Violence was a call to action, plus five highlights from ‘Vrye Weekblad’

Here’s what’s hot in the latest edition of the Afrikaans digital weekly

30 July 2021 - 06:46 By TimesLIVE
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Maybe the vioence and looting was the wake-up call we needed to prevent a far more serious revolt in future.
Maybe the vioence and looting was the wake-up call we needed to prevent a far more serious revolt in future.
Image: ANGELA TUCK

My first warning that South Africa was sitting on a ticking time bomb was in 1985 when I wrote an opinion piece for the Financial Mail that made the point that our bitter history of inequality, poverty, unemployment, race and class was a cataclysm waiting to happen, writes Max du Preez in this week's edition of Vrye Weekblad.

Yes, I was young and naive, but my projection of the future was echoed by some of the best analysts and commentators at the time. It happened again this week in this piece in The New York Times.


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With our bloody history and complex demographic SA appears to be the perfect recipe for conflict, even civil war.

For generations, Afrikaners have whispered about the visions of the Boer “prophets”, Siener van Rensburg and Johanna Brandt, where there would be a “night of the long knives” – the so-called Great Reckoning.

It might be too early to arrive at a sensible understanding of all the complex drivers behind the recent wave of unrest, but from what we can gather at this stage, it feels as if there might actually be something positive lurking behind it all – in the sense that it might not be the ultimate reason to pack for Perth or Toronto. Yet.

Maybe this was the wake-up call we needed to prevent a far more serious revolt in future.

I am convinced that it is still possible to put SA back on the path to economic growth and stability.


Must-read articles in this week’s Vrye Weekblad

FREE TO READ – IS FACEBOOK EATING YOUR BRAIN? | Your uncle Ben, the engineer, now suddenly believes the earth is flat. And Aunt Mary was a nurse but won't get vaccinated because she's heard it kills people. It is possible that more people are believing such stories, and why? 

IN AND OUT | Ramaphosa is not big on shuffling his cabinet, but he can't govern the country all by himself for much longer. 

WE MIGHT LOOK LIKE FOOLS  | The SANDF's peace mission in Mozambique might turn into an embarrassment due to the ongoing cuts to the defence budget and the army's diminished operational ability. 

WHAT YOU SEE IS NOT WHAT IS THERE  | People who believe conspiracy theories see the word differently. They see patterns that aren't there, are insecure about their relationships and are less likely to conform to social norms. 

XMAS IN JULY | This is your last chance to get 30% off a Vrye Weekblad subscription! This means a subscription is only R72 per month, or R64 if you are a pensioner.  


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