Gugu Before I joined SASCO I was writing. When I was in SASCO I kept on writing. I will continue writing even now that I have left SASCO. No idea must be left uncontested. As for a column, I think what I have on the Mail&Guardian is enough.
As for a lot of time, being a worker, all the time I have is to work. However, I have a responsibility to utilize my mental faculties and I will utilize whatever space I have. If that offends you or anyone. Goodluck. Regards Lazola Ndamase On Tue, Mar 27, 2012 at 10:52 AM, <[email protected]> wrote: > ** > I was about to say something to that effect Sive. > > I think I should get Lazola a column in a paper- he seems to have a lot of > time on his hands these days and has no sense of understanding where he has > to channel his energies now post SASCO. > Sent via my BlackBerry from Vodacom - let your email find you! > ------------------------------ > *From: * [email protected] > *Sender: * [email protected] > *Date: *Tue, 27 Mar 2012 08:13:20 +0000 > *To: *<[email protected]> > *ReplyTo: * [email protected] > *Subject: *Re: [YCLSA Discussion] Re: Frank Chikane's book: From the > bookshelves to our dusbins - thats where its headed > > U r starting with these things that will make people say "you are a > rambo"??? Lol > > Will read through now Nyawuza... > Sent via my BlackBerry from Vodacom - let your email find you! > ------------------------------ > *From: * Lazola Ndamase <[email protected]> > *Sender: * [email protected] > *Date: *Tue, 27 Mar 2012 10:11:09 +0200 > *To: *<[email protected]>; yclsa-eom-forum< > [email protected]> > *ReplyTo: * [email protected] > *Subject: *[YCLSA Discussion] Re: Frank Chikane's book: From the > bookshelves to our dusbins - thats where its headed > > DUS*T*BINS: SORRY > > On Tue, Mar 27, 2012 at 10:10 AM, Lazola Ndamase <[email protected]> wrote: > >> *FRANK CHIKANE’S BOOK: FROM THE BOOKSHELVES TO OUR DUSBINS* >> >> >> With its dramatic subject matter, comrade Frank Chikane’s book which >> centers around the emotions of a former head of state and his ilk when he >> was shown the door was destined to dominate headlines and our gossip >> columns. But will its momentary popularity carry it into the future? I >> doubt. >> >> >> As a society emerging out of the ruins of apartheid, South Africa is not >> just fluid but volatile and requires sharp minds to point it to the >> promised-land. The transformation process in our country remains one of the >> most complex transitions in contemporary society, vexing even the most >> dynamic intellectual minds. The reason for this is that there is little >> historical reference to learn from about how to successfully steer a >> negotiated transition which contained major compromises on the economic >> front versus the aspirations of the great majority of the oppressed, on the >> back of whose votes the movement was elected. On occasion our young state >> literally has to learn from itself. >> >> >> Such a complex situation necessitates us to develop a milieu of a robust >> and lively public discourse: one that draws the necessary lessons from our >> immediate past and on the back of which builds for the future. >> Contributions to the public discourse by homegrown intellectuals of various >> hues have to be weighed from the standpoint of drawing necessary lessons >> while mapping the way forward. Those that are bound to make their mark and >> register their contribution to the march of history are only those that >> will use their intellectual acumen to fulfill this necessary requirement. >> Heaps of scrap metal from our past that Chikane piles on our public >> discourse, however mouthwatering, provide very little for us going forward, >> and that remains the major lacuna of in his book. >> >> >> Of course, any society worth its salt will always use historical lessons >> as a compass on how to measure the steepness of the hills to climb ahead. >> And this I do not discourage. However, the temptation, encouraged in his >> book, to assess historical questions emotionally demobilizes any probing >> intellectual mind and calls on us only to emote, sit in the corner and >> sulk, rather than appreciate the difficulties as we march forward. History >> must be approached critically, from all angles, with an intention of moving >> forward. >> >> >> Another major weakness in it is that it tells us the wrong story. >> >> >> With all its faults, our country is not a dictatorship. The principal >> problem we face as a country, thus, is not one of a degenerating capitalist >> democracy sliding towards tyranny, but one of a failing economic system >> that has left millions, economically, in dire straits. Thus, we are faced >> with a failing bourgeois society, primarily its economic edifice. >> >> >> In the past decade our country enjoyed between 4-7% GDP growth but >> achieved such high levels of unemployment estimated to be well above 30%. >> This is coupled with the fact that since 1996 – that magical year – Higher >> Education’s share of the total budget has decreased by a whopping 20% in >> real terms. It is not surprising then that the majority of young people >> loiter the streets; some sit at home, watching the sun-rise and set, >> without any prospects of attracting employment, however exploitative. >> >> >> We are one of the most unequal societies in the world: a country where >> the rich rake billions while millions live below the bread-price. We are >> well aware that the perennial problem of capitalist economies is their >> perpetual reproduction of combined and uneven development: poverty and >> opulence, side by side, but what we do not have, is an insider account of >> why the government – since 1996 – ineptly discarded the notion of growth >> through redistribution for growth before redistribution through fiscal >> austerity such that we find ourselves with jobless growth. Having been >> located where he was, Chikane could have been well-placed to provide >> answers on this front. But he did not. >> >> >> Thus, as we probe what caused a country with the most progressive labor >> laws managed to allow one of the most exploitative capitalists such as >> labor brokers to operate right underneath its noses with impunity, without >> so much as doing something about it, “Eight days in September” will clearly >> not be our reference book. We will have to look elsewhere. >> >> >> Taken from the standpoint of what matters, it will remain but a footnote >> in the wider book about the problems and solutions of what besets us as a >> nation struggling to define its development path. Despite flying off the >> shelves of bookstores, this book offers nothing in the study of the causes >> of the myriad of problems faced by South Africans on the economic front and >> thus donates itself only to the harsh gnawing criticism of mice in dusty >> shelves of our cupboards in the long term. >> >> >> Sumptuous tales, such as those it provides, are most likely to capture >> the feelings of South Africans for a while, but are not going to last the >> mile when hard questions need to be answered that should take our society >> forward. All it does is act as a diversion. Rather than a peripheral issue >> that focuses on the feelings of a former head of state, our public >> discourse must be firmly focused on helping us reach our economic crown. >> >> * >> * >> >> *Lazola Ndamase is a member of the ANC* >> > > -- > You are subscribed. 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All you have to do is to send an e-mail > to this address (repeat): [email protected] . > > -- > You are subscribed. This footer can help you. > Please POST your comments to [email protected] or reply to > this message. > You can visit the group WEB SITE at > http://groups.google.com/group/yclsa-eom-forum for different delivery > options, pages, files and membership. > To UNSUBSCRIBE, please email [email protected]. > You don't have to put anything in the "Subject:" field. You don't have to > put anything in the message part. All you have to do is to send an e-mail > to this address (repeat): [email protected] . > -- You are subscribed. This footer can help you. Please POST your comments to [email protected] or reply to this message. You can visit the group WEB SITE at http://groups.google.com/group/yclsa-eom-forum for different delivery options, pages, files and membership. To UNSUBSCRIBE, please email [email protected] . You don't have to put anything in the "Subject:" field. 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