[Chapter 601: Welcome to Hell]
William White definitely wasn't being modest. If he thought he was invincible, he'd be in for a rude awakening. For him, exposure, charity, public opinion, popular acceptance, and the backing of churches were what truly mattered.
Why go up against Murdoch? The old man clearly had ulterior motives. If the carefully crafted persona he had built crumbled, he'd better find a place to hide.
Just take a look at what happened to Leo Wanta. Public opinion and the law -- it's all a game. Did any of that actually help him?
The U.S. Federal Reserve lost several trillion dollars, and the investigative reporters, usually so inquisitive, suddenly decided to ignore it altogether.
Don't even get me started on public oversight or judicial independence; those concepts only extend so far. Once you cross certain lines, there's little anyone can do.
The only reason this guy wasn't taken out right away was that he remembered the bank passwords and account numbers. After the United States obtained the special investigation power, he had no reason to keep living.
What's the point of having multiple hideouts? If they want to take you out, they will. Sometimes, too much cleverness can lead to foolish choices.
...
In a village near the Congo rainforest, Moussa Koussa stared at the ruins and felt a wave of frustration wash over him.
"You guys say there's a massive diamond mine here? Now tell me, where's the diamonds? Or the gold mines?"
Moussa Koussa was fed up; seriously, what did they think they were doing? They had nothing and were still resisting. Now look at this -- making all this noise and ending up with nothing. The big guy back home was cranky lately; he'd flip if he heard about this mess.
Fine, Moussa Koussa decided it was better to stop thinking about it.
A broken village was just a microcosm of Africa. On this continent, it was every man for himself.
For gold, for diamonds, for food -- there were plenty of reasons to fight. A bunch of cold-hearted arms dealers were offloading their weapons at rock-bottom prices.
William White refused to sell weapons; that was his line in the sand. He knew very well that once he got tagged as an arms dealer, his whole persona would collapse. Don't worry; there would be plenty of guys ready to toss him into the fray. If he fell, it would be a feeding frenzy.
Seeing their boss in a bad mood, his subordinates tread carefully. If the boss ends up feeding the lions, their future wouldn't be rosy either.
"Chief, we've taken back our territory; no one can tell us what to do now."
"Damn it, this was our territory to begin with. By the way, what's the reaction from those French?"
"None. Those softies seem to be backing a large tribe, though."
"Ugh, this place is terrible; even the toddlers have weapons. My God, what in the world is this place?"
Without a divine perspective, if Moussa Koussa did, he'd see it wasn't peaceful anywhere here. There were conflicts everywhere, and hunger reigned. Groups of refugees roamed the land like wildebeests, constantly migrating.
Oh well, perhaps God wasn't looking, because it felt more like hell on earth.
Strangely enough, Africa had seen worse droughts before, but this widespread famine seemed particularly dire.
...
"George, I'm planning a charity gala at the William White Center in L.A. How's that sound?"
"I'm free. Just let me know the details. By the way, what's the theme?"
"Come on, man, I'm asking you -- does the Elephant have any thoughts? The theme is the African famine; you better get some farmers involved."
"Wait, are you planning to go back?"
"Not for now. The folks below say the situation is pretty bad. If we don't do something soon, it'll come back to bite us."
"Haha, you mean a bunch of talk?"
"I want to be practical. Send soldiers to escort me. There's fighting everywhere; I wonder if those arms dealers are even paying taxes?"
"Haha, they've already gone after taxes in Africa. Honestly, hiring them for protection is not a bad idea."
"The CIA is really out of line. This could spark trouble. And what about those French? What's with their colonial mindset?"
"Haha, I thought you'd go down there. Many are keeping an eye on you. If the Gaddafi's guys are around..."
"It'll be deadly, and a lot of people will die. I don't like that, so they can figure it out themselves."
Bush Jr. was totally dismissive; he thought William White was getting too sensitive. After all, it wasn't his kid at stake, so whatever.
William White still decided to do something. He had no wife to step in, so he had to take the initiative.
That's how it is -- no matter how ugly you eat, just wipe your mouth before stepping out. As long as no one sees the blood on your lips, you're good.
As for organizing a charity auction, that was just an amusing idea. The food they donated wouldn't even feed a cat. They hadn't saved many famine victims but had certainly fattened a few parasites.
Well, William White didn't really mind. What mattered was the appearance, the psychological comfort -- it was like going to church.
It wasn't that he was cold-hearted; it was simply an unsolvable dilemma.
Africa had the highest birth, death, and growth rates worldwide. The uncontrolled population surge was exacerbating the food crisis.
Don't underestimate how well those guys lived; they never missed a chance to have kids. With electronic gadgets gone, it seemed that having children was their only entertainment.
Overpopulation inevitably accelerates environmental degradation. Africa was dotted with small, fragmented tribes, and slash-and-burn agriculture was widespread. Water management facilities? Forget it. This primitive farming led the entire ecosystem into a dire situation.
Moreover, due to overgrazing by nomadic tribes in Africa's grasslands, soil erosion has accelerated, and soil temperatures are rising slowly. Since rain comes from warm, moist air rising, there's even less rain now than before, leading to drought.
But honestly, that wasn't the most important issue. The serious tribal conflicts, coupled with the politically imposed systems from Europe and the U.S., were severe.
You can't change a region's nature just by imposing a different system. Sure, the U.S. system might work there, but it doesn't mean it'll work elsewhere. Those that have tried to wholly adopt the American way haven't fared well.
Africa is already chaotic and cannot afford any more upheaval. A more reasonable approach would be giving them a relatively independent space and a period to adapt.
What do they even like? That's for them to decide. Outsiders should just stay out of it.
Unfortunately, America doesn't want that. They love telling everyone what they should do and shouldn't do. Europe, too, isn't about to give up its cheap resources.
So, the tragedy of Africa is essentially predestined. No matter how capable one person is, it's impossible to change everything.
When it comes to Somali pirates, anyone would grind their teeth in frustration. But has anyone ever wondered how these fishermen turned into pirates?
They used canoes to fish while you brought in trawlers. For crying out loud, why don't you catch fish at your own doorstep?
The limited land is now cluttered with randomly discarded chemical waste. Water's gone, food's gone, and fish? Vanished. So what do they do if not become pirates?
Human depravity shines brightly on this continent. No one wants to invest; no one likes this place. Even if there are mineral resources, they're being recklessly extracted.
With such unchecked exploitation, it's a miracle Africa remains standing at all. The consequences of this are arguably worse than colonialism.
*****
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