Saudi NOT Going to the Dogs!

GO WALK YOUR DOGS ALL YOU WESTERNERS! :)

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,395341,00.html



RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — Every single man knows: Walking a dog in the park equals sure babe magnet. Saudi Arabia's Islamic religious police, in their zeal to keep the sexes apart, want to make sure the technique doesn't catch on here.

The solution: Ban selling dogs and cats as pets, as well as walking them in public.
The prohibition went into effect on Wednesday in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, and authorities in the city say they will strictly enforce it — unlike previous such bans in the cities of Mecca and Jiddah, which have been ignored and failed to stop sales.

Violators found outside with their pets will have their beloved poodles and other furry companions confiscated by agents of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice, the official name of the religious police, tasked with enforcing Saudi Arabia's strict Islamic code.

The commission's general manager, Othman al-Othman, said the ban was ordered because of what he called "the rising of phenomenon of men using cats and dogs to make passes at women and pester families" as well as "violating proper behavior in public squares and malls."
"If a man is caught with a pet, the pet will be immediately confiscated and the man will be forced to sign a document pledging not to repeat the act," al-Othman told the Al-Hayat newspaper. "If he does, he will be referred to authorities."


The Saudi-owned Al-Hayat announced the ban in its Wednesday edition, saying it was ordered by the acting governor of Riyadh province, Prince Sattam, based on an edit from the Council of Senior Islamic Scholars and several religious police reports of pet owners harassing women and families.

Commission authorities often do not formally announce to the public new rules that they intend to implement. Officials from the commission and Riyadh city government could not be reached for comment on Thursday, which is a weekend day in Saudi Arabia. The English-language Arab News reported on the ban on Thursday.

So far, the new prohibition did not appear to have any effect in Riyadh. It's extremely rare, anyway, to see anyone walking a dog — much less carrying a cat in public — in the capital, despite the authorities' claims of flirtatious young men luring girls with their pets in malls.
Salesmen at a couple of Riyadh pet stores on Thursday said they did not receive any official orders from the commission banning the sale of pets. Cats and dogs were still on display.
"I didn't hear of the ban," said Yasser al-Abdullah, a 28-year-old Saudi nurse, who was at one pet store with his 3-month-old collie, Joe.

Al-Abdullah, who also owns an 8-month-old Labrador, said a couple of Western friends had been told to get off the streets by the religious police for walking their dogs.
"I won't allow the commission to take my dogs from me," he said.

The religious police prowl streets and malls throughout the kingdom, ensuring unmarried men and women do not mix, confronting women they feel are not properly covered or urging men to go to prayers.

They also often make attempts to plug the few holes in the strict gender segregation that innovations bring. In 2004, they tried to ban cameras on cell phones, fearing that men and women would exchange pictures of each other — though the prohibition was quickly revoked. Every year, religious police warn against marking Valentine's Day, even trying to prevent people from wearing red clothing on the holiday, which they consider a Western creation that encourages vice.

There was no word whether commission authorities intend to expand the dog and cat ban beyond the capital. The prohibition may be more of an attempt to curb the owning of pets, which conservative Saudis view as a sign of corrupting Western influence, like the fast food, shorts, jeans and pop music that have become more common in the kingdom.
Pet owning has never been common in the Arab world, though it is increasingly becoming fashionable among the upper class in Saudi Arabia and other countries such as Egypt.
In Islamic tradition, dogs are shunned as unclean and dangerous, though they are kept for hunting and guarding. In large cities around the Middle East, stray dogs often wander the streets and are considered pests.

The ban on cats is more puzzling, since there's no similar disdain for them in Islamic tradition. One of the Prophet Muhammad's closest companions was given the name Abu Huraira, Arabic for "the father of the kitten," because he always carried a kitten around with him and took care of it.

A number of hadiths — traditional stories of the prophet — show Muhammad encouraging people to treat cats well. Once, he let a cat drink from the water that he was going to use for his ablutions before prayers. Another time, Muhammad said a woman who kept a cat locked up without feeding it would go to Hell.

Street cats are also plentiful, and people will often feed them or play with them — but it isn't a widespread custom to keep one in the home, and many cannot afford it.

The Cost of a Life...

There are very few moments in your life when you experience that second you realize your life was spared…only by the grace of God. Never did I believe I would feel the shock, fear, sadness and relief I felt that day 2 months ago in May when I stood on the border of the country of Sudan, the only white person for miles and looked up to the sky, with tears streaming down my face and thanked God. Never.

