You can't eat a stadium

Whenever I turn on the radio, and the FIFA 2010 World Cup™ is being discussed, I am sure to hear someone with an opinion very similar to the title of this article.

At first glance, there is some validity to the concern. The argument goes, (or at least part of it) that one should not bother with luxuries and ‘nice-to-have’ items in our emerging economy. There are “too many poor people” they say. Their needs are for the basics, like housing, food, jobs, water and food. To expend 3 billion or more on a soccer stadium is almost like fiddling while Rome (or Cape Town, or Rustenburg!) is burning. It is, in fact, on the face of it, something quite close to obscene.

Well, it would be, if one took nothing else into consideration. Consider the journey we have come. There was a time, not too long ago, when there really was only one sport which was considered worth the government supporting. That sport was not football. It was Rugby. Rugby was the only game in town. And Rugby received billions from the government, in support. And so, if one stops to look around, it is not difficult to see that Rugby is fully resourced, and very well supported.

The fact that it is largely supported by whites is, of course, a consequence of the racializing of the game, which was something which was done quite consciously by the apartheid government, in its day. But it is very well resourced and very well supported, within an extremely narrow band. Broadening that band, is something which the game has not yet managed to achieve very well.

Soccer, on the other hand, has been up to this point, completely under-resourced. Even more than that, counter-racialised, scorned, belittled, ignored. But try as they might, it was never possible to obliterate. Soccer continued to be the game of choice for the masses of our people. And they played it on dusty streets, on sandy fields with makeshift goalposts, in schoolyards and even on slopes! Soccer, despite all the odds, continued to be the game which the majority enjoyed.

On a world scale, of course, soccer beats any other game hands down. Its popularity is vast and, as anyone who has had any dealings with the organisation will testify, FIFA operates more like a super government than a football organisation.

And so, given the opportunity of playing on this vast world canvas and to profile all the very best that Africa can offer, how could we have ignored the opportunity? How could we have folded our arms or sat on our hands when the chance to host the world’s biggest tournament came our way? And with it, the opportunity to leave a lasting legacy in all sorts of ways, but perhaps most visibly, in the mighty stadia which the tournament will leave behind for our people to enjoy forever?

In Cape Town, there are two stadia which are directly a result of the tournament. Greenpoint – the most visible and the most extravagant – and Philippi, in a "township" outside the City of Cape Town - much more modest, but no less important.

The former is almost a symbol of us coming of age as a nation. Of putting our money where our collective mouth is. Of standing up and being counted in the world of nations. That grand stadium will be used, going forward, in a hundred different ways, giving pleasure to millions of people, not only on the televisions of Europe, South America, Asia – but here, in this our home. It will be a source of pride for us all. It will be the platform for us all to stand on, in the glare of the spotlight, and be proud of being who we are and what we represent. It will be a wonderful and lasting legacy for the people of the Western Cape in 20, 40, 50 years to come. A legacy from this generation, to our children and to theirs, to mention nothing at all of the significant jobs it is creating and the food that is being placed on tables because of them.

And Philippi stadium? That too will gain from the fervour and spirit of 2010. Just because of the 2010 tournament, that stadium in the middle of an extremely poor area, will enable those children as well, to play and to excel.

Sure, they can’t eat it, but the trick for us as a nation is going to be to ensure that they eat well enough, going forward, to play in it, and to shine! We are building tomorrow. And as someone said, a long time ago, people can’t live on bread alone.

Low GI Hamburgers- vegetarian or otherwise

We went, last night, to the Five Flies Restaurant, in Keerom Street, in the city Centre. They have being doing this birthday celebration thing, where prices are taken back 10 years - so your whole 3 course meal costs under R100 - which is fairly amazing. (You need to book weeks in advance, and the restaurant is completely full).

The place has a slightly snooty reputation and, being opposite the High Court and near the financial district of Cape Town, is obviously well positioned.

The dishes were a little sparse, but adequate and the clientele the usual "Cairp Tahn" fare of 99.5% white and 0.5% coloured. Black Africans - 0%

The waitrons were ALL white, except for the Maitre D - who was black, but with a pronounced former model C (read white) school accent. In this day and age, I think this is utterly unacceptable. How is it possible that an institution like this, situated where it is, is staffed ONLY by white waitrons?

Likewise, I had tea the other day with an ex colleague from Gauteng, in a place called Bravura in Greenpoint. (It used to be Melissa's, but now seems to have changed hands). Again, exactly the same thing. ONLY white waitrons! I had brought along some hand painted Kelp Vuvuzelas to show my friend. She asked one of the waitors what he thought of them. He had never heard of a Vuvuzela, in the first place, and had no idea what they might be used for, in the second. My friend was so astonished that after the tea, she asked a second waiter whether he knew what a Vuvuzela was. He not only had never head of one, but couldn't even pronounce the word!

These are the kind of goons given preferential racial employment within spitting distance of the Greenpoint stadium - which is one of the venues where the 2010 FIFA World Cup is going to be played for the first time on African soil, in less then a year's time! This means, basically, that they have never opened a newspaper, and never even so much as glanced at a soccer match on television. Because, of course, in South Africa, Soccer is regarded as a black sport and Rugby a white sport and ne'er the twain shall meet.

Of course, there is a history to this all. The apartheid state funded and supported Rugby and tried to keep black people out of it. And soccer, which became the sport black people followed and played, was naturally completely inadequately resourced. But one would not expect the Greenpoint white waitron goons to know this. I would not be surprised if they had never heard of apartheid!

Several of the people at my table at Five Flies ordered the Lamb Hamburger, and were very pleased with it. The potato chips left a bit to be desired, but the Hamburger itself was very good.

Here is a really good recipe for a low GI healthy hamburger patty (veg or otherwise). It's from the amazing Eating for sustained energy 1, by Gabi Steenkamp and Liesbet Delport - works really well and is fabulous. You need to do the BBQ sauce as well to get all the GI values right -The end product is really great!

Hamburger patties and BBQ sauce

1 x 410 g tin brown or sugar beans drained
1T vinegar
1T Worcester Sauce
½ t crushed garlic
200g ostrich mince or 1 cup dry soya mince reconstituted
1 medium onion finely chopped
1 slice brown bread crumbed
1 cup oat bran
1t beef stock powder
1t Marmite
2 t dried mixed herbs
1t dry parsley
Black pepper
1t salt
1 egg

BBQ sauce
1 onion, chopped
1 large apple, finely grated
¼ t crushed garlic
1 t olive oil
4T tomato sauce
1 tomato finely chopped
½ cup water
4t brown sugar
2t Worcester sauce
1t salt
2t mustard

Process together beans, vinegar, Worcester Sauce and garlic. Add mince, onion, herbs, breadcrumbs, oatbran, beef stock, pepper and egg and mix lightly to a firm consistency. Form into meatballs. Fry in olive oil at a fairly low heat.

BBQ sauce

Saute onion and garlic in the oil until transparent. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for 5 minutes