This post is in response to the recent Community of Mandela Rhodes Scholars (CMRS) “Conversations for Change” sessions held throughout the country in May. As a platform for constructive interdisciplinary debate and intellectual enquiry, the sessions sought to bring together academic institutions, public intellectuals, social activists, students, and community members with the intention of facilitating […]
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Posted inGeneral
What about the dignity of other South Africans then?
The debate surrounding The Spear has, on occasion, been framed in terms of the concept of ‘dignity’, specifically that of the State President. And to be sure, one should grant the persons who occupy that position of responsibility from time-to-time the dignity they deserve. One could also take the argument further by claiming that every […]
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The chorus of confusion
I believe I am singing a similar tune to that of most SA Rugby supporters when I write this opinion – what is Heyneke Meyer up to? It all started nicely. He was saying the right things to the right people all at the right time, he’s started preparing the SA public for a while […]
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Meyer plays it safe, predictably and justifiably
So a Springbok coach named a contentious squad and there are rumblings over his choice of captain? Now where have we heard that before? To get the obvious out of the way, the Stormers trio of Aplon, Kolisi and De Jongh can consider themselves unlucky. Massively so in fact, but you know what, that happens […]
Posted inGeneral, News/Politics
Zuma should beware the No.10 jersey in the NEC
He is a hard worker, ambitious, charismatic, an intellectual, a prolific spinner and he’s very rich. He can also be a schemer of note. These are the characteristics of member No. 10 in the ruling ANC’s current National Executive Committee. He also has the business acumen of Mitt Romney and presidential aspirations one can liken […]
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Believing is seeing: Setting improbable goals as a means to social transformation
This post is in response to the recent Community of Mandela Rhodes Scholars (CMRS) “Conversations for Change” sessions held throughout the country in May. As a platform for constructive interdisciplinary debate and intellectual enquiry, the sessions sought to bring together academic institutions, public intellectuals, social activists, students, and community members with the intention of facilitating […]
Posted inGeneral, News/Politics
The advent of “democracy” in Egypt
Egypt’s presidential elections this month have been accompanied by the expected media fanfare in Europe and the United States. News outlets are awash with pictures of ink-stained fingers, photographs of people standing in snaking queues to vote through the heat of the day, and headlines hailing the elections as a historic “victory for democracy”. If these representations […]
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Meyer Bullish for England
Heyneke Meyer has proved once and for all he is his own man. His first Springbok squad was Pretoria blue (and pink) in complexion, with chunks of Shark and, to the consternation of the Western Cape, only sprinklings of Stormers included. The inclusion of Jano Vermaak and JJ Engelbrecht even though they have not been […]
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Pretoria or Tshwane?
To me, it’s a no-brainer. There was never a pre-existing place called ‘Tshwane’ that Pretoria replaced. Instead, an entirely new population centre came into being, in due course assuming city status. It was named ‘Pretoria’ by its founders, and that it was what was called for over 140 years before it was arbitrarily renamed Tshwane […]
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Virtualisation, the silent hero of call centres in the cloud
Eliminates wasteful infrastructure practices and improves customer service Call centre satisfaction surveys – both from a customer’s and owner’s perspective – frequently point to frustrations that can be resolved with the use of sophisticated technology. In this regard, virtualisation deserves special mention as a crucial enabler of modern call centres. It allows flexible scaling of […]
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Blade Nzimande, the new Juju
Communism, as formulated by Germans Marx and Engels in their industrialised continent far from the African situation, is seminally Eurocentric. When the South African Communist Party was founded by white, middle class manufacturers and merchants, disproportionately Jewish, Soviet leaders felt blacks weren’t yet advanced enough for Communism. During the 1921 Rand Revolt, the communists were […]
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Do we need Africa Day?
This post is in response to the recent Community of Mandela Rhodes Scholars (CMRS) “Conversations for Change” sessions held throughout the country in May. As a platform for constructive interdisciplinary debate and intellectual enquiry, the sessions sought to bring together academic institutions, public intellectuals, social activists, students, and community members with the intention of facilitating […]