AFRICA, OUR AFRICA

Africa is the home of the black people, but if the black people are becoming strangers in their own lands, then what can we do? I believe it is more harder to live in Africa than even in the middle east. The middle east may be one geographical boiling cauldron, but they still have countries that could be said to be very developed, like Israel.

Africa is different. Out of the over fifty countries making her up, there is none that can be said to be a first world nation like Germany in Europe or South Korea in Asia. You can talk of countries like South Africa or Botswana, but these countries are still farther away from the worst countries in Europe.

The average african deals with an inflation rate that makes big money small and small money like nothing. In Nigeria, the inflation rate is about 18 percent. When stuffs are scarce, their prices would be high. Even when stuffs are abundant, their prices may still be high.

The african deals with a currency that is almost useless in value compared to international standard. In Nigeria, a dollar is about 365 naira. This means that a dollar in the hands of an america will buy 300 naira worth of recharge card and there will still be change. No american sweats to get one dollar, but many africans don't even earn one dollar in a day. So pathetic.

The african deals with a system where there are almost no social palliatives. Even if there are palliatives, many africans still can't afford them. Many times, you find that it is the rich people or the friends of politicians who can even afford these palliatives. That is why in africa, you find so many big business thriving on the grounds of monopolistic concessions. The banks? They don't give loans to ordinary people. They never do that.

The african deals with governments that don't offer them anything. Truth is, it can't always be the faults of the politicians. Many of them are elected by the people. This makes me wonder where africans put their brains when they are voting. When people vote rightly, no election rigging would entrench unwanted people in leadership positions.

Many africans prefer to criticize politicians, but they themselves won't get involved in it, even if they believe they can make more difference. Many times in africa, elections are between bad choices. I mean all the contestants would be bad choices, but people still have to vote, so they vote for the lesser evil. Who then do we blame? The people or the politicians? We blame the people. Why? Simple. The politicians are not aliens and they come from the people.

Today, more africans are leaving africa than any continent in the world. They want to go to Canada and the USA, especially USA where they feel they can live better lives. Who can blame them? If africa is conducive, with a low inflation like G8 countries, better currency value and other good things, nobody would be wanting to run away. I use run away as many africans don't intend returning.

Many times, you would wish you were not african, but now that it can't be changed, we just have to keep hoping that our hope is not a waste of time. If you have enjoyed this article, please share. Thanks.

THE IRONIES OF AN ABSOLUTE SYSTEM

The foundations of the world has been built on systems that make it up or make it work. As the world and man evolved, man has continually set up systems he feels would bring orderliness and meaning to life. There are the educational system, health, political, economic just to mention a few. My focus would be on the economic and political system and their ironies.

In the past, it was much more easier to separate the economic from the political system, but today, it has become almost impossible to do that. Political and economic systems are now interwoven that the economy adopted determines the politics and vice-versa. From the feudalism of the middle ages to the capitalism of the 21st century, history has shown that an absolute system only leads to anarchy and chaos.

Past political and economic leaders have learned the hard way in the inexperience and folly of entrenching or trying to entrench an absolute system. An absolute system is the idea that a particular system is enough on it's own to satisfy the economic and political wants of the people without external influence, no matter how little.

This means that a people would believe that capitalism alone is enough or that democracy alone is enough to have a sane system. A system could have general features or characteristics, but no nation can claim to practise it the way it ought to be. Wiser leaders understand that when a system like capitalism is the constitutional economic system in a country, it only means that capitalism is only about 70% feasible while other systems are entrenched inside that capitalism.

A country like the USA is a perfect example. For a capitalist nation, it would be assumed that the idea of social security or Obamacare wouldn't be adopted. Social security and Obamacare are ideas entrenched in communism. This means that all capitalism and no communism will lead to revolution, and all communism and no capitalism will lead to anarchy.

Socialist China is another example. It only means that China is socialist most of the time, and capitalist more of the times. Freedom of religion and association are not core socialist values, but that is what happens in China. China operates a strong free market, and that is why their products find their way to many parts of the world. And we should not fail to realize that a free market is a core socialist evil.

Democracy is supposed to be a political system that should abhor every form of absolute or dictatorial powers, but the executive orders of a president are his absolute powers. Executive orders are usually the way of absolute or military dictatorships. This means that all democracy and no dictatorship will lead to disaster.

An absolute dictatorship like Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini and Idi Amin, with no democracy will lead to revolution. Every system abhors an absolute stance, and no absolute system can hope to survive long to be generally acceptable by the world. This is why absolute communism, feudalism, nazism, facism and military dictatorships all crash by themselves.

