By Lauren Hermanus I read (on a blog) that chicks and okes are different. I shuddered. But my shuddering was linguistically motivated. I like other colonially trained young ladies find the word, “chick”, inane. I find the invoked comparison of a female of the human species with a downy, speechless, flightless, tweeting little thing, odd. […]
Reader Blog
On our Reader Blog, we invite Thought Leader readers to submit one-off contributions to share their opinions on politics, news, sport, business, technology, the arts or any other field of interest.
If you'd like to contribute, first read our guidelines for submitting material to this blog.
Posted inGeneral
Boys and girls are different!
By Matthew Glogauer Feminism is old news! We’re supposed to be living in a society where gender equality is well-established and an absolute norm (for the purposes of this article I’m talking about educated, urban SA, mostly in the corporate space). This is the “anything you can do, I can do better” world and time, […]
Posted inLifestyle
The nakedness of being disconnected
By Adam Wakefield One Sunday I was with a group friends at a bar, when my friend approached me to use my phone since his battery had died. I naturally agreed, and promptly took out my SIM card so he could use his. While my friend was busy away with my phone, a distraction in […]
Posted inNews/Politics
Get in on the conversation
By Samantha Fleming Last week’s political fiascos (gosh, the choice of links is dazzling — Malema, Terre’Blanche, Visagie … or Malema?) brought a new kind of revolution to the social media landscape in South Africa. The frenzy of activity in a week of political theatrics brought new local subscribers to twitter and ramped up comments […]
Posted inBusiness
Cutting off the nose…
By Dave Harris Cutting off the nose to spite the face is exactly what the leadership of the Democratic Alliance (DA) leadership has been doing all along. The DA’s active lobbying against the $3.7 billion World Bank loan to SA has cleared all doubts as to whose interests the DA really serves — certainly not […]
Posted inLifestyle
Cape yuppies aren’t giving up the mountain for mine dumps
By Guy Lundy South Africans have a rather outdated tendency to think that all of its cities should be the same. As a result we judge Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban and anywhere else in the country by the same criteria, and believe that all our cities should focus on the same industries, compete for the […]
Posted inLifestyle
Live more, buy less
By Michael Baillie Our sense of value — of what things are worth — is completely warped. Not that it’s surprising if you consider the huge resources that are poured into the juggernauts of marketing and advertising. It’s money spent on convincing you to spend more, work more, consume more — and live your life […]
Posted inGeneral
My Cup has arrived
By Odiriel Mekwa When I was eight my late father took myself and a cousin of mine out for our first live professional soccer match. I got to see the legendary Ernest ‘Wire’ Chirwali (later Mtawali) in action against my then hero Doctor Khumalo. The match was nothing but unforgettable. The day was also unforgettable, […]
Posted inGeneral
The new beast: The beginning of the end?
By Duncan Keal The news that Mathew Hayden will be wielding a new weapon in this year’s Indian Premier League (IPL) came as little surprise. While the shape of cricket bats has remained constant over hundreds of years, technology has seen the modern bat have greater hitting power, a bigger sweet spot and a lighter […]
Posted inGeneral
The final before the final
By Sphiwe Hlongwane It has already been dubbed as the final before the final, so we can expect fireworks when Mamelodi Sundowns host Kaizer chiefs in the Telkom Knockout challenge quarterfinal at the Super Stadium on Sunday. Both teams were disappointed after failing to win the league title, so this tournament is an opportunity for […]
Posted inGeneral
Is!…Isn’t!…Is!
By Vasti Roodt Another debate is upon us. Following the uproar over her snubbing of a risque art exhibition, Arts and Culture minister Lulu Xingwana has called upon South Africans to debate the line between art and pornography. We will have to find space for this new debate among various other debates that are clamouring […]
Posted inGeneral
Business as usual…for the mines
By John Capel Mining continues to drive South Africa on many fronts — economically, socially and politically. No day passes without it being in the news. Thus one would have thought that the annual Mining Indaba Conference which ended in Cape Town recently would have included in its deliberations the people whose lives are most […]