Kony for President 2012- The Worst

[ZenNMotion]

This is not about politics, I'm already tired of this election cycle. But I'm going to hang some signs and solicit some donations for Joseph Kony because I want everyone to know who Joseph Kony is. I hope you have a few minutes to stretch your world a little and learn who he is, and maybe even get on board with a few bucks or a Kony 2012 bumper sticker, or post on your Facebook page. Joseph Kony is not so far away as you think. The vid is 30 minutes long, just watch the beginning and the end and come back later for the whole enchilada when you can focus on Joseph Kony. Much appreciated!

https://s3.amazonaws.com/kony2012/watch_the_film.html

[zetroc]

Yep... saw this video a few nights ago. Spread the thing. If anyone thinks they have a problem because someone else's stem is too short, think again.

[davids]

Intriguing.
Troubling.

Fundamentally, this campaign doesn't seem to me to be any different - in terms of content - than any kind of traditional political action. It's the delivery method that's new. I find the rhetoric around "changing the world" through "connectedness" interlocked with the goals of this campaign more than a little troubling.

Kony may well be the worst person in the world, sprung sui generis from the fertile soil of central Africa to wreak death and terror. Or he may be single agent of hideousness in a larger conflict, with evil and destruction coming from every direction. I don't have the context to evaluate and judge the issue, and nothing in that 30 minute viral video gave it to me. There's no gray here, no explanation of the history and backdrop of these horrors. (Oh look: Ugandan Warlord Joseph Kony Under Spotlight Thanks To Viral Video : The Two-Way : NPR)

It's very easy for me to see another movement seizing on these tactics to further their agenda, draping their cause in the excitement of a interconnected world, images of hip young things blanketing back alleys with Shepard Fairy-like posters, and the innocent profundities of tow-headed children.

My fear is that the next group who does this (and there definitely will be) will not be on the side of the angels.

I think it's time to read 1984 again. Is it available from Kindle?

[j44ke]

Okay, bad guy definitely. But to say this is not about politics and then offer him up as a candidate for President is definitely political. The website and some of the posters I've seen even bears a striking resemblance to some of the designs used in the Obama campaign. What does that mean? I must say also I am a bit tired of getting these things with the name Joseph Kony repeated a number of times without any clarification about this project along with the suggestion that there should be donations sent somewhere. I think that if this project is going to be about ethics and morals, then it needs to refocus its rhetoric so it conveys information with clarity and detail, and not a link to a movie without any sort of transparency of purpose that reveals the focus of the project, who is behind the project and what its agenda is. I also resent solicitations that suggest my world is not stretched. You don't know me.

[ZenNMotion]

Okay, bad guy definitely. But to say this is not about politics and then offer him up as a candidate for President is definitely political. The website and some of the posters I've seen even bears a striking resemblance to some of the designs used in the Obama campaign. What does that mean? I must say also I am a bit tired of getting these things with the name Joseph Kony repeated a number of times without any clarification about this project along with the suggestion that there should be donations sent somewhere. I think that if this project is going to be about ethics and morals, then it needs to refocus its rhetoric so it conveys information with clarity and detail, and not a link to a movie without any sort of transparency of purpose that reveals the focus of the project, who is behind the project and what its agenda is. I also resent solicitations that suggest my world is not stretched. You don't know me.

Wow, I never expected blowback on this. Let me first apologize for being a poor messenger, as I don't think it's possible that anyone here could disagree about the goal of the campaign- to bring a monster to justice. If that's what's being debated then we really do have some work to do. J44ke, I purposely wanted the video to speak for itself and the campaign with being a little cryptic- the point being to look at a better (compelling) perspective than I could provide in a few lines. The transparency of focus, who is behind the project, and the agenda are well covered in the video if you watched it, if not there are ample links to get more info if you're inspired or angered. In this case, flame the messenger (me) and not the campaign or confuse the goal with the use of social media- it's essentially a young (age) campaign. That's what the kids do nowadays, makes me feel like a dinosaur in the age of mammals. And J44ke, I certainly had no intention of implying any self-righteous "you're not stretched"-- hell, I'm not stretched either to a lot of issues and perspectives either, it's a big world with no moral high ground for me to occupy. Stretching in this case means only a moment of awareness that atrocities are being committed in a part of the world that is largely closed to journalists and the media; don't worry you're still a good person if you don't know much about it.

If you're still reading, davids "I find the rhetoric around "changing the world" through "connectedness" interlocked with the goals of this campaign more than a little troubling" - well sorry for that. Don't overthink it, the connectedness is simply that the thousands of children and women abducted murdered and raped by Kony's "troops" are powerless to do much about it and we (you and me) are in a position to improve that reality. Maybe I'm off base, but I interpret "troubled" as angry. I'm not a completely naive crackpot, I've spent time in Northern Uganda/Eastern Congo, seen the villages without boys, seen the mutilations and yes there is a multidimensional and complicated backstory here with Joseph Kony. As there is/was with Bin Laden in another part of the world, yet we nearly universally accept him as evil worthy of being taken out. We just haven't heard much about Kony in the Great Lakes because it hasn't been reported. Without a military to be embedded with, the region is a difficult if not dangerous place for reporters to get to. But it still matters, right? Davids, I enjoyed sharing a great conversation over a meal and a great ride at Ballers, you're a great dude with a good heart, I look forward to it again.

