While you were sleeping: TGIF 5 February 2016

Clinton and Sanders lock horns, Obama to propose oil tax, and Malema/JZ on a collision course.

By John Stupart

5 Feb

Owen Wilson and Ben Stiller pose for photographers at the screening of Zoolander 2 at a cinema in central London

"Sometimes your only available transportation is a leap of faith.”

– Margaret Shepard

Story of the Day

Jacob Zuma and Julius Malema: A collision course made in Nkandla

Next week President Jacob Zuma and Economic Freedom Fighters leader Julius Malema will face off on two different platforms, two days apart. The first will be at the highest court in the land, where an almost two-year battle over Nkandla reaches a climax. The second will be in Parliament at the State of the Nation Address (SONA), where Malema intends challenging Zuma on his mismanagement of the economy. It is the dance of death between the president and his nemesis. Zuma and Malema pushed each other to this point, a collision between political power and the rule of law, while they hold the country’s destiny in their hands. By RANJENI MUNUSAMY.

While you were sleeping

Sanders and Clinton lock horns in debate
Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton have come out with guns blazing in the first of four debates. Held in Durham, New Hampshire, the democratic duo accused each other of their respective inability to govern. Sanders maintained Clinton flip-flopped between being a progressive and a moderate. The latter questioned Sanders' ability to evaluate anything. All in all, a good ole-fashioned mud-slinging festival.
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UN to rule in favour of Julian Assange
Wikileaks founder and long-term guest of the Ecuadorian embassy, Julian Assange, may have the United Nations in his corner. The UN is to rule on Friday that Assange's exile in the embassy amounted to "arbitrary detention". Assange's fate, however, will remain entirely up to British authorities and whether they will grant him freedom to flee to Ecuador and eventual asylum.
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Obama to propose new oil tax
President Barack Obama is to pitch a new $10 a barrel tax on all oil companies. The tax proposal is aimed at helping fund new green initiatives. That said, the proposal is also up against a wholly Republican, utterly hostile congress.
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Ancient fossil astounds
The fossilised remains of a cousin of the wildebeest has been discovered on Kenya's Rusinga Island. Dating back 55,000 to 75,000 years, the mammal is now officially named the Rusingoryx. Curiously, the Rusingoryx boasts features better resembling a dinosaur, including open nasal cavities. While impressive, this ancient antelope has nothing on the Cryptograph behemoth.
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Super Bowl 50 gears up
The Super Bowl 50 hype machine is spooling up ahead of Sunday's clash between the Denver Broncos and Carolina Panthers. Over 190 million viewers are expected to tune into one of the world's largest sporting events. Whether you are a Manning fan or a Newton acolyte, this promises to be a seriously close game.
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In Numbers

The dollar cost of a single bottle of water at Trump International Hotel & Tower Chicago.

Facts of the Day

Today in 1971 saw astronauts landing on the moon. They were part of the Apollo 14 mission.

Fact of the day: The topsoil in Norilsk, Russia, is so badly polluted that is it now commercially viable to mine for heavy metals.

Weather

Financial Data

BFN: min: 19° max: 28°, sunny
CPT: min: 20° max: 32°, cloudy
DBN: min: 19° max: 26°, cloudy

EL: min: 21° max: 23°, rainy
JHB: min: 16° max: 26°, rainy
KIM: min: 20° max: 29°, sunny
NLP: min: 16° max: 27°, cloudy
PMB: min: 10° max:25°, cloudy
PKN: min: 16° max: 26°, rainy
PE: min: 20° max: 24°, rainy
PTA: min: 18° max: 26°, rainy

Oil=$34.82 Gold=$1,154.93 Platinum=$900.90
R/$=15.81 R/€=17.68 R/£=23.09 $/€=1.11
JSE All Share=49,627.53 DJIA=16,320.77 FTSE 100=5,901.72: Source

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