On protests and rich white dudes

Because, of course, the two are a little related
I caught the end of the anti-Orange One protests in London on Friday. It was great to see so many people turn out to raise their voices against racism and other kinds of isms, but it was also clear to me that the protest was against more than the big Cheeto.

It was against the entire system that allowed the Fart to raise to power in the first place. Against old rich white dudes in power.
The last protest I attended was the Zuma must fall march in South Africa, and remembering this, I was struck by some differences. But it is not what my racist fellow Saffers assume it to be.

Protests in South Africa are a lot more violent, but it is because the people have been angry for a lot longer, and have more reason to be. As they have been affected by this system of old white rich men for a lot longer. So it is easy to make comments about the violent nature of the protests if you’ve not been affected by oppression or on the receiving end of racism.
Protestors in South Africa are also, legitimately, afraid of the police. They do not get to pose for selfies with the police, or ask them for directions. Police in SA come to protests with rubber bullets and tear gas.
It is important to understand the difference before passing judgement.

But speaking of rich white dudes…
Rich white dudes have a few role-models that they can look up to, and strive to emulate. But I like to think that, mostly, they have a choice of becoming either Tony Stark or Lex Luthor.
Both come from rich families, both start off as spoilt brats, both are amazingly smart humans and have great technologies at their disposal. Tony Stark, however, does become a better person and tries to protect the world. Lex Luthor, on the other hand, remains a spoilt entitled brat and tries to destroy the world.
I can think of a few rich white dudes that have pursued the Tony Stark path, but it seems most of them end up on the Lex Luthor path, while thinking they’re Tony Stark. I know it is hard to be a rich white dude these days, because, you know, the world is against you and stuff, but damnit, E***, you should try harder. Be more Tony.

On Anger, Change and moments

“Granny Weatherwax was often angry. She considered it one of her strong points. Genuine anger was one of the world's greatest creative forces. But you had to learn how to control it. That didn't mean you let it trickle away. It meant you dammed it, carefully, let it develop a working head, let it drown whole valleys of the mind and then, just when the whole structure was about to collapse, opened a tiny pipeline at the base and let the iron-hard stream of wrath power the turbines of revenge.”

― Terry Pratchett, Wyrd Sisters

I have always been angry, in varying degrees. As a teenager, I was a ball of undirected anger that rebelled against pretty much anything I could without even thinking. And, while the anger is still there like a warm comforting ball in my stomach, I have managed to tame it a little, and use it, much like Granny Weatherwax and her creator, the great Pterry. Recently, I have been angry about politics again, especially US politics. And I have not been sure why a South African expat living in the UK would be so angry about US politics…

When learning about the Nazi regime in Germany, the question is often how did it happen? Surely not all Germans were complicit? Surely not all Germans believed in the concentration camps, and death camps? And we must remember that it didn’t start with death camps and firing squads. It started with right wing rhetoric and little liberties removed. And as much as we, as a human race, say never again, we are watching the same shit unfold in the US.

And the rising violence in the US is scaring me and making me angry at the same time. School shootings are a particular horror that I am not sure how to deal with. One of the reasons we left our home country behind was to try and give our child a safer, better future, but I never ever had to worry about my child having to face that kind of ordeal at school. No parent should ever have to face that fear or bury their child because of senseless violence. I do not want to imagine what it much be like to be a parent in the US, and my heart aches for every parent that has had to deal with this loss.

And there have been a lot of them. There have been 7 school shootings and 18 gun-related incidents at schools this year alone and it is only mid-February. And yet politicians make statements like guns are not the problem, and some even recommend putting more guns into schools by having armed security guards on school grounds. As if more guns will solve the problem of gun violence. But are we surprised, considering Cruella DeVille is the Secretary of Education. Her who won’t create safe spaces for transgendered students. or any students, really, for that matter.

A friend on Facebook shared this slam poetry video, and I thought it was really appropriate to share again now, as he is far more eloquent on this topic and says everything I want to say but cannot get out in a coherent sentence because of the anger and fear wrapped so tightly around my heart.

In other news, Jacob Zuma left office in South Africa this week, much against his own will but the country will be better off without him in the driving seat. I have always had some concerns about Cyril Ramaphosa, but I do believe that his background in both trade union work and as a successful business person makes him a far better candidate than the man who sold out our beautiful country. The king is dead, long live the king.

I spent most of this week away from home travelling to customers, visiting first Knutsford and then Leeds. While it is always hard being away from my family, I do enjoy the opportunities to see different parts of the country (and the world) and capturing moments with my camera.

On Star Wars and current politics

I have been thinking a lot about politics recently. And by recently, I mean the last few years, actually.

