Three new flags in two days

I simply did not have the energy to observe hospitality last night and now I have some catching up to do. In the past two days we have had our first visitors from Kenya, Nigeria, and Colombia. Welcome to each and all!

We have been praying for each of these countries in days past and trying to have some awareness of them. (I confess to some naughtiness in posting a photo of the national mosque in Abuja above for the graphic associated with Nigeria; could not resist tweaking +Pete.)

I don't have time today to say much of anything but the links above will take you to the Wikipedia pages for each nation.

I am really happy to see visitors from Africa and South America helping to extend our global interconnectedness.

Here's a little something Kenyan to get y'all shaking your booty:


And some Kikuyu worship music:


Something with a more Arabic rap feel from Mombasa:


A playful love song from Nigeria:


Some contemporary Nigerian music (horny young men putting the make on the lovely ladies):


Some Afrobeat music from Nigeria:


More hip-shaking music, this time from Colombia:


Learn something about inland Colombian music here with a string trio:


Some carnaval music from Colombia:



We travel on the internet so you can sit back and enjoy.
--the BB

East Africa - Indian Ocean

Well, if I wanted geography blogging to be a regular Monday event, I fell behind. I did not get in a mediation yesterday either. And it is getting late tonight. But I'm trying. I had formatted the graphics with the maps when I realized I had omitted the flags, and since I not only love flags but they help me recognize and remember nations, I went back and added them in. Time-consuming process.


Tonight we go to East Africa. More specifically, with the exception of Ethiopia we will be looking at coastal and island nations, reserving the inland countries of East Africa for another day.
From the close-up above you can visualize our path this evening. I will start with Eritrea and then head south along the coast to Mozambique, then head out to sea and circle about so that our path will be roughly counter-clockwise. Mayotte is a French island complex that will not be covered separately.

No commentary about the countries this round. Just give yourself a chance to ponder their outlines. You may click on any map to see more detail. Most maps are taken from the United States State Department website.









Well, a little commentary here. Réunion is French, so the official flag is the tricolor of France. Various local flags have been proposed in the past couple of decades and I show three main contenders here. If you go to the Wikipedia site for Réunion, you will see yet another flag (for the region) but that design has a copyright on it and I decided to leave it alone. Réunion is the outermost locale of the European Union and, being East of Europe, it was there that the euro was first used for currency.



I chose this region because it has been in the news. In today's World Watch (below) we had headlines involving Kenya (on its own) and Tanzania and the Comoros. Glancing at it again, I was intrigued and so just looked at the French article.

Mohamed Bacar organized local elections on the Island of Anjouan and defied both the government of the Comoros and the African Union. This is why Tanzanian troops joined the African Union ("UA" in French) forces heading to Anjouan to deal with this rebellion.

Now you know, and so do I. And we all know where the Comoros are and how close they are to Tanzania.
--the BB

Kenya update

From the BBC:

Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga have signed an agreement to end the country's post-election crisis.

At a ceremony in Nairobi, the two men put their signatures to a power-sharing deal brokered by ex-UN head Kofi Annan.

A coalition government comprising members of the current ruling party and opposition will now be formed.

h/t Turkana at Daily Kos

For our Enemies

O God, the Father of all, whose Son commanded us to love our enemies: Lead them and us from prejudice to truth; deliver them and us from hatred, cruelty, and revenge; and in your good time enable us all to stand reconciled before you; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
--the BB

Nations in transition

Just because it is not in the news does not mean things are fine. We know that information in The Union of Myanmar (Burma) is tightly controlled and that the plight of the Buddhist monks and nuns, who led huge protests not so very long ago, remains dire. Civil rights activists like Aung San Suu Kyi remain under detention. MikeF pointed me to the Avaaz site where you can learn more about the situation in Myanmar. He also has a moving passage from a Sutta in one of his posts.

I realize there are many other spots in the world that need both prayer and concrete action (politically, economically, etc.)--in fact, there is no place that doesn't. But here are five other countries that are going through transitions.

The tensions in Kenya are far from resolved. This may be the first day in a while that I did not see several headlines about Kenya on the Google news page. A quick search yields results like this:
Kenya crisis talks break with no deal
Reuters South Africa, South Africa - 1 hour ago
By Duncan Miriri and Daniel Wallis NAIROBI (Reuters) - Negotiators for Kenya's political rivals broke off talks on the post-election crisis for the weekend ...

