Posted inGeneralNews/Politics

Obama and Mangaung

Truth never damages a cause that is just — Mohandas Gandhi And so Barack Obama takes the presidency. A congratulatory note to the American people for choosing leadership continuity. We must take this moment to recognise the smooth and painless electoral process that sees Obama with another opportunity to effect change domestically and internationally. Presumably […]

Posted inNews/Politics

The problem with Obama

Most of the world, with the notable exception of the miscalculating political leadership in Israel, is breathing a great sigh of relief that Barack Obama has prevailed over Mitt Romney. The vote for Romney was a negative vote, an anti-Obama vote. Of those voting for Romney many were not voting for the man, since it […]

Posted inNews/Politics

SA should test presidential wannabes in live debate

The United States presidential debates – dating from 1960 and drawing about 60 million television viewers – are a sober affair, quite unlike the song-and-dance cabaret that President Jacob Zuma locally relies on to lure voters. This week saw first of three debates between Democratic President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney. Though the […]

Posted inNews/Politics

Race underlies this race

Sometimes it’s shockingly explicit, sometimes it’s subtle, but it’s always present: There’s an undeniable racial undertone to this year’s US presidential contest between President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney. Part of it is structural: Most Americans are no longer white. This year, for the first time, Latinos, African-Americans, Asians, and Native Americans together outnumber […]

Posted inGeneral

Give me South Africa any day

Commemorating South Africa’s 18th year as a democracy this past week calls for a patriotic blog post, as does the e-toll interdict which delivered a sweet respite and an appropriate present for May 1 to the labour movement for exerting their right to protest. Owing to apartheid, I have never been much of a conventional patriot […]