Regards, Ivan
This is just another way for the internationalists to bring these countries into the fold.
There are hard times looming ahead and I suspect all of our troubles may turn out to be an orchestrated setup from the begining.
Blocking a new axis of evil*** A new terrorist and nuclear weapons/ballistic missile threat may well come from an axis including Cuba's Fidel Castro, the Chavez regime in Venezuela and a newly elected radical president of Brazil, all with links to Iraq, Iran and China.
Visiting Iran last year. Mr. Castro said: "Iran and Cuba can bring America to its knees," while Chavez expressed his admiration for Saddam Hussein during a visit to Iraq. The new axis is still preventable, but if the pro-Castro candidate is elected president of Brazil, the results could include a radical regime in Brazil re-establishing its nuclear weapon and ballistic missile programs, developing close links to state sponsors of terrorism such as Cuba, Iraq and Iran, and participating in the destabilization of fragile neighboring democracies.
This could lead to 300 million people in six countries coming under the control of radical anti-U.S. regimes and the possibility that thousands of newly indoctrinated terrorists might try to attack the United States from Latin America. Yet, the administration in Washington seems to be paying little attention.***
Change of guard at Southern Command Army's Gen. James Hill takes charge*** Gen. James Hill took over on Tuesday as head of the U.S. Southern Command, leading the military fight against drug lords and terrorists in Latin America and the Caribbean. The Vietnam and Desert Storm veteran ''really is the perfect choice to lead the U.S. Southern Command,'' Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Richard Myers said. Hill, 56, has also served in the Pentagon and with a United Nations mission in Haiti. He left a post as commander of the Army's I Corps at Fort Lewis, Wash., to lead the Miami-based Southern Command.***
Ooopsey! Choose one:
a) Bite the hand that feeds you
b) Stiff the global loansharks
c) Go bankrupt
It's a source of never-ending amazement to me that the Western governments continue to pretend that these folks are capable of maintaining a civilized society.
The real reason for such pretense is, of course the intrinsic charm of the countries in question, which originally drove the colonization of the place. Nigeria's charm is measured mostly by the 55-gallon barrel. Other places feature a charming profusion of carats or troy ounces, or quaint cottage industries based on refractory metals.
Sure, you'll find the occasional (and invariably Western-educated) able statesman. You might even find a group of them, who might be able to maintain a government for a few years. Kenya seems to demonstrate that it's possible to maintain a relatively stable, if authoritarian, government. There have been only two post-colonial presidents in the past 40 years: Jomo Kenyatta, and Daniel Arap Moi, whose longevity in office is due almost entirely to their success in suppressing internal opposition. (It doesn't hurt, either, that Kenya had the most gradual and thorough de-colonization experience.)
There are many, many honest, decent, hard-working people in Africa. But for the most part Africans do not have any political tradition based on rule of law. They're still steeped in their ancient tribal customs, and as has been demonstrated with awful and bloody regularity, those tribal ties still bind very tightly.
The problem is that we want their stuff, and the only way to get it is to prop up governments of people with whom we can deal -- however many bribes it takes, and however many people they oppress.