but isn't it nice to know?
i went out and about to get some comments from durbanites about tonight's state of the nation address. we spoke to young adults who are in the process of being educated, south africans at one of south africa's reputable tertiary institutions. 99 percent of those we spoke to had no clue about what we were talking about. we were met with blank faces, distant gazes and even a group who proceeded to get up and walk away from us!
seriously, if those who are being educated do not know, then why sould we expect the masses who do not have the lurxury of an education, to know? i think the point is not to know everything, but to take an interest in knowing. particularly when it affects you.
Wednesday, February 09, 2011
Thursday, February 03, 2011
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Resurrection
getting back to jotting down my random ramblings has been something i've been meaning to do for a while now. so here it is... finally. i've also been inspired by some really awesome blogs and bloggers. take from these e-pages what you will, leave what you can't be bothered with.
i came into work this morning to news that nothing much changed overnight from cairo, egypt. protestors there are demanding the immediate resignation of president hosni mubarak. many people have asked me "why should we care?". good question. why should we? furthermore why should we put a hair out of place for the divide in sudan, the impending uprising in jordan or the political tug-of-war in the ivory coast? on a very basic level it comes down to the fact that we are all linked together as human beings existing on this earth together and at the same time. issues of democracy, survival and fighting for what's fair and just should be something we can all give at least some thought to. even if it does not directly affect us. it's what makes us human, surely?
and... registration for local government elections in south africa takes place nationwide this weekend. i have many times in the past blogged about the absolute importance of having your say. so i'll avoid the long ramble here and head straight to the main point that most non-voters make, "it doesn't matter anyway, we all know who will win". while at the moment that may have an ounce of truth, if all these people did go out and vote then perhaps change could and would happen. just last week the world joined south africans in praying etc etc for the recovery of nelson mandela. it was as if the man had already died, such were the eulogies being thrown about for all to hear. but madiba and so many others from your families and mine could only dream of a day when we, their children, could freely and openly vote.
for practicality sake it's quite simple. if you have voted in a previous local or national election, then chances are you are already on the voters roll and so do not need to register again this weekend. you can check at the IEC's website. there are many quick and easy ways to do this and all you need is your ID number. if you do need to register, the process is generally quick and efficient. and no, i am not a spokesperson for anyone. lol.
Resurrection
getting back to jotting down my random ramblings has been something i've been meaning to do for a while now. so here it is... finally. i've also been inspired by some really awesome blogs and bloggers. take from these e-pages what you will, leave what you can't be bothered with.
i came into work this morning to news that nothing much changed overnight from cairo, egypt. protestors there are demanding the immediate resignation of president hosni mubarak. many people have asked me "why should we care?". good question. why should we? furthermore why should we put a hair out of place for the divide in sudan, the impending uprising in jordan or the political tug-of-war in the ivory coast? on a very basic level it comes down to the fact that we are all linked together as human beings existing on this earth together and at the same time. issues of democracy, survival and fighting for what's fair and just should be something we can all give at least some thought to. even if it does not directly affect us. it's what makes us human, surely?
and... registration for local government elections in south africa takes place nationwide this weekend. i have many times in the past blogged about the absolute importance of having your say. so i'll avoid the long ramble here and head straight to the main point that most non-voters make, "it doesn't matter anyway, we all know who will win". while at the moment that may have an ounce of truth, if all these people did go out and vote then perhaps change could and would happen. just last week the world joined south africans in praying etc etc for the recovery of nelson mandela. it was as if the man had already died, such were the eulogies being thrown about for all to hear. but madiba and so many others from your families and mine could only dream of a day when we, their children, could freely and openly vote.
for practicality sake it's quite simple. if you have voted in a previous local or national election, then chances are you are already on the voters roll and so do not need to register again this weekend. you can check at the IEC's website. there are many quick and easy ways to do this and all you need is your ID number. if you do need to register, the process is generally quick and efficient. and no, i am not a spokesperson for anyone. lol.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
paradoxes
the day has come for a re-entry into this blog. it has been long over due and much has happened in the meanwhile but as usual there is always that one thought that has been chugging around the brain, that will lead one back to the blog.
i have been lucky enough to have made many zimbabwean friends, through my days at rhodes. 2 in particular have become sisters to me. we have lived and laughed together and i miss them now. zimbabweans have always had this undying positiveness about their country and the situation there-no matter how bad it got, that was home at the end of the day and somewhere they all want to return to. i've learnt a lot from them and been able to reflect on my own country and what i think about sa. and you know, inspite of everything we have going on; the horror of the xenophobia of late and the ever rising petrol price, this is an amazing place. so many things in life has shown me that the little things are what makes the difference and that is no more evident than right here at home. so instead of going on and on about the petrol rises-i'm focusing on the fact that we can actually fill out cars-instead of complaining about the cold-i know durban doesn't really even have a winter if we are honest, 99% of the time we have beautiful sunshine filled days. i drink water from my tap and not a bottle. i can still drive with far reaching green valleys rolling out in front of me, further than i can imagine what lies beyond them. i can buy an independant newspaper written by independant and free journalists.
if just for today i can stop complaining, i'll be the better off. we have so much!
