ItsTimeToLeaveDodge

It’s Time to Leave Dodge

I am hard pressed to find any coverage of the incipient civil war that is about to happen in Kenya. I can get a bit of the crawl under the incessant coverage of the Iowa Caucuses but that’s about it. I have, however, been able to get the news through the computer from their newspapers. Seems that it’s time to get out of Dodge. All foreign tourists are being advised to leave Kenya. It’s really a rather reasonable request given the amount of killings going on
I’ve seen folks killed with pangas up close and personal and it’s not the type of photo one wants to bring home to show folks of their trip on Safari. When I tell people it’s dangerous in Kenya (as they are recounting the amount of money they are about to spend on Safari) they reassure me that their safari is safe and it’s 5 Star. I nod and think yeah, but the roads are sub star and the hospitals beggar description. So if you’re hurt you’re in trouble, and aside from AIDS, and Malaria (also things the muzugus/white folks can get) road accidents are the top cause of death. Oh, and no they don't have many ambulances, in the town I work in there isn't even one. You'd have to borrow someone's car or take a taxi if you could find one. Police travel mostly by foot or on bicycles. I don't think they point that out in the brochures for Safari Adventures.
Americans don’t like to think that. Maybe that’s why civil war is reduced to crawl under the picture on T.V. But it bothers me when later they make films like Hotel Rwanda or Last King of Scotland and people are horrified. The films always win awards though. Well guess what folks, it’s happening again, and we could actually have some coverage if enough people actually wanted to be informed about places besides Des Moines.

Oh yeah, but I’m the optimist. I remember a time when the war was actually covered. It was called the Viet Nam War, and once it was brought into folks living rooms people actually started to be repelled by what they saw and said enough. Have you noticed we don’t actually see much of what’s happening in Iraq? Have you noticed you’re not seeing much of what is happening in Darfur? (yeah I know I put the lonely kid’s photo on my blog too, but I know her and her name is Sarah and she was really sad to see me go last August). Is it the news media or the folks who watch it? I don’t know. The BBC is covering a little more of it, but they don’t update it every day. Why is that? I think I’ll start a poll and see what folks have to say.

I’ll be going back to Dodge in 8 weeks. I’m not really a tourist so I can get a visa. I go on a humanitarian visa, and I haven’t a clue what I’ll find when I get there. I hope Sarah is still waiting for me to give her sweets.