I am by no means politically savvy, and I often feel so lost in the noise created on social media and in the media, that I dip into little pools of apathy on occasion. But the decisions made by people in far bigger offices than I ever hope to occupy often have such a big influence on how we live, that I have no choice but to think about politics.

I tend to lean towards left social libertarian on the political scale, which generally means I believe that government exists to serve the interest of the population, not just a select few, and believe in individual freedom as well as social equality. Because I want a future for my child. And for my husband and myself. And everyone else I care about. And every one else in the world too. I make mistakes often, but I am willing to learn.

Having grown up and lived in South Africa for most of my life means a lot of the thinking I’ve been doing has revolved around South African politics, but the recent re-emergence of the right in both the US and UK have expanded my thoughts to include more of the western world. There have been flare ups of right wing activity across Europe, but it has not been quite as visible as in the UK and US, especially after first the Brexit referendum and then the US elections that put right wingers firmly into the White House.

I have learned a lot about politics from the media I consume. And I consume a lot of media. But the two biggest influencers on my political learnings have been Star Wars, and the writings of Terry Pratchett.

It is no secret how much I love Star Wars. And while the series has some flaws, it is a very good alternate universe to relate our current political situation to. In particular, I often think about the parallels between Palpatine and current world leaders, and specifically Jacob Zuma, the current president of South Africa.

There has been a lot of talk on both social media and in the news about the state of South African politics and the influence that a certain family have on Jacob Zuma. And many have speculated that this family control the current political landscape in the country.

I have a slightly different theory. I believe that Jacob Zuma is a master manipulator, and very good at playing politics. He, like Palpatine, has been manipulating situations for a very long time, and have lined up several fall-guys long before they are needed. And I believe the Gupta family play the role of the Trade Federation from Star Wars. They are perceived to be in power and pulling the strings, but I think he has set them up as fall guys too. In his mind, he will be the ultimate ruler of the empire – well, either him or his son, who has benefitted greatly from his father’s political dealings.

No amount of dirt will cling to JZ, because he will always have a fall guy lined up, and he will always be several steps ahead of everyone else, especially because most people believe him to be an illiterate fool. And this is why he laughs each time someone takes him on.

10 of 30

We finally went off to register to vote today. It was a lovely walk in the sunshine under the Jacarandas in full bloom.

I am really enjoying living in the new area. It is nice to be able to walk around and to the park without fear. We even have a little shopping centre within walking distance from the house, so we don’t need to drive to pick up milk and bread either.

335 of 366

We drive through a fairly affluent area every day after dropping our daughter off at school. The roads in this area, as in most of Johannesburg, have deteriorated quite badly over the last couple of years, and this hole started developing recently. There has been a yellow traffic cone placed on this hole for the last two weeks, obviously to alert drivers, but when we came past this morning, this was in the place of the traffic cone.

[Mangaung refers to the upcoming ANC elective conference, where Jacob Zuma is set to win a second term as party leader, and by extension, a second term as president of South Africa, much to the dismay of a lot of people]

Stripper puppets, asthmatic chameleons and volcanic ponies

Where has the past month gone? Whoooooshh…

A month ago, I took part in the democratic process by not only voting in our local elections, but by also spending the day working at a voting station as a party agent. I woke up super-early the morning of the 18th of May and arrived at the voting station before 6am to witness the opening and unpacking and sealing of the ballot boxes and the setting up of the voting station. I spent just about the entire day at the voting station – apart from the 2 hours I spent going to vote at another station and charge my phone – and stayed for the count at the end. It was a long day – I was awake for 23 hours straight – but it was worth it.

I think it is something that each voter should do at least once. It makes you appreciate the system, and I definitely gained some trust in the process, and the IEC. Speaking of which, the IEC staff were wonderful, friendly and helpful all the way through, even though they were also awake from very early that morning. The guy in charge was incredibly dynamic, and he handled a very difficult and long day with grace and the patience of a saint, while being incredibly competent at keeping the wheels going.

Other than that, in 42 days time the husband and I are off on our very first adventure, and we have spent the past month getting our visas in order, buying the last of the camping gear and practised setting up the tent. We have also booked all our hotels and train tickets, which means we are set to go. I am still struggling to wrap my head around the size of Wacken (the festival, not the town), because my brain simply cannot comprehend seventy five thousand people in one place. I am really looking forward to seeing the sights and hope I can capture each sight adequately photographically.

We had a brief moment of panic when another Icelandic volcano erupted and caused some havoc with air traffic in Europe, but luckily that seems to have calmed down now. And I have made friends with Iceland. Tonight, while in conversation with the family, I brought up the Icelandic ponies and volcanoes, which immediately conjured up images of cute ponies ala Viva Piñata somersaulting into an active volcano. Much laughter ensued.

