An alarmist report on e-tv about teenage abortions is sending the wrong message to our adults.
2008
Posted inLifestyle, News/Politics
‘Africa’s not for sissies …’
If you’re to maintain your sanity, then “Third World Africa” or whichever politically sensitive term you wish to use has to be accepted with all its muddy streets, electricity shutdowns and taps that suddenly offer no life for hours on end. This is the comforting epiphany that hit me during a moment of numbness last […]
Posted inLifestyle, News/Politics
Another day of contradictions in Khartoum
Yesterday was one of those weird days showcasing the contradictions in Khartoum. I needed to collect some cash from Western Union. The money was from an Argentinian online journal, paying me for stories that I had done for it. I got to Western Union and the electricity had shut down. Power failure in the neighbourhood. […]
Posted inLifestyle
Thoughts on life in Khartoum
I can’t talk enough about the absolute kindness i have experienced from the beautiful Sudanese people … so caring, even among themselves; they smile from the heart. It’s that whole African-Arab mix of hospitality, community, compassion, humaneness. I was walking in the street at 2am the other night, went for a night swim at the […]
Posted inLifestyle, Media
I think you might like this book …
Title: Beautiful Ugly (African and Diaspora Aesthetics) Edited by Sarah Nuttall Published by Kwela Books It’s difficult to be emotionally complacent when examining what beauty means in Africa, juggling between its oppressive misrepresentation during the colonial period and its redefinition during post-colonial restructuring. Yet, with this book, it’s also easy to comprehend the complexities of […]
Posted inLifestyle
It’s not always about chasing deadlines, is it?
This evening I interviewed an artist from Darfur about his evocative paintings. As there are not many gallery spaces in Khartoum, his 16 pieces hung on the light green walls of the apartment of his German friend who has been living in Khartoum for the past two years. She works in the humanitarian sector. We […]
Posted inLifestyle
Islamic New Year 1429 … in Sudan
Friday January 11 2008 8.14am Sudan is known worldwide for bloodshed and conflict and corruption. All of that happens. But many other things also happen every day … beyond the headlines. The Muslim world is currently witnessing the first few days of the new Islamic year, 1429. Sudan is a country with an estimated 70% […]
Posted inNews/Politics
Blair banks plenty on new job
Every now and then something hits the news that is so funny that hysterical laughter and streaming tears are inevitable. Such a news snippet was in the Independent online today and probably in a fair number of other news sources. Tony Blair has landed a job as a part-time consultant to one of the best-known […]
Posted inBusiness, News/Politics
Imagine, poor people with cars!
The Indian Tata group has unveiled the Nano, an aptly-named new car that will sell for just R17 500 (Rp100 000, or $2 550), not counting taxes and import duties. One would think that promising to improve the quality of life of millions of people who previously couldn’t afford the luxury of a motor vehicle would be hailed as tremendous news.
Posted inNews/Politics
Is arrest of Scorpions boss another salvo in a dirty war?
This week’s Talkback question on the Mail & Guardian Online: Is the arrest of Scorpions boss Gerrie Nel another salvo in a dirty war?
Posted inBusiness, Lifestyle, Media, Tech
Unpredictions for the SA web in 2008
It’s quite possible that I’m no good at short-term industry predictions and that this post is a ruse to avoid them, but my built-in BS filter (at least partially informed by a healthy serving of Nassim Taleb and Phil Rozenzweig) tells me that if you took a big enough sample of the informed and considered […]
Posted inGeneral
Off to work I go …
Feeling purposeful and in tune so that waking up every morning feels like a new possibility. Working hard — but not so hard that the rest of life collapses into work. Being productive. An hour can be an effective chunk of time when you’re focused. Working on things that you love. (Is it possible to […]