I was recently approached by the editor of Proud!, the new magazine of the dysfunctional protectionist cartel, Proudly South African. The brief was to write a piece about the great innovations in telephony at our telecoms incumbent Telkom. Stifling a laugh, I listened to the offer: work for half my usual rate, and use my byline to “lend the piece some credibility”. Naturally, I declined. Not so some other writers, one of whom penned a piece cheering South Africa’s electricity infrastructure. Apparently, it was “light years ahead”. I was unable to find out exactly how, because just at that moment the power failed, and the only light in the room was from my gas heater. (The content of this glossy brochure, bankrolled by the few remaining companies who pay Proudly South African for marketing, is only available to people who buy it at retail.)

Now there’s a new plan: given the exceptional service of Eskom, the monopoly electricity utility, why not raise prices? After all, other countries tax their energy use into the stratosphere. Why should a developing country with high unemployment and poverty rates pay less than Finland, Sweden or Canada?

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He might be crazy, period, but this fellow rants pretty eloquently about his dislike for the iPhone, its creator, its marketing, its fans and its features. Very funny (if a little crass). Nokia should send him a sales bonus.

Couldn’t agree more with John’s argument here. Whatever your views on whether the Iraq war was justified in the first place, or the reasons why it was justified, or how it has been conducted to date, the facts on the ground are what matters now. (I certainly don’t intend to re-argue this tired old debate.)

Those facts demand that the war is brought to a successful conclusion, so Iraq’s democratically elected government can govern the country and defend its people. To show that freedom is a common dream of all humanity, and not - as I wrote in this comment - just some cultural idiosyncrasy of the West. And even if you also disagree that there are philosophical or strategic reasons to win it, premature withdrawal will precipitate a humanitarian calamity far greater than the war caused. Greater, indeed, than Saddam Hussein brought on his own people. Sadly, it wouldn’t be the first time the so-called “peace camp” stood by and watched. Does The Killing Fields ring any bells?