Fodder - A blog from the heart of zaLand

US mid terms

US mid term elections are on Monday and by every measure the Dems should win this and certainly take back Congress, maybe even the Senate. Almost every poll puts them ahead on every question – even on the traditionally strong GOP questions.

So in short this is an election that can only be lost by the Dems, rather then won by the GOP.

That said Bush has been hitting the trial trying to talk up his base. Of note was this statement;

If you listen carefully for a Democrat plan for success, they don’t have one. Iraq is the central front in the war on terror, yet they don’t have a plan for victory.

Well neither does the White House have a plan for victory. In fact if one accepts that Iraq is the central front for the war on terror, then terror is winning hands down.

PW Botha dies

PW Botha dies and he is being lauded by all an sundry and there is even talk that he may even get a state funeral. This is an amazing country!

PW has consistently refused to take responsibility for his role in apartheid, refused to appear before the TRC and largely denied that apartheid was even bad. Yet his death is treated like a loss to the country!

Some Zuma sense

Steven Friedman writing in the Business Day earlier this week perfectly summed up Zuma as president. The article is here and well worth a read.

Zuma to be re-instated?

No surprise that COSATU has called for Zuma to be re-instated as deputy president of the country after the Pietermaritzburg court struck his corruption case off the court roll. Further this morning reports are that Sipho Seepe, the academic director at Henley Management College, has suggested that Mbeki could have two deputy presidents to get around the problem.

But this all misses the point.

Zuma was not sacked as deputy president because of his corruption trial. Nor was he sacked as a result of his rape trial. He was sacked because Judge Hillary Squires found Zuma to have a generally corrupt relationship with convicted corrupter Schabir Shaik. So in fact COSATU should hold back a moment and keep an eye on the Schabir Shaik appeal that starts on Tuesday.

Zapiro on gay marriage

Zuma for president

Pietermaritzburg (NEWS24) -- Judge Herbert Msimang, who presided over former deputy president Jacob Zuma's corruption case, said on Wednesday that the State's case "limped from one disaster to another" and it should have investigated further before charging him.

Zuma's corruption case was struck off the roll by the Pietermaritzburg High Court on Wednesday.

This basically opens the door to Zuma being our next president. Unless the state re-charges him, which they can do and are apparently discussing as I write.

Vlok calls apartheid evil

Last night Adriaan Vlok was interviewed by Debora Patta on eTV. Two answers struck me (this is from memory so may not be 100% accurate).

Debora Patta: Was what you did evil?
Adriaan Vlok: Yes it was, it was evil.
...
Debora Patta: Was apartheid wrong?
Adriaan Vlok: Yes it was wrong ... it was evil.

This makes Vlok only the second apartheid minister to unconditionally apologise for apartheid and the first to accept the evilness of apartheid. (The other being Leon Wessels who has unconditionally apologised for apartheid but stopped short of accepting that it was evil.)

I still struggle to a degree with the Vlok apology, especially seeing as he claims to have known so little. But then why apologise and go through all of this – yet pretend not to know? Suggesting he did know very little.

Question is then if he accepts overall responsibility for his department? I imagine he would.

SA in top 30 for doing business

FIN24 (Cape Town) -- South Africa is the easiest country in Africa and 29th in the world to do business in, the World Bank said on Wednesday.

According to the World Bank's annual "Doing Business" report, which ranked 175 economies in terms of regulations that enhance or constrain business, South Africa came out tops in protecting investors and enforcing contracts, while also scoring high in starting a business.

Kinda flies in the face of all those who say that it is impossible to start and/or do business in SA? And yes there are other less rosy reports, but this is the most widely read/respected World bank report.

Vlok apologises

JOHANNESBURG (SABCNews) -- Adriaan Vlok, an apartheid era minister of police, has apologised to Frank Chikane, the director general in the Presidency, for all the atrocities committed by police under his command.

Chikane says Vlok requested to see him because he regards him as a symbol of many other victims of the conflict in the past.

During their meeting, Vlok told Chikane that he wanted him to accept his "small but profound gesture of penance and thereby forgive him and assist him to humble himself and reconcile with his God and conscience."

After reading out a verse from the New Testament Bible, Vlok insisted on washing Chikane's feet to complete his mission.

I have to be honest – this is difficult. Vlok (as minister of Police) was responsible for the deaths of friends of mine and for making my life a living hell.

On the simplest level the fact that he has apologised is huge and after thinking on this I feel that I (as a direct and indirect victim of his crimes) am able to forgive him. It's not easy but I feel that forgiveness (both requesting and giving) is a very important part for those involved and really a huge part of the process of moving on.

That said Vlok is late, way late. The elephant in the room is the TRC. Why did he refuse to go before the TRC? Does he think that an apology now wipes his slate clean absolving him of telling the victims the truth?

In short no.

So apology accepted - but he is still at the mercy of the courts for his crimes.

Thatcher was wrong

LONDON (UPI) -- Tory leader David Cameron has denounced former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's branding of Nelson Mandela's National Congress as "terrorists."

Cameron's remarks in London also suggested the Thatcher administration was wrong in opposing sanctions against the apartheid regime in South Africa, The Observer reported.

