Stop the Idiocracy: Africa

Showing posts with label Africa. Show all posts

Friday, July 31, 2026

Storm over Ceuta

A symbolic seaside illustration showing a dark-haired woman kneeling alone upon a sandy beach, wrapped in a delicate translucent white shawl that billows around her in the sea breeze. She gazes thoughtfully towards the surf while holding a damp strand of hair, with black diving fins resting beside her and discarded rubber inner tubes scattered across the shoreline. Behind her, shafts of sunlight break dramatically through towering storm clouds, illuminating dozens of distant figures wading ashore through the shallow waves. The contrast between the solitary foreground figure and the mass of arrivals beyond evokes themes of migration, uncertainty, humanitarian crisis, and the fragile hope represented by light piercing the gathering storm.

image generated via Grok

Is the Trump regime covertly stoking Spain's sudden migrant crisis to seize control of the Strait of Gibraltar? {Türkiye Today 31 July}

https://www.turkiyetoday.com/opinion/the-gibraltar-calculus-is-spains-ceuta-included-in-the-abraham-accords-3225028?s=1

Raise hell over migrants coming into the former United States, but facilitate their entering another country and disrupting its economy and security. And for what purpose? Nothing is ever for a good purpose with Trump or those working alongside him. Violating the territorial integrity of a NATO state — under the heretofore unheard-of pretence that the area now being overrun with migrants does not belong to Spain but to Morocco, whose government is evidently complicit in the scheme — is especially nefarious when America is supposed to be Spain's ally and partner. America and Europe have been solid allies throughout the post-war era, but that era is over and the two sides are increasingly being cast as adversaries in a new cold war — or perhaps a hot one; time shall tell. Who else benefits from this new world of America and Europe at odds? Russia, China, possibly India, the Islamists, and anybody else with an interest in dividing and conquering the Western world.

What y’all voted for, #Murica.

linktr.ee/arthurnewhook

🪐💔 #QueSeraSera 𓅨 🕈

Monday, July 20, 2026

An empty parsonage, an unanswered prayer

A photorealistic wide view depicts a weathered white New England parsonage standing in silence beneath soft afternoon light. An overgrown lawn surrounds the neglected porch, where an open suitcase spills clothing onto the steps beside a discarded clerical collar. In the foreground, a visa application and airline ticket stamped “CANCELLED” are pinned beneath a smooth stone, while a small Nigerian flag pin lies abandoned in the dirt nearby. A distant church steeple rises through the trees, barely visible beyond the house. Long shadows, peeling paint and the abandoned belongings combine to evoke profound loneliness, interrupted vocation and the quiet finality of a life abruptly uprooted.

generated via ChatGPT

‘A beloved 54-year-old Massachusetts priest is said to have died by suicide after being forced to return to his home country of Nigeria’. {Irish Star 20 July}

https://www.irishstar.com/news/boston-news/massachusetts-devastated-after-priest-dies-37451659

Jesus was nowhere to be found for this servant of the Lord. FTA:

Under U.S. Department of Homeland Security regulations, Madu had to leave the country to renew his religious worker visa, known as an R-1 visa, according to church officials. While the department recently eliminated the requirement for R-1 recipients to wait a full year before applying for a renewal, options for the church to keep Madu legally in the U.S. were limited because the federal government has suspended processing of certain immigration cases for 75 countries, including Nigeria.

According to the US-Nigeria Civil Society Coalition, Madu suffered from intense emotional distress regarding his anticipated return to Nigeria, where there has been a rise in the kidnappings and killings of Catholic clergy.

Shortly before he passed away, he told parishioners and stated in a farewell message on the parish website that leaving the country was completely out of his hands. He wrote, "Sincerely, it is not my wish to return home right now, but circumstances beyond my control have warranted that my time in the United States come to an end. My heart is broken, yet my joy remains," he wrote, adding that he'd gladly return to minister and will miss the community.