[Jonathan]

I've bought in. You may even see a Kony paint scheme on my cross bike this year at Ballers. I'm political and not afraid of my voice. Sometimes we should do something good just because we can vs the other way around. You guys can debate this stuff I'm going to hang a few posters. 2012 is the year to get Kony.

[j44ke]

Perhaps I was a bit harsh. I apologize. They should publish a masthead on their website listing the members of their board and the founding officers. They should have a financial fact sheet that is available for immediate download off their website. They should have a file for review with the Better Business Bureau for charities. They should reach out to organizations like Barrons for some level of audit so that possible contributors can be sure that money donated is going to the goals advertised. I think it is precisely the power of the situation that requires the utmost care in deciding how best to help. There are too many people who leverage powerful causes to generate finances for purposes that may not be what donors intend. These people should make all preparations for transparency. Having a good cause isn't an excuse for not doing it right. If anything it demands the opposite.

Not everyone accepts that the United States has the international right to make a unilateral decision to assassinate individuals simply because the government feels they are a threat or are evil. There are dissenters in the military, in the government, in the legal system and in the public. Most of the people I have run into who are focused on Kony are the same people who were against the Afghan and Iraqi wars. Now they want the US to "do something" about Kony. I find the implied subtext of "do something" particularly dismaying. But that is perhaps a whole other topic.

This guy is bad. My friend lives in Nairobi and covers this area for the Economist. We get the reports. And now there is anti-gay legislation that is a reaction to what certain forces in the country view as undue pressure on Uganda by specifically the United States. Like you said, things are complicated, but that doesn't even begin to describe it, does it?

[jerk]

this whole thing reeks of white guilt. any cultural literate person in the world knows who the fuck kony and the lra is. this is fucking insulting that this guy thinks people don't know the lra is fucked. koni's a fucking warlord and the reason the icc indicted him first was because he has no backers in the int'l community and it was easy and safe to do so.

this movie is propogand no matter how justified its message and cause......kony is not the cause of child armies in africa and the us is not sending military advisors to uganda out of any moral imperative nor should it....they're doing it to prop up the ugandan government.....

the last time my fucking country went to war in africa- for "humanitarian" reasons, my uncle chucky almost got killed and many of his comrades in arms did. farrah adid is dead now and somalia is no less fucked.

"humanists" with a moral imperitive cheered when the abused, raped and murdered sudeten germans were liberated from their czech overlords. this stuff is brutal...and i do trust my government more than i trust this jingoism. i don't want facebook deciding my country's foreign policy.

there are dozens of joseph konis throughout africa.....the economic deprivation of that shit hole is what spawns them- not lack of imperialist intervention. sorry doods- i'm not signing up for it.

[j44ke]

^yep^.

[chasea]

Suppose this campaign works. What do we do about the warlord to who takes his place?

[Ben]

I haven't watched the video, but am well familiar with Kony. I was in extreme Southern Sudan in 2009 when the LRA crossed the border. At one point he was 10km or so away- close enough that the UN guys gave us a briefing on him, and the SPLA sure took the threat seriously. There were refugees from the DRC in unbelievable numbers, as this was just after the LRA had murdered everyone in a church nearby, and were then attacking refugee camps.

If the video is the first you've heard of Kony, I'd encourage you to read up.

And jerk, to the ICC's credit, they indicted al-Bashir notwithstanding his support in the Arab world and China. And my understanding is that Kony's not a product of economic deprivation as much he's just nuts.

[jerk]

Suppose this campaign works. What do we do about the warlord to who takes his place?

kill him too. or turn uganda over to our tutsi buddies in rawanda. they'd take it- and they're tall, handsome, speak king leopold's french and kicked the living shit out of the interahamwe.....(after letting a cool million of their own people get slaughtered by sharpened car bumpers- but hey, it's east africa.)

fuck that place. and fuck the douchebags who colonized it in the first place, and fuck our government for killing the good guys and propping up that idiot with the leopard print hat mobuto sese seiko and that joke of a country that was zaire.

[devlin]

I have a lot of reading to do. I've seen some news stories and parts of some documentaries on Africa but a lot of the rhetoric here is going right over my head. All I know is that many times over powerful governments have propped up shady characters to have it backfire and turn into a shit fight, which i think is what is happening here.

[ZenNMotion]

kill him too. or turn uganda over to our tutsi buddies in rawanda. they'd take it- and they're tall, handsome, speak king leopold's french and kicked the living shit out of the interahamwe.....(after letting a cool million of their own people get slaughtered by sharpened car bumpers- but hey, it's east africa.)

fuck that place. and fuck the douchebags who colonized it in the first place, and fuck our government for killing the good guys and propping up that idiot with the leopard print hat mobuto sese seiko and that joke of a country that was zaire.