Well yes everybody with half a brain accepts this now but the point is how few accepted it back then and frankly Thatcher was wrong – very wrong. So hats off to Cameron for being prepared to speak the truth, even is some two decades late. The west helped keep Apartheid alive and burying their head in the sand doesn't make that fact go away.

Busted

The wire-tapping program here in litigation has indisputably been continued for at least five years ... obviously in violation of the Fourth Amendment

ANNA DIGGS TAYLOR – federal judge, ruling that the NSA no-warrant surveillance program violates the Fourth Amendment of the US Constitution.

Bush is crap, says Prescott

London (UK INDEPENDENT) -- John Prescott has given vent to his private feelings about the Bush presidency, summing up George Bush's administration in a single word: crap.

Not sure his boss, Blair, would agree but he certainly he's not beating around the bush.

Free wi-fi

San Francisco (FIN24) -- Google on Wednesday said it plans to offer free, high-speed internet access to everyone in its Silicon Valley hometown - a hospitable gesture that the online search leader hopes to see spread to other parts of the country.

The new wireless, or "Wi-Fi" network, is believed to establish Mountain View, California, as the largest US city with totally free internet access available throughout the entire community, according to both Google and city officials.

This is were communications ultimately moves to - free, albeit slowly and of course some say that free wi-fi is actually bad!

Is Israel now safe?

So now that Israel has destroyed Lebanon – is Israel safer?

COSATU; prove it or shut up

Last month COSATU marched on the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) demanding that charges against Zuma be dropped. The COSATU claim was the old “conspiracy theory” behind the removal of Zuma as potential future president of South Africa.

But then last week Vusi Pikoli (head of the NPA) has fired back essentially calling COSATU's bluff.

He replied;

Therefore, if COSATU is serious about its allegations of a conspiracy within the NPA against Mr Zuma, and if COSATU has the necessary evidence to substantiate these allegations, I also wish to challenge COSATU to make use of its constitutional right to dispute any of my decisions relating to Mr Zuma in (a) court of law.

In other words prove it or shut up. COSATU and other friends of Zuma have been running around for over a year ow claiming a conspiracy – but they've produced exactly zero evidence. Even the initial court filings for the corruption charges made no mention of the conspiracy theory.

Pikoli then went further adding;

If COSATU is not prepared to accept this challenge, then COSATU must refrain from making further unsubstantiated allegations. COSATU's statements and demands clearly speak of ignorance of the law and disrespect for the rule of law, the constitution and the independence of the judiciary.

At last somebody prepared to seriously stand up to the friends of Zuma crazies.

Airline terror attacks thawted

Once again the capture by police of alleged airline bombers – this time planning to blow up ten transatlantic planes simultaneously – proves that the route to beating terror is not via invasion but via intelligence.

Unfortunately we're going to be living with the deeply flawed invasion theory for a very long time as the Middle East continues to descend further and further into warfare and chaos.

Lastly the hope is that they got the right people as the British police seem to have a habit of shooting the wrong people “by accident”.

Homophobic hogwash

Homophobic hogwash for all gay marriage bashers.

Ramaphosa for president

You know things are a foot when even afro pessimists are saying glowing things about South Africa.

This was exactly what's been happening for the last three days after weekend papers reported that Cyril Ramaphosa was going to stand for president of the ANC. This piece of news suddenly gave South African's a way out of the Zuma worries and they grabbed it with both hands.

Of course the irony is that Ramaphosa is an old union leader and COSATU commented that they didn't comment on ANC leadership issues, oh really?

Lastly is breaking news that Ramaphosa has denied that he is seeking the presidency of the ANC saying that it was for the ANC to decide. Well he would say that wouldn't he? Further we need to remember that in South Africa candidates don't announce themselves – they get nominated.

Overall perhaps a subtle testing of the waters from a candidate that the Zuma camp is going to find hard to trash?

Loony comment of 2006

We've highlighted some seriously loony posts/comments before (here's one of the more loony from the past).

So in the spirit of that I bring you the loony comment of 2006;

There is no need for conservatives to lie, fabricate, or distort. Liberals have to -- because everything they believe goes against human nature and history has proven them to be wrong on almost every major issue.

Peace is hard work

I have had a number of emails asking about my views on the Israel/Lebanon/Hezbollah and frankly I have been far to busy traveling to be fully on top of what's really happening never mind to blog on it. But three thoughts.

The response from Israel seems more then just over the top. Three captured soldiers (agreeably an act of war) do in no way justify the destruction of a country, especially when at best one can only indirectly blame the country (Lebanon) for the capture of two of the soldiers. The new Lebanon government has only just got out from under the control of Syria and have had no control, nor any ability to control, Hezbollah.

Secondly it seriously shows up the stupidity of the Bush Middle east view. The primary claim about bringing peace to the Middle East by invading one country and sinking it into civil war. Further the Bush policy of refusing to engage with “terrorist” states is also been shown to be just stupid. In nearly all situations more is achieved with a little talking then can ever be achieved with war. As things stand Bush/Israel need to engage Syria and Iran in the current mess – but can't as they apparently don't even have back door channels of communication.

A last point – is anybody really surprised by the current escalation in violence in the Middle East? Seeing as no person/country was actually doing anything to bring real peace to the region what else was ever going to happen. A random out breaking of brotherly love?

Peace is hard work and if nobody is putting in the effort it isn't going to happen.