Graham J Noble: Media Picks a Fight With Trump Over South Africa – Big Mistake

When the left-wing press insists something isn’t happening - it’s happening.

The establishment media has gotten itself into another fine mess, as the late, great Oliver Hardy would have put it. And, once again, it is destined for humiliation at the hands of President Donald Trump. On May 21, he hosted Cyril Ramaphosa, the president of South Africa, at the White House. This meeting came on the heels of 59 Afrikaners arriving in the United States – white South Africans of primarily Dutch descent who chose to flee a regime that is openly hostile toward them.

Rhoda Wilson: Echoes of Zimbabwe’s land grab....

Echoes of Zimbabwe’s land grab: South Africa’s President signs law that will enable seizure of white commercial farmers’ land

President Trump has threatened to cut off all future funding to South Africa due to the country's new land expropriation law, which will lead to the confiscation of land from white farmers. Trump says it is a “massive” human rights violation against white people.

Samir Bhattacharya: Two world giants are vying to control this vital resource

New Delhi is eyeing Africa for critical minerals that are instrumental in shaping the nation’s energy transition, as well as establishing it as a leading power in the Global South.

Lithium, frequently dubbed “white gold,” is pivotal to modern industries and technology. Rechargeable lithium-based batteries are essential in storing solar and wind energy as well as in powering electric cars. Lithium-ion batteries, which have a long lifespan and excellent energy density, are also utilized to produce consumer electronics goods such as laptops and smartphones.

Lushington D. Brady: Making Apartheid Look Like the Good Old Days

How the ANC have trashed South Africa

In his provocative, brilliant book, Empire, historian Niall Ferguson argues not only that Britain Made the Modern World, but that colonisation brought many benefits to former colonies. Ferguson, points, for example, to India’s vast and essential network of railways, and its strong civil service — both legacies of the empire.

Britain built lots of railways in South Africa, too.

They’re mostly lying in ruin, with the high voltage cables supplying them mostly stolen (which is how South Africa manages the feat of exporting more copper than its mines actually produce).

So, what happened?

Geoffrey Miller: Should New Zealand build bridges with the BRICS?

The BRICS are back.

Johannesburg will this week host the 15th annual summit of the BRICS, an acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

The loose grouping may be about to become tighter – and bigger.

Some 40 countries have expressed interest in joining the BRICS, which already represent over 40 per cent of the world’s population and 30 per cent of global GDP when measured using purchasing power parity (PPP).

Point of Order: Buzz from the Beehive - 31/7/23

Robertson congratulates the Black Ferns, Mahuta will watch the Silver Ferns – but does govt support help a team’s chances?

How our money is being spent – and misspent – is among the burning questions which Point of Order strives to answer by monitoring the government’s official website.

Today we can record a few projects proudly announced by ministers – but we can’t always tell readers how much is being spent because the ministers haven’t bothered including that information in their press statements.

Another question we like to ask relates to the whereabouts of our busy ministers – and their sporting interests.

Lushington D. Brady: The “Rainbow Nation” Has Gone Dark

It’s lights out for South Africa, literally

Whatever happened to the “Rainbow Nation”? The ’90s was a time of unbridled optimism that the world had finally changed for the better. Communism collapsed, and apartheid in South Africa ended. As Jesus Jones sang, I was alive and I waited for this … watching the world wake up from history. South Africa was going to be at the vanguard of a new, vibrant Africa.

Somehow, though, between the fall of the Berlin Wall and the Balkans War and the Clinton and Dubya presidencies, it all went to sh*t – and so did South Africa.