I have been playing a lot of Viva Piñata recently. I started over, because I finally have my own XBox and profile, so I am raking up my own gamer score now. I have finally broken my previous scores, and am starting to attract some interesting piñatas to my garden, the strangest of these to date being the Jameleon, which really sounds like an asthmatic chameleon, especially when it is sleeping.

Jameleon Romance Video

My daughter started her first exams for high school this week, and the first subject was Art and Culture. The grade’s classes were divided into smaller groups, and each group was tasked with putting together a 60 second puppet show. On the way to school one morning, she told us about seeing one of the other groups’ puppet, and it happened to be a stripper, “with a g-string and everything”. Much laughter ensued.

Laughter is a frequent friend, and it is good. I must just sometimes remind myself of this. Been a bit wound up recently, and swinging between what feels like more than two poles, each with their own brand of insanity woven through the cracks. I am missing writing again very much right now, but as soon as I sit down in front of the keyboard, the words are gone. I sure do hope they return, because there are many many stories that still need to be told. Maybe my muse awaits in the country of my ancestors. And hey, I wrote a blog post. With words and everything. 671of them to boot. There is hope for us yet, captain.

Should we worry now?

There have been a couple of bills passed recently, and even more proposed, that has many of us worried about the future of some of our freedoms, especially that of the media. And young Mr Malema has also had his fair bit to say about the media and the need to control it.

And then, today, this happened:

Sunday Times journalist Mzilikazi wa Afrika was arrested this morning at the newspaper's offices in Rosebank for being in possession of an allegedly fraudulent resignation letter. The arrest coincided with a meeting of journalists and editors about threats to media freedom in South Africa, reports Times Live.

Lawyers say wa Afrika was arrested for possession of what police claim is a fraudulent letter of resignation from Mpumalanga premier David Dabede Mabuza to President Jacob Zuma.

Wa Afrika was seized by police who became involved in a screaming match with senior editors about whether photographers could take pictures.

[source]

Here is the video from Zoopy:

Funny how new pigs always revert back to the ways of the old pigs. I think it is time for us to stop them, before we revert completely to the paranoid SA of the 80s.

It’s about time

Zuma also said the government did not lack money or skills but rather faced "a crisis of accountability", which is why potholes remained unfilled, schools remained without windows and hospitals without medicines.
"The administrative systems that exist in government are worse than any other in the world," Zuma said.
Looking forward to South Africa's celebration of 20 years of freedom in four years' time, he said apartheid could no longer be blamed "if children still study under trees, if hospitals and schools are falling apart, and if there are still thousands who live in abject poverty".
He said a "drastic change" was needed.
"In some of our front and back offices are employed men and women who do not respect the jobs they are employed in or the citizens they are appointed to perform," he said.
He said government managers should "be visible on the ground from time to time and not be completely desk-bound" so that they could see where people lived and what their concerns were.
Zuma said, to applause, inefficient public servants who failed to improve "should be encouraged to leave".

[from this article]

Let’s see what comes from this.

Smells like…

Trouble:

[from]

[eta]

[from]

I must also add:

I have never been a fan of Mr Terre’Blanche, his ideologies or his party, nor could I even imagine swinging that far right. But this came so at the wrong time. And Malema continuing to spew his idiotic hate-speech is not helping matters. World Cup or no World Cup, there is serious trouble coming now, and for the first time in a very, very long time, I am afraid for my country.

I remember growing up in the turbulent 80s. I remember learning how to identify bombs in our schools, doing bomb drills, and wondering who will plant the next one (the far left or far right). I remember working in the middle of Jo’burg in the early 90s as a very young adult, often having to run from my bus stop to the office I worked in dodging bullets and wondering if today was to be the day where the office tower I worked in would be the one caught in the cross-fire. I remember the fear. That is the fear I woke up with this morning.

So, today, I woke up with a prayer for South Africa. A prayer for a peaceful resolution to our current conflict, peaceful, bloodless road forward, and that this country can truly be a place where all people in the country benefit from living here, not just the well-connected fat cats.

A prayer:

May all beings everywhere plagued
with sufferings of body and mind
quickly be freed from their illnesses.
May those frightened cease to be afraid,
and may those bound be free.
May the powerless find power,
and may people think of befriending
one another.
May those who find themselves in trackless, fearful wilderness--
the children, the aged, the unprotected--
be guarded by beneficent celestials,
and may they swiftly attain Buddhahood.

