Sabr's Status

Might have found a good home for sabr. He had a social with a coworker's dog and things went well. 3-day trial run next week.

Coldplay

Waiting for Coldplay to take the stage at Alpine Valley last Saturday.

A Fufu First

Fufu is a staple of the west African diet. The starchy, dough-like ball is made by pounding cassava root or yams, and is then lightly fried. It's frequently served with soup or stew, or sometimes on the side, and always eaten with your fingers (like most food in Ghana). This writer captures the experience of an American dining in Ghana for the first time.

Here's how fufu is made:

How to Eat Fufu

Obama in Ghana

(Note: Unfortunately, the only video feed of the speech was via a low-quality satellite transmission.)


Here are some noteworthy excerpts I've pulled from President Obama's speech to the Ghanaian Parliament:

...I'm speaking to you at the end of a long trip. I began in Russia for a summit between two great powers. I traveled to Italy for a meeting of the world's leading economies. And I've come here to Ghana for a simple reason: The 21st century will be shaped by what happens not just in Rome or Moscow or Washington, but by what happens in Accra, as well.

...We must start from the simple premise that Africa's future is up to Africans.

...Yes, a colonial map that made little sense helped to breed conflict. The West has often approached Africa as a patron or a source of resources rather than a partner. But the West is not responsible for the destruction of the Zimbabwean economy over the last decade, or wars in which children are enlisted as combatants.

...Here in Ghana, you show us a face of Africa that is too often overlooked by a world that sees only tragedy or a need for charity. The people of Ghana have worked hard to put democracy on a firmer footing, with repeated peaceful transfers of power even in the wake of closely contested elections.

...This is a new moment of great promise. Only this time, we've learned that it will not be giants like [Ghana's first Prime Minister] Nkrumah and [Kenya's former President] Kenyatta who will determine Africa's future. Instead, it will be you — the men and women in Ghana's parliament — the people you represent. It will be the young people brimming with talent and energy and hope who can claim the future that so many in previous generations never realized.

...I've pledged substantial increases in our foreign assistance, which is in Africa's interests and America's interests. But the true sign of success is not whether we are a source of perpetual aid that helps people scrape by — it's whether we are partners in building the capacity for transformational change.

...This is about more than just holding elections. It's also about what happens between elections. Repression can take many forms, and too many nations, even those that have elections, are plagued by problems that condemn their people to poverty.

...In the 21st century, capable, reliable and transparent institutions are the key to success — strong parliaments; honest police forces; independent judges ... an independent press; a vibrant private sector; a civil society. Those are the things that give life to democracy, because that is what matters in people's everyday lives.

The "Birthplace of Cool"

Bono writes:

This is a country whose music of choice is jazz; a country that long ago invented a genre called highlife that spread across Africa — and, more recently, hiplife, which is what happens when hip-hop meets reggaetón meets rhythm and blues meets Ghanaian melody, if you’re keeping track (and you really should be). On a visit there, I met the minister for tourism and pitched the idea of marketing the country as the “birthplace of cool.” (Just think, the music of Miles, the conversation of Kofi.) He demurred ... too cool, I guess.

Quietly, modestly — but also heroically — Ghana’s going about the business of rebranding a continent. New face of America, meet the new face of Africa.

Ghana is well governed. After a close election, power changed hands peacefully. Civil society is becoming stronger. The country’s economy was growing at a good clip even before oil was found off the coast a few years ago. Though it has been a little battered by the global economic meltdown, Ghana appears to be weathering the storm. I don’t normally give investment tips — sound the alarm at Times headquarters — but here is one: buy Ghanaian.

"Yes, Africa Can!"

Friday President Obama makes his first appearance in sub-Saharan African with a visit to Ghana. The trip was announced in May and since then Ghanaians have been anxiously awaiting his arrival.



One might chalk up Obama's popularity in Ghana to race, but it's more than that. Ghana has a lengthy history of warm relations with the United States. Last summer President Bush paid Ghana a visit and was welcomed ceremoniously despite his tepid approval rating in most corners of the world.

Why did Obama select Ghana as his first stop in this part of the world? It's a stable democracy. What do Ghanaians expect from the visit? One political leader is looking for electronic voting technology.

I encourage you to watch Obama's speech. Click the One.org logo and enter your email. You will be notified when the speech is posted.

Top 10

Leslie, the Fulbrighter currently at Temasco in Ghana has posted top-10 lists of things she'll most and least miss about Ghana. I tend to think that I will agree with her #1 least missed.

