And today comes more news about Africa, this time Angola: this story and this one discuss allegations, apparently with extensive documentary evidence, of curious U.S. actions in Angola when that country's civil war started in 1975. One allegation about S. Africa invading Angola:

The United States knew of South Africa's covert invasion plans in advance and co-operated militarily with its forces, contrary to Kissinger's testimony to Congress at the time, as well as at odds with the version in his memoirs.
posted by Arne at 5:25 PM

Excerpts from two recent news articles on Africa. The first, about accusations of an army massacre of civilians in Nigeria:

A U.S.-based human rights watchdog on Monday accused Nigeria of condoning the army massacre of hundreds of unarmed civilians last October, and blamed Western governments for failing to react to the killings.

In a strongly worded 24-page report, Human Rights Watch said President Olusegun Obasanjo "appeared to defend" the Oct. 22-24 massacre of more than 200 villagers in the central Benue state. The group described the killings as "extrajudicial executions."

A week after the massacres, Obasanjo visited Washington for talks with President Bush. U.S. officials did not publicly express concern about the killings, and talks focused on the fight against international terrorism, the report said.

The second, about one effect of the media licensing requirements recently put in place by Zimbabwe's government:

A jailed reporter for a British newspaper was told Friday that she will be prosecuted under a new media law prohibiting journalists from working without state accreditation, her lawyer said.

posted by Arne at 10:17 PM

A couple of memorable passages from The Good Soldier, by Ford Madox Ford:

When we reentered the Hurlbird mansion at eight o'clock the Hurlbirds were just exhausted. Florence had a hard, triumphant air. We had got married about four in the morning and had sat about in the woods above the town till then, listening to a mocking-bird imitate an old tom-cat. So I guess Florence had not found getting married to me a very stimulating process.

It wil give you some idea of the extraordinary naivete of Edward Ashburnham that, at the time of his marriage and for perhaps a couple of years after, he did not really know how children are produced. Neither did Leonora.
posted by Arne at 10:29 AM