The Red Bag
The tradition remains till this day that when a junior advocate is briefed on a matter together with a Senior Counsel and the Silk is satisfied that the junior has commended themselves in the profession so as to warrant recognition for excellence.
The British Soldiers Who Raised a Lion in Their Barracks During World War II.
Somewhere in North Africa in the early 1940s, a British unit found an orphaned lion cub. The reasonable thing to do, report it, hand it to local authorities, move on, was apparently not discussed for long. They kept it.
The cub was fed on scraps, carried on shoulders, allowed to sleep in the barracks, and treated with the casual affection of men who had seen enough of the war to appreciate something uncomplicated. The soldiers named it, fed it, and watched it grow. It grew considerably.
By the time the lion was no longer cub-sized, the regiment had formed the kind of bond with it that defies practical explanation, the animal had been present for drills, meals, and the long stretches of waiting that make up most of a soldier's time in a theatre of war. It had become, by every measure that matters, one of them.
It was eventually sent to a zoo, which was the only responsible outcome once a lion reaches full size in a military barracks. Whether the soldiers who raised it considered this a satisfying ending is not recorded.
The story sits alongside a handful of others from the same war, a Great Dane officially enlisted in the Royal Navy, a bear that carried artillery shells in Poland, a dog that survived a torpedoed ship and three years of captivity. The Second World War produced an unusual number of animals that soldiers simply refused to leave behind.
Some things don't need a military justification. The men needed a lion. The lion needed the men. The paperwork caught up later.
@lawyer_humor As an attorney, I can say attorneys that do this kind of crap are always mid-tier attorneys at best. Top level attorneys know they have to work with opposing counsel and judges on future cases and know how valuable their reputation is.
If I recall, CJ Chasklason’s presence at this rally was one of rugby don Louis Luyt’s many grounds seeking Chaskalson’s recusal from hearing the SARFU case. The ConCourt rejected all of them.
Wow
According to the Financial Times, Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, asked his broker to make a multimillion-dollar defense investment weeks before the Iran strikes began
Allegedly his broker approached Blackrock to invest in their Defense ETF $IDEF which holds companies like Boeing and Lockheed Martin
The investment didn't go through because BlackRock reportedly flagged the request internally
Frightening.
Just in the legal fraternity, the list of hits and attempted hits is growing:
Chinette Gallichan - JHB
Paul Leisher - JHB (survived)
Bouwer van Niekerk - JHB
Thomas Murray - JHB
Advocate Coreth Naude - Umhlanga (survived)
Prosecutor Tracy Brown - Gqeberha
Advocate Pete Mihalik - Cape Town
Vernon Jantjies - Cape Town
David Mbazwana - Cape Town
Noorudien Hassan - Cape Town
William Booth - Cape Town (survived)
Weirdly, Iranian embassy in Pretoria notified us, Ukrainian diplomats, about opening a book of condolences in memory of ayatollah Khamenei and the military leadership of Iran.
I decided to respond - and do it in a public way. The letter explains why.
Your Excellency,
Mr. Ambassador,
Since you notified the Embassy of Ukraine of the book of condolences for deceased Ayatollah Khamenei and Iran’s military leadership, I feel compelled to remind you the following.
As military allies of the Russian Federation, the deceased leaders of Iran had on their hands the blood of thousands of Ukrainian citizens – men and women, children and elderly – killed with the help of the infamous Iran-made “Shahed” drones and other military know-how so eagerly provided to Russia by your government. Your leaders were complicit in bringing endless grief to Ukrainian civilians.
Being a person of faith, I try not to rejoice in the death of other people, even those who chose to be tormentors of my country that did nothing bad to theirs. But as someone who has spent three years to the tune of Iran-created machines of death howling every night in the sky over Kyiv and other peaceful Ukrainian cities, I cannot help but wish for every culprit to meet the justice they deserve. If not by human law, then in the face of God Almighty.
Ambassador, I do not know you personally and have no grudge against you. Sometimes good diplomats must speak for bad leaders and their policies. But I hope you understand that I won’t express condolences for someone whose death I do not mourn.
Sincerely,
Dr. Olexander Scherba
Ambassador
My company Birch Organisation repaired & put 2 SAPS vehicles back on the road FOR FREE.
I’ve offered Gen Voskuil (SAPS) to fix 200 broken SAPS vehicles FREE - 964 broken SAPS vehicles in WC - huge shortage of vehicles with each police station having between 6-12 vehicles out of action.
You only care about public safety if you love all South Africans
No vehicles No Police-
Stephen D Birch
https://t.co/kZOarmzUSp
After John Steenhuisen’s announcement yesterday, I have been approached by many party members to stand for the position of Federal Leader.
The DA’s internal campaign rules stipulate that public campaigning may only begin when the nomination period opens. That will happen later this month, which is when I will announce my intentions.
Whatever is decided, I will remain committed to stand for a second term as the Mayor of Cape Town. It is the DA’s biggest government and our strongest platform as we head into the local elections.
If I do stand for election as DA Leader, I would welcome a robust and principled process focused on competing ideas for the future of our party and our country. We have many excellent leaders, and an open exchange of ideas can only strengthen us.
Thank you to all those who have reached out to me. It is an honour to be considered, and whatever the outcome, our focus must remain on serving every South African and building a country of hope. 🇿🇦