Prometheus 6

You're right. Sadly enough.

Yes, so what is to be done? If Mugabe is no less or more of a criminal (and he is a criminal in my view) who is running a criminal enterprise that masquerades as a government, as are other African governments, what exactly should be our position? In addition, running rigged elections is the very least of the charges that can be levied against Mugabe and other African heads of state and it seems so besides the point given their behavior in other areas.

I don't know, pt. It's a nasty game and my arms aren't long enough to play.

Do you go after one state at a time or do you try to change the game? The AU is trying to change the game but none of the members will risk their own positions...which is to say they are like every other national leader in intent if not technique.

We could force changes in the way IMF and the World Bank lend money that makes it such a bonanza for people to come in and stay in positions of power in Africa. We could force the UN and AU to conduct and oversee legal elections. Our own govt needs to reign in multinationals that exploit Africa's natural resources and people. We could end the subsidies to big agribusinesses so that food grown in Africa has a fair shot in the global market.

We could work closely with legal govt as equal partners, and also support democratic NGOs. The US could stop assassinating leaders who look out for their constituents' interests. That would be an enormous help!

Those are just some of the initial steps that I can think of. And this, pt, I know is only fantasy, but it'd be nice if the EU and US stopped acting like Africa owed the West anything and if the West would come out the pocket and pay out reparations for colonialism, the slave trade, neocolonalism, and covert operations to destabelize democratically elected govts.

Yes, it is a nasty game because folks are dying and if they are not dying, they may soon be murdered. There is no moral high ground anyone can take save for the victims of Mugabe's murderous rapaciousness. Supporting their right to live without fear of being murdered, starved to death or robbed into penury doesn't require taking high moral ground. As for the game, well, what was it the characters in The Wire used to say: the game is always the game. It doesn't change. But it is better to live under a government that doesn't try to kill you for exercising the right to vote.

"And this, pt, I know is only fantasy, but it'd be nice if the EU and US stopped acting like Africa owed the West anything and if the West would come out the pocket and pay out reparations for colonialism, the slave trade, neocolonalism, and covert operations to destabelize democratically elected govts."

None of this excuses or justifies Mugabe and his criminal enterprise. None of it excuses or justifies Charles Taylor and his band of truly sadistic murderers. These folks and others who act like them are not acting the way they do because of western governments. These folks are criminals and they have and are committing crimes against humanity.

Check out the excerpted testimony of Joseph "Zigzag" Marzah that appears on page 30 of the June issue of Harpers' Magazine. Marzah was the chief of operations for the former Liberian President Charles Taylor who is on trial for war crimes at The Hague.

We could force changes in the way IMF and the World Bank lend money that makes it such a bonanza for people to come in and stay in positions of power in Africa.

Remember when I said I get suspicious when folks use "we" in ways that obviously don't include themselves?

PT - I wasn't excusing their barbarism.
P6 - I'm including myself. I don't know how people on the ground can change IMF and World Bank policies, but if there were a way, I am including myself.

How do you get the quote box? I haven't figured that out.

"PT - I wasn't excusing their barbarism."

I accept your word but I kind of go nuts when folks lead off a discussion about these criminals with a litany of complaints about European colonialism. I am acutely aware of their crimes. I mean my ancestors who were brought from the Caribbean to plantations off the coast of Georgia were not stowaways. I get all of that.

I just feel so damn helpless about Zimbabwe and other countries in Africa. During the struggle for independence in Zimbabwe I contributed money and collected clothes to ship to people there. It wasn't much but it was the best I could do in 1976. It pains me greatly now to think that black folks there might have been better off in some ways under racist sociopaths like Ian Smith than criminal sociopaths like Robert Mugabe.

Yeah, I feel a little helpless to. And for me, the issue is that so many folks are ready and willing to poo-poo Africa as though things were better during colonialism. And while there is no excuse for their barbarism, the West's policies toward Africa kinda make it easy for these sadistic types to pop up. I guess, I'm just used to arguing these issues with people who clearly who Africa in little regard.

But what's more, the difference I see between Bush, for example, and Mugabe boils down to their skin color. Oh, and at least Mugabe once stood for something. So, I guess I don't like the snide contempt in which African govt are held as though West govts are much better.

How do you get the quote box? I haven't figured that out.

Indent the paragraph. The button looks like the one in Word.

"And for me, the issue is that so many folks are ready and willing to poo-poo Africa as though things were better during colonialism."

