Old Bones Age Well
Mostly praise for PBS’ brilliant production “Bones of Turkana” with only a few important criticisms. It was specially good to see Richard Leakey so relaxed and forthcoming. He is a man who has lived much of his life under attack or siege and a significant part of his non-paleontological public life remains clouded and unexplained. [...]
Similiar Social Circles
By jimheck in Corruption, Kenya, Politics, War on May 17, 2012
Charles Taylor’s demand that the World Court try George Bush is neither hair-brained or facetious and demonstrates the growing globalization of justice. Shortly after Liberia’s former strong-man was sentenced by the World Court yesterday to 80 years for “crimes against humanity” he remarked to the press: “President Bush… ordered torture and admitted to doing so. [...]
Be Careful What You Wish For
By jimheck in Big Game, Economy, Wildlife Management on May 15, 2012
Lion road kill, baby lion attack … two examples this week that we must stop thinking of Africa’s wild animals as human incarnations. Like a hundreds of other tourists daily, at dozens if not hundreds of similar sites throughout Africa, Madelein Querk was looking forward to that special moment this past weekend when she could [...]
Big Gay Brother
By jimheck in "Modern" Africa, Culture on May 14, 2012
Many African reactions to Obama’s gay marriage statement focus on the hypocrisy of the “small government” stand taken by so many conservative Americans. Social issues like marriage percolating to the top of a political campaign for president of the world’s yet most powerful country confuses many in Africa. America is among all known for “freedom” [...]
Leave It To The Kids!
By jimheck in "Modern" Africa, Big Game, Economy, Wildlife Management on May 11, 2012
A 13-year old Maasai boy (genius) who rigged up an electric light device that seems to successfully protect his boma from lions is no longer herding his family’s cows. He’s got a scholarship to one of Kenya’s best private schools! Richard Turere like all young teen Maasai boys was principally responsible for taking care of [...]
Down Now Up Later
By jimheck in Tourism Trends on May 10, 2012
Americans increased their travel to all parts of the world for the first few months of this year, except to Africa. Africa stood out like a sore thumb, declining about 5%. Why, and what does the future now look like? Two months of a statistic does not a trend make, but what is critical is [...]
Hola Hollande! Following Africa?
By jimheck in "Modern" Africa, Economy, Politics on May 8, 2012
Africans are generally pleased with Sarkozy’s defeat by Hollande. To them it suggests that right-wing western policies are on the decline. Virtually all of free Africa is to the left of most western countries. Africa’s incredible economic growth, now an astounding 2-3 times the west, is likely to remain 1 or 2 points higher than [...]
Better Visit The Selous Soon
By jimheck in "Modern" Africa, Ecology, Economy, Environment on May 7, 2012
Bruised but recovered from the embarrassing loss of the Serengeti Highway project, Tanzania looks truly set on creating one of Africa’s largest dams over currently one of its largest game parks. Friday, Energy and Minerals minister William Ngeleja announced during a visit to the area that “This is not a ghost project…Tanzanians will see it [...]
YouTube Won’t Believe
The combined viewers of YouTube videos mocking Invisible Children’s video about Joseph Kony has now exceeded the viewership of the original video. What an infamous mess. But has YouTube corrected a terrible wrong or simply added more wrongs? I really don’t know how to parse my feelings of disgust, anger, sadness, confusion …. I was [...]
Rally Round the Rig, Boys!
Chen Guangcheng overshadows a great diplomatic partnership between the U.S. and China succeeding right now in Sudan. Yesterday in coordinated diplomacy that worked faster than a ping pong match, the U.S. moved a resolution through the United Nations Security Council that would impose harsh sanctions of both the North and South Sudan if they don’t [...]
Kenya & America Joined By Anger
By jimheck in Uncategorized on May 1, 2012
Warped democracy in both Kenya and the U.S. shows citizens will vote against their own self-interest. It amazes me. In Kenya a poll released today shows a virtual tie between the current Prime Minister, Raila Odinga (the good guy) and his yet to announce opponent, Uhuru Kenyatta (the bad guy). The polling results are frighteningly [...]
Partnership for Peace & Oil
The time has come for China and the U.S. to become allies to stop the war in The Sudan and get oil pumping, again. The U.S. must immediately nominate China as mediator in the North/South Sudan conflict with wide powers to demarcate borders. Yes it’s agonizingly obvious it’s all about oil, but China unlike the [...]
Bipartisan Balderdash in Africa
By jimheck in Charity, Perceptions of Africa, Politics on April 27, 2012
We in America can’t agree to increase taxes for better education or health care, but we can all agree to pay an extra ten million or two to obsess about a fallen Africa criminal. The absolute farce with Invisible Children reached the otherwise empty halls of Congress this week. The viral YouTube video based on [...]
Why Do Cheetah Drop Spots?
By jimheck in Big Game, Wildlife Research on April 26, 2012
Does a cheetah lose its spots as an adaptive strategy? Can recessive genes play a larger part in natural selection than we thought? Lately there’s been a lot of research and argument about what rolls color and color patterns have in the natural selection of wild animals. The color of giraffe, the striping of zebra [...]
Breakup Brokers need China
Only China can stop the Sudanese war. This is the first great test of its diplomatic strength and savvy in Africa. Last week South Sudan restarted a generation-old war with its former northern master, Sudan, by invading an oil field on the common border which remains disputed territory. Five days later the South retreated having [...]