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chilli

Don't want kids to die? Watch this.

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does anyone think the whole premise of kony2012 is similar to that of the war on drugs?

if we bring down this drug dealer, than we are making a dent in the drug industry.

oh wait look, 20 drug dealers just took this one guys place, oh well, at least we are trying to do the right thing, we'll win this war any day now...

we need more guns and bombs and prisons and money

Edited by chnt

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Ugandans have criticised the viral Kony2012 video, saying it is yet another neo-colonial campaign that portrays Africans as powerless to help themselves.

The 30-minute film was produced by an American advocacy group and aims to raise awareness about wanted war criminal Joseph Kony, the head of the Lord's Resistance Army, and the plight of child soldiers in central Africa.

It has been watched and passed on by tens of millions of viewers on YouTube, but has been criticised as simplistic and inaccurate.

Kony left a path of destruction and mass murder for more than 20 years, but he is no longer in Uganda and has not been for six years.

Writing on his blog, Ugandan journalist Angelo Izama said "to call the campaign a misrepresentation is an understatement".

"While it draws attention to that fact that Kony - indicted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court in 2005 - is still on the loose, its portrayal of his alleged crimes in northern Uganda are from a bygone era," he wrote.

Another Ugandan journalist fighting back via social media is Rosebell Kagumire.

Her video argues against what she calls yet another neo-colonial campaign aimed at saving hapless Africans.

"This is another video where I see an outsider trying to be a hero rescuing African children," she said.

"We have seen these stories a lot in Ethiopia, celebrities coming in Somalia, you know. It does not end the problem.

"I think we need to have kind of sound, intelligent campaigns that are geared towards real policy shifts, rather than a very sensationalised story that is out to make one person cry, and at the end of the day, we forget about it."

Kagumire argues that the simplicity of the good versus bad argument being mounted is akin to saying white Westerners are good and black Africans are bad.

"How do you tell the story of Africans? It's much more important on what the story is, actually, because if you are showing me as voiceless, as hopeless, you have no space telling my story," she said.

"You shouldn't be telling my story if you don't believe that I also have the power to change what is going on.

"And this video seems to say that the power lies in America, and it does not lie with my government, it does not lie with local initiatives on the ground.

"That aspect is lacking and this is the problem, it is furthering that narrative about Africans: totally unable to help themselves and needing outside help all the time."

http://www.abc.net.a...2?section=world

 

Edited by rahli
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http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/campaign-to-stop-kony-shines-light-on-ill-informed-activists/story-e6frg6so-1226295402061

"JOSEPH Kony is basically Adolf Hitler. He has an army of 30,000 mindless children who slaughter innocent people in Uganda."

 

Have you seen something like that fly across your Twitter or Facebook feed today? Or perhaps this: "#TweetToSave the Invisible Children of Uganda! #Kony2012 Make Joseph Kony Famous!!"

 

Kony 2012, a video posted by advocacy group Invisible Children to raise awareness about the pernicious evil of Lord's Resistance Army leader Joseph Kony, has already been viewed more than 40 million times since its release this week.

 

It would be great to get rid of Kony. He and his forces have left a path of abductions and mass murder in their wake for more than 20 years. But let's get two things straight: 1) Joseph Kony is not in Uganda and hasn't been for six years; 2) the LRA now numbers at most in the hundreds, and while it is still causing immense suffering, it is unclear how millions of well-meaning but misinformed people are going to help deal with the more complicated reality.

 

First, the facts. Following a successful campaign by the Ugandan military and failed peace talks in 2006, the LRA was pushed out of Uganda and has been operating in extremely remote areas of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan and the Central African Republic - where Kony himself is believed to be. In October last year, US President Barack Obama authorised the deployment of 100 US army advisers to help the Ugandan military track down Kony, with no results disclosed to date.

Additionally, the LRA (thankfully) does not have 30,000 mindless child soldiers. This grim figure, cited by Invisible Children in the film, refers to the total number of kids abducted by the LRA over nearly 30 years. The small remaining LRA forces are still wreaking havoc and are very hard to catch, but Northern Uganda has had tremendous recovery in the six years of peace since the LRA left.

So why is "Uganda" trending on Twitter?

Unfortunately, it looks like meddlesome details, like where Kony actually is, are not important enough for Invisible Children to make sure its audience understands. The video, narrated by Invisible Children co-founder Jason Russell, says its purpose is to intensify pressure on the US to make sure Kony is brought to justice this year, and as the message broadcast throughout says, what is important is simple: Stop Kony.

