Opinion / Columnist
ZANU PF regime a pathetic victim of its own delusional thinking and propaganda
21 Feb 2022 at 12:19hrs | Views
In aviation, there are numerous causes of airplane accidents - but, they are usually grouped in three categories - technical faults, external factors, or human errors.
Technical faults can be any number of things - from a shoddy repair job, and old worn-out machinery, to engine flameout, and equipment malfunction (mostly, the radar, elevators, slats, ailerons, and computer systems that control plane flight and direction).
External factors are usually in the form of terrible weather conditions - such as very bad visibility (especially, at landing and takeoff), and other phenomenons like, ice on wings (more so, on the leading edges which distort airflow), cross-wind shear (that can veer a plane off a runway when landing), or powerful downdrafts (which can literally push a plane to the ground).
However, human error is particularly concerning - as this constitutes the vast majority of airplane accidents.
These may be low airspeed (which can lead to an aerodynamic stall), failing to deploy flaps (either completely, or at appropriate settings, during both landing and takeoff), spoilers at landing (to help with stopping), or accidental deployment of thrust reversers in mid-flight (causing the plane to quickly lose airspeed and stall).
This is where things get really interesting, and you will finally see the point in this crash aviation course...no pan intended.
How the human mind interprets signals sent to it by our nervous system could make or break an otherwise normal flight.
For instance, when a Blackhole illusion occurs - which is a dangerous optical illusion that can occur on a nighttime approach with dark, featureless terrain between the aircraft and a brightly-lit runway, where the aircraft appears to the pilots to be higher up than it actually is, potentially triggering a premature or overly-steep descent and a crash short of the runway.
This phenomenon may typically be associated with errors in depth perception - whereby, the ability to see things in three dimension (including, length, width, and depth), and to judge how far away an object is, is adversely affected - thereby, a pilot landing too early, and crashing.
The same consequences can occur, as a result of spatial disorientation - whereby, a pilot may wrongly feel like he is in a steep ascend, when in actual fact, he is flying level - which can lead him to push the plane down (in a mistaken attempt to level off), but tragically flying right into the ground.
This false perception is caused by differences or discrepancies between visual, vestibular, and proprioceptive sensory inputs, that results in a mismatch that can produce illusions.
That is the effect we all get when we turn round and round - thereby, moving the vestibular fluid in the inner ear - becoming dizzy and disorientated.
What forced me to go into this long discourse on aviation crashes, especially those due to distorted processes in the human mind, is the shameful and clearly delusional behavior of our ruling elite in Zimbabwe, and its devastating consequences on the rest of the nation.
If a country still has a ruling party and government that has spent the past 42 years destroying a once prosperous nation - which was the envy of even continental powerhouses as South Africa - yet, still deluded enough to believe that they should be entrusted with its development, then we have a huge problem.
When we witness a regime that actually appears to believe that they are the only ones who have earned the sole right to govern Zimbabwe - and, any one else either being labeled an unworthy sellout, or neo-imperialist, who deserves to be killed, beaten up, arrested, abducted, tortured, and their voices stifled...then, we have some serious psychopaths on our hands!
How else can anyone describe those who can claim that the voices of over two million Zimbabweans - who voted for opposition leader Nelson Chamisa in the 2018 presidential elections - do not move them, and as such are irrelevant?
Is that why - in spite of concerted efforts by the regime to severely and savagely restrict opposition supporters reaching their party (Citizens Coalition for Change - CCC) by-elections campaign launch rally venue, in the capital Harare (yesterday, February 20, 2022), on top of nonsensical and tyrannical conditions - thousands still turned up?
Is that why, also, regardless of this clear unambiguous overwhelming supports for Chamisa and CCC - state media still sought to downplay the event, and grudgingly showed a few gathered people, spiced up with the usual lies and deceptive drivel, of a party that seeks violent regime change?
Zimbabweans had to end up watching what truly took place on South Africa's SABC News!
The height of this madness, was the shocking audacity by the state broadcaster to package the call for teachers's welfare to be improved, as something evil and unacceptable.
Which dimension are these people in the ruling ZANU PF party, and their government living in - because, quite frankly, we are not in the same world!
Just as the airplane captain suffering from some depth perception, or spatial disorientation issues - our authorities in this junta appear to be delusional and deluded on the true state of affairs in the country - and, that is a real terrifying danger on the rest of the nation.
Our country is in unsafe hands - and, headed for a terrifying crash!
The voices of over two million people can never, and should never, be ignored or suppressed - but, given the ear, dignity, and respect they deserve.
