The woes of GM and Ford

Reading yet another article on the woes of the American car manufacturers, I was struck by how their own short-sightedness and reliance on gas-guzzlers has come back to bite them. The generalisation is that the European manufacturers have concentrated on improving fuel efficiency by focusing on diesel, the Asian manufacturers by focusing on petrol, with… Continue reading The woes of GM and Ford

Woolworths food that’s possibly genetically modified.

Woolworths has always been far ahead of the other big retailers when it comes to transparency, labelling, and removing contentious products. They’ve been quite progressive for example in removing anything containing MSG from some of their stores. Here’s a list of Woolworths products that may contain GM material, as supplied by Woolworths customer care to… Continue reading Woolworths food that’s possibly genetically modified.

20Twenty no more, take 2

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!! Sadly my misleading headline from March proved not so misleadings, and 20Twenty may really coming to an end. Do I really have to go back to one of the abysmal big four? Standard and Chartered seem to be acting like headless chickens with this move. Buy up 20Twenty, then realise they’ve made a mistake… Continue reading 20Twenty no more, take 2

Sweet, sweet Telkom

Yes, I still like Telkom. It’s been 8 fairly event-free months, with nothing more than the usual monthly daylight robbery. However, I recently gratefully received another lesson in anger management. As many of you know, I’m moving. No, not to Observatory, the signature was never forthcoming, and the slimy landlord (how I love to say… Continue reading Sweet, sweet Telkom

Debt as slavery?

Via Global Voices, I came across a post that got me thinking. At first I found myself agreeing with the sentiments, but then I began to reconsider. The post, by Gil. C. Schmidt, was entitled Eager to Be Slaves, about Puerto Rican propensity for credit. The basic gist was that people buy too much on… Continue reading Debt as slavery?

FLOSS and Free Knowledge Workshop 2

I didn’t manage to make it in person, but the draft of proceedings from the recent FLOSS and Free Knowledge Workshop 2 is now available in PDF format. You can also look at details of previous events on the Free Knowledge website.

Aches and pains

I hate getting sick. Not for the obvious reason – in fact physically sometimes its quite pleasant to have an opportunity to spend some time horizontally looking at the roof, or just lying on the couch reading. Rather, it’s the mental torture I put myself through. I’m doing all sorts of things that are supposed… Continue reading Aches and pains