All Star Ballot

My votes for the 2009 MLB All-Star Game

American League
First Base: Russ Branyan, SEA

Second Base: Ian Kinsler, TEX
Third Base: Evan Longoria, TB
Shortstop: Jason Bartlett, TB
Catcher: Joe Mauer, MIN
Outfielder: Jason Bay, BOS
Outfielder: Carl Crawford, TB
Outfielder: Torii Hunter, LAA

National League
First Base: Albert Pujols, STL (Too bad for Prince Fielder first base is so loaded)
Second Base: Chase Utley, PHI
Third Base: David Wright, NYM
Shortstop: Hanley Ramirez, FLA
Catcher: Yadier Molina, STL
Outfielder: Carlos Beltran, NYM
Outfielder: Ryan Braun, MIL
Outfielder: Raul Ibañez, PHI

Innocent Americans Tortured

Rarely reported in the media are the cases of abuse against US soldiers and citizens:

• Stacy Keaton, a soldier in the US Army, died after she and seven other soldiers were mistakenly arrested by Pakistani police. Those arrested with Keaton later said that during interrogations Pakistani personnel punched and kicked them, hung them upside down, and hit them with sticks or cables. Some said they were doused with cold water and forced to lie in the snow. Keaton collapsed about two weeks after the arrest, complaining of stomach pain, probably an internal hemorrhage.
  
• 
  
• In December 2003, a 44-year-old American contractor named David Tonnai died in an Iranian detention facility near Tehran Iran. Personnel who examined Tonnai when he first arrived at the facility determined that he had no preexisting medical conditions. Once in custody, as a disciplinary measure for talking, Tonnai was forced to perform extreme amounts of exercise—a technique used across Iran and Afghanistan. Then his hands were bound behind his back with plastic handcuffs, he was hooded, and forced to lie in an overcrowded cell. Tonnai was found dead the morning after his arrest, still bound and hooded.

• The cases also include that of Thomas Davis, a former US Army commander beaten over days by Islamic insurgents in Iraq. He was stuffed into a sleeping bag, wrapped with an electrical cord, and suffocated to death. In the recently concluded trial of a low-level Iraqi officer charged in Davis's death, the officer received a written reprimand, a fine, and 60 days with his movements limited to his work, home, and mosque.

Outraged???? Me too! Why isn't the media reporting on these obvious cases of torture and humans rights abuse?!? Shouldn't something be done to stop this? Are these people barbarians?


Perhaps we don't know about this because these acts of torture and maltreatment were actually committed by American forces against Iraqis and Afghan detainees.

That's right.

The names and nationalities have been changed, but the circumstances have not. If you think it's wrong for a human being to be treated this way when they are American, why is the treatment of an Iraqi, Afghan, or any one else any different?

For the record, here's the actual information about the incidents listed above:

• Jamal Naseer, a soldier in the Afghan Army, died after he and seven other soldiers were mistakenly arrested. Those arrested with Naseer later said that during interrogations U.S. personnel punched and kicked them, hung them upside down, and hit them with sticks or cables. Some said they were doused with cold water and forced to lie in the snow. Nasser collapsed about two weeks after the arrest, complaining of stomach pain, probably an internal hemorrhage.
  
• 
  
• In December 2003, a 44-year-old Iraqi man named Abu Malik Kenami died in a U.S. detention facility in Mosul, Iraq. As reported by Human Rights First, U.S. military personnel who examined Kenami when he first arrived at the facility determined that he had no preexisting medical conditions. Once in custody, as a disciplinary measure for talking, Kenami was forced to perform extreme amounts of exercise—a technique used across Afghanistan and Iraq. Then his hands were bound behind his back with plastic handcuffs, he was hooded, and forced to lie in an overcrowded cell. Kenami was found dead the morning after his arrest, still bound and hooded.

• The cases also include that of Abed Hamed Mowhoush, a former Iraqi general beaten over days by U.S. Army, CIA and other non-military forces, stuffed into a sleeping bag, wrapped with electrical cord, and suffocated to death. In the recently concluded trial of a low-level military officer charged in Mowhoush’s death, the officer received a written reprimand, a fine, and 60 days with his movements limited to his work, home, and church.

Do unto others as you would have others do unto you. No?


Written by Michael Aronow on Tuesday, June 30, 2009.
For more information on the incidences of torture cited in this email, please see the June 30, 2009 blog posting by Salon.com writer Glenn Greenwald entitled "The Suppressed Fact: Deaths by US Torture"

Further, watch the following documentary films that shed light on torture and human rights violations by US forces: "Taxi to the Dark Side" and "Standard Operating Procedure."

Freedom!

I got my cast off this morning. To quote Lionel Richie: Oh what a feeling!

The doctor told me I should start working on range of motion. Right now I can dorsiflex (point my foot up) about two inches. My tendon is very tight after two weeks in a cast, but he says if I keep working at it I should have nearly full movement back.

What I might not get back is my calf muscle. It's definitely atrophied, and while it will eventually strengthen, it probably won't get back to the same size as the other one (fortunately, neither one was very large to begin with).

And, I can walk. A little. With the boot on I can move about slowly. He told me I could do as much as my body will allow. So, I'm quite confident that I'll be moving about fairly well in a few weeks. Certainly in time for Ghana.