Timeless Rebel

Building Rhodes: The Cape-to-Cairo Vision

A Tempest in a Teapot: Faux controversey over Stanley Statue

In the history of colonial exploration and adventure, the most quoted man is likely Henry Morgan Stanley. Any educated person who isn't familiar with Stanley's famous "Dr. Livingston, I presume" should take-up skydiving without a parachute or drag racing in the fog without a seat-belt.  The Daily Telegraph has an excellent piece highlighting how the corrupt agents of skewed political correctness have hamstrung a Welsh town's ability to celebrate its' favorite son. The self-righteous, no-fun, limited, and myopic people who are hell-bent on obstructing the commissioning of this statue are a laughable testament to how bankrupt and shameless slaves to political correctness have become. Get a freakin' life, folks. Do you propose we tear down every statue to Woodrow Wilson, since he re-segregated the U.S. Civil Service, or most of the founding fathers, since they were active slave-owners? Let us not forget that Nelson Mandela was once a violent terrorist. We can devote our time to tearing apart most of history's heroes and noted characters, but sometimes saving our collective doubts and scorn for those villains who merit it, like Fidel Castro, Joseph Stalin, and Adolf Hilter. Few things are as loathsome as selective outrage.

Stanley may have been a racist, opportunist, and shameless self-promoter. Not my place to judge (I save that for when it counts, like terrorism or genocide), and these are certainly not the traits that give cause to honor him. Undoubtedly, he was also incredibly bold, intrepid, and dynamic in terms of the risk and endeavors he pursued. Those are qualities that merit recognition and give cause for just remembrance and why he is likely one of the most quoted men in history. Here is to hoping the statue gets completed, and the vow that if the werewolf should ever find himself in the Welsh town of Denbigh, you can wager he'll be sporting a big smile next to the statue of Henry Morgan Stanley.

Desmund Tutu: Wishing Obama would Channel Bush on Africa

In a remarkable article published in yesterday's New York Times, Desmund Tutu, human rights legend and anti-apartheid luminary, publicly wonders why Obama is derelict on his pledges to Africa and the continent's struggle against the AIDS crisis. During the 2008 election, Obama's ties to Kenya were played ad nauseum, as if they somehow accentuated his already stunted credentials. The great irony that liberals can't seem to grasp, is that President Bush was the most Africa oriented President to every occupy the White House. Other legacies aside, that seems to be set in stone for the foreseeable future. When you've pissed off Desmond Tutu, and you can claim black African heritage and are the former poster-child for post-modern liberalism, you know you've lost some serious luster.

African Terror: Recalling Mau Mau

Last February, The Daily Mail ran a great article from an acitve participant's perspective during the infamous Mau Mau emergency that took place in Kenya during the 1950s. The participant and author, Tim Symonds, paints a candid and thoughtful picture that pulls no punches. In this modern era of hyper-sensitivity and revisionist inclination, finding someone who calls it as it actually happened is refreshing. The Mau Mau were one of Africa's ugliest and most brutal terrorist insurgencies. For anyone with any passing interest in African history, security, terrorism, decolonization, or justice, this article is a breath of fresh air and a must read.

Here are some excellent passages from Symonds recollection:


Criteria for being targeting by the Mau Mau.

"Leakey was selected not because he was an enemy of the Kikuyu but, perversely, because he was widely considered a good man and therefore a more powerful sacrificial offering. He even had a Kikuyu nickname - Morungaru - which means 'tall and straight'."

 On blending in.

"Their sense of smell from life in the forest had become so keen that they could smell my freshly-laundered clothes. Another white man arrived. 'OK, film star,' he said to me. 'I'm your make-up man.'
He painted potassium permanganate on my hands, face and neck to stain the skin. Then he produced a small tin of boot polish and a tiny watercolour brush. 'Let's start with your right eye,' he said. 'Open wide.'
He brushed a small blob of the boot polish right inside the eyelid. It stung and I shouted, prompting peals of laughter from the Mau Mau men. He held out a mirror and, blinking uncontrollably, I looked at my eye. The polish had spread across it, turning the whites a streaky yellow"

 Jomo Kenyatta and the sinister benefits of incarceration.

