Out of Africa

Does even one in a hundred Americans know about massive US military presence in Africa? Not likely, for two related reasons: Citizen apathy and concerted effort by mainstream media to keep America's Africa footprint hush, hush. Twelve years ago America set up the US Africa Command (AFRICOM) which is essentially a re-colonization of Africa such as the European heavyweights waged between 1880 and start of WWI. The US footprint is massive; $237 million this year, with another quarter billion earmarked just for a drone base in Niger, where 4 US soldiers needlessly died chasing imaginary bad guys. Presidential National Security Adviser John 'Bonkers' Bolton laughably claims humanitarian motives for US militarism, saving Africans from the China and Russia's predatory designs which Bolton claims stifles US investment and threatens US national security interests. What nonsense. The US is determined to rule Africa just as it determined to rule the Middle East. a 17 year policy of utter failure. AFRICOM's major engagement since its founding was its 2011 venture turning Libya into a failed state by helping rebels depose Libyan strongman Qaddafi. While US relies on militarism, China and Russia are investing in infrastructure and forgiving debt, something not in the US 'military only' playbook. AFRICOM loves perpetual war, bragging this month how four precision air strikes blew 62 imagined bad guys to smithereens. Trump and Bolton call their Africa policy 'Prosper Africa'. They cannot square that with troops on the ground in 30 African countries and drones endlessly dropping death from the skies. If the US cannot deal as legitimate business and cultural partners with African countries in need of development, they should simply, as the title of the 1985 Redford-Streep movie suggests, get 'Out of Africa'.