Comments on: Welcome Back Kenya

By: Erin Hopkins

Erin Hopkins — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 06:59:32 +0000

Hey Arno,

Great piece of writing.

I like this bit: One question few people care to ask about all this is, why should we non-Kenyans care? Or more to the point: Do we, really? Another African disaster—both the Kenyan example and its continental precedents call to mind Stalin’s famous dictum that one death is a tragedy, a thousand are a statistic. Ultimately, the empathy we feel for the victims of a disaster has more to do with the talent and number of their chroniclers than the scale of their tragedy.

I just saw the stage production of A VERTICLE HOUR here in Sydney which asks some very similar questions about the past war in Yugoslavia and current war in Irag. Do you believe in this way “the talent and number of their chroniclers” actually shame us (us being the Western World) into caring? And does that shame then lead to empanthy then lead to action or perhaps more accurately…reaction? And if it doesn’t, is simply feeling that shame induced empathy enough?

No answers, really, just questions.

I admire your action.

~Erin

By: Nancy Crombach

Nancy Crombach — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 17:05:13 +0000

Hmm, I am a little disgusted with Kenya at the moment. How does a country rationalize when an election is riged our reaction is to rap infants and kill all that we can get our hands on. Untill the government admits to the possabilty of corruption. What is the rationality behind this, if the coruption had gone un-called things would have been really bad in Kenya hahaha. How could they have been worse? Does the reaction of the Kenyan people mirror what a false leadership would have been?And maybe it’s time to address the reality of the vote. Lets face it all to often we are misslead by false promises of would be political leaders. So in the end the privilage to vote is great but weather you are voting for what you want is questonable regardless of who wins. Maybe it’s hard to relate from Canada as i have always hard the right to vote. I have digested the fact that all though i have the right to choose lies are common place. Maybe once the luster of the vote has worn the Kenyans will take it a little less seriously.

By: Millicent

Millicent — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 14:05:17 +0000

That was one of the better pieces on the situation in Kenya I have read in the last few months. I had pondered on the odd amount of press attention Kenya got. Worse happens in Africa (Congo, Sudan, Angola) but none of those countries have gotten as much coverage and international intervention as Kenya has. I think its great that Kenya through international mediation and pressure was averted from war but I do wish that other civil disruptions in the world were given as much attention and help. BTW you should have mentioned that the UN has its 3rd largest headquarter there after Geneva and New York.

By: Carmen Morgan

Carmen Morgan — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 20:58:10 +0000

Great photo, Arno. It makes me miss Kenya. Glad to see people are smiling again.

By: Hopeful Cynic

Hopeful Cynic — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 17:11:06 +0000

Hurray! I am hopeful and only slightly cynical.