The despot circus endorses a new ring-leader

While the people of Egypt were fighting for their freedom, while the people of South Sudan voted overwhelmingly in favor of freedom from tyranny, while a democratically elected leader tried desperately to get the incumbent scoundrel to step down and hand over power, while an already deposed dictator fled from the wrath of the people he abused, and while fresh rebellion elsewhere was in the air, the established despots and wanna-be tyrants of Africa who make up the African Union (AU), voted in a new chairman.

And not surprisingly they endorsed a veteran with 30 years of ignominious rule adorning his résumé. All hail  Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, the pride of Equatorial Guinea, proud ally of the oil-obsessed USA, and now ring-leader of Africa’s despot circus.

Forgive me for thinking that the evolution of man started, and then stopped abruptly in Africa too.

Do you have the propensity to doubt?

I’ve been meaning to find out if people think that doubt is somehow a bad thing, and if they still consider trust a virtue.

Well then Mr. Wenger, so far so good, but not quite there yet

Dear Mr. Wenger,

I’m hoping to make this my last rant about your team selections. I’ve noticed the dramatic improvement in Bendtner. Seems all he needed was a firm kick up his Danish butt.

I’ve also noticed the remarkable improvement in Arshavin. His radar seems to have come on-line again; but perhaps some fine-tuning won’t hurt. I think you need to have a look at his boots though; maybe it’s affecting his shooting.

But I’m still pulling my hair out over Denilson. The guy is absolute shite. He’s getting worse by the game. His mind is definitely not on what’s happening on the field; and he spends far too much time falling over and sitting on his arse. Maybe he needs some time off at Ipanema Beach [sitting on his arse] to get his head sorted out; or maybe a permanent holiday at some other club.

And while we’re noticing shortcomings, what about Chamakh? I’ve noticed that he craves to be inconspicuous on the field. He rarely gets involved in the action. What’s with that? Seems some of that laziness from Bendtner seems to have rubbed off on him too. Please get him sorted out very quickly; he’s certainly talented, but he still needs to put in the hard graft like everybody else.

Okay, I’m done.

In you we will always trust,

Sincerely,

Lenny

When despots start falling like dominoes

It’s a gratifying sign when despots start falling like dominoes. It means that poor people who have endured years of depraved government, have finally had enough…and are magnificently fighting back.

Zapiro, Mail & Gaurdian, 29 January 2011

Will the second year of the second decade of the second millennium, be the start of despot dominoes in Africa…and elsewhere. I most certainly hope so, and can’t wait for the despot-toppling fever to reach Southern Africa.

Perhaps we can prepare by having our own, albeit non-violent mini-revolution – by toppling the despots who deface local government with their fat ugly mutts, in the upcoming Municipal elections.

Government to spend R150-million fixing potholes…but why do I still get a sinking feeling?

There’s no doubt that our roads are in a really wretched condition. Going practically anywhere by road feels like participating in a slalom race; for those who care about their vehicles, or who don’t own fancy 4 x 4’s.

So while I should be welcoming the commitment by government to spend R150-million to fix potholes, I have this nagging feeling that something is amiss, given their appalling track record in spending taxpayers money judiciously; even this modest sum.

There’s the bothersome issue about tenders for pals and competence. We’re all too aware of how unduly susceptible our government is, about handing out tenders to their friends and family, but even more disturbing is that these beneficiaries invariably produce shoddy work, which goes unchecked because of governments infamous maladministration practices.

While we’re all familiar with government sinking obscene amounts of money down a big black hole; this pothole project may just turn out to be a case of sinking a large sum of money down thousands of smaller holes.

With all the heavy rains we’ve been getting recently, and this repair project only scheduled to kick off in March of this year, let’s hope that they still have potholes to repair rather than entire roads.

Getting and spending…

Just recently I was prompted to write about William Wordsworth’s famous sonnet, The World Is Too Much With Us. I now understand why this particular piece of poetry sticks in my mind.

It has much more significance than the materialist tendencies of man and the destruction of nature. One line in particular stands out for me when it comes to the ugly world of politics:

getting and spending we lay waste our powers…

But when it comes to politicians the line might as well read: getting and spending we lay waste our tax revenues.