It was an extremely hot and dry day in the small, remote town of Lokichoggio, Kenya located within the northern mountains bordering Kenya and the country to the north, Sudan. As we packed up the JAM land rover with mattresses, clothes, water, cans of food and a satellite telephone, I walked past the window and looked at the sign on the side of the car –no machine guns on board this vehicle. I climbed in to the rusted back of the truck, and we rolled across the dusty, mountainous road up to the border of Kenya, I peered out to see a long line of trucks waiting to cross over the border together. I could hear the giggles of small children as they played within the dust and kicked around an empty water bottle, playing and laughing within abject poverty. Looking at the convoy of trucks waiting to leave, our driver made the decision we had to drive alone, making it in time to beat the dusk curfew imposed on all vehicles traveling within Sudan. We had our visas stamped within a small shack painted with the word “IMMIGRATION” and we climbed in to the cars. We were entering a 10-mile stretch of rebel-controlled territory that sat between the 2 borders of these countries. As we began the drive in one of the most dangerous areas in the world, I sat on the floor of the truck, peered through the window, looked at the mountains and prayed. Feelings of unidentifiable fear came in waves as the 10 miles took about 40 minutes to drive and I knew that people had died before us on this same dusty path. I was no longer sitting on my couch watching a movie about the conflict in Africa, no longer was I watching CNN and seeing the effects of Darfur upon Southern Sudan, no longer was I writing about it – I was on the floor, looking out…experiencing it.

About 40 minutes later, we pulled the JAM vehicle across the border into Nadapal Border Post and I stepped into Sudan. I carefully walked into a small shack building to pay for and receive my visa and turned to see a looming darkness that creeped out of a small, barred hole. I squinted my eyes and peered a little closer to see two old, wrinkled hands grasped around a water bottle as he sat in the Sudanese jail cell. I turned abruptly as the shrill screams and shouting of young women could be heard. My coworkers and I ran down the dusty road to see the convoy of trucks we almost traveled with arriving with people screaming and bullet holes splintering the vehicles. The rebels had attacked, shot at and murdered people 5 minutes after we arrived. My mind began to spin understanding that our truck has passed by rebels and was spared, my thoughts rocketed back to sitting on the bottom of the truck, my heart pounded as I turned to see over 20 men with AK47s running from the bush and my eyes welled with tears as I realized for the first time in my life I was standing in the middle of a warzone. The chaos that ensued was confusing and scary as the 20 armed men, members of the Sudanese army, jumped on to a large truck that had a mounted machine gun and drove into the bush to fight the attacking rebels. As people unfolded out of the attacked convoy, my driver grabbed my VISA and instructed us to get into the truck. We jumped in as dusted tears streamed down my cheeks and we drove off into the Sudanese countryside. For about an hour, no one said anything to anyone, we just stared out through the dusted sky trying to process what children see in this country every single day.

For the next 9 days we camped within the middle of Southern Sudan along the Nile River. The temperatures soared into the early 100's as we took bucket showers from the Nile, had long drops for toilets and ate canned food each morning. As I met with the United Nations and the Government of Sudan to discuss new JAM programming within nutrition, water and HIV/AIDS, I felt more than ever the reality of the need for the program I was discussing. As the end of our trip neared, my coworker and I knew that we would have to pass through that same territory to return home and reports had surfaced that 3 more killings had taken place since we had arrived. As we sat around our tents discussing safety, we decided on hiring military protection for the 40 mile stretch back to Kenya. For the first time in my life I was discussing what it would cost to protect it.....

We looked at our budgets, negotiated with the military and handed over $40 per person. We stood at the Sudan border waiting for the military to arrive and I played with a young Sudanese child, barely draped in any clothing at all. I realized that I was going home, I was leaving...behind so many who have never left. Across the road I could see 2 other trucks waiting to cross and as the military approached, they all joined behind our vehicle to try and reap the benefit of the protection we had hired. The military raced as fast as they could across the extremely bumpy road with our vehicle in tow and 3 others behind. As I sat on the floor and we sped through the moutainous terrain, I prayed. As I peered out the back of the truck, I could see the other vehicles through the kicked up dust and then my heart sank. Behind me I watched as one truck broke down far out in the distance, full of people, in one of the most dangerous places in the world. The military kept driving, no one saw it and we had to follow, feeling an unbelievable sense of incapability and shock. As I lay my head down on the bed that night in May I was reminded again of how present GOD really is as I realized that day I had experienced one of the most challenging days of my life and that I had again seen the reason the world must act to help save its own.

Never had I looked at $40 that way - a nice pair of black pants, a couple of DVD's, my life.

After 1994, the UN, the leaders of the world and the common citizen referred to Rwanda and said "Never Again". Sadly, after this last trip to Sudan, I have realized, I think they might be too late...

