As long as pearl jewelry have been known to people, they have been a highly sought commodity for their beauty. It's only in recent times however that the industry has taken the hunt for the perfect pearl to a whole different level. Today, the shiny orbs that we see on in display in jewelry stores have actually almost always been grown in farms. That's a far cry from the dangerous extraction and collection methods used before the invention of modern technology. In the past, not more than 100 years ago, the only way to retrieve pearls was by diving in lakes, floods and the ocean to pick them up, one at the time. The unfortunate divers who'se job it was to do this, were often poor and lured by the relative large sums they could get. The diver would sometimes have to dive as deep as 100 feet on one single breath of air. In order to preserve air and to stay submerged the longest, the divers would hold on to heavy stones on the way down. Naturally, this dangerous activity was reserved for the desperate or the powerless - in many cases slaves or extremely poor peasents. Today, this method is all but obsolete in most places of the world. The cheaper cultured pearls have become popular and are many times the only pearls available to the consumer. There are however still a few isolated areas that practice this old art of pearl diving. Some of the finest natural pearl speciments come from the gulf of Bahrain. Here, divers still risk their health to retrieve what are considered the top of the crop in the world. In fact, Bahrain wants no part of the sale of cultured pearls, banned from trade. Bahrain is one of the few places on earth that does an active job in trying to preserve the natural habitat and waters from pollution. It's an interesting story and one that continues to fascinate buyers around the world. Somehow, the beauty of the pearl grows when it's been retrieved from the depth of the ocean.

Buying pearl jewelry can be fun, exciting and confusing. Whether you're considering a gift of pearl jewelry for someone special or as a treat for yourself, take some time to learn the terms used in the industry. Here's some information to help you get the best quality pearl jewelry for your money, whether you're shopping in a traditional brick and mortar store or online. Pearls Natural or real pearls are made by oysters and other mollusks. Cultured pearls also are grown by mollusks, but with human intervention; that is, an irritant introduced into the shells causes a pearl to grow. Imitation pearls are man-made with glass, plastic, or organic materials. Because natural pearls are very rare, most pearls used in jewelry are either cultured or imitation pearls. Cultured pearls, because they are made by oysters or mollusks, usually are more expensive than imitation pears. A cultured pearl's value is largely based on its size, usually stated in millimeters, and the quality of its nacre coating, which give it luster. Jewelers should tell your if the pearls are cultured or imitation. Some black, bronze, gold, purple, blue and orange pearls, whether natural or cultured, occur that way in nature; some, however, are dyed through various processes. Jewelers should tell you whether the colored pearls are naturally colored, dyed or irradiated. Clams, oysters, mussels and many other mollusks with limy shells are known to produce pearls. But very few kinds yield gem pearls of jeweler's quality. The pearl is an abnormal growth of mother-of-pearl, or nacre, imbedded in the soft bodies of these shellfish. It is built up, layer upon layer, in the same way as nacre is added to the lining of the growing shell and always has the same color and luster. For example, over the country, hundreds of good-sized pearls are found each year in the oysters we eat. Unfortunately these have no commercial value regardless of whether they have been cooked or not because they are dull opaque white or purple like the shell of the parent oyster. In recent times almost all pearls of gem quality come from the oriental pearl oyster which has a bright shimmering translucent nacre. A pearl starts growing when some irritating foreign substance such as a sand grain, bit of mud, parasite or other object becomes lodged in the shell-producing gland called the mantle. Pearls formed in the soft flesh where nacre can be added on all sides are most likely to be spherical and the most highly prized. By far the great majority are flattened or variously distorted and have little value. Size, color, luster and freedom from flaws are other essential qualities. Unlike other gems, such as diamonds, pearls have an average life of only about 50 years. In time the small amount of water in a pearl's make-up is lost and its surface cracks. Because they are mostly lime, necklaces which are worn often are injured by the acid secretions of the human skin.

