Yesterday (Tuesday), USA president, Barack Obama and his vice-president Joe Biden, did the unexpected and left the White House to go out for lunch at independent burger joint Ray’s Hell Burger in Arlington, Virginia. It is reported that Obama ordered a basic cheddar cheese burger, with mustard, no ketchup, and a bottle of water. Biden also ordered a burger, his with Swiss cheese and jalapeno peppers. The two then proceeded to sit down at the wooden tables at the dinner after placing their order at the counter.
While they waited, Obama offered to buy burgers for all the members of the press pool — the reporters, photographers and other journalists who travel with him wherever he goes. All but five of the dozen or so there declined. No can you just imagine what it would be like when Jacob Zuma becomes president of South Africa and he decides to go out for lunch and he invites Julius Malema with him and they go to Nandos???
When I heard Obama’s acceptance speech this morning after he had won the vote, I felt a rush of blood to my head. It was hair raising. It is the kind of speech which would get anyone ‘revved up’. Not many people can speak as well as Barack. But we all know that being a good speaker does not mean being a good leader. But I have faith in Obama and if he lives up to what he is saying in this speech then he would have to go down as being one of the greatest leaders to have lived. Obama goes into the White House facing a global economic crisis and two wars (Iraq and Afghanistan). It is not going to be easy for him but as he has said all this time, “Yes We Can”.
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“If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.” These were the opening words to Barack Obama’s acceptance speech tonight when he found out that he would be the next president of the US. Obama has beaten John McCain by a large margin (at the time of writting this post it was Obama 338 - MCCain 160. That is more than double the amount). America will for the first time now have a black president.
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The drama in Zimbabwe seems to continue. Now there is a ship wondering around the oceans of Africa with tonnes of weapons and ammunition meant to be delivered to Zimbabwe. It seems that Mugabe is scrambling around to get as much ‘fire power’ together to help protect himself and his troops and at the same time use those weapons to start terrorising Zimbabweans in the build up to a potential presidential vote run off. Read the rest of this entry »
I am not a scientist or Al Gore but I think Global Warming is real. I was not a believer in the beginning but after what has been happening in Johannesburg this past week, it’s safe to say Mr. Gore was right, we are going through a profound change in weather patterns and I am suffering for it. It’s like a cold rainy winter in Johannesburg and most of Southern Africa is at the height of summer. That’s just crazy, don’t you think? I woke up yesterday to news that the high temperature for the day was going to be 16 degrees Celsius. At first I thought I had slept through the rest of the summer and woke up in July. However, I was wrong I checked my calendar and I saw it was still March. WHAT! 16 degrees in summer! Read the rest of this entry »