Deciding on Detainees...

So, I am ashamed, but, yet, justified for not posting for 2 months. I apologize for that and really feel like I have failed myself. There are at least 2 posts that I have been really anxious to talk about on here and will do those soon, but, work has just been so busy. I haven't posted in so long for the sole reason that I really haven't been here. HERE as in very present to be able to focus on some things. Since April 1st, I have traveled over 43,000 miles by plane, been in 6 countries about 21 flights. So, its been a whirlwhind. I will still be posting those posts and will be up more regularly in the future, promise.





In the meantime, I wanted to post what I think is a great Supreme Court decision that was handed down basically reinforcing the importance of human rights. As the leader of the free world and a country whom boasts human rights around the world comparing ourselves against such despots as Kim Jong Il and Mugabe, we must hold ourselves to the highest standards. The argument goes down the aisle and corners the sides on issues like this in relation to Guatanamo Bay. Studies apparently show that detainees go straight back to fighting for Al Qaeda and to planning terrorist attacks on American soul. That is a scary thought, dangerous and sad, but, that, in my opinion, does not mean that we suspend the values of our Constitution and hold detainees for years without legal recourse, representation or a definitive plan in place. Human rights are rights given to all humans. Sadly, it doesn't clarify whether the human is a terrorist, a soccer Mom or a young orphan. That's why the world struggles with the equal declaration of them. The Supreme Court has, in a hotly contested and very close decision, decided to award Guatanamo detainees legal rights and recourse in relation to their indefinite imprisonment.





That, is a show of human rights, something that the United States of America is founded on...and..in order to lead the world...needs to practice as much as possible.

WASHINGTON (AP) - In a stinging rebuke to President Bush's anti-terror policies, a deeply divided Supreme Court ruled Thursday that foreign detainees held for years at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba have the right to appeal to U.S. civilian courts to challenge their indefinite imprisonment without charges.

Bush said he strongly disagreed with the decision - the third time the court has repudiated him on the detainees - and suggested he might seek yet another law to keep terror suspects locked up at the prison camp, even as his presidency winds down.
Justice Anthony Kennedy, writing for the 5-4 high court majority, acknowledged the terrorism threat the U.S. faces - the administration's justification for the detentions - but he declared, "The laws and Constitution are designed to survive, and remain in force, in extraordinary times."
In a blistering dissent, Justice Antonin Scalia said the decision "will make the war harder on us. It will almost certainly cause more Americans to be killed."

Bush has argued the detentions are needed to protect the nation in a time of unprecedented threats from al-Qaida and other foreign terrorist groups. The president, in Rome, said Thursday, "It was a deeply divided court, and I strongly agree with those who dissented." He said he would consider whether to seek new laws in light of the ruling "so we can safely say to the American people, 'We're doing everything we can to protect you.'"

Kennedy said federal judges could ultimately order some detainees to be released, but he also said such orders would depend on security concerns and other circumstances. The ruling itself won't result in any immediate releases.

The decision also cast doubt on the future of the military war crimes trials that 19 detainees, including Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four other alleged Sept. 11 plotters, are facing so far. The Pentagon has said it plans to try as many as 80 men held at Guantanamo.

Lawyers for detainees differed over whether the ruling, unlike the first two, would lead to prompt hearings for those who have not been charged. Roughly 270 men remain at the prison at the U.S. naval base in Cuba. Most are classed as enemy combatants and held on suspicion of terrorism or links to al-Qaida and the Taliban.

Some detainee lawyers said hearings could take place within a few months. But James Cohen, a Fordham University law professor who has two clients at Guantanamo, predicted Bush would continue seeking ways to resist the ruling. "Nothing is going to happen between June 12 and Jan. 20," when the next president takes office, Cohen said.

Roughly 200 detainees have lawsuits on hold in federal court in Washington. Chief Judge Royce C. Lamberth said he would call a special meeting of federal judges to address how to handle the cases. Detainees already facing trial are in a different category.

Justice Department spokesman Peter Carr said Thursday's decision should not affect war crimes trials. "Military commission trials will therefore continue to go forward," Carr said. The lawyer for Salim Ahmed Hamdan, Osama bin Laden's one-time driver, said he will seek dismissal of the charges against Hamdan based on the new ruling. A military judge had already delayed the trial's start to await the high court ruling. It was unclear whether a hearing at Guantanamo for Canadian Omar Khadr, charged with killing a U.S. Special Forces soldier in Afghanistan, would go forward next week as planned.

Charles Swift, the former Navy lawyer who used to represent Hamdan, said he believes the court removed any legal basis for keeping the Guantanamo facility open and that the military tribunals are "doomed."