The more those in the corridors of power continue to deceive themselves that there is nothing called the CCC and Chamisa, and that they are nonentities, the more they prove that have no right to be in those offices of leadership - since, a real leader identifies and respects the voices of all the people...more so, when those people are in their millions.
Surely, if our neighbors, such as South Africa and Zambia recognize this blunt fact about our country - why not our own leaders?
The Zimbabwe ruling elite need to stop their distorted illusion of seeing the events in the country as limited to one or two people - namely, Chamisa, and Tendai Biti (his deputy) - but, the millions of Zimbabweans who have proudly remained loyal.
Over two million Zimbabweans are demanding democratic change, living wages for all, decent livelihoods, and for their rights to freely choose their leaders to be honoured.
The ZANU PF regime appears shackled in a parallel universe, or alternate reality - where a group of people that has ruined an entire nation over the past 42 years, still thinks they can make a positive change, and that the millions that are demanding change are non-existent.
To make matters worse, those in power are people who actually believe that their own "millions" - whom they have brutally intimated into supporting them, abused traditional leaders into threatening villagers, and used poverty as a weapon for coercion - truly love their tormentors, and their cheers are honestly from the heart.
They have actually convinced themselves that, those poverty-stricken hungry people - who only pledge loyalty to ZANU PF out of crippling fear, and in the hope for some food, agricultural inputs, and other badly-needed handouts - possess genuine affection and adoration for those who have authored their unbearable pain and suffering.
Yet, yesterday in Harare, thousands chose to leave their vehicles behind at police checkpoints - which were strewn all over the city, in a vain attempt at preventing supporters from thronging the opposition CCC rally venue - interestingly, without any promises of food, money, or any other handouts...but, out of pure reverence for their leaders.
We have, on one hand, thousands who attend rallies after being forced, and out of fear - and, on the other hand, thousands who are actually prevented from attending, with threats of arrests and brutality, but still go on in their droves.
The ruling ZANU PF party, and government, are failing to grasp the length, width, and depth of the real situation in Zimbabwe.
That is a very serious case of delusion...which places each and every one of us in dire peril.
© Tendai Ruben Mbofana is a social justice activist, writer, and social commentator. Please feel free to contact him on WhatsApp/Call: +263715667700 / +263782283975, or Calls Only: +263788897936 / +263733399640, or email: mbofana.tendairuben73@gmail.com
Technical faults can be any number of things - from a shoddy repair job, and old worn-out machinery, to engine flameout, and equipment malfunction (mostly, the radar, elevators, slats, ailerons, and computer systems that control plane flight and direction).
External factors are usually in the form of terrible weather conditions - such as very bad visibility (especially, at landing and takeoff), and other phenomenons like, ice on wings (more so, on the leading edges which distort airflow), cross-wind shear (that can veer a plane off a runway when landing), or powerful downdrafts (which can literally push a plane to the ground).
However, human error is particularly concerning - as this constitutes the vast majority of airplane accidents.
These may be low airspeed (which can lead to an aerodynamic stall), failing to deploy flaps (either completely, or at appropriate settings, during both landing and takeoff), spoilers at landing (to help with stopping), or accidental deployment of thrust reversers in mid-flight (causing the plane to quickly lose airspeed and stall).
This is where things get really interesting, and you will finally see the point in this crash aviation course...no pan intended.
How the human mind interprets signals sent to it by our nervous system could make or break an otherwise normal flight.
For instance, when a Blackhole illusion occurs - which is a dangerous optical illusion that can occur on a nighttime approach with dark, featureless terrain between the aircraft and a brightly-lit runway, where the aircraft appears to the pilots to be higher up than it actually is, potentially triggering a premature or overly-steep descent and a crash short of the runway.
This phenomenon may typically be associated with errors in depth perception - whereby, the ability to see things in three dimension (including, length, width, and depth), and to judge how far away an object is, is adversely affected - thereby, a pilot landing too early, and crashing.
The same consequences can occur, as a result of spatial disorientation - whereby, a pilot may wrongly feel like he is in a steep ascend, when in actual fact, he is flying level - which can lead him to push the plane down (in a mistaken attempt to level off), but tragically flying right into the ground.
This false perception is caused by differences or discrepancies between visual, vestibular, and proprioceptive sensory inputs, that results in a mismatch that can produce illusions.
That is the effect we all get when we turn round and round - thereby, moving the vestibular fluid in the inner ear - becoming dizzy and disorientated.
