One thing I'm super proud of so far is this little baby. 🥹 It's been an idea in my head for years, and I've finally stepped out of my comfort zone. If you had told me I'd be brave enough to not only have a podcast but share very personal stories, I would have scrome. 🤣
Dina Pule? ANC tradition trumps right and wrong? How did she leave parliament the first time? Here is a reminder:
July 2013, President Zuma removed her as Minister of Communications. Even by Zuma's low standards, she was not fit for office.
A parliamentary ethics inquiry subsequently found that she had breached Parliament's Code of Ethical Conduct. Pule had failed to disclose material aspects of her relationship with Phosane Mngqibisa, enabling him to benefit improperly from government-related activities. She also misled the inquiry on key facts.
Public Protector Thuli Madonsela issued a report finding that Pule had acted unlawfully and unethically, concluding that she had "persistently" misled investigators and recommending that she apologise and repay public funds spent on Mngqibisa's travel.
And today, 13 years later, @CyrilRamaphosa thinks this doesn't matter. It matters to many voters and you can not wish us away.
Even if you don’t live in NYC, please retweet this and get the word out so that the ppl in YOUR city also learn that they too can have politicians who get things done if they mobilize and vote socialist in other elections! 🗣️
The Mayor of Cape Town, Geordin Hill-Lewis, calls us Stalinists when we ask that he puts policy measures in place, such as inclusionary housing and rent control/regulation so that Cape Town can be affordable for locals.
Please register to vote 🙏🏾
Christina Aguilera sings "What a Wonderful World" by Louis Armstrong at the grand opening of the Obama Presidential Center
It's one of President Obama's favorite songs!
Disclaimers:
1. This is long and self centered (typically 😅).
2. I don't get paid by X
I cannot imagine a life devoid of stories by:
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (Nigeria)
Ngugi Wathiongo (Kenya)
Khaled Hosseini (Afghanistan)
Claire Hajaj (Palestine et al)
And even though I've intentionally chosen to focus less on western literature,
I can't imagine a life without stories by:
Charles Dickens,
Danielle Steele,
George Orwell
Guys,
Please read as diversely as possible.
It will open your mind.
Growing up Zimbabwean libraries were packed with literature from all over the world.
I read pacesetters from Nigeria,
Followed dramas from Sweet valley High in the USA,
Followed the Hardy boys,
Nancy Drew,
And read about British summers as told by Enid Blyton.
I was born and raised in semi-rural Gwanda - Zimbabwe,
But as a child,
Just from reading and films- I had the worldview of someone who was extensively well traveled.
South African films like "Asinamali" and "Sarafina" conscientised me about the evil that was apartheid just across the border,
We would sing about Nelson Mandela,
When SA got Independence,
My friends and I were ecstatic at only 10 years old.
I'm currently reading "The Arsonist's city by Hala Alyan,
Through it I'm understanding more about life in Lebanon and Syria,
Which gives me context about the current crisis in the middle East.
Now,
When I hear Israel has bombed Beirut yet again,
I understand that at a deeper level than before I read novels written by survivors of that violence and their descendants.
Just last week I reviewed "The poisonwood bible by Barbara Kingsolver,
It's just a story about a couple and their 4 daughters,
But it's set in Congo and talks about the assassination of Patrice Lumumba,
And the hand of Belgium, France and the USA in the destabilization of Congo.
From reading it I can clearly see the third hand in the current crisis in the DRC.
And from reading it,
I now understand why we have so many Congolese immigrants in Zimbabwe,
And I empathise with them.
Please read.
In a world where traveling isn't always feasible,
Reading books set in different countries
Is the next best thing.
🚨🗣️New: Thierry Henry reacts to the Brazil, Morocco, and Netherlands press conferences, where questions in Spanish were reportedly not permitted for Hakimi, Vinícius Jr., and Frenkie de Jong:
“I have covered World Cups for years, and this situation makes absolutely no sense to me. You’re telling me a World Cup co-hosted by Mexico can stop journalists from asking questions in Spanish? That’s like hosting a Formula 1 race and banning cars from using their engines.
We saw it with Hakimi. We saw it with Vinícius. Now we’re hearing similar stories involving Frenkie de Jong. The players understood the questions. The journalists spoke one of the most widely spoken languages on the planet. Yet somehow the language became the problem.
Gianni Infantino talks about inclusion, diversity, and bringing football to everyone. Fine. Then explain this contradiction. How can FIFA celebrate diversity in every promotional video and then create headlines because Spanish journalists are being told to switch languages at a tournament hosted by Mexico?
Spanish isn’t some obscure dialect spoken by a handful of people. It’s the language of hundreds of millions across the Americas and beyond. If a journalist from Mexico, Spain, Argentina, Colombia, or anywhere else asks a question in Spanish and the player understands it, why is football creating barriers where none existed?
The irony is unbelievable. FIFA keeps telling us football belongs to everyone, but this controversy has many fans asking whether some voices are more welcome than others.
Maybe there’s a logistical explanation. Maybe it’s a translation issue. But perception matters. And right now the perception is terrible.
Because what fans are seeing is simple: a World Cup hosted partly by a Spanish-speaking nation, players who understand Spanish, journalists who speak Spanish, and officials telling them not to use Spanish.
If that’s progress, somebody needs to explain it better. Because from the outside, it looks like football’s governing body is tripping over its own message.”
“FIFA wanted a celebration of diversity. Instead, they’ve handed the internet a controversy that won’t stop being discussed.”
🎼 Steppin' Out With My Baby
📺 Tony Bennett: An American Classic (NBC)
🎙️ Tony Bennett feat. Christina Aguilera
🗓️ 21th November 2006
👥 @Xtina@itstonybennett
A geração de hoje JAMAIS seria capaz de entregar vocais, dança e presença de palco como, por exemplo, Christina Aguilera entregava nos anos 2000 e isso é um fato!
"Being a good person is more important to me than you being a huge celebrity or popstar."
Love hearing this from baby @xtina . Iykyk, but it's true a lot of popstars are just performative and greedy 🤧
Se teve uma técnica que transformou cada episódio em um acontecimento, foi Christina. Entre conselhos sinceros, vocais ao vivo inesperados, looks memoráveis e momentos caóticos que viralizaram na internet.
Lançada em 2006 no álbum duplo Back to Basics, a faixa Understand foi escrita por Christina Aguilera, DJ Premier e Steve Wallace. Diferente de muitas músicas comerciais da época, “Understand” apostou em uma sonoridade mais soul e melancólica, trazendo vocais intensos.