 

[picture source – prayer source]

You strike a woman, you strike a rock

[picture source]

On August 9, 1956, 20,000 women staged a march on the Union Buildings in Pretoria to protest against the proposed amendments to the Urban Areas Act (commonly known as the pass laws) of 1950. They left bundles of petitions containing more than 100,000 signatures at prime minister J.G. Strijdom's office door.

Outside they stood silently for 30 minutes, many with their children on their backs. Those who were working for whites as nannies were carrying their white charges with them. The women sang a protest song that was composed in honour of the occasion: Wathint'Abafazi Wathint'imbokodo! (Now you have touched the women, you have struck a rock.). In the 54 years since, the phrase (or its latest incarnation: "you strike a woman, you strike a rock") has come to represent women's courage and strength in South Africa.

The march was led by Lilian Ngoyi, Helen Joseph, Rahima Moosa and Sophia Williams-De Bruyn.

(source)

Sadly, 53 years later in 2009, things are not much better for women in South Africa. While women do have the right to vote, own property, have ‘high’ jobs, etc., abuse is still rife and women are often victims of violent crimes. Let us hope that it doesn’t take another 50 years to eradicate the violence.

The results are in (almost)

Counting has almost finished, and it looks like the ANC has lost its 2/3 majority, which is great news. Final results should be out later today.

This is where we stand at the moment:

• ANC: 65.96%
• DA: 16.6%
• COPE: 7.41%

Other good news is that the DA managed to get the Western Cape:

COPE has performed really well, considering the party is only a couple of months old. According to News24, the ANC received 69.69% and the DA received 12.37% of the vote in 2004. This means that the DA has grown their support base considerably since 2004, and the formation of COPE did not take votes away from the DA. If the DA and COPE can form an alliance for 2014, they may do be a formidable opposition party that has a real chance of taking an even larger chunk away from the ANC.

Final results should be available from the IEC later today.

Some are just above the media, above the law...

Zuma ‘obliged’ to sue Guardian
THE legal department of the UK’s The GUARDIAN told The Times that it is aware of Jacob Zuma’s pending lawsuit against the newspaper.

The newspaper has removed the column Zuma claims is defamatory from its website.
In the column, Simon Jenkins described the ANC president as a “polygamous, leopard skin-draped Zulu boss” who is “just another African crony politician for whom power is not about government, but personal enrichment”.
Liesl Göttert, who has been Zuma’s spokesman in connection with his defamation lawsuits, said Zuma objected most to Jenkins writing that a friend of Jenkins had said God was “about to give us a criminal and a rapist as president”.
Zuma was found not guilty after being charged with rape in 2006.
He is demanding an apology and damages — the amount has not been specified — from the paper and has appointed a London law firm to act on his behalf.
Zuma said yesterday : “The media should report accurately and honestly. How can they be allowed to damage a person’s reputation in this way? I was obliged to act where I had been wronged.”
The Guardian said: “We confirm we have been contacted by Schillings Lawyers, acting for Jacob Zuma, regarding the article by Simon Jenkins . It would be inappropriate for us to comment further at this stage.”

The Times

I am sorry, but I have to, yet again, disagree. Yes, the media should report accurately and honestly on NEWS, but columns are opinion pieces, and should reflect, accurately and honestly, the opinion of the people. And Simon Jenkins communicated the opinion of the people quite accurately.

The reality is that, in a week from today, we will be going to the polls in a pointless election, because, come hell or high water, Jacob Zuma, a suspected rapist and morally corrupt human being, will be our next president, and nothing is going to change that.

Zuma walks free

“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”

~ Martin Luther King, Jr

“The shepherd drives the wolf from the sheep's throat, for which the sheep thanks the shepherd as his liberator, while the wolf denounces him for the same act as the destroyer of liberty.”

~ Abraham Lincoln

The NPA have dropped all charges (all 700-odd of them) against Jacob Zuma, not because he was found to be innocent, but because of an abuse of process by Leonard McCarthy. Full statement here.

I must emphasise that this does not mean that Jacob Zuma is innocent.

What this does mean that we will have a criminal for a president after the 22 April elections – only 15 days from now. This is a sad day for liberty, justice and democracy.

From the DA website:

The decision to withdraw the charges does not appear to be rationally connected to the information before the National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP).  All indications are that the NDPP has not taken a decision based in law, but that it has buckled to political pressure. Two weeks before the election, it now portrays Jacob Zuma as a wronged victim in a show trial.

