January 2010
2 posts
Back up at the real site... →
Website down for a bit... →
We’ll be back up and running in no time…
July 2009
3 posts
7 tags
Senate may modify foreign aid policy | Agweek →
Still not my grand return, but I saw this on Aid Watch’s twitterfeed, and wanted to comment.
The Bumpers Amendment is in no way a support of international development. To refuse to allow aid money from USAID aka United States Agency for International Development to be used to fund agricultural development is counterproductive.
The goal of aid, especially aid directed towards development...
6 tags
Foo Fighters, HIV Deniers →
This isn’t my grand return to blogging. That will be made with my critique of IC, post Gulu meeting. It’s coming. I promise.
I just felt this needed to be shared in as many outlets as possible. It’s insanely dangerous for a band with the exposure to young people that the Foo Fighters possess to endorse such a message. Irresponsible and ignorant.
(via Mother Jones) &...
1 tag
I'm Back...
Once I get my life in order, I’ll have real posts. Until then, it’s good to be home.
June 2009
5 posts
4 tags
And I'm off!
I’m currently sitting in Amsterdam, waiting on my connection to Entebbe.
I said I would have a couple of posts the other day, but it didn’t happen. Desole.
I was considering and even began setting up a separate blog for my time in Uganda, this summer, but I decided that was foolish, so anything I post will be right here for the time being. That being said, posts will be quite...
6 tags
Poverty is not a human rights violation -- Aid... →
This is a great post by Bill Easterly, of White Man’s Burden fame, over at his blog, “Aid Watch”. It deals with the problems faced when attempting to lump poverty and human rights together, as Amnesty International has done in its 2009 report. It slows down the solutions to both.
Chris Blattman also touches on this here.
P.S. I should have a post or two more going up today...
7 tags
9 tags
“This week, it is time for young artists of Goma to EXPRESS themselves. They are...”
– Voices of the youth from Eastern Congo: “EXPRESS” — Condition: Critical
This is a very well-done video about the role music and the arts plays as a form of expression in eastern DRC.
It’s a bit dramatic, but still well-done.
It’s also quite relevant to the Jazz for Justice...
8 tags
May 2009
17 posts
5 tags
Uganda: Police Deploy More Traffic Officers →
My favorite line is:
He explained that the deployment was made after the Police realised that some drivers do not respect traffic laws when they are out of the city centre.
Am I to assume that Kampala police think that motorists obey traffic laws within the city center? Have they been to the middle of Kampala? I wouldn’t be surprised if the answer to that question is no… You know,...
10 tags
News and Notes 5/25 - 5/31
Cross-posted from KnoxJazzforJustice.org:
As of late, there has been a flurry of pertinent stories and happenings in relation to the Jazz for Justice Project.
-Jazz for Justice received some surprising publicity last week when a photo of Rose, a child-mother in northern Uganda, appeared in Newsweek. In the magazine, Rose is seen receiving a prosthetic arm while a donning a yellow Jazz for...
I’ve been on vacation for the past week — w/o wifi for most of the time. I’ve tried to tweet and RT good content when connected. Sidebar.
10 tags
Uganda MPs recommend slashing ARV budget... →
To say ”We recognise that HIV is a serious disease but it is not the only disease affecting Ugandans,” as chair of the house standing committee Rose Akol Okullo has is an absolute cop-out and unacceptable.
In addition to the large defense fund that the article discusses, earlier this year, Uganda spent 88.2 billion shillings on a new Gulfstream for President Museveni. Yet,...
5 tags
Witch Hunts and Foul Potions Heighten Fear of... →
I know nothing of Gambia, and it’s very rare that I see anything written about it in international headlines, but after reading this story, I need to read deeper. What’s described in this article are massive human rights violations. President Jammeh is mad, and yet it’s rare to hear anything about he or the country he rules over.
3 tags
2 tags
My apologies...