today i like: looking at the glass half full
today i dislike: ... (i'll save that for tomorrow's post)
i have been lucky enough to have made many zimbabwean friends, through my days at rhodes. 2 in particular have become sisters to me. we have lived and laughed together and i miss them now. zimbabweans have always had this undying positiveness about their country and the situation there-no matter how bad it got, that was home at the end of the day and somewhere they all want to return to. i've learnt a lot from them and been able to reflect on my own country and what i think about sa. and you know, inspite of everything we have going on; the horror of the xenophobia of late and the ever rising petrol price, this is an amazing place. so many things in life has shown me that the little things are what makes the difference and that is no more evident than right here at home. so instead of going on and on about the petrol rises-i'm focusing on the fact that we can actually fill out cars-instead of complaining about the cold-i know durban doesn't really even have a winter if we are honest, 99% of the time we have beautiful sunshine filled days. i drink water from my tap and not a bottle. i can still drive with far reaching green valleys rolling out in front of me, further than i can imagine what lies beyond them. i can buy an independant newspaper written by independant and free journalists.
if just for today i can stop complaining, i'll be the better off. we have so much!
today i like: looking at the glass half full
today i dislike: ... (i'll save that for tomorrow's post)
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
all my people
listenin to: 5fm
people. yes i've been thinking about people. i've come to realise that people are more important than things and events and decisions and money and careers. all those things that we get up every morning to join the mass rat race in working harder and longer for. trying to outlast each other as fast as we can. i'm done with that i think. people are just priority or so they should be. easier said than done i know. but worth the effort. in the end.
people. yes i've been thinking about people. i've come to realise that people are more important than things and events and decisions and money and careers. all those things that we get up every morning to join the mass rat race in working harder and longer for. trying to outlast each other as fast as we can. i'm done with that i think. people are just priority or so they should be. easier said than done i know. but worth the effort. in the end.
Friday, May 25, 2007
waiting on the world to change
listenin to: lotus fm... yes i know
what an overdue post. life has been manic to say the least but here we are. india went into the 2nd test against bangladesh. it seems we have found a dynamic and young batting combination in the likes of karthik and jaffer. both are strong, talented and smart. a fair combination to the sehwag/ganguly/tendulkar dilemma. now i'm not saying they have replaced the latter, i mean who can replace a god like tendulkar but this is a good start for the next generation of indian cricket.
otherwise sport has not been kind to me. if i was the betting type i might have been bankrupt by no. india, the sharks and liverpool. how much more of this losing is legal? but we will come back.
otherwise for those of you more further than near, life has become interesting, challenging and damn scary. but this too shall come to pass. and so too shall the next and the next. that's generally how my circles work. there are great things coming up though. people are moving, friends being married, old friends coming together again, and new friends introducing new possibilities. flux.
today i like: weekend and clarity
today i dislike: the cold man
what an overdue post. life has been manic to say the least but here we are. india went into the 2nd test against bangladesh. it seems we have found a dynamic and young batting combination in the likes of karthik and jaffer. both are strong, talented and smart. a fair combination to the sehwag/ganguly/tendulkar dilemma. now i'm not saying they have replaced the latter, i mean who can replace a god like tendulkar but this is a good start for the next generation of indian cricket.
otherwise sport has not been kind to me. if i was the betting type i might have been bankrupt by no. india, the sharks and liverpool. how much more of this losing is legal? but we will come back.
otherwise for those of you more further than near, life has become interesting, challenging and damn scary. but this too shall come to pass. and so too shall the next and the next. that's generally how my circles work. there are great things coming up though. people are moving, friends being married, old friends coming together again, and new friends introducing new possibilities. flux.
today i like: weekend and clarity
today i dislike: the cold man
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
simply beautiful
listenin to: nelly furtado
at the start of this world cup i thought that this would be one of my last chances to see the traditional classic old fashioned strokeplayer and the man that walked to take guard with only minor swashbuckling and modern day bravado in mind. last night's game was an indication that there may be some time left for what i thought was an endangered species. the sri lankan captain played a beautifully timed innings. general cliche terms it a 'captain's innings', which it was. jayawardena comfortably fits into the mould of a dravid or a kallis (to a lesser extent). sublime strokeplay with little fuss or pandemonium around them. operating more as a test batsmen his abrupt appearance at the crease forced him to find the guts to remain there. apart from holding his wicket amidst the collapse, jayawardena pushed sneaky singles and turned them into gutsy sixes by the end of the sri lankan innings.
there is diverse opinion on the new, young, gung-ho generation of cricket. with the pro 20 world cup taking place right here in south africa in september, the more traditional aspects of the game like tests and patient innings are being replaced by runs and wickts as fast as any team can pounce. but yesterday's game proved i may have been a bit too hasty in my lamentation of good old fashioned, thinking cricket. maybe the time has not yet come for the thinking tacticion to exit the game. i hope this to be the case.
today i like: cricket and home tomorrow
today i dislike: crazy weather cape town
at the start of this world cup i thought that this would be one of my last chances to see the traditional classic old fashioned strokeplayer and the man that walked to take guard with only minor swashbuckling and modern day bravado in mind. last night's game was an indication that there may be some time left for what i thought was an endangered species. the sri lankan captain played a beautifully timed innings. general cliche terms it a 'captain's innings', which it was. jayawardena comfortably fits into the mould of a dravid or a kallis (to a lesser extent). sublime strokeplay with little fuss or pandemonium around them. operating more as a test batsmen his abrupt appearance at the crease forced him to find the guts to remain there. apart from holding his wicket amidst the collapse, jayawardena pushed sneaky singles and turned them into gutsy sixes by the end of the sri lankan innings.
there is diverse opinion on the new, young, gung-ho generation of cricket. with the pro 20 world cup taking place right here in south africa in september, the more traditional aspects of the game like tests and patient innings are being replaced by runs and wickts as fast as any team can pounce. but yesterday's game proved i may have been a bit too hasty in my lamentation of good old fashioned, thinking cricket. maybe the time has not yet come for the thinking tacticion to exit the game. i hope this to be the case.
today i like: cricket and home tomorrow
today i dislike: crazy weather cape town
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