And from the ID website:

‘There are absolutely no legal reasons for the decision,’ says De Lille
ID President Patricia de Lille says she is ‘very, very angry that the NPA has not provided any substantive legal reasons for withdrawing the fraud, corruption, racketeering and tax evasion charges against ANC President Jacob Zuma.
‘The first casualty of this decision today is the principle that we are all equal before the law.
‘The NPA has got absolutely no right to drop the charges against Jacob Zuma before they have been tested in an open court of law,’ Ms De Lille says.
‘The fact that the tapes are legitimate is completely irrelevant to the Zuma case. The NPA must charge Bulelani Ngcuka, Leonard McCarthy and anyone else on the tapes for interfering in the independence of the NPA.
The ID Leader, the 1st of over 200 prospective witnesses in the Zuma case, says ‘the case against Zuma should have gone on uninterrupted.
‘The fact that these allegations of interference will be tested by the courts, but the Zuma case will not, means that the leadership of the NPA has replaced their loyalty to Thabo Mbeki with a new loyalty to Jacob Zuma.
‘The ANC has betrayed the visions, values and ideals of our Constitutional democracy and of the struggle we fought against Apartheid,’ De Lille says.
‘Ten years of hard work by whistleblowers, the media and the prosecuting team, all of whom were guided by the principle of equality before the law, have gone down the drain.
‘It is wrong that the ANC has been allowed by the NPA, which should be independent, to dictate to it what is in the best interests of our democracy,’ De Lille says.
‘This is an extremely sad day for me and for our country. We can only hope and pray that our people will eventually realize that the ANC leadership is motivated by self-interest, greed and dishonesty.
‘I am deeply concerned for our future for as long as these ANC crooks are in control of our country,’ says De Lille

From the COPE website:

The Congress of the People wishes to register its disappointment at the political decision of the NPA to drop the corruption, fraud and racketeering charges against the president of the ANC. We condemn in the strongest possible terms the manner in which this matter was handled.
The NPA’s decision to drop the charges against Jacob Zuma does not safeguard justice, due process or equality before the law. Instead, it guarantees that the president of the African National Congress, and the party’s presidential candidate, will forever be branded a criminal suspect in the eyes of much of the nation and the world. This decision is a blow to our democracy that will be felt for years to come. The NPA in this act, has undermined the Constitution and itself as an entity.

Is this the end of the Mandela beacon of hope? We can only hope and pray that the rest of the people in this beautiful country of ours will wake up before the elections and make the right decision to not put a criminal in power. Or at least to ensure the ANC does not have a 2/3 majority. But, after this decision, it looks like the road we find ourselves on was built by Robert Mugabe rather than Nelson Mandela.

“For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.”

~ Nelson Mandela

One month to go

Today is exactly one month before the 2009 South African general elections – a date that is perceived by many in the country to be pivotal for our future. It is the day that will determine the direction our country is to move in almost more than the 1994 elections did.

It is interesting to note how, this time round, the political parties are utilising the internet and especially social media sites.

I have been reading the DA’s blog for quite some time, and follow Helen Zille on Twitter. The DA also have a supporter’s website and, I believe, a Facebook group.

I once added Patricia de Lille’s blog to my reader, but as she only made one post in six or so months, I realised she was obviously far too busy with something else to, you know, say anything – or maybe she just hates blogs and social media in general. At least her party, the Independent Democrats, do have a fairly decent website where they even offer a free ringtone for your phone.

COPE’s website is quite nice, attractive and easy to read. It also provides links to their YouTube channel, as well as their Flicker stream and Facebook group.

This morning, I discovered the ANC’s YouTube channel. The ANC also has a semi-ok official website, as well as the MyANC website for supporters. According to the MyANC website, where you can also find the ANC’s blog, there is a Facebook group and a twitter stream too, but I have not quite yet found the links.

The ANC also seems to have hired a couple of web jockeys to comment on forums and blogs with pro-ANC propaganda. This is especially true over at Thought Leader, where they manage to slip in some pro-ANC, pro-Zuma comment on non-political blogs. And I suspect one of their other jobs would be to maintain the Wikipedia page, because it is terribly biased and in keeping with the rest of the propaganda spread.

One also simply has to look at the online supporters banner over at SAelections:

According to this, the breakdown of online supporters is as follows:

• ANC: 22665
• COPE: 8820
• DA: 5209
• ACDP: 1043
• Freedom Front: 853

SAElections is also on Twitter.

Use your voice!

I received this via email this morning. I am not sure if the credit is authentic, but the message is true:

TREVOR MALLACH
GLOBAL SOURCING EXECUTIVE - SHOPRITE GROUP
I don't normally get involved in politics, but this should ring true for every South African! Read and pass on to every person proud to own a green passport!

