Positively Woman

Muslim Women Walking, Zanzibar August 2011

I have been happily inspired by all things pertaining to womanhood in the last two weeks and so have decided to add to my 3-4-10 series with a round-up.  Thought this picture I took of Muslim women walking along in Zanzibar was the perfect image to use with this post as it is a lovely visual metaphor for how creative and free women can be despite restrictions placed on them by society socially, politically and/ or economically.  Though required to cover themselves, they have found a way to let their personalities shine through by eschewing the traditional black, using African chitenge (or in Swahili kitenge) cloth to infuse colour into their wardrobe, while still adhering to tradition.

3 inspiration women of the moment:

1. President Joyce Banda

Her presidency is the result of the unfortunate death of Malawi's elected head of state, the late Bingu Wa Mutharika.  It has, however, enabled her to become the second female president on the African continent.  Not only that, we now have TWO female heads of state serving concurrently :).  President Johnson-Sirleaf of Liberia, the recent Nobel Laureate, congratulated President Banda with these words of advice about being a woman and a leader.  To find out more about Her Excellency, read this article: it gives great background and insight into who she is as a person and I also liked this article about her husband, who is set to be a great First Man or is it GENTLEMAN?!- he will not try to usurp power or undermine her to prove he is still the man, you know what I mean?

2.  Leymah Gbowee

I did not know much about Ms. Gbowee till she became the joint Nobel Peace Prize Laureate with her fellow countrywoman President Johnson Sirleaf and Tawakkol Karman of Lebanon. Her recent TED speech is truly inspiring, and when hearing her speaking on GPS with Fareed Zakaria helped me articulate how I felt the West should be involved in affecting change on the continent, which I blogged about here.

3.  Ashley Judd

I have always liked Ms. Judd's acting and the fact that she disappears from sight when she is not working, maintaining a mystery and a dignity that few in Hollywood can muster these days.  I am currently enjoying watching her in the new series Missing, in which she is an ex-CIA agent who lost her husband due to the job so she retires only to have her son in kidnapped in Rome a decade later.  I love the strong motherly character this brings out in her.  She chop-sueys her way through Europe, kills baddies and follows clues spurred by the love of her child and she does it in a female way, not in a "the only way I can do this is to be like a man", like so many other female characters in this genre are often played.   One of my first posts on the blog was about Salt, the movie with Angelina Jolie and I had issues with how some of the plot was geared so as not to emasculate the men as is also the norm with a strong woman protagonist, but Missing has men who are men and their manhood is not defined by women having to take a back seat in some way and Judd is able to take charge without losing her womanhood or having to be stereotypically effeminate. 

I digress.  What I wanted to say was I enjoyed her recent article in the Daily Beast.  She writes about how women are hypersexualised, how our worth is essentialised to merely our physical appearance,  how we are limited by not only the paternalistic and parochial nature of our societies, but also how we women are perpetuating this discrimination and are actually guilty of fuelling the prejudices we face daily, though we like to blame men for our lot in life.  

4 songs by beautiful African women:

1. This is my theme song right now.  If you do decide to indulge in some of the recreational activities she lists, you know how I feel about when it starts to rain - please use a raincoat :)

2.  This video just makes me happy, and the song by itself is just lovely.  I really want a kaftan now.

3.  "All I know is Swagger!"  I love it.  Watched this Channel O introduction to Camp Mulla and just loved how Miss Karun is so articulate and chilled for one so young.  I particularly liked when she said that she really doesn't like to get bogged down in defining exactly what genre Camp Mulla's music is because it is inspired, draws from and uses elements across many different sounds, cultures and experiences.  I think her philosphy should be applied to gender, race, culture, religion and life really.  Stop trying to put everyone and everything in a box and just take things and people for what they are.  We are all influenced by many things, and while stereotypes and norms help us form schema to make it through the world, they are a guide, NOT strict rules and definitions to be adhered to.  There must be room and a welcome space for deviations as they are the crux of creativity, innovation, progress and evolution.

4. Toya DeLazy's style is clearly inspired by menswear (I heart very much) and she does not subscribe to your typical bubblegum pop princess "I'm cute and pretty" or the "hey look I'm sexy and edgy and different (but really still a slave to the machine)" clubs, but doesn't come off like she is trying to hide her womanhood or sexuality either.  I love that she has her own style and is making pop music without needing to be half-naked, gyrating and/ or humping the floor to get our attention and is still singing with sense, depth and meaning to  her lyrics.  She knows she has her own brand of swag and is not afraid to show it.

