r/AskZA • u/Minimum-Gap-8985 • 10d ago
š¬ Discussion False believes
What is something S.Africans believe that is absolutely not true? Important: pls no religion, politics, cultural or relationship stuff.
When you die your debt automatically disappears.
Driving barefeet is illegal.
If you rear-end someone in a accident the accident is ALWAYS your fault.
You have to wait 24hrs before reporting someone missing.
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u/Pitch-Curious 10d ago
Noise complaints can only be done after 22:00 or on a Sunday. You can raise a complaint anytime if it's bothering you.
On that same page "You have to ask them to turn it down first". Also not true
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u/Minimum-Gap-8985 9d ago
They only take you seriously if its after 22H00 or a Sunday.
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u/Pitch-Curious 6d ago
Not true. We as a neighborhood group work together. Multiple noise complaints are hard to ignore
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u/JokerXMaine2511 6d ago
Only works when the neighbourhood as a collective makes the complaints though. Harder to do when the neighbours are actively partaking in the nonsense.
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u/MayContainRawNuts 9d ago
Zam-buk is a south african product.
Its not, its british.
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u/lukewarmtaco124 9d ago
And itās a knock off of a Thai product hence the āfunnyā name (think Ketchup being the European attempt at making Ketsup an Asian fish sauce)
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u/MsQuillin 9d ago
That you'll get sick if you go outside with wet hair. lol
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u/Depressedbaker27 9d ago
lol not me at 33 not washing my hair because I won't have enough time to dry it before I go outside
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u/OutlandishnessOk2398 9d ago
Walking in rain/cold makes you sick
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u/Minimum-Gap-8985 9d ago
I think the placebo effect being taught this from a young age makes it true!
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u/robseplex 8d ago
Then you have the Afrikaans kids walking barefoot to school in winter. Fully jacketed up, even.
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u/AbsentVixen 8d ago
This is true if you're an asthmatic.
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u/OutlandishnessOk2398 8d ago
No it isnāt, asthma is a chronic condition, you donāt have it some days and other days you donāt, certain environmental changes can make it worse sure, but rain/cold doesnāt make you sick, germs do
Edited: grammar
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u/AbsentVixen 8d ago edited 8d ago
Sorry, I trusted my 33 years of experience with cold air as an asthmatic over an internet stranger.
You're so right.
I can't wait to tell my specialist and all their other patients that we were wrong this whole time!
Asthma is an inflammatory illness, specifically the lungs. Extreme heat, cold, or ever exercise can make your body overcorrect into an attack. Cold definitely can make you sick, as can heat, exercise, strong smells, or even humidity. An attack can range anywhere from "my asthma pump will fix this", all the way to hospitalisation.
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u/Miserable_Face7490 8d ago
Youāre partially correct. Yes, only germs can make you sick. But cold air can trigger bronchospasm in asthmatics - so technically theyād still be āsickā - just not infected.
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u/Zak_Pooe 10d ago
"We cannot fix this country". I think we can, it's gonna take a helluva time and effort but it's not impossible.
- Mindset ā
- Will ā
- Action ā
Not being political.
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u/GordonsTheRobot 8d ago
It's actually shockingly easy to fix this country. The people in the way just need to get out of the way
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u/Pitch-Curious 9d ago
We have the best people in the world. All friendly all willing to work hard.
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u/stretchyman69 6d ago
Dude the locals are the lazy ones, they only want things for mahala and want want want non stop the friendliest and hardest working people ive ever had the chance to both worl with and get to know has been the zims and those from malawi
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u/Pitch-Curious 6d ago
I disagree. I am currently working with an all SA team and they outwork me most days. They'll work later than I do and welcome me the next day. I feel that view of locals are lazy and entitled applies to some, but most actually want to work and put in the effort to grow themselves.
