Intelligence First

Nigerian blogs,politic, science,football,terrorism

Friday, June 16, 2006

BLACK GOLD AND THE PETRODOLLAR

BLACK GOLD AND THE PETRODOLLAR

The Oil Embargo of 1973 turned around the resource and wealth sharing formula of international trade. The world was a better place for developing countries with the related potential. The developed world was not ready for this: it still evinces this unreadiness.

What really went down? In lay terms, some of the strong among the hungry of the earth got tired of a mouthful of nothing. As Golda Meir cited from the Talmud: if I don’t speak for myself, who will. What the world witnesses today seems relative more to the second phrase of her quote: if I am for me only what am I? Greedy.

Greed is not a subject entirely new to man. It is an insignificant sub-topic under ‘might is right.’ Man didn’t lose much of his cave-time tendencies in pecuniary concerns of civilization. The ‘winner-takes-all’ tendencies ensure good sleep for Richie Rich.

It is ironic that rich nations churn out bundles from Microsoft by the instrumentality of the Anti Trust Law!

Each nation strives in its diverse strengths to obtain its greatest bite from the global economy. The capitalist twist takes all in its stride, left or right wingers. The weak, characteristically, are dealt a hard blow with none to speak for them. Since the UN lacks a legislative arm, they have to suffice with food hand-outs.

This has not gone down well with some, even ‘ungrateful’ beneficiaries of such aids such as the Government of Niger that said ‘our people are not hungry’, amidst graphic pictures on CNN and BBC that depicted gory sights the world did not witness in the Holocaust.

Other more outspoken, or rather action prone, self-accredited groups garner popular support, justifying their cause by such debacle.

In the Middle East, popular belief holds that Allah bestowed large reservoirs of Black Gold within Arab borders for the propagation of Islam. The first consideration was to reinvest the tremendous outflow of stupendous wealth right back into the American economy where it came from. Religious strategies culminated into economic policies, which spilled into political agendas and eventually now, military tactics.

A struggle of desperate proportions mingles emotions in a shout of rage. War chants, squeals of agony and frustrated murmurs and fearful shrieks are all weaved up in one.

Tables were shun too long, swords were whet too sharp and cunning was forge in ever-new mettle. This is a cat-knot of wool most knitters would prefer to do away with. One wrong chapter of human history stands to be erased, in penultimate time!

Buyer and seller ought to have a relationship first. Trade is secondary to trust. Force is external to interactive sessions. Sometimes it can be quite annoying to be menaced by a condescending look and words that expect one to act of less intelligence. It is no fault of the lesser that the greater can’t keep in time with development in intellect as he does in power!

Each voice that speaks on the global scene is representative and as such noble. That basic understanding must be respected. The name ‘dad’ and the title ‘Your Excellency’ are sweet to the ears, dividing allegiance of those gathered to get split shares on the global arena. Ethics that underline the Anti Trust Law should guide and alleviate unequal bargaining power to preempt a show of militia prowess.

Innovative demands have hurled the Hulk (China) on the rest of the world. The hitherto dormant giant has got to get what’s hers now she’s demanding. Bargaining power, market, purchasing power, resource, she has all. Chaos could arise from an unprepared ness to meet present realities.

New definitions, new products, new relationships, new attitudes, new goals should be advocated, leaving the past behind. Mankind never had it better: no dirty corners of the earth, an enlightened global community, leaders in one playing-field…. that requires leveling.

FROM IMMUNITY TO HUMAN DIGNITY

FROM IMMUNITY TO HUMAN DIGNITY

Sequel to the demise of colonial occupation the new menace to human development in Africa was the Immunity Clause. An empowerment meant to give privileged footing to persons in power to enable for easy efficacy with minimal legal interferences, rather gave vent to more insidious notoriety than that the successful nationalists had succeeded to cause to retreat. ‘Animal Farm’ was born for real in Africa.

‘Squealer’ was here to stay and in no hurry to relinquish hold to power or popular sovereignty. From the appointment of ‘Yes men’ to massive pre-paid campaigns in his support. The conscience of the electorate was mortgaged by sell-outs. The uphill task of opposition was further roughened by the threat of stigma or outright violence.

Enter the O.A.U., with sub-regional potentials to network the ‘suzerain will’ of its component national leaders against each individual citizenry. ‘Independence’ was defined around a sub-culture of closed membership, whose mandate it was to reserve the exclusive identity to privileged personality, irrespective of claim to power or propriety of ascendancy

It was an organization that held in greater jealousy the autonomy of each member’s cherished dominion rather than it was concerned over the welfare of their subjects and how these Governments fared in their responsibilities. Inadvertently, membership to it, in practice, was of the participating personalities, rather than of states, as in theory. The memories of colonialism were to close for comfort to permit for restrictions of any kind from Western quarters.

State powers were worn like a garment with little respect for constitutional supremacy. The threat of sanctions by the wider international community was met with the steel will of the combined leaders’ forum, comprised of over-feds surer of their meals. Each was reluctant to interfere with the internal matters of the other such that come another day he may enjoy equal liberty of extra-constitutional preeminence.

Increasingly, their consultative forums bore the hallmarks of a cabal of self-accredited persons, intent upon doing the wrong thing. The devil took care of the rest more-than-hungry souls. Something had to give to righten this spring-of-evils: it was merely a question of time before the world community stepped in with juicy incentives that encouraged the transformation of the O.A.U. into the A.U.

Fundamentally the same in structure, priorities changed from centripetal interests of members statesmen to the perennial engaging problems of a materially challenged transnational society. The physiopathology of the menace left in its wake practices enshrined in certain hearts zealous to enjoy their late entry.

Sudan slaughters its citizenry in hope of instituting faulty structures for resource control of crude oil wealth along tribal preferences and expects the world to understand. So far, so good: that has been heard before. Nigeria may ‘keep the peace’ while the UN may not: this sounds more like a village scene with a tyrant, out of a cartoon; in an arena where the fouler determines the rules The Niger-Delta youth has picked up arms, where the military left off: in a country where constitutionalism is determined by the interludes between the change of magazines and the crack of gun-smoke.

The last straw that tipped with Rwanda seems comfortably far enough behind to accommodate another scandalous mayhem in human memoir. It is regrettable to know that the jus cogens of international convention permits the UN interference only after notable damage has occurred

Now the West has chosen to downplay on installation of heads of states or regime changes and to give respect and recognition to African leaders, why must the turntable register a crack in the record again? Wherein are built-in systems of inherent checks and balances to be installed among African leaders?

It will appear that the conscience and superego were lost in an improper disposition to self and the neighbor evaluated through values imbibed from Western standards that neither quality the hybrid for a Blackman and, even less a White.

The mirror makes a better image than the shadow can cast.

How ironic it is to know that the importation of equitable Western standards prescribed by the world community was superimposed by the irresistible dangle of carrots eagerly accepted by African leaders as the panacea to the self-inflicted African-vice of the Super-self. Even more paradoxical is the fact that greed for the gains of acceptance was the vehicle by which this ogre was renamed Goliath. ‘Ogre, sir!’ the beloved title was sacrificed for enfranchisement of lowly David.

Should the White-world care more for humanity than Africans care for their own brood?

Soon enough a voice shall be heard casting the blame for slave trade on the buyer rather than seller. New age slavery, which is ten times greater in volume, has the Blackman in the significant role of being both buyer and seller of souls: White inducement is mainly for sex. The tables have turned full circuit again.