FIFA is a rather poor target for embittered post-colonial theorists trying to attack the “hegemony” of Europe and America. Football is among the most democratic of all sports: where else would you see the USA and Japan humbled by various third world powerhouses? Even the very best European teams (ie. Germany) will struggle against the [...]

The Business Times recently ran an article on suggestions from New York’s former mayor, Rudi Giuliani, for bringing down South Africa’s crime rate. His plan seems to centre on dramatically increasing the number of police officers and rewarding those who perform well. Both measures are intuitively obvious and would be welcomed. Most South Africans appreciate [...]

The Pretoria News recently published details on the full proposals for the envisioned Gauteng road network upgrades, explaining the new proposed highways, tolling system and traffic alleviation ideas. One can see what the planners intend and how they mean well, however getting cars off the road through the tolling system proposed is not good enough in isolation. 
It rather requires reasonable alternatives for [...]

It appears that the current consumer binge and property price increase party are both drawing to a close. That means now would be a good time for individuals to retire personal debt (with their credit card balance first in line), avoid taking out that hefty finance lease on that expensive new car meant to impress the Jones’, stop speculating [...]

Farrel Lifson says yes, and while I try not to underestimate Cosatu’s willingness to take punishment, the media’s barrage of stories like this makes me think he may be right:

The Young Communist League (YCL) on Thursday accused the leadership of the African National Congress of bullying and malice. It also “rejects with contempt the insinuation” [...]

But if you wanna play credential-credential, I’ve been an SACP member, I actively protested the bombings of Belgrade, numerous Israeli actions, the Iraq invasion and the subsequent occupation. I’m in contact with anti-capitalists in the US, Australia, Canada, UK, Germany and Italy. I once wrote a rabid article for Green Left Weekly. Last year I [...]

I don’t know who was responsible for this rather hideous piece of bad reporting, but they clearly haven’t read John Stuart Mill:

Did Bush’s brother sign death warrant for bikers?
June 19, 2006
Melbourne, Florida – Motorcycle crash deaths involving riders without helmets have soared in Florida in the six years since state governor Jeb Bush repealed the [...]

The ridiculous idea of tolling Gauteng’s highway system is flawed for a reason that any economist should recognise: incentives. The scheme’s grand objective is apparently to encourage carpooling, by tolling multiple-occupant vehicles at lower rates. The problem is that commuters already have plenty of incentives to carpool. With oil prices at staggeringly high levels, a [...]

Quoted for sheer delight:

It’s true enough that not everything requiring virtuosity is “great” art, but it’s also true that art without skill is an oxymoron, and I dismiss out of hand the ridiculous and often-made assertion that artistic merit is an entirely subjective matter which can be divorced from facts about the human mind. Most [...]

Well, I’m back, exams are over, and life can return to normal. Or not; Saturday’s attempted hijacking of a South African Airways flight from Cape Town was certainly a step out of the ordinary.
What we know so far is that Tinashe Rioga, a 21 year old Zimbabwean student at the University of Cape Town, attempted [...]

It looks like Japan, Norway and Iceland may be pushing for a majority on the International Whaling Commission (IWC) in an effort to overturn the 1986 ban on whale hunting. Unfortunately it may also succeed in obtaining that simple majority thus impairing the ban, although overturning the ban completely would require a 75% majority.
Japan, Norway [...]