An installation and a documentary about the notorious residential school system amplify calls to define such deaths worldwide as genocide
Germany
Posted inEquality, General
Namibia’s Blue Book of record: Part one
On 27 January, the world remembers the victims of the Holocaust, but it is also worth remembering the victims of Germany’s other, earlier genocide in Namibia. A rare book, commissioned by Britain in the early 1900s, stands as a record of the crimes against the Herero and the Nama
Posted inGeneral, Lifestyle, Media, Tech
Modern architecture in Berlin
When one finds oneself on a busy street in modern Berlin — capital of a reunified Germany since June 20 1991 — it is difficult to believe that it has grown into this city in the course of seven centuries, at least as far as its written history goes. The latter records that in the […]
Posted inEquality, Gender violence, General, Health, Media, Tech
Walls and razor wire, or acceptance of different others?
Two days ago, November 9 2019, marked 30 years since the fall of the Berlin wall, and the irony has not escaped some people, that today one witnesses walls going up again everywhere. Nick Miller, in the Sydney Morning Herald (November 2 2019), for example, writes: Thirty years ago the Berlin Wall fell, pulling the […]
Posted inGeneral, Media
The lost sense of community: Christopher Nolan’s ‘Dunkirk’
Christopher Nolan’s recently released feature film Dunkirk not only fills a long-existing gap in cinematic coverage of important historical (particularly wartime) events; it also highlights something of contemporary significance: the glaring difference between the world of the 1940s and that of today, namely the strong sense of community that animated people back then, and which, […]
Posted inGeneral
Trump, CNN and the irony of media hysteria
The President of the United States, during a “campaign rally”, refers to a terror incident in Sweden which never took place. He bases his reference, and subsequently his policy approach, on a FoxNews interview with a fringe documentary filmmaker. The story of the Trump-fib hits the news cycle and goes around the world. Finally, CNN […]
Posted inGeneral, Lifestyle
Slowly, slowly I merge into Germany’s ‘right’ stream…
One never really contemplates how traffic is routed in various countries, until one starts to travel. I am therefore rather blasé when it comes to crossing the road, assuming that I will be fine. Surely sticking to the right hand side of the road is or will be easy? I don’t intend driving in Münster […]
Posted inLifestyle
‘An arbitrary experience in a supermarket made me feel seen, acknowledged’
It’s cold. I’m tired. And I’m sitting in Münster, Germany, on a bleak, cobble-stone floor, with no idea about what to do. I’ve organised accommodation for the first three nights of my stay here. But I can’t gain access to the flat before 3pm. I’ve SMSed the proprietor from my SA cell number explaining my […]
Posted inMedia, News/Politics, Tech
On voluntary tech servitude
I’m one of the many Android users who recently installed the Blackberry Messenger (BBM) application on their phone. Big deal. Doing this as I did, however, on the day Germany and Brazil were introducing a draft resolution on the Right to Privacy in the Digital Age at the UN General Assembly, I found myself confronting […]
Posted inGeneral
We need to talk about Greece and other spendthrifts
Neoliberals and fiscal conservatives, look away now … In response to my last blog posting a few people raised the following argument in relation to state spending: if you spend more than you consume, at some point you have to cut back and live within your means. After all, as an individual or company, if […]
Posted inBusiness, General
Eurozone crisis: Where things stand
On Tuesday, President Jacob Zuma’s office announced that South Africa will contribute $2-billion (R16.3-billion) to an international fund created to bail out Europe’s debt-stricken nations. The government’s pledge is part of a $75-billion commitment from the Brics nations – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – to help bolster a $456-billion rescue fund administered […]
Posted inBusiness, General
The economic week in review: More troubling signs
Europe’s woes continued to weigh heavily on global markets this week. A summit of European leaders on Wednesday failed to reassure economists and investors that politicians can contain the growing risks of Greek exit from the euro and continental banking crisis. Here at home, data showed that the rate of price rises facing consumers rose […]