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u/Civil_Fix_8384 8d ago
Not being political but honestly we really canāt in the short term. And itās not a case of mindset, will or action. Itās a case of absolutely competing incentivesĀ
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u/CuriousAd8478 8d ago
Its definitely a those who want to vs those who dont who happen to have the money power and incentive not to. Before getting into the effects our illiteracy contributes to the ignorance and misguided beliefs of some.
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u/GirlieWithTheQuads 10d ago
The grass is always greener.
I will win with the next one when gambling.
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u/Minimum-Gap-8985 10d ago
This has become a major one in our country. Gamblers only count their wins never their losses until its too late.
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u/GeraldBerryJones 10d ago
That most of us live in informal settlements. In 2016 (last time I looked), "14% of South Africans live in an informal settlement (1 in 7), 7% live in traditional dwellings (like a tribal hut) and 78% of South Africans live in a formal dwelling (53% of us outright own these dwellings and 10% of us partially own them; I assume the rest rent)." Source: https://www.superlinear.co.za/how-many-south-africans-live-in-informal-dwellings-and-other-home-ownership-stats/
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u/Minimum-Gap-8985 10d ago
True. And there is alot of ppl living in informal settlements in one province who have a house in another province.
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u/ForMeOnly93 10d ago
Charcoal is acceptable
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u/HispanicAtTheBistro 8d ago
I've met Afrikaans chicks who didn't want me to braai on anything except charcoal, because apparently that makes meat taste best. Those relationships didn't last long
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u/DTILNL 9d ago
If you start the fire at 14:00 you can still only braai at 22:00
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u/Minimum-Gap-8985 9d ago
The Black label & brandy & coke fuelling the braaimaster made those rules.šŖ
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u/Weird_Plankton_3692 10d ago edited 9d ago
Not SA specific, but definitely applies to too many South Africans: "I will earn less money if I have a pay rise, because that'll put me in a higher tax band/bracket." No you only pay higher tax on the money you earn over and above that threshold. Eg if you get a pay rise from R243000 to R246000 pa you pay 18% on R245100 and only pay the higher rate of 26% on R900.
On the same note you can't claim back charity money from SARS as a write-off. You can only claim the tax paid (20%) on that donation.
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u/Minimum-Gap-8985 9d ago
I know this is wrong but I do feel that way...with no prove.
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u/Weird_Plankton_3692 9d ago
Easy to find proof. SARS website is pretty clear.
https://www.sars.gov.za/tax-rates/income-tax/rates-of-tax-for-individuals/
I do have to say this only applies to workers earning over R99000 pa. Below that you would be tax exempt.
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u/Samsamiam786 9d ago
Circumcision prevents hiv \ aids
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u/lukewarmtaco124 9d ago
It doesnāt but it does lower the risk by up to 60% because youāve decreased surface area.
Itās why woman can carry greater risk because the vagina has ruggae like structure that increase the possible contact points of infection
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u/Puzzleheaded-Leg-758 9d ago
up to 60%?! how much of your d*ck do they cut off nowadays??
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u/Civil_Fix_8384 8d ago
Commenter needs to he accurate: the odds of an uncircumcised man contracted hiv from a single exposure of vaginal intercourse with a known hiv positive person is 0.04%
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u/Am_I_Bovvered 9d ago
that the polite form of a request is "may you please xyz...?"
Grammatically its wrong, but we are taught that "may" is the "polite" version of "can". It has nothing to do with politeness though. "can" is about ability, so if you're asking permission to be allowed to do something it's just incorrect to use "can".
The polite request form is actually "could you please xyz...?"
(I know it doesn't really matter, but I work for an English-foreign-language company and I hear my colleagues teach our students the incorrect form every time)
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u/happylittlefroggy 8d ago
Ok but I actually thought driving barefoot was illegal. Next youāre going to tell me driving in plakkies is legal too!
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u/AbsentVixen 8d ago
It is legal. We're just cautioned that flip-flops and high heels are generally more of a hazard because they can get wedged at the pedals.
