Lies, damned lies and statistics

Lies. damned lies and statistics. It’s a cliché that has been used several times in this column over the years. I have used it because statistical data, especially about employment and the cost of living, can influence attitudes, opinions and policy decisions. As...

Freedom vs dignity in art debate | by Nickolaus Bauer

How far can artists go in satirising or sending up the powerful? That is the essence of the ­brouhaha over Brett Murray’s contentious The Spear painting depicting President Jacob Zuma with his genitals exposed in a pose reminiscent of Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin....

Mike van Graan on The Spear | by Mike Van Graan

Brett Murray’s The Spear, a picture of President Jacob Zuma with his genitals exposed, mimics the pose of the Russian revolutionary Vladimir Lenin in a Soviet-era propaganda poster. Politicians, whenever they are exposed for having said something offensive,...