Author Michela Wrong on Kenyan corruption and tragedy of post-colonial Africa

[kazunguzungu]

Michela,

I am re-reading you 'In The Footsteps of Mr Kurtz". I am doing some research and your writings are very helpful.

Thanks.

[tikurgisila]

Michela Wrong is, at best, an author writing her perception of the world. This is fine so long as there is no pretense of exhaustive research and "de-facto expert." In this capacity, Michela is at best a travel journal writer and at the worst a misinformed, unbalanced, misguided and misleading. If this book does not explain the gaps and mismatches in her writing, read "I didn't Do It For You." Compare the reality with the fiction she wrote.

[batse1]

You should read 'I didn't do it for you nigger' by this woman. I can't stand her attitude, expert on african affairs huh.

[TenseAlcyoneus]

Is it my imagination, or does Nick Gillespie have a twinkle in his eye when he looks at Ms. Wrong. I'm just sayin'.

[TenseAlcyoneus]

I swear, Reason does the best interviews. SImple understandable, significant questions to intelligent people.

Fu**ing hell. That's good sh*t.

[lenny380]

Is Obama a Kenyon whistle blower?

[Chance99able]

Africa & the interest in her has to do with one thing, Oil. U.S. imported more oil from Africa than from the Mid East in 05 & more from Gulf of Guinea than from Saudis & Kuwait combined.Unlike other oil-rich countries, Africa welcomes foreign cos. to their oil fields,as there are no indigenous African Oil Cos.There's no guarantee that the black gold would deliver happiness & prosperity to its people. If history is any guide, vast caches of oil will cause Africa as many problems as they solve.

[beto579]

I'd do her....wait never mind.

My penis says, "those teeth look like trouble bro"

O and yes feed the kenyans or whatever.

Man, those teeth are a real boner killer....

Who am I kidding I'd still do her :(

[mitchblatt1dot1com]

You're wrong about Michela being wrong on Kenyan corruption and tragedy of post-colonial Africa.

[fomastephanovitch]

The Kenyan president is Obama's brother.

He has Barack's birth certificate in a safe alongside a letter of recommendation from Idi Amin.

[Zakdayak]

You forgot about the plans to the DeathStar being in the safe too.

[Silvsilvchan]

Megalodons did 9-11.

[45means45]

Am i the only one who has no hope for africa?

[achmedthedeadterror5]

you are not

[Nexus974]

You can see from Mrs. Wrong's teeth the end result of nationalized dental care.

[XCritonX]

If you clean up the corruption in Africa the entire system would collapse. African culture is based on corruption, violence, and racism (tribalism). Its a kill or be killed world. African politics and culture are causing African problems. Only by changing or eradicating African cultures can Africa begin to develop real civilization.

Europe was like this until it was united by the Romans, and then it slipped back into caos during the "dark ages". Civilization is harder than people think.

[rey9883]

@XCritonX where did you get your account of history? you are so wrong it is actually kind of disconcerting..

[rey9883]

@XCritonX where did you get your account of history? you are so wrong it is actually kind of disconcerting..

[XCritonX]

@rey9883 Pick just one thing I wrote and tell me why you think it is wrong. Then I will explain where I learned about the history of that fact.

[rey9883]

@XCritonX ok, lets begin with the reason you apparently think that "African Culture" is based on violence, greed and corruption as if to suggest that this is the natural state of African people.. this is a racists Hobbsian idea and it is completely without evidence.. then you go on to suggest that there civilization had not existed in Africa prior to European colonialism completely without regard to Kemet, Nubia, Axum, Zimbabwe, Mali, Songhay and sleuth of other African Civilizations..

[XCritonX]

@rey9883 "As if to suggest?" Dont try to read my mind. I am not suggesting that primitive African culture is unique. History proves that the natural state of all primitive peoples is violence, greed and corruption, no matter if they are from Africa, Europe, Asia or America.

The first advanced civilizations in the Mediterranean North Africa? Well, first a question: How do YOU define a civilization? When the Europeans returned to Africa in the 18thc lots of places still had not invented the wheel.

[rey9883]

@XCritonX i'm not trying to read your mind, you're just making incorrect generalizations.. you don't know how advanced "primitive" civilizations were the peoples of Kemet built the pyramids, we still don't know how they did that, and evidence suggests that Columbus learned of the concept of a gourd-shaped world from West Africans of the Mali empire in the late 15th century which means "primitive" Africans were exploring the Atlantic prior to Europeans..

[rey9883]

as for the natural state of men, there is no way to definitely know what that was like.. and the only idea we can get of so-called "primitive" man is by observing peoples who currently don't partake in a western-styled social model. even in those societies such as the Oromo or Ethiopia or the Papuans of New Guinea, have concepts of government and order.. so there is no evidence to suggest that people are naturally violent or greedy.. As i said before, this was Hobbes ignorant eurocentric view.

[XCritonX]

@rey9883 Anyone who thinks that human nature is not violent and greedy is either very young or very naive.

We do know how primitive people lived. We have accurate written records made by explorers about thousands of different primitive groups. They were usually hungry, had no effective medicine, treated women and the weak as property, slavery was common, and then after a short life of misery they died young.

Why do you think a Eurocentric view is any less valuable than a Afrocentric view?

