General

by Christopher Holdridge Yesterday, I was horrified to read Jacob Zuma’s comments about Afrikaners being the only true white South Africans. With an election only three weeks away, Zuma was addressing a group of representatives of Afrikaans-speaking organisations in Sandton, Johannesburg. He stated before the gathering that “in South Africa it is only the Afrikaners […]

Ok, who turned the world upside down? Who turned the bad guys into the good guys and the good guys into the bad guys? Who turned the ANC into the old Nats and The Arch into PW Botha? Who turned the Dalai Lama into Pol Pot and Jacob Zuma into Mr Min? April Fool’s Day […]

Ah, the internationals week. A perfect time for the forgetfully inclined to suddenly remember the full extent of niggling injuries and writhe in pain to avoid an arduous trip back home for an irritating friendly. The antics of Benni McCarthy last week highlighted the pitfalls of letting past glories go to your head. Benni is […]

It is now common for Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu to talk of boycotts, be it of the elections or attending the peace conference. Of course, this creates a lot of publicity and mileage for the Arch to maintain his position as one of the most outspoken critics of the South African government. But I am […]

China has for some time now been seducing African countries, all of whom are desperate for foreign direct investment with the promise of “no strings attached” investment, aid and military assistance. Though some countries have placed human rights as one of the preconditions for investing in Africa, China has opted to turn a blind eye […]

Now that I’ve been in a foreign country for two months, and despite the fact that I’ll return sooner than comforts me, I have begun to understand the enormity of relocating from the land of your birth. Irrespective of the details, every South African I have come to know while staying with my family in […]

I’ve read just about as much bilge from every do-gooder on the planet regarding the decision of pop star Madonna to adopt another child from Malawi as I can stomach for one lifetime. According to them she should go and adopt a child at home or simply not do anything at all if I’m getting […]

By Siziphiwe Ngxabi The race to the elections has certainly become very interesting over the past few months with all the political parties trying to score themselves support leading up to the national elections on April 22. What is likely to be even more interesting is the participation of the Student Representative Councils (SRC) in […]

So, did anybody read the story about the construction worker who found a cooler box buried underground at an Edenvale construction site? He immediately called the SAPS who, upon investigation, discovered that the cooler box contained R1,5-million in small, unmarked bills. So far this story sounds like a fairy tale involving a hard-working, honest man […]

This week’s Talkback question on the Mail & Guardian Online: Dalai debate: Are Barbara Hogan and Judge Kate O’Regan out of line?

I believe I have elevated the art of stating the obvious to new dizzy heights. And I’m not about to disappoint. So I’ll regale you with this revelation: I write about what I write about. Now you might think that this is an unnecessary thing to point out. I forgive you. After all, you are […]

There has not been a time in the history of this country when so many blacks occupied the hot seat of editorship at mainstream newspapers, yet they lack political conviction. The truth of the matter is that most black editors are fence-sitters who are afraid to rock the boat. This happens at a time when […]