Book Review: Charles Dickens’ England

A literary travelogue of Victorian England

Rating: 3 out of 5

The influence of Charles Dickens was undoubtedly great for two vastly different reasons; of course one was for his writing but the second was possibly more importantly was his expose of the injustices & iniquities of Victorian England. Roy Hattersley, ex Labour Party Member of Parliament, goes so far as to claim that his contribution was seminal in the awakening of the British conscience to the appalling conditions that were inflicted upon their less fortunate fellow citizens.

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South Africa: Does it suffer from an Existential Dilemma or Crisis?

The fundamental existential dilemma facing South Africa is the trite question, “What is South Africa?” This question is posed as I believe that South Africa is not currently secure in its identity & ambition.

Firstly what is existentialism? I have used disambiguation in its use & existentialism in its metaphorical sense as it normally is understood as meaning the worth of life in a descriptive & not a prescriptive conceptualisation of the meaning of life. Finally the standard definition bears the overriding caveat that it is applicable to humans only. By using disambiguation I imply that society merely represents a collection of individuals & hence it too can have an existential crisis.

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Large scale Army exercise in Bloubergstrand area in 1972

Main picture: In the Army in 3SAI Battalion during 1971 in Oudshoorn

Prologue

The decrepit Army Bedford truck noisily made its way into the unknown with its cargo of twenty troops aboard. With its back flap also tied down, its cargo was cocooned within its own world.

The reason for our for these measures was that our platoon was going to be the enemy – a band of terrorists – for a large scale Army Exercise somewhere in South Africa.

The destination was classified but there were two dead give-aways: we were heading west all the time & we had a map of our destination: Bloubergstrand.

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Amazing discovery

Scientists at CERN in Geneva have announced the discovery of the HEAVIEST element yet known to science!

AND yes . . . . .  it was discovered in South Africa

The new element is Governmentium (Gv).  It has one neutron, 25 assistant   neutrons, 88 deputy neutrons and 198 assistant deputy neutrons, giving it an atomic mass of 312.

These 312 particles are held together by forces called morons, which are surrounded by vast quantities of lefton-like particles called peons.

Since Governmentium has no electrons or protons, it is inert.  However, it can be detected, because it impedes every reaction with which it comes in contact.

A tiny amount of Governmentium can cause a reaction normally taking less than a second to take from four days to four years to complete.

Governmentium has a normal half-life of 2- 6 years.  It does not decay but instead undergoes a reorganisation in which a portion of the assistant neutrons and deputy neutrons exchange places.

In fact, Governmentium’s mass will actually increase over time, since each reorganisation will cause more morons to become neutrons, forming isodopes.

This characteristic of moron promotion leads some scientists to believe that Governmentium is formed whenever morons reach a critical concentration.  This hypothetical quantity is referred to as critical morass.

When catalysed with money, Governmentium becomes Administratium, an element that radiates just as much energy as Governmentium since it has half as many peons but twice as many morons.  All of the money is consumed in the exchange, and no other by-products are produced.

 

 

Grandma’s Home Remedies

“For better digestion I drink beer, in the case of appetite loss I drink white wine, in the case of low blood pressure I drink red wine, in the case of high blood pressure I drink scotch, and when I have a cold I drink schnapps.”

“When do you drink water?”

“I’ve never been that sick!”

The Catholic Altar Boy

‘Bless me Father, for I have sinned.
I have been with a loose girl.’
The priest asks, ‘Is that you, little Joey Pagano?’
‘Yes, Father, it is.’
‘And who was the girl you were with?’
‘I can’t tell you, Father, I don’t want to ruin her reputation.’
‘Well, Joey, I’m sure to find out her name sooner or later so you may as well tell me now. Was it Tina Minetti?’
‘I cannot say.’
‘Was it Teresa Mazzarelli?’
‘I’ll never tell.’
‘Was it Nina Capelli?’
‘I’m sorry, but I cannot name her.’
‘Was it Cathy Piriano?’
‘My lips are sealed.’
‘Was it Rosa DiAngelo, then?’
‘Please, Father, I cannot tell you.’
The priest sighs in frustration. ‘You’re very tight lipped, and I admire that.  But you’ve sinned and have to atone. You cannot be an altar boy now for 4 months. Now you go and behave yourself.’

Joey walks back to his pew, and his friend Franco slides over and whispers, ‘What’d you get?’

‘Four months holiday and five good leads…’

Brain teasers

1. Cost of a Ball

If a bat & a ball cost R1.10 but the bat cost R1 more than the ball, what is the cost of the ball?

 

 

2. What is the answer

11 = 20

87 = 151

92 = 117

63 = 93

72 = ??

 

 

 

 

 

 

Answers

1. Cost of the ball = 5 cents

2. 72 = 95