10 woman/ female related things that put a smile on my face (in no particular order):

1.  African Voices with John Meletse

If you are wondering why I have started off with a man, my answer to you is being gay falls in to the female category when put in the gender dichtomy paradigm of male/ female, masculine/ feminine and therefore into sister dichotomies: strong/ weak, ruler/ subordinate, defender/ defenceless etc. And disabled people in the world fall into the same category too.  He states he very much identifies more with women in society than men so I rest my case. You can watch the episode of African Voices with John here.

2. Rwanda's Parliament has a 55% female majority, the first in the world :)

Not only is Parliament mostly female, it is quite youthful and connected through social media.  Way to go Rwanda for leading the way!  I came across these lovely nuggets of trivia while enjoying an article laced with inspirational quotes from President Kagame about how we Africans need to start being agents of change on the continent, rather than limiting ourselves to being passive receptors of whatever fate is bestowed on us from outsiders. We need to stop talking and start doing because "people don't eat debates, they eat food". Love it!

3. Chimamanda Adichie

Though she has irked me in the past with some of her views, she is a badass.  Her TED talk on the dangers of the single story has really helped me process and navigate through the issues of the day in the media.

4. Christina Hendricks aka Joan in Mad Men

Saw a picture of her as Joan on Mad Men's Facebook page and the read the comments from BOTH men and women praising and enjoying her voluptuous figure without hypersexualising her undulating lady lumps and humps or hateration. This kind of positivity helps to promote healthy and diverse body images in the media and in turn in society . It reminds me of an interview I watched of hers where she responded "You've gotta eat!" when she was asked how she maintains her lovely figure. Yay for curves and being healthy!

5.  Viola Davis rocking her TWA

For y'all that don't know, TWA means teeny weenie afro.  It's so sad that she has not been rocking her natural hair for fear of discrimination on the job and I'm glad that she showed how beautiful she can be without straight hair and/ or a wig at the Oscars.  I do not have a problem with Black women rocking whatever texture hair or wearing their own versus bought hair.  What I'm all about is why.  If you are shunning your natural hair because of some sort of societal pressure or an unchecked self hate then I have a problem.  I also have issues with people thinking they are better than someone else because they have relaxed or weaved hair or when they rock dreads or a fro.

6. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Nigerian Finance Minister, former World Bank managing director and World Bank head hopeful

Yesterday it was confirmed that Obama's choice, Kim Yong Jim, will be the new head of the World Bank :( despite support from not only many African nations but from around the world.  She is proof that women and Africans hold powerful positions and are serious contenders on the global stage.

7. Inspirational film

Listen to and be inspired by Tunisian Nadia El Fani talking about making a a controversial film that includes a scene with a restaurant serving food during Ramadan and about how Muslims need to change their own perceptions of what they are capable of and what human rights they are worthy of.  She has made this film because she is a patriotic Tunisian and not to be a rabble-rouser for no apparent reason. I also just came across the fact that Luc Besson made a film about Aung San Suu Kyi, the Burmese activist who has been under house arrest for years and recently made history by being elected to Parliament.  It's called The Lady and stars Michelle Yeoh.

8. Mark Grist's spoken word piece on loving women who read

Thank God for this, I always suspected there were more men out there with such sentiments.



9.  Inspirational quotes

As always, Maya Angelou, the eternal tall drink of refreshing water has a new quote ready for me to discover and love:

"I would like to be known as an intelligent woman, a courageous woman, a loving woman, a woman who teaches by being."

"The right man will love all the things about you that the wrong man was intimidated by." Whoever said that is absolutely right :)

10. Titica, the transsexual singer in Angola

Included for the same reasons as John Meletse.  A man taking on a female persona in a Catholic country.  Courage is always inspiring :).  You can read about Titica here. 

Libya

As promised here information to get you up to speed on the Libya situation.

Gaddafi spoke to the BBC yesterday and laughed when asked if he would ever leave Libya. Very dismissive, very haughty, very eerie, very scary.  I don't think he's going to let go. Unlike Mubarak and Ben Ali, I don't think he will bow out with even a modicum of grace.  And his feelings of betrayal from the West has been exacerbated by the sanctions further cementing this unfortunate likelihood. He is a true despot: has a twisted love for his country and truly believes it is his sovereign right to protect and serve his people no matter what, including inflicting tough love through violence to keep them in check. All in a very calm and controlled manner.  If he is in any sort of panic, not even those his inner circle will know about it.  Those still waters of his definitely run deep, we just don't know how deep and won't till he wants us to. I love how he is using the loophole of having no official position as the reason he cannot resign and step down from power. As he is referred to as simply "The Leader" he is free to interpret that anyway he likes as it can mean anything really! And his interpretation is so profound and astute that it makes his craziness seem justified. He hasn't been leading for 42 years by chance, it has clearly been by very meticulous and purposeful design.

