Monthly Archives: May 2019

Bold movers or losers? The Cyril and Mmusi conundrum

Commentators should be indebted to The Times (of London) ace columnist Clare Foges for transposing the medical affliction Achromatopsia, or colour blindness, and applying it to the bewildering world of (non) Brexit Britain. In her Monday offering, Foges noted that the Conservative Party – hitherto the most successful and enduring party in the Western world, the “natural [...]

Cyril assumes power – but not over his own party

'Dual use" is the national security theory on the dilemma that arises when something of benefit to humanity can also harm it. Thomas Friedman, global affairs columnist of the New York Times, this week quoted a security strategist on the US clampdown on China's Huawei: "Everything that makes us powerful and prosperous also makes us [...]

Ramaphosa, Eisenhower ace the same hole – up to a point

At the height of America’s postwar supremacy in the 1950s, which birthed the baby boomer generation and saw the US standard of living soar, the country’s 34th president was emblematic of its elevated national mood and international standing. President Dwight D (“Ike”) Eisenhower – Supreme Allied Commander in Europe during the war – and thereafter [...]

IEC shows mediocrity has become the norm in SA

The biggest loser in Wednesday’s election was an institution, not a party or any leader: the Electoral Commission of SA (IEC). Heedless of 25 years’ experience, it contrived to combine, in the words of Helen Zille, incompetence with “ineffable smugness”: double voting due to indelible ink that wasn’t; voting stations that were meant to open [...]

We all know that Ace is far from alone. Now let’s do something about it

The recent Easter weekend coincided with the intensification of campaigning for the upcoming general elections. The double advantage of a large audience and the ennoblement of the speakers with the blessings of a higher authority created a magnet for politicians to harangue congregations across the country. There were no reports of any of the political [...]

Go to Top