"A white police officer met me and told me I was to take charge of a Land Rover with an African driver, who would take me to a secret destination to deliver a cargo. I went outside and met the driver. Crates had been loaded in the back of the Land Rover, covered by a tarpaulin.
Some time later we arrived at our destination where I gave a white Kenya police officer the papers to sign for the cargo. He invited me in for a quick drink before I had to set off for home base. Afterwards I came out to find the Land Rover only three-quarters unloaded. The mysterious cargo turned out to be crate upon crate of Scotch whisky.
The police officer explained that Jomo Kenyatta, the man accused of masterminding the Mau Mau, was being held under close arrest nearby. Kenyatta was being provided with three bottles of Scotch every day, which he was consuming.
The real aim, the officer said, was for Kenyatta to die of cirrhosis of the liver as quickly as possible. I could tell he wasn't joking.
Kenyatta was nearing 70 at the time. Eight years later, in 1963, he was to become newly independent Kenya's first black prime minister. Shortly after that he became Kenya's president, famed for his flywhisk, the symbol of a Kikuyu elder, made from the end of a cow's tail. Perhaps we pickled him instead of killing him: Kenyatta lived until he was 89."

It's a spectacular and compelling tale.

African Money Laundering

During the werewolf's travels throughout Africa, Zambia specifically, he recalls getting his hands on some local currency, the Kwacha, that was so filthy, a haz-mat suit would have be advisable in handling it. The notes were so odious, greasy, yucky, and sticky, the werewolf wondering if they had been deposited in someones rectum at some-point. The gooey residue that seemed to coat each note managed to contaminate the werewolf's old travel wallet, rendering it useless. The filth has spread from local currency to international bills it seems. Anyhow, a friend sent the werewolf this update from AP on the need sanitize currency in Zimbabwe.

"Some have become almost too smelly to handle, so Zimbabweans have taken to putting their $1 bills through the spin cycle and hanging them up to dry with clothes pins alongside sheets and items of clothing.

It's the best solution — apart from rubber gloves or disinfectant wipes — in a continent where the U.S. dollar has long been the currency of choice and where the lifespan of a dollar far exceeds what the U.S. Federal Reserve intends."

This takes the meaning of dirty money to a whole new level.

Postcard from Zimbawe: Meet the new boss, much worse than the old boss

The werewolf has been amused by the New York Times’s rather stark descent from grace, massive loss of credibility, and reliable display of liberal hypocrisy. Occasionally, he find himself glimpsing through the digital pages to see what’s up, but abandoned the New York Times long-ago for the more thorough and journalistically rigid pages found at the Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, and The Times of London. The print version of The New York Times could conceivably be useful should toilet paper run out.

That being said, the werewolf has a love-hate relationship with Nick Kristof, one of the liberal bloviators who regularly scribbles for the NY Times. The werewolf and Kristoff share a deep love and passion for Zimbabwe. That’s the only overlap on the Venn diagram of similar interests and beliefs on the world. Kristof has penned a honest and penetrating assessment of modern day Zimbabwe tilted “Postcard from Zimbabwe.” Here are some potent highlights that speak for themselves

"In a week of surreptitious reporting here (committing journalism can be a criminal offense in Zimbabwe), ordinary people said time and again that life had been better under the old, racist, white regime of what was then called Rhodesia.

“When the country changed from Rhodesia to Zimbabwe, we were very excited,” one man, Kizita, told me in a village of mud-walled huts near this town in western Zimbabwe. “But we didn’t realize the ones we chased away were better and the ones we put in power would oppress us.


