posted on Aug, 23 2005 @ 08:29 PM
Diamonds, Copper, and other metals. As far as I am aware, not much oil. On the other hand, even if the human toll is not enough to urge action on our
part, Africa is important to America's strategic and economic future. If we want to warm up to India and keep resources in strong supply so that
China can't manipulate prices from the demand side, we need to build stability and local economies in Central and East Africa. Uganda and DRC in
particular will be valuable if America wants to move Southern Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, and others on the coast along towards being part of an economic
alliance between African resource bearing nations, potential African industrial powers, and of course international economic powers and technological
leaders India and the United States.
If Uganda and DRC are ruining themselves it's going to be a lot harder to feed Ethiopia and Kenya and get them off of subsistence farming and into
industry.
Call me ambitious-America's economic interests are too decentralized and our politicians are too short sighted. If we were thinking though, we'd be
taking a stronger interest in the DRC.
All of that is not even to mention the fact that saving lives in Africa will be a start on restoring our international credibility and gain us allies
in the UN General Assembly.