Guantanamo generally and the tribunals were conceived on the idea that "constitutional protections wouldn't apply," Swift said. "The court said the Constitution applies. They're in big trouble." Human rights groups and many Democratic members of Congress celebrated the ruling as affirming the nation's commitment to the rule of law. Several Republican lawmakers called it a decision that put foreign terrorists' rights above the safety of the American people.
The administration opened the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks to hold enemy combatants, people suspected of ties to al-Qaida or the Taliban. The prison has been harshly criticized at home and abroad for the detentions themselves and the aggressive interrogations that were conducted there.

Atits heart, the 70-page ruling says that the detainees have the same rights as anyone else in custody in the United States to contest their detention before a judge. Kennedy also said the system the administration has put in place to classify detainees as enemy combatants and review those decisions is not an adequate substitute for the right to go before a civilian judge.
The administration had argued first that the detainees have no rights. But it also contended that the classification and review process was sufficient.

Chief Justice John Roberts, in his own dissent to Thursday's ruling, criticized the majority for striking down what he called "the most generous set of procedural protections ever afforded aliens detained by this country as enemy combatants." Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas also dissented. Justices Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, David Souter and John Paul Stevens - the court's more liberal members - joined Kennedy to form the majority.
Souter wrote a separate opinion in which he emphasized the length of the detentions.
"A second fact insufficiently appreciated by the dissents is the length of the disputed imprisonments; some of the prisoners represented here today having been locked up for six years," Souter said. "Hence the hollow ring when the dissenters suggest that the court is somehow precipitating the judiciary into reviewing claims that the military ... could handle within some reasonable period of time." Scalia, citing a report by Senate Republicans, said at least 30 prisoners have returned to the battlefield following their release from Guantanamo.
The court has ruled twice previously that people held at Guantanamo without charges can go into civilian courts to ask that the government justify their continued detention. Each time, the administration and Congress, then controlled by Republicans, changed the law to try to close the courthouse doors to the detainees. The court specifically struck down a provision of the Military Commissions Act of 2006 that denies Guantanamo detainees the right to file petitions of habeas corpus. Habeas corpus is a centuries-old legal principle, enshrined in the Constitution, that allows courts to determine whether a prisoner is being held illegally.

The head of the New York-based Center for Constitutional Rights, which represents dozens of prisoners at Guantanamo, welcomed the ruling. "The Supreme Court has finally brought an end to one of our nation's most egregious injustices," said CCR Executive Director Vincent Warren. "By granting the writ of habeas corpus, the Supreme Court recognizes a rule of law established hundreds of years ago and essential to American jurisprudence since our nation's founding."
Bush has said he wants to close the facility once countries can be found to take the prisoners who are there.

Presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama also support shutting down the prison.

Terror in Tibet, of Olympic Proportions...

The political situation between the Chinese government and the people of Tibet, led by the Dalai Lama has been one of extreme tension for years now as 2 very powerful forces have fought over the issue of independance and sovereingty. Now, as the Olympics approach in Beijing, the world is watching as one of the most powerfully dominant countries is home to one of the greatest events in history. Having a tenous relationship with many world leaders and a human rights record that many question with their own internal policies, their Communist leadership and their involvement with factions within countries such as Sudan, China is one of the more controversial hosts to welcome the world for the Olympic Games.

As the torch was lit last week to travel around the world before beginning the games on 08.08.08, many watched as China and Tibet's sparring increased to higher levels and resulted in peaceful demonstrations turning to violence.

The Dalai Lama, the spiritual leader to the Tibetan people, a Nobel Peace prize laureate and the most famous Buddhist monk in the world, has always prided himself in being a man of peaceful resistance and inciting change through peace and commitment to resist the ideals that are morally offensive to what he stands for politically, socially or spiritually. Currently living in exile, the Dalai Lama must be given credit for standing up to the huge force called the Red Dragon in many ways. Sadly, this month he has watched as many of his Tibetan countrymen have been viciously killed in attacks, many being some of the most peaceful buddhists in the world. For the great work that the Dalai Llama has achieved, there is a change coming. Sadly, as interviewed in Newsweek this month, he says there is a new wave of Buddhist activitists, those, whom like the freedom fighters in South Africa, are willing to take up arms and begin violence to create change. Though I understand the sentiments, and don't truly comprehend the frustration, i hope that this does not become the final option for change. Living in South Africa, I have seen the power of peaceful debate and the pain left due to political activism through violence. It usually always end with too many dead, most being lost within the weaker group.