…to the 1.2 people who read anything I have to say. I’ve taken no initiative to post anything in a couple few days and not much in the past couple of weeks.
I’m hoping to have a solid week of things to say in a couple of weeks, but I’ll be spending next week in the Keys and three weeks from now I leave for a stint in Uganda where internet won’t be as reliable and...
6 tags
Kenyan MPs say Uganda is a “hostile state” →
This is all in relation to the tug-of-war over rights to Migingo Island, but the salient bits are that another East African country is calling Museveni’s regime its proper name (read: “hostile state”), and this:
The Kenyan MPs, calling President Museveni an “aggressor” and an “expansionist” asked their President, Mwai Kibaki “to stand up for Kenya” against the aggression.
...
8 tags
This and That -- Housekeeping
I’ve been somewhat complacent in posting the past week, and so I figured I would take a few minutes and cover some stories that are now old news, but that I had intent of discussing.
—-
Kenyan sues over sex ban ‘stress’ — BBC
I couldn’t not talk about this. I cracked up when I originally found out about the ban. I never could have guessed the story could be...
7 tags
UPDF reports LRA is defeated while attacks...
Cross-posted from KnoxJazzforJustice.org:
Despite reports last week of attacks in southern Sudan, the Ugandan government insists that Kony and the LRA are on their last legs and have been defeated.
According to The New Vision:
Rebels of the Lord’s Resistance Army on Wednesday attacked villages in the southern Sudanese town of Yambio, abducting an unknown number of people, according to the Sudan...
5 tags
Texas in Africa: a resource war by any other... →
I’m not offering much in the way of personal insight, today, but you really should give this post a close read.
Here’s the first paragraph for a preview:
In the past six months or so, there’s been a concerted push by the Congo activist community (it does exist, believe it or not) to focus on the exploitation of natural resources by the various armed groups and foreign...
7 tags
Migiro Urges Sustainable African Green Revolution... →
Pointing to Africa as the epicentre of the global food crisis, the United Nations Deputy Secretary-General today called for an African Green Revolution, urging the international community to double food yields across the continent through sustainable agriculture.
Because the article is pretty self-explanatory, I’ll leave my commenting to one line.
It’s about time.
4 tags
WatchDespite the narrator’s ignorant surprise throughout the whole video, this is quite interesting — in a very sad way.
Al-Qaeda is intelligent. They see an opening and they’re going to try to fill it.
Somalia might not be such a hotbed for recruitment, though, if the West weren’t so set on supporting Ethiopian troops, propping up anti-Muslim warlords for the artist formerly...
5 tags
4 tags
My Old Home - K’naan
I think I’m...
7 tags
A novel approach to political union →
(via Chris Blattman’s Blog)
“‘Ida Odinga, wife of Kenyan prime minister Raila Odinga, has joined a Lysistrata-like nationwide sex boycott aimed at forcing the countries leaders to overcome a political impasse.
Kenyan women’s groups started the boycott in an effort to end the feud between the factions led by Mr. Odinga and President Mwai Kibaki that has paralyzed...
7 tags
Big thanks to Oprah for getting so many people off...
You know, since that’s what matters and all.
Just a quick rant — I promise.
I really must be at least some part masochist because I continue looking at the Twitter trends for #therescue, and it makes me sick.
Just a few recent Tweets showing the ignorance involved with Invisible Children:
@nbrooks8: Thank you @Oprah for coming to Chi-town’s rescue! We knew you wouldn’t...
April 2009
18 posts
3 tags
7 tags
5 tags
6 tags
5 tags
Uganda: EU to Maintain Funding, Says Envoy →
Granted, many things are better in mission than actuality, but going strictly by where the envoy says the money is going, I think this is a great example of why Dambisa Moyo’s argument can’t be so cut and dry.
Roads and agriculture are two sectors capable of making a huge difference in the development of Uganda. That some of the funds are being directed to development projects in the...
