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January 28, 2009

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Jay Rosenburg

Thank you for bringing this to our attention. This is an issue that many Americans need to pay attention to in our quest for going Green. As the blogger has pointed out, Americans think that anything that is "GREEN" is good (pun intended).
However, I wasn't sure why the blogger mentioned Mugabe. Is he selling his land to the West as well? If so, this would be something to get out to the general public as well. We only hear about him taking land away from whites, and cholera etc. but never about his collusion with the West.

J.T. Roane

This is a wonderful piece that illustrates further the ways in which Europe and America continue to recreate their colonial relationship with Africa and Latin America in particular. Letting people starve while they feed their vehicles is antithetical to the 'better world' rhetoric of the so-called green movement. Moreover, WB and IMF policies that force Sub-Saharan and Latin American nations import food while they export corn completely obliterates the supposed positive impact of biofuels. This green capitalism is some bull shit. Just another way to move capital and make money. If we want to save the planet, Americans might start by working to close bomb plants in Ohio that use more energy in a couple of days than LA in one year! Sorry, I'm ranting... but this is just a hot mess!

solome

In response to Jay, I just wanted to clarify my mentioning Mugabe..I was merely trying to illustrate the fact that the west can usually push their agenda through corrupt governments because they (African govs) dont have to consider their citizens' needs.
In terms of biofuels..Mugabe is innocent..at least this one time.

Kizito

This is a great post that highlights the dangerous ills of biofuels, especially the continued neocolonialism and ethically suspect business practices that we see on the African continent. Quite rightly put by the blogger, this is a sadly ironic situation as bio fuel food production in order for Western countries to go "green" is taking place, while many African countries still are at risk of food crises.

Emira Woods

Here is another article you might find interesting:

http://ecoworldly.com/2008/09/06/biofuels-war-the-new-scramble-for-africa-by-western-big-money-profiteers/

Uju. Austin, Texas,USA

Great Piece. I want to take it even further. What are African nations doing in this age of alternative ENERGY? Very soon both biofuels and fossil fuels will be a thing of the past. The US, Europe and Asia (China, Japan, India and S. Korea etc) have embarked on alternative energy aka nuclear power, battery powered cars, solar and wind Projects. Where do African countries fit in? Where are our think tanks?What are our leaders doing? I agree we don't need to sell off our lands with so many hungry and famished in the continent.We need investment in Agriculture not biofuels. The AU should immediately adopt a policy that forbids any member nation to sell off lands to these modern economic exploiters. ENOUGH.

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