As long as pearl jewelry have been known to people, they have been a highly sought commodity for their beauty. It's only in recent times however that the industry has taken the hunt for the perfect pearl to a whole different level. Today, the shiny orbs that we see on in display in jewelry stores have actually almost always been grown in farms. That's a far cry from the dangerous extraction and collection methods used before the invention of modern technology. In the past, not more than 100 years ago, the only way to retrieve pearls was by diving in lakes, floods and the ocean to pick them up, one at the time. The unfortunate divers who'se job it was to do this, were often poor and lured by the relative large sums they could get. The diver would sometimes have to dive as deep as 100 feet on one single breath of air. In order to preserve air and to stay submerged the longest, the divers would hold on to heavy stones on the way down. Naturally, this dangerous activity was reserved for the desperate or the powerless - in many cases slaves or extremely poor peasents. Today, this method is all but obsolete in most places of the world. The cheaper cultured pearls have become popular and are many times the only pearls available to the consumer. There are however still a few isolated areas that practice this old art of pearl diving. Some of the finest natural pearl speciments come from the gulf of Bahrain. Here, divers still risk their health to retrieve what are considered the top of the crop in the world. In fact, Bahrain wants no part of the sale of cultured pearls, banned from trade. Bahrain is one of the few places on earth that does an active job in trying to preserve the natural habitat and waters from pollution. It's an interesting story and one that continues to fascinate buyers around the world. Somehow, the beauty of the pearl grows when it's been retrieved from the depth of the ocean.

Buying pearl jewelry can be fun, exciting and confusing. Whether you're considering a gift of pearl jewelry for someone special or as a treat for yourself, take some time to learn the terms used in the industry. Here's some information to help you get the best quality pearl jewelry for your money, whether you're shopping in a traditional brick and mortar store or online. Pearls Natural or real pearls are made by oysters and other mollusks. Cultured pearls also are grown by mollusks, but with human intervention; that is, an irritant introduced into the shells causes a pearl to grow. Imitation pearls are man-made with glass, plastic, or organic materials. Because natural pearls are very rare, most pearls used in jewelry are either cultured or imitation pearls. Cultured pearls, because they are made by oysters or mollusks, usually are more expensive than imitation pears. A cultured pearl's value is largely based on its size, usually stated in millimeters, and the quality of its nacre coating, which give it luster. Jewelers should tell your if the pearls are cultured or imitation. Some black, bronze, gold, purple, blue and orange pearls, whether natural or cultured, occur that way in nature; some, however, are dyed through various processes. Jewelers should tell you whether the colored pearls are naturally colored, dyed or irradiated. Clams, oysters, mussels and many other mollusks with limy shells are known to produce pearls. But very few kinds yield gem pearls of jeweler's quality. The pearl is an abnormal growth of mother-of-pearl, or nacre, imbedded in the soft bodies of these shellfish. It is built up, layer upon layer, in the same way as nacre is added to the lining of the growing shell and always has the same color and luster. For example, over the country, hundreds of good-sized pearls are found each year in the oysters we eat. Unfortunately these have no commercial value regardless of whether they have been cooked or not because they are dull opaque white or purple like the shell of the parent oyster. In recent times almost all pearls of gem quality come from the oriental pearl oyster which has a bright shimmering translucent nacre. A pearl starts growing when some irritating foreign substance such as a sand grain, bit of mud, parasite or other object becomes lodged in the shell-producing gland called the mantle. Pearls formed in the soft flesh where nacre can be added on all sides are most likely to be spherical and the most highly prized. By far the great majority are flattened or variously distorted and have little value. Size, color, luster and freedom from flaws are other essential qualities. Unlike other gems, such as diamonds, pearls have an average life of only about 50 years. In time the small amount of water in a pearl's make-up is lost and its surface cracks. Because they are mostly lime, necklaces which are worn often are injured by the acid secretions of the human skin.

There is no question that putting Parliament and government in the same place would save a vast amount of money.

And while they're at it, why don't they just move the whole bangshoot combination away from Pretoria or Cape Town and stick it somewhere between Pofadder and Upington.

Ministers could then all belt around in their obscenely expensive cars surrounded by blue light convoys without throwing freshwater pearl bracelets entire socio-economic megastructures into complete disarray.

Seriously though, it has always been an exorbitant luxury having Parliament sitting in Cape Town and Government in Pretoria. The money wasted on this insane system in the past could easily have provided housing and a BMW 750i complete with sports pack and waterborne sewage, to every single man, woman and child in South Africa a few times over.

