News/Politics

Submitted by Carl Wesselink Dear Mr Zuma As an ANC voter and with the elections around the corner, there are a number of issues that are perplexing to me and to those of us who still think about political affairs and try to follow the facts. For the record, most of our friends, colleagues and […]

An article on August 08 2008 in one of Mail & Guardian’s competitors’ car magazines open with the line “Porsches, Dodge Vipers, Ford Mustangs, Chevrolet Corvettes, Lamborghinis”, which is what the Metro Police in Cape Town are asking for. According to the article, Heathcliff Thomas, the head of Cape Town’s traffic department, showed one photo […]

The controversial arms deal has come back to life again over the past few weeks like those trick birthday candles your parents repeatedly used to humiliate you as a kid. Thanks to the latest Sunday Times exposé, and the refrain in this week’s M&G, it is again top-of-mind, crawling around the Talk Radio 702 phone-in […]

I want to pick up a factual thread set out in Michael Trapido’s reasoned post, “The Zuma conundrum“, and deal, as an aside, with some of the reactions to his post. For the record, I have never met Michael Trapido. I got to read some of his columns only after I first discovered Thought Leader […]

The clash between Russia and Georgia over South Ossetia, as disturbing as it may be, could have been far worse if Georgia was a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation. In that instance the Russian attacks on Georgian cities, as part of its retaliation for the invasion, would be considered an assault on a […]

The Mail & Guardian, in its fabulous article “Scramble to secure a Zuma presidency”, sets out the challenges facing those who would convert the ANC president’s party leadership into a national presidency. In doing so, they capture not only why the “Zuma faction” are taking the measures they are, but also the impact this is […]

I have been challenged by Michael Trapido to write my take on the ANC. I have lots to say and lots I feel about the ANC. While we can laud the party for playing a huge role in the struggle against apartheid and certain members have been instrumental in nation building as well as peace […]

July 26 2008 — The former Malay kingdom of Patani is composed of what are now the three Thai provinces of Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat. They are home to 1.8 million Muslims or 80 percent of the populace. The most that people from other countries know about this region is that it has a majority […]

This week’s Talkback question on the Mail & Guardian Online: Is there any good reason for the Scorpions to be disbanded?