General

Was it or was it not a try of Ma’a Nonu shortly after the restart of the All Blacks-Wallabies Tri-Nations clash at Eden Park? Mark Lawrence, one of the world’s best referees, referred the decision to Shaun Veldsman, a fellow South African who was the television match official, to study the six different camera angles […]

This is my first official blog on Thought Leader and there is so much going on in the country that I don’t know where to begin. All the hullabaloo and angst that has been generated over Zuma’s pending trial brings three major issues to mind about a deferential political culture, the absurdity of offering amnesty, […]

The Umkhonto we Sizwe Veterans’ Association and the African National Congress Youth League have warned South Africans of the consequences of the continued “persecution” — as opposed to prosecution — of ANC president Jacob Zuma in terms of what they deem to be a political conspiracy. ANCYL president Julius Malema and MKVA chairperson Kebby Maphatsoe […]

A look at the long list of African dictators, past and present, led one of my friends to declare that maybe it’s in our genes to resort to dictatorial tendencies every time we find ourselves in power. This might seem true, if one were to consider the long list of African dictators starting from Mobutu […]

Sentletse Diakanyo ended his post on patriotism with a reference to a football team. This gives me a useful way to submit a contribution on the topic. I am not patriotic. This does not mean that I “hate South Africa”. Hell no. It simply means that I have beliefs and values that transcend national and/or […]

SiloBreaker reports on an interesting fibre-optic deployment in Ottawa where 400 homeowners are being allowed to buy their own last-mile fibre. The idea that every home or business could come with a “tail” back to a common multiprovider service point could bring huge advantages: providers could service a suburb relatively cheaply, bringing new levels of […]

The SuperSport TV channels showed us the entire European Championship soccer tournament in Austria/Switzerland — many great matches with excellent soccer, providing an excellent learning opportunity for all PSL teams and Bafana Bafana. We saw how to play the latest top-level soccer. If a team (PSL and Bafana Bafana) really want good results in the […]

So what should we expect from the Charity Cup this weekend? Sundowns are the hands-down favourites to win, with good reason too — they have way too much quality in their ranks and the boys know that they need to start the season off on a strong note in order not to put pressure on […]

Earlier this month, on a Saturday afternoon, I found myself walking around the Stadtpark in Vienna, looking for someone called Jane, to play an Olympic sport that was apparently banned 2 000 years ago. If this all sounds a little weird, it’s because it was. The event was part of an alternate reality game (ARG) called […]

He jumps around in black tights, sounds like he’s being choked by his mask and has ‘Bruce’ as a first name? How is it that Batman still manages to be cool? Well, as the world’s most eminent, non-super superhero he certainly does come off looking pretty good in his latest movie The Dark Knight. Fighting […]

Not for the first time government, the 2010 Local Organising Committee and other key 2010 role players have undertaken a damage-control exercise following FIFA President Sepp Blatter’s recent admission that there is a “Plan B” if South Africa is unable to host the 2010 World Cup. But it has taken the comments of two prominent […]

The pressure is on SANZAR to finesse its rugby tournaments in the southern hemisphere and to provide the three Rugby Unions, their sponsors and broadcasters, with rugby tournaments that are relative and contemporary to modern sports fans. Change and a makeover of rugby is inevitable and it has to happen sooner than later. And now […]