Of course, the residents of Cape Town and Pretoria are going to scream blue murder if there is any hint that the new combined seat of Parliament and government will be moved away from their cities. Sure, some businesses will lose out but generally speaking, I can't help thinking that the benefits in terms of foreign investment, tourism and quality of life would probably be greater if one could advertise the fact that a city was NOT the seat of Parliament of government.

Frankly, I am delighted that at least government is thinking about doing something to akoya pearl necklace stop this unnecessary excess.

And here's hoping that they start thinking of other ways of saving money but cutting down on things that really don't warrant the massive misguided investments we are seeing today.

Like forcing the football authorities to stop looking for miracles in Brazil and just hire someone local like Lucas Radebe or Clive Barker at half the price and twice the IQ of those imported has-beens.

And talking about saving money, I have to mention those ministerial cars again in the context of government not understanding what the public seems to be so angry about.

Everyone accepts, I am sure,  that buying a BMW 750i complete with every conceivable gimmick known to pearl strand wholesale mankind, is not breaking parliamentary rules nor is it immoral, unethical or criminal.

What it is doing is sending out the message from Cabinet that ministers do not give a stuff about the fact that millions of South Africans are starving, homeless and dying from lack of medical attention.

I reckon all the average Joe is saying to government is; "please just give us one tiny little hint that all those election promises you made a few months ago were actually serious."

Downgrading a car is probably the best way of showing that one cares, during these very troubled economic times.

Agreeing to let Eskom jack up the electricity prices by 45% a year and then going out and buying a flashy Beemer does not tend to freshwater pearl jewelry send out any kind of positive message other than; "now that we are in power we do not give a toss about poor people".

Unfortunately, this sort of suggestion will almost certainly fall on deaf ears because the world over, the prize for being elected to political office is being able to indulge in excesses such as flashy cars, five star hotels, the best restaurants, first class air travel and blue light convoys.

But at least, the consolidation of Parliament and government would be a start.

That is if they are serious and not just throwing the idea out into the public domain with the hope that the ensuing arguments will distract attention away from all those flashy cars.
Send your comments to pearl jewelry wholesale Chris

Disclaimer: News24 encourages freedom of speech and the expression of diverse views. The views of columnists published on News24 are therefore their own and do not necessarily represent the views of News24.

Gary Boshoff

I recall an interview I had with Allister Coetzee in 2005 (when he was the assistant Springbok coach) about Os du Randt¡¯s inclusion in the Springbok side. 

He was full of accolades for the timeless warrior and described how Os inspired his fellow players and the huge respect he commanded in the squad. He made no secret of the fact that this was one of the main reasons why Os was such a key ingredient to pearl jewelry wholesale the success of the Springboks at the time. 

Earlier this year Os answered an SOS from Naka Drotske to assist with the rebuilding of the Cheetah scrum. Since Os¡¯s involvement the improvement in the Cheetah scrum is there for all to see. So much so that they practically demolished the Springbok front-row in last week¡¯s semi-final. 

However, safe to say, his influence is clearly not limited to the scrum only, as the respect he commands (as perhaps South Africa¡¯s greatest ever loosehead prop - he has two World Cup winners medals in his display cabinet at home) reverberates throughout the team.

It is much easier to devise counters for individual players than to contain a team inspired by a shared desire to pearl jewelry wholesale win the coveted Currie Cup at Loftus Versfeld. Saturday will be such an occasion for the Cheetahs: they will hear their soft-spoken World Cup hero tell them that they are the best and that they WILL beat the Blue Bulls ¨C all of those 22 players will believe him and therein lies the challenge for the Blue Bulls.

The Blue Bulls know that they¡¯ll have to take command early, as was the case in their group stage clash three weeks ago, but this time hold onto their advantage. They will have learned that one doesn¡¯t beat the Cheetahs by defending your lead; they¡¯ll have to keep on attacking, scoring points, running at them, for if they don¡¯t, the Cheetahs will. A lesson the Sharks learned and paid dearly for.

The Bulls will have learned that they will not necessarily win by neutralising individual players (read Heinrich Brussow, Jacques-Louis Potgieter) and they will have to concentrate on their own game and make sure they maintain focus and momentum throughout single pearl necklace the game and not only in parts of it. I¡¯m sure the Blue Bulls will not make the same mistake again, but hands up all of you who also thought the Sharks wouldn¡¯t make that mistake ¨C and look where it got them! 

