 'reality' of Johannesburg, than please do so with integrity. The photographs which you posted in 2006 - with the suggestion that they are 'current' - are an outdated misrepresentation of the site as it stands.</I><BR/><BR/>Bullshit. I took the pictues myself in 2006. Don't lie.<BR/><BR/><I> Yes, the Dril Hall was for some years squatted, yes, in 2002 it was gutted by fire leaving little behind, but the 'real' reality is that it has been renovated. Someone mentioned that architect Michael Hart won an award for this renovation, which was completed in 2004. That means that you are posting pictures older than 2 years as the 'proof' to Johannesburg current sad state of affairs.</I><BR/><BR/>Once again, you are talking out of your arse. Why don't you take a drive into central JHB, like I did, and go and see for yourself instead of talking such rubbish.<BR/><BR/><I> If someone was to attempt to drive down Twist street, or Plein streets where the building stands (not Anderson) they would have difficulties finding the building represented in your pictures.</I><BR/><BR/>No they wouldn't, anyone can do it right now.The Real Realisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14512197893435107223noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-91252174835266061882007-02-09T10:39:00.000+02:002007-02-09T10:39:00.000+02:00Hi If your aim is to present the 'reality' of Joha...Hi <BR/><BR/>If your aim is to present the 'reality' of Johannesburg, than please do so with integrity. The photographs which you posted in 2006 - with the suggestion that they are 'current' - are an outdated misrepresentation of the site as it stands. Yes, the Dril Hall was for some years squatted, yes, in 2002 it was gutted by fire leaving little behind, but the 'real' reality is that it has been renovated. Someone mentioned that architect Michael Hart won an award for this renovation, which was completed in 2004. That means that you are posting pictures older than 2 years as the 'proof' to Johannesburg current sad state of affairs. If someone was to attempt to drive down Twist street, or Plein streets where the building stands (not Anderson) they would have difficulties finding the building represented in your pictures. <BR/><BR/>Yes, there are problems in Johannesburg, and yes, there is much to do, but it's quite a shame that you are choosing to ignore development and purposefully present a picture of the city which is false, backed by 'evidence' which is misleading. It calls into question all other information on your site.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-1163646274186553992006-11-16T05:04:00.000+02:002006-11-16T05:04:00.000+02:00You either love JHB or leave it........like I have...You either love JHB or leave it........like I have, now living in Aus. Sad but true, when is the wheel ever going to turn? Maybe? Never?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30988156.post-1160332075583698862006-10-08T20:27:00.000+02:002006-10-08T20:27:00.000+02:00I read these comments from anonymous stating we mu...I read these comments from anonymous stating we must accept it as progress and it is an african city, I used to live in Hillbrow and until the early nineties and it was great.<BR/><BR/>Where is this person coming from calling it progress, Beirut or Brazil slumps or maybe Soeto slums?<BR/><BR/>Progress is to make things better and improve, not destroy it.<BR/><BR/>Maybe the writer likes the drug dealers, tsotsis ect.<BR/><BR/>The socalled fashion show was it for murderers?<BR/><BR/>Wake up and smell the decay.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com