Here are some videos to recap what has happened in the last 2 weeks:

The "Day of Rage" February 17th



Government and military violence against protesters



Gaddafi addressing crowd in Tripoli



The exodus of the tens of thousands migrant workers to Tunisia.  They are from the vicinity and as far as China)!

Border between Libya and Tunisia reaching crisis point with all the refugees.

Unfortunately there is violence coming from the government to curb the protesting and migrant workers are caught in the crossfire.I do not see a peaceful resolution to Libya's version of the North African protest movement.  This makes me sad :(. This is going to be a long and painful methinks...

To follow the unrest, the BBC continues its dedicated live feed on the events in North Africa and the Middle East now titled Libya Revolt.

"The Spirit of Democracy"

The seminal unrest that is going on in North Africa (and the Middle East) has inspired the change in Amashibi on the blog.  I never thought Gaddafi would be wobbled let alone in serious risk of being toppled.  The recent events in Libya have negated that view.  What is scary though is that each time a new country in North Africa walks in Tunisia's footsteps, the protests get more powerful and more violent and events seem to gain momentum much faster.  I feel like Eygpt's movement was on crack,  and now Libya is moving at warp speed!

I will blog about Libya in more detail next week.  It's been a long one and I'd like to be able to passively follow for a bit longer before I actively give my two cents.  Until then all I can say is I know one thing for sure - Richard Dowden, a British journalist who has covered Africa for decades is right:

"The spirit of democracy is not at all alien to Africa."


The BBC has been providing great coverage on a dedicated page of their website since the unrest began in the region.  You can keep up-to-date with live video here.

Kefaya!

I knew that kefaya meant enough but had no idea that it was actually an recognised moniker for an Egyptian coalition that has been opposing President Mubarak for quite some time.  There I was just trying to make sure that I was right and Google turned up this little nugget of information.  You learn something new everyday, it's true :).

I am however saying enough to the craziness of the Egyptian situation.  It has descended into people losing sight of their true goals I think.  Now there are machine guns, fire and stones drowning out the once peaceful protests against the current regime, now reduced to an echo we have to strain our ears to hear.  Mubarak has formally announced his commitment to stepping down in September, has officially declared that his son Gamal will not run in the next elections and has barred several ministers from fleeing the country by freezing their assets. And he has every right to fear that the country could fall into further disarray if he just ups and leaves as some would have him do. Now there are deaths and the injury count is inching ever closer to 1000 and all this happened in a day! At the same time, as many Western leaders have said, it looks unlikely that Mubarak can hold out until September.  The situation is getting worse and people fear what will happen tomorrow. I am happy that the army is stepping in now to separate the opposing groups.

Fear seems to be driving a lot of decisions lately.  In Algeria, in an attempt to counteract any attempts to protest a la Tunisia and Eygpt, the Algerian President has quickly employed countermeasures to appease his people.  President Bouteflika has annouced that the state of emergency imposed in the 90s to will be lifted very soon.  Who knew?!   There are so many things I do not know and it is no excuse that I am not the only one who was in the dark about North Africa.  I am glad that I am learning although I wish it had not been spurred by what is now turning into a tragedy.

To keep following the BBC is continuing its live feed with video and textual updates here.

You can also watch Al Jazeera live here.

The newly elected Prime Minister, Ahmed Shaqif, has apologised for yesterdays attacks.  He vowed that justice will prevail and  has condemned the violence stressing that the perpetrators will be sought out and punished.  Protesters believe that the pro-Mubarak factions are organised and sponsored by the government.  The weaponry that they are using is too sophisticated and it seems that they are working to a schedule.  The Prime Minister, while denying government involvement has indicated that if this is the case, it will be found out and dealt with all the same. Here is a video of his press conference:

Peaceful Protest No More

Unfortunately, after President Mubarak's speech yesterday, in which he asked for stability and talked about how Egyptian he is and how much he loves his country, today the once peaceful protests have taken an ugly turn.  Even though the internet and the banking system have been restored, people are not satisfied with Mubarak stepping down until September and the opposition have called for him to step down on Friday.  I have been gripped to this story all day, hearing how men on horses and camels have led those in support of Mubarak to clash with those who have been protesting for the last week.  And now Cairo is ablaze :(.  Why have these guys suddenly come out of the woodwork? Is this a clever political ploy as many of the protesters fear? Is Mubarak trying to swing public opinion to make him seem less like an autocrat and more like a benevolent dictator who is trying to make a dignified exit? Is he afraid he will have to live out his days in exile like his Tunisian doppelganger?