As questions begin of whether or not to boycott the Olympics because of China's record, Germany's Angela Merkel elluded to this in the positive while Condoleeza Rice made comments to the contrary. While China's record might be in question, I think there is no greater time for the world to come together and participate in globe building and cultural exchange such as the Olympics. When August begins, I pray that when the swimmers dive off the starting blocks and the gymasts land off the balance beams, countries will come together, people will communicate and it will be a stage where a step closer to social justice through change will occur...

He's almost gone...

CNN is reporting that the Movement for Democratic Change leader, Morgan Tsvingari is quite possibly the next President of Zimbabwe. As government controlled media has been slow to release the results since last Saturday and there have been minimal international news outlets allowed in the country, the facts aren't completely known.

There are talks of a possible runoff election between Tsvingari and Mugabe for the presidential post, but, lets hope that within the next few days the votes are correctly counted and Mugabe is unseated, no longer the powerful, destructive, murderous president of one of the best nations on the globe.

A Beautiful Day...

There's nothing much more peaceful or much more amazing than witnessing the power, the presence and the peace of animals in their natural habitats. The only more peaceful is when you have U2 playing in the background...

Ange and I went for the weekend away on Safari and to the Panorama Route in the Mpumalanga Province. It was one of the most fun, relaxing, beautiful weekends. We toured some amazing places, saw some incredibly beautiful animals and again, I realized how blessed I am.

So many have so little, I get to see so much.

As I watched a rhino walking about 10 feet from my car and I heard Bono sing "its a beautiful day", I couldn't do much more than just sit in awe as the sun set in the mountainous sky...

"Declaring War on Fat and Laziness"

I have lived in Zimbabwe, Spain, the US and now here and I must say I believe that I am a respectful, "PC" type guy. I like America, I dont agree with everything America does, but, I am proud of many things that embody America. I am proud to be American, some days more than others, but, nonetheless, I like being a combination of Zimbabwe, Britain and the States. I also like people who are nice.

It's difficult traveling the world and finding people who HATE America, who think we are horrible instigators of everything that is evil. I understand many of the viewpoints they come from and many I would agree with, but, even in that, I would never present things the way some people present them. There are many things that I don't like about South Africa, but, choosing to focus on the positive, I am here and I enjoy it. Although many things that America does are wrong, many things that America does are right. The point of this post though is not to get serious about those issues, because I could "argue" and debate many of the different sides to that coin, living in both countries to the person that is yelling about it while sipping his McDonalds and wearing his Nike's. The point of this post is to truly dissect the image that America has given to this one man, sitting on the couch at my bible study.

For one of my best friends bachelor's here, about 8 of us guys hit up BOOT CAMP. We did huge mud rolls and drops, ran and swam through swamps, jumped hurdles, went through sand pit cargo net routines, over rope swings and got tons of pushups in - it was a ton of fun, with or without, Sargeant Viper. We all ended up mud ridden, tired, and laughing quite a lot.

The night before Ange and I went to dinner with very close friends, Casey and Gareth and I was telling about how easy its been over the past almost 3 years to make friends with South Africans, how the cultures collide and how I feel that I have transitioned. We then discussed the typical "we hate america" experiences I had when I first got here, sadly all with Christians. The first one, was the one that stuck out the most. My 2nd week here in SA, back in 2005, my first bible study I came to - the conversation went like this:

Me: Yes, Im from America.

Rogan: Wow, all Americans are fat and lazy.

Me : (looking at my self thinking, well, im not fat, and im here in Africa, so I really can't be lazy)

Fast forward to this weekend. After me recounting this to Gareth and Casey and their horror at someone being so rude, Gareth and I pull in to the BOOT CAMP parking lot. As we are getting out, I say "uuh, hahaha, uuh, Gareth, look at the sign!!!"

BOOT CAMP: DECLARING WAR ON FAT AND LAZINESS

Apparently, I was in the right place....

Come in from the Cold

As I woke up on Sunday morning, I could feel the cold breath in my room as my face tingled with the small sensation that winter was upon us here in South Africa. As I lay underneath the comforter and leaned over to the window by my bed, I felt the cool air throughout the room cause me to want to roll back over and sleep until summer. I opened up the curtain to my bedroom window and the rain was pouring down, the mud was rising on the side of the building embankment and the trees looked like they were dripping in frost. It was cold, very cold, and one of those miserable days that beds became your best friend again and soup is your last meal.

