Let’s welcome Barack Obama and praise the United States
THIS weekend’s visit by President Barack Obama of the US has generated a tense debate. The Muslim Lawyers Association (MLA) have vowed to have him arrested when he touches down; and students of the University of Johannesburg (UJ) are opposing the awarding of an honorary doctorate of law on him. There is also opposition to Cape Town’s decision to accord him the Freedom of the City.
There is also, however, the silent majority like me, who think the US president must be warmly welcomed.
The MLA demand Obama should be tried for human rights abuses, relating to drone attacks on Islamic militants in Pakistan and Afghanistan, detainees on Guantanamo Bay, and the support of the US for the state of Israel. A dossier of over 200 pages on Obama has been handed to the National Director of Public Prosecutions.
I believe all of this is not based on reality but on misconception and misinformation.
The US’s contribution towards human development and technological advancement has made life better for all of us, and far outweighs whatever sins it is accused of committing. We all take for granted and never appreciate that the US and its citizens gave us so many technological advancements that have made life simple and enjoyable. The UJ students should reflect on life without computer technology and its applications.
For the past 10 years or so, the US has been giving money to the SA government in support of its fight against HIV/Aids. Success in halting the death rate can largely be attributed to this philanthropic support.
When we talk about human rights abuses, we look at the US keeping alleged terrorists in detention in Guantanamo Bay without trial. It cannot under any circumstance be compared to the evil we have seen being perpetrated against innocent people by so-called Islamists: the bombings at the Boston Marathon; of churches with worshippers in Nigeria and Tanzania; of college girls in a bus in Pakistan; of UN offices in Kenya, Tanzania and recently in Somalia; destruction of Christian churches in Egypt and recently in Central African Republic; the raping of Christian girls in Egypt and Pakistan – the list is endless.
The US as a state has never engaged in such evil deeds against anyone.
US support for Israel is not tacit endorsement of any human rights abuses against Palestinians. The US role is as a facilitator in the hope that the two sides will sign a lasting peace agreement. If Israel is left to fend for itself, a certain country that has vowed to wipe it off the face of the earth will use the nuclear bombs it is developing to do just that and the world will be the loser; 10 Jewish individuals have won the Nobel Prize in literature, 53 in economics, 13 in physics, 44 in medicine. This tiny country with its geniuses must be protected.
So let’s praise the US and welcome its leader. — Name supplied, Berea, East London
I THINK South Africa should strike a deal with Obama when he is here to give Guantanamo Bay prison to us in which to keep all our corrupt officials – and let them rot there. Have you noticed that when they come out of court after facing corruption charges, they lift their heads as if they are saying: “So what!”? And one hand in the pocket means they are proud of themselves, as they can silence anyone with what they can take out of that pocket. — Vuka, East London
Spread the word
I USED to be scared of donating blood but now I’m enjoying it.
We need to work towards a strategy that motivates more people to do so. It starts with me talking to the nearest personnel I mingle with, then the word spreading to the department or entities of state and the private sector.
The Department of Education should contribute through proper channels or even the syllabus.
Kids need to be told the value attached to blood donation. The Department of Health should also assist the good cause. — Sihele, via e-mail
MDon’t be a traitor
JUST 112 years ago, Boers that “joined” the British were named “Joiners” and were treated as traitors.
Nazir Alli [CEO of the SA National Roads Agency Limited] promotes e-tolling, the system for the collection of fees (taxes) where a significant amount of money has to leave the country, just for the act of collecting. He doggedly refuses to use the existing system for the collection of road funds, but aggressively pushes for a system that will every month bleed away our foreign exchange. [Austrian company Kapsch TrafficCom stands to earn about R669-million annually from SA’s e-tolling system.] All deliveries will cost more due to the need to collect more funds to be sent overseas.
Should you feel guilty if on a visit to Gauteng you pass under a gantry without paying?
No. If you pay the tolls, you become a “Joiner” as you have then tacitly approved of a scheme that will sentence everyone to work harder to generate the foreign reserves to pay for the collection of more taxes. We are not against the payment of extra taxes to fund the development and improvement POTHOLES in Westbank – where Strand Street becomes Molteno Drive, on the way to the race track – are making the road impassable if you are not driving a 4x4. I see municipal workers along that road often but they do nothing to improve the road or patch the holes.
Why are we paying taxes when we can’t even drive on our roads? — Carla de Bruin, East London