Dani on the state of the nation

I solemnly pledge myself to the service of humanity and will endeavour to practice my profession with conscience and with dignity.
I will maintain by all the means in my power the honour and the noble traditions of my profession. The total health of my patients will be my first consideration.
I will hold in confidence all personal matters coming to my knowledge.
I will not permit considerations of religion, nationality, race or social standing to intervene between my duty and my patient.
I will maintain the utmost respect for human life. I make these promises, solemnly, freely and upon my honour.

This is the oath pledged by nurses that practice within South Africa today and I find it disheartening that a promise with such eminence has become so meaningless and erratic.

Don’t get me wrong, I am under no misconceptions that nurses and health care workers should be paid more. You only have to watch the likes of Saving Soweto http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43sF56TF280&feature=channel
a documentary which follows a Trauma doctor through one of many 24 hour shifts at Baragwaneth hospital in Soweto SA) to see what atrocities and pressures our health care workers are put under every day; however; this is no excuse to place the lives of desperate people in jeopardy. This is no longer a strike, it is attempted murder.

The country is in chaos, some internationally may even call the breakdown of medical care and the sudden standstill of educational facilities a catastrophe. Not our government however. While the country sits on the verge of a national crisis Jacob Zuma is shipped off to China with fiancé number… oh who knows…. because according to ANC’s spokesperson Jackson Mthembu “the work of the government must go on.” Well call me selfish but surely the South African governments first priority is… well… South Africa.

The government sector is filled with holes and questions - Why is the government not implicating the promises made? Why are they not arresting violent strikers? How can our Unions make excuses for destructive employees who took an oath to “maintain the utmost respect for human life”? In most professions people have been fired or even jailed for less.

Sometimes I just wish South Africa could be run a little more like a powerful, passionate power house and a little less like a school playground – Hopefully then the head of South Africa “Pty Ltd”, Jacob Zuma, would be made to penalise those not contributing, inspire those that hold our country together and reward those who work hard.

But instead, here we sit. Sigh.

-Dani Moolman

Have you seen the real Spider Man?

He's french and his 48 years old:
http://www.alainrobert.com/
Unfortunately he doesn't save lives or do any good for mankind but the man can climb!
He has just been arrested (again) for climbing a 57 story building in Sydney. He's clombed some of the world tallest buildings and he does it all without any equipment. Creepy but pretty cool.

Swanning Around

While we worry about strikes, the break-down of our government and staying alive in South Africa, this is what the British are writing about

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/21/20100825/tuk-motorcyclist-hurt-in-swan-crash-6323e80.html

You gotta love a media group with far too much time on their hands. This poor swan though, no one said anything about his injuries. The article should have read something like this:

Man on motorcycle flies into unsuspecting swan

'While Sederick Swan was minding his own business yesterday, crossing the carriageway after a long day in the pond, he was hit by a man on a motorcycle. Reports say that the man wasn’t even looking where he was going when he collided with Sederick. Sederick sustained some minor injuries and is recovering well. Sederick’s family is glad that the man’s head, covered by a hard helmet, was not at the same level as Fredericks flight path. No one knows if the man sustained injuries nor do they really care ’.

Being schooled the hard way

Environmentalists and green nuts the world over have spent millions trying to convince indifferent populations to conserve our natural resources. They have endeavored to find a way to get us to realise the value of our natural resources before they run out. They have missed the simplest course of action available to them. Take it away for a day.

South Africans don't need to be told how precious our water is. We don't need to see campaigns on how to conserve electricity. The government has taught us how invaluable these resources are and they've done it the hard way; they’ve taken it away from us.

Every South African, whether rich or poor, has been without one or more resources for a day. We have first-hand experience of an energy crisis and know full well what it’s like to be in the middle of an important document at work only to find yourself in the dark, staring at a useless dead piece of machinery. Or what it’s like to be all soaped up in the shower only to find the trickle coming out of the shower head is slowly diminishing. Contemplating using toilet water to wash off your shampoo is probably more common in South Africa than you think.

