"The devil when he purports any evil against man, first perverts his mind." - Athenagoras of Athens


Hello,
There is nothing like the wacky world of international politics to reduce one to a gibbering state of impotent rage. A fortune teller once advised me that it was the combination of Aries and Libra in my horoscope that send me demented about injustice. Personally I think it's just a lack of any real power in life. I strongly suspect I'd be as bad as any dictator if I were in charge of anything big - as much though lack of patience as anything else.

Nevertheless I'm utterly appalled and bewildered by current events in Zimbabwe. What on earth does Mugabe want to hold onto? He has destroyed the country's agricultural industry by allowing armed thugs to turf white farmers and their largely black work force off the land. Given the history of Zimbabwe there may well be a case for land redistribution but I submit that taking land away from experienced farmers and agricultural workers and giving it to drunks, thugs and halfwits who know marginally less about farming than I do is not the way to go about it. Worst of all though is the dictatorship's deliberate manipulation of food shortages for political ends. Incidentally in what way is this compatible with Mugabe's Catholicism and given The Vatican's belief in the right to life shouldn't the evil old swine have been excommunicated by now or do they really regard the deliberate starvation and murder of thousands as more acceptable than violence towards the Pope or good old adultery?

He's only in power because people fear him not because they like, admire or even support him. I suspect this is as true of his hired thugs as anyone else. If he wanted he could swan off with a ton of money, roll up in a friendly country and live out the rest of his days in fine style with enough to employ plenty staff to bully should the desire to exercise a bit of power take him. The man must have the skin of a rhino. For heavens sake he has to threaten people to gain any support and even that isn't enough to keep him in power legitamately. What in God's name does he wish to hang on to power for?

Given the level of violence and bloodshed the election has provoked I can see why it might be tempting for the opposition to concede in an effort to stop anyone else being killed but I hope they don't. Every life lost is a tragedy but in the long term getting Mugabe out and Tsvangirai in is the best way to stop the violence. Provided of course Morgan Tsvangirai doesn't turn out to be another power crazed lunatic. After all even that pig Mugabe managed to seem reasonable for about thirty seconds in 1980.

Cheerio