If you were having coffee with me I would tell you that I am happy to have you visit my socially distanced corner of the internet where the lockdown restrictions have been taken down a notch from Level 4 to Level 2, notably this means bars, clubs and licensed restaurants are now open to serve alcohol to patrons as long as they are fully vaccinated of course..
Beer in a wine glass because I’m feeling sophisticated.. You can have a beverage of your choice as I ask you an existential question I have been pondering on…. Do we really have morals or do we pretend to be good as long as it doesn’t cost us anything and we can afford it? I did a very general poll on Twitter and the answers have had me in thought:
As someone quoted to me “you never hear anybody say morals run the world”. Well it seems the two are tied in together because some morals need you to have a certain level of money to uphold them, although ironically, it’s only when you have all the money in the world you can afford to be truly without morals…, yet when you don’t have it at all…, money, money, money always sunny, in a rich man’s world…. 🎙️🎶*sings some ABBA*
If you were having coffee with me, I would ask if you have noticed how they always speak of unscrupulous characters doing all sorts of unscrupulous things and yet you never really hear of the scrupulous ones…. Hmmmm, I mean scrupulous is a perfectly valid English word but I can’t say have seen it used, but I did read a book by Judy Krantz called Scruples which I had no business reading back in the day… I was a precocious reader.
Scruples is a sense of right and wrong that keeps a person from doing something bad… -unscrupulous is without scruples; immoral while scrupulous is exactly and carefully conducted
Currently, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe is conducting a sweep in the financial corridors to root out unscrupulous individuals who are powering the parallel forex market and its runaway rate. The official rate of the United States Dollar to the local currency is 1:87 and on the street, it fetches for far more than that…
Clampdown has been on these “runners” with some getting their names, mobile numbers and ID numbers published by the Reserve Bank’s Financial Intelligence Unit in a bid to name and shame. They have also on occasion published the names of corporates who bid at the Forex Auction at the official rate and yet their pricing system is set at parallel market rates.
Then there’s these receipts which have been making the rounds on Social Media which illustrate the situation of Forex rate manipulation.
Cant vouch on their authenticity but the going story is someone purchased the same items using $1 then again using local currency and it cost $200 which would mean that establishment was valuing 1USD as being equal to 200 Zim Dollars.
If you were having coffee with me I would tell you that the responsible authorities have said that they are looking into the matter of this and similar occurrences; but truth is that net would probably drag everyone except those who are expandable or on the wrong side of politics. I mean even the police themselves had an auction and the rate they were using wasn’t the official one…. oopsie
After some public outcry, they have doubled back and corrected that oversight which seemed to lie with their contractor, anyhoo as the late reggae maestro sang nobody can stop reggae..
If you were having coffee with me I would tell you about the FINANCE Ministry permanent secretary who had a lavish party to celebrate his 50th birthday and had performers booked from South Africa to perform. There is a video that went viral where the perm sec seems to be pledging to multiple what he was billed by 5 and pay it
In a newspaper article in The Standard following public outrage over such extravagance, the government official said the video had been taken out of context and also he cant pretend to be poor…
Having money is not a crime… ok perhaps depending on how you got your wealth but having money and spending it lavishly while your country suffers makes me wonder where one’s scruples lies. I like to think I am a good person that if I ever get rich would I not grow so out of touch with people I would be like that queen from history who asked why people didn’t eat cake if they had no bread…
Been looking at this photo of the Minister of Finance, the perm sec of finance and the Reserve Bank Governor which was shared on the internet with a caption translating to “when the chefs are full before they start cooking”
If you were having coffee with me, I would tell you that waiting for food to be cooked is an ordeal when you are hungry, and as the old adage goes a hungry man is an angry man…. While they chart out their blueprints of economic roadmaps I do hope their scruples let them remember the ordinary folk who would can’t afford even food to eat…
Have you ever had to pick between money and your morals, what would you pick between money and morals? What’s going on in your corner of the world?
~B
Oh and yeah you can buy me a scruple or two… ☕
Buy me coffee
buy me a scruple or two
$2.00
Becoming The Muse 
Hi B,
Thanks for the coffee and this is an interesting thought provoking post. Scruples, morals and money which all sounds like the making of a novel. Oh yes, you mentioned reading Judy Krantz novel which I’ve never read. I had to giggle at who will police the police… I enjoyed this and I hope you have a good rest of your week! 😎🤠👍 ~D
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The only reason I read the Judy Krantz novel was because it said on the cover “if you loved Pearls you will love this one” I had loved Pearls so I read it, I don’t think it compared to Pearls.
OMG it’s Friday already where did the week go🤣🤣🤣
I must be having fun the way time seems to be flying by
Thank you D
~B
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I’m a slave of my scruples.
The exchange rate is incredible!
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