I really have no idea what this street bro-talk diatribe means, but thanks for sharing. I guess there's nothing more to say here, thanks for the space to bring it up, peace out.

[Mabouya]

Deleted.

[davids]

Wow, I never expected blowback on this. Let me first apologize for being a poor messenger, as I don't think it's possible that anyone here could disagree about the goal of the campaign- to bring a monster to justice. If that's what's being debated then we really do have some work to do. J44ke, I purposely wanted the video to speak for itself and the campaign with being a little cryptic- the point being to look at a better (compelling) perspective than I could provide in a few lines. The transparency of focus, who is behind the project, and the agenda are well covered in the video if you watched it, if not there are ample links to get more info if you're inspired or angered. In this case, flame the messenger (me) and not the campaign or confuse the goal with the use of social media- it's essentially a young (age) campaign. That's what the kids do nowadays, makes me feel like a dinosaur in the age of mammals. And J44ke, I certainly had no intention of implying any self-righteous "you're not stretched"-- hell, I'm not stretched either to a lot of issues and perspectives either, it's a big world with no moral high ground for me to occupy. Stretching in this case means only a moment of awareness that atrocities are being committed in a part of the world that is largely closed to journalists and the media; don't worry you're still a good person if you don't know much about it.

If you're still reading, davids "I find the rhetoric around "changing the world" through "connectedness" interlocked with the goals of this campaign more than a little troubling" - well sorry for that. Don't overthink it, the connectedness is simply that the thousands of children and women abducted murdered and raped by Kony's "troops" are powerless to do much about it and we (you and me) are in a position to improve that reality. Maybe I'm off base, but I interpret "troubled" as angry. I'm not a completely naive crackpot, I've spent time in Northern Uganda/Eastern Congo, seen the villages without boys, seen the mutilations and yes there is a multidimensional and complicated backstory here with Joseph Kony. As there is/was with Bin Laden in another part of the world, yet we nearly universally accept him as evil worthy of being taken out. We just haven't heard much about Kony in the Great Lakes because it hasn't been reported. Without a military to be embedded with, the region is a difficult if not dangerous place for reporters to get to. But it still matters, right? Davids, I enjoyed sharing a great conversation over a meal and a great ride at Ballers, you're a great dude with a good heart, I look forward to it again.

You misunderstand my discomfort. It's not with you for posting this.

It's with the campaign, which dresses up good ol' political action as something cutting edge. It merges the political point of view with the delivery system. I think that mash-up is problematic. All sorts of different political messages could get the same treatment, and you could end up thinking that the most reactionary, fascist politics is hip, exciting and inclusionary because you got linked to it by good looking young people on Facebook.

McLuhan pointed this out many years ago - the medium and the message merge. I think it's very important to be aware of it, and disentangle the two. But people don't and bad things happen because evil comes wrapped in a shiny bow. Leni Riefenstahl knows what I'm talking about.

[chasea]

I really have no idea what this street bro-talk diatribe means, but thanks for sharing. I guess there's nothing more to say here, thanks for the space to bring it up, peace out.

You opened this can of worms. And thats a pretty shitty thing to say to someone who clearly has a deeper understanding atmo.

[rowdyhillrambler]

we got alot going on here in algood, tn as well.. Just had a tornado last friday 2 miles down the road. Good buddy had his house and his grandparents house destroyed. I am gonna have to wrap my arms around that and then maybe get to some deeper reading... Funny, i feel like a decently educated guy that is willing to help anyone at anytime., However, my arms can only stretch so far.. So many, truly fucking dickheads in the world. I have no deeper understanding, and often turn to country justice. I wish i was smarter, but sometimes revel in my lack of understanding. rowdy

[ZenNMotion]

You opened this can of worms. And thats a pretty shitty thing to say to someone who clearly has a deeper understanding atmo.

I made my points, you all are making yours, all is cool. When the dialogue turns nasty and full of expletives with no real point other than I'm angry at the world and the people who made it that way, I tune out. I'm old fashioned that way. I said my piece, I mean or take nothing personal, which admittedly is a struggle as it's pretty close to me, and an online forum lacks context for challenging dialogue. If anybody cares to continue or ask questions, I'm glad to listen and respond respectfully. Thanks for the clarification davids, don't agree with all of it as some of it seems a little academic to me given the subject, but that's cool. Keep thinking and opining- Really now, I'm out of the thread.

[Ben]

For what it's worth, I think a generalized "fuck that place" is a pretty callous, juvenile and useless response, too. I've been to the places where Kony operates. I have good friends there as I type this. It's not some abstract concept for me, any more than the death of an old teammate in a crash would be to you, Craig. You can argue that the US shouldn't be involved; you can even say "man, that sucks, but I'm not getting invested in it," ( and I'd respect both of those positions). But just saying fuck 'em is not even a humane response.