Two Sundays ago, I traveled to the nation's capital to attend what was billed as "the largest climate rally in history" and I haven't been able to get the experience -- or a question that haunted me -- out of my mind. Where was everybody? First, though, the obvious...
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Letter From Haiti: Life in the Ruins | by Amy Wilentz
Sometimes you can't help but be sickened by the behavior of certain international organizations helping Haiti recover from the devastating January 2010 earthquake—hit, that is, by a wave of real physical nausea. The other day, I spent an afternoon in the displaced...
Pampering of rich too costly | by Dick Forslund
Speculation is rife in anticipation of next week's budget speech. Will Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan announce tax increases? Might the tax rate for personal income above R617 000 increase to 42 percent? Might it even return to 45 percent for the portion of income...
Editorial : Polokwane to Mangaung: five wasted years: What prospects for the Left?
Polokwane has come and gone. Mangaung is upon us and the prospects for the left remains the same: quite dismal, at least inside the ANC, with its current power configurations. Talk of a 2nd transition or of a Lula moment conjure the illusion of a break with what's...
Neoliberal land & agricultural policies at heart of farm strikes | by Mazibuko K. Jara
The heroic and historic strike by thousands of farm workers in the Western Cape has struck at the heart of the ANC government's neoliberal policies on land reform and agricultural policy. The strike marks the beginnings of much-needed mass struggles to challenge white...
A mineworker’s wage: The only argument against the R12 500 is greed
Marikana has left the nation in shock. Everyone hopes that the judicial commission of enquiry set up by President Zuma will shed light on what led to the police killing of 34 workers on the 16 August 2012. Lest we forget, eight workers and two policemen were killed...
It’s the coal, stupid
South AfrIca's coal-fuelled development path delivers jobs that are less than decent and results in massively negative externalities – water contamination, air pollution, loss of farmland and community commons and livelihoods. With theexception of Sasol, coal is still...
Solidarity for beginners: Palestine/Israel conflict PART 2
Why is Jerusalem a problem? For millennia, Jerusalem has seen three major religions – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – settle in this area, the centre of the 'Holy Land'. Issues abound but all revolve around the historical settlement patterns for these religious and...
Solidarity for beginners: Palestine/Israel conflict PART 2
Why is Jerusalem a problem? For millennia, Jerusalem has seen three major religions – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – settle in this area, the centre of the 'Holy Land'. Issues abound but all revolve around the historical settlement patterns for these religious and...