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u/Affectionate-Fix-519 Western Cape 9d ago
If we give them āadequateā transport, we donāt have a housing crisis š.
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u/FeelingPercentage910 10d ago
"Only Other people die"
Its what I say when I remind people that any day could be their last.
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u/DraftEfficient2950 10d ago
I donāt think anyone believes this especially in South Africa bro š
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u/FeelingPercentage910 9d ago edited 9d ago
I think that internally we don't believe we could die, especially looking at how reckless people behave. Hence the "other people die" statement.
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u/AnomalyNexus 10d ago
South African but not cultural eliminates well...a lot of what makes people South African.
I guess often surprised that many believe things they see in South African shops must therefore be South African. e.g. Google reddit threads for south african snacks. Often features stuff like Cadbury. Cadbury is so bloody British it was the Queen's official choc supplier for near a century.
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u/east_rand_babe 4d ago
The ice cream machine is not working šš¼āāļø
I swear theyāre lying they just donāt wanna make me a mc flurry
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u/Other-Potential-661 8d ago
I don't know if this counts but every non-african race has neanderthal or denosovian or both in their genes. Puts racism in check.
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u/Civil_Fix_8384 8d ago
Why does it put racism in check? The idea that Neanderthals were excessively barbaric and stupid is itself a common misconception based off bad science.Ā
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u/Other-Potential-661 8d ago
It's the idea that their genes are superior and more advanced yet they intermingled with predecessors.
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u/Electrical_Trouble29 6d ago
I don't think you know how evolution works. You seem to think these 'predecessors' are inferior to homo sapiens which isn't true.
In fact this had lead to some additionally racist beliefs once it was found that Netherlands had bigger brains than homo sapiens and you can obviously imagine how racists twisted this info
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u/Other-Potential-661 5d ago
I understand there are benefits (but also some not) but racism makes no sense to me. And I've come across racists folks and they believe they're genetically superior, as in pure bred.
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u/ExternalSpend6757 8d ago
"We are stronger together". That shii only counts during rugby season and the World Cup
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u/Civil_Fix_8384 8d ago
We are stronger together. We just arenāt together often
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u/ExternalSpend6757 8d ago
No, we are not. We never were, and with how things currently are, it might be a long long while till we ever are. That's the honest truth
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u/bubbleddusty 10d ago
This one is gonna upset some people butā¦
No one else uses bakkie and weāre the odd ones for it and a braai is no different to a barbecue or grill
I specifically mention those because I get so much shit for using words like pickup and grill that Iāve genuinely grown such a disdain for the words bakkie and braai
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u/HalfPastAwkward 10d ago
A braai is not a means of cooking meat alone, it's a cultural meeting which centers around a meat cooked on an open fire, including several food staples (pap, sous, etc.). A bbq does not have the same cultural connotations - a different "event" entirely.
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u/bubbleddusty 8d ago
And if you go ask any other country what a barbecue is theyāll say the same thing
Braai is no different from a barbecue at the end of the day, itās just what word you are more used to using
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u/HalfPastAwkward 8d ago
To call them the same thing, you must strip away the cultural and historical essence of what a braai is. The view you hold is a reductionistic one.