And in South Africa, one man stands out like an ugly train-wreck when it comes to gross profligacy. He’s none other than Jacob Zuma, the President [I say the President rather than our, because he does not represent me, nor do I suspect many others as well].

We’d hardly gotten over the fact that he spends upwards of R15-million of our taxpayers money yearly, on his multiple wives and children, when we were forced to accept the cost of the bloated, fuck-useless administration he concocted just to provide employment for an assortment of sycophants and other palm-greasers’. Now we learn that he spent around R17-million of taxpayers money on wining and dining 15 African leaders [term used loosely] before and after the World Cup held here last year. This oozing slime-fest was attended by a veritable who’s who in the despot zoo; Mad Bob and Teodoro leading the display of the worst that Africa offers.

I’m not even factoring in all the other idiotic schemes that Zuma wastes our money on, on a daily basis. This one however is the most galling. To think that my taxes are being lavished on the slime of the universe…aaarrrghh.

This particular act of piracy worked out at about R1-million per Head of State [which included their wives]. Apparently Zuma invited all 53 HOS’s from Africa. Should we be pretending that we were lucky they didn’t all attend? That would have put us out-of-pocket to the tune of R53-million? Perhaps not, because as sure as death and taxes, Zuma has pissed away that saving, somewhere else…

What is even more infuriating however, is that the taxpayer doesn’t seem too concerned with these acts of lunacy. Have we become that numb to government’s extravagant misuse of our taxes?

Ok Mr. Wenger, so you dared…

Dear Mr. Wenger,

They say “who dares, wins.” So you played Bendtner anyway…and won.

I’m not going to take any credit for instilling some urgency in that lazy Dane; that was your doing. How you did it? Who cares! He played more football in that one game last night against Ipswich, than in all the games he’s played since the beginning of the season.

Let’s hope his arse stays in gear, and he performs like this for the rest of the season.

But now, I need to question your judgement with regard to the bumbling Brazilian and the radarless Russian. Denilson’s tackling is woeful, and he seems to have forgotten what his teammates look like because he has made a habit of passing the ball to the opposition. As for Arshavin; his passing is way off the mark, and I think some of that Bendtner laziness has rubbed off on him.

Can you do something about these two? How about docking them some of their pay for every boob during a game? And I’m not referring to the female supporters.

As always, in you we trust.

Lenny

Please Mr. Wenger, don’t you dare…

Dear Mr. Wenger,

I know you’ve been telling us repeatedly that you can’t play the same team all the time. And yes, that’s true; we understand that players need to rest and recuperate and thus you need to rotate them.

But please don’t for the love of the beautiful game, ever start with that lazy-ass Dane Bendtner, ever again.

I know you’ve been telling us repeatedly that your players are starting to have great belief in themselves and their ability to win games. And yes, that’s true. However, Bendtner has great belief that the ball will magically come to him as he strolls lazily around the park.

Please Mr. Wenger, if he doesn’t start making an effort to get to the ball, get rid of that loser as quick as you can. But in the interim, he should be given time off to get into shape; he does not belong on the same field of play as the others.

In you we will trust.

Lenny

The World Is Too Much With Us

Of all the poetry I read way back when, while in high-school this sonnet written by William Wordsworth around 1806, is the only one from which I can still remember any lines.

I never really liked poetry, until well after I had left school and started deciphering and understanding (sort off) the lyrics of my favorite songs. But this sonnet impressed me so much because of a simple observation by Wordsworth; that the irreligious may have a much greater understanding of, and appreciation for the natural world.

The lines from Wordsworth that are still indellibly etched in my memory are “Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers” and “I’d rather be a Pagan suckled…” That’s it, but heres the rest:

THE world is too much with us; late and soon,
          Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers:
          Little we see in Nature that is ours;
          We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!
          The Sea that bares her bosom to the moon;
          The winds that will be howling at all hours,
          And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers;
          For this, for everything, we are out of tune;
          It moves us not.–Great God! I’d rather be
          A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn;                         
          So might I, standing on this pleasant lea,
          Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn;
          Have sight of Proteus rising from the sea;
          Or hear old Triton blow his wreathed horn.

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