I am emailing you from Vancouver, Canada. I am an ex-South African and have been living here since 2000. I came across your site œAfrican Crisis at the beginning of the year and read it daily. I love the way [Jan] sometimes goes off the deep end, must be quite a character in person.

Anyway, the main reason I am emailing is I have been following this HOV lane between the N1 and M1. It actually quite amusing at the different reports from different web sites describing it. It is either a total disaster or it is receipt for success. Now living in Canada we have had these HOV lanes, which I believe were introduced 10/15 years ago. They come into force between 6am to 9am in the morning and then 3pm to 6pm in the afternoon and work with great success. But one must bear in mind that people obey the law here, except for a couple of idiots but then the RCMP catches them anyway. It seems to me that the SA government is trying to introduce 1st world standards in a 3rd world country, hey, maybe next they will introduce œDaylight Saving, wouldn™t that be a total disaster?

I work in downtown Vancouver at a major consulting firm and we have about 15 South African engineers in the office. Mostly all are very well qualified professionals and hold managerial positions. Last time I saw some stats (about 2 years ago), there were about 80 000 South African families living in and around Vancouver. This now does not include all the SA folks living in Calgary, Toronto and the rest of Canada. Mostly all the SA we have meet are very well qualified people. For instance, our family doctor is from CT, my wife™s gynecologist is from JHB, our ear nose and throat specialist is from PE, the list goes on and on.

We are very fortunate as we have œSouth African shops in and around Vancouver, so at least we can still buy SA goodies including biltong and boerewors. Find their web links below:

http://www.serengetionline.com/
http://www.outofafricatrading.com/

On our recent trips to Seattle, Washington State and Portland, Oregon State we found huge communities of ex-South Africans, all very, very nice people. It™s such a shame that there are so many white South Africans living abroad, but at least we all have safety and our children have the same equal opportunities of getting a secure job.

At the moment the Canadian government is looking at introducing a single citizenship law, which would entail us to surrender our other passports. Now being an official Canadian citizen and having a Canadian passport, I would not hesitate for 1 sec in giving up our SA passports. Not saying that we have anything against SA, my wife and myself grew up there, still have family there and miss the beautiful country, if and only if, it wasn™t filled with black criminals and communists.

Keep up the good work and you are more than welcome to email me if you require any information.

Regards
CP, Vancouver, Canada

[Hi CP,
Thanks for your most interesting info. I am indeed very keen to hear from ex-Pats because moving from Zim to SA was an “ex-pat” exercise for me too. So I understand how people long for something and how they miss it. The bonds of white Africans to their former countries remain strong. I don’t think it will die. I think it is a good sign, and the nationalism must be kept going. I think it will survive for a long time and in this modern age of Internet, people should be finding each other, renewing and strengthening old ties and bonds because you never know what it could lead to one day. Look at how Zionism recreated Israel after 2000 years? Israel was created by ex-pats actually!

It is fascinating hearing that the “white brainpower” is out there in Canada. I just heard the other day from an ex-Policeman (turned computer programmer) who I worked with 6 years ago. He left to go to NZ and is keen to write here for AfricanCrisis. He is one of the very FEW who were around and who knew about me even before AfricanCrisis was born and before my book was written. He was around at the time Conrad and I ran the short-lived forerunner to AfricanCrisis. Because he had been a Policeman, he and I talked about and understood the ANC as a communist organisation. Back in 2000 I remember us discussing the whole “boiled frog theory” about how we’d be gradually boiled here. Which is slowly happening.

I chuckled when you said I go off at the deep end and I must be quite a character. Actually I’m quite a deceptive character if you don’t know me. I’m not the sort of person who is naturally appealing to anyone. It would be nice to be liked, but my character is such that I’m rarely liked for “being nice”. But once people get to know me, they know I am extremely trustworthy. Some of my best friends are people I had my fiercest fights with.

When people meet me for the first time, they often think I’m a walk-over. I actually come across as quite meek at first. My quick temper is carefully hidden most of the time. I keep it hidden too, even when people tick me off. But I am used to people overstepping the boundaries with me – thinking I’m a walk-over, and then I turn around on a dime and bite them back. Much of the time they are caught COMPLETELY BY SURPRISE! COMPLETELY! Most (but not all the time), these same people learn to respect me and learn about this side of me. Now this side of me gets me into a lot of trouble – all the time. I get into trouble in my jobs – regularly – and have done throughout my life. I am known as someone who will stand up to people SENIOR to me and give them some very hot commentary. I am NEVER “friendly” to any of my bosses or superiors – ever – regardless of whether they were white or black. They know my character, and they know I fight back and can cause quite a scene. I do not respect rank, and anyone who tries to pull rank on me could find that I will fight back – and it may shock them.

But when people get to know me, how I think, and what I do, they respect me a *LOT*. One of my best friends, is a big Afrikaans fellow (well muscled and very fit), whom I almost came to blows with 18 months ago. We were both nearly fired for it. He could probably have knocked me out cold with one blow. But once he saw that I stand my ground even in the face of certain ANNIHILATION (hehehe)… he actually respected that a lot. Now he is incredibly kind and nice to me always and we’re excellent friends.

I may not be strong, and I may not have much (or anything) on my side… but I have spirit if nothing else. Maybe I’m a mouse fighting an elephant.

I was never involved in politics, until Mugabe and the ANC stirred that anger which resides in me… and that’s why I keep coming back every day to sock it to the scumbags in any way I possibly can. My aim is to find ways of hurting them as much as I possibly can. I have every intention of socking it to them for as long as I can, and I hope to be socking it to them even when many others have left or have given up.

I once had a boss, about 20 years ago, who heard I was a Gemini (I’m borderline Taurus and Gemini). He remarked cynically (to my embarrassment), “So you’re a Jekyll and Hyde character then!” So I’d say, I’m mostly Dr Jekyll, but sometimes, when people least expect it, Mr Hyde comes out and burns someone who thinks they’re immune to being burned. But I do it… like I say… even if I face total annihilation and destruction in return. I might not have much, but at least I have SPIRIT – even if the odds are stacked completely against me!!

And you know what… I’ve been FIRED and thrown out on my ear on more than one occasion too! That ex-Policeman/Programmer who is now in New Zealand actually saw that. We worked for an Afrikaans woman who was a b*tch of note. She was a really “rough” type of person. One day she mouthed off to everyone in the office (unfairly I thought), so I got up and walked out. When I returned to work a day or two later, she fired me on the spot! I was kicked out like a dog. But that guy never forgot me and wrote to me months later. He agreed with my sentiments. He later said he thought that she was looking for an excuse to get rid of me anyway. Others in the room felt like doing what I did – but I was the only one who actually did it!

What many people don’t seem to realise is how many risks I run by doing what I do, openly using my name while working here in S.Africa. Some people may think I “have it easy”, but I don’t. I get very little financial support, even from regular visitors to my site. I work harder, with far less resources than many… and it surprises people. But… this website… is driven by my anger… and as you can see… like nuclear power… there seems to be no end to it!!!

So I’m quite used to people senior to me not liking me at all. I may not be liked… but lots of people RESPECT ME. To me, that’s the most important thing of all. Jan]

VERENA Replied:
Hallo and thank you for your comments. Keep browsing our site!