[rey9883]

@XCritonX I'm 26 so not too young and I'm not naïve. historically, all people's outside of Europe were regarded as savage half-beasts. The eurocentric view has historically been tainted with racism despite the remarkable evidence in support of the contrary.. Timbuktu, Machu Pichu, and the Indus Valley Civilization were all built by people's that europeans considered to be savages.

[XCritonX]

@rey9883 Every man thinks himself civilized, and all others as but brutes.

The Chinese thought that Europeans were savages. They call Africans a word that means "Black Devils" (still to this day that is the nice word in Mandarin)

Despite cutting the hearts out of living prisoners of war the SA culture developed some impressively built structures. To bad they never figured out how to use iron, they might have stood a chance against the hand full of Conquistadors who took over the whole continent

[XCritonX]

@rey9883 In your post you mention a bunch of guesses that have only recently been imagined by politically correct "scholars" as having any historical fact. We are not sure who built the pyramids. Every place where humans lived has pyramids, we can only guess why. The myth of Columbus learning from the Mali empire is a recent rewrite of history. The Malis relied on foreign traders to move their gold (most prominent export) around. Their biggest crafts were simple river rafts.

[rey9883]

@XCritonX haha.. what the hell is a "politically correct scholar"? in all of my years associated with academia, i have never known a credible scholar to skew information to fit a political agenda.. it seems that that term is somewhat of an oxymoron; true scholars search for truth regardless of political ideals. Facts are facts and reconstructing history is an activity of gathering primary source material and determining the best explanations based on the evidence.

[XCritonX]

@rey9883 WOW! It is rare to hear such naivety! Do you actually believe what you said? Scholars and academics are know for skewing the truth, tweaking the data, etc or as normal people call it lying. Hasn't the climate change scandal opened your eyes? Every credible organization has admitted that the scholars, academics, and scientists involved in the global warming scare lied to the public to bias the out come to meet their pre-existing beliefs that human development was destroying the world.

[rey9883]

@XCritonX oh shit, here we go.. Climate change is NOT a scandal.. it is truth and there is insurmountable evidence to support beliefs of this phenomenon: Higher carbon levels, increased precipitation, melting ice caps, etc.. notice in my statement i said "TRUE SCHOLARS"; these people don't skew information because of political bias. However, some so-called scholars do for corporate funding.. do some research!

[rey9883]

...next you'll be telling me that you're a Christian and the end of the world is nigh.. be serious!

[XCritonX]

@rey9883 The main "scientists" involved in climate change research have actually admitted to fudging the data and then conveniently "losing" the original research. "Climate change: this is the worst scientific scandal of our generation" (UK Telegraph, 28 Nov 2009). I cant believe your still living in early 2009.

However, you apparently wouldn't believe what some so-called scholars do regularly for millions of dollars/pounds/euros of government funding and life long tenure... do some research.

[rey9883]

@XCritonX please direct me to where you got this information..

[XCritonX]

@rey9883 UK Telegraph, 28 Nov 2009, Prof. Christopher Booker, also it appeared elsewhere. Google it.

It reads like a cheap thriller. Dozens of scientists conspire to take over the world (or just make millions) via a brilliant scam based on junk science. Every time a fellow scientist starts to uncover the plot they squash him and his career with the help of corrupt politicians and big green business interests like Al Gore. It would make a good movie, it could be called "The Convenient Lie".

[1michelemichele1]

@XCritonX Look for "Climate Change - Meet the Scientists" on YT & watch the series.

[moremi123]

@XCritonX when i read the kind of mad, genocidally racist nonsense people like you write on these kinds of internet forums, i always think: where do these people lurk in real life?

[WelfareRobot]

Why is the world so concerned about Africa? It never has amounted to much and it looks like it never will. Please, concentrate on your own problems first. Doesn't it make anyone angry when the Madonnas of the world adopt some African baby to be "fashionable", when there are plenty of American kids right at home that need help? Africa has wasted decades of incredible good will; when will the world admit that it needs to take responsibility for its own problems?

[sgtou812]

That was a very well delivered point thanks and keep it up.

[broeman]

Well, Kenya tells the story that without private ownership, everyone would live in poverty. Watch "Globalisation is Good" from Johan Norberg on Google Video.

[rey9883]

@WelfareRobot wow.. you obviously have a very limited understanding of politics and history.. do you realize that corruption in Africa has historically been influenced by non African nations such as the U.S. with puppet political leaders. Africa has been exploited in every way possible by european governments, China and Japan.. the dismal state that you see is not by fault of Africans themselves but because of the legacy of racism against Africans.. go read some books!

[rey9883]

watch?v=Pw12KGSj53k&feature=re­lated

[jessicalynn8719]

It's easy to make those kinds of statements if you don't know anything. First, the first sentence is unfair. Research colonial impact on African positions--the west has screwed up an entire continent beyond belief. Second, it's easier to adopt foreign babies than local babies. True story.

Third, seriously, just try to understand why africa is the way it is. Look at government structures around and before independence. Look at the image the colonial powers left for their African subjects. Do it.

[primro1980]

@WelfareRobot wow your an absolute idiot

[1michelemichele1]

@WelfareRobot What good will? $ (bribery, extortion, politics as usual) went to African nations because of the Cold War, it didn't have a thing to do with charity or "good will".

RE Madonna: No.

[Zakdayak]

A very good factually based video from Reason.

[natdavi]

great story but that's a pity of a name