Thought Leader

In a sense, the titular question, above, is redundant. Technology is, after all, already dominant — a claim that hardly needs to be substantiated with evidence; it is there for everyone to perceive on a daily basis. Not that the objects of ‘perception’ are self-evident in any straightforward way. In social reality a good deal…

Recently, a new method of braaing became fashionable in South Africa. It’s called the “MultiChoice Decoder and Satellite Dish Braai”. It’s more a roast, actually. This kind of braai did not appeal to me, to be honest. In the first place, I wasn’t sure how tasty it will be. I wouldn’t be able to chew…

The recent devastating fire that nearly destroyed the more than 800 year-old Parisian Gothic cathedral, Notre Dame, has put something important in perspective. One could not but notice that the shock caused by this event was not restricted to Paris, or even France, which one might have expected. Understandably, Parisians have always loved this architectural…

Two days ago my partner and I went on a whirlwind visit to Gauteng and North-West Province – flying to Johannnesburg and driving from there in a rented car to the Potschefstroom campus of North-West University, where I had been invited to participate in a debate on the question: ‘Is God still necessary for morality?’…

Stagflation is an economic condition where inflation is high, economic growth is slow and unemployment is high. To say that South Africa is suffering in a state of stagflation is an understatement. Everyday the cost of living increases, the availability of economic opportunity diminishes and joblessness expands. To confirm this we have been told that…

The prospect of living in a ‘world without electricity’ in South Africa has become a spectre that looms ever-larger by the day, as a mismanaged, looted-to-the-bone Eskom struggles to keep the ‘lights on’ — a misleading metaphor, insofar as it stands for the entire electricity-based economy of this country. In the era of fake news…

When is sex just sex, and when does it amount to ‘making love’? ‘Making love’ is an interesting construction, of course, and is usually a reference to having sex, but – considering the verb, ‘making’ in conjunction with the noun, ‘love’, implies much more than — even if it includes — sex. Ivan Reitman’s charming…

I remember when you were born of me, Level-headed to avoid catastrophe, In service that couldn’t quite compete, Just playing the fool with possibility, Hoping now that we got some remedy, Lifting weight soar above the canopy; Made you grow made you rise above, Nobody’s fool ain’t nobody’s thug, Syndicates came left without any guns,…

I’ve just finished reading the Democratic Alliance’s document, “The Manifesto For Change”. It consists of three parts. The first itemises its economic solutions, the second details its social solutions and the third highlights its political solutions. The DA has been in opposition for a long time, and you can see this in the way that…

Beware of political parties promising you the world in their manifestos and campaign materials. Believe it or not politicians are quite flexible with both reality and the truth. With this in mind I started reading the Democratic Alliance’s manifesto for change. The first line on the website reads, “The Manifesto for Change is our contract…