We know how valuable our resources are, so we should be protecting them-with our lives. We should be showing the rest of the world how it's done. Either that, or the governments of the first world need to school them the hard way. I promise you that if they did that, environmentalists everywhere would hug a tree in thanks that people finally understood.

Gagging the Press

http://www.news24.com/Columnists/ChrisMoerdyk/Blaming-media-is-admitting-failure-20100823


Blaming media is admitting failure

I have absolutely no doubt that 99% of all media revelations of political intrigue, corruption, fraud and whatever sensational dirty dealings you care to mention are not initiated by nosey investigative journalists.

They are started by people within Cabinet, government departments, parastatals, public and private companies, religious organisations and sports bodies leaking information to the media.

It is human nature that whenever people get together to take a decision and one of them doesn't agree, something will be leaked to the media, shareholders or to staff.

Not only do they leak often extremely confidential information to the media but the more they don't get their way, the more annoyed they are, the more their egos are damaged, the more they sensationalise the information they are divulging.

So, when the ANC, Communist Party or anyone else call for media tribunals and protection of information acts, all it really means is that they have finally given up trying to keep control of their own people.

Then, as a last resort, they turn to shooting the messenger in an effort to save themselves.

However, I am not suggesting for a minute that the media doesn't get things wrong. Of course they do.

And yes, of course, the media is a business in which profit is a priority.

Press freedom like pregnancy

But, any media boss with half a brain will know that one sensational story or even a string of sensational stories will not result in any long term increase in sales.

Making money out of a news medium is about giving advertisers real, sustainable long term value. It takes a lot more than sensational content to build a quality audience. Quality content is what builds audiences.

But, getting back to restricting the media - the problem really is that press freedom is like pregnancy. Either you are or you aren't.

But, even so, South African media are not completely free to just do what they like without any recourse.

They are governed by self-regulation and whether or not one feels that this is sufficient is another story and maybe the media does need to look at its own rules.

The press is also governed by South African law.

Anyone who feels that the media has been misleading or libellous can sue the daylights out of them.

But, what amazes me is the number of politicians and business leaders here in South Africa who huff and puff in denial and threaten to sue the media, but then, when a push comes to a shove, they hardly ever do.

Very few actually go through with it and one cannot help but wonder why? The only logical answer seems to be because the press was right and they were wrong.

Another problem with things like the protection of information bill and media tribunals is that South African media consumption is no longer something that just emanates from South Africa.

Dozens have tried

News and information is being disseminated on the internet via social media as well as by massive global organisations like CNN, Sky and the BBC.

The South African government will very quickly find that they won't be able to stop any of these stories that are bothering them, through legislation. Because I suspect that the BBC, SKY, CNN and most of all Google, Twitter, FaceBook and others, won't actually give a hoot about any media restrictions we may have.

Dozens of countries have tried it and all of them have failed to keep the lid on.

Quite frankly, if our government goes ahead with the media tribunal or protection of Information Act, they might as well consider banning the internet, cellphones, satellite television and the importation of foreign newspapers and magazines.

Because that's the only way they will be able to stop the media from doing what it is doing right now. Like it or not, technology has effectively made the media untouchable.

It is, I firmly believe, better for a country to have an imperfect free press than no free press.

Comments by Dani Moolman:

The ANC has been fundamental in the free democracy we hold today. South Africa was deemed the shining light of the African continent and the ANC stood strong in its moral beliefs in freedom and equality.

This seems to be a far cry from where we are today; heading fast and furious back to our pre apartheid traditions of hiding information behind the façade of protection of information bills and media tribunals. Surely this is just the kind of offence ANC fought to abolish!

