This week, while at a game reserve, my family and I were treated to some of the classic South African tunes from the 1990s -- a time of hope and miracles, when popular culture reflected the great enthusiasm for the country's changes.
One song, by Vicky Sampson, "My African Dream," remains beautiful and haunting. Curiously, the man who wrote it, Alan Lazar, now lives in L.A., like me. I don't know much about him, but that seemed rather ironic to me.
The present wave of blackouts, DA political legend Helen Zille recently noted, has shown South Africa that the ANC is a failure. She added that South Africa could now, perhaps, move toward true multiparty democracy and rescue itself.
I do wonder if that wonderfully romantic political time, and all of its art, were something of a burden. They enabled the ruling party to behave corruptly and to dismiss criticism. A more "normal" country would not have tolerated it.
I think it is good that South Africa feels more "normal." With the benefit of distance, I am no longer judging it through an apartheid lens, where race and remedies for the past seem to be the most important priorities for the place.
Romance is a luxury you can enjoy when you have the basics covered, and when you are prosperous. South Africans neglected the basis for their prosperity. It has lost a tremendous amount of capital, both financial and human.
But perhaps it still has the social capital to recover. It needs a common identity -- something that can substitute for the volk that united Afrikaners behind a common nation-building purpose. Perhaps the nostalgia can be put to good use.
This week, we are tackling two major areas of contention between the Trump administration and Democrat governors: fighting crime, and redistricting. The president is sending the National Guard to blue cities -- and blue states are trying to stamp out Republican representation. Is this a civil war situation?
Special guests:
- Bradley Jaye -- Breitbart News congressional correspondent, on redistricting
- Tom Manza, California Business and Industrial Alliance, on Gavin Newsom
- Jon Fleischman, veteran California political expert, on the special election
- Dan Backer, veteran political lawyer and consultant, on corruption
- DJ Mark Anthony, on a recent visit to Rome and visiting Pope Leo XIV
Tune in: SiriusXM Patriot 125, 7-10 p.m. ET / 4-7 p.m. PT
Call: 866-957-2874
This week's portion is the last of the month of Av -- also known as Menachem (Comforter) Av -- which begins in mourning and ends in celebration and anticipation of the New Year and the process of repentance and renewal.
In a similar vein, the portion features Moses offering the Israelites a choice between a blessing and a curse. They are masters of their own fates: if they obey God's commandments, they receive the blessings -- and vice versa.
The key commandment is to reject idol worship. There is said to be something magnetic about the practice of worshiping idols in the new land, such that it would be constant moral battle, both individually and collectively, in the land.
Nowadays, according to Jewish tradition, humanity has lost the urge for idol worship (and the antidote, which is divine prophecy) -- but there are several near substitutes, such as lust or excessive appetites for worldly pleasures.
We are wired for compulsive behaviors, bad habits, and even addictions. These ...
We have so much to talk about this week -- Trump's efforts to negotiate peace through negotiation, and Gavin Newsom's efforts to divide Americans through gerrymandering. We'll also talk about Playboy leaving LA and California.
Special guests:
Frances Martel - Breitbart News foreign editor, on Russia & Ukraine
Bradley Jaye - Breitbart News congressional correspondent, on Newsom
Harmeet Dhillon - DOJ Civil Rights Division chief, on the fight against DEI
Jessica Vaugn - Playboy model on political commentator, on California
Tune in: SiriusXM Patriot 125, 7-10 p.m. ET, 4-7 PT
Call: 866-957-2874