The Boston Globe reported that Madu received emergency room treatment at a hospital after experiencing a panic attack on the Sunday prior to his death, which occurred as he was driving to celebrate Mass.

linktr.ee/arthurnewhook

🪐💔 #QueSeraSera 𓅨 🕈

Saturday, July 18, 2026

The battle no one wanted to fight again

A sombre, highly detailed illustration portrays an Ebola treatment ward where a critically ill young African woman lies upon a hospital bed beneath patterned blankets, her face glistening with perspiration and tears as she stares upward in exhaustion. A healthcare worker in full yellow protective suit, gloves, respirator and face shield gently rests one hand upon her forehead while offering reassurance with the other. Additional clinicians in identical protective equipment prepare intravenous treatment and monitor her condition amid IV drips, medical instruments and isolation screens. Warm, muted lighting, richly textured brushwork and meticulous realism underscore the emotional gravity of humanitarian medicine confronting a deadly infectious disease in a temporary field hospital.

generated via ChatGPT

Seven American aid workers quarantined in Kenya after Ebola exposure. {WP 18 July}

https://wapo.st/4vAlqp2

linktr.ee/arthurnewhook

🪐💔 #QueSeraSera 𓅨 🕈

Tuesday, July 7, 2026

Where mercy met exhaustion

Surreal apocalyptic illustration of an Ebola outbreak response. In the foreground, three exhausted aid workers in yellow hazmat suits sit on crates outside canvas tents, bound together at the wrists by a glowing blue chain, with paperwork scattered on the muddy ground before them. Beyond a chain-link fence, a crowd of onlookers presses forward, some with fists raised. In the middle distance, a row of makeshift shelters burns near a body of water, with a small abandoned doll lying on cracked earth nearby. Above, a ghostly procession of shadowy human silhouettes falls from a vast dark, cracked, ringed planet looming in a stormy red-and-black sky, rain falling throughout the scene.

generated via Gemini

Africa: Ebola deaths top 500. {AP 6 July}

https://apnews.com/article/congo-ebola-health-workers-strike-deaths-ituri-1831766b125395f48ff626fbf664fb36

linktr.ee/arthurnewhook

🪐💔 #QueSeraSera 𓅨 🕈

Monday, June 8, 2026

The vigil of the Ituri nurse

A detailed fantasy illustration blending public health imagery with cosmic science-fiction. Foreground standeth a poised Black nurse in a crisp white uniform with Central African textile patterns and a stethoscope. Behind stretcheth a vast riverine landscape like the Congo Basin, transformed into glowing golden pathways linking villages, clinics, and workers. At centre, a radiant cluster of virus-like forms erupteth in fiery reds, oranges, and golds, linked by tracing networks. Across the landscape appear medics, researchers, and patients amid forests and waterways. Above, floating cities, crystalline forms, nebulae, and a colossal ringed planet create a progressive-rock dreamscape—symbolising the scale and urgency of a great epidemic response.

generated via ChatGPT

WHO: Ebola cases in DRC and Uganda have ‘increased rapidly’ over the past couple of weeks. {ABC News 8 June}

https://abcnews.com/Health/ebola-cases-increased-rapidly-late/story?id=133685492

linktr.ee/arthurnewhook

🪐💔 #QueSeraSera 𓅨 🕈

Wednesday, May 6, 2026

Hantavirus outbreak forces the evacuation of patients from a cruise ship bound for Europe: the next Covid, or merely a warning of worse things to come?

A cinematic, painterly scene shows a group of women moving along the outer deck of a large cruise ship during an organised evacuation. They wear light, flowing summer garments, now damp and clinging in places, and each has a medical face mask covering her nose and mouth. Their expressions, visible in their eyes and posture, convey alertness and unease as they clutch personal belongings—passports, bags, and small cases—while proceeding in a line. The deck glistens with moisture, reflecting a sky that hangs heavy with muted light. Behind them, lifeboats are being lowered by crew members in high-visibility gear, while additional passengers gather along the railings above, watching the controlled operation unfold. The composition contrasts elegance and vulnerability with the mechanical precision of emergency procedure, capturing a moment of tension managed through order and discipline at sea.

generated via ChatGPT

{NYT 6 May} ‘Hantavirus Patients Land in Amsterdam With More Cruise Ship Evacuations Planned’

A new pandemic cometh? To be fair, hantavirus doth not appear to spread easily, nor is it some novel mutant outbreak of the sort that emerged from the wet market in Wuhan in November 2019. And yet, what happens when there is another public-health emergency, whether this or something else entirely? How marvellous that Trump is in charge, for we all remember how magnificently he performed during COVID-19. Meaning, of course, that we have chosen to forget how badly he bungled it; all part of the larger pattern of a nation that hath simply given up and allowed one monstrously spoiled infant to reign unchecked, utterly above the law, above other human beings, above nature, and above God Himself.