As a nation belted out our national anthem at this year’s 2010 FIFA World Cup it really dawned on me that we as a generation perhaps for the first time and maybe for the last sang our anthem loud and true. “As we live and strive for freedom in South Africa our land”

Malema says something Intelligent

http://www.thestar.co.za/?fSectionId=3268&fArticleId=vn20100823054117182C511957&fFeed=breakingnews
No, I'm not joking. For once the man has said something useful: (as a result, look out for flying pigs and perhaps a little snow fall)

'Julius Malema has warned the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) that the deaths of patients in hospitals arising through disruptions by striking public service workers would haunt it and that it would regret the consequences.'

'"You can't be proud that you took out a doctor from an (operating) theatre and a person died. Those are the disruptive (incidents) that will haunt Cosatu."'

'Malema said that while the Youth League supported the strike in principle, it opposed the violence by strikers.

"No matter how (unhappy) we are, they can't close down hospitals." '

The Community Strikes Back

http://www.thestar.co.za/?fSectionId=3268&fArticleId=vn20100823053032530C568133&fFeed=sanews

Yup, we are still talking about the strikes. But this time something positive has come out of government inefficiencies. The community is pulling together. The principle of Ubuntu is not lost.

I’m not sure if this has happened before, I don’t remember following the last strike so closely, but thousands of volunteers have given up their time to assist in hospitals while permanent staff is on strike. Volunteers are feeding patients, making beds, cleaning in the kitchen. It truly makes me very happy to see that South Africans have not given up. We are not ready to let go of all that is good in our country. We are not ready to watch it fail. This just proves that there is a new spirit in this country, attitudes have changed. People have stopped moaning and have started doing something. Instead of griping about the ‘state of our nation’ we are turning South Africa into the kind of place you can be proud of. The only thing I am ashamed of is that I was not one of these volunteers.

The change in attitudes may partly be related to the World Cup and the amazing sense of togetherness and patriotism we felt. It may also be because of this:
http://www.leadsa.co.za/

Lead SA is the most extraordinary initiative. Not extraordinary in what it asks of us, extraordinary in that it’s working. It calls South Africans to take action. It asks us to remember what it is like to care for others. What it is like to respect each other. What it is like to live in a great nation. It asks us to make that change. Download the call to action and join them on Facebook. This initiative could change South Africa forever. Make sure you’re a part of it.

An Opinion

Funilly enough, my friend sent me her opinion and the link to the article I already posted on without having seen it. So here is her opinion. Thanks Shivs

If you have chosen to be a nurse, you have decided to help the sick, to aid them in healing or to relieve their pain in dying, if it is so easy to "switch" from that respect to demanding that people who are in emergency situations must negotiate their ways through picket lines, then should you really and truly be in this job at all. The stories about this strike just sadden me.

Do I believe that nurses, doctors, teachers and the police deserve a decent wage - absolutely, do they receive it, probably not. Should they disrespect those colleagues who do believe in the sanctity of life or the importance of education - not one bit. I've heard it said on the radio - the nurses and teachers that are striking, threatening etc, are those who probably don't do their job properly as it is - we should make is so much harder to become a nurse or a teacher in this country, we should make them professions that are widely respected, where it is an honour to say you're a teacher or you're a nurse, even if they are not the highest paid, they are important, vital to this country's development and they should feel that need, even if it can't all come in monetary form.

Such a complex issue, the civil servants have a point, but they are losing support hard and fast due to their actions and disrespect, if they want support and respect they need to rethink their strategy.

Strike Action

It had to get violent. This is what stumps me and I’m sure what bothers all of you out there. Why get violent. For one, you lose public sympathy immediately, two, you lose government sympathy and three, you make us look like fools. Can’t you toyi toyi in peace? (I asked someone in the know and apparently that’s how you spell it).

http://www.thestar.co.za/?fSectionId=3268&fArticleId=nw20100820083409400C155628&fFeed=breakingnews

Read this article. This is a nurse who puts her job first, these are the kind of people we ought to celebrate. In the very same breathe, I must say that I am in agreement with the public service demand for more money. Not to suck government dry but perhaps a little redistribution of funds huh? What about those million rand car allowances being spread to teachers, nurses and policemen and women that could use a little extra money for you know…food! How about giving the people that earn less than R6000 a month a little bit of your travel allowance that affords you weeks in 5* hotels? Sharing is caring.