These are the ironies of an absolute system that will always make it a system for an immature era and inexperienced people. If you have enjoyed this post, please share. Thanks.

THE FAILURE OF THE WORLD SYSTEMS

 

Many times, I pause to think about the world systems and their failures. I think about all the agencies, governments and machineries that had been put in place, just with the sole aim of making the world work. Whether we are individuals or part of government machineries, we all would come to the bitter conclusion of the failure of the world systems.


If past and present happenings are anything to go by, then the world should understand clearly that we are living in perilious times. No lasting solution seems to have evolved from any of the world systems. The world is now in her highest point of conflicts, terrorism and economic distabilities. From the most organized terrorist organisations to the radical trade unions of each nation all contribute in giving life it's present shape.

The murky and unstable diplomacy by governments and organizations is also a very big factor contributing to the failure of the world system. There are high levels of unemployment everywhere, when before, it used to be the mark of underdeveloped and developing economies.

When the wrong handling of diplomacy led to the outbreak of world war I(1914-1917) a century ago with millions dying, several world governments came to put in place a system that would resolve conflicts, and prevent future war. The failure of this world system, under the League of Nations led again to the outbreak of world war II(1939-1945).

Today, the United Nations(UN) is the biggest world system put in place to bring sanity to a rabid world. Alas!!, it seems the world is getting hotter and more unbearable under their watch. If the major duties of the world systems are peace, cohesiveness and tolerance to be entrenched and working, they it should be known that failure of the world system is as glaring as the midday sun.

Even though the African Union(AU) is the biggest system in Africa, Africa is still one big heap of violence, extreme poverty, bloodshed and many failed states like Libya. The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation(NATO) is in the middle east, but there has never been peace there for a day. Terrorists are having a field day, rebels are fighting governments, and China is still fighting over Hongkong and Macau.

Many people are displaced all over the world on a daily basis, and the world systems seem to have their hands full, and can't do anything about these things. This is the failure of the world system and we all hope they don't eventually annihilate us from the face of the earth.

KARL MARX : the man who spoiled tomorrow

Karl Marx was a contemporary german philosopher and economist who is best known for his socialist theory. His theory not only shook the foundations of world economy, it also laid the foundation of socialism and communism in the world economic systems.

Karl Marx not only denounced democracy and capitalism, he also saw it as an evil that needed to be overcome. Today, he is known in socialist and communist circles as a god, even above people like Vladimir Lenin of Russia and Mao Tse Tong of China.

Today, a lot of people see Karl Marx as an individual who spoiled the tomorrow of the world. Whether Karl Marx was evil or good will always continue to be debated without end. Another approach would be whether Karl Marx was just unlucky at the kind of disciples he made during his lifetime and after his death.

Every world leader over the last century that everybody have come to agree as tyrants had always attributed their philosophy to the teachings of Karl Marx. Lenin, who was a disciple of Karl Marx led the russian revolution in 1917, where the Tsar and his generation were wiped off the face of the earth. This same Lenin began communism in Russia which Josef Stalin and his predecessors spread all over eastern europe, south america, africa, and asia.

Mao Tse tong of China rose on the waves of communism, sacrificing numerous lives to establish himself as a leader. Fidel Castro of Cuba, with Che Ernesto Guevarra killed thousands of cubans, all in the name of communism. The Vietnam war was as a result of the west trying to prevent communism from spreading into Asia.

Adolf Hitler of Germany and his Nazism, Benito Mussolini of Italy and his Facism are all offshoots of the theories of Karl Marx. Worst of all, the cold war which dominated the world political and economic scene for about forty-five years was technically between the communist east and the capitalist west. If Karl Marx were to be alive today, we wonder what he would had thought of the world and his disciples.

Objectively, Karl Marx saw capitalism and democracy as a system that leads to selfishness, manipulations and greed. He saw capitalism as a system whereby a few rich people can control and manipulate the economy and the lives of the masses. He saw all forms of religion as a mirage of hope for the masses. Quoting him, he said that, "religion is the opium of the masses." He didn't want that system to continue, so he developed his socialist theories.

Karl Marx's socialist theories cannot be said to be bad, but he seems to be unfortunate that only tyrants hid behind them to further their own negative political and economic ideas. We would wonder if the U.S and the UK would still be the same under a socialist and communist environment.

No economic and political system is good or bad. It only depends on the person or people wielding the reins of that system. The same system that never worked for the tyrants has propelled China to the top ; and the same system that has worked for the U.S has sent a country like Nigeria to the bottom.

Still, if history is to be judged, many would still hold Karl Marx responsible as the man who spoiled tomorrow. If you have enjoyed this, please share it. Thanks.