Hopes fade of Kenya crisis solution The Press Association

Africa's top diplomat pushes Kenya rivals to agree Reuters Canada

Kenya Reconciliation Talks Continue; Focus on Power Sharing Issues Voice of America

Mark Harris shares how the retired bishop Gitari has spoken out about how the Anglican Church in Kenya has not played a leadership role in reconciliation but rather split along tribal lines. Harris also notes: "The National Council of Churches of Kenya and CMS both have acknowledged the failings by providing contexts for leaders to explore the extent to which they participated in divisiveness in Kenya."

Pakistan has huge challenges following the recent elections, its complex situation and role in geopolitics, and international concerns about its harboring al-Qaeda members and its possession of nuclear weapons.

14 killed by Pakistan wedding party bomb: police
AFP - 1 hour ago
PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AFP) — A roadside bomb ripped through cars carrying wedding guests in northwestern Pakistan Friday, killing at least 14 people including ...

Musharraf Promises to Back Pakistan's New Parliament, Democracy
Bloomberg - 3 hours ago
22 (Bloomberg) -- President Pervez Musharraf said he would back Pakistan's new parliament in creating political stability, fighting terrorism and sustaining ...
Pakistan coalition partners thrash out PM choice AFP

New Pakistan government must free judges
AFP - 11 hours ago
ISLAMABAD (AFP) — Pakistan's new government must swiftly release all the top judges President Pervez Musharraf detained last year after street protests ...

On border, Pakistan polls raise hopes for peace with India
AFP - 12 hours ago
WAGAH, Pakistan (AFP) — Every evening as dusk falls on the India-Pakistan border post near Lahore, crowds gather on either side of the frontier and scream ...
Washington Post, United States - 4 hours ago
Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf's plea for American forbearance today comes at the very moment when those who represent the newly elected government are ...

Afghanistan (aka "The Forgotten War") has not exactly made the progress one would have expected, unless one were a realist with an awareness of Afghan history and how foreign influence works, or usually doesn't, in that country.

32 Taliban fighters killed in clashes in southern Afghanistan ...
International Herald Tribune, France - 18 hours ago
AP KABUL, Afghanistan: Clashes in southern Afghanistan in recent days have killed 32 militants, including two Taliban commanders, officials said. ...

Afghan, Coalition forces make continued arrests in S Afghanistan Xinhua

No Injuries As Senators' Chopper Makes Emergency Landing In ... CBS News

NATO chief calls for more commitment to Afghanistan
AFP - Feb 21, 2008
Countries contributing to a 50000-strong NATO-led force in Afghanistan must also rid themselves of the notion that the mission is failing, the alliance's ...
EurasiaNet, NY - Feb 21, 2008
The death sentence given recently to a 23-year-old journalism student in Afghanistan has fast emerged as the focal point in a culture clash, the outcome of ...

No one is secure in Afghanistan
The Post, Pakistan - 1 hour ago
The recent suicide attacks in Kandahar and district Spin Boldak proved the inability of the Karzai government in maintaining law and order in Afghanistan. ...

Kosovo just declared its independence from Serbia last Sunday (cf. earlier post below). This is a huge step and one fraught with conflict as Serbs consider the region part of their historical heartland. This nostalgic attachment does not square with current demographic reality as the population is not mostly ethnic Albanian and Muslim, not Serbian and Orthodox. This is why so many Albanian flags were seen as Kosovars celebrated independence last weekend. I imagine the new official flag, pictured above, will take a while to be produced in quantity and take hold. It was designed to avoid regional and ethnic favoritism, colors or design elements suggesting prior national identities.

The tensions might be reflected in common versions of the nation's name: Republika e Kosovës / Република Косово / Republika Kosovo / Republic of Kosovo (Albanian, Serbian, Turkish, English)

The Serbian response, as might be expected, is strong and negative. Small incidents have erupted and the U. S. embassy in Belgrade was attacked and set on fire. Russia backs the Serbian position rejecting recognition of Kosovo as independent.

Friday's Developments on Kosovo - 44 minutes ago
Developments Friday involving Kosovo's declaration of independence from Serbia: IN NORTHERN KOSOVO — Protesting Serbs attacked UN police guarding the key ...
The Associated Press

Q&A: The history of strife in Kosovo
MSNBC - 44 minutes ago
The breakaway Serbian province of Kosovo once again captured the international spotlight when it declared independence from the Republic of Serbia on Feb. ...

