Local markets should benefit this year from renewed international approval, writes Donna Block. Go along for the ride It requires a great deal of boldness and a great deal of caution to make a great fortune, and when you have it, it requires ten times as much skill to keep it. Ralph Waldo Emerson made […]

Steven Friedman Worm’s Eye View Politicians can – and should – pass laws extending our rights. But only citizens can – and should – ensure that we use them. For some, the four Bills struggling their way through Parliament signal an ambitious government attempt to create a new society. They deal with core issues such […]

Eddie Webster and Glenn Adler A Second Look There is an increasingly widespread view in business circles and among conservative columnists in the press that trade unions are the main obstacle to job creation, foreign investment and a new growth path. Some even evoke the labour-repressive Chilean or South Korean options to clear the way […]

Channel vision Last week I was harping on about how television delivers up its little shock tactics. Some crafty incubus waits until the audience is deep in mindless acceptance mode, then slips in a dart so sharp as to horrify. Last Saturday this happened in the middle of an SABC3 news bulletin. The effect was […]

What’s new? The lovely Ananova will soon be reading the news on the Press Association’s website – and working 24 hours a day without any breaks for eating or sleeping or visiting the bathroom. She is a vactor (virtual actor) or “synthespian” created by Digital Animations, and she uses text-to-speech software from Lernout & Hauspie. […]

Bob Woolmer >From the Pavilion I really get upset when I hear and read bickering within my own game. I was going to use the words “petty bickering” to start, but when it gets to the level of the president of the United Cricket Board (UCB) resigning, then petty goes out of the window and […]

The ordinary citizen will soon have the right of access to information held by public or private bodies, writes Barry Streek A massive breakthrough for human rights and accountability to the public was achieved in Parliament this week with the adoption of four Bills, which in terms of the Constitution must be signed by President […]

Director Henion Han’s intimate documentary, A Letter to My Cousin in China, provides insight into life as second-class citizens under apartheid, writes Andrew Worsdale Henion Han’s production company is called Spook-asem, which gives you some indication of the mix of humour and spirituality which imbues his work. To catch part of Han’s intense, self- effacing […]

Medical aid is now a right, not a privilege, writes Sharon Gill The new Medical Schemes Act affects every resident in this country. People who have, in the past, been denied membership to medical aid schemes now effectively have access to subsidised health services. One of the objectives of the new legislation was to level […]

Medical costs will not diminish until abuse of medical benefits ends, reports Sharon Gill `The medical scheme environment must not keep the sick and elderly out, but rather make sure we keep the young and healthy in,” says Neville Koopowitz, marketing director of Discovery Health. “Schemes need to balance their risk profile in order to […]