tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3098264341625381422.post8379322264025941091..comments2024-03-18T17:01:07.165-07:00Comments on The Provocateur: Analyzing Obama's Accra Speechmike volpehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02999118519606254362noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3098264341625381422.post-51830992670159097442009-07-21T07:29:05.590-07:002009-07-21T07:29:05.590-07:00http://gangbox.wordpress.com/2009/07/18/
Obama’s...http://gangbox.wordpress.com/2009/07/18/<br /><br /><br />Obama’s neocolonial mission in Africa<br />16 July 2009<br /><br />Last week, President Barack Obama flew from the G8 summit in Italy to Accra, the capital of Ghana in West Africa, for his first visit to Sub-Saharan Africa since becoming president. “I have the blood of Africa within me,” he told his Ghanaian audience, “and my family’s history reflects the tragedies and triumphs of the larger African story.”<br /><br />The value of Obama’s family background was recognised early in his bid for the presidency by Zbigniew Brzezinski, the national security adviser to President Jimmy Carter and a key figure in the formulation of Obama’s foreign policy. In August 2007, Brzezinski declared that Obama “recognizes that the challenge is a new face, a new sense of direction, a new definition of America’s role in the world.”<br /><br />Brzezinski was among major figures in the US foreign policy establishment who saw in Obama a means of giving the United States a “new face” to the rest of the world, something they deemed critical after the blunders and setbacks to American imperialism under Bush.<br /><br />Obama lived up to expectations in Ghana. He played on his African ancestry, just as he had emphasised his Muslim heritage the previous month in Cairo.<br /><br />The image of the two Obama children walking out into the sunlight from the “door of no return” at Cape Coast Castle, from which so many Africans did not return, was a carefully crafted photo op. Leaving this scene of so much human suffering, Obama said, “It reminds us that as bad as history can be, it’s always possible to overcome.”<br /><br />This was meant to imply that no matter what Africa has suffered in the past, and no matter what the continent continues to suffer at the hands of the banks, corporations and Western governments, the responsibility—and the fault—rests with the African people themselves.<br /><br />Obama brought an uncompromising message, spelling out in a more open way than George Bush dared to do during his visit to Ghana last year that aid would be made available only in return for the implementation of policies that serve the interests of the US government and corporations–and that there would be less of it in future.<br /><br />“Development,” Obama told parliamentarians, “depends upon good governance. That is the ingredient which has been missing in far too many places, for far too long. That is the change that can unlock Africa’s potential. And that is a responsibility that can only be met by Africans.”<br /><br />“Africa’s future is up to Africans,” he repeated.<br /><br />The lecture also carried a threat. “We have a responsibility to support those who act responsibly and to isolate those who don’t, and that is exactly what America will do,” Obama declared.<br /><br />The BBC’s correspondent, Andrew Harding, was struck by the bluntness with which the president felt able to speak to his hosts. He wrote: “It was a very broad-ranging speech, but Mr. Obama has an ability because of his heritage, his Kenyan father, to reach out and speak to Africans in a way that I think most foreign leaders would find very difficult.”<br /><br />It was “a message no pink-faced Western leader could have delivered without arousing resentment in Africa and politically correct abuse from hand-wringers at home,” Libby Purves, a columnist for the London Times noted.barbnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3098264341625381422.post-83120210703966312022009-07-12T16:39:44.293-07:002009-07-12T16:39:44.293-07:00I have had a couple of conversations with individu...I have had a couple of conversations with individuals who were born, and raised in Africa. What I hear consistently from them is that powerful rich corrupt families run their countries. They feel the problem has to do with leadership within their society. This is one of the aspects about America they admire most. It's Democracies ability to change society when something is unfair, or not working. Being able to kick out official's when they are not doing their job. If someone really feels there is a problem in America they can stand up against it. Over in Africa the chances of being killed, or silenced for opposition is the norm. <br /><br />The question is how does one fix this problem? It really comes down to the people in Africa. They need to stand up, and fight this corruption. No other nation can do this for them. Recently, we have been seeing the Iranians taking the fight to the streets. We saw how Obama chose to be silent. He did not want to be labeled as melding in the internal affairs of the Iranians government. This is exactly the wrong attitude to have. This is when our nation I feel needs to support the people in their struggle. You may ask why? For me it comes down to taking a proactive stance against tyranny. When you see protesters being shot for demanding a fair election it becomes a human rights issue. This is everything our country, and forefathers fought against. <br /><br />So when do you intervene into international affairs? When the people being oppressed have the will, and demand for change and action. That is half of the equation in my opinion. The other half is providing the support, and necessary resources for the people who ask for it to prevail against such injustice. It's not a matter of being the World's Police. If those kind of countries, and leaders can commit those kind of atrocities on their own people. It's just matter of time before they do it to their neighbors, are us next. <br /><br />You can always choose to bury the problems, and hide from them. Just know they will resurface if left unchecked. It's better to to be proactive, rather than inactive. I feel it's a moral obligation to ourselves, and the rest of the world to have this policy in place.Mikehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13863729148962294499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3098264341625381422.post-76263571249380155202009-07-12T13:29:51.814-07:002009-07-12T13:29:51.814-07:00See, this is another example of how conservatives ...See, this is another example of how conservatives and liberals see the exact same thing, Africa in a state of perpetual collapse, and think two entirely different things.<br /><br />Conservatives would say "the wrongs of the past are over, its time for you to move on." Liberals would say "conservatives want you to believe the wrongs of the past are over so you won't realize they're still going on."<br /><br />Africa will continue to be weak until they realize that, simply put, foreigners are better at using African corruption to their advantage than Africans are.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3098264341625381422.post-48773164530341040842009-07-11T14:54:55.105-07:002009-07-11T14:54:55.105-07:00I wonder who wrote this speech for him. It was ti...I wonder who wrote this speech for him. It was time for him to change up his tune since the apology tour was not working. Give it a little time an he will be right back to his old shenanigans.<br /><br />He has a far way to go before matching Bush's contributions to Africa. In fact, Bush did more for Africa than any other president in history. If Obama does not beat out Bush in this category I would be very surprised. Well, maybe not. Nothing amazes me with this new administration.Mikehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13863729148962294499noreply@blogger.com