Plug in to crazy world’s normality

In the middle of a global pandemic, which has devastated the country’s economy because of the lockdown measures intended to curb the spread of the coronavirus, it seems that there must be other, more pressing, issues to be dealt with.

Then, there is the eternal South African question about how much it’s going to cost and which politically connected people are going to make fortunes through tenders to supply new equipment to the government.

On the other hand, the SA Bureau of Standards says the moves to more compact plug and socket designs will bring us into line with international standards but, more importantly, will help in “averting a risk of fires, short-circuiting, damage or malfunction of appliances”.

That does seem a laudable aim – except when you consider the millions of consumers exposed daily to danger and death through illegal connections to power grids. On balance, though, the upgrade is probably a sensible idea – especially if we want to continue to consider ourselves part of the broader world out there.

It is also, ironically, a strangely comforting normality in a crazy world.

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