“It would have been better if whites had continued to rule because the money would have continued to come,” added a neighbor, a 58-year-old farmer named Isaac. “It was better under Rhodesia. Then we could get jobs. Things were cheaper in stores. Now we have no money, no food.”


Over and over, I cringed as I heard Africans wax nostalgic about a nasty, oppressive regime run by a tiny white elite. Black Zimbabweans responded that at least that regime was more competent than today’s nasty, oppressive regime run by the tiny black elite that surrounds Mr. Mugabe."

Western liberals have focused substantial energy on decrying and challenging the moral legitimacy of white minority rule. There was nothing wrong with per say. Challenging racism is noble, except that these liberals usually turned a blind-eye to the far greater cruelty and abuse that became the norm for so many post-colonial and majority-run African nations. Institutional race-based supremacy and legal segregation are ugly and unjust things that offend the werewolf to his very core. The werewolf is not endorsing the restoration of white minority regimes (although as noted by Kristof, those suffering would welcome their restoration). However, they pale in comparison to the genocide, ethnic cleansing, violent tribalism, and economic crimes committed throughout large swaths of post-colonial Africa. Kristof, is taking an important first step in acknowledging that dichotomy and one of the awful legacies of liberal racism and double-standards when it came to advocating for Africa. Good for him.

DARK OF THE SUN(1967) Original Theatrical Trailer

Wow. This movie looks incredible. The werewolf read and enjoyed the Wilbur Smith novel of the same name several years ago and wonders to what obscure vault this film has been banished and why.

He is aware that two other Wilbur Smith novels Shout at the Devil and Gold had been ttranslated into obscure films, featuring Roger Moore and Lee Marvin. However, this film has somehow slipped through the cracks of recognition and acknowledgment. It is definitely on must-watch list, even if he has to scrabble to find a VHS version and watch it in some halfway house.

The werewolf finds few tales are as compelling and fascinating as those of mercenaries in post-colonial Africa, imagined or real. Ever since he was a whelp, such tales have played to both his darkest and most passionate musings and aspirations of himself and on humanity. It's been a consistent interest that never chills or gets too hot in intensity. The werewolf has always been captivated by the storied endeavors of Mike Hoare and Bob Denard. Simon Mann, or what's left of him, is someone he would like to have drink with some day.

Jacob Zuma: Barbarian Extraordinaire

Will Heaven over at the The Daily Telegraph penned a great article regarding Jacob Zuma, the current president of South Africa. The article speaks truth-to-power about what a putrid schmuck Zuma is on all levels. At his very best, Zuma is ignorant firebrand who was active in the ANC's militant struggle to usurp apartheid. At his worst he is a retrogressive, rapist, thug, and hard-line left-wing nut-job who can't even claim to have finished high school. South Africa is in the very best of hands. Beyond being a decent political manipulator, he has shown no aptitude for anything noteworthy. The werewolf was in South Africa when the oh-so classy Zuma was on trial for raping the HIV positive lady, and having claimed that his post-rape shower negated his chances of contracting the virus. What a guy. (If it wasn't so real, it'd actually be amusing) The werewolf gave a little paw-pump when he thought Zuma had been effectively sidelined. Alas, it was premature. Here are some highlights from Mr. Heaven's article:

"Well, as Graham Boynton writes in today’s Telegraph, Zuma’s has faced a host of criminal charges during his career in the ANC: fraud, racketeering, corruption, and tax evasion to name but a few. He has so far escaped conviction, but in one of the most revealing episodes of his career so far, he was accused of raping an HIV-positive family friend in 2006.

Zuma, as has so often been the case, was acquitted. But during the trial he infamously admitted to having “showered” after unprotected sex with the woman because this “would minimise the risk of contracting the disease.” He knew the woman was HIV positive, but told the court that while he normally used condoms, he did not have one available on the night of the incident. As one Aids campaigner said at the time, “statements like that can throw years of hard work down the drain.”