Because Ange had been quite sick the day before and was battling what sounded like the flu, we decided to give church a skip and everything else that day. I braved the cold and the rain to get some food, some Energade, some soup, some medicines and some DVD’s. As I ran into the grocery store, the DVD store, the petrol station and the rain poured down my sweatpants and my sneakers, I thought of how miserable it was outside – it was just plain cold. I got home, made some lunch and Ange took her medicine. We set up for a day in – watching some good DVD’s and some bad DVD’s, but, hey, we were in inside. As the day continued on, the rain pounded on the roof and the windows steamed over from the temperature difference and we read books, laughed, took medicine, ate, relaxed and enjoyed being able to have a place to “seek shelter”.

It was about 4:30pm and I had just woken up from a nap on the couch, my book on my chest and my leg thrown over the side and looked outside. As I stared out over the grass through the raindrops freezing on the glass, I thought about the millions of people outside, sitting in their shacks, with their leaking roofs and their concrete floors, shivering, some, to death. In South Africa alone, there are millions of people living in squatter camps and informal settlements that, unlike us, have no warm place to lay their head and have nothing to help them escape the harsh realities of being one thing - and that is poor.

Every day I drive past the squatter camp situated outside the JAM complex and I see the thousands of people living in the cold, walking through the mud with their umbrellas to a place where there wont be a huge TV to distract them from every day, a nice warm bed to welcome them or a nice hot shower to help relax every muscle in their body. As I drive past, I truly wonder – why and how? How can I help? How can I go home to my house, sheltered from the cold and realize that so many 3 year old’s are shivering through the winter months? Why am I the one that gets into my car to leave the store while watching a family of 4 black children with their Dad, waiting, hoping, wanting a public bus home? Why? How? These are hard questions to answer, but, I do know, that potential lies in our attitudes of thankfulness and our lifestyles of action. We can’t change the fact that we are those whom have been given so much, but, we can, with gratitude, thank GOD and with action, help so many others. As America and Europe plunge into spring and summer, remember those last cold moments and how blessed life is, and what you can do, to make someone else’s….

The Cost of Commodity

Across the world today, each and every person is seeing rising costs everywhere, fuel skyrocketed to over $106 a barrel this week, the dollar is weakening, home prices are high and the real estate market is bursting in almost every major city, all very important and life-altering issues…and then there is food.

Millions of people a day are fed through international aid and development programming. Across Africa, Asia, South and Central America and Eastern Europe, millions of poverty stricken, malnourished, dying children are being fed through international food aid programming being distributed through the United Nations World Food Programme, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), SIDA, the Department for International Development UK (DFID) and then through organizations like the one I work for, Joint Aid Management (JAM). These agencies operate on budgets of millions of dollars to try and affect as many children, women and families as possible, entering into war-torn countries, disaster ridden areas and developing nations with food assistance and with sustainable programming, with their main aim to reach the Millenium Development Goals (MDG’s) and assist as many developing countries as possible.

In all of those operations come the costs, and as we all feel the rising costs everywhere, now the people to feel it most, according to a recent United Nations report will be…the poor. The UN World Food Program has just warned that it will not have enough money to keep global malnutrition “at bay” due to the rising costs of food and is now considering discontinuing programs or suspending certain operations. Iraq’s food distribution program, which at one point delivered food to families on a monthly basis had an average cost of $3 billion. Now, the Iraqi government has announced that these program costs have ballooned to over $7 billion due to the rising inflation and massive price hikes of food, yet, within their country, 1 in 4 children under the age of 5 are severely malnourished and approximately 3 million Iraqi’s need food assistance. The rising price of cereals such as maize and wheat is growing to be a worldwide concern and due to these issues, humanitarian aid agencies can only bring in the half the amount of food with the same amount of money from donors. All across the world, changes are being made, even within 2nd tier countries such as Mexico and Thailand where they are having to make a choice between healthcare, education and…food.

The purse is tightening, the wallet is feeling the crunch and things at the local Walmart might be seeming a little more expensive. In that though, the international donor community must remember those billions of people living in the 3rd world, relying on food assistance and aid programming for life. On that Friday night, as you are pulling the cart away from the frozen food section and you realize that you cant buy that tub of Edy’s ice cream for the weekend party, remember those countries where organizations have not enough money, not enough petrol, not enough food…leaving people…standing on the road…with absolutely nothing to eat.

A Crisis of Leadership....

I don’t understand why today, in an era where countries are world powers and people all over the globe can become national leaders, there seems to be a huge crisis of leadership. What does one expect from a leader? Some might say that they are just like the common citizen with the same common problems and the same common mistakes. That view might be true, but, I think that when you take a position of leadership within an organization, but, even more so, within a country, and then on the world stage, there is a certain requirement on you to act in a certain matter.