Things were better in Zimbabwe (Rhodesia). Black people had no rights that whites were bound to respect but they were not starving etc. Now, they have no rights that people who look exactly like them are bound to respect and they are starving etc.

Point taken. But that's because of Mugabe. Not because Mugabe's black.

In my opinion, what is going on in Zimbabwe is far, far worse because Mugabe is black. I'm not arguing race as a causal factor here.

Gotcha. I agree.

My dream is that Africa commands the alternative fuels market like OPEC now controls oil and that Africa would build militaries that will actually protect the people then Africa would be able to dominate the world market. Kinda like the US and the West, only much better. And, of course, there'd be a much better continent wide economy with free education for all, women's rights, growth in science and technology, and social safety nets. In my dream, Africa would send food aid to other countries, thereby helping to end global poverty.

You know the movie, THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW, when at the end American citizens are fleeing to Latin America? And the US president has to be humble and grateful to Mexico and other Latin countries? Yeah, that pretty much sums up my dreams.

With, of course, equality and justice in our own country. And I hope Africa is successful in keeping Bush and any other administration from placing military bases on the continent. Much of the 3Ds of Africa is supported by American arms sells into the continent. I'm pretty sure Bush said he'd block further sells into Zimbabwe. I think.

The TransAfrica view of AFRICOM:

The Bush Administration’s policy of engagement also includes a plan to expand the U.S. military footprint with the new U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM).

AFRICOM represents a commitment to the promotion and protection of U.S. state and corporate interests above those of African citizens.

TransAfrica Forum opposes the further expansion of the US Africa Command because we are concerned that AFRICOM will result in the militarization of development and diplomacy on the Continent.

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The Africom view of AFRICOM:

http://www.africom.mil/africomFAQs.asp

~What is U.S. Africa Command designed to do?

U.S. Africa Command better enables the Department of Defense and other elements of the U.S. government to work in concert and with partners to achieve a more stable environment in which political and economic growth can take place.

~ Does AFRICOM threaten the sovereignty of other nations?

No. U.S. Africa Command will in no way infringe on the sovereignty of any African nation. Africa Command is an administrative reorganization of long-existing U.S. military relationships with African nations and organizations, just as the U.S. Defense Department coordinates relationships with nations and regional organizations throughout the world.

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The African view of AFRICOM:

Africom leads in providing superior ICT

http://www.afri-com.com/html/ict.asp

Africom, the leading information communication technology providers in Zimbabwe continues to offer superior communication to all its valued customers.

Africom is able to offer both up to date data and voice connectivity solutions through their robust technology.

As its name suggests, Africom has a continental vision.

It sees its mission as to deploy, manage and market superior information and communication technology not only in Zimbabwe but in Africa as a whole.

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(...For a hot minute, I thought I had stumbled on to the AFRICOM secret agenda, until I saw that their web addresses were different! ...And I guess, technically there's no copyright infringment, given that they are based out of seperate countries, but I can't help but thinking this may be confusing a few folks somewhere!)

It's always been my perspective that the key to a healthier sense of self-esteem in African Americans is tied in how we're able and allowed to view Africa. Even as rich in cultural history as it is, it's still an uphill battle to have it seen with a better sense of balance. At best, for now, we'll always get the worst highlighted, be it Zimbabwe, Darfur, Rwanda, etc.

(...When you try to imagine the solutions, it truly burns the brain to think of all of the moral, politcal, economical changes that would need to take place!)

MY dream (...For I ask, what are we without them?) would be that somehow the key to an alternative fuel source would be found in the heart of Africa somewhere.

I think this would cause a radical shift in how the continent and the people would be viewed by the world.

Then, I think, in the future, the writing of people like Wole Soyinka would have deeper impact:

"...I cannot wait to repossess the bush, or maybe it is the other way around, let the bush repossess me. The bush and its furtive breath. Refuge and solace. The mere thought brings in its train the smells...

The thought of resuming my forays into those silent growths finally quickens my pulse, hesitantly, just perceptibly... those swathes of isolation, that terrain of so many sensory ambiguities.

All that matters is the escape into timelessness...

Definitely it is the bush, the bush alone-its smells, muted sounds, textures, and often impenetrable silence that finally bathe me in a glow of warm anticipation.

It is that, that alone, not any other resumption of relationships or recovery of suspended voices.

...Is this some form of misanthropy?

'You Must Set Forth at Dawn' by Wole Soyinka Copyright © 2006