Malema visits Orania

In a move which surprised many, ANC Youth League President and all-round firebrand Julius Malema today visited the Northern Cape white Afrikaner enclave of Orania.

In a move which surprised even more, he didn’t actually say anything particularly stupid.

Orania Movement president Carel Boshoff junior said in describing the mood of the talks with Malema and an ANCYL delegation there was no “shoot out” or “search for control” attitude during the discussions.
Boshoff junior said they did encounter differences in aspirations and vision between the two groups but it would not exclude further talks with the ANCYL.

Malema said he liked the attitude of the Orania community in that they were prepared to talk. He said the ANC government would always be willing to help those who try and help themselves.
“They co-operate instead of working against each other,” said Malema, adding it was a nice reality to be exposed to. [link]

I’m beginning to get a different impression of Malema. Yes, he does say some completely daft stuff, but he is always, always in the news. Never a bad thing during an election campaign. The media follows him everywhere in droves, just waiting for his next ill-thought, inflammatory comment, which gives him plenty of opportunity to put his message across to a huge audience. It’s a clever ploy and I reckon those people who thought he was really that stupid are actually the ones who were being fooled.

A Question of Trust

This whole “is the case against Jacob Zuma about to be dropped?” thing. Man, it’s getting complicated.
Why doesn’t someone take things back to basics and explain it in straightforward terms?

OK – here you go, then:

Jacob Zuma, out future President (in 3½ weeks) and who can’t be trusted is set to face charges of corruption, money laundering, racketeering and fraud. He is alleging that these charges, which were investigated by Leonard McCarthy of the Scorpions (who can’t be trusted), were instated by Thanda Mngwengwe of the National Prosecuting Authority (who can’t be trusted) and were being pressed by Bululani Ngcuka of the NPA (who can’t be trusted), are politically motivated by Thabo Mbeki (who actually can’t be trusted, either) .

In a new twist revealed this week, it appears that the South African Police Service (who can’t be trusted), and their Gauteng deputy provincial commissioner Richard Mdluli (who can’t be trusted) bugged the phones of the Mbeki camp and of the Scorpions (neither of whom, remember, can be trusted) and recorded some “potentially embarrassing information”, which the Zuma legal team (who can’t be trusted) are now threatening to release if the charges are not dropped.

Suspended national police commissioner Jackie Selebi (who really can’t be trusted) has denied knowledge of the clandestine recording activities of the Scorpions (who can’t be trusted) and other key players (who can’t be trusted) in the Zuma (who can’t be trusted) corruption saga.

All my information comes from The Times… Umm. No comment.

Meeting nice people

Lunch was chez Tall Accountant in leafy Fernwood with some lovely people and consisted of one of the biggest chicken salads ever created.
Seriously, it took three people just to carry the bowl. And there were only six of us there. Chicken salad sandwiches for the TA’s lunchtime fare this week, I feel.

Now I know what it’s like to be Jacob Zuma. Sort of, anyway. Pressing the flesh of prospective voters in hope of getting an X in your box.
Of course, there are some differences. I have more hair. He has more chance of winning his election.
Everyone has heard of the ANC, but unbelievably, I met some people today who hadn’t heard of 6000 miles… Yes, I was shocked too.
He didn’t have a MASSIVE chicken salad for lunch today*. I did. Maybe there’s other stuff too, who knows?

vote-tag-small
Click it – it’s magic!

What Jacob Zuma wishes he did have, apart from my good looks, charm and popularity among white people is a golden widget, like the one above. I have it on good authority that he is desperate for one and has even instructed mini-me, aka Julius Malema, to kill to get one. Well, Msholozi, you’re not having mine, even if you turn up with your mashini wam blazing.

Of course, no-one is 100% sure if JZ is guilty of corruption. I’m beginning to wonder if even he can actually remember. However, I know for a fact that I am pure as the driven snow when it comes to matters of giving and receiving illicit payments. So far, anyway. But as the desperation mounts and rumours begin to spread about who is in front and how far I am behind, that could all change. Probably around Wednesday.

Want to help out? Copy and Paste http://tr.im/vote6k into all the emails you send for the rest of this month.
Because – as Jacob would say – working together, we can do more.

* This is complete guesswork.

Today: a summary

No one particular subject has dominated my mind or time today, save for the post I was going to do about waking up with Madonna and Billy Joel. Not on the radio or on the TV – literally waking up with them. In my bed. 
I have no idea what they were doing in there. Sleeping, I guess. My wife is going to kill me, she was only away for one night and I end up sleeping with a pair of veteran multi-Grammy Award winning artistes.
Again.

From the ridiculous to the sublime. My iPod has been churning out high quality choons all day. This is unusual. I have had a number of very disappointing days music-wise recently. But a combination of Depeche Mode, Fifth Amendment, Skunk Anansie and The Pigeon Detectives has redeemed Steve Jobs somewhat. I shall let him live a little longer.

And back to the ridiculous. The pope and his überdaft comments on condoms and HIV.
I’m not religious. I don’t mind people worshipping me, although it sometimes makes a simple trip down to Pick n Pay quite an ordeal. But I recognise people’s rights to believe what they want to. And the catholic church doesn’t like people using condoms. Fair enough. They can preach their silly message if they choose to do so. But to suggest that the use of condoms actually exacerbates the spread of HIV is completely unfounded and dangerous.

“While it is not up to us to pass judgment on Church doctrine, we consider that such comments are a threat to public health policies and the duty to protect human life.”

French foreign ministry spokesman Eric Chevallier

With great power comes great responsibility and the pope is a very powerful man. His comments are disgraceful and should be withdrawn before they do real harm. 
Are catholics allowed to withdraw? Probably not.

Julius Malema isn’t on twitter. Gutted.

Natasha Richardson has died. spEak You’re bRanes is unimpressed with the outpouring of emotion.

The Employment Equity Act, 55 of 1998.

No person may unfairly discriminate, directly or indirectly, against an employee in any employment policy or practice, on one or more grounds including race, gender, pregnancy, marital status, family responsibility, ethnic or social origin, colour, sexual orientation, age, disability, religion, HIV status, conscience, belief, political opinion, culture, language, and birth.

“Birth”? Now they tell me.
I’ve been regularly discriminating against unborn people in my employment policies and practices since I came to South Africa. I have yet to employ either an embryo or a foetus and now I feel awful. And completely open to prosecution.
In my defence, the last time I interviewed a foetus (for a middle management position, as I recall), all I got in reply to some of my more probing questions was a slap from his mother.
Which was off-putting, to say the least.

Hero in a HalfShell

ZUMAPOWER!

Zumatello hits the election campaign.

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¼ of the world’s most awesome fighting team

Straight away, one can see the direct parallels:

Donatello (who wore the purple mask, of course) was the brilliant scientist, inventor, engineer, and technological genius. He was perhaps the least violent Turtle, preferring to use his intellect to solve conflicts.

Zumatello (who is wearing the red mask, above) is the brilliant ANC President, polygamist, alleged fraudster and political genius. He is perhaps the least trusted Turtle, preferring to use his friends as scapegoats to avoid prosecution.

6000 miles… does not condone the defacing of election campaign posters unless it’s really, really amusing and you send photographic evidence to us here chez 6000.