User:Rob Thomas

I live in Johannesburg and I love the place! I also love my country, South Africa. My single greatest mission with Wikipedia is to dispel the myths about Johannesburg, written by any ill-informed ignoramus who lives in some far-flung place in the Northern Hemisphere, and whose total experience of the city is a trip to the TV room.

We usually encourage our Rotary Exchange students to have T-shirts made with the following information printed on them before they go overseas:

On the front:

Hi! I'm from South Africa.

• 1. Yes, it IS possible to come from Africa and be White.
• 2. Yes, we DO have running water, freeways and skyscrapers.
• 3. No, I CANNOT say hello to your cousin Joe who's visiting Cairo, because it's a city of 15 million people 8 hours away by plane.
• 4. No, we do NOT have elephants roaming in the streets, or pet lions named Simba.

And, of course, on the back:

(Thanks for not asking any stupid questions.)

Since Wikipedia is an impartial, factually accurate resource for citizens of the world, I want to ensure that a reader will get a "real feel" for Johannesburg and South Africa, that is both truthful and honest.