Opinion Pieces Archives - Page 26 of 43

Britain’s Greatest Military Disaster by a Third World Nation

By Dean McCleland in History, Military History 27 April 2015 0 Comment

What possessed Britain to attempt to subordinate a primitive, desolate country that was trapped in the Middle Ages? How was it possible that a third rate force could massacre 17 000 British soldiers with only ten survivors – a surgeon and an officers wife amongst them? This defeat even exceeded that against the Zulus at Isandlwana in Natal.

The country in question is Afghanistan, a country wedged precariously between two expanding Empires – the Russian and the British. The Russians under the Tsars during the nineteenth century were rapidly expanding eastward towards Alaska whereas the British were initially content on the Indian subcontinent.

Main picture: Alexander Burnes – Scottish explorer and adventurers & fluent Persian speaker

The Economic Forecast: Headwinds Ahead

By Dean McCleland in Current Affairs, Financial Matters 26 April 2015 1 Comment

Three economic criteria have dominated the world economy since the crash in 2008: the Central Banks have been mandated to maintain low inflation – not more than 1.5% – , Quantitative Easing and extremely low interest rates. All had one objective in mind: to ease the economy gently and gradually out of depression and to stimulate growth. The result has been continued deflation in consumer prices, moribund inflation while asset prices have surged. This scenario is unsustainable and will have consequences in the near future.

After galloping inflation in the nineteen seventies – the culmination of decades of Keynesian policies – inflation rates ratcheted up. The stimulant effect of the drug benignly known as inflation now presented deleterious effects. Drastic action was called for. Easy money flowed into unsustainable or delinquent assets such as leviathan but unproductive such as British Steel, British Airways and British Coal. No longer was the propping up of bloated uncompetitive entities viable.

Some Politically Incorrect Comments by World Famous People

By Dean McCleland in Current Affairs, History, Opinion Pieces 23 April 2015 0 Comment

Exceptions notwithstanding, probably none of the persons whom society has beatified with sainthood has an unblemished record. The lessor mortals fare less well. By now, Jacob Zuma is well known for his racist and misogynist comments. What about the Zulu King, Goodwill Zwelithini fanning the flames of xenophobia with his ill-advised comments? Finally it was an article by Jan Vermeulen entitled “This is why Gandhi’s statue was vandalised?” which propelled me to investigate further.

A case in point is Winston Churchill who is indubitably my history hero. Like all such luminaries Churchill was human. In the heat of moment, Winston did make some crass comments. Being an old-fashioned Imperialist and Royalist at heart – the last of a dying breed in the Nineteen Thirties’ – his vitriol was often directed at the Indian people & Gandhi in particular.

Main picture: Mahatma Gandhi Continue reading

What is the origin of “Kilroy was here”?

By Dean McCleland in History, Opinion Pieces 23 April 2015 0 Comment

Most people are vaguely familiar with the expression “Kilroy was here” but how did it arise and what was it real significance? This story must rate as no more than a footnote to history. Nonetheless it is tales like this that comprise the rich mosaic of life and provide its human interest.

Most people have sometime in their life seen the drawing of a bald head with an overlarge nose peering over a fence as it is now an iconic picture. Like us today, the Allies during WW2 – but mainly the Americans – had seen this quirky image adorning everything from tanks, vehicles to planes sometime during their service in the American military.

The Protea Hilton Hotel: Old World Charm Personified

By Dean McCleland in Opinion Pieces, Other Opinion Pieces 22 April 2015 0 Comment

Perhaps it is the faux Tudor architectural style which creates an aura of elegance and graciousness. But it is more than that. Being out in the country with the verdant hillocks to the north, the setting is exquisite. The immaculate gardens with its huge trees complement the decorous setting.

Having stayed there for the past nine weeks, I am still enamoured and am not ready to swop for a bland B&B.