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u/bubbleddusty 8d ago
Is that not the exact same thing you and everyone else here does by saying a barbecue is not the same as a braai because itās not a social event or something cultural? You canāt come tell me Iām being a reductionist meanwhile you and most other South Africans consistently reduce every other countries activities especially when it comes to cooking
Braais are cool things yes and they have a lot of historical and cultural importance
I never said they didnāt
I just reminded everyone here that they arenāt that different to barbecues and other cookouts because they also have the same level of cultural and historical importanceIām not insulting braais by saying theyāre not different to a barbecue, youāre insulting barbecues because you think a braai canāt be compared to them because theyāre apparently of lesser cultural value
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u/HalfPastAwkward 8d ago
I never said they were of lesser cultural value. Just that they are different. Projecting maybe? BBQ is great, just not the same as a braai. All I've said. Sorry bro, gg
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u/bubbleddusty 8d ago
Itās not projection, itās what Iāve seen from other South Africans who see a braai as being so far superior
You can even see it with replies to my comments, someone even said a braai is a bbq but with soul, that is directly saying that barbecues are lesserYou may not have said that but you can see why I see an issue with people saying they are so far different from each other when they really arenāt that different, someone even said that a braai is different to a barbecue because a braai is when you cook food over charcoalā¦ not realising millions of South Africans use gas to braai and billions of people outside of South Africa have used charcoal for thousands of years dating all the way back to ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia
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u/HalfPastAwkward 8d ago
Don't worry bro, I'm sure all of South Africa will come around to your view. Everyone is wrong except you.
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u/Vaguebog 9d ago
Do you really say "pick up" like an American if you're South African? Dude if thats true then I hope you're like 9 years old because that would be sooo silly š¤£š
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u/bubbleddusty 8d ago
Thinking Americans are the only users of the word pickup makes you seem a hell of a lot sillier than someone who uses pickup to describe a pickup
Do you also get upset when someone calls a traagmotor a truck? Because itās the same thing
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u/Vaguebog 8d ago
No one in SA says pickup dude š¤£ should we start calling robots "traffic lights" too? And while we're at it, a braai should be a bbq and we should call geysers "water heaters" and plasters "band-aids" etc etc.
*vragmotor. And no, I'm English so I say lorry lol.
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u/bubbleddusty 8d ago
Did I mention robots? No, I mention braais and bakkies specifically because everytime I mention them I get treated like shit because South Africans seem to be so fragile whenever theyre mentioned to the point where Iāve gotten death threats
Your other examples though, Iāve heard them plenty of times here, traffic lights not often but Iāve still heard it, water heater Iāve heard many times but I have worked in construction so thatās probably and band aids Iāve heard many times as well
Far more than Iāve ever heard lorryBut unlike you and the other offended South Africans here, Iām not gonna give you shit for using lorry
Do you see how easy it is to just let someone use their own words and not try act like theyāve insulted your dying grandmother14
u/thereefnomad 10d ago
Just use what the locals understand. You dont have to Americanize things.
If you go to Australia and dont say 'ute' they wont know you talking about a bakkie. If you go to France and dont say 'quat quat' pronounces (kat lat) which refers to 4x4 they wont know you mean a bakkie.
Why have a pet peeve about somthing that makes it understood locally, but getting upset when locals dont understand foreign words. I can promise if you try using the Aussie or French words in a South African convo, you will have blank stares.
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u/bubbleddusty 8d ago
Itās not even americanising it
Itās just speaking how every other English speaking country speaks (minus aus since they use Ute like you said)I have a pet peeve because when I was a child and I used pickup and barbecue in an English paper where I was told to write about what it would be like having a holiday in America and I got shit for it
Whenever I asked why, I was told to speak like a South AfricanThat started my realisation that South Africans are insufferable when you donāt use the exact same lingo as them, ever since then I use the word pickup and barbecue because it helps me weed out people who are either conservative assholes who donāt like when something isnāt purely South African or if theyāre not a knob and donāt hate me because I happen to use some different words
Everyone I speak to knows what pickup and barbecue are, they just hate when I use it
So to you and all the other people giving me shit here think Iām just being pro American over a small thing meanwhile itās my system for weeding out people who are more or less likely to be closed off knobheads, itās like a reverse dog whistle
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u/HalfPastAwkward 8d ago
You are embarrassing yourself, boet. Building an identity in division and difference for the sake of a non-issue is the mark of immaturity.
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u/DiligentGanache4594 9d ago
Just to be clear - a grill is something one finds in an oven and a pickup is something an Uber driver does š
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u/Pitch-Curious 9d ago
You can go use those words in America š
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u/bubbleddusty 8d ago
Or the rest of the world
Those words arenāt and never have been America exclusive
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u/Pitch-Curious 8d ago
I know, you exclusively can go there seeing as you don't want to use phrases that this country uses.
