Gugulethu Hlekwayo

More than a century ago a man was killed on a public street in broad daylight in a particularly brutal murder. The story of Ishmael Buggas's death presents us with an insight into the neglected histories of the underclass of Cape Town; the ordinary Indians, Malays, Coloureds and Blacks whose lives are often absent from the pages of South African history.

On the 28th of November 1906 Ishmael Buggas, an Indian general dealer, was set upon by three or more men on Muir Street in District Six in the hours before noon...

Historical Approaches, Volume 7, 2009

Imagine for a moment that your life began on 1 July and ended on the 31st – say, 80 years of a life shrunk down to 31 days. What would your savings picture look like then?

In this scenario, you will typically start your first job promptly at 4:30pm on 10 July at the age of 25, after growing up and completing your education. If you are smart you will start saving as soon as your first pay cheque slides into your bank account 47 minutes later: a month in real-time.

But most of us choose to dally. Instead of starting to save at 25 – we wait until 30 (12 July at 3pm), 40 (16 July at midday) or even 50 (20 July at 9am).

It may seem like there is still plenty of time in this hypothetical lifetime – but remember that although we think of 65 as our normal retirement age, employment often ends at 60. So when 24 July rolls around and the steady stream of employment income dries up, the situation begins to look dire; much like when your salary runs out well before the next payday...

Allan Gray GrayIssue 168

Windhoek Lager wanted to announce their first year as the sponsor of the Windhoek Jazz Festival - as well as give away tickets - in an interesting and engaging way. I wrote a noir-inspired script that gave the details in an interesting way. My favourite work in advertising.

Apparently I'm a nigga, despite the fact that I'm not American. If you're black you have probably been called one too. In the interest of self-discovery I've decided to find out just what a nigga is and how I might become better at being one...

Sax Appeal 2010

If we are to trust politicians (and as a profession, politics by its nature attracts morally dubious individuals) to not be led by corporate interests, we might as well legalise the more overt forms of bribery. The needs of the corporate persons will soon overrule those of living, breathing people and society in general. The few corporations that have publicly declared their contributions include MTN (R13 million to unnamed parties) and SAB Miller (R5 million to the six biggest parties), but there remains a silent majority. A more prudent system would force parties to reveal their sources, ensuring they are not unduly influenced by the private sector. But the political will to implement this is lacking. A utopian solution would be publicly funded campaigns which ensure that parties are only accountable to the electorate and not business interests, but it would take a brave party to threaten its cash flow in this way...

Varsity Newspaper, Volume 68, No 4

It wasn't the first pay cheque or the signing the contract - it was when beggars could suddenly tell that I'm the sort that can afford more than a Happy Meal at McDonald's. Suddenly I was employed and officially a rat in the rat race. Thoughts? Not many, because it happened so easily - as if I had been born into it. And in a way I have. The end goal of all this education is nominally to create pliable tax-paying citizens to keep the imaginary wheels of the economy rolling. To teach you how to make accumulate dough without baking any bread...