Another Perspective on the Destruction of Statues and Monuments

By Dean McCleland in Current Affairs, Opinion Pieces 20 April 2015 0 Comment

Statues and monuments are an integral part of history. It is the future generations which bemoan their destruction and the loss of history, albeit painful. The misplaced notion that their obliteration will erase the impact of their milieu is fallacious. The desecration of 1700 year old Buddha statues by the Taliban in Afghanistan is just one exemplar of this ill-conceived notion.

Main picture: The removal of Rhodes statue from its plinth at UCT

Vandalism by ISIS in Mosul

A contemporary example of this barbarism was the wrecking of 3000 year old artefacts by the Islamic group known as ISIS. Priceless antiquities fell to the blows of these thugs. In their quest for religious purity, one vandal proclaimed that the items were being destroyed as they promoted idolatry. One of the items dating back to the 9th century B.C., depicted a winged-bull Assyrian protective deity, ‘The Prophet ordered us to get rid of statues and relics, and his companions did the same when they conquered countries after him,’ the unidentified attackers proclaimed.

Helen Zille: South Africa’s very own Iron Lady

By Dean McCleland in Current Affairs, Opinion Pieces 19 April 2015 0 Comment

No-one could call Helen Zille indecisive and not forthright in expressing her views. For this Helen Zille was christened Godzilla. Unlike Jacob Zuma who attempts to placate all factions within the party, Zille would not equivocate about her viewpoint. What will her legacy be and what is the prognosis under a new DA Leader, probably Mmusi Maimane?

A past in serving black causes

In spite of all the spurious and racist accusations against Helen Zille by the ANC and other black organisations, Helen Zille has an unsullied indisputable past in not only fighting the Nationalist Party but also assisting its victims. Zille began her career in journalism in 1974 as the political correspondent for the anti-apartheid nemesis of the Nationalist Government, The Rand Daily Mail.

Call it what it really is: It is Xenophobia

By Dean McCleland in Current Affairs, Opinion Pieces 15 April 2015 1 Comment

Like Mbeki in 2008, many government and ANC party functionaries have refused to label the latest outbreak of violence against foreigners as xenophobia. Why is there this reluctance to call a spade a spade, what was the spark that ignited the latest flare-up and what is the prognosis for future outbreaks?

It was like déjà vu. As I drove alone south on an almost empty N3 in the pre-dawn gloom towards OR Tambo to catch the early morning flight to Pietermaritzburg, I was astounded at the overt racism of the callers either in their justification of the attacks on the foreigners or their “humane human-rights” solutions to the problem.

All of the callers to the Early Breakfast show – as it is styled – on 702 Talk Radio were predominately from the townships.

Main picture: Xenophobic attacks halted business in Durban’s CBD

On the Horns of a Malema

By Dean McCleland in Current Affairs, Opinion Pieces 13 April 2015 0 Comment

The ANC has experienced breakaways and splits before. Historically the most significant was by the PAC in 1959. Of the most recent, Bantu Holimisa’s UDM was never going to be a threat to the ANC whereas Cope was potentially never a life threatening hazard but rather a less venal and self-serving version of the ANC itself. More ominously the EFF with its self-proclaimed populist radical policies are more lethal and hazardous not only to the ANC in particular but to SA in general. The dilemma for the ANC is whether to politically engage with them or totally ignore them. What is my prognosis for the EFF?

Main Picture: Julius Malema sings after addressing a group of soldiers in civilian dress at the Lenasia Recreation Centre Continue reading

The Politics of History: A South African Curse

By Dean McCleland in Current Affairs, Opinion Pieces 12 April 2015 0 Comment

Many organisations abuse History to buttress their credentials or to make political statements. It can also be used as a weapon in political disputes. The fluidity of the interpretation of events creates the ability to distort it for one’s own advantage. Currently it bedevils South African politics mostly as a weapon to silence the ANC’s critics by labelling even their own missteps as being the fault of Apartheid. Let us consider its past and its possible future.

Main picture: An unwitting victim of the war on the statues: The Horse Memorial in Port Elizabeth

The Opinion Pieces are an eclectic bunch on current affairs & history often with a human interest aspect. The Movie/DVDs reviews are mainly on documentaries with a smattering of movie reviews.

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