What makes me mad though is the method. Strike by all means, every nation in the world strikes. Some get violent (like the French burning tired in the streets) and our wonderful civil servants. Others, like the Dutch, cripple the government by staying home. No violence, no protests, they all just stay home for a couple of days. It works wonders. Lastly, emergency services should not strike….people are dying in hospital, babies are not being fed and cared for in neonatal wards and for what? The R300 or so extra you are fighting for? Come on South Africa. There are ways of doing things. You catch more bees with honey I think the saying goes.

Scary Stuff

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jK6l4dHN9hCJ_FEDRV2NPiEsO1nQD9HM9FI00
As someone who works in politics, it frightens the daylights out of me when people downplay the importance of governance. Once such example is the topic of the day, Wyclef Jean and his bid for the presidency of Haiti.

Unfortunately, he is not the only inexperienced and unschooled person running. The election poll looks a little like a South Park episode with Wyclef’s opposition including ‘Michel Martelly,( a well-known Haitian singer known as "Sweet Mickey" who is known to perform in diapers), and Jean Bertin, (the father of Miss Haiti, who will compete in the Miss Universe contest next week).’ Scary stuff.

Jean was born in Haiti and his uncle, probably one of the only candidates that should be running, is Haitian Ambassador to the US. There are also some Ministers and politicians running for Presidency. Before you go and say ‘yeah, how cool is Wyclef and how rad will he be as President of Haiti’, stop and think for a second. What are his motives here? How can he promise the people of Haiti that, like a father, he will protect them, provide their basic needs, govern in their interest when he isn’t even a politician? On the job training is not exactly ideal in this career. Of course as President he would have aides and advisors to assist him but he will have to make the ultimate decisions and if he has no knowledge of the cogs and wheels of political machinery, then how can he do that?

In addition to what seems to be a power hungry move for more celebrity status, Wyclef has been in some trouble at home because he failed to pay some 2million in taxes in the US. His former charity, Yele Haiti, was also investigated for financial impropriety.

For every decision made in government, for every request, every meeting, every transaction there are a million processes that allow them to take place. Some sort of knowledge of these processes is absolutely necessary for someone who will be tasked with building government structures, building infrastructure and distributing millions of dollars in development aide. Not an easy task for even the most experienced political leaders.

Haiti desperately needs to be led out of abject poverty and brought back onto the international stage with some dignity by a strong, wise leader. Ask yourself, is Wyclef Jean really that guy?

OUCH!

http://www.thestar.co.za/?fSectionId=&fArticleId=vn20100818043824167C217267

Even if you don't have time to read this article, there are some very bizaar claims going on. One man is claiming that he coughed up a rubber bullet and it came out of his nose a year after he was 'shot'. Before you ask how come he didn't notice it was in there, apparently it is quite possible for an object to 'quite comfortably slip past an eye and setlle behind it' . Are you kidding me? 'Quite comfortably'? I go bonkers when there is an eye lash stuck in my eye. How does this guy, who was apparently already blind in one eye, miss the feeling of a bullet 'slipping past' his healthy eye and lodging behind it?

The dude is trying to sue the Police for R3.3 million. I think they should pay him, just because that is the most insane story I have ever heard.

Still on Art

Just because this chick is so cool. Check out her work, she is amazing. Her exhibition is at the Everard Read. She has an amazing ability to capture movement. Her experience of South African life stirs up some old feelings and memories of dusty roads and barefoot play in South African streets. I love her stuff:
http://www.nicolataylor.net/

Art Anyone

On Saturday we finally went to the remodeled Everard Read Gallery. What an amazing gallery. http://www.everard-read.co.za/?m=2
We will most certainly be visiting it on a more regular basis. Especially the Circa. If i could live there I would. After contemplating how much money we would have to win and offer them to live in there we decided it would probably be easier to use said lottery money to pay the architect to replicate it instead. But wow!