I am sad that unlike in Tunisia, where the power shift was quick to let the country make a peaceful transition, Egypt has turned violent.  One lady, who was interviewed by the BBC in the thick of things at Tahrir square, said she was fearful as even though the world thinks of Egypt as a moderate place with apathetic citizens, once Egyptians make up their minds they are stubborn.  She called for compromise and for people to see that they had won: Mubarak has stepped down and all they have to do is wait a couple of months for the election.  She could see no one who has enough support to go on TV and talk down the protesters and felt that the situation will only get worse if people do not see this victory for what it is.  I really hope that Mubarak did not pay people to start the fighting. And I hope that even though the West has a vested interest economically, politically and militarily that they do not interfere.  It will only make things worse.  We have to let the Egyptians come to their own truth otherwise if things further deteriorate Western intervention will be blamed and people will not take responsibility for their actions.

It seems that in Yemen things have gone smoothly, and surprisingly in Jordan, there have been protests to oust their Prime Minister! I am shocked as I think of Jordan as like Egypt.  It is crazy how Tunisia has created such a domino effect in such a short period of time.

You can watch a live feed and get regular updates from the BBC here.

Here is a transcript of President Mubarak's speech yesterday.

Here is video of the clashes today:

North Africa Update - Egypt, Tunisia, Sudan

Egypt:

The protesting continues and has escalated to being more deadly that Iran's Green Movement and now people are looting :( and some are guarding their heritage, such as with the incident at the National Museum, while asking for their rights.  I am sad that things are not getting better and that violence is still playing a major role in this struggle.  I have no idea why President Mubarak thinks that having a Vice President for the first time and a Prime Minister is going to sway public opinion.  He is still at the top of the pyramid, which is where the people are calling for the most change! It also always amuses me when the international community put in their calls and pleas for this leader to step down or for justice.  No matter what the West says, what will be done in Egypt will be done and quite frankly sometimes I think that their 2 cents actually hinders rather than helps the process.  Due to the complicated and patronising relationship the West has with the rest of the world, it always seems that if people follow what they say, even if it is the right thing to do, then it causes accusations of puppetry and things.  Sometimes it is just best to watch, however painful it may be, and let people sort out their problems and be proffer help when it is sought.

For great background and ridiculously detailed and regular updates on what is going on in Egypt, take a look at this blog post on Mother Jones that is dedicated to keeping us up-to-date as developments arise.  Thanks to DR JOURNO for letting me know about this and helping me on my quest to get up-to-speed on the Eygptian situation historically and presently.

Here is a video with an update on how the army is responding.  I am glad that the army officer says "Demonstrate and express yourselves, but at night clear the streets and let us handle the thugs." Many people are ignoring the curfews put in place which are for their own protection.  The army is having difficulty distinguishing between the "good" and the "bad".  I hope that other army units take this human approach on board to keep the protests safe.



Here is a Al Jazeera edition of Inside Story that focuses on Mohammed El Baradei, a man who believes that he is the change Egypt needs and his support has been gathering momentum.  There is also a great and balanced discussion about the present regime and the barriers in place to keep the governmental status quo:



I also just want to touch on the fact that the regime shut down the internet two days ago when they realised that social media was part of the logistical tactics of the protesters.  This is unacceptable.  What I love about the internet is that it affords the average citizen the ability to express themselves in the public or private sphere at little cost.  It enables those who are not activists an easy entry to participation in political matters.  It provides low barriers to entry to protests.  All they need to see is when and where and they can mobilise, they don't need to have pledged allegiance to the fight or have paid dues.  This media tumblr image says it all in the case of Egypt.

Tunisia:

Ben Ali's brother in-law is seeking asylum in Canada but has been denied. Here is a list of the key players in the Tunisia's transition.  And here is a video outlining how Tunisia's protests were fueled by people being able to connect through social media to ultimately hit the streets and how Eygpt has been inspired and is following the same trajectory:



"Tunisia is alive.  Don't be afraid.  We are not dead." So beautifully powerful a statement in its simplicity.  Both Egypt and Tunisia are more alive to me that they ever were.  I feel like North African states are portrayed as the "dead" parts of the Arab world in the media.  They are the places you go holiday, places to find middle ground, but not the places that are really focused on as the axis of evil in the war on terror.  I am glad that they are defining themselves in their own eyes so publicly and thus enlightening us.

