Submitted by Patric Tariq Mellet It seems that there is a poor understanding of the history of the anti-apartheid struggle when it comes to the Springbok brand. It is the one brand of which all national groups may well be proud. Butana Komphela has asked for any evidence that evidence exists in history for such […]
2008
Posted inNews/Politics
Using children as human shields (from criticism)
Australians are in a flap once again over the exploitation of children. This time, acclaimed photographer Bill Henson is back in the news. Henson was the centre of public attention earlier in the year when police raided a Sydney art gallery after claims that his photographs of nude adolescents amounted to child pornography. Australia’s arts […]
Posted inGeneral
SA Rugby ambushed with the culling of the Springbok
One sometimes has to wonder, open mouthed, at the myopia of people within rugby administration and their inability to recognise how to be relevant in modern day society in South Africa and the rest of the world, especially when the game of rugby exposes the raw nerves and synapses of the nation. The obsessive, compulsive […]
Posted inNews/Politics
ANC split is about power not policy
An ANC split would be good for democracy in South Africa is the recurrent theme running through opposition politics at the moment. A division of the party’s support, which in theory would vastly reduce the ruling party’s majority, would act as a safeguard against using its two-thirds majority to amend the Constitution and against forcing […]
Posted inGeneral
The rise and fall and rise of social media. The houtkop saga.
South Africa is abuzz with tales of “controversial social networking platform” Facebook and the group “Ek laaik nie n houtkop nie sou what“. Ok. So, people, catch a wake up. This is social media. We’ve taken a soapbox, amplified the volume and opened it up to the entire country. You’re going to get some idiots. […]
Posted inGeneral
Thinking outside the box
Spare a thought for the tens of thousands of South Africans – and Africans – who are creating (and stockpiling) World Cup-themed products. Young KwaZulu-Natal artist Sicelo Ziqubu is creating 2010-themed papier-mâché decorated thrones, which are being snapped up. Tomas Majebe from Cameroon is making a “small fortune” selling his oil on canvas 2010 stadium […]
Posted inNews/Politics
What should the focus of a new Lekota party be?
This week’s Talkback question on the Mail & Guardian Online: What should the focus of a new Lekota party be?
Posted inNews/Politics
The ANC is not a democratic institution: On party lists and democratic centralism
The ANC is not and never has been a democratic organisation. It may be democratically elected by popular vote but this does not mean the structures and institutions that govern it are democratic. Criticism of the ANC is deemed to be “… giving notice to leave the ANC” as stated by ANC NEC member Jeff […]
Posted inLifestyle
Tannie-style kissing takes off
Who would have thought it? Lip-on-lip kissing, normally associated with ooms and tannies and oumas, has become fashionable in London. “On the party scene, air kissing — that horrible ‘mwah, mwah’ used by the kind of people who know your job title and dress size but forget your name – is out,” noted the Daily […]
Posted inNews/Politics
Bush’s recession solution: ‘Well, now, looky here, sell Taiwan arms …’
I can just picture this scenario in the Oval Office. “Whaddave we got here?” (says the president in his best Al Pacino tough-cop voice at his 3 024th murder scene) “Ahem, what we’ve got, Mister President, sir, is the need to restructure our definition of values in order to grasp and predict more clearly worsening fluctuations […]
Posted inBusiness
Financial markets almost holding central bankers to ransom
Central bankers across the world on Wednesday cut interest rates in a coordinated response to contain the financial turmoil that has gripped global markets with the hope of preventing a global economic meltdown. The US Federal Reserve Bank, the Bank of England, the European Central Bank and central banks from China, Canada, Australia, Sweden and […]
Posted inGeneral
Mickey Arthur, Ntini’s future and brave cricket
When Mickey Arthur took over the senior national team from Ray Jennings, he bowled the media over with brave talk. Mickey spoke about brave cricket, brave decisions and brave selection. It was evident that a new era has dawned. We all bought into his vision, for Mickey arrived at a time when SA cricket was […]