Compromise a side's chances

Jonathan Kaplan, South Africa¡¯s top referee, will be in charge of the final and will be assisted on the sidelines by two other top class officials. Together with the TMO these guys have an extremely important yet difficult role to play, as one decision (even calling or not calling a knock-on or forward pass) can compromise a side¡¯s chances of lifting the trophy. This is always a possibility as the nature of the game and the speed at which certain things happen make the total exclusion of mistakes almost impossible. I just hope that none of these ¡°mistakes¡± compromise the outcome of this much anticipated game of rugby.

And while we thought that the promotion-relegation games were going to wholesale pearl jewelry be dull affairs, both the SWD Eagles and the Pumas showed why they're strong candidates to play in the ABSA Currie Cup Premier Division next year. 

The Eagles nearly pulled off a surprise win in Potchefstroom, taking the Leopards to the proverbial wire, and this after the Leopards dominated the match for the greater part of the evening. Both the Pumas and the Eagles need to jack up their defences for their respective return legs as they have the advantage of both having recorded two bonus points each.

They would only have to beat their opponents by more than seven points and then prevent them from getting any bonus points to gain promotion to the top flight.

These two ¡°finals¡± are for these teams as important as the Currie Cup final itself (if not more) and it is therefore so much more important that freshwater pearl the officials get it right in Witbank and George on Friday evening as well.

Gary Boshoff is a former Saru player and well-known rugby administrator.

Disclaimer: Sport24 encourages freedom of speech and the expression of diverse views. The views of columnists published on Sport24 are therefore their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Sport24.

WHY is it that the ANC and its alliance partners seem to reserve the harshest language when dealing with each other and their members these days?

Just this week, the first salvo was fired by former cabinet minister Kader Asmal, who called Justice Minister Jeff Radebe politically illiterate.

Asmal also said he hopes he would be dead the day Deputy Police Minister Fikile Mbalula becomes secretary general of the ANC.

The retort was equally harsh, with Mbalula calling Asmal a lunatic, and the former glorious fighters of wholesale pearl MK wishing Asmal a speedy death.

Then came the shock announcement that director general and head of the policy unit in the Presidency, Khathutshelo Netshitenzhe, was leaving government. A statement issued by the Young Communist League in Gauteng effectively said good riddance.

Many people outside the ANC and its structures, both prior and post its unbanning in 1990, know the intolerance that characterised what was supposed to be political battle for support. Whether you go to Soweto, New Brighton or KZN, you will find scars on non-ANC people who dared to be different. If you look closely, you will even see graves.

But that harsh treatment was reserved for those outside "the family". That is no longer so. The harshest language now is reserved for dissenting voices within, where, despite the rhetoric of the freeing of space for debate post-Polokwane, the reality seems oh so different.

And pearl earrings indeed maybe it is good that the harsh treatment for dissenters is no longer reserved for only non-ANC members, it is, if you like, the levelling of the intolerance field, where it no longer matters if you are family or not, as long as you do not toe the dominant line, you are enemy.

Take the situation of Netshitenzhe. Committed to the core to the ANC, capable and extremely knowledgeable in the work he was doing, how is it that simply because pre-Polokwane he sided with Thabo Mbeki, a situation is now created that finds him heading for the Unemployment Insurance Fund queue?

Put simply, how is it that an ANC government can find nothing for a Netshitenzhe to do at this time in the development of our democracy, even if there is restructuring in government?

In another era, King Moshoeshoe, the founder of the Basotho nation, defeated Mzilikazi at Thaba Bosiou. As the hungry Mzilikazi and his war weary soldiers headed home, Moshoeshoe sent them food and cattle for the road. It was magnanimity in victory that understood that to wheat pearl differ, even at the point of physical war, does not necessarily mean annihilation of the vanquished.

Netshitenzhe has penned many of the policy documents of the ANC. He would have been the major contributor to the green paper on how the planning commission in the Presidency is supposed to work.

It is this green paper that saw Planning Minister Trevor Manuel called a relic of a bygone Mbeki era by the new spokesperson of the socialists, Cosatu president Sdumo Dlamini.

Clearing the deck

Dlamini essentially also said the same about Netshitenzhe when the latter dared to akoya pearl necklace say the ANC should not micro manage its deployees in government.

