When did 'disaster' become synonymous with 'open season on kidnappings and grand theft'?

As far as I can tell (and this is a horrid overgeneralization), Africa's always been like that. They've just upgraded from spears to AK-47s over the past thousand years. Much of the continent is still packed with backwards-ass tribal societies who fight constant wars with neighboring tribes, and when one group can scrabble enough power together to call itself the ruling party, its leaders tend to hang out in relative Western-style luxury while the rest of the country farms dirt. Some four fifths of the population of sub-Saharan Africa relies on subsistance farming, while industrialized nations forgive billions of US dollars in debt to these despots every year. Dictators doing just barely enough for their country to be eligable to recieve free money and food shipments, 'rebel factions hold a third of our land, we need more soliders and guns to form a stable government', so the G8 and IMF members just throw money at them for decades at a time. Of course, this doesn't apply to Somalia. Those fuckheads aren't even advanced enough to have a dictator.

In the 1960's, South Korea was about as economically advanced as some of the poorest countries in Africa in those days. Today, hell, some African nations have a worse economy now than they did 40 years ago. (I love this quote from the CIA Factbook: Somalia's small industrial sector, based on the processing of agricultural products, has largely been looted and sold as scrap metal.) Mining equates to kids scrabbling around in a water-filled hole and turning in what gold or diamond they find to the government, who makes a killing off of it in the world market. Irrigation is a foreign concept. Raising animals is almost profitable, except since Rift Valley Fever foreign nations stopped buying meat. Leisure is limited to fighting and fucking.

So instead of doing anything to help, the world just throws money at Africa, nine tenths of which disappears into the corrupt regional governments. MTV runs their 'save the humans from AIDS' campaign to make vapid American teenagers feel better about themselves, but they only feed the problem. It's great, y'know, we have enough cash we can toss it around as a replacement to doing actual work.

And on another note, lets not forget the raping of babies because having sex with a virgin cures AIDS.

Former co-worker of mine is from Nigeria. He and his family basically lied, cheated, and stole their way into the US.

And on another note, lets not forget the raping of babies because having sex with a virgin cures AIDS.

Never heard that one before. :shock: Whoever was behind that myth must have laughed all the way to the bank.

Remember, kids, Nigeria is the country home to the rumor that cellular phone calls could spread AIDS. In Lagos, it was believed that answering a call from a certain number would KILL YOU IMMEDIATELY. These aren't the most enlightened cultures in the world, no, these are the people who throw stones at their own shadows and die in fear at the age of 23.
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My dad used to work in the Africa bureau of the US State Department, so he had to go to Africa on business fairly frequently. (In fact, our family used to live in Ghana back in the early 90s, at which point the country was backwards but relatively stable. At least, it was pretty far from a festering hellhole, since they had a dictator at the time who actually showed some interest in running the country instead of just looting it. Don't know what the situation there is like today.)

In Iceland, which is pretty modern in all other respects, the contractors who worked on our house found a mysterious basket of eggs on the driveway one morning, became convinced that the project had been cursed by elves, and refused to do any more work until they brought in a priest to dance around the house. My German grandmother claims to have seen a ghost.

Say what? How would coming up with that make anyone rich?

Say what? How would coming up with that make anyone rich?

Same way that medicine man made money by selling bullet proof charms. Of course after a "test" it was found lacking. I'm sure if stupid people want a cure to a deadly disease you can make a killing. Look at America for example. Religious healers on TV, homeopathy and the works. Yes sir, if you want money then medicine comes right after starting your own religion.

But the problem here is that baby raping is aways free.

But the problem here is that baby raping is aways free.

I'm assuming that the advice was not, at least not at first.

Kadius: You've seen the elves? Tell me more.

Kadius: You've seen the elves? Tell me more.

No elves. But enough strange things to keep me up at night.

Kadius: You've seen the elves? Tell me more.

No elves. But enough strange things to keep me up at night.

Kadius: You've seen the elves? Tell me more.

No elves. But enough strange things to keep me up at night.

I call bullshit. I can believe that one might catch one of these shadow creatures out of the corner of one's eye due to some trick of the light, but the person who claims to have seen these things right in front of them with glowing red eyes is either A. crazy or B. a media whore.

Huh. Interesting. Assuming you do see (or think you see) shadow people and aren't just bullshitting us, what do you make of them? You seem awful nonchalant for someone getting menaced by giant shadow monsters with glowing red eyes. Do you get a sense of their intentions or anything?

Huh. Interesting. Assuming you do see (or think you see) shadow people and aren't just bullshitting us, what do you make of them? You seem awful nonchalant for someone getting menaced by giant shadow monsters with glowing red eyes. Do you get a sense of their intentions or anything?

They're not menacing, it's just unnerving sometimes. Of the one that actually looked at me, I never got the feeling that it was evil, it was a very nostalgic feeling; like meeting someone you haven't seen 10 years. (I know that's weird.) It's not that extreme, paralizing, pressure that evil spirits give off.

I think these things just like to watch people. But it still creeps me out to think they might be watching.

Have you ever read "The Encyclopedia of Things that Never Were?" It's a pretty comprehensive resource on folklore, mythology, and fantasy, and what you're describing sounds a lot like the entry for "The Watchers," in the "Things of the Night" section.

Also, you describe encounters with evil spirits like you've had them. Any stories there? I've woken from night terrors certain that there's something in the room; is that similar to the feeling?.

God, you guys must think I'm crazy now. :(

I didn't even know other people saw stuff like that until I started searching online.

I was sitting one night, typing up a post in this forum when I saw one in the hallway beside me; I probably watched it stand there in the corner of my eye for 15 seconds.

I admit I could be seeing things, but they all seemed all too real to me. Calling BS is completely logical, though. And when did I ever claim to not be crazy? :wink:

This works, at least until I start to think that the walls are trying to eat me. I am not joking.

This works, at least until I start to think that the walls are trying to eat me. I am not joking.

Tripping on any drugs lately? Anyway, it's not the walls but the hands that come out of the walls that you have to beware of. Those suckers are grabby...

Last week, the commander of the African Union peacekeeping force in Darfur, Festus Okonkwo, told the BBC that there had been no major attacks in the region since January and that there had also been a reduction in attacks on villages.

But US aid official Andrew Natsios said this was chiefly because there were no villages left to burn down.

A Kenyan says he offered Bill Clinton 40 goats and 20 cows for his daughter's hand in marriage five years ago -- and is still waiting for an answer.

A Kenyan says he offered Bill Clinton 40 goats and 20 cows for his daughter's hand in marriage five years ago -- and is still waiting for an answer.

Got ninjas?

Was talking with a few of my fathers friends and my own friends... we might start our own PMC or Consulting firm. A few Marines and Ex-Navy Seals can make a hell of a difference.