A year before his rape trial, Jacob Zuma was head of the National Aids Council and South Africa’s Moral Regeneration Campaign. Is it surprising, then, that with a brute like this in charge, some six million South Africans are infected with HIV/Aids today? Zuma has even invoked traditional African culture as an excuse for not using condoms. A ludicrous idea on the face of it, but when you consider that an estimated 800,000 South Africans died of Aids in 2008, the true horror of Zuma’s influence begins to hit home." 


Zuma is a shining example of one of Africa's largest hurdles to prosperity and decency. The lack of a stable and respectable ruling class. As long as African democracy, autocracy, and governments elevate brutal thugs who ride the cresting waves of anti-western drivel, celebrate ignorance, and promote discredited economic management, Africa will stumble around like a blind drunk at an open bar, continuously being unable to be taken seriously. That in turn will retard efforts to address the public health, economic development, and global integration concerns that plague Africa. At this point, it is up to Africans to help themselves. Yet, with titanic buffoons like Zuma representing the best of African democracy, Africa will be riding the global short-bus for many moons to come.

Zimbabwe: False optimism, abused paitence, and a bleak future.

Christine Nikol over at The Daily Caller, wrote an interesting article on select attitudes of Zimbabweans toward their current blighted circumstances. It is a thoughtful and well written article, complete with locations familiar to the werewolf. However, the article strikes the werewolf as being incredibly naive at points. The problems facing Zimbabwe mostly stem from the abusive nature of Robert Mugabe's regime and how bad governance has frayed any semblance of a civil society .

There seems to be misbegotten faith put in patience and timing as the eternal cure all. The werewolf's inner economist agrees that we are all dead in the long run, so in essence, patience can be seen as a cure all of sorts. Plus, life is full of transition points where a healthy dose of patience and optimism in a better tomorrow are essential.  Yes, when Mugabe and his dastardly ruling party formally crumble, a true road to recovery can begin for Zimbabwe. However, Mugabe's legacy includes years of a disciplined deconstruction of law and order, ethnic cleansing, economic mayhem, the standardization of torture, and institutionalization of fear. Patience, optimism, and wishful thinking aren't going to fix that mess.

Who Killed Apartheid?

Reason has a great interview with South African journalist and former ANC activist turned critic, Howard Barrell. For anyone with a passing interest in South Africa, revolutions, reform, and the politics of liberation it is a must read. There is too much content to dissect in a single post. However, there are a few items that jumped at the werewolf worth mentioning.

The interview focuses on debating the efficacy of the armed component of the ANC struggle versus the more passive protest oriented civil struggles in toppling the white-minority regime in South Africa. It also touches on the insecurities and corruption of the ANC via its communist ties and the implications of that for South Africa's current government. It does a great job of framing the ANC resistance in the context of other revolutionary movements, like those in Vietnam, Cuba, Guinea-Bissau, and China. Really good stuff.

However, as a student of the aforementioned subjects, follower of international relations, and amateur Africanist; the werewolf thinks that fascinating discussions like this obscure what really caused Apartheid to collapse. The root of Apartheid's demise can be found in the crumbling of the Berlin Wall and the end of the Cold War. As long as South Africa's Apartheid regime provided a credible bulwark against communist expansion on the African continent (and it most certainly did), the West unconditionally tolerated it existence. When the specter of global communist evaporated, so did the patience the West had for South Africa's hard-line segregation. Forty years of deliberate attempts by communist insurgents and labor strikes certainly impaired South Africa's economy and degraded its reputation, but never proved a credible vehicle to bringing the regime down. It's not a desire to oversimplify(for the sake of brevity this post is exceedingly general), it's just a an example wanting to glorify a movement and give credit where little credit is due. As the article suggests, the ANC had a credible vehicle to move into power via its popular electoral support with the black masses making it the logical negotiating partner for the then ruling National Party to engage once elections had been mandated. However, one only need examine the extreme violence between the Zulu based Inkatha Freedom Party and the Xhosa centric ANC during South Africa's first universal election. Black/white violence wasn't a major factor as South Africa transitioned into a democratic society. It was black-on-black violence that sadly marked the occasion.

