Now I understand why you were marketing this post. What's so fucked up about this is that it's not just the governments direct policies that screw their people over. But, then more wealthy nations don't want to give them aid, because they figure it won't get down to the people but just be squandered byt the governments. Getting the money to the people when you can't just give it to the government is way more fucked up and harder. This is the whole controversy with the Bush millenium plan (I think it's called) to offer aid to poverty stricken nations. The critics claim it's just to hard to get the aid. The proponents say that you've got to make sure the money goes to the people somehow.

Wasn't it the Ugandan president that was such a crook when his country got $90 million in aid and the first thing he did was go by himself a new jet? I think it was Uganda. You have to topple the government to help the people in that country.

Makes you hope there is a god so that some kind of ultimate punishment is metted out. Thus explaining the rival millitias and political unrest in these parts of the world.

Hope to have time to read more about Zimbabwe. Of course government performance matters in the day-to-day life of it's citizens, but taking a country from having a currency stronger than the dollar to ruin is a task worthy of awe.