Sudan:

Secession is imminent.  99.57% voted for seperation and President Bashir has said he will acknowledge the results when they are officially announced next month.

Egypt - Following in Tunisia's Footsteps

It seems that Egyptians are committed to following in their North African brothers' footsteps and are looking to oust President Mubarak who has been in power for even longer than Tunisia's Ben Ali, having had a tight grip on the Land of the Pharaohs for 32 years now. Curfews are now in place as the violence escalates.  I do not condone violence, I'd like to think that as an intelligent species we can use reason and logic through carefully crafted arguments to battle and win, but as a collegue remarked in a conversation last week, we humans forget that we are animals.  We are just as visceral  as we are cerebral.  Sometimes violence is our only recourse.  And it is clear that North African citizens are tired of trying to reason with words or staying quiet through inaction.  With the Tunisians successfully removing and calling for Ben Ali's arrest, while moving forward towards democracy, is it any wonder that other states are following suit?

Here is a video showing just how passionate Egyptians are for change and just how much the current establishment is committed to resisting.



The man showing his bloody hands really got me thinking.  He said:

"They shot at us! Why? I don't know! Who are we, the enemy?! Am I an enemy of the state? I just came here to ask for rights, I came here to ask for a home, for a dignified life. For a regime who's been in power for 30 years to go away."

There is such disillusionment in Egypt that I had no idea about.  I keep thinking of ads I see on CNN about going to Egypt and that is the image that I have:



I think of them as being vital to peace in the Middle East - helpers rather than struggling for their own peace and freedoms. The unrest starting with the Coptic killings has really taken me by surprise.  I am ashamed that I have not looked past the media to understand all parts of the African continent better.  I am glad that I have made the effort this year to cover the whole continent more fairly that I did in the last.

It is interesting that social media has paid a huge part in coordinating protests and engaging not just activists, but the average citizen in both Tunisia and Eygpt.  As a blogger taking advantage of the affordances mobile and online technologies have brought us, I am happy to see it working to help citizens exercise their rights.  I hope it will also be used to educate, not only those who are in the thick of it, but the rest of us in the periphery so that we have an understanding too. I just hope that the violence ends soon.  Tunisia has also inspired a similar movement in Yemen.  I wonder if other African countries will be inspired too.  I am glad that Sudan is dealing with the referendum in a peaceful fashion and seems ready for the change, I think enough blood has been shed there already so I am thankful.  Will other apathetic nations, and I am thinking of one in particular somewhere in Southern Africa find their voice too?

I leave you with the words of the woman in the video who is clearly searching desperately for an oasis in the desert and is prepared to drink sand until she finds it (I know, a very cheesy yet appropriate metaphor I think): "We are tired....We are Egyptians, we love Egypt, but stop this!" Inshallah, her wish will be granted soon.

Africa In Flux: Tunisia

While I have focused the blog on the Sudanese in the last week, other African countries have also being going through major changes for quite a while.  Unfortunately, Tunisia has gone the violent route in order to free itself from the shackles in the form of a 23 year reign of President Ben Ali who stepped down and fled to Saudi Arabia on the 15th (while eerily that date also marked the last day of voting for Sudanese secession) amidst the rioting and protests led by youth - mainly students and the unemployed.  The Tunisian Prime Minister, Mohammed Ghannouchi has set up a unity government to steer Tunisia through the 2 months leading up to the presidential elections. You can read and watch a video about the intentions of the unity government here.

Hopefully Tunisia will be able to follow in Sudan's footsteps and find a peaceful solution through voting and this will be the last of the violence.  I am glad that the Prime Minister has indicated that they are looking to lead Tunisia to a democratic, peaceful and free path to elections and  to rebuilding the nation politically and socially.

Here is a series of videos giving a recap of the events that started in December 2010 and escalated in the last two weeks culminating the the uncertainty that Tunisia now faces.







I hope the security will be restored soon and that the Tunisians find their way to the future they desire inshallah.

