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www.thevillagenews.co.za
3 June 2020
FROM THE EDITOR
Making the crisis count The next edition of The Village NEWS will be available on 10 June 2020. The NEWS can be found at over 300 distribution points in the Overberg.
028 312 2234
6 Royal Street, Hermanus
De Waal Steyn
PUBLISHING EDITOR dewaal@thevillagenews.co.za
Hedda Mittner
CONTENT EDITOR
When one is in the midst of an anxiety-ridden crisis, where life seems anything but normal, it is difficult to pause and consider what the new normal might look like post Covid-19. Will it be better or worse than the old normal (or will we simply retreat to our old hole in the sand and pretend it never happened)? Scenario planners, sociologists and other analysts seem to agree that it is during the crisis itself, when we have been jolted out of complacency, that we need to look ahead and plan for a post-pandemic future. From there, we can actively drive a positive outcome. Not wasting a good crisis is how they term it.
Over two months into a State of Disaster, certain facts have already emerged. The pandemic has no favourites when it comes to infecting the populace, rich and poor, urban and rural, all are at risk. However, the malnourished poor, living in crowded, unhygienic conditions, often with no access to clean water and sanitation are more likely both to succumb to the disease and transmit it to others. Second, the condition of the schools their children attend is also more likely to affect the quality of learning that can take place there, both during and after lockdown, and is more physically threatening to the children’s safety. Thirdly, when the bottom falls out of the economy, the
entire country sinks with it. And finally, citizens are more than willing to support government and/ or the State President in handling a crisis with wisdom and resolve. However, as soon as it becomes obvious that there is another, hidden agenda which has nothing to do with their wellbeing, civil disobedience begins to replace trust. Government has frequently proven that it is good at talking up a good story, but when it comes to implementation, not so much. Despite – or because – of these negative perceptions, the people of the Overstrand have shown again and again they have what it takes to solve their own problems. We have
demonstrated this can-do attitude, together with a collaborative spirit of selflessness, innovative thinking and most of all, ubuntu, during this crisis as well as the fires last year. The establishment of Hermanus Varsity and support for a wealth of well-run community-based NPOs on the ground are further evidence. Perhaps then, it is we, the people, who need to take the lead in creating the kind of post-pandemic society we long for, one of inclusivity, empowerment, dignity, environmental awareness and economic growth for all, where rich and poor, men and women all have a role to play. All it takes is courage, vision, commitment and unity of purpose. This is the good NEWS – Ed
hedda@thevillagenews.co.za
Raphael da Silva ONLINE EDITOR
Sugar & Spice
Having time to kill
raphael@thevillagenews.co.za
they're freeing up prison space.
Elaine Davie SUB-EDITOR & JOURNALIST elaine@thevillagenews.co.za
Taylum Meyer PHOTOGRAPHER & PRODUCTION MANAGER taylum@thevillagenews.co.za
Alta Pretorius MARKETING MANAGER alta@thevillagenews.co.za
Charé van der Walt MARKETING REPRESENTATIVE chare@thevillagenews.co.za
Tania Hamman
ADMIN & FINANCE admin@thevillagenews.co.za
Apparently the fee for registering a church is R1 100. Just putting it out there... for the starving performers. Maybe a silver collection after the service?
By Hélène Truter
W
riters have to wait for the muse to strike. I'm waiting for my sense of humour to return. I wanted to send out a search party to look for it, but I don't have a valid permit. My sense of humour left me somewhere between level 5 and 4. I don't know the date. Dates are irrelevant. Every day is Sunday. Who was the wise-ass who coined the phrase: A month of Sundays? Well, it's been two and a half months of Sundays! Except we haven't been going to church… Hang on, let me check Regulation 7395 Amendment 512a. Yes, people (no more than 50) can go to church. (I don't take responsibility if Tannie Kopdoek changes it again by the time we go to print.) God help church member no 51. I wonder if the transgressor will be sent to jail? After all,
In a hundred years' time (if we haven't been wiped off the face of the earth) the next generation will wonder why humankind was complaining so much. With lockdown you don't go to work, you stay at home every day, live in your pjs, watch TV, eat, eat, eat. Lots of time to kill. Oh, and you don't get paid. Oh yes, there's that. One thing that nearly killed me during Level 4 was the three-hour exercise slot every morning. You took our booze and cigarettes away and we had to exercise for three hours. Getting up in the dark, half-asleep, freezing my butt off, trying to keep a social distance from the hundreds of other dutifully exercising citizens on the narrow coastal path, my glasses steaming up because of my mask and my heavy breathing (no, not that kind, I'm hardly awake!) was hell.
Besides being a shop owner, I'm also a scriptwriter. Scriptwriting 101: For a gripping TV experience, you have to capture the viewer's attention and hold it throughout the episode. You have to end with a massive cliffhanger (i.e., what is going to happen next?) in order for the viewer to tune in next week. At the end of March a new TV series started. The President. Episode 1 was great. We loved our hero, we rooted for him. We made sacrifices. Gladly. Our hero was saving the day. Good scriptwriting. Episode 2 was a little repetitive: Wash your hands, keep your distance, don't cough without covering your mouth. This is stuff that I was taught as a kid – not really riveting viewing. By Episode 3 I was just so over our hero. Wash your hands, wear your mask, social distance, blah blah blah... I have switched to another channel. Now, when I hear that there's another follow-up episode featuring Tannie Kopdoek and some equally talentless actors, I don't bother. The scriptwriter of this soap will never make it in the
film industry. I've just realised that I may be sharing my pearls with an audience of about ten or so. (At least that's allowed.) I suspect that when this edition hits the streets, a third of South Africans will probably still be queuing at the bottle store. (Remember the Battle of the Toilet Rolls?) The other third is probably still drunk. This week South Africa will be the drunkest country on the planet. When I started writing this… what would you call it... a rant? Or a lament? Maybe it's just a feeble little whimper or a titter... You choose. Anyway, when I started writing this, I undertook not to say anything about COVID-19 or share bad news and scare the hell out of you with the numbers. Alas. Forgive me, my muse is in quarantine. I promise to try harder... and wash my hands, wear a mask… Oh, please end this bad script. Roll end credits. PS. If one more person says: This is the "new normal" I will throttle him. After all, I have time to kill.
WEEKLY WEATHER & DE BOS DAM LEVELS
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Wed | 3 Jun
Thu | 4 Jun
Fri | 5 Jun
Sat | 6 Jun
Sun | 7 Jun
Mon | 8 Jun
Tue | 9 Jun
14°/17° Cloudy
13°/22° Mostly Sunny
13°/19° Partly Cloudy
11/19° Partly Cloudy
13°/20° Mostly Clear
12°/19° Partly Cloudy
15°/18° Rain
Nickey Jackson
DTP DESIGNER nickey@thevillagenews.co.za
Ilana van der Merwe
GRAPHIC DESIGNER ilana@thevillagenews.co.za
De Bos Dam 35.94%
Weekly Rainfall 18mm
Last week 36.71%
Last week N/A
WEEKLY TIDE TABLES HIGH LOW HIGH LOW
01:00 07:29 13:36 19:36
High Low High Low
01:48 08:14 14:24 20:23
High Low High Low
Tides sourced by www.sanho.co.za
02:35 08:57 15:09 21:08
High Low High Low
03:21 09:40 15:53 21:54
High Low High Low
04:06 10:21 16:37 22:39
High Low High Low
04:50 11:02 17:19 23:25
High Low High Low
05:33 11:42 18:02
