goodCRIMETHINK

(cross-posted to Jack & Jill Politics)

A troubling set of Western-initiated forces are aligning to further destabilize Africa.

That Cold War mentality which saw the rich nations of the world treat Africa as a playground and dumping ground is in full effect. Foreign debt is crushing already-struggling economies. A thirst for oil is exacerbating the gap between rich and poor and driving societies further away from freedom. The so-called “War on Terror” has made Africa suddenly interesting to the U.S. military. But the biggest force may be global warming.

According to a report in Time magazine, global warming may be “drowning Africa.”

“This weather is what climatologists predicted, and it is happening even faster than expected,” says Grace Akumu, executive director of the Kenya-based Climate Change Network. “We are overwhelmed.” The immediate consequences of climate change in Africa? Countries will experience either torrential floods or severe drought during a season. Akumu says that the unpredictable climate will threaten the food supply in Africa and potentially eliminate key crops. Africans are expected to face a severe lack of food and drinkable water by the end of the century.

Not all of Africa’s problems can be blamed on the West, but a whole lot can. Global warming is undoubtedly caused by Western industrialized society and its rampant consumerism, but the effects are disproportionately felt by the world’s non-industrialized and poor nations. Adding further insult is the fact that these nations don’t have the resources (financial, technological or otherwise) to combat the effects of global warming in the same way Western societies can.

Push come to shove, the U.S. will probably erect sea walls and pursue other measures to limit social and economic damage from rising sea levels, etc. Most African nations cannot afford such an expense. The Time article continues:

Africa is particularly vulnerable because it has a low institutional capacity to combat the changing weather. As a result, says Ugandan climate change specialist James Magezi-Akiiki, “in Africa, adaptation to climate change is more important than mitigation.” In response to the floods devouring Uganda, Magezi-Akiiki says that the government will now consider the effects of global warming, such as increased rainfall, in its planning of future infrastructure projects.

Ironically, Africa produces far less carbon than other continents, leading some scientists to blame industrialized countries for Africa’s climate plight. Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni announced at an African Union summit this year that developed countries were “committing aggression” against Africa by causing global warming.

The irony is extra spicy in this case. As our Western societies max out on resources such as energy, we could learn a thing or two from our “third world” brothers and sisters about how to live more in a more sustainable fashion, but we’re too busy exploiting them to see such a possibility. As Africa becomes less stable, we will extend an offer of help, but it will come with major strings attached. We’ll probably repeat the mistakes we made in Latin America all over again, propping up unjust regimes to get ours and get out.

We should all be paying a lot more attention to energy, climate and food issues. I recommend checking out the blog for the African American Environmentalist Association which just posted about an upcoming CBC Foundation event on environmental justice.

(cross-posted to Jack & Jill Politics)

Why else would this triflin Negro utter such foolishness:

Jackson sharply criticized presidential hopeful and Illinois Sen. Barack Obama for “acting like he’s white” in what Jackson said has been a tepid response to six black juveniles’ arrest on attempted-murder charges in Jena, La. Jackson, who also lives in Illinois, endorsed Obama in March, according to The Associated Press.

“If I were a candidate, I’d be all over Jena,” Jackson said after an hour-long speech at Columbia’s historically black Benedict College.

“Jena is a defining moment, just like Selma was a defining moment,” said the iconic civil rights figure, who worked with Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1965 Selma civil rights movement and was with King at his 1968 assassination.

Yes, Jesse, if you were a candidate, you would be all over Jena. And you’d be all over OJ, counseling him during his grief. You’d be all over Michael Richards, boycotting the Seinfeld Season 7 DVD. You’d be all over alleged rape cases, giving free college tuition to all accusers. That’s the problem, Jesse. You are all over everything, except yourself. You would probably lick your chops at the prospect of an old school Jim Crow terrorist lynching because it would give you a chance to hold a press conference and a march. I really hate to say it, but what else am I supposed to believe?

It is an absolute affront to black people and, hell, humanity, that Jesse Jackson takes his outdated soapbox, rallies around the legitimate injustice that is the Jena 6 and uses it to toss a universally insulting and immature insult at a presidential candidate he has endorsed! If this is how he treats his friends, I’d hate to see what he serves up to his enemies.

This entire Jesse Sharpson / Al Jackston duopoly on black spokesmanship (because it’s definitely not leadership) is played out. Can we get a forced retirement up in here? Are there term limits for embarrassing black leaders? How do you impeach someone who was never elected?

I’m with Oliver Willis. Get me some Deval Patrick or anybody new over this foolish old man.

Seriously Jesse, what’s going on brotha? Mad that Obama might do what you didn’t? Mad that he’s not running the campaign you would run if you were a candidate? Guess what, Jesse. You were a candidate… twice, and you lost… twice. Let it go. And since you’re going for a personal attack against the Obama’s racial authenticity — not to mention attacking all white Americans who stand for racial justice — Reverend, what’s the real problem? Baby mama drama got you down, Reverend?

I’m only asking because the last time I checked, Obama didn’t father any crumb-snatchers with a woman other than his wife. If attacking Barack Obama is how you show that you’re “all over” Jena, I’d rather you stayed away from tomorrow’s protest. Instead, just make sure you’re “all over” those child support payments.

Technorati Tags: Barack Obama, jena 6, jesse jackson, triflin

I have been in Chicago for a few days and make a habit of picking up the Chicago Reader, an incredible alt weekly reminding me of the best of Boston’s Weekly Dig and the Village Voice.

After living in Chicago last summer studying at the iO, i came to depend on the CTA (bus and rail). After reading about peak oil, I came to realize just how critical public transit (and support for it) is for all of us. Today I saw this in the Reader:

Year after year public transit authorities across this country struggle with budget shortfalls, service cuts and overall mismanagement. We have so subsidized the automobile, yet we demand mass rail and bus be “self sufficient.” Mass air travel, on the other hand, is free to seek government bailouts every 7 years or so. Car transportation benefits from the “free” road systems maintained by the government.

Back to Chicago. This ad really struck me as desperate. When the head of your public transit authority has to take out a full page ad in an alt weekly to announce fare increases, reduced service and beg the citizens to beg the legislature for more money, it is hard to find any source of faith in our society’s ability to adapt to an energy-poor future.

I wish my people in Chicago the best. Mostly i wish that through hardship they will find the anger and energy to prioritize more stable financing of the CTA. I also realize that it’s not all about money. Mis/management is a big problem with transit systems as today’s Chicago Tribune cover story suggests.