At first, having returned to Cape Town after years away, I saw red when I saw all the white faces in restaurants and theatres. Where was the real change so many years after 1994? But then I read Sandile Memela’s diatribe against “white” theatre at the Cape, and I started to think. When Memela writes […]
2009
Posted inNews/Politics
Why would the tapes save Zuma?
Paragraph 37 of the Supreme Court of Appeals judgement handed down by Judge Harms in the matter of the NDPP versus Jacob Zuma — an appeal against the decision by Judge Nicholson in Pietermaritzburg which occasioned ANC president Jacob Zuma’s charges being withdrawn — sets out the following: “[37] The court dealt at length with […]
Posted inGeneral
Fifa volunteer experience — part 3
One of the questions I was asked during the Fifa Local Organising Committee’s interviews for media volunteers was about my motivation for applying to participate in the Confederations Cup. I was very honest in my response in that I saw the occasion as an opportunity to prove Afro-pessimists wrong. It was therefore heartening to note […]
Posted inGeneral
Fifa volunteer experience — part 2
Of primary importance to anyone about to venture into “new territory” is an element of “expectation”. Fifteen Fifa Local Organising Committee media volunteers in one room! What exactly do they “expect” to gain out of this experience? This question was posed as we commenced with the volunteers’ workshop, albeit in a different manner. The standard […]
Posted inGeneral
Fifa volunteer experience — part 1
For an oke who usually goes to the stadium to scream my lungs out from the stands while giving unsolicited coaching instructions, the match between Bafana Bafana and Norway was a completely “unique” experience. For the first time I had to watch a football match from the perspective of an “organiser”, rather than a “spectator”. […]
Posted inGeneral
Mpshe, NPA show some balls!
Mr Mpshe needs to be reminded of a little fact about South Africans this week — we are not a people born of cowards, nor men who place personal ambitions above what needs to be done for the people. We are born of men who stood up when it was more comfortable and beneficial to […]
Posted inLifestyle
Earth Hour: A little … underwhelming
I was really excited about Earth Hour this year. I’m a fan of all things that involve candlelight and helping the environment (especially when they’re as easy as switching off your lights for an hour) and I thought Cape Town would jump on the bandwagon. In fact, I was so certain that Cape Town would […]
Posted inNews/Politics
Zumagate: Pikoli sacked for being insensitive to national security?
The sacking of Vusi Pikoli, as head of the National Prosecuting Authority, ostensibly on the basis of his insensitivity to matters of national security will surely go down in history as one of the great ironies of South African politics. Pikoli, who in his capacity as head of prosecutions, went after leading elements in both […]
Posted inLifestyle
Are men naturally funnier than women?
The other day I was having a conversation with a friend in which he argued that most women don’t have a sense of humour, and few women are really funny. Which took me back somewhat, given that I’ve always thought that I am quite good at being funny, in conversation. If anything, I was a […]
Posted inNews/Politics
An invitation to riot
This week, London will go into lockdown for the G20. On Wednesday April 1, or what protesters are referring to as “Financial Fools’ Day”, anti-banker anarchists and greens are expected to descend on London’s financial districts to hang effigies of bankers and make clear their distaste for capitalism. In preparation, the Metropolitan Police are spending […]
Posted inGeneral
Will they swear an oath of honesty?
I have since August 2005 had to climb into the open sewer of personality politics — at first without public demonstration, and then latterly, since August 2007, with overt and public demonstration — for the express purpose of sensitising community leaders about ethical leadership and honest corporate and public governance. Perhaps it was my egomania […]
Posted inLifestyle
What your homepage says about you
I am of the opinion that you can tell a person’s character by the default homepage they keep. As your web browser increasingly assumes the role of a Third Eye, a bright, clear window that opens both into and out of your mind/soul, the opening landscape it captures both defines and shapes your persona. There […]