4 tags
Kenya: Massive Mungiki Manhunt in Central →
This could have something to do with it.
5 tags
Mungiki kill 26 in overnight violence - The... →
I wonder if this is a rather isolated incident or if something big is about to happen in Kenya. I’ll be keeping an eye on it.
One thing is for sure — After taking religion and conflict this semester, the Mungiki are beyond fascinating from a scholarly point of view.
6 tags
Mandela Appears Again at A.N.C. Rally →
I know he’s showing party solidarity and all, but it’s disappointing to see Mandela backing Jacob Zuma.
5 tags
Feingold Calls on President to Personally Engage... →
Sen. Feingold gets it.
H/T Chris Blattman blog
4 tags
“I will donate 100K to one individual’s favorite non profit organization.Of...”
– Twitter / Hugh Jackman
Awesome idea. Everyone vote for Educate! I’ve mentioned them here and here.
What I said: “dswinder @realhughjackman Educate! http://is.gd/sBlIcreates socially responsible leaders. Fixes problems from the source by equipping youth to lead.”
3 tags
5 tags
HEAL Africa →
Despite the savior-esque name of this organization, I really like the idea behind their work. They’re Congolese founded and run and only have a four-person staff in the States.
From their About Section:
“Recognizing that health problems are the visible symptoms of greater societal ills, HEAL Africa made a commitment to not just improve healthcare, but to tackle these issues at the...
7 tags
“In 2000, Africa became the focus of orchestrated world-wide pity, and not for...”
– An excerpt from Dead Aid.
I really want, neigh need, to read this book.
Stop Aiding Africa! - The Daily Beast
6 tags
NYT Book Review - 'Africa’s World War,' by... →
I’m very interested to dive into this book. Be warned, it’s thick and dense.
4 tags
Global Crisis 'Hits Africa Twice,' Says Kofi Annan →
I’m way late on this, but it’s a very interesting take on the future of the continent under the current economic crisis. Though, I don’t think Dambisa Moyo would like the implications.
5 tags
Watch“Saving the world”… One baby at a time.
Even parodies of these two make me wretch.
HT: The Meaningfulness of Little Things
4 tags
Atlas of Global Development 2nd Edition →
The World Bank just released the second edition of their Atlas of Global Development.
5 tags
“We knew there was a reason for the lack of reality tv shows about NGO meetings...”
– Twitter / Wronging Rights
March 2009
13 posts
3 tags
Africa: Continent Loses U.S. $90 Billion to Tax... →
Yet more proof of economic exploitation and how it leads to aid dependency. Dambisa Moyo made wonderful observations… I just hope it goes beyond observing. I guess I’ll see when I read the entire book.
7 tags
Additional troops sent to Garamba
Cross-posted from KnoxJazzforJustice.org:
According to The New Vision, on the heels of the UPDF’s withdrawal from the DRC, 3,000 Congolese troops and 100 MONUC peacekeepers have been deployed to Garamba National Park to take the place of the Ugandan forces.
While the deployment of additional peace keepers is vital for the safety of the residents of eastern DR Congo, additional troops will...
4 tags
Malawi: Madonna Tries to Adopt Second Child →
How does Madonna feel that she is benefitting the life of a child by uprooting them from their home and bringing them into her international spotlight? I guess anything to avoid slipping into irrelevance.
This makes me sick.
5 tags
Are short-term development projects like Katine a... →
This is a very interesting take on the sustainability of supposedly sustainable development projects. I’m not sure if I agree wholeheartedly with everything she says, but it definitely adds to the intellectual debate.
4 tags
Clowns bring smiles to DR Congo →
A team of clowns has started a tour of refugee camps in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, where more than half of those displaced are children.
The four performers, from the Spanish organisation Payasos Sin Fronteras (Clowns Without Borders), are on a 25-day tour of seven camps around Goma.
A spokeswoman for the UN refugee agency told the BBC that the clowns could help the children...