Article

2003-08-17 Africa: West

Additional U.S. Troops Requested For Liberia

Archived material is restricted to Rantburg regulars and members. If you need access email fred.pruitt=at=gmail.com with your nick to be added to the members list. There is no charge to join Rantburg as a member.

Posted by Frank G 2003-08-17 12:23:48 AM|| || Front Page|| [11133 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 What part of "no" is beyond their understanding? This has quagmire and fool's errand written all over it. No, no, no. Never. At every bend in every river in Africa there is a tribal disaster either in progress - or just waiting to happen.

They are pretty spiffy when it comes to dreaming up acronyms, however. Maybe they should all come to work for ad agencies on Madison Ave. Just giving credit where due...

Posted by .com 2003-8-17 4:58:32 AM|| 2003-8-17 4:58:32 AM|| Front Page Top

#2 poor old africa.

I don't know how to feel about it.

they get themselves into severe messes, blame it on the western countries, demand to be helped: then hate you for interfering.

now bush just promised hundreds of billions for AIDS relief for Africa, shouldn't they at least TRY to solve some of their own problems?

Take some goddam responsibility!

either that or we should all just walk away, take the westernised peoples with us and come back in 50 years when Africa is people-free, having been made extinct by corruption, nepotism and the spread of ignorance and primitive beliefs causing wars, famines and easily-preventable diseases.

Posted by Anon1 2003-8-17 5:09:15 AM|| 2003-8-17 5:09:15 AM|| Front Page Top

#3 oops i meant hundreds of millions

Posted by Anon1 2003-8-17 5:29:10 AM|| 2003-8-17 5:29:10 AM|| Front Page Top

#4 Anon1 - Good points. I think the AIDs assistance was tens of billions, which brings to mind a good quote from a rather wisened old US Senator (50's-60's) named Everett Dirksen, "A billion here, a billion there, pretty soon you're talking about real money." Not bad. He also said, "I am a man of fixed and unbending principles, the first of which is to be flexible at all times." Funny dude with a Shakespearean actor's voice that even Sir Lawrence Olivier couldn't match.

Back OT, from a getting anything started POV, you nailed it: corruption is the key. It makes everything the West does almost a non-starter. The NGOs are savvy enough to tread lightly where there are no reliable forces to protect them. I don't know to what degree, but they certainly play the game and make payoffs - which merely prolongs the problem preventing any Western Govt with the req'd staying power from trying to gain a foothold to start solving problems. And some "Western" countries, such as Phrawnce, are still colonialists at heart - and act as such - smearing the honest efforts of the rest in the eyes of the Africans. And then there's the UN. It takes $100 to get $1 worth of effect, it seems. I know that's exaggerated, but there is a large BS factor. Sigh. I dunno, mate.

Posted by .com 2003-8-17 5:39:48 AM|| 2003-8-17 5:39:48 AM|| Front Page Top

#5 Kim du Toit says Let Africa Sink, and I have to agree.

Posted by Parabellum 2003-8-17 9:58:18 AM|| 2003-8-17 9:58:18 AM|| Front Page Top

#6 We need to make a deal with the whole of the African continent:

1) Take responsibility for your own problems.
2) If you want western/US investment, see 1)
3) If you want troops sent to stop your latest civil war, see 1)
4) If you want AIDs aid, see 1)
5) The best our lefitsts elite will come up with in Africa will be WE ARE THE WORLD II: Saving Zimbabwe from famine. Don't like it? See 1)
6) Afraid what sharia will do to your fragile societies? See 1)
7) Think white folks are to blame for your being drunk on communist philosophies? See 1)
8) As far as I am concerned, the ONLY reason Marines should be landing in Liberia is to kick some Liberan ass, not stand upright for targeting purposes. As in everything else, see 1)

Posted by badanov 2003-8-17 10:10:18 AM|| [http://www.rkka.org/weblog] 2003-8-17 10:10:18 AM|| Front Page Top

#7 badanov - add 2 more and send it to Letterman. Oh, no, wait. He's an entertainer, so he's prolly to the left of Trotsky. Nevermind. ;-)

Posted by .com 2003-8-17 10:47:27 AM|| 2003-8-17 10:47:27 AM|| Front Page Top

#8 parabellum: thanks for that link, that was a KICK ARSE ESSAY from Du Toit!!!

badanov, i love your list.

It can be applied to so many situations, too.

1) take responsibility for your own problems
2) see rule 1)
3) repeat.

Posted by Anon1 2003-8-18 7:20:04 AM|| 2003-8-18 7:20:04 AM|| Front Page Top

20:24 Anonymous
10:32 Zhang Fei
10:19 Zhang Fei
07:58 Anon1
07:43 Aris Katsaris
07:38 Anon1
07:29 raptor
07:20 Anon1
04:57 Anon1
01:14 Zhang Fei
01:07 Zhang Fei
00:35 Anonymous
00:00 Steve White
23:21 Patrick
23:15 tu3031
23:04 Raphael
22:44 Aris Katsaris
22:43 tu3031
22:40 john
22:30 .com
22:17 Robert Crawford
22:15 Robert Crawford
22:09 john
22:03 .com