We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore LappĂ©, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Monday, January 9, 2012

For Congo Children, Food Today Means None Tomorrow

Click here to access article by Adam Nossiter from The New York Times.

I am posting this article mostly to highlight the almost total lack of accurate information regarding mining interests in central Africa, particularly in the so-called Democratic Republic of Congo. When this situation occurs anywhere in the world where capitalist ruling circles have an interest, you can be sure that their media reports will be full of misinformation or omission of significant information. This is especially true of events in this country which contains so many valuable minerals that Western corporations are accessing at very low cost while creating so much political corruption and hardship for the people of this country. 

So, read the article, and then listen to a segment of a KPFA news program featuring comments by Keith Harmon Snow, an outstanding independent journalist, who provides a snapshot of the real story behind the suffering of the people in this country. His report can be accessed from 12:52m to 16:42m in the news program.
"Stockholders in these companies include arms dealers, Wall Street investment banks, tycoons -- the "untouchables" who are never mentioned in the news, in Human Rights Watch reports or UN reports, or by the non-profit organizations that organize speakers tours at US Colleges to "Save" or "RAISE HOPE" for the Congo..." 

The KPFA Evening News (Weekend) - January 8, 2012 at 6:00pm

Click to listen (or download)


Keith Harmon Snow is currently working on a documentary and a book about African affairs entitled, "Politics of Genocide in Central Africa" and needs our assistance to complete these projects. Access the Conscious Being website and donate to support his work.