Rantings & Updates

“When I give money to the poor, they call me a saint. When I ask why the poor have no money, they call me a communist.” — Dom Helda Camara

"Tell me what you think about money, and I can tell you what you think about God." -Billy Graham


I’m back! So the infection isn’t anything to worry about, at least not at this point. However, they want to keep me in Gaborone for a few days for “observation” – completely against my will – but I guess the last experience ruined their trust in my body :)

As for America, I am so glad to not be there right now! Haha. Generally speaking, I miss my country (and leaving it is the best way to realize how much you love it), but my oh my elections bring out the worst in us. Why are Americans so hostile about politics? Why are both sides tearing down signs and yelling and resorting to slimy TV ads? C’mon guys, really. Our country so immature in this regard. Both sides consistently resort to emotion-based campaigning rather arguments based on logic, facts, or reason. Barack, with his pretty adjectives and poetic prose and McCain with his never-ending suggestions that if - you - vote - for - the - socialist - black - Muslim - we’re - going - to - be - the - next - Syria - because - the - A - Rabs - will - take - over. It’s ridiculous. And what’s even more ridiculous is how people fall for it, on both sides. How many people can lay out reasons, based on policy, why they support or do not support a candidate? Too few. Too many are voting for Obama because they hate Bush, and even more are voting for McCain because they are scared of Obama (which, let’s be honest – a lot of that stems from his color and his name. A recent NEWSWEEK poll showed that a large number Americans STILL think he is Muslim. C’mon people – he met his Muslim father ONCE in his life, and was mostly raised by his Christian [and white, if that matters to you] grandparents.)

But, wow, the Republicans are really fumbling aren’t they? They’re like a cube of ice on a hot stove – sliding in the wake of their own mess. Unfortunately, in my opinion, their whole school of thought has our country in a very uncomfortable place. Corporations are becoming more powerful than the Government (many of them are so rich they could BUY countries if they wanted to… is that where we want our future? Wal-Mart buying Bangladesh?), poverty in the US is at it’s highest in decades while our global reputation is at its lowest – even among European states, who have historically been our closest allies. Even internally, our divisions are becoming hostile. And, to me, the current administration’s largest shame is how dichotomized they’ve made us – how at one point you couldn’t criticize the war and still call yourself patriotic, how you can’t support talks with Iran without being a terrorist-appealer, how you can’t try to mediate the fact that the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer without being a socialist, how if you say you are embarrassed at some of our country’s behavior that somehow means you are un-American or un-patriotic, and how you can’t possibly believe in God and vote Democratic. It’s a shame really. Manufacturers are losing jobs to China, India, etc. so that the big dogs can make a bigger profit – and that’s all very ironic, since these small-town people tend to vote Republican, when that party overwhelming encourages and makes it easier for outsourcing to occur. Same with small-town farmers – they tend to vote Republican when that party – particularly this administration – has favored ‘factory’ farms over Farmer Joe.

And I know a lot of people are weary about having such a ‘radical’ candidate running for office, but it’s merely a response to 8 years of radicalism from the right. When you have 8 years of total disregard for separation of powers, checks and balances, and even international law, you’re bound to have an opposition candidate with a more multilateral view of the world.

“If this were a dictatorship, it would be a heck of a lot easier, just so long as I'm the dictator” -George W. Bush, December 2000

But, I guess our country suffers from the same tension that most places do, and the same tension that we endure as individuals – the painful tension of trying to move forward while at the same time holding on to what we were.

“I look at my environment and wonder where the fire went – what happened to everything we used to be?” -Lauryn Hil

Anyway, a lot has been going on at the clinic. My good friend, and the person with whom I work the most closely, is being forced to step down. She is our PMTCT counselor, is HIV-positive, and she has become pregnant (upon accepting her job, she was required to sign a document saying that she will not become pregnant). Since she is HIV-positive and part of her job is to discourage positive women from becoming pregnant, in the Government’s eyes her pregnancy is hypocritical and therefore unacceptable. I have mixed feelings on the issue. In my opinion, the sole purpose of PMTCT is so that women can live a normal life – i.e. become pregnant and still have HIV-negative babies. Additionally, telling HIV-positive women that they should not have babies essentially means the Government is discouraging more than 50% of Botswana’s women from becoming pregnant. And in many developing countries, economic growth is strongly correlated to (or at least heavily influenced by) population growth. Consequently, the issue is quite complex and I see both sides’ arguments. But of course, on a personal level, I am quite disappointed.

The rains have come! Well, just once, but it’s a start. And when it rains here, it isn’t a drizzle – it’s like gray sheets of water slamming down from the sky… so enjoyable, unless you’re in transit. The negative side of the rain, of course, is that now is when all the creatures come out to play. So mosquitoes and bugs in general have been worse, and snakes and scorpions are rearing their ugly heads. A snake has been slithering its way around the clinic compound at night, which is worrying many people as the tracks are quite large. Our doctor killed one at his house last week, and the theory goes that once you kill one the others start to come. Many of the snakes in this area are quite harmless, but Botswana is home to some of the world’s deadliest, including adders. So it may be a long rainy season.

My ‘son’ is doing ok – he and his younger brother are still consistently underweight when they come in for their monthly weigh-ins, but not much seems to be happening as a result. His father is doing very well and has been exceptionally pleasant lately. I’m trying to build a positive relationship with him so that when my Kalanga is good enough, I can politely request he bring the kids in for testing without him wanting to kill me. Wish me luck on that! Having your kids tested seems like Parenting 101 to us, but a lot of men – self included – tend to avoid medical settings at all cost, and of course culture plays a large role here.