Pakistan’s flawed and feudal princess | Comment | The Observer
Benazir Bhutto was a courageous, secular and liberal woman. But sadness at the demise of this courageous fighter should not mask the fact that as a pro-Western feudal leader who did little for the poor, she was as much a central part of Pakistan’s problems as the solution to them.
Simply saying that everyone has the vote doesn’t do it for me. Until at least two parties have been in power, i don’t think a country can have any claims to democracy. How many African countries have universal suffrage, and have peacefully changed the ruling party. I don’t know, but precious few I suspect.
South Africa presently has no opposition party that has any chance of meaningful power. Perhaps in time, the best option would be a split in the ruling African National Congress, but then the fear of violence and bloodshed will surely increase.
The ANC is now well and truly ensconced, with widespread corruption and syphoning of funds through all levels of power. Its clear that to rake in the bucks, you have to be a member of the ANC. And the problem of course is that it takes a powerful opposition to keep the ruling party on the straight and narrow. So while you are riding the gravy train what chances are there that you will join the opposition or split away.
Not until the abuse of power becomes absolutely clear to an educated majority of the voters.
Education is the key here, it may take a generation of educated South Africans before it becomes clear that the ANC should not be in power forever. While i am sure there are plenty of high minded moral ANC members - if i was a corrupt official I wouldn’t be that interested in improving the standards of education any time soon, nor would i be interested in expanding a diverse media through a free press, or supplying new media channels (say the Internet) to all points of this large country.
Some new photos from South Africa - Dorp means small town in the middle of nowhere (or in this case the Free State).
I remember arriving on a beach in Martinique with a group of Americans I worked for. The males, on seeing the almost naked french girls on the beach, attired in only string thongs, thought, based on past experience, that they were about to have sex. Perhaps not on the beach, but very soon.
Of course nothing could be further from the truth. There is nothing less approachable than naked french girls on a Martinique beach, attired in little more than red nail polish. But Americans at the time were not accustomed to being around real live naked girls unless they were about to get laid. My boss promptly checked into the hotel and spent the next few days fruitlessly strutting his stuff.
French television and billboard advertising will often use female breasts in a variety of formats, right in front of the poor impressionable kids during prime time television. No-one bats an eyelid, or pays much attention for that matter, including the kids.
I remember watching the BBC’s Newsnight a few years ago when Benazir Bhutto, the rather pretty Muslim ex prime minister of Pakistan was being interviewed about some serious political and religious matters. I forget what they were. During a long - perhaps 20 minute debate, her head scarf was slowly slipping backwards off her head. Was she permitted to appear in public without a head scarf? I didn’t know. Nor did she realize that her scarf was slipping off. The tension was incredible, was it going to slip off? A few times it was tugged back into position, but finally her head and hair were uncovered.
It was very sexy show. I can understand that some might find this level of titillation unacceptable, but had she appeared without her head scarf, I wouldn’t have given it a second thought, and might have paid attention to the arguments she was doubtless expressing with great skill.
The tea plant, Camellia sinensis, comes in many forms—black, green, oolong. What makes Camellia so healthful is its polyphenols, antioxidants that protect against cell damage and help prevent diseases like age-related decline, cancer and heart disease. But herbal teas like chamomile don’t have the same benefits. That is, all except one. The South African “rooibos,” meaning red bush in Afrikaans, has the benefits of Camellia without the caffeine.
Psychology Today: Tea from the African Bush
I have been addicted to Rooibos tea for several years now - excellent brew for the evening - but beware, it may not have caffeine, but it gives a little lift - not unlike the other Indian and Chinese herbs of the variety Camellia sinensis.