If I sound like a broken record in making this point day after day, year after year, it is because people are still refusing to learn their lessons; not merely about Trump, but about so many things besides. And I guarantee that whatever brings about the next pandemic, the next shutdowns, and the like, people will handle it every bit as badly as they did in 2020, if not worse. At the very least, one would have thought that a renewed emphasis on hand-washing, or on the most basic hygiene — such as covering one’s mouth when coughing! — might have endured. But not even that. #Murica

Sunday, April 23, 2023

Global supplies of rice at a twenty-year low

Getty Images

The severe effects of climate change in Asia, the war on Ukraine, and export restrictions enacted by the Indian government lead to higher prices for one of the world’s most consumed staples. {CNBC 4/19}

Sunday, April 24, 2022

Putin moves ever closer to unleashing nuclear armageddon, his mercenaries are framing the French for the killings of innocent Africans, a new Ebola outbreak, and more

Jim Sugar/Getty Images

Today, April 24, is the Orthodox faith's Easter Sunday - Just as they celebrate Christmas nearly two weeks after the rest of Christendom, so it is here. May this Easter be filled with Russian blood flowing through the landscapes of Ukraine. Слава Україні. (ABC Australia 4/15)

Russian Defence Ministry/Reuters

‘Russia said on Saturday it plans to deploy its newly tested Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missiles, capable of mounting nuclear strikes against the United States, by autumn’ - Putin has warned Western nations that any outside attempts to stop his brutality ‘will lead you to such consequences that you have never encountered in your history.’ Does he actually *want* nuclear armageddon, and to bring down the rest of the world alongside his God-forsaken country? The safe bet would be to rule it a likelihood, and yours truly wishes he could be more optimistic. (Reuters 4/23)

(VIDEO) A very interesting piece on the founding of Kyiv, which took place long before the founding of Moscow. (UATV English 4/24)

Russian mercenaries, employed by a firm known as the Wagner Group, are burying dead bodies near an army base in the African nation of Mali as part of a PsyOp to smear France - A prime example of how the Russians continually fool conspiracy theorists, nationalist populists, hard leftists, and all predisposed to their anti-Western propaganda. Actual people are slaughtered, lives sacrificed, sometimes for no other purpose than information warfare. Pioneering and utilizing ever-evolving technological and psychological tactics - or committing old-fashioned, pure genocide - and always denying, deflecting, and accusing their enemies of that which they are guilty of. The scariest part is their gaslighting works all too well. It works because it exploits all of humanity’s inherent flaws, our tendency toward willful ignorance and confirmation bias. All the information to debunk all of Russia’s lies are easily accessible via this little thing we call the Internet, but millions (billions?) of marks who have bought in are not going to let go of their delusions and mistaken beliefs without tremendous struggle. Logic, reason, and facts have nothing to do with their collective mindset. The average German of Nazi times wasn’t broken of their brainwashing by persuasion, but only through epic, global bloodshed. Even if only secretly, many of those who lived continued to harbor Nazi sentiments long after the war ended and the Nazi state was dismantled. Very few people ever feel any contrition for anything they do or for anything they feel. Innocent victims in places like Mali, Syria, and Ukraine are dying from Russian aggression. Millions more will continue to die, and the millions around the world who justify their actions will continue to do so until they themselves become Putin’s prey. (France 24 4/22)

Jerome Delay/AP

New Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo - America really dodged a bullet back in 2014, when infected citizens brought the plague into the country but were contained quickly. Had Ebola spread widely, it would have made the last two years of COVID-19 look like a common cold. (Sky News 4/24)

Saturday, April 9, 2022

Setting the record straight on Trump’s involvement in and crusade against Ukraine, and ode of sorts to Poland, and the importance of having pencil and paper on hand at all times

Alexei Alexandrov/AP

Just a quick update this Saturday afternoon. I’m tired …

Zelenskyy demands strong global response to Kramatorsk train station bombing (AP 4/09)

The truth about Trump and Ukraine - An absolute must-read, been meaning to post this for days now. Our former president has blood on his hands, re: Ukraine. (Seth Abramson 3/30)

Hats off to Poland: Poland, indeed, has been exceptional in its openness to its neighbors. There are, however, some very real concerns about their government and its commitment to democracy. I trust those issues will be worked out, and Poland is going to emerge as a global leader.

