Against the Tide by Steven Friedman

If many of us are planning to vote in this election only for the party which really speaks for us, we may as well stay at home because no party does this. But if we see our vote as a means of influencing our future, even if we have problems with all of the parties, then voting makes sense.

That is the view of this week's  Against the Tide column sent to subscribers this morning. To subscribe, visit the  Against the Tide website. To discuss a reduced or free subscription, contact info@againstthetide.co.za.

Steven Friedman is a public commentator and an academic, currently employed as a Research Professor at the University of Johannesburg. He has been writing on South African politics for the entire democratic period both as a scholar and public commentator. He has published books on South Africa’s transition to democracy, the role of the trade union movement, and current South African politics. He has also written columns and articles for several South African newspapers. His writing seeks to use academic research to shed light on current politics but to ensure that this is conveyed in a way easily understood by people who have no academic training.