What is at the centre of this new hatred for dissenting views? The ascendancy of those in Cosatu and the SACP in the ANC, arising from their contribution to getting President Jacob Zuma elected ANC president in Polokwane, is being used to entrench their views within the ANC. This is a natural development.

You cannot expect socialists within the alliance to work so hard for a man and not then push for final policy victory. The coming summit of the alliance is going to be a site for a serious struggle because the socialists will want the ANC to become a red party. They feel they have worked for it, and are entitled to their victory.

However, the ANC is a middle-of-centre church with nationalists and capitalists who think the rhetoric of the socialists is a blast from an ideological past that has failed internationally. While appreciating the work that socialists do within pearl earrings wholesale the ANC, they see the ANC as a separate organisation whose character must not be changed.

The removal of Netshitenzhe from government is one way of clearing the deck.

The next DG responsible for policy will report to Cosatu's cabinet deployee, economic planning minister Ebrahim Patel, and that person will have to have the blessing of Cosatu and the SACP. That move will put socialists at the centre of government policy development.

When you have fought as hard as the socialists have, you deserve your victory, as they are savouring it right now. But does victory have to be so brutal in its language in dealing with those members of the same organisation who differ?

Canberra - Australia is seeing the biggest stream of asylum seeker arrivals for seven years, forcing Prime Minister Kevin Rudd to defend border protection policies and seek transit nation Indonesia's assistance.

Here are some questions and answers about whether border laws and illegal immigration could become an election issue for the first time since 2001, when asylum seekers split the nation and delivered an unexpected re-election victory to pearl jewelry wholesale conservatives.

Q: What is causing the latest influx?

A: The government blames the latest surge in illegal arrivals on conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as the end of Sri Lanka's long ethnic civil war.

Home Affairs Minister Brendan O'Connor says there were 42 million forcibly displaced people around the world at the end of 2008, including 15.2 million refugees. Asylum claims last year rose 28 percent, creating "push" factors outweighing the lure, or "pull", of relaxed Australian immigration law changes, he says.

Europe is the main destination for asylum seekers with gemstone necklace 333 000 claims registered in 2008, led by France with 35 400 and Britain with 30 000. In comparison, 4 750 people sought asylum in Australia last year, O'Connor says.

Q: Will it change Australian policy?

A: The government dismantled tough immigration and asylum laws after its 2007 election win, closing down "Pacific Solution" detention centres in small Pacific island countries. It said detention would only be used for security, but kept processing refugees at a detention centre on Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean.

The government has increased ships and aircraft patrolling the remote north coast to intercept asylum boats before they reach Australian soil.

The latest boatpeople influx is unlikely to bring change unless it becomes a large issue for Rudd, threatening his near-record standing in opinion surveys.

Voters so far been more concerned about nugget pearl the economy and rising joblessness than the issue of boatpeople.

But analysts and academics say that could change if a large boatload evaded patrols and arrived at a port. But while Labour may toughen policy if it again became a major political issue, it is not expected to reimpose the "Pacific Solution".

A survey released by the Lowy Institute for International Policy on Tuesday found 76% of respondents were concerned about unauthorised asylum seekers, underscoring the risk of the issue damaging Rudd's popularity ahead of elections next year.

Q: Will it be an election issue?

A: It depends on whether arrivals continue to akoya pearl necklace build.

The opposition has in recent weeks been targeting the government, claiming weaker immigration policies have emboldened people smugglers. But the conservatives are themselves divided under a more moderate leadership that succeeded former prime minister and "Pacific Solution" architect John Howard.

It is hard to see more support for the return of a tougher approach unless asylum numbers reach into the thousands, as they did before 2001. Concern about job security would then make the issue a more attractive club to use on the government.

Critics say that could yet occur, with more boats arriving each week.

A dose of Julius Malema at the right time is a good thing. This time it would have been from 18:00 to 20:00 in the evening - a debate on the possible nationalisation of our country's mines between the ANC's Young Lion and two less important South Africans who are less enthusiastic about nationalisation in any form.

Malema and the two lesser personages, Kuseni Dlamini, chief executive of Anglo American in South Africa until July and now with Old Mutual SA, and Tim Cohen, a freelance financial journalist, were each supposed to cultured pearl bracelet have 15 minutes to state their cases.

