South Africa

So its just before Christmas and (as usual) the office is complete chaos. My partners in Korea are also starting to lose it, big time :

 

Mr Kim from Seoul : Now, Someamongus we need payment for that cargo ASAP.

Me : Well Mr Kim I'm afraid getting things done this end during this time of year is very difficult.

Mr Kim : What do you mean "this time of year"?

Me :  Well you know - Christmas, New Years etc. many local companies close and take a long holiday.

Mr Kim : ........

 

Now repeat process for Mr Lee in Daejon, Mr Choi in Busan and so on and so forth. Riveting stuff. But I do digress, back to the matters at hand.

 

Saw a top movie last week (between moments of office insanity) Lord of War. It turns out that there is a big South African connection to the movie with maybe 40% being filmed inside South Africa and the Department of Trade and Industry funding a portion of the production budget. Nicholas Cage does a great job playing the part of Yuri Orlov a morally challenged Arms Dealer. The two characters who really caught my eye though, were that of the murdering thug Charles Taylor Andre Baptiste Sr. and his sociopathic son Chucky Taylor Andre Baptiste Jr. - brilliant acting. To think as I write this that idiot is sitting in palatial splendour in Nigeria. Where's the justice...

 

Speaking of arms trading checkout this very interesting piece on South Africa's complicity in the burgeoning small-arms trade. This one is a real eye-opener...