Thought Leader

The resurgence of anti-Semitism

11 July 2019 Bert Olivier

The spectre of anti-Semitism is once again stalking us, according to Vivienne Walt (TIME, July 1 2019, p. 33-37). Unbelievable, one might exclaim. Not really, and I’ll explain why – or rather, I’ll let Freud – one of the most original thinkers in history – explain why. But let’s look at the evidence for the…

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5G: Exacerbating interconnectedness?

1 July 2019 Bert Olivier

From the point of view of complexity theory, or chaos theory, if you like, everything is interconnected. ‘Chaos’ is here regarded as just a very complex variety of ‘order’, unlike in earlier times — the ancient Greeks, for instance, opposed chaos’ and ‘cosmos’ (order), as most of us do in our daily lives. In Deleuzoguattarian…

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The Great Unravelling

20 June 2019 Joe Kitchen

A few weeks before the May 8 elections, I got lost in central Joburg. I was on a highway I had driven dozens of times before, when, all of a sudden, I realised that it had been closed down. The entire highway seemed to be barricaded by concrete blocks. My rented car and I was…

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So you think that Orwell’s ‘1984’ could only happen under a political dictatorship? Think again!

20 June 2019 Bert Olivier

Many people — especially those who still read novels — will know George Orwell’s 1984, with its depiction of the brainwashing society of Big Brother, of Newspeak (the language designed to inhibit critical thinking), the Thought Police, and constant surveillance of every citizen, monitoring their behaviour (lest they should exhibit signs of discontent, or worse,…

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Popular art and the homogenisation of viewing subjects globally

9 June 2019 Bert Olivier

The global hype around the HBO television series, Game of Thrones (GoT), which ended with what was apparently generally perceived by fans as an anticlimax of sorts, made me reflect once again on the pertinence of the intellectual work of that indomitable French thinker, Bernard Stiegler, for grasping the way that contemporary electronic technology is…

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The four dimensions of liberalism

5 June 2019 Avishkar Govender

I have recently suggested that the Democratic Alliance begin using the word ‘liberal’ and the word ‘liberalism’ in their communications. That is that the Democratic Alliance should begin proudly declaring themselves to be Liberal and to adhere to Liberalism. This is because being Liberal and adhering to Liberalism is what will give the Democratic Alliance…

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Do we still need an International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia?

28 May 2019 Psychological Society of South Africa

By Pierre Brouard Do we still need an International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia (IDAHOT), to draw attention to the violence and discrimination experienced by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people and all other people with diverse sexual orientations, gender identities or expressions, and sex characteristics? If this year’s events I attended are…

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