The werewolf feels that there is a tension in wanting to glorify the ANC and give it credit, despite how when examined; the timing, facts, and legacies of how history unfolded provide a contrast that challenge these assumptions. While the werewolf could read articles like this one until he was blue-in-the face. They provide more insight into failed insurgencies and the limits of violence against entrenched powers, more than a tale of legitimate liberation and political transformation. While conducting the post-mortum to best understand the anatomy of the transitional miracle that is South Africa, the best indicators are in the macro-trends that defined that era.

Zulu - Final Attack - Great Scene

The werewolf didn't want to leave the few readers of this blog hanging after the powerful, but gloomy opening of the film Zulu, so above please find the famous last battle sequence. Although this portion of the Battle of Rorke's Drift is considered the most fictionalized part of the film, it is still poweful in conveying essence of what makes the battle so epic in the annals of military history. There is also something captivating about the two opposing forces dueling via song and chant that captures the humanity of this scene so well.

Here's a little trivia for the true film connoisseurs out there. You'll notice chant used by the Germanic tribes featured at the beginning of the film Gladiator is the exact same chant used by the Zulus. It's a neat tribute to Zulu.

Finally, for the audiophiles, get a taste of the score from Zulu here. Awesome.

This Day in History: Battle of Rorke's Drift and the opening scene of Zulu.

One of the greatest war film openings of all time somehow seems fitting. Today marks the 131st anniversary of the Battle of Rorke's Drift. It was one of the defining moments for both the British Empire, and some historians argue the west writ large. The werewolf is an unapologetic military and imperial history buff, and a huge fan a classic war films. Richard Burton's dour voice-over along with the scenes of the devastation of the annihilated British column pave the way to one of most timeless cinematic experiences out there. Not to mention, it was one of Michael Caine's breakout roles.

Imagine roughly 130 English soldiers at a trading post in the middle of hostile Zulu country, about forty of whom are wounded or ill, getting the news of the total annihilation of their main force a few miles away. On top of that bad news, they learn that 4000 Zulu's are bearing down on them and Zulu culture does not permit prisoners to be taken. They are low on ammunition, in a weak tactical position, and going up against an emboldened warrior nation that outnumbers them more than 35 to 1. Intense.

It many regards, Rorke's Drift is a Victorian era version of the Battle of Thermopylae. The legacy of the battle showed that extreme discipline and cohesion allowed the British to successfully repel enough Zulu assaults to allow time for reinforcements to arrive. A great moment in military history when David routes Goliath. Can you dig it? The werewolf sure as hell can.

Entreprenuership and Efficient Energy in Africa.

The werewolf recently stumbled onto the technology blog White African via Instapundit. Excellent web destination! There's a great post on the introduction of low cost solar technology to the Kenyan market. The werewolf is fascinated by such things, and thinks observing them will be revealing in how to both potentially understand the pitfalls of solar technologies for developed energy grids, as well as monitoring a potential, and long overdue entrepreneurial revolution in Africa(qualified statement).

Firstly, the werewolf has always loved the old joke "What did Africa have before fire?"

Drum-roll for dramatic effect...


ELECTRICITY!

There's a very long, tired debate about the nature of colonialism both pro and con. The werewolf has no interest in going there right now. Although, it's crystal clear to anyone who has spent any time in Africa, that the crumbling foundations of the old colonial infrastructures are still in primary use in most countries. It's a sad statement, especially in light of the billions of dollars in foreign aid that has been wasted in Africa over the last four decades, with so little to show.

Anyhow, the werewolf is skeptical of how aggressively certain "green technologies" are being subsidized and pushed in the United States. He likes the concept very much, but still thinks the technologies need to mature and have better applications for integration before they can be viable for widespread adaptation. He doesn't think "going green" with theoretical, feel-good technologies, that are being propped up through extensive tax credits and subsidies will have a long-term positive effect, or is truly more efficient at this stage in the game.

