The Oil Crisis and the Search for a New Way of Living

Picture: howstuffworks.com Saliem Fakir - We live in interesting times that promise both peril and opportunity. Things have changed so fast within the span of just a year that it's putting a strain on our ability to adapt. It took five years from 2002-2007 for the oil price to go up by $60/barrel; but in the last 12 months, the price of oil surged by an additional $70/barrel. The surge in oil prices is making life for everybody uncomfortable, as its ripple effects are being felt throughout the global and South African economies. It...

The Fuel Duel

Is biofuel the answer for energy security? The simple answer is no, but it can play a role in an energy mix, argues Bjorn Stigson of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. Much also depends on the new generation of biofuels that are being developed, which will not be dependent on food crops.  Looking for new solutions to the world's energy crisis, the tendency is that car producers and the oil industry are now divorcing says economist Ruiz Quintans. The automobile...

Sarah Palin Fails by Her Own Standards

Picture: McCain Blogette Steven Rosenfeld - Editors Note: You may also be interested in reading Top Ten Most Disturbing Facts and Impressions of Sarah Palin Is it ethical to support Sarah Palin? Five Reasons the World Wants Obama to Win How Obama Lost the Election Deepak Chopra - Obama and the Palin Effect and The world's verdict will be harsh if the US rejects the man it yearns for ********** Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin accepted the 2008 Republican vice-presidential nomination Wednesday night in a confident and insistent address...

Going on an Imperial Bender: How the U.S. Garrisons the Planet and Doesn't Even Notice

Picture: Soldier Tom Engelhardt - Here it is, as simply as I can put it: In the course of any year, there must be relatively few countries on this planet on which U.S. soldiers do not set foot, whether with guns blazing, humanitarian aid in hand, or just for a friendly visit. In startling numbers of countries, our soldiers not only arrive, but stay interminably, if not indefinitely. Sometimes they live on military bases built to the tune of billions of dollars that amount to sizeable American towns (with accompanying...

Rural Women and Land Reform: When will we move beyond the rhetoric?

Picture: gbaku Fazila Farouk - Pick up the promotional brochure of any government, NGO or corporate social investment programme and you will read that poor women are an important beneficiary group – if not the most important target of social relief and investment programmes. Many millions of Rand are raised and spent in the name of alleviating the plight of poor black women, particularly those living in rural South Africa. For all the time, money and effort put into such programmes, one has to wonder why the...

The Apartheid Lawsuit

The Khulumani Support Group made headlines in May this year when it won the right to go to trial with its lawsuit against 23 international companies that aided and abetted the perpetration of human rights violations  carried out by the South African government under apartheid rule. Watch this clip to find who these companies are and how they helped the apartheid state.