At least 16 killed in Burkina Faso army base attack by jihadists following January military coup (Reuters 4/08)

Unsolicited life advice: While writing blog articles and posting on social media, or even just in one’s everyday activities, having a pencil and notepad or notebook on hand is essential. Writing things down, by hand, improves our memories and keeps us (at least, relatively) sharp. I got away from this habit for a long time, and now I am correcting course. Truly, I have little other choice, given how scatterbrained my alcohol-addled, battle-scarred ass is.

Wednesday, March 30, 2022

Not as important as whether Will Smith should have hit Chris Rock at the Oscars to #Murica, but the sane world is seeing seven-and-a-half hours of missing call logs on January 6, and Russia escalating its war of aggression on Ukraine after announcing they were going to start limiting attacks

Do you want to save this constitutional republic, however much of a lost cause it often appears to be, no matter that the majority of Americans are hellbent on destroying it? Work to counter Russian propaganda at all turns. We should have learned this back in 2016, and some of us did. Not enough! And now Ukraine is being raped, and millions of Americans are shrugging their shoulders, with some even praising Putin. The invasion of Ukraine, in part, is happening because ‘Murica wanted Trump and overlooked every breach of decency and honor, enabling Putin to such an extent that he feels invincible even now that we have a real leader - the kind that this rotten country does not deserve - back in the White House for the first time in a long time. As far as I'm concerned, those who have supported Trump all these years may as well rename themselves 'Neville Chamberlain.'

Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine severely endangers global food supplies - Thankfully for Ukraine, they stored more than enough food for themselves for, apparently, a couple of years. Since the annexation of the Crimea in 2014, the Ukrainians knew this invasion was coming and prepared. Which explains why their military is destroying the Russian troops. But, given that Ukraine must take care of itself before supplying other nations with their grain, food shortages are already becoming a reality in parts of Africa, the Middle East, and Indonesia that depend heavily upon Ukraine, as well as a Russia crippled by sanctions, for their sustenance. But, silly me, I know none of this is as pressing a matter as whether Will Smith should have hit Chris Rock at the Oscar Awards. (AP 3/29)

Russia bombards Chernihiv hours after pledging to halt shelling - Anybody who believes anything Putin promises is signing their own death warrant. Ukraine must not only repel this invasion, but so soundly defeat Russia that the enemy is set back another two centuries longer than Putin has already set them back. (The Guardian 3/30)

‘Thousands of miles from a home consumed by conflict, a group of Ukrainians in China have found themselves on the frontlines of an information war, battling pro-Russia bias, trolls and censorship.’ (AFP 3/30)

James Bourg/Reuters

A seven-and-a-half hour gap in Trump White House call logs on the morning of January 6, 2021 - I do not even want to spend much time on this clown anymore, I just want him and his lemmings’ garbage out of my life and out of the public sphere (and in prison.) (BBC News 3/29)

Thursday, December 23, 2021

U.S. records its lowest population growth in the nation’s history during the pandemic; Deaths outnumber births in more than two dozen states

AFP via Getty Images

AP - US population growth at lowest rate in pandemic’s first year

In the long run, fewer mouths to feed and fewer people to cause problems in the United States would be a net positive for the planet, though will likely be offset by the uncontrolled and unacceptable levels of population growth in places like India, Africa, and other poverty-stricken backwaters of the world. There is a (very humane) reason we spade and neuter our cats and dogs, and necessity demands we will soon have no recourse but to apply the same to humans. Make no mistake, there are going to be some severe issues that result from lower birth rates in the U.S. – some are already present – but overpopulation will eventually lead to humankind’s demise. -

U.S. population growth dipped to its lowest rate since the nation’s founding during the first year of the pandemic as the coronavirus curtailed immigration, delayed pregnancies and killed hundreds of thousands of U.S. residents, according to figures released Tuesday.
The United States grew by only 0.1%, with an additional 392,665 added to the U.S. population from July 2020 to July 2021, bringing the nation’s count to 331.8 million people, according to population estimates released by the U.S. Census Bureau.
The U.S. has been experiencing slow population growth for years but the pandemic exacerbated that trend. This past year was the first time since 1937 that the nation’s population grew by less than 1 million people. (Read more)

Sunday, December 19, 2021

New York Times report: ‘Most of the World’s Vaccines Likely Won’t Prevent Infection From Omicron’

