I am told the Kony videos have gone viral on Twitter. I don’t know much about the situation other than it’s not new, he’s not as much of a threat as he once was and that the opposition fund raising to oppose him have been accused of committing the same atrocities they dramatically accuse him of committing.
The one thing I do know is that US troops have moved in and pushed him out of the country. Which in itself is somewhat surprising because after the likes of Sudan and Rwanda, the West don’t normally care about atrocities in Africa unless they have oil.
Guess what. They have oil. That makes the presence of US troops suspicious. It’s like those Farmed Salmon commercials. Two guys are having a conversation at the office. One turns to the other and whispers that he just received an e-mail saying someone is trying to get a million dollars into the country and that if he gives them a thousand dollars and his bank info, they will deposit it right into his bank account.
The other guys says, hey I got one of those e-mails too. Instead of saying hey this might be a scam, they smile and say, we’re both gonna be rich. It’s a humorous commercial concluding that we shouldn’t believe everything we hear. We need to use our brain and think because scams are unfolding all around us.
Joseph Kony is not in Uganda and hasn't been for six years. The LRA is not in Uganda but now operates in the DRC, South Sudan and the Central African Republic. The Ugandan military has been accused of committing the very same atrocities of murder and sexual trafficking that Invisible Children works to end. Invisible children? That sounds a lot like another front, the Children's Defense Fund.
The video actually says in the end that he is not in Uganda. It is an interesting video, that I do believe people should watch, for a variety of reasons. It states in the video very clearly that when the concerns about Kony were first taken to US politicians, it was said that US would NOT become involved because there was no gain to the US, the US had no interest financially, through resources or otherwise. I have had this exact argument with several of my American friends who try to tell me of all the good US does in other countries - yes, they seem to, but they never do any good unless there is payoff in some way for the US.
ReplyDeleteThe fundraising is suspect. A very small portion of the money is actually going towards this cause. A bulk of it is going towards travel costs, and the film production company (over $1 million). The company, Invisible Children, has been asked to provide transparency about how the money is being spent, but continue to fail to do so.
The Kony movement is not new, it was featured on Oprah quite awhile ago, more than once I believe. She has also given considerable money.
However, despite the many flaws in this movement, if there is something with the potential to do good, that can motivate, educate and encourage our young people to become INVOLVED, I say HURRAH! If they see that this will get a response from world leaders, then maybe they will learn that they can make a difference, they can make change, and having their voice heard WILL help! Is that really a bad thing?
It is a bad thing when they are asking for money and the Uganda military has been accused of doing the same thing they accuse Kony of doing. It is when Invisible children have been accused of spending a large portion of their donations on salaries. It is when it really involves more exploitation for oil. Sorry, I don't buy it.
ReplyDeleteGreat to see the informed skepticism of Agent K. What a cool guy, to stand out from the crowd; and think analytically for himself.
ReplyDeleteThere is a growing & dangerous belief, that the Internet is the real world; with all its consequences. As a computer A+ tech., I feel that the web is no more *real* than TV.
Kony can be nothing new to anyone informed; the LRA is something I've read about for 10 years, nothing new here.
This internet viral stuff will never have the slightest effect on Kony; whose forces are in full retreat...He can't even spell, *Internet.*
The LRA, or any successor group, will continue to exploit the anarchy of central Africa, as those conflict resources he lives on, will always continue to provide riches.
He will be killed in a year or less, by US kill-teams, Delta Force, (the OBL killers) who have been sent there to execute him, Obama has decided to kill him.
All the rest, as Agent K clearly sees, is "sound & fury, signifying Nothing."
Africa for the Africans. The whites have NO business there, re-hashing colonialism.
Agree with Freddy. Very good writing piece.
ReplyDeleteHubertus, thank you so much for the kind words.
ReplyDeleteNot much; but I learned to write prose by endless essays at UBC, where the Honours program sets very high writing standards. Maybe Agent K was there, and I didn't see him...