It looks like one of the battle lines that will be drawn between the African National Congress (ANC) and the Congress of the People (COPE) in the upcoming election will be their takes on Bleck Economic Empowerment (BEE) which is at the heart of South Africa’s private sector affirmative action mandates. COPE has argued that BEE needs to be reviewed, although what that means is vague. In a pretty clear case of populist political positioning, Jacob Zuma has responded by asserting that BEE does need to be reviewed — and expanded. Expect this to be a major theme in the campaign, and a significant wedge that the ANC will exploit at every opportunity, understanding as it does that in the minds of most South Africans programs like BEE represent affirmative action, which represents the transition from apartheid.
A few months ago, I wrote about the early stages of the conflict in Ukraine through the lens of Sun Tzu’s The Art of War. While it appears likely that the war will carry on into the foreseeable future, enough time has passed for us to make an honest assessment of each side’s relative […]
The Ukrainian Army has made dramatic strides in the last few weeks. Ukraine’s tactical commanders have outfoxed their Russian counterparts, and by issuing a feint towards the south the UA has been able to earn substantial gains in the north of their country. The impact of these efforts have been compounded by the steady stream […]
In mid-May the Irish political party, Sinn Féin, won the plurality of seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly. Many American readers might not fully understand the significance of Sinn Féin’s political victory- but rest assured that subjects of the United Kingdom and a wide range of political movements the world over have heard the message […]
The first wave of the Russian offensive in Ukraine has fallen short of Russian autocrat Vladmir Putin’s ambitions. Most analysts deduced that Putin had hoped to achieve a decapitation strike of the Ukrainian government- taking Kiev and replacing Ukrainian President Vladimir Zolinski with a pro-Kremlin voice. Kiev has been threatened repeatedly through the course of […]
On the weekend of March 26th, the notorious MS-13 gang went on a massive killing spree in El Salvador which left more than 70 people dead by Sunday. Even for a country where powerful gangs hold massive sway, this recent tragedy stands out considering that it was the bloodiest day on record since the civil […]
