Archive for March, 2009
Monday, March 30th, 2009
Election time is an interesting time for us ordinary voters. We see all sorts of things from politicians.
The usual promises of better services, more of what they think we want.
It’s the same with politicians all over the world. The proverbial (and sometimes actual) kissing of babies.
In South Africa we are subjected to dancing politicians (for American readers, picture Hillary Clinton getting on stage and dancing and that’s what we have to put up with Cape Town’s mayor).
Of course we the electorate know we’re being played. So we pick who think will best represent us in parliament.
On tonight’s (Sunday) e-tv 8.00pm bulletin we were presented with Cape Town mayor Helen Zille meeting the ‘people’ in Khayelitsha. She ( mayor of the city in which Khayelitsha is part of) makes a call to one of her subjects to fix a broken tap in the area which had apparently been broken for a while.
In pure politician style, blaming ANC councillors for not telling her the tap was broken.
At least the news reporter for once told the truth about Helen Zille’s entourage of black supporters who accompanied her on the campaign trail in Khayelitsha.
She actually bused the ‘people’ in with her!!! Golden Arrow buses, nogal! Heaven forbid!
The camera of course showed close up shots of the mayor and ‘all’ her supporters (who fitted into two buses) in Khayelitsha wearing DA t-shirts.
Mrs Zille – on her high horse of course – has been trumpeting to the nation that she does not lie!
Other than fibbing about not threatening to call in the army to sort out taxi drivers and attempting to make the nation believe that she has wide black support when she buses obviously dark skinned people into the townships to exaggerate her support.
Polls are suggesting that the DA will get 16% of the vote in the upcoming elections. 4% more than last time.
If one considers that the same poll suggests the ANC will get 61% (67% in the last election) and COPE will get 15% of the vote, you could deduce that Mrs Zille is not making in roads in obtaining disgruntled ANC votes.
I personally know of no former ANC supporter who will vote DA.
She is likely to get votes from the Independent Democrats and other alliance partners.
So why pretend?
Because despite how she likes to portray herself as above the fray of South African politics, better than everyone else, the only one able to lead our city, country and province – she is just a politician like the rest.
Posted in election 2009 | 7 Comments »
Monday, March 30th, 2009
Rapport, the Afrikaans Sunday paper, has a tell all interview with Marilize van Emmenis, the woman involved in the Joostgate video in this week’s edition and on their website.
Joostgate must be selling lots of newspapers, because the saga continues unabated.
Marilize, who is 24 years old and a former dancer at Teazers, says the sex tape was made towards the end of 2006 and that there were three encounters, none of which involved sexual intercourse.
They met in 2005 at a club, when she was 21 years old.
After one visit, Joost started calling and sending smses, which then stopped for a while. Marilize continued that the phone calls and smses picked up again in 2006, becoming more graphic.
Because Joost had such a public marriage (an open marriage, if one was to believe what he told Marilize), she and boyfriend Anton decided to video tape a session with Joost, since no one would believe it if there was no hard evidence.
The Florence Nightingale of Teazers wanted the world to know the real drug sniffing, dirty talking, sex fiend.
Meanwhile at a celebrity golfing tournament at the Langebaan Country Club Estate in the Cape this week, Joost took some of his own digs at Rapport.
According to Rapport (who else) he made several jokes, telling his friends that spending an evening with him would get them onto the Afrikaans paper’s front page on Sunday.
He apparently took to the microphone at an evening function at the golf club and told guests that his family is his life and that no one takes on his wife and children.
Which will probably bring on another week of newspaper articles.
Why Joost is not keeping his mouth shut – like David Beckham did when photos of his liaison made it to the world – we will never know. And Beckham is an international star!
Perhaps Joost has some narcisistic thing going on and is actually enjoying the attention the tabloids are dishing out?
Rapport says it has no vendetta against Joost though. It only prints the news – and Joost is news.
Joost of course denies it is him in the video, but most people who have seen it seem to disagree.
Posted in celebrities, media | 2 Comments »
Sunday, March 29th, 2009
South Africa’s T20 team repeated their Friday night performance and defeated the Australians at Supersport Park this evening.
The Proteas put 156 runs on the board, losing 5 wickets.
For a while it didn’t look like they going to reach anywhere near that score, but debutant Roelof van der Merwe scored a quick 48 off 28 balls.
Albie Morkel and Mark Boucher put the finishing touches to give a respectable score.
The Aussies started off like they were going to finish off the score pretty quickly, but then started losing wickets when the SA spinners came on and continued to do so regularly.
With Ricky Ponting again not scoring runs and Michael Clarke taking his time to get to 27, it was again left to David Hussey, who couldn’t repeat his Friday night performance at the Wanderers.
As these T20 games go, things change very quickly and before you know it, it’s game over.
Posted in cricket, sport | No Comments »
Sunday, March 29th, 2009
Last Friday I had two separate conversations with two colleagues about politics.
Since political choices are personal, I don’t usually bring up the topic unless asked. Except on my blog of course.
Friday though I jokingly asked a colleague if he changed his mind about voting for COPE.
He said no, and then asked if I seriously wanted an ANC 67% majority.
Of course not, I replied. I want the ANC to govern with a viable opposition and I hope COPE is that opposition.
I have already given him some friendly advice to NOT VOTE DA! Fortunately he feels the same about the DA as I do.
The second colleague told me she’s confused about the election.
Since I had never discussed politics with her before and didn’t know her opinion, I told her to NOT tell me if she votes DA.
She replied, that she didn’t even want to attend church on the Sunday Helen Zille was appearing to the congregation.
She is an ANC voter who like me, doesn’t feel comfortable about voting for Zuma and Allan Boesak isn’t an option.
I mentioned the ACDP (since she’s religious) and the Independent Democrats, but she still looked confused.
My advice was, vote for whoever she wants to, JUST NOT THE DA!
I did my good deed for the day!
Posted in election 2009 | 21 Comments »
Saturday, March 28th, 2009
With less than two weeks to go to my first ever road race, I’m starting to feel nervous and excited.
I can’t say I’m as prepared as I wanted or intended to be.
If I knew 16 weeks ago what I know now, I would have paced my training a lot better and would have been able to run a lot easier. Hindsight is always 20/20 though.
Regardless, I am at the level I am and will have to accept it.
Today I went to Diskem and Clicks to price some energy and electrolyte replacement gel to take in the race.
It is damn expensive!
Diskem’s gels were priced from R15.99 per sachet. I found a brand at Clicks that cost R8.99 each.
Anything that will help make the race easier is welcome.
I am already planning for next year’s race, which will be on my birthday and have been recruiting a few prospective new runners to join me.
Posted in fitness, two oceans | No Comments »
