Moving Along

The City Press gave over most of its “op-ed” (opposite the editorial) page to an article on unions, regulations, “flexibility”, casualisation and policy. These matters are rightly considered mainstream in this country and are not confined to a ghettoised section in the South African media. See the link below.

Likewise, we as the partisans of the working class must pay attention to developments in the media. The Sunday Times is going to deliver a daily newspaper unilaterally to its present subscribers, without at first asking them for extra money. They say there also will be a lot of related “digital products” to go with the new paper.

At the same time, COSATU’s hitherto “digital product”, the former COSATU Weekly, now called COSATU Week, is transforming itself so as to be capable of country-wide publication in hard copy. It seems that the integration of media is the way things are going, with the Internet as the central, commanding platform.

In August 2005 the CU picked up a story from The Scotsman which seemed to show that the Libyans who were convicted of blowing up a Pan-American Boeing 747 over Lockerbie, Scotland, causing great loss of life were not guilty and had been “framed”. That story is archived here.

Now it has been pointed out to us that a fuller investigation of this episode is available at the Sanders Research web site. There seems to be no doubt about the innocence of the Libyans. The writer’s own theory about the guilt of some Iranians is another matter entirely. See the link below. Second part tomorrow

The City Press carried a letter on Zimbabwe broadly in favour of diplomacy and against “loud” diplomacy. See the link below. This seems to be a widely-held and popular view. In other words, no bellicose ultimatums are called for by the South African masses. We do not want war. We want peace and the rule of law under democracy for ourselves and for our neighbours.

Yet the increased and worldwide public excitement on the subject of Zimbabwe since the ZCTU Communiqué of February 24 has caused all sorts of views to come to the fore. The second last item below is from a blog by a man called Stephen Gowans who is linked (or at least his blog is linked) to the CPGB-ML, a tiny British sect that campaigns in favour of Kim Jong-Il, Robert Mugabe, and until he was killed by the stooges of the USA, Saddam Hussein.

Gowans is busy accusing our very own Patrick Bond of taking tainted money for his Centre for Civil Society in Durban, and all because he and Bond do not agree about the nature of the Zimbabwean state. Bond previously went after Gowans in the (California) Counterpunch, here. Now is defending himself against Gowans’ counter-attack.

Where the once likes of Dave Spart of the “Private Eye” comic and Wolfie Smith of the “Tooting Popular Front” in the TV comedy "Citizen Smith" (see picture above) used to dominate one or two imaginary local pubs, now the passionate diatribes ring across the world via the Internet. When the first time was farce, what is the second time?

As usual, the point is to learn something. There is already plenty of sectarian absurdity in South Africa. It seems to be on the rise. It should not be taken too seriously, and never at its own valuation.

The last item is a late entry announcing four serious SACP Chris Hani commemoration events in Port Elizabeth, today and tomorrow.

Click on these links:

Unions need to draw a new line, Mpumelelo Mkhabela, City Press (1567 words)

Moving with The Times, Adele Shevel, Sunday Times (745 words)

Lockerbie Cover Up, Part 1, Iran Strikes Back, Sanders Research (1242 words)

Shouting will not help, Motlatsi Lebea, Letters, City Press (246 words)

Talk Left, Funded Right, Stephen Gowans, Blog (1393 words)

SACP celebrates life and times of Cde Chris Hani (363 words)