I'm not sure why there aren't more galleries like this in Jozi and why we don't visit the ones that are around. I am making a new years resolution in the middle of the year that I will be exploring our art world with more dynamism from now on.

The short stick

Ba ha ha. The French have ended restrictions that barred people under 1.6m from joining the police force. Apparently the restrictions were introduced centuries ago and the French Labour Ministry have just ended them because they are seen as discriminatory.

Well duh? I'm surprised they lasted this long. I wonder why the French were worried about short people and their ability to protect and serve. Maybe they were scared that the short people wouldn't be able to run fast enough or jump over fences while the criminals (all very tall of course) evaded their little counterparts. I would think short cops could be of great benefit. Just think, they can hide in small spaces, dress like children and pick up secrets. Heck, they could even shoot criminals in the knee caps, thereby, hindering but not killing them. Genious!

I find this hilarious...

Oh my!

How do you say redneck...
There is a small article in the Pretoria news today:
Buffalo, New York: ' Navarro, a four-year-old cat, was found "marinating" in oil and peppers in the trunk of a car in Buffalo on Monday. Police officers heard the cat meowing when they stopped 51-year old Gary Korkuc to ticket him for running a stop sign. He was charged with animal cruelty and released. Korkuc denies he was planning to eat the cat, whihc now has a new owner'

Well what exactly were you planning to do with the cat Gary? And who marinates their food while it's still alive anyway....redneck!

Feeling the squeeze

http://www.timeslive.co.za/local/article595795.ece/Food-prices-set-to-soar-as-crunch-hits-farmers

Besides spelling ‘dairy farmer’s as ‘diary farmers’, this article is actually pretty boring. But that’s not the point. The point is that food prices are going to increase. Is it just me or does it feel like we are being squeezed till our eyes pop out. Unless you’re earning a sweet salary that allows you to ignore increases on all levels then this sucks. And it sucks big time. I’m starting to wonder if the money will ever just run out. What if one day our salaries can’t pay for our lifestyles and there are no increases because there is no extra money in the economy and the price of food and electricity and our basic needs just grows? Granted that goes against the fundamental principles of economics but my little brain sometimes wonders where all this money is meant to come from and where does it all go and when will it stop flowing?

Government is on strike waiting for an 8.6% increase. An increase that government can’t afford. This means the increase will come and so will retrenchment packages causing more unemployment and less people to pay taxes to pay for the increase….Eish!

I would like to go and live by the sea and eat fish I fished out of the water (if the Chinese haven’t raped and pillaged all of our seas by then) and grow vegetables and trade other things.

If you are worried about starving due to price increases then start your veggie gardens and stock up on canned goods. Another option is to invite yourself round to other people’s houses for dinner every night. You can pull the ‘surprise, just wanted to pop in and say hi. Oh, I see you’re cooking dinner….’ A side note: this tactic will only work twice at most. After that you will have to find new people to abuse. Good luck!

The Heart of Evil

If anyone has watched Lord of War with Nicholas Cage and seen the African Warlord depicted in the movie, you have seen a cinematic representation of former President of Liberia, Charles Taylor.

If girls are made of sugar and spice and all things nice and most boys of frogs tails then Charles Taylor is made of monsters breathe and Scorpions tails. The man is the very picture of evil. A warmonger disguising himself as a peacemaker, he backed rebels during the civil war who wove terror and fear through the hearts of Sierra Leone’s people. He smuggled arms, traded in blood diamonds, traded in humans, traded in death, raised child soldiers and a former aide said he even saw the man eat a human liver.

Charles Taylor was educated in America, after returning to Liberia and being dismissed from his government job for embezzlement, he went to Libya where he was trained in Guerilla warfare. Taylor returned to Liberia where he overthrew the government in the late1980’s, starting Liberia’s first civil war. After peace deals were signed, Taylor won ‘democratic’ elections in 1997. During his Presidency, Taylor backed the rebel Revolutionary United Front during the neighboring Sierra Leone war. He traded arms for diamonds and diamonds for arms, assisted rebels in murdering tens of thousands of people and displacing some two million people during the eleven year civil war.