Hello fellow citizens
If like me, you don't have a passport from another country and you quite like living in South Africa, now is quite an important time for you.
Instead of using clichés like "the future is in your hands.." or "make your mark, let your voice be heard!" and other ineffective drivel, I am going to just draw your attention to the following:
Bob Mugabe had to amend the constitution of Zimbabwe to allow him to remain in power as president, long after he had reached his intellectual sell-by-date. (Before this, as in all "democracies", there was a limit to the number of terms which a president could serve). Having changed it once, he did it again. Then he was on a roll. The rest of the story we all know very well. With hindsight, we can see that had he been prevented from taking the first step, the whole sub-Saharan part of Africa would have been spared quite a lot of bother.
When Hitler took over Germany he systematically turned it into a fascist police-state, where no-one (no, not even German citizens) had any freedom. He did this by passing one piece of legislature after another. Slowly he started to ban things (like women shaving their legs and underarms). Next he formed a special police force which was under his personal control (the infamous Gestapo) to enforce these new laws. Then he banned some more things, like jokes, clever books and talking about him behind his back. By the time he had mobilised his army, and banned being Jewish or trying to stop him from invading your country it was TOO LATE! He had gained too much momentum.
"How did he and Bob manage this?" you may ask.
I'll tell you how: Baby steps.
Each time they changed something, they convinced all the stupid people that it was for the greater good. Clever people, who could tell that it wasn't, thought to themselves "Surely they won't get away with this" over tea and rusks, but did nothing. By the time someone decided to stand up and make a scene, his house had been burned down and his head was firmly wedged between an S.S. boot and the pavement outside.
Now, I'm sure we all agree that one "Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma" possesses neither the intellect, balls or charisma to start a world war. However, he has somehow managed to wangle his way into a position where he can very well take the first baby step towards making a complete pig's ear of our country. Old-school racist whites are always on about our country going to the dogs and ending up like Zim.. Of course they did this because they were narrow-minded and ignorant, not because they were keeping a keen eye on actual political developments. Our downfall will not be racism as everyone predicted in 1994, it will be corrupt politicians driven by greed and a hunger for power. And people drinking tea saying "surely they won't get away with that?".
Now,
JZ's trial has been scheduled for August (which is AFTER the election). After winning the election, the ANC plans on amending the constitution to prohibit the acting president from being prosecuted in a court of law. Just like with Bob Mugabe, the most fundamental law of the country will now be changed to suit the whims of a criminal with no brain. (Never mind the fact that this would actually mean that he could literally commit murder and get away with it until he steps down as president). Our constitution is literally the anchor which stops our country from drifting down river and over the edge of a waterfall. It leaves ultimate power in the hands of the courts and judges and prevents government from raising itself above the law. To allow anyone to mess with it is equivalent to committing a slow national suicide.
The ANC no doubt thinks they will again get the two thirds majority they need to tinker with the constitution in the April election.
I beg to differ.
I hope and believe that, unlike the sheep of the past in Germany and Zimbabwe , the average person who receives this mail has actually had enough of all these shenanigans and would like to see the appearance of justice, logic and efficiency in government.
Unfortunately, we are in the minority. However, to prevent things from getting worse really fast, all we have to do (for now) is:
VOTE !!!!!!!!
And then, when the election comes, vote for anyone except the ANC. You can vote for Vernon Koekemoer or Skippy Peanut Butter for all I care, just as long as no one gets a two-thirds majority!
I swear on my grandma's grave... if I hear someone (who didn't vote or couldn't vote because they were too lazy or hungover to register) complaining at a braai about the government I will come in from the side with a flying head-butt which will leave you so brain-damaged you'll join the ANC youth league and vote for Julius Malema in 2013.
This country is genuinely amazing, lets not let a small handful of people use it as their personal monopoly set and turn it into another post-Collonial African 3rd World sad story.
Vote, dammit! People are willing to die fighting for the right to vote. If you don't, and you end up watching as the country slowly slides into an abyss it will be "on you".
Ok, enough.

The Times - ‘We want Zuma, corrupt or not’

ANC Youth League president Julius Malema outdid himself at a rally in Durban’s Cato Manor yesterday, branding DA leader Helen Zille “racist”, “colonialist” and “imperialist”.

Her deputy, Joe Seremane’s “ role . .. is to smile at the madam every time,” he said.

IFP leader Mangosuthu Buthelezi was “Mickey Mouse” and COPE consisted of “angryists” who “don’ t smile”.

He came to ANC president Jacob Zuma’s defence: “If Zuma is corrupt, then we want him with all his corruption. We want him with all his weaknesses. If he is uneducated, then we want him as our uneducated president.”

Zuma, he said, understood SA economics, which amounted to: “Put a bread on the table. We don’t want sophistication.”