Today, as the media and Internet is a buzz with the possible resignation of New York Governor Eliot Spitzer (D), the nation has seen yet another leader make decisions that have single-handedly ruined a very promising political career, his reputation and quite possibly his family. I am reminded of Sen. Larry Craig (R), Governor McGreevey (D), Congressman Foley (R) and the most famous, President Clinton. Why does this happen? Why do people, in leadership make very ill-conceived decisions, in a world where billions of people could be great leaders, where billions of people are relying on people of stature and of moral compass? Now, its not that, as Republicans, Democrats, Buddhists, Christians, Athiests, Muslims or people of other political and national backgrounds, we need to always regulate other people’s moral compasses to confine to religious or political standards, but, it does mean that we expect our leadership to act as if they are leaders. Leaders are people who lead…they are men or women whom are there to inspire, to uplift, to take charge … of followers. To the people who might say that it really isn’t of huge consequence or of huge interest to the common citizen, I disagree, Eliot Spitzer was the most “googled” subject yesterday, Governor Spitzer was the 2nd, New York Governor was the 3rd and prostitution was the 4th. Google is the largest search engine in the world. Failed leadership is something that should concern us, apparently it also makes money.

Now, as a common citizen, I, in no way am claiming that while throwing the speck at these leaders, that I am perfect, and have no log lodged in the corner of my eye. I make decisions on a frequent basis that are irresponsible and are not of the best nature, and I am nowhere near perfect, but, I am not leading one of the largest states in the world and I was not elected to represent millions of people.

I, in no way, expect our leaders to be more than human and faultless. I don’t expect them to always agree with my moral views as mine differ from many of even my own faith, but, I do expect them to act as responsible, controlled and even inspiring contributors to the social structure they were elected to lead.

Maybe as time goes on, as the decades roll, we should stop requiring that type of moral and social obligation from our leaders, when that day comes, that would be a tragedy….

The Life and Denial of Robert Mugabe..

As many of you know, I am a Zimbabwean born kid, who, over the years, has continued to be passionate about one of the most amazing countries on the earth - Zimbabwe back in the 70's, 80's and even 90's boasted one of the strongest economies, one of the largest selection of wild game and still holds one of the 7 wonders of the world.

Over the years, whether its been in high school, at W&M or even in DC, at the smell of outside burning, friends would always hear me state "ooh, smells like .... Zimbabwe". The memories of living in Zimbabwe, specifically when I was 10 and the subsequent trips back there are strong and are of great moments in such a wonderful place. Zimbabweans, now living all over the world, are known as some of the strongest working people on the globe - people whose smiles radiate a room, whose work ethic produces results and whose current situation is because of the ignorance and destruction at the hands of one man.

At the end of this month, the country of Zimbawe will vote, in most likely, another farcical election that will end up in President Robert Mugabe, a tyrannical leader, continuing his disgusting reign over his own people. For the past 10 years, the world has watched as greed and power have overtaken a man, whom, at one point was described as possibly 'the next Nelson Mandela'. At the beginning of his initial presidency in the 1980's, Robert Mugabe was seen as a man whom had taken over Zimbabwe from British colonial rule and led it into a somewhat smooth transition, holding the currency at a very strong rate, increasing tourism and keeping the nation as a travel destination for hundreds of thousands of tourists per year. After those initial years, no one can tell you what happened, except the man himself, as he, single-handedly and needlessly has driven his own country into the depths of disaster and despair. One can only see it as a perfect example of the deteriration of the human condition. Power, greed and revenge was what must have fueled this man's policies of land distribution and squatter distruction and through a concerted campaign of 'country cleansing' pushed almost the entire white population and many blacks out of the country. In what has been seen as needless and horrifying, Robert Mugabe has destroyed his own people - his own country. As we have watched over the years, my family has been horrified at the atrocities that have been carried out under this administration. Sitting in Sevilla, Spain in 2002, I remember praying for an election defeat and then reading the UN reports of voter intimidation and ballot rigging. This upcoming election, Mr. Mugabe is having the following countries participate in election day monitoring: Iran, Venezuela and China, all bastions of civil rights. Where is Germany? France? Italy? Spain? Someone, no, Mr. Mugabe isn't dealing with them.

Hundreds of thousands of Zimbabweans have died, needlessly died and as he sat with The Sunday Times, a leading South African paper, the man states he has no remorse for things that 'needed to be done'. The newspaper I bought yesterday cost me R11 South African Rand, which is the equivalent to $1.50. As I scanned my eyes across the front page corner, I saw something else that made me want to cry - this newspaper, in Zimbabwe, would cost $1.5 million Zimbabwe dollars. As the inflation rate soars past 100,000%, Zimbabwe has taken the place of the highest inflation rate in the world and the country is not even at war. Higher than Sudan, Higher than Iraq, Higher than Afghanistan, Higher than Haiti. Zimbabwe, being ruled by one of its own, is dying. And its made me, yet again, mad as hell.

