Archive for November, 2008
Wednesday, November 26th, 2008
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving in the US.
The only things I know about Thanksgiving is what we see on television and in movies – families and friends getting together to have a huge turkey-centred meal, often American football is somehow involved.
Sort of like Christmas here, but without the sunshine, beach and braai.
What we don’t see on tv is the magical Black Friday when stores have pre-Christmas sales online and offline. From what I’ve heard and read, you can get huge bargains as reward for braving full parking areas and shops even more full.
Sort of like Boxing Day sales here, but the day after Christmas, full shops and the sale of stuff people actually want to buy.
A happy Thanksgiving and Black Friday to all Americans!
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
Wednesday, November 26th, 2008
Towards the end of their terms presidents normally start thinking of their legacies.
George W Bush will doubtlessly be remembered for his way with words and a needless war in Iraq.
Thabo Mbeki compared to Bush is a smart, logical, analytical person, but yet he will go down in history the same as George W Bush, as someone who’s stubborness caused the unnecessary deaths of thousands of people. According to a Harvard study, over 365 000 people died in South Africa because of Mbeki’s stance that HIV is not the only cause of AIDS.
Back in 1999 Thabo Mbeki seemed like a logical choice as president of South Africa…after he accused them of launching a conspiracy to assassinate him, he maneuvered his rivals Cyril Ramaphosa and Tokyo Sexwale out of politics and into the vast riches of the business world.
Nelson Mandela was a hard act to follow, so the world perhaps did not expect Mbeki to have the same charisma and presence as the ex-president. We thought his intelligence and economic policies would be strong enough to overcome the fact that he was not Mandela.
Mbeki has a lot to answer for during his 2 terms as president, like trying to cover for Jackie Selebi and running for a 3rd term as ANC president, but the biggest mistake he ever made was not erring on the side of caution and doing everything possible to ensure that HIV sufferers received the necessary treatment.
According to the article in the New York Times:
Mr. Mbeki has maintained a silence on his AIDS legacy since his forced resignation. His spokesman, Mukoni Ratshitanga, said Mr. Mbeki would not discuss his thinking on H.I.V. and AIDS, explaining that policy decisions were made collectively by the cabinet and so questions should be addressed to the government.
To make matters worse, the article continues with:
“Who would have thought Jacob Zuma would be better than Mbeki, but he is,” said Richard C. Holbrooke, the former ambassador to the United Nations in the Clinton administration who heads a coalition of businesses fighting AIDS.
and…
“The tragedy of Thabo Mbeki is that he’s a smart man who could have been an international statesman on this issue. To this day, you wonder what got into him.”
Posted in politics | No Comments »
Tuesday, November 25th, 2008
Bidorbuy has been running Smartbid auctions for a while, giving away prizes for the lowest 
unique bid. In this cycle, they are giving away a Nintendo Wii console.
Each registered bidder gets 1 free bid and for every new bidder you recommend, you receive 3 more chances to bid.
There is no cost involved with registration.
Visit Smartbid to start bidding.
Reverse auction closes on 15 January 2009
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
Monday, November 24th, 2008
Is the Congress of the People taking over the usual whining role that the Democratic Alliance had exclusive rights to?
I ask because all we’ve been seeing in news reports are complaints from COPE about ANC protesters gathered outside COPE meetings.
If the USA is the shining light of democracy, then ANC supporters are just putting into practice
their democratic right to protest.
During US elections it was common place for supporters of the Democratic party to stand outside venues where Republican candidates held rallies with placards and police in tow…and vice versa.
It is the job of the police to see that protesters are a good distance away from the opposition’s gathering.
In South Africa as with everything else, the media blows everything out of proportion, making a mountain out of a mole hill. Maybe the sight of people protesting still brings back memories of the 1970s and 80s?
COPE, the ANC and any other party can have their conventions and rallies, but they must know that everyone else the right to stand outside and protest.
Mothers tell their children all the time, “I cannot hear you when you whine.”
The US elections were not easy walk-in-the park democracy in action. It was tough, robust and often unfair, but no one cried when they were called names. The politicians left it up to the public to believe what they wanted and they voted accordingly.
Let us do the same in South Africa.
Posted in election 2009, politics | 4 Comments »
Saturday, November 22nd, 2008
Pete Wentz and Ashlee Simpson after much speculation at the start of their pregnancy, gave birth to a son who they named Bronx Mowgli Wentz.
Poor child!
Bronx on its own isn’t too bad, but matched up with Wentz, it sounds rather odd, but hey – he’s their child.
Mowgli is of course a character in the Jungle Book!
I guess it could be worse, he could be named Zuma, like Gwen Stefani’s offspring.
Does a name really matter though? Is personality not set at conception?
I wonder who I would have been had my parents settled on a different name for me. I never liked my name at school. The last thing I wanted was to draw attention, but all my name did was the opposite.
These days it is a more conventional name and I think I have grown into it, although most people call me a shortened form.
I helped my sister name her daughter 11 years ago and she constantly asks me why we named her Jaime – a boys name.
We tell her it’s because she is Jaime.
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving in the US.
