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War in the Sahel or operatic undertones?

On 26 Jul 2023 there was a military coup in Niger. The Western-backed leader, Mohamed Bazoum was detained and confined to house arrest by the presidential guard, led by General Abdourahamane Tchiani. This was the 4th such coup in West Africa within the last three years. It points to a trend, with the old European colonial powers one-by-on being kicked out of their old African colonies. The recent coups were all in the Sahel region of West Africa a region once ruled mostly by France. For more, read on… Continue reading “War in the Sahel or operatic undertones?”

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Yevgeny’s not-so-excellent adventure

There was a little excitement in Russia over the weekend. At last, the hoped-for victory was in sight, or so some people thought. But on the 24th, Eugene catered his last meals in Russia and the folks anticipating regime change in Moscow saw their hopes dashed by ‘Sasha’ Lukashenko – another leader they had hoped to overthrow. So, Eugene (Yevgeny) Prigozhin is now in Belarus, facing parts and a future unknown. To understand this saga, we start with this old favorite. For more, read on after the song…

Continue reading “Yevgeny’s not-so-excellent adventure”

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The 2021 Myanmar coup

In the early morning of 1 Feb 2021, the military in Myanmar staged a coup, as it is being called in the news, arresting Aung San Suu Kyi and other members of her ruling party. She is the de facto leader of the nation. This is a developing story and will be updated as more information emerges. The military is quite powerful in Myanmar, which has only seen democracy for a few years now, having been ruled by military juntas since its independence from the UK in 1948. We’ll have a look at the astrology of Myanmar and the coup here. Continue reading “The 2021 Myanmar coup”

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Remembering Kennedy

Friday marked a sombre anniversary in American history. It was one of those days that remains as a sharp memory. It was the day in 1963 that President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dealey Plaza, Dallas, Texas. It was 12:30 in the afternoon. In North Carolina it was 1:30 on a Friday afternoon. I was in the 1st grade and we had finished lunch not long before. The announcement came over the intercom. The teachers were in shock and tears. We students didn’t really know what had happened, except that it was bad. What was an assassination? The teacher had to explain it to us, after she composed herself. Shortly thereafter we were all sent home. Today, I am remembering Kennedy and his legacy, as are many in the US. Next year will mark another important milestone for the US, and we will get to why later. Continue reading “Remembering Kennedy”

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The 2019 Bolivian coup

Def: Coup (/ko͞o/) noun: a sudden, violent, and illegal seizure of power from a government.
“he was overthrown in an army coup”

On the 10th of November, after a contested election result, Evo Morales was ‘strongly urged’ to step down as the Bolivian president, at the prompting of the police and military, after a few weeks of increasingly violent protests contesting the election results of 20 Oct. Morales had duly won the election with a margin of 10%, more than enough to form government. Apparently the right wing parties and middle class in Bolivia weren’t happy with the result. Rather than try to hang on to government and risk widespread violence in the nation and his own life, he chose to leave Bolivia and has since been given asylum by the Mexican government. One Jeanine Áñez Chávez (no relation to Hugo) has declared herself president. Continue reading “The 2019 Bolivian coup”

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America’s latest attempt at king-making

On the 23rd of Jan 19 the US, primarily, along with a few other nations, attempted a coup in Venezuela. It played out as an opposition leader, one Juan Guaidó, swore himself in as president of Venezuela. The only problem with that is that he is not the elected leader of Venezuela. That title falls to Nicolas Maduro, who was reelected by a wide margin on 20 May 18, in what the Western media outlets slammed as a sham election. The further problem with that is the opposition parties refused to take part in the election, and in fact were directed not to, with the result that voter turnout was low. The opposition parties are also badly divided. So now Venezuelans face the prospect of a drawn-out internal battle, mission creep and a long siege for control of their nation, intensified external pressure to overthrow Maduro and increased sanctions so long as Maduro hangs on to power. Continue reading “America’s latest attempt at king-making”