Huckabee isn't a Birther, just a partisan ignoramus caught up in Birtherism and other crazy anti-Obama conspiracy theories

By Michael J.W. Stickings

Mike Huckabee may not be a Birther, but what's with saying Obama grew up in Kenya if not to stir the bigoted right-wing conspiracy-theory pot?

Oh, he didn't mean it -- he apparently meant to say Indonesia, not Kenya.

But Obama only lived in Indonesia for a few years. He lived in Hawaii for much longer, both before and after his time in Indonesia.

So why not say that he grew up in Hawaii?

Well, while Hawaii may be an undesirable foreign place to some on the right, it's not nearly as foreign (in a dangerous, un-American way) to them as either Kenya (deep dark Africa) or Indonesia (jihadist Asia).

Sure, let's give Huckabee the benefit of the doubt and accept the excuse that he misspoke. But then why Kenya? Is it really an accident that he referred to the country at the center of the Birther craze? If he misspoke, it's only because he's deeply attached to that craze.

Consider what he actually said:

But then if you think about it, his perspective as growing up in Kenya with a Kenyan father and grandfather, their view of the Mau Mau Revolution in Kenya is very different than ours...

So it wasn't just a passing reference -- and hence an easy mistake. This is straight out of Dinesh D'Souza. He didn't just say that Obama grew up in Kenya, he said that he had a Kenyan father and grandfather and that his views were shaped by the colonialist (and anti-colonialist) experience in Kenya. Actually, he grew up with his maternal grandparents in Hawaii. When he was in Indonesia, it was with his mother and her second husband, an Indonesian.

How could he possibly have meant Indonesia, as his spokesman suggests?

Personally, I'll take that excuse with a grain or two of salt.

Around the world: Armenia, Burma, Kenya, Kosovo, and Liechtenstein (and Germany)

By Michael J.W. Stickings

Some interesting stories from around the world:

1) Armenia: Prime Minister Serge Sarkisian has won presidential election with about 53 percent of the vote. His closest rival, however, former president Levon Ter-Petrosian, is claiming that the vote was rigged. "Very dirty things are happening," Ter-Petrosian said. 15,000 supporters of the former president staged a rally in the country's capital, Yerevan, yesterday. (For more, see here.)

2) Burma: The country's neighbours, including Singapore, "have expressed doubts over the country's new draft constitution, implicitly criticising the Burmese government... The US has also criticised the text and cast doubts over the poll's fairness." A major concern is that pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi would be barred from running for office. (I recently commented on the situation in Burma here.)

3) Kenya: The situation could soon worsen, as talks between President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga seem to be breaking down -- talks mediated by former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan. "Kenya's opposition threatened on Wednesday to resume street protests in a week if talks fail to end a political standoff in a country still reeling from ethnic violence in which more than 1,000 people were killed." It looks like both sides are preparing for further violence.

4) Kosovo: Independence doesn't come easy. "Serbs in northern Kosovo on Wednesday continued what appeared to be a drive to force a partition... A mob of 300 Serbs wielding clubs and tools gathered on a road near this small village of ethnic Albanians [Cabra] in northern Kosovo, prompting NATO to send armored vehicles and tanks to head them off." (Ah, the Serbs...)

5) Liechtenstein: "The German chancellor, Angela Merkel, put pressure on the Liechtenstein government yesterday to increase the transparency of its banks and other financial institutions amid a nationwide inquiry into Germany's biggest tax evasion scandal. Speaking after a meeting in Berlin with Otmar Hasler, the prime minister of the tiny alpine tax haven, Merkel said Liechtenstein had to 'quickly clear up' a variety of problems, not least the ease and attractiveness its secret bank accounts offered to rich Germans looking for a tax oasis." Said Hasler: "We are on the road to reform." (Fantastic. It's a lovely country -- I've actually been there -- but I'm sure it's also been a lovely place for tax evaders.)

The great rift valley

By Carl

You may or may not have noted the elections in Kenya over the weekend. The election run up was about as nasty as the Iowa caucus previews, perhaps even more so. The aftermath has been nothing but horrid.

The incumbent president, Mwai Kibaki (l), won a vote that's been hotly contested by his rival, Raila Odinga (r), who accused Kibaki of vote fraud and vote suppression:

NAIROBI (Reuters) - President Mwai Kibaki's government accused rival Raila Odinga's party of unleashing "genocide" in Kenya on Wednesday as the death toll from tribal violence over a disputed election passed 300.

"It is becoming clear that these well-organized acts of genocide and ethnic-cleansing were well-planned, financed and rehearsed by Orange Democratic Movement leaders prior to the general elections," the statement read by Lands Minister Kivutha Kibwana on behalf of his colleagues said.

ODM had no immediate reaction to the accusation. Odinga's supporters, drawn mainly from his Luo tribe, have blamed the violence on Kibaki for "stealing" the December 27 presidential vote. Many clashes have pitted the Luo against Kibaki's Kikuyu tribe.

First irony: The US initially supported Kibaki's re-election.

The second irony:

"There are independent reports of serious irregularities in the counting process," said British Foreign Minister David Miliband and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in a joint statement. They called for an end to violence and "an intensive political and legal process" to end the crisis. (emphasis added)

Ahem.

This election has implications that go far beyond the borders of Kenya, a country right smack in the middle of some of the most contentious real estate in the world, bordered by Uganda, Sudan, Ethiopia, and Somalia. Kenya has been a stable democratic regime since 1963 (when it declared independence from England), and until global warming hit the country with a severe drought in 2000, was a beacon economic engine in Africa, despite severe governmental corruption.

Now, however, the only real growth industries are as transit points for sex slaves and heroin.

Moreover, there are other democratic elections coming up in the next 18 months is less stable places like Angola, Ghana and Malawi, places that aren't as sophisticated as Kenya, and more prone to turmoil and trouble.

Kenya seems to be at an impasse: Kibaki has offered to negotiate a settlement with Odinga, but Odinga insists that Kibaki give up his Presidency before any talks can commence.

Meanwhile, the blood spills.

(Cross-posted to Simply Left Behind)