Serbs continue anti-Kosovo protests
The Press Association - 1 hour ago
Serbs protesting over Kosovo's independence have attacked UN police guarding a key bridge in northern Kosovo with stones and bottles. ...
Video: Rioting breaks out on Kosovo-Serbia border RussiaToday
Tensions high as Serbs reject Kosovo independence International Herald Tribune
UN police clash with Serb protesters in Kosovo Belfast Telegraph

Russian, Serbian FMs condemn Kosovo's independence
Xinhua, China - 2 hours ago
22 (Xinhua) -- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Serbian counterpart Vuk Jeremic on Friday condemned Kosovo's unilateral declaration of ...

Bosnian Serbs threaten secession over Kosovo
Reuters - 5 hours ago
The parliament of the Serb Republic adopted a resolution late on Thursday branding Kosovo's declaration of independence an illegal act that violated ...

With Fidel Castro giving notice of his retirement for health reasons (and this is one time where that his fully credible), the future of Cuba is a hot topic of discussion (see post below). Many call for Cuba to change; others call for the U.S. attitude toward Cuba to change; and it's anybody's guess what will unfold.

Fidel Castro Rejects US, European Calls for Change in Cuba
Bloomberg - 4 hours ago
US demands for change in Cuba camouflage its intention to annex the island state, Castro said. "Dwindling European powers'' haven't known freedom and ...

Fidel Castro Will Always Lead Cuba, Locals Say
Washington Post, United States - 7 hours ago
García, who remembers being full of hope when Castro led a rebel army to victory in 1959, can't see Cuba truly being led by anyone else as long as Fidel ...

Fidel Castro says he's relieved to be stepping down as Cuba's ...
The Canadian Press - 3 hours ago
He also says that the process of selecting Cuba's next government has left him "exhausted." After nearly a half-century in power, Castro announced Tuesday ...

A fresh start for Cuba, US
Seattle Times, United States - 11 hours ago
The United States and Cuba have one of those rare moments for a fresh start. The best first step begins with an end to the pointless US economic embargo. ...

Clinton and Obama Differ on Cuba Policy
Wall Street Journal - 18 hours ago
Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama engaged in a cordial disagreement over the future of US-Cuba relations in the opening moments of the presidential debate ...
McCain Hits Obama on Cuba New York Times Blogs


Well, that is this morning's end-of-week round-up on nations in transition. Obviously, it is a call to prayer.

O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us through Jesus your Son: Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us, unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

--the BB

Orate pro Kenya

Mark Harris reports at Preludium:

BBC is announcing that there may be a breakthrough in Kenya on finding a way out of the violence of the past two months. Anglicans around the world have had the people of Kenya in our prayers and we have been particularly mindful of our Anglican brothers and sisters there caught up in both the struggles and in the efforts to overcome the violence. Let us hope and pray that this is indeed the breakthrough so desperately needed. (update at noon) It appears that it may be too early to think of a breakthrough. So keep the prayers going.

O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us through Jesus your Son: Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us, unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
--the BB

Let's keep the prayers coming

I just saw the following headlines on Google News:

Bomb Kills at Least 23 in Pakistan
New York Times - 2 hours ago
By SALMAN MASOOD ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - A suicide bomber walked into a crowd of police officers outside a courthouse in the eastern city of Lahore on Thursday and set off a powerful explosion, killing at least 23 people and injuring 58, police officials ...

Diplomatic bid to resolve Kenya crisis fails
Los Angeles Times - 3 hours ago
US and African diplomats leave the country without reaching agreement on how to resolve the disputed presidential election. A new round of talks is planned.

Prayers from Diane here
--the BB

Diane reminds us all to pray for...

The people of Kenya....

God our refuge and our strength, look with mercy upon the people of Kenya who have nowhere to turn for refuge. Forgive us for not being the refuge you have called us to be, for not providing a sanctuary for those who are vulnerable, cold and in danger. Give us new vision to throw upon our doors and spread upon our arms to those who wander the earth, looking for signs of your presence and hope. We pray in the name of your Son, in whose mercy is our only hope. Amen

And the people of Pakistan...

Courageous and mighty God, grant your wisdom and strength to the people and the leaders of Pakistan. Restore order and hope, and raise up courageous leaders who see a vision of respect and dignity for all people. Give us courage as well, that in the face of fear we stand up for truth, for peace, and for justice. In the name of your Son who brings peace and God's favor to earth, and who makes peace with us, and among us. Amen

Thank you, Diane. Please forgive me for lifting wholesale.
--the BB