But because Malema alone favours nationalisation and the other two oppose it, the young provoker took twice his allotted time to speak. He sat down after 52 minutes, eventually allowing the other two to say their pieces.

The audience of about 500 was mostly of students - the real "black diamonds". They were much more entertaining than any of the speakers.

For almost an hour they hung on Malema's lips in obvious hero-worship. They listened to the other two speakers' proposals in disciplined, polite silence, despite their apparent boredom.

How come? Why would students in academic disciplines like metallurgy revere someone who drops pearls of "wisdom" such as that nationalisation would attract more investment to this country because investors need South Africa more than we need investors?

Why is Malema wildly cheered by senior university students when he says that mining investors will never be able to cultured pearl jewelry stay away because they invest even in the world's bloodiest countries - while South Africa is such a peaceful place?

Malema referred to the poverty in Sekukuniland, in the mining community better known as the Eastern Limb of South Africa's platinum deposits.

"If you go to Sekukuni, there's nothing there that looks like platinum," said Malema. Sekukuni, he declared, looks like a desert but it has platinum. "They" take their platinum from the people of Sekukuni and process it somewhere else and invest it in a different place. If that's not bad enough, he complained, their trucks churn up the roads and they make no attempt to repair them. Government should "come and fix our roads", Malema insisted.

All that Anglo Platinum has done [he says] in the area is to donate signs for the schools and the environment - which are hardly visible. [Laughter. In fact, Angloplat sponsored the schools.]

Not mine-grabbing

Kodeza Matabatha, a metallurgy student at the University of pearl strand wholesale Johannesburg, spoke up during question time. "I am from Sekukuniland. What Julius says its true - we live in a desert there," she announced.

In her view certain mining companies' social-investment programmes in the area made no sense because the needs of communities simply didn't matter. "If the mines are nationalised, the state might first take time to find out what the people need," she suggested.

That's why the communities around the mines want 60% of the mines - not everything. "It's not a case of mine-grabbing as we saw with our neighbour," Malema declared. All that he wanted to do was to apply the Freedom Charter to the letter, and nothing would stop him doing so.

Dlamini, who was at Anglo until recently, in his 15 minutes resisted the temptation to expound on the evils of nationalisation. He provided a few statistics to tin cup pearl necklace demonstrate the seriousness of the issue.

In 2008 the mining industry generated an income of R405bn, but its costs were R409bn. The state would have to bear these types of losses unless it can mine significantly better than the private owners.

The key problem is to ensure that all South Africans benefit as much as possible from mining. Government involvement has already helped in various ways, such as in Brazil where mining companies pay royalties, 65% of which are used to develop mining communities.

In Brazil, as well, the state has a partnership stake in Vale, one of the world's biggest mining companies. But it doesn't manage Vale. It has a seat on the board and can veto decisions that might harm the national interest.

But, of the six possible types of state involvement, nationalisation is the most devastating, as seen in the total collapse of the Zambian copper mines after nationalisation in the 1960s.

Bitterness

Malema declared later in a long-winded reply that it had not been nationalisation that had shut down the Zambian mines, but the collapse of the copper market. "Copper went out of fashion," he maintained.

(Anglo was the owner of the Zambian copper mines before nationalisation in the early 1960s. In 2007 copper was Anglo's biggest earner, but this copper is now being mined in South America - and the Zambian mines are still shut.)

How does Malema gets away with such verbal garbage?

Today's undergraduates were between five and 10 years old when apartheid ended. They may be "black diamonds", but they have known poverty and Malema speaks the language of the poor - his choice of words, expressions and one-liners are the idiom of the impoverished emerging youth.

They still carry anger over apartheid. It's for the same reason that people want to freshwater pearl flay Professor Jonathan Jansen for forgiving the Reitz 4, while a fraud like Leonard Chuene gets away with what he did to Caster Semenya.

That anger among South Africans will long be kept alive by political hyenas like Malema and Dr Blade Nzimande.

It is a waste of time to expend energy on the Malemas and Nzimandes in our country. Channels into which to discharge that anger should rather be sought. Mining companies have until 2012 to do so, at which time Malema plans to submit a resolution on the nationalisation of mines to the next ANC Congress.