Van Niekerk smashes another record

[Daily Maverick] FIRST THING with JOHN STUPART Thursday, 29 June 2017 “Count your age by friends, not years. Count your life by smiles, not tears.” John Lennon STORY OF THE DAY [ANC conference: It’s not about policy, stupid – it’s about who wins]( By STEPHEN GROOTES On Friday delegates from the ANC’s branches all over the country meet for the first time this year. It will, importantly, not be the last time. Instead, the policy conference, which should be about, you know, policy, is going to be overshadowed by the leadership battle. It is obvious to all and sundry that many people in the party don’t really care about policy at all, and only about who wins. In the slightly unreal politics of the ANC at the moment, it won’t come as a surprise to anyone to read that the ANC Policy Conference is both crucially, vitally, fantastically important, and not important at all. [New record for van Niekerk]( Wayde van Niekerk has sprinted to a world record in the 300m on Wednesday. The 24 year old South African has officially usurped Michael Johnson in the event, running 30.81s at the Golden Spike meet. Johnson's previous record of 30.85 was, funnily enough, made in Pretoria 17 years ago. [Deep cuts to peacekeeping agreed by UN]( The United Nations have conceded to cuts of nearly $600 million for its peacekeeping budget. The cuts came about from strong demands by the United States for cost reductions in its missions. While the cuts will reduce a lot of the insidious 'military tourism' where small states use UN missions as cash cows, many genuinely useful missions will also feel the pinch. [Church sex abuse scandal clings to Australian cleric]( Australia's senior-most cleric George Pell has been charged today with historical child sex charge abuse. The third most senior Catholic cleric in the world, Pell has denied the allegations, claiming he had no knowledge of widespread paedophilia in Australia's church. [Lebanon plans dam along fault line]( Lebanon's government has decided to build a dam. Such a damn good dam that it will be able to withstand tremors from a seismic fault line beneath it. The project is crucial for tackling water shortages in the country but raises one mammoth task for engineers. Either that or Lebanon will soon be half-submerged. — PICTURE OF THE DAY By EPA/ABIR SULTAN Israeli Arab Muslims jumpi into the waters n the Old City of Acre during the Eid al-Fitr holiday in Acre, Israel, 27 June 2017. Muslims around the world celebrate the Eid al-Fitr festival, which marks the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan. IN NUMBERS 1,300000 The number of homes that could be powered by the electricity used to power the Bitcoin network. FACTS OF THE DAY Today in 2007 Apple unveiled the iPhone. An accountant named Kushim was the first recorded name in history. FEATURED ARTICLES [ANC conference: It’s not about policy, stupid – it’s about who wins]( [ANC conference: It’s not about policy, stupid – it’s about who wins]( BY Stephen Grootes [GroundUp: Gupta-owned company blocks improved healthcare in Mpumalanga]( [GroundUp: Gupta-owned company blocks improved healthcare in Mpumalanga]( BY GroundUp [Op-Ed: Dear President Zuma, let’s talk about Duduzane]( [Op-Ed: Dear President Zuma, let’s talk about Duduzane]( BY Mmusi Maimane [Toppling Jacob’s ladder: Outa delivers a hard blow]( [Toppling Jacob’s ladder: Outa delivers a hard blow]( BY Marelise van der Merwe [ANC takes back Mogale City amid controversy]( [ANC takes back Mogale City amid controversy]( BY Greg Nicolson [Op-Ed: Beyond patronage politics – where is South Africa going with Eskom?]( [Op-Ed: Beyond patronage politics – where is South Africa going with Eskom?]( BY Piet van Staden [Miners rise up and march as Anglo Gold Ashanti fires salvo to cut 8,500 jobs]( [Miners rise up and march as Anglo Gold Ashanti fires salvo to cut 8,500 jobs]( BY Ihsaan Haffejee [Oliver Tambo Centenary Series, Part 3: The Constitution as a framework for Struggle]( [Oliver Tambo Centenary Series, Part 3: The Constitution as a framework for Struggle]( BY Albie Sachs [One God to be kept out of government schools, rules court]( [One God to be kept out of government schools, rules court]( BY Rebecca Davis [Lest We Forget: Memorial naming wall aims to shine light on gender-based violence]( [Lest We Forget: Memorial naming wall aims to shine light on gender-based violence]( BY Meli Ncube [GroundUp: Mining postponed in water-sensitive Mabola area]( [GroundUp: Mining postponed in water-sensitive Mabola area]( BY GroundUp OPINIONISTAS [Why President Zuma should not appoint a commission of inquiry into State Capture]( [Why President Zuma should not appoint a commission of inquiry into State Capture]( A column by Pierre de Vos [Tracing the Roots of ‘The Decolonised Anthem’]( [Tracing the Roots of ‘The Decolonised Anthem’]( A column by Rev Lawrence Mduduzi Ndlovu [Capitalism and Apartheid: Two sides of the same coin]( [Capitalism and Apartheid: Two sides of the same coin]( A column by Phakamile Hlubi — Weather BFN: min: -1° max 18°, rainy CPT: min: 6° max: 16°, cloudy DBN: min: 13° max: 25°, sunny EL: min: 9° max: 26°, sunny JHB: min: 4° max: 19°, sunny KIM: min: 11° max: 22°, sunny NLP: min: 9° max: 24°, sunny PMB: min: 7° max: 25°, cloudy PE: min: 16° max: 26°, cloudy PTA: min: 7° max: 20°, sunny Financial Data Oil=$47.20 Gold=$1,248.98 Platinum=$921.11 R/$=12.95 R/€=14.73 R/£=16.75 $/€=0.89 JSE All Share=51,596.84 DJIA=21,464.30 FTSE 100=7,387.80 [FORWARD THIS EMAIL TO A FRIEND]( Copyright © 2017 Daily Maverick, All rights reserved. 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