The immediate cause is the imprisonment of former President Jacob Zuma. Protests turned to looting -- as with some of the Black Lives Matter protests last year here in the United States. But there is more to the story:
1. Economic decline: South Africa has suffered stagnant and declining growth, leading to increased economic desperation for the poor over several years.
2. Endemic crime: There is a level of theft and violence that has become the norm over the past thirty years, with little trust in the police to stop it.
3. Ethnic tension: Zuma was the country's first Zulu president, against the will of the new Xhosa elite, so there is also an ethnic element to the backlash.
4. Coronavirus lockdowns: South Africa has mismanaged the pandemic, failing to acquire enough vaccines and keeping the country shut down economically.
5. Lack of alternatives: the only responsible opposition is the Democratic Alliance, which is demonized as a party of whites and racial minorities.
Much of what South Africa is suffering today began 15-20 years ago, with the same "woke" ideology now being driven by the Biden administration. This is a preview of where America could go, in a worst-case scenario. Read more here:
https://www.amazon.com/How-Not-Be-thole-Country-ebook/dp/B08SCK2S16
This week's show will be slightly different from the norm: we'll focus on clips and topics, rather than guests -- and that, hopefully, will mean more input from the callers (unless you are all watching football on opening weekend).
Topics:
- The state of the economy
- The fight against crime
- The midterm election fight
- The struggle for peace between Russia and Ukraine
- The airstrike on the Venezuelan drug cartel
- The attempt to sink Kennedy
- The war in Gaza
- The case against Harvard
- The Trump presidency
Tune in: SiriusXM Patriot 125, 7-10 p.m. ET / 4-7 p.m. PT
Call: 866-957-2874
This week's Torah portion includes several laws about conduct in civic and personal life, the common theme of which is boundaries -- setting bounds to what one may do at home, at work, and even in the battlefield.
One noteworthy passage concerns Amalek, the evil nation that attacked the Children of Israel as they made their Exodus from slavery to freedom. Deuteronomy 25:17-19 commands Jews to obliterate Amalek's memory.
The South African government accused Israel of genocide on the basis of a story about Amalek in the Book of Samuel, in which King Saul was commanded to wipe out the entire evil Amalekite nation.
Because Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu quoted this week's portion -- "Remember what Amalek did to you" (25:17), the South African government claimed he was commanding soldiers to commit genocide.
It was an absurd and malevolent misreading of the Bible and of Jewish tradition. The commandment, as observed by Jews today, is to remember the evil of Amalek and fight ...