However, by keeping keen eyes on a nation like Kenya, where the infrastructure is archaic, the demand for modernization legit, and the ability to by-pass a traditional western developed energy grid is possible. It seems like a great incubator for really understanding the power of mobile solar energy capture is being presented. The nascent stages, as mentioned in the article are about raising awareness and usurping the dependence on kerosene, yet, since the grid is worthless, watching the scale of small operations dependent on solar ramp-up over the next few years (assuming it all works), could providing fascinating insight in how to integrate such technology into a developed grid. Also, given that many Africans who will likely adopt this technology are living in rough market conditions, and the spirit of ingenuity tends to thrive in such places, a raft of new applications may be uncovered.

The werewolf thinks certain hypes are unwarranted, but in this case, he'll keep his eyes on Africa in the hopes that long-term aspirations of inexpensive, renewable, and easy energy application lessons can be learned. In the meantime, let's build some nukes on the home front.

Frenemies of the State.

The Atlantic's Joshua Hammer has an excellent article leveraging an insider's perspective on the farce of the ZANU-MDC coalition government in Zimbabwe. First, a hit-tip to Mr. Hammer for the clever "Mean Girls-esque" title, that is not only is a wonderful play on the modern vernacular, but down to its very core, an accurate vehicle that describes the internal dynamic in this uneasy coalition government, where the MDC is very clearly, the junior partner.

As a staunch advocate of the MDC, I thought it was a strategic mistake for them to agree to join ZANU in a "unity government." Mugabe is a gangster, kleptocrat, and butcher. The last twenty-nine years of his rule are a testament to that. He is also an incredibly gifted manipulator. Co-opting, discrediting, and absorbing legitimate opposition is his super-power. One only need look back to how Mugabe's Shona-based ZANU completely discredited and absorbed Joseph Nkomo's Ndebele-based ZAPU, following a series a massacres in Matabeleland with the intent of solidifying a one-party state. Mugabe succeeded.

It struck me as a huge blow to the moral credibility the MDC held as a legitimate opposition to Mugabe. I wasn't present from the diabolical levels of violence visited on MDC supporters by ZANU during the last few elections and can appreciate their collective fatigue. However, by venturing into a"unity government," the MDC exposed their Achilles heel, where entrenched ZANU apparatchiks can impede MDC progress and erode their credibility by shifting internal blame for the faults of governance away from ZANU and towards the MDC. A example of this is found in this paragraph:

"But Coltart has learned that fixing the system is not so easy when Mugabe—or Mugabe’s surrogates—are looking over his shoulder. The Education Ministry’s permanent secretary, a Mugabe loyalist who “views all the teachers as MDC sympathists,” Coltart says, has thrown up bureaucratic roadblocks such as mandatory police checks; as a result, only a few hundred teachers have been rehired. “It’s not a pleasant process, and if I wasn’t a determined, stubborn type of fellow, it would be harrowing,” he told me."

It is important to be mindful that ZANU retained control of all major portfolios involving the military, defense, and intelligence gathering, while the MDC was given control of secondary portfolios like health, education, etc. In essence, the MDC have set themselves up to wash away all of the traction they gained through extreme adversity and sacrifice during the last decade.

All things being equal, Mr. Coltart sounds like a righteous bad-ass and man whom all Zimbabweans should thank for his dedication and fortitude. Godspeed, sir!

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab: From Priviledged Nigerian Elite to Failed Islamic Terrorist.