Taylor has been on trial at the Special Court for Sierra Leone in the Hague, Netherlands since 2007.

Enter Naomi Campbell. Naomi Campbell is a witness against Taylor and is testifying about his gift of blood diamonds to her at a function in South Africa in 1997. Naomi Campbell (possessing the intelligence that only super models can) stated that the trial was a serious inconvenience for her and that she would only state that she received some ‘dirty stones’ from men she did not know. She also claimed that she did not know who Charles Taylor was.

Some people do deserve a RFS (Running F Slap) and Naomi Campbell is one of them. Never mind, looks like her testimony is being blown out the water by Mia Farrow and her ex- agent. Of course the retard knew who Charles Taylor was and what those dirty little stones were. Thing is, people like her are blinded by shiny objects and can’t be blamed for missing the monster behind the light.

Fire as deadly as Ice

http://www.timeslive.co.za/world/article593361.ece/Death-toll-rises-as-Moscow-smog-fails-to-shift

Wow, who knew that Moscow was a fiery pit of smog? One of the hottest summers in 130 years.
Whats scares me more are these statistics: 'In usual times 360-380 people are dying each day. Now it's around 700' . Mortality rate has doubled. That is a lot of deaths per day for a population of 10.5 million.

You would expect more people to die of the cold during Russian Winters than heat in Russian Summers. Heat and Russia is a bit of a contradiction in terms. Maybe this global warming phenomenon and government extravaganza (it's a beautiful lobbying platform for any power hungry politician) is more of a worry then us skeptics thought.

Cover yourselves and head for the hills, the sky is falling and the world is cracking beneath us. Not quite, but you get what I mean.

Seriously?

http://www.timeslive.co.za/world/article593916.ece/Taliban-kill-adulterous-woman

Are we not passed this yet? Just a little eye opener after Woman's day celebrations yesterday.

We forget that there is still persecution of innocents around the world. We forget how fortunate we are to live in a society that tolerates not only our indescretions but listens to our voices, a society that respects women for the most part and values our contribution. It must be so frightening to be a woman in the Middle East. What is Human Rights if it is not the protection of your liberty? Where are the international organisations created to protect people against their own governments?

What a frightening world. We are lucky to be South African. We are lucky to be free.

The Dark Side

I read a story in today’s Mail & Guardian that has really got me thinking; are we not adapting fast enough? History has shown that the world turns, times change and society evolves. But what happens when the world is spinning so fast that people can no longer keep up?

Mark Rice-Oxley writes a gripping story of his battle with Depression in Mail & Guardian August 6. In an attempt to explain the vastness of the dark crevice he found himself in he writes ‘ There were days when I just sat on the bed and stared at the wall and wondered whether I was losing my mind, when even doing a child’s jigsaw puzzle would wear me out. Days, long joined-up hours, when I thought I would never work, write, parent, play or love again.’

The World Health Organisation has dreary prediction of our society’s future, predicting that by 2030 ‘depression will be second only to HIV/Aids in the toll it exacts on society’. Depression is a well known to lurk in dark corners, attacking even the most unsuspecting victims. It is an ugly monster, one that should be obliterated. So the question remains, why now, why in 21st century are we seeing a rise in depression.

Apparently, the most at risk population are woman and poor people. Causes vary from a major life event like the loss or change of a job, bereavement, relationship change. But mourning, career changes and new beginnings have been part of human life since the beginning of time. Obviously so has depression but not to this extent.
It is only my opinion (an uninformed one at that) that humans simply aren’t evolving fast enough to keep in the fast lane. My advice is this, if you feel like you’re falling down the well, reach out for help. If you feel like you’re accelerator is flat but you’re struggling to keep up then move to the slow lane. Take it easy people and don’t try out-run the wheel.