Tag Archives: liberia

Vacations Scare off Readers

…. that’s the crux of one of the conversations we the bloggers have been having over the past few days. John says whenever he goes on trip somewhere, the less people read or comment. Tony has observed similar. Is it a coincidence? Maybe people don’t like to hear about nice places and how good life can sometimes seem when you leave your reality for a while and go live in another reality. Maybe some people don’t like reading my blog because I live in a picturesque place all year round? Nevermind this meta-talk, let’s move on to a recommendation.

I’ve been very actively seeking blogs from countries that I feel are under-represented in western media. Earlier this week I mentioned one from the Philippines, today I want to sing the praises of a blog from Liberia entitled “Liberia Stories.” I’m growing increasingly fond of this modest blog which is a wealth of snapshots and daily life snippets from Monrovia. While you may go through your average day never thinking about what’s happening in Liberia, it is still a special place, like many special places in the world, that deserve the quality of life, respect, and attention that we give to any other country. Gone are the days of being “too far” from a country to not be able to find out what’s happening there – search for it – it’s somewhere on the internet, for you to increase your knowledge and awareness of the world you live in.

Go forth… explore technorati…

To Have Been Defense Minister in Chile

The election of Michelle Bachelet as the president of Chilé has generated an exuberant response from people all across the world who applaud the electorate for their choice and for the amazing person that she has long proven to be. As I listened to Radio Open Source and Democracy Now on my walk to the grocery store this afternoon I found myself daydreaming and coming back to this one point about her life and that’s what I wanted to present to you the readers today.

ams010626After having lost her father to the military coup, then being tortured, forced into exile, and eventually returning to Chilé and entering into politics… Bachelet was appointed as Defense Minister in 2002. Of course lots of politicians get such positions on their way to higher offices, normally that wouldn’t be a big deal. And let’s just put aside the more than impressive fact that a nation who’s military was no doubt still very MACHO was now being led by a female. Nevermind that for just a second, because what I can’t fathom is something else…

Imagine being Michelle Bachelet in 2002; getting the job of being in charge of the military force that less than a generation ago, killed your father and tortured you. (note: officially her father died of a heartattack in prison..) It kept running through my head.. what must it have been like.. reviewing the troops.. dealing day-in, day-out with old geezer colonels, some of which may have had some connection, even if it were minor, to the military at that time.. when they tortured.. and murder.. countless people, many of which were your friends and colleagues.

I admit in 2002 I wasn’t paying much attention to who the minister of defense of Chili was, and shamefully, I didn’t know who Michelle Bachelet was. But if I ever do get to meet Madame President, I would like to shake her hand, give her a most heartfelt hug, and somehow ask what it was like… to be her.. in that job.. at that time.

Shine the Spotlight on Liberians

On the Liberian national symbol thingie, it says “Love of Liberty Brought Us Here.” A shining piece of evidence of what a lack of freedom the country its founders were fleeing – The USA – embodied in the late 1800’s. And then the history books and wikipedias tell us that the republic was doing great up until 1980 when there was a coup and everything went to shit and now unemployment is at 80%. 80%! That’s alot of people just hanging out, trying to survive without an income.

And so the man who put the W in warlord, president Richard Taylor, ran off a year or so ago and is hiding out hoping the world will forget about him much like they’d long forgotten Liberia. Now they’re having elections, and despite not being a citizen of Liberia, never having been there, and not having to live there afterwards, I like the two main candidates in this election:

In this corner, from the slums of Monrovia, international soccer (or football depending on what english you speak) star and all around national symbol of success – Former FIFA player of the year and huma nrights advocate, Mr…. Geooooorge Weah.

and in this corner, direct from Harvard where she got her masters degree in economics (i think). The pride of the World Bank and City Bank where she made a name for herself, former exile and political prisoner, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf.

As of this moment it’s a runoff and the results aren’t clear. The word is that the voting has been pretty good, transparent, and hey – considering the state of democracy these days – thats pretty good. I’m pullin for George. Though Id love to see the continent’s first female prez, I don’t dig her banking background… last thing we need in this world is citybank pushing credit card debt on more of us. 😉