Members fretmonster Posted August 12, 2011 Members Share Posted August 12, 2011 I can't help but wonder if things would be different for Africa if they had oil. Perhaps, the Obama administration would be drafting a big 'humanitarian' military options for Africa right now....if they only had oil. I'm not bashing Obama or the Democratic party specifically here. This is a broad observation regarding the US government in general which appeared to ring true for the Bush administration as well. Oil seems to be the common denominator in all the big military actions in recent history regardless of administration or party. Even the recent Libya military operation was called 'humanitarian.' But, you can substitute the word 'oil' in place of humanitarian on the official statements for Libya and Iraq and the text seems to read more honest. Actually Africa is loaded with natural resources including oil. Conoco has recently invested big money to beat out other oil companies and develop Somalia. The famine in Somalia is effecting displaced settlers from the area where the oil is being developed. This is the same scenario that has taken place in Darfur for the past eight years, only the more accurate name of genocide was applied in that case. In both cases the killing, starvation and displacement was blamed on inter-tribal disputes like what occurred in Rwanda but the evidence is counter-intuitive. The Somali government is currently blocking humanitarian aid and the attempt by the exiles to flee the country. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members C-4 Posted August 12, 2011 Members Share Posted August 12, 2011 I do not use another's plight to decide whether I desire or need another piece of gear of any type. I used to have a lot of guitars and amps, but over the years and due to necessity, I have sold them off. I had two guitars for the last 4 years, both guitars being the same. Last year I ordered a custom one-off Vigier, which I received 3 weeks ago. (Sorry I do not have a camera). This guitar covers all Fender-type tones and some non-Fender tones and is completely different from my other two guitars. I am perfectly satisfied with these guitars at present, and am not gassing for others. I just believe that as one grows and matures with music, if you find that you need many different guitars, then go for it. If you feel that you can cover the material you are playing with only one or two guitars, then that is what you currently need. Having extra guitars, or any other music-related gear is purely a matter of your personal playing situation. There is no right or wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members AzCat Posted August 12, 2011 Members Share Posted August 12, 2011 But what can we do about it? Buy more guitars and help break the destructive cycle of dependency. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members steve_man Posted August 13, 2011 Author Members Share Posted August 13, 2011 Buy more guitars and help break the destructive cycle of dependency. However, how does that help the people that are dying right now? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jrockbridge Posted August 13, 2011 Members Share Posted August 13, 2011 Actually Africa is loaded with natural resources including oil. Conoco has recently invested big money to beat out other oil companies and develop Somalia. The famine in Somalia is effecting displaced settlers from the area where the oil is being developed. This is the same scenario that has taken place in Darfur for the past eight years, only the more accurate name of genocide was applied in that case. In both cases the killing, starvation and displacement was blamed on inter-tribal disputes like what occurred in Rwanda but the evidence is counter-intuitive. The Somali government is currently blocking humanitarian aid and the attempt by the exiles to flee the country. Ok, so it looks like Conoco has called dibs. China is moving to snap up other resources. So, the USA appears to have some strategic interest to protect there. The cynics might say that it isn't a big enough piece of the oil pie to warrant deploying lots of troops and resources. In the case of Libya, their main trading partners are...Italy, Germany, United, Kingdom, Spain, France, Turkey,Tunisia and Switzerland...who import goods, export goods or both. The US has no interests to protect there other than people and allies. So, when the US government (Obama) deployed military and spent money on the recent military action against Libya (Gaddafi), perhaps, it truly was for humanitarian reasons. Or, it was strategic in a way that had nothing to do with resources. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members steve_man Posted August 14, 2011 Author Members Share Posted August 14, 2011 I don't think the world needs more pictures. We just need to open our eyes... and our hearts. ^^THIS^^ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members The Villano Dude Posted August 14, 2011 Members Share Posted August 14, 2011 I know it can be debated how helpful this is but I volunteer for Big Brothers Big Sisters among other charities. And I have a really difficult time curbing my GAS... I would hate my life without a single guitar so that's not an option in my eyes but...I do agree with you about putting things in perspective though and I have no good excuse as to why I struggle curbing my material desires. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members steve_man Posted August 15, 2011 Author Members Share Posted August 15, 2011 Not trying to make anyone feel guilty...just some thoughts occurring to me lately... Glad to hear about all of the volunteering going on around here! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Reignman Posted August 15, 2011 Members Share Posted August 15, 2011 I don't know...I was watching the news coming out of Africa last night. Really made me think. While we sit and drool over more guitars, there are a lot of people starving to death. Kinda makes it hard for me to justify any new gear, when I could give that money to someone who needs something as basic as food. Not trying to be a downer...and I love my gear...just thinking out lout... I know how you feel... I really agree with you about the starving people.....fwiw, I purchased a Kramer Stagemaster, Hohner LP Copy and a Marshall jcm800 this week to make me feel better about their situation..... Oh, and a Kramer Sustainer too... I feel better now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.