Comments

1. 'Tis Himself, OM says

   March 16, 2012 at 6:45 pm

   Jason Thibeault has some interesting thoughts on “Invisible Children”.

   So, the Invisible Children campaign is not without its issues. They put more money into awareness than they do toward African aid programs, so most of your money is not directly benefiting Africans. The campaign itself focuses on Uganda, though Kony’s long since moved on. The campaign woefully underrepresents the real victims of Kony’s atrocities, seemingly focusing more on the co-founder Jason Russell’s (white) five-year-old son than on his friend Jacob who survived Kony’s campaign. The video gives everyone the impression that the hundred troops Obama sent to Uganda to advise the Ugandan army somehow improved the situation — when the Ugandan army is not, in actuality, the “good guy” in this passion play, especially if Kony isn’t actually there any more, and where any strengthening of the Ugandan army might have ripple effects in the region.

   Ian Cromwell, aka Crommunist, also discusses Kony and “Invisible Children”.

   I am glad people are paying attention to Joseph Kony. He’s a monster, and one of the (thankfully) few examples of pure evil we have in the world. However, I cannot help but be frustrated by the fact that a problem as large and multifaceted (and critically important) as the problems of Uganda are being reduced to a level of simplicity worthy of a cartoon supervillain. I can only hope that at least some of the attention being lavished on the LRA spills over to the more pressing issues of economic and political stability that underpin everything in not only Uganda, but across much of the African continent. My concern is that, as in most cases of social media ‘activism’, this storm will pass without us having learned anything at all.

   “Invisible Children” promotes US support for the Ugandan military, even though the Ugandan army has been implicated in many human-rights abuses. Russell’s group claims credit for helping persuade Obama to deploy 100 Special Forces advisers to support the Ugandan army in pursuing the LRA in the Congo and Central African Republic. I’m quite leery of an expanded US military role in Africa.

2. 'Tis Himself, OM says

   March 16, 2012 at 7:33 pm

   I have a longish post “awaiting moderation.” There are two links, one to Lousy Canuck and the other to Crommunist. Plus I made the following comment:

   “Invisible Children” promotes US support for the Ugandan military, even though the Ugandan army has been implicated in many human-rights abuses. Russell’s group claims credit for helping persuade Obama to deploy 100 Special Forces advisers to support the Ugandan army in pursuing the LRA in the Congo and Central African Republic. I’m quite leery of an expanded US military role in Africa.

3. Mano Singham says

   March 16, 2012 at 7:59 pm

   Sorry for the delay. It looks like any comment that has more than one link is automatically held up for moderation.