Like a defeated army in retreat, our minister of magic seems intent on leaving behind nothing but ruins for her successor. In what appears to be a frenetic dash to the finish line, the final stage of her marathon of misconduct, Dr Beet and her department are churning out a flurry of ill-conceived regulations and […]
2008
Posted inBusiness, Media
Yes, business news is boring
“Is it only me, or has economic news stagnated?” asks Arthur Goldstuck, my friend and colleague from the Weekly Mail days. No, Arthur, it’s not a new development. Business news is often boring. It has often been boring. And since it is often supply-driven rather than demand-driven, much of it is likely to continue to […]
Posted inLifestyle, Media, News/Politics
Is there a Winkie in the House?
Parliament’s unparallelled ability to generate hot air does lend itself to becoming a geothermal power plant and could solve South Africa’s electricity shortage instantly. But, failing that, it also has the potential to play a relevant, stimulating part of South Africa’s democracy. Ndumiso Ngcobo’s recent call for some “politainment” is a timely one. It’s about […]
Posted inNews/Politics
Why do blacks hate blacks? SA a label manufacturer!
The more I read about the xenophobia issue, the more I realise why the rainbow nation is experiencing teething problems. We are so busy putting labels on things that we miss the real issues. “Xenophobia”, “racism” and “criminals” abound in every article we see, but very few actually deal with the problems of Alexandra, Soweto […]
Posted inGeneral
The great data-portability gold rush
The social networking space is reminiscent of a gold rush right now. Facebook, MySpace and Google all want to stake their claim in the ground. They claim they are “open” and they allow you to port your data, but they are still clutching at our identities. So, we have to ask: Is it enough? Is […]
Posted inGeneral, News/Politics
Zimbabwe: Let Vavi act as mediator, Mbeki is needed at home
With all the problems arising out of, inter alia, the Ginwala commission, xenophobia and power shortages, perhaps the time has come for the president to travel less and spend more time in office. In his stead, appoint Zwelinzima Vavi, general secretary of the Congress of South African Trade Unions, to act as mediator in the […]
Posted inNews/Politics
Xenophobia: Residents of Alexandra owed an apology
Wading through the tons of articles on xenophobia, I am of the view that while some — such as Jacob Zuma, the ANC as a party, Cosatu, AfriForum and Patricia de Lille — are hitting the nail on the head, others are just taking gratuitous pot shots at the people of Alexandra without any insight […]
Posted inGeneral
The rise of the information consumer
So here we are, 2008. We have Google, Flickr and Facebook. We have YouTube, MySpace and Twitter. We have more IM clients than you can shake a stick at, and enough Web content to sink a flotilla or two. How, I ask you, is anyone expected to cope? If your cell phone isn’t ringing, your […]
Posted inMedia
Chilli-M should not be made the sacrificial lamb
It was so bizarre that I thought it was April 1 when I heard popular Yfm DJ Chilli-M breaking down on air over a faux pas with a married couple that won some competition. The conversation went on more or less as follows … “Anyway, it’s fine, it’s easy for you guys to speak, but […]
Posted inGeneral
Get me those page views, baby!
Mr Stupi Tidiot is hell bent on boosting his page views and unique visits to his site. See, he’s got Google Ads plastered all over the show and depends on it. He writes a bunch of crap, but he sure as hell don’t care as long as he gets them visitors, baby! It will make […]
Posted inLifestyle
South Africans moer Australians when it comes to swearing
South Africans are so much better than Australians when it comes to swearing. Possibly not quantity — Australians are said to be unusually prolix when it comes to coarse language — but when it comes to quality, I believe that we klap them stukkend. I was prompted to reflect on the critically important issue that […]
Posted inGeneral
Why homesickness is a good thing
I’ve never met a South African overseas who isn’t homesick. I thought about that statement for a while, and then wondered whether I was exaggerating. Yes, it’s true that I haven’t been to every country in the world and for all I know, there may be many South Africans who live overseas and never give […]