There is still much to learn about fledgling trust-fund jihadist Farouk Abdulmutallab's failed Christmas day terror plot on the Detroit bound Delta/NW flight from Amsterdam. Especially given the reports of his presence on various British and American watch lists, and the boy-terrorist's own father explicitly warning the U.S. Embassy in Abuja of his son's conversion to the dark-side. We have Dutch citizen hero, Jasper Schuringa, to thank for his quick and deliberate subduing of Abdulmutallab on the flight. Sadly, by its very nature, several theaters of the War of Terror will require the quick reaction of citizen irregulars like Meneer Schuringa. However, this BBC article makes it abundantly clear that the maladjusted Mr. Abdulmutallab certainly never wanted for much in his life by any measure, and he grew up with a silver spoon in his mouth as the son of a Nigerian banking magnate. It is no crime to born wealthy or privileged, mind you.

What really galls me is the continued assumption by many on the left and some of the paleo-conservative right that Islamo-Fascism and Jihadist terror has its origins in wealth discrepancies and poverty. Between the odious John Walker Lindh, most of the 9/11 terrorists, and Osama Bin Laden himself, there is a clear pattern of privilege, wealth, education, and elitism. The tone and attitude of the aforementioned links seems surprised that the young failed Jihadist is a man of wealth and privilege, when the trend seems to indicate that to be a norm, and surprise should be reserved for actually finding a poverty stricken jihadist working for Al Queda. (I will leave the Arab-Israel conflict details out of this post, since this focuses on the War on Terror) I think the real story here is that Africa and its Muslim population is beginning to formally enter the War on Terror as an operational theater in the minds of the west. It has been a functional theater for some time, yet not in the minds of most people. Africa has been a ripe ground for Muslim terrorism for years. A few examples include the fact Bin Laden operated out of the Sudan, Somalia is a lawless wasteland that's population is completely Muslim, and there have been reports of Lebanese middle men in western Africa using blood diamonds to finance various terror operations. Although there has been a subtle focus by American security policy on Africa for some time (especially with a large American presence in Djibouti), it has largely escaped the public perception. The Middle East, Caucusus, south Asia, Europe, and southeastern Asia all seem to get more press and attention. While I do not think the overall dynamic of the conflict will shift, I do think more young Jihadists of African extraction will rise to prominence, and more attention will be paid to the African front of the conflict as this story unfolds. We shall see.

They don't make movies like this anymore. The Wild Geese Trailer (1978)

The Wild Geese is one of the better films about mercenaries in Africa. I was fortunate to have a father who introduced me to films like this when I was a little boy. As much as I liked elements of Blood Diamond, it's heavy handed moralizing and confused script left something to be desired. Also, the insipid political correctness that dominates Hollywood has rotted away the appreciation for and the will to make such tales properly. Take the 2005 joke of a film Lord of War for example. Maybe we'll get lucky and the 2006 book, The Wonga Coup, will get produced into a movie. I know that is a dangerous wish in this day and age. (This randomly has me thinking of the "winner's curse" lesson from my business school game theory class, despite the lack of an auction process) The cinematic version of Frederick Forsyth's great novel, The Dogs of War, missed the mark by several miles despite decent performances by Christopher Walken and a very young Tom Berringer. As much as I enjoyed the book, I have been unable to find and watch the cinematic version of Wilbur Smith's Dark of the Sun, much to my eternal dismay. Thus, I conclude the Wild Geese reigns supreme.

Paradise lost. Was it ever found?

Although these tensions have been brewing for sometime, the fallout from Zimbabwe's disintegration under Mugabe is starting to take a visible toll on the internal workings of neighboring states in the region, especially South Africa. While South Africa's miraculous transition from Apartheid to majority-rule in 1994 is both commendable and impressive on multiple levels, the blind faith invested in the ruling ANC, and the rose-colored glasses frequently applied to the future of South African society in a democratic era have missed the mark, far and wide. The ANC's lack of resolve on isolating and undermining the Mugabe regime have sown the seeds for the aforementioned story, along with the chronic mismanagement of expectations of their internal constituencies. Africa and its few progress minded leaders need to embrace the fact the yesterday's "liberation" heroes have evolved into today's despots, mass-murders, villains, and are a tumor on tomorrow's aspirations.