The Times - ‘We want Zuma, corrupt or not’

There is a little more to running a country than putting bread on the table. And this country needs a leader who cares not about his own pocket but about the well-being of the entire country. The ANC has failed us for long enough.

Do I really need to say anything else? Corrupt or not? No thank you!

Do not want!

Interesting

Three different headlines on the same topic from three different sources. Why is it that the headline from the Sowetan says the complete opposite thing to the other two? Which one do we believe, and is this a taster of what is to come later this year when we, yet again, go to the polls for a free and fair election?

Is Zuma going to do a Bob, and steal the throne for himself by manipulating the media – because that is exactly what this smacks of.

Top 20

Well, we’ve done it. We have made the Top 20 list. Maybe not the ideal Top 20 list to be on, as it is the 20 of the world’s most dangerous countries list.

South Africa suffers from a high level of violent crime, including rape and murder, although most visits to the country are trouble-free as the majority of cases occur in townships and areas away from tourist destinations. Robberies and car-jackings at gunpoint are increasingly common.

Other countries on the list include India, Afghanistan, Iraq, Chechnya and Sudan. This is a scary, scary thought.

It is little wonder that more and more South Africans are fleeing, or attempting to flee, to other shores, despite the economic climate in the rest of the world. Most would rather sacrifice the weather and wide open spaces in favour of being safe. All of our friends are currently exploring their options, and many work colleagues are also looking at options outside of SA’s borders, because the crime levels have just escalated out of control, and it is very obvious that the government is not interested and not able to resolve the problem.

Sowetan - News

Highlights in this article are my own.

The ANC has come out in defence of its controversial youth league leader Julius Malema, saying there was a campaign by the media to belittle him.

Malema, probably best known for his infamous “kill for Zuma” statements, was misunderstood by the media, the ANC national working committee (NWC) said after its weekly meeting.

“The NWC discussed what appears to be a sustained campaign in the media to belittle Julius Malema, and to position him and the youth league as being at odds with the policies of the ANC,” the NWC said.

“The media has a tendency to cover comments made by Malema in a selective and often inaccurate manner, ignoring the consistent policy pronouncements of the ANC Youth League.”

ANC insiders have described Malema as a “liability, who is failing to address the needs and aspirations of the working young professionals in this country”.

An ANC insider said Malema’s rhetoric could be appealing to the unemployed youth but he was failing to capture the imagination of “young professionals, who are now willing to come out and engage in politics as shown by the high turnout during the recent voter registration”.

Malema’s trail of controversial public outbursts started last year when he said the youth league would kill for ANC leader Jacob Zuma. Since then – apparently after ANC leaders rebuked him in private – he has replaced the word “kill” with “eliminate” in similar statements.

Zuma recently told the SABC that he had advised Malema to stop making controversial statements. – Sapa

Sowetan - News

 

So, ‘the media’ is out to get the ANC. This is not the first time the ANC has made statements like this about the way the media treats certain members, like Malema and JZ.

How convenient it must be to blame the incompetence of these members of the perception the media creates, rather than take responsibility for the sheer stupidity of these people.

I would be very surprised if, after everything that JZ, Malema and others have said in the past couple of months, the ANC still wins the election by a large margin. In fact, I would be very surprised if they win at all – but we have learnt some valuable lessons from Zimbabwe, and I do not expect JZ to simply let go of the seat he has claimed for himself.

That said, should the ANC win the next election, I will be packing my bags very quickly, because I refuse to live in a country that has him as leader. I believe Botswana is always looking for some skilled workers, and Namibia is also looking promising *grin*

ANC: Cut Motlanthe coverage: South Africa: Politics: News24

I have high-lighted a couple of sentences that particularly worry me.

ANC: Cut Motlanthe coverage
16/11/2008 00:07  - (SA)  

Makhudu Sefara

Johannesburg - The ANC has allegedly ordered the SABC to reduce its coverage of President Kgalema Motlanthe and to stop projecting him as being so presidential, to the disadvantage of the party's president, Jacob Zuma.

In a startling move that points to deep-seated divisions in the camp, the ANC has allegedly asked the country's biggest media organisation not to project Motlanthe as being more of a statesman than Zuma.

Two news executives and a few reporters told City Press that the ruling party was concerned about increasing calls for Motlanthe to be allowed to continue as the country's president, even after the elections next year.

"We were asked in October to reduce our coverage of Motlanthe and focus on putting out a better image of Zuma. We have tried to resist this, but there is only so much we can do," said one SABC source.

ANC getting raw deal

ANC secretary-general Gwede Mantashe emphatically denied this on Saturday, saying the ANC was not in a position to tell the SABC which leaders to cover, because the party was getting a raw deal from the public broadcaster anyway.