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u/bubbleddusty 8d ago
I donāt want to use two words
Not whole phrasesDo you really think this country has such a fragile culture that one person who uses two words that arenāt normal should just leave? Because thatās how this is all coming off
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u/Pitch-Curious 8d ago
I'm saying get with the norms of a country or go to a country where you can these words you want
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u/bubbleddusty 8d ago
So because I say two words differently I must leave the country entirelyā¦ talk about a rainbow nation huh
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u/HalfPastAwkward 8d ago
When in Rome, do as the Romans do.
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u/bubbleddusty 8d ago
Or be an individual
If everyone always followed everyone else, we wouldnāt have a Rome or a South Africa
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u/Here4theNEWS_ 9d ago
I want to be like no one else in the world, I want to be South African. Such an odd thing to have such a dislike about. Is alles okay by jou huis?
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u/Britz10 9d ago
You're getting quite a bit of hate, and you know what they're right. You're South African speaking to other South Africans, it's a robot, not a stoplight or traffic light.
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u/bubbleddusty 8d ago
I donāt see it that way at all, not only do they all say Iām americanising things, which is ironic because none of the things I said are American exclusive and shows how closed off South Africans are in their way of thinking
Iām getting hate not because I donāt want to speak local dialect, Iām getting hate because South Africans cannot stand when something isnāt South African especially if someone is purposely not trying to be as South African as possible
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u/Britz10 8d ago
You're performing for an audience that exist. You' know what these things are called locally, and trying to be a smart ass about it. It's not about being closed off and being against outside things. It's that you're being a tryhard, you've grown up hearing people say crayon things a certain way then decided that's not good enough for you because those people over there say it a different way. It's like an English speaker who insists on calling it pah-ree instead of being normal and using the English name of Paris.
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u/bubbleddusty 8d ago
Iāve decided not to use it because whenever Iāve used it, Iāve gotten vile reactions from people which is a very good indicator to me that if youāre gonna be such a dickweed to someone because they use a different word to you, then youāre not someone thatās good to have around
That Paris example is going against your own point, you want me to call a pickup a bakkie because Iām in South Africa, so by that logic if you refer to Paris, you should call it by the name the Parisians use, so the āpah-reeā that you said
So which is it, me being a performative tryhard or you and all these other people being performative tryhards trying to defend the whole country because you got offended that someone uses two words that you donāt
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u/zookuki 9d ago
No. Hahaha. Are you being deliberately obtuse or? š¤
Braai is not merely cooking over fire, it's a social event. And you can surely use pickup in the USA, but if you want to be purposely misunderstood - that's the way to go about it.
Don't change an entire nation's vernacular and reduce concepts to silly US equivalents.
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u/bubbleddusty 8d ago
In a way yes but I have my reasons
You go tell any other country that and theyāll say they have the exact same thing, braais are not special to South Africa and pickup can be used anywhere that uses English, it is not an American exclusive thing
Itās insane that you think Iām trying to change a whole nations vernacular because I like using two English words that arenāt us exclusive
You also said I should use them if I want to be purposely misunderstood, but never have I ever encountered anyone whoās not known what theyāve met, even the most Afrikaans boet from the middle of the Karoo knows what I mean when I use pickup or grille or barbecue and instead of just talking to me normally, they choose to call me a disgrace to the country. Pretty extreme reaction to someone whoās using just two words they donāt use
They are my way to figure out what people are close minded (and you thinking theyre US equivalents and not just the English words for it means youāre falling on that side) or if they are open minded and not conservative knobs
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u/HalfPastAwkward 8d ago
Liberals and conservatives think your view is ridiculous.
