By Nelly Shamase In the midst of Oprah discovering she had a sibling, the re-instatement of culpable homicide charges against former Bafana Bafana player Bryce Moon and the unveiling of Zanele Magwaza-Msibi’s new breakaway party; one story has managed to captivate me more than any other this week. And the winner is: the ANC Youth […]
2011
Posted inNews/Politics
A lament for radio in Africa
People who complain about the lack of available news about Africa usually don’t try very hard to find it. Sure, if you use South African daily newspapers or South African radio and television as your sources, you’re likely to be disappointed. One of the best sources of news from and about Africa, a source updated […]
Posted inLifestyle, News/Politics
Living in the US: Snow, illusion and snow
Outside lies snow almost two metres deep. Snowfalls across the United States have hit record levels this month, with New York receiving an all-time record of 37 inches so far. That is a lot of shovelling off sidewalks — you get fined if you don’t shovel your sidewalk — and digging out cars, garages are […]
Posted inGeneral
Prejudice and the smug self-satisfaction of feeling offended
The issues of identity and name-calling seem to emerge from the very core of our being. An Australian in England recently sued the town council of Dymchurch for being “racist”. Apparently Geoff Stephens’ work colleagues kept imitating his Aussie accent and ragging him with cliched myths like, “is your girlfriend called Sheila?” It must have […]
Posted inGeneral
Show some faith in local coaches
Coaches always take the blame when their teams are not performing according to management and supporters’ expectations. So it is only fair to give praise where it is due. Bloemfontein Celtic and Santos are doing well and their coaches, management and players alike deserve credit. The two teams — sitting on position five and six […]
Posted inGeneral
Legalise the sex trade? Not on African soil!
By Cynthia Ayeza Mutabaazi Almost every evening, between Troy and Beckett Streets, along Schoeman Street in Arcadia, Pretoria, a certain darkness falls upon the area. The prostitute trade thrives greatly here and the street lights never come on for some reason. I have noticed for some time now that the police seem to play a […]
Posted inNews/Politics
Forget Osama, America, the threat is in Congress and the media
US President Barack Obama delivered his most important State of the Nation address this week. The man who seemed to respond to so many dreams is, as president, as emotionally stiff as the way he carries his body. And to be in the US is to realise that one is in a nation that has […]
Posted inGeneral
International cooperation: World remains a mess but there’s hope
Africa is, arguably, still the richest continent but her people are the poorest in the world — the world remains a mess! But there are some encouraging signs: Africa appears to be well-poised to lead the world into a better future. This view is supported by others. Michael Pilkington, for instance, believes that 2011 will […]
Posted inMedia
Africa’s tin-can version of Twitter has it right
Journalist Ezra Sibanda sits in London with lists of Zimbabwean cellphone numbers. These are his notes for his radio show which he broadcasts to Zimbabwe via short wave (and the internet). From London’s East End he draws a massive rural listenership by dragging a finger down his list of 45 000 numbers and calling Zimbabweans at […]
Posted inGeneral
Is our history now hate speech?
In South Africa it is legal, though frowned upon, to raise the old flag. Die Stem is part of the national anthem. Yet songs about the all-too-recent struggle are now hate speech. Makes no sense does it. Unless one is prepared to accept that black people are some kind of mindless, easily excitable rabble which […]
Posted inNews/Politics
The (mis)education of the black child
It seems the current generation of black youth will be the first to turn its back on the liberation movement and the little gains of its struggle. This is likely to happen anytime between the forthcoming local government elections in 2011 and 2020. There is reason to believe that we will see an increasing number […]
Posted inGeneral
Sports cash cows killing the meaning of rivalry
Have you ever seen a film where there are two characters, each pushing their own agenda, whose paths are destined to collide because it is just so? It’s a popular story arc in fictionalised works all over the world, since it gives a clear distinction between sides. Once the reader or viewer can see who […]