"They do not cover us objectively, so we don't have the luxury of saying 'increase this or reduce that'," said Mantashe, adding that the ANC did not see any contest between Motlanthe and Zuma.

Motlanthe has courted controversy for a while, contradicting several ANC leaders - including national treasurer Mathews Phosa and South African Communist Party boss Blade Nzimande - publicly in what some say is an attempt to project himself as the sole voice of reason in a camp of hotheads.

Motlanthe has previously said that some attacks on the Constitutional Court from within the party were "out of ignorance".

The ANC Youth League said he was acting like a "paragon of correctness". The league also warned him not to act as if Zuma was no longer there.

Mantashe said the ANC had only asked the SABC to be objective.

"All these issues you are raising are being raised everywhere, but not in the ANC. We do not think Motlanthe is over-covered.

"He is squeezed in like all of us," said Mantashe.

Zuma cautioned over Motlanthe

Analyst Professor Sue Booysen of Wits University said she was "not surprised at all" about the alleged intra-Zuma camp battles.

Booysen said she knew that when the ANC decided who should replace former president Thabo Mbeki, those closest to Zuma had cautioned against Motlanthe, saying he was too good and too strong a candidate and could be difficult to dislodge from office.

They preferred former National Assembly speaker and current Deputy President Baleka Mbete because she was thought to be "weak" and easy to remove.

Booysen said the Zuma/Motlanthe face-off made sense because it was becoming increasingly clear that for the ANC to disarm the Congress of the People (Cope) it needed someone who was the embodiment of the values Cope espoused.

"There can be no doubt that Motlanthe would do much better than Zuma. He stood up to the Youth League, he spoke in defence of the judiciary.

"He is good," she said.

Zuma 'represented postively'

City Press asked the head of the Media Monitoring Project, William Bird, to analyse SABC TV's English news bulletins from last Saturday to Thursday to evaluate how Zuma and Motlanthe were featured.

In that period Bird found that Zuma could be "seen and heard speaking" for 239 seconds as opposed to Motlanthe's 61 seconds.

Bird said Motlanthe was featured only in items the SABC could not afford to ignore, such as the SADC summit that he hosted in Sandton, and other continental and global issues.

Zuma, on the other hand, was "represented positively" on the campaign trail.

Where he talked about the new party, Zuma came across as being "too defensive", talking about pursuing snakes, said Bird.

But overall, "Zuma is mostly shown speaking positively on a variety of issues, except where there is Julius Malema, because almost everything Malema says is negative.

"But Zuma gets a lot of chance to speak while Motlanthe speaks only briefly," Bird said.

SABC spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago said that he "spoke to all the people who matter" and could not find anyone who knew of an ANC instruction to cover Motlanthe less.

An SABC source said the request to cover the head of state less came before Mbeki was "recalled".

Zuma portrayed as a pop star

"I think they thought we were committed to covering Mbeki as a person and were being factional.

"The latest request came in October, at a meeting on the fourth floor of the TV centre.

"The concern is that we project Motlanthe in a statesman-like manner and Zuma (who likes to sing and dance) as a pop star.

"They say where he is seen with Malema, the young man must be edited out - but Malema sits really very close to Zuma," he said.

On Saturday Kganyago said the SABC would defend its journalists against political attacks.

Bheki Khumalo, an SABC board member responsible for news, last week said the board was aware that the SABC news team had come under severe pressure from various political organisations, some of which were being abusive to individual producers.

This, he said, was expected to escalate with the elections approaching.

- City Press

ANC: Cut Motlanthe coverage: South Africa: Politics: News24

 

Sounds like the ANC has bigger problems than it is willing to admit. And I have to say, i can quite see them ‘asking’ broadcasters to do this and that – because, amazingly, they are behaving much like their predecessors during the dark 80s. And this is how it started in Zim too. Control of the media.

Who controls the media controls the world, right? Or at least for voters, yes. And if you, as a broken political party, can convince your voters that everything’s all right and you are the good guy by using the media, you are sure to win the election. Because TV/newspapers never lie, right?

One just has to worry about Herr Zuma’s motivations for wanting to be president. Surely, the primary focus of the president should be what is good for the country and not for self. And, were I in Zuma’s shoes, and have come up against someone who is, indeed, better for the country and its people, I would step down. But then, this is Herr Zuma, who has done everything, everything, he possibly could to clean up his path to the presidential chair. I wonder what he will do, should there be a revolution that decides Motlanthe should rule rather than him.

I will vote for the party that restores freedom to the press as well as the people of this beautiful country, who believes in the true equality of all, and puts the safety of our children and elderly first, above parties and name changes.