25 years ago, or thereabouts, I used to work in a museum where I would guide people around. There were a lot of South Africans who came for a "holiday," but what they were really looking for was to find a country to escape to. I met mostly engineers, but a lot of highly educated people - a high rate of South Africans. They would open up to me as I showed them around, probably because I was interested in South Africa - I have always been really interested, ever since I was a kid and lived down the road from someone from South Africa. Every single one of the people that came into the museum had a horror story - crime out of control, they would say - etc. They had a real fear in their eyes at heading back - and this was 25 years ago lol.

Yeah, South Africa was supposed to be this multi-ethnic wonder state (i.e., wakanda), but what happened is it became a place that can't even keep its stoplights in place without them being cut down and stripped for copper. Of course, while all the chaos is happening and people are afraid to go to the store, the gold below Johannesburg keeps on flowing. And of course, I'm sure another Vice journalist, if they are still in business, will make their way over there for some "grievance tourism," talk about how it was all the Dutch engineers' fault, etc., because they were being fired at with AK47s on their farms and decided to sell and leave before they will killed. But either way, the gold will keep on flowing. The gold, like the spice, from Dune, must glow.

Thanks!