Sergey Ponomarev/NYT

Incredibly disheartening, and anti-vaxxers are likely having a field day with this report. But it’s been known all through the course of the pandemic that if not enough people took the necessary precautions, then the virus would mutate. Omicron is the end result of widespread belligerence, and ultimately the blame belongs to all the ordinary people demanding that they are ‘done with COVID.’ Guess what, we’ll never be ‘done with COVID’ now, fools. -

A growing body of preliminary research suggests the Covid vaccines used in most of the world offer almost no defense against becoming infected by the highly contagious Omicron variant.
All vaccines still seem to provide a significant degree of protection against serious illness from Omicron, which is the most crucial goal. But only the Pfizer and Moderna shots, when reinforced by a booster, appear to have initial success at stopping infections, and these vaccines are unavailable in most of the world.
The other shots — including those from AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson and vaccines manufactured in China and Russia — do little to nothing to stop the spread of Omicron, early research shows. And because most countries have built their inoculation programs around these vaccines, the gap could have a profound impact on the course of the pandemic.
A global surge of infections in a world where billions of people remain unvaccinated not only threatens the health of vulnerable individuals but also increases the opportunity for the emergence of yet more variants. The disparity in the ability of countries to weather the pandemic will almost certainly deepen. And the news about limited vaccine efficacy against Omicron infection could depress demand for vaccination throughout the developing world, where many people are already hesitant or preoccupied with other health problems.
Most evidence so far is based on laboratory experiments, which do not capture the full range of the body’s immune response, and not from tracking the effect on real-world populations. The results are striking, however. (Read more)

Sunday, November 28, 2021

The World Health Organization urges nations not to impose travel bans from southern Africa as new omicron variant spreads

Spencer Platt/Getty Images

It is beyond obvious now that virtually the entire world took their foot off the pedal, so to speak, far too soon. Governments caved to pressure from their restless and malevolent citizenries. Closing America’s borders is the only responsible action at this time, but the WHO appears to care more about public opinion than anything else. -

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — The World Health Organization on Sunday urged countries around the world not to impose flight bans on southern African nations due to concerns over the new omicron variant.
WHO’s regional director for Africa, Matshidiso Moeti, called on countries to follow science and international health regulations in order to avoid using travel restrictions.
“Travel restrictions may play a role in slightly reducing the spread of COVID-19 but place a heavy burden on lives and livelihoods,” Moeti said in a statement. “If restrictions are implemented, they should not be unnecessarily invasive or intrusive, and should be scientifically based, according to the International Health Regulations, which is a legally binding instrument of international law recognized by over 190 nations.”
Moeti praised South Africa for following international health regulations and informing WHO as soon as its national laboratory identified the omicron variant.
“The speed and transparency of the South African and Botswana governments in informing the world of the new variant is to be commended,” said Moeti. “WHO stands with African countries which had the courage to boldly share life-saving public health information, helping protect the world against the spread of COVID-19.”
Cases of the omicron variant of the coronavirus popped up in countries on opposite sides of the world Sunday and many governments rushed to close their borders even as scientists cautioned that it’s not clear if the new variant is more alarming than other versions of the virus.
While investigations continue into the omicron variant, WHO recommends that all countries “take a risk-based and scientific approach and put in place measures which can limit its possible spread.” (Read more)

Friday, November 26, 2021

New ‘omicron’ COVID variant discovered; the United States and European Union move to restrict travel from eight nations in southern Africa as stock markets fall

AP Photo/Denis Farrell

As President Biden has noted, it is time for some of these other countries to step up their efforts to contain this plague. Notice I said ‘contain,’ because there is no hope now of actually eradicating it, thanks to those who have spent this entire pandemic whining about their freedom instead of following necessary protocol. From the AP -

The White House said the U.S. will restrict travel from South Africa and seven other countries in the region beginning Monday. It did not give details except to say the restrictions will not apply to returning U.S. citizens or permanent residents, who will continue to be required to test negative before their travel.
Medical experts, including the WHO, warned against any overreaction before the variant that originated in southern Africa was better understood. But a jittery world feared the worst nearly two years after COVID-19 emerged and triggered a pandemic that has killed more than 5 million people around the globe.
“We must move quickly and at the earliest possible moment,” British Health Secretary Sajid Javid told lawmakers.
There was no immediate indication whether the variant causes more severe disease. As with other variants, some infected people display no symptoms, South African experts said. The WHO panel drew from the Greek alphabet in naming the variant omicron, as it has done with earlier, major variants of the virus. (Read more)