What forced me to go into this long discourse on aviation crashes, especially those due to distorted processes in the human mind, is the shameful and clearly delusional behavior of our ruling elite in Zimbabwe, and its devastating consequences on the rest of the nation.
If a country still has a ruling party and government that has spent the past 42 years destroying a once prosperous nation - which was the envy of even continental powerhouses as South Africa - yet, still deluded enough to believe that they should be entrusted with its development, then we have a huge problem.
When we witness a regime that actually appears to believe that they are the only ones who have earned the sole right to govern Zimbabwe - and, any one else either being labeled an unworthy sellout, or neo-imperialist, who deserves to be killed, beaten up, arrested, abducted, tortured, and their voices stifled...then, we have some serious psychopaths on our hands!
How else can anyone describe those who can claim that the voices of over two million Zimbabweans - who voted for opposition leader Nelson Chamisa in the 2018 presidential elections - do not move them, and as such are irrelevant?
Is that why - in spite of concerted efforts by the regime to severely and savagely restrict opposition supporters reaching their party (Citizens Coalition for Change - CCC) by-elections campaign launch rally venue, in the capital Harare (yesterday, February 20, 2022), on top of nonsensical and tyrannical conditions - thousands still turned up?
Is that why, also, regardless of this clear unambiguous overwhelming supports for Chamisa and CCC - state media still sought to downplay the event, and grudgingly showed a few gathered people, spiced up with the usual lies and deceptive drivel, of a party that seeks violent regime change?
The height of this madness, was the shocking audacity by the state broadcaster to package the call for teachers's welfare to be improved, as something evil and unacceptable.
Which dimension are these people in the ruling ZANU PF party, and their government living in - because, quite frankly, we are not in the same world!
Just as the airplane captain suffering from some depth perception, or spatial disorientation issues - our authorities in this junta appear to be delusional and deluded on the true state of affairs in the country - and, that is a real terrifying danger on the rest of the nation.
Our country is in unsafe hands - and, headed for a terrifying crash!
The voices of over two million people can never, and should never, be ignored or suppressed - but, given the ear, dignity, and respect they deserve.
The more those in the corridors of power continue to deceive themselves that there is nothing called the CCC and Chamisa, and that they are nonentities, the more they prove that have no right to be in those offices of leadership - since, a real leader identifies and respects the voices of all the people...more so, when those people are in their millions.
Surely, if our neighbors, such as South Africa and Zambia recognize this blunt fact about our country - why not our own leaders?
The Zimbabwe ruling elite need to stop their distorted illusion of seeing the events in the country as limited to one or two people - namely, Chamisa, and Tendai Biti (his deputy) - but, the millions of Zimbabweans who have proudly remained loyal.
Over two million Zimbabweans are demanding democratic change, living wages for all, decent livelihoods, and for their rights to freely choose their leaders to be honoured.
The ZANU PF regime appears shackled in a parallel universe, or alternate reality - where a group of people that has ruined an entire nation over the past 42 years, still thinks they can make a positive change, and that the millions that are demanding change are non-existent.
To make matters worse, those in power are people who actually believe that their own "millions" - whom they have brutally intimated into supporting them, abused traditional leaders into threatening villagers, and used poverty as a weapon for coercion - truly love their tormentors, and their cheers are honestly from the heart.
They have actually convinced themselves that, those poverty-stricken hungry people - who only pledge loyalty to ZANU PF out of crippling fear, and in the hope for some food, agricultural inputs, and other badly-needed handouts - possess genuine affection and adoration for those who have authored their unbearable pain and suffering.
Yet, yesterday in Harare, thousands chose to leave their vehicles behind at police checkpoints - which were strewn all over the city, in a vain attempt at preventing supporters from thronging the opposition CCC rally venue - interestingly, without any promises of food, money, or any other handouts...but, out of pure reverence for their leaders.
We have, on one hand, thousands who attend rallies after being forced, and out of fear - and, on the other hand, thousands who are actually prevented from attending, with threats of arrests and brutality, but still go on in their droves.
The ruling ZANU PF party, and government, are failing to grasp the length, width, and depth of the real situation in Zimbabwe.
That is a very serious case of delusion...which places each and every one of us in dire peril.
© Tendai Ruben Mbofana is a social justice activist, writer, and social commentator. Please feel free to contact him on WhatsApp/Call: +263715667700 / +263782283975, or Calls Only: +263788897936 / +263733399640, or email: mbofana.tendairuben73@gmail.com
Source - Tendai Ruben Mbofana
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