Art's Healing Power

I am finally keeping to my word and writing a post I promised to write ages ago.  When I was flying home I read about this wonderful art festival happening in Luanda right now.  Il Trienal de Luanda is a triennial arts exhibition started by one of Angola's sons, Fernando Alvim.  It is the most renowned of its kind in Africa and features outdoor billboard paintings, formal exhibitions, television and radio debates, educational programmes, theatrical performances and more, with the proceeds from these events financing the finale in December. This celebration of art started on the 12th of September and goes on till December 19th so you still have time to catch it if you happen to be going to Angola any time soon. The point of the Triennial is to celebrate Angolan history and heritage, but also to help heal the wounds suffered from years of fighting.  I think this is a great way to attract people to Angola, just as with them holding the Africa Cup of Nations earlier this year

Fernando Alvim is also curator of the Sindika Dokolo Collection, which is the largest collection of contemporary African Art in the world.  Artists from Algeria, Angola, Benin, Cameroun, Congo, Cote D'Ivoire, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Madagascar, Marocco, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Tunisia and Zimbabwe are showcased, as well as artists from around the world.  I am particulary taken with this set of prints and this photo is so eerily involving. And I can't get over the fact that there is an artist called Nastio Mosquito ha ha ha ha ha ;}.

I have a love/ hate relationship with contemporary art. Some of it just seems so self-involved and important. I visited LACMA earlier in the year and the collection they had showing had me thinking: really??!!! Some of it you could put together yourself but as they say that is not the point, it's all about the experience. Whatever. I expect to be wowed by something I couldn't do myself.  I need to see creativity and ability that I cannot produce to appreciate.  A pile of boxes just doesn't do it for me I'm afraid...

Vengeance Is Ours!

Some may say that we have villified Uruguay above and beyond what was necessary.  This sentiment was certainly expressed by the ESPN commentators who found the crowds booing of Suarez abhorrent.  This makes me think that even though one of them was English (really he should be ashamed of himself), they clearly were reflecting a lack of understanding of what football means to the world and to Africa at this particular historic moment!!!!!  Dude saying that we are hanging onto something we should let go off is quite funny coming from you.  Aren't the English still hanging on to their 1966 glory?!  Do we tell you to move on - no because we understand how important such things are! Ghana's plight is only a week old, it's still a fresh wound, it hasn't even scarred yet like yours!!!!

Uruguay pissed off (excuse my French) the wrong group of people.  You don't go and annoy Africans on African soil!!! If that hand ball was instinctual, Suarez would have apologised and we would still have been mad that Africa's hopes had been dashed, but we would have comported ourselves a lot different.  Maybe a coulpa boos here and there, not the loud booing on cue everytime he got a touch of the ball.  However, Suarez invited the virtiol that killed his striker mojo when he started pontificating and gloating at The Black Stars expense.  I was onto the fool earlier in the tournament.  He deserved everything he got.  And I am a nice person, usually able to weigh both sides and agree to disagree. Suarez mollified my World Cup Fever, he is lucky he didn't suffer worse in the land of the Sangoma!

Germany continued our crusade to deny Uruguay any sort of kudos at this World Cup.  The English ESPN commentator did talk some sense though - he did say that Uruguay would do well to win so as to rid quell the talk circulating about their dubious advancement. The results showed that obviously they had usurped their glory and were swiftly punished for their petulance. Plus I hated the way they played throughout the tournament...I think they had a 4-4-2-1 formation or a 4-5-2?  Either way they had at least 8 or 9 people at the back at any given point which just clogged up the game and did not allow for flowing and creative play.  Waiting for people to make a mistake is not a way to win a World Cup, its an opportunistic way to get ahead.  Kind of like the way Djokovic being No. 2 in the world right now is not because he has improved in anyway, but is due to the fact that Federer has lost his way a little bit. I will give it to Forlan though, he is clearly a gifted striker.  You see I told you I am a nice person, I can appreciate brilliance when I see it, why do you think I called him a slippery eel?

Germany  brought on more African players funnily enough for this game.  Augo is of Nigerian descent.  Unfortunately he was a little too flamboyant and commited a very careless foul that could have broken someone's leg.  However he is forgiven, good looks will have us overlook his indiscretion he he he.  When the Germans went down 1-2, Africans stepped in to right the deficit.  Jerome Boateng, despite not being on good terms with his brother, choreographed the second goal, feeding in a nice ball for Jansen to head past the goalie.  (I don't care if in reality Boateng was probably not thinking of his brother, that's how it played out in my mind ;}).  The third goal was headed in by Khedira, sealing Germany's consecutive 3rd place finish at the World Cup.  He is of Tunisian descent.

All is well, all is well.  We can now finally bury the hatchet, enjoy tomorrow's game, and look to 2012 for all African teams to get serious, with Ghana leading the way! :)