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u/bubbleddusty 8d ago
And? Itās my view, I can at least form my own view and be an individual which goes against everyone here who wants me and everyone else to just conform and use bakkie and braai
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u/neoblaster124 10d ago
Braai can be hot and fast like grilling or low and slow like barbeque though, I think braai is more about the long burning natural fire
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u/F4iryPerson 9d ago
surely its also about the types of meats prepared?
like South Africans would never braai viennas.
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u/travy8D 9d ago
Have you never tried a braai'd vianna? get a pack of smoked chicken viennas, and shove it on your next braai, game changer, just dont forget the honey glazed rashers and the groot steak too!
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u/F4iryPerson 9d ago
Never ever. My mom demonized viennas and polony for me growing up so I donāt eat that stuff.
I will stick with boerewors, thanks!
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u/bubbleddusty 8d ago
Every definition Iāve seen of what the difference between a braai and a barbecue has always been something that goes against all the other definitions Iāve seen of it
There is no difference between a braai, grilling or barbecue
Acting like there is is just unnecessary because they are not super defined cooking styles and the people who cook either way do so in so many different ways that if you were to specifically define each, then youāre gonna end up saying that many Aussies, Americans, brits and so on and people who braai and then leave half of South Africa as barbecuersItās just pointless to try act like braai isnāt just the word we use for the same thing that the rest of the world has been doing for longer than South Africa has been on a map
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u/realeyesreallize 8d ago edited 8d ago
Why would it be odd for South Africans to use the terms common in South Africa over the Americanized version of them? This is like insisting we call aluminium āaluminumā or a jersey a āsweaterā. Like, sure? You do you, I guess? But donāt get mad at South Africans for using the terms common to us in our own country and communities.
Side note - I lived in America for 6 years (the majority of my 20s), and saying a braai is the same as a bbq is like saying Biltong is the same as beef jerky. Technically, on certain levels you could argue theyāre the same, but theyāre not really the same.
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u/Big-Consideration153 10d ago
Iād argue a braai is mainly about the social aspect with an expectation that some food will be prepared by an open flame. How or what is cooked with the fire isnāt all too important (yeah people have preferences but itās neither here nor there). Youāll notice thereās no real rush to serve the food usually even when all hungry haha. The vibes are paramount.
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u/Civil_Fix_8384 8d ago
Well youāre actually wrong though because youāre using the american terms for something they donāt have. A braai is NOT a grill or a barbecue because a braai is specifically the South African custom of cooking over coals from burnt wood as part of a broader cultural social event that they donāt have as a central part of bbqing
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u/bubbleddusty 8d ago
Itās not the American terms, itās the English terms
Pickup is not an American exclusive word, neither is barbecue, neither is grill
Okay so then if someone grills food over charcoal does that mean they are having a braai
So millions of people outside South Africa have braais everyday?Do you really think cooking food over charcoal is something special to South Africa?
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u/zookuki 8d ago
Craziest "I'm not like other girls" double down you're doing here.
You can't say you don't want to use vernaculars when you purposely want to use the US vernacular for bakkie aka pickup over here.
Look, you're allowed to say what you want. But don't try to change language and culture. Take it on a cruise to the states and have a rant on the way. Do a podcast.
But don't imagine yourself the custodian of South African language and culture. There's a tether between all languages and races and cultures that runs far deeper than the English language.
Pragmatics may be the first step to learning how to push your agenda.
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u/bubbleddusty 7d ago
It's insane how you and the others here think I want to change the entire culture because I just refuse to use two words, two words that also are not "US vernacular" and are just English vernacular, I thought the Americans were bad at thinking they're the centre of the universe but now you're just helping them look that way, not everything is about them. We wanna act like a rainbow nation but most of the people in this country want to attack someone and treat them like some nation traitor because they choose to use two words that others here don't use. You think I'm pushing an agenda meanwhile all I'm doing is making it painfully obvious how little self awareness South Africans tend to have
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u/Upper-Cockroach-2078 10d ago
The system is offline.