When I started this blog two years ago, I was planning to write about Wittgenstein; I am not sure what aspects of Wittgenstein I planned to write about, but in the years before starting the blog I had not spent much time thinking about philosophy, so the blog was part of a wish to reawaken [...]A Change of Focus is a post from: Wittgenstein and Freud



read more Understanding Wittgenstein ...

An anonymous bidder has paid $1,466,574 for the Olympic gold medal won by Jesse Owens in Berlin in 1936, this is the highest amount ever paid Olympic memorabilia. The price easily broke the previous record of $$867,266 (£541,250/€661,171) paid at an auction in London in April 2012 for a silver cup won by Spyros Louis, [...]Owens medal sells high is a post from: Time-4-Sport



more Sports News ...

US President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle Obama will travel to South Africa next week to pay their last respects to the late former President Nelson Mandela.

The Obamas will be joined by former US President George W. Bush and wife Laura Bush, as well as former US President Bill Clinton, along with his wife, former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

According to the White House, the Americans will "pay their respects to the memory of Nelson Mandela and participate in memorial events” honouring the passing of the anti-apartheid leader.

It is unclear when they will land as travel arrangements are still being made.

Obama had paid a glowing tribute to Mandela, whom he regards as his own personal hero.

“They're grieving the loss of a man, a moral giant who embodied dignity, courage and hope, and sought to bring about justice not only in South Africa, but I think to inspire millions around the world,” said Obama on Thursday.

President Jacob Zuma has declared a week of national mourning. Sunday, 8 December has been declared a Day of Prayer and Reflection.

On this day, the nation has been called upon to gather at all places of worship to pray and hold services and reflect on Madiba’s life and his contribution to the world.

A memorial service will be held on Tuesday at FNB Stadium in Johannesburg, followed by the official state funeral at his birth place in Qunu in the Eastern Cape. However, during the period of mourning, several memorials will be held in all provinces and regions. – SAnews.gov.za

Messages of support continue to pour in on Friday morning as news of former President Nelson Mandela’s passing spreads.

The chairperson of the African Union Commission, Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, expressed her grief on the passing of the world icon and Nobel Peace Prize laureate.

She said Madiba, as he was fondly known, “symbolises the spirit of Pan Africanism and solidarity in the struggles of humanity against apartheid, oppression and colonialism and for self-determination, peace and reconciliation”.

Dlamini Zuma, who instructed that flags at the AU fly at half-mast, called on Africa to continue to honour his legacy.

Before his imprisonment in 1963 for 27 years, Mandela visited countless African countries that without fail pledged and rendered unflinching support for the struggle of the South African people.

“Mandela has fought a good fight, and bowed out with great reverence. His passing on is a great loss to his family, to our continent and indeed to humanity itself,” said Dlamini Zuma.

A condolences book has been opened at the African Union Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

The commission will have a wall of remembrance on its website, and Africans are encouraged to deposit messages of condolences on the site. – SAnews.gov.za

South African Football Association (Safa) President Danny Jordaan has added his voice to the global chorus of condolences to the family of former...

more World Cup 2010 News ...

Steady doses of government intervention over the past 20 years have put South Africa’s healthcare system on the road to recovery, with citizens now...

more South Africa health ...

The United Nations on Tuesday launched its first aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the interest of better protecting civilians in the restive east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

“This is a first in the history of the United Nations that such an advanced technological tool has been used in peacekeeping mission," Hervé Ladsous, Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations told journalists attending the launch of the unarmed aircraft in Goma, the capital of North Kivu province.

“The UN needs to use these kinds of tools to better perform its mandate,” he added of the UAVs, popularly referred to as ‘drones’.

The UN Stabilization Mission in the country, known as MONUSCO, has, among its primary tasks, protected civilians in the area.

The eastern DRC has been wracked for many years by fighting between the government and various armed groups that has affected millions of people, the latest being the March 23rd Movement, or M23, composed of soldiers who mutinied from the DRC national army (FARDC).

The Mission has often pointed out the challenge of performing its protection mandate, given the vast area of operation and lack of so-called “force multipliers” such as military helicopters.

The UAVs will allow much better coverage, says MONUSCO.

“With this kind of equipment, we should be able to combine information gathered in flight with information gathered on the ground by people,” MONUSCO Force Commander General Santos Cruz said.

“One can observe the movements of the armed groups, movements of populations and can even see the arms carried by people on the ground, and it is also possible to see people in forested areas,” he added, describing images that could be obtained at three kilometres in altitude.

Ladsous said that the deployment of the aircraft, authorised by the Security Council last spring, was still evolving, and it was starting with two UAVs.

The goal is to have the craft up around the clock and adequately cover all the terrain in the relevant DRC provinces.

Ladsous said that the UAVs might already be having an effect.

Although agreements were already in the works to end the M23 movement, the recent rise in the defections from the group could be due to the perception that the situation in the east was changing significantly, as demonstrated by the deployment of the machines.

“As always, there is an operational aspect and a dissuasive aspect,” Ladsous said. –SAnews.gov.za

Download named big winner at the UK Festival Awards last night. The festival beat the likes of Glastonbury, Creamfields and T in the Park in a public vote. Promoter Andy Copping said: “I’m immensely honoured that Download has been named Best Major Festival at the UK Festival Awards, especially considering the other British Institutions we... Read MoreDownload Named Best Major Festival is a post from: GigMenu



read more Gig News ...

An initiative of the Dublin City Enterprise Board and Plato Dublin, organisers are promising that Irish-made fashion, jewellery, furniture, ceramics, craft and artisan food produce will all be on the festive menu. The free Designer Dublin event attracted hundreds of visitors last Christmas and doors are opening from...

for full details visit ArtnSpire.com

More Art News and Information ...

Mary Cain (Bronxville, N.Y.) and Brian Pilcher (Ross, Calif.) have earned Youth & Masters Athletes of the Year titles, USA Track & Field announced Tuesday, Dec. 3. Cain and Pilcher will be honored on Saturday, Dec. 7, at the Jesse Owens Awards and Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in Indianapolis, Ind. The event is held [...]Youth and Masters Athletes of the Year 2013 is a post from: Time-to-Run USA



more US Running Information ..