Among other emotive shots, the video features Russell's attempt to explain the LRA to his toddler son and some heart-wrenching footage of children who walked for kilometres to sleep in a safe place at the height of the LRA's power in Northern Uganda. The latter comprised much of Invisible Children's namesake first film and brought the organisation to prominence.

In the new film, Invisible Children has made virtually no effort to inform. Only once, at 15:01 in the movie, is the fact that the LRA is no longer in Uganda mentioned, and only in passing.

That's it, in a 30-minute movie.

Award-winning Ugandan journalist Angelo Izama is among those not thrilled: "To call the campaign a misrepresentation is an understatement. While it draws attention to the fact that Kony, indicted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court in 2005, is still on the loose, its portrayal of his alleged crimes in Northern Uganda are from a bygone era. At the height of the war between especially 1999 and 2004, large hordes of children took refuge on the streets of Gulu town to escape the horrors of abduction and brutal conscription to the ranks of the LRA. Today, most of these children are semi-adults. Many are still on the streets unemployed. Gulu has the highest numbers of child prostitutes in Uganda. It also has one of the highest rates of HIV/AIDS and hepatitis."

If six years ago children in Uganda would have feared the hell of being part of the LRA, a well-documented reality already, today the real invisible children are those suffering from Nodding Disease. More than 4000 children are victims of this incurable debilitating condition. It's a neurological disease that has baffled scientists and attacks mainly children from the most war-affected districts of Kitgum, Pader and Gulu.

Along with sharing the movie online, Invisible Children's call to action is to do three things: 1) sign its pledge, 2) get the Kony 2012 bracelet and action kit (only $30), and 3) sign up to donate.

There is intense criticism over Invisible Children's finances, including that it spends too much money on administration and filmmaking, while still touting its on-the-ground NGO-style projects.

What worries me more is that it's unclear what exactly Invisible Children wants to do, other than raise a lot of money and attention. Here's Russell in the video (21:40): "We know what to do. Here it is, ready? In order for Kony to be arrested this year, the Ugandan military has to find him. In order to find him, they need the technology and training to track him in the vast jungle. That's where the American advisers come in. But in order for the American advisers to be there, the American government has to deploy them. They've done that, but if the government doesn't believe the people care about Kony, the mission will be cancelled. In order for the people to care, they have to know. And they will only know if Kony's name is everywhere."

So the goal is to make sure that Obama doesn't withdraw the advisers he deployed until Kony is captured or killed. That seems noble enough, but does anyone have any evidence about this urgent threat of cancellation? One that justifies such a massive production campaign and surely lucrative donation drive?

There are many reasons uninformed and oversimplified advocacy can cause trouble. Blogger Siena Antsis notes that Invisible Children expertly "commodifies white man's burden on the African continent". Buy a bracelet, soothe some guilt.

One of the biggest issues with a simplistic "Stop Kony" message is that discussions of Navy SEALs or drone strikes are inevitable when patience runs out with Ugandan-led efforts.

But what about the hundreds of abducted and brainwashed kids? Should we bomb everyone? What if the kids shoot back?

Coming back to the Kony 2012 video and its celebrity endorsements, what are the consequences of unleashing so many exuberant activists armed with so few facts?

In addition to the problems of poverty and nodding disease Izama highlights, Uganda is barely (if at all) democratic.

President Yoweri Museveni ushered himself to a fourth term last year, taking him to more than 25 years in power. Corruption is rampant, social services are minimal and human rights abuses well documented.

Stopping Kony won't change any of these things, and if more hardware and money flow to Museveni's military, Invisible Children's campaign may even worsen some problems.

Here's to hoping Kony hands himself in tomorrow and that the fear of the US "cancelling" its LRA-hunt support is misplaced. But if the most impactful the result of Invisible Children's campaign is to cause millions of viewers to think Northern Uganda is a war zone, even if it's not their intent, it is hard to defend.

 

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Thanks for keeping us up-to-date guys. While I don't generally read MSM it seems on this occasion they're a bit more on-the-ball than the NGO's. I think the Invisible Children should have it;'s charitable status removed, and we should stop donating immediately.

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so if i don't watch it i want kids to die? :rolleyes:

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yes.

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So its the LRA huh?

I remember seeing Oprah crap on about the LRA (probly mid 90's?), the soccermums could'nt do it what hope do the hipsters have?

I wanna see ALex's take on Kony- presented by clearly visible children.

Could'nt be fucked watching that manipulative drivel. Yes I can have partialy informed opinions too!

Dear Jebus I just admited to watching Oprah :BANGHEAD2::slap::crux:

Edited by shruman

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chubbs!

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What a disappointment. I thought Kony was going to be a lovable, dope smoking clown

Clown_19d32c_1130310.jpg

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Edited by qualia
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