Category archives for: Commentary

German priest contradicts pope and backs pornography as sexual ‘relief’ for celibates

A priest of the Diocese of Münster, Germany, Father Hermann Backhaus, said that consuming pornography “can have a relieving effect” on celibate people. He also considers it a “very strong” statement to associate the devil with pornography, as Pope Francis did at a meeting with seminarians in Rome in October. Backhaus has been a priest […]

Media coverage of monkeypox paints it as an African virus. That makes me mad

IFEANYI NSOFOR The world is in the midst of a monkeypox outbreak. The World Health Organization has recorded more than 500 cases in 30 countries this year – including the United Kingdom, the United States and a number of European nations. And how do Western media outlets illustrate the story? The BBC, the Independent, CNBC […]

Gas is a dangerous distraction for Africa

Arguments for gas exploration and gas-fired power infrastructure in Africa are robbing us of vital time to switch to clean energy. VANESSA NAKATE At the start of this century, when much of the developed world woke up to the dangers of smoking, Big Tobacco turned to Africa to seek out new profits. To this day, […]

Kenyan youth are not to blame for their election apathy

For decades, elections have hardly made a difference in curbing violent plunder by Kenya’s ruling class. PATRICK GATHARA With just six months to go till Kenya’s general elections, preparations are in full swing. But the Kenyan authorities seem to be struggling at least in one area: voter registration. The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) […]

Beyond The Return: A New Generation Comes Back Home

AKOSUA OFORIWAA-AYIM In 2019, the world witnessed Ghana’s Year of Return. The highly talked about and successful experience highlighted the “return” of Diasporans from around the world to their Motherland. But there is a very important and growing group of people that must be acknowledged – those who have already returned to Ghana. Over the […]

Can COVID-19 alter your personality? Here’s what brain research shows.

SHARON GUYNUP Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and traumatic brain injury can cause changes in behavior by altering brain anatomy. Now it seems the coronavirus can too. At the height of the COVID-19 tsunami that engulfed New York City in early 2020, a highly respected emergency room doctor, Lorna Breen, died by suicide. She had been serving as […]

Soccer; Racism; and AFCON

KWABENA OPONG Reacting to fears of the spread of Omicron, the latest Covid-19 variant discovered in South Africa, Europe’s top clubs are threatening not to release players for the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) scheduled to start January 2022. In a letter to the Deputy General Secretary of FIFA – Mattias Grastrom – the […]

Ghana: St. Charles Burns and a Legacy is threatened

GIn late August, the global body of St. Charles Old Boys Students Association (SCOBA) and the broader community of Tamale, witnessed yet another fire outbreak that resulted in the destruction of a newly constructed Parent Teacher Association (PTA) block. This is not the first report of such a senseless attack. St. Charles has suffered a […]

West Africa’s Eco currency plan remains a pipe dream

ISAAC MUGABI The launch of West Africa’s single currency has failed on several attempts. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, observers say member countries should focus on economic recovery rather than untenable projects like the Eco. Since its conception in 2003, leaders of the fifteen-member Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have postponed the launch of […]

Charley Pride on Affirmative Action: Was He Right?

RICHARD K. VEDDER Charley Pride, the first Black musician to be put in the Country Music Hall of Fame, died recently, and he dispensed some refreshing wisdom besides his clear musical talent. During the height of his career, he noted: “This country is so race-conscious, so ate-up with colors and pigments…it’s a disease.” Nowhere in […]

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