21 December 2007
	Diamonds & Dogs By Jamie Carr

Diamond Resources Resources are the flared trouser of the stock market. For decades they fester in the depths of the portfolio and you wonder why you ever bought them, then all of a sudden there is a whiff of change in the wind, you slip them on and find fair damsels of every shape and size lining up to give them a stroke. 2007 has been the year when the resources sector has driven all before it, like a mixed assortment of Huns, Visigoths and Vandals lining up to give a bloody nose to the noble and effete Romans of the more intellectually driven industries. The reason for this is well-rehearsed. If you can dig it up and turn it into something, the Chinese will buy it by the barrel - and beyond the fundamentals, the flames have been fanned by a merger spree that could keep the party going for a good while yet. Let's enjoy it while it lasts, revel in the mighty valuations and huge option gains, and hope our companies don't get overcome with excitement and end up in bed with a giant Australian. For that, as many a blushing maiden has discovered in the past, is no way to start the New Year. Dog Politicians There's been no outstanding villainy in the corporate sector to shove forward a candidate for dog of the year. This only makes the spotlight fall all the more sharply on our political lords and masters. Indeed, if anybody knows a public-spirited lighting technician in the greater Polokwane area, a few falling spotlights could be just what the country needs. I have often wondered how a mighty nation such as the US manages to throw up such an unimpressive bunch of politicos, but compared with the choice that we have, their lot are positively glittering. On the one hand we have the incumbent, pricklier than a well-sharpened porcupine and on a number of key issues nuttier than a luxury Christmas cake. Then the challenger, whose collar's practically worn out it's been felt by the constabulary so often, and who has managed to insert foot into mouth so many times that one hesitates to imagine what he might manage when handed the keys to the Union Buildings. The debate has been about personalities rather than policies, and despite the unappealing personalities, it looks like a straight choice. The beloved country is already reaching for its handkerchief.