Now, as a man who whole-heartedly believes in the power of prayer, I pray for change, I pray that my attitude of anger and sadness fuels only prayer and anticipation for the one day that we will see Zimbabwe, one of the biggest jewels of this world, shining again.

But, sadly for now, in the practically empty Rainbow Towers Hotel in downtown Harare, the conference room that could seet a few thousand is dark and the seats are folded. As one scans through the auditorium, all you can help but notice above the abandoned stage are two large, imposing pictures of a powerful and smiling Robert Mugabe...

For 5 Liters of Oil...

The sun is beating down on the dusty, mud hut sitting within the semi-arid terrain of the local desert and the slow stirring of 4 young children is taking place as each wakes up off the floor. Each can feel the other’s legs sprawled on top of the next sibling as they fight for space amongst the dirt and animal skin cloths. Aged 2, 4, 9 and 14, each child has never known anymore than a dirt floor to call their bed and the fear of another day to survive as their pillow. Through the day and into the night, these 4 children face life within the Southern Sudan as normal as anyone else throughout the world. With barely any food, the floor to call their bed, no reliable, clean water for miles and only one parent alive, this is their reality and this is their home.

Within Southern Sudan, the girl child attendance rate in school is 35% and only 1 in 5 children ever finish school, which is lower than attendance of children living under the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. Through humanitarian interventions, we are creating programming to try and coax families in to letting their girls go to school through giving them a take-home ration each month of 5L of oil. The skills and strength of these girls at home are more valuable to the family and bring more assistance than if they were sitting under a tree, miles away, learning and improving their education. With each hour that passes, there is less work that has been accomplished, less food that has been made, but, as each class rolls on there is one more girl that will never understand and will never be educated. Gender inequality throughout the developing and third world is rife and girls across the globe, due to culture, income needs and forced labor are missing out on education. The education of their children, the future of their family, the revolution of a generation and the upliftment of a gender all hangs on 5L of oil.

As the problems of the world become vaster and more complicated, more dangerous and more deafening, the disconnect between the West and the underdeveloped countries becomes greater and more disastrous. Whether its down the halls of the United States Congress, among the pews of the local church, within the editing rooms of the New York Times or around the boardrooms of corporate America, the reasons that Africa struggles are barely ever understood. As we sit in our centrally heated homes, our freshly carpeted living rooms and our leather-clad SUV’s, there is no possible way to understand the life-changing exchange that occurs with 5L of oil. Why leave women out? Why the gender disparity? Why only 5L of oil? Why anything at all? All of these questions lead to one thing: when all you have is one bowl of rice left and 4 children to feed, nothing makes sense anymore.

International relations and humanitarian development across the world targets all of these issues that face so many people today: economic empowerment, gender inequality, HIV/AIDS, water borne diseases, malnutrition, sex trafficking and civil conflict. Through targeted interventions and protracted poverty alleviation projects, may we, as people whom were the lucky ones, the ones with families, parents, homes and educations, take a longer look at helping those whom are the most in need. May we strive for a greater avenue of assistance through the presidents we elect, the churches we attend, the money we donate and the time we spend.

As you pull your shopping cart out of the line, walk down the aisle of the local Wholefoods and review your list for the week, the day around you will be bustling and busy. Mothers with small children will be looking for formula and some sort of unneeded toy, the local university student will be picking up the six pack of Bud light and the young couple will be looking for the fresh vegetables. Across the world, in a hot, dusty town, one young Sudanese girl will be walking miles home, with no shoes after 3 hours at school…carrying her reward on her head.

As you turn the corner and walk down that cooking aisle the next time, will you ever look at 5L of oil the same? I pray, for the children of Sudan you do not...

The Beginning of a Blog in the Middle of a Great Life...

So as I write this blog, my first, I ponder the question some might be asking. Why now? Geddes, after 2 and a half years living great experiences Africa, 2 years with amazing political adventures in Washington DC and 4 awesome years at William and Mary. Why now? I don't know the answer to that question, but, one thing I DO know is that I will reminisce back, im a professional reminiscer. One thing I do know is that I have emailed all the adventures over the past few years, myspaced them, facebooked them, written them, IM'd them, skyped them, lived them, laughed at them...and now, ill blog them.

welcome to the erratic, predictable yet unpredictable, passionate, random writings of myself on almost everything and anything.

Here it goes!

From my neck of the woods, Welcome!