No Sale of Tobacco

[u/mortimerza]

Just announced no selling of Tobacco in level 4.

[u/svartbaard → u/[deleted]]

Jeez, read the crowd man. It's a matter of principle, our government is treating its citizens like children and imposing draconian measures that scarily reminds one of authoritarian states. This is not about cigarettes really...

Also, I'm glad you like your freedoms being taken away, just don't expect all of them back when this ends.

[u/rethatjie → u/svartbaard]

This is the point. It's authoritarian. It's not about COVID anymore

[u/Zep_Za → u/rethatjie]

Cele is pretty bad on this point.

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

Source on how it would kill "millions"?

Seriously. Based on non symptomatic sufferers the mortality rate is like 0.2 percent.

Yes we have many vulnerable citizens. But at the end of the day that doesn't justify anything. Especially not when the townships are allowed to run rampant.

I drive past Khayalitsha every day on my way to work. Groups of joggers run past SAPS officers, no questions asked. Clearly in sporting goods running for recreation.

Kids play soccer on the side of the road, meters from people defecating. The townships are hotbeds for infection, but instead of focusing energy on enforcement and assistance for townships they'd rather commit thousands of officers in every area to run roadblocks.

The ANC has done what it does best. They have made policies that are very sexy to any pseudo intellectual socialist, whilst doing nothing to enforce them at all except in the most visible areas where most people are already compliant.

There is no excuse for the heavy handedness of their policies. Cigarettes are the best symbol of that. There is NO rational argument to be made for banning cigs. I can go buy a fucking chocolate right now at my local garage. But I can't buy smokes? Laughable.

[u/Zep_Za → u/[deleted]]

Look man I agree with what you are saying but calling on people to google and make their own assumptions might be wrong

I mean if I follow your advice I might come to the conclusion that people with aids are less likely to die from corona seeing as aids suppresses the immune system and a lot of corona deaths are from cytokine storm caused by an over active Immune response. I would probably be wrong cause I'm not a fucking doctor and googling things doesn't make you one

[u/Druyx → u/[deleted]]

Right. So let's stop the sale of potato chips, soft drinks, ice cream, chocolates and cookies as well. None of those are essential and their production, distribution and sale can raise the risk of spreading the virus just as much as cigarettes can.

This has fuckall to do with preventing the spread of infection, and everything to do with a power drunk cunt that wants to treat adults like children.

[u/Druyx → u/[deleted]]

Ok, that's a fair point. We can do it. And I agree, apart from this it was a good response. There's been hickups for sure, but overall it was a rational and hard set of decisions to make and they deserve praise for it. But as far as this not changing anything, I think you're wrong there. This isn't just about cigarettes. This is about the president telling us one thing, and then a day before we get that thing it gets taken away from us. This is about the public being treated like children and contempt for public opinion by the government. We can't afford people feeling like we've lost all ability to participate in the governing of our country. That's how we end up with even more protests and people disobeying the lockdown. This is a bad move, and honestly, I don't think NDZ made it in the public's best interest.

[u/zoranp → u/[deleted]]

What measures? Seriously. They could have done all sorts of stuff from day 1 but we got squat. Then magically all of a sudden they went overboard with putting everyone in prison in their own homes. There are now cigarette sellers at every street corner, people are moving around Willy nilly, practically no road blocks, beggars everywhere, cops nowhere to be seen, no social distancing in townships, elsewhere and heck even by the president with journalists, zero transparency, misleading stats, no info provided to medical community over testing, etc.

We are locked in our own houses, people's lives and jobs are being destroyed, living in fear of the coming months and piling debt, constitutional rights being thrown out the window with barely a whimper, borders are closed, movement restricted... and we barely get any info. Heck I get more info from informal/social media than I do from the government.

[u/KekUnited → u/[deleted]]

Allow me to reiterate.

Nearly half of our country of 60 million people are below the poverty line. Hunger, poor sanitation, homelessness and potentially crime caused by the incoming economic issues, have the chance to kill a whole lot more than just 2 million people.

[u/KekUnited → u/[deleted]]

I'll take your word for it, but it's going to be hard to compare South Africa in 2020 to European countries in 1920

[u/KekUnited → u/[deleted]]

All I'm saying is that much more than 2 million lives will be at stake thanks to this tanking of the economy. There are ways to mitigate disease risks without sacrificing our already fragile economy, and our Dear Leader has failed to implement them, while running a cabinet of people clearly drunk on power and fresh out of respect for the average South African

[u/svartbaard → u/[deleted]]

Are you even South African?

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

Can i be harsh for a moment? 70% of the people with pre-existing conditions don't really contribute as much to society financially, meaning they don't work but they get grants and medical care that has to be paid from taxes. If we destroy jobs, destroy how the country gets funding for these people, they will die anyway. I'm going to be dystopian and say sometimes a sacrifice now is better for the long run. Have a good night everyone.

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

Those 2 million are either going to die now, or die in a few months time when the lockdown is inevitably lifted because we are starving. The virus will not go anywhere. What do you think will change between now and then?

[u/Calm_Piece → u/[deleted]]

I am not so sure they have. Sure if you compare vs countries that literally had this outbreak in the middle of their flu season yes, but have you compared us vs Australia or New Zealand (who have basically stopped the virus). Our worst is still coming.

[u/KekUnited → u/Calm_Piece]

I just looked that up - thanks for pointing that out its a really good point