On the Failed State, Artificial Arguments, and Artificial Intelligence

Abstract

The narrative of a failed South African state has gained currency among some prominent prophets of Armageddon as well as shadowy influencers who have penned an assortment of articles and editorials in this regard. The idea is propounded as a certainty at the high tea gatherings of lightly shaded Afro-pessimists, oppositionists, and patrons of local barber shops. Transitory moments and anecdotal realities are theatrically played out to fit a propensity towards tabloid absurdity. When violent crimes are televised live, when we witness extended hours of load-shedding, we as the elite pursue all avenues to avoid assuming responsibility for some of the current excesses of capitalism and governance failures. Instead, our common refrain is that the state has failed. There is another emergent plot point in this narrative which we do not address here, namely that of the national political scene moving from Ramaphoria to Ramaphobia (when I told a colleague four years ago that we should guard against sliding into Ramaphobia, she/he found this really objectionable).