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Zimbabwe -- The embattled pale farmer's dilemma
Zimbabwe Standard ^ | August 10, 2002 | overthetop By Brian Latham

Posted on 08/11/2002 6:03:03 PM PDT by Clive

PALE farmers in a troubled central African country were left confused last week when a senior official told them he was not a racist and they could stay on the farms. But just minutes later, another top official said that the farmers would have to leave or face the consequences. Thousands of farmers were served with eviction orders instructing them to leave their family homes by midnight last Thursday.

The eleventh hour machinations came just days before a weekend when the country’s pale citizens generally come in for some stick from members of the Zany party, a fact that contributed to many farmers leaving their farms for the weekend.

Most were thought to be heading for a large expanse of water in the north of the country where they traditionally go to get drunk, shout a lot and get into fights.

Still, most of the pale farmers were expected to go back to their farms once the weekend was over and the rhetoric had subsided. They said they would then be able to see whether they still owned their homes or they now belonged to affluent members of the Zany party.

However, one analyst pointed out that after a weekend on the water, where the average pale farmer could be expected to drink twice his (usually substantial) body weight in beer, their eyes were often bleeding so badly they couldn’t see beyond their noses.

Others pointed out that despite the fine sounding words coming from some quarters of the troubled government of the troubled central African nation, the situation on the ground was unchanged. Speaking to Over The Top, one farming official pointed out that a pale farmer he knew had been told he would be beheaded if he did not leave his home at the appointed time. A local war veteran aged 16 pointed out that this did not contradict government policy. Of course the pale farmer can stay, he said, he just won’t have a head.

It was also pointed out that over the last two and a half years, several top officials had said fine sounding things, only to see them reversed the minute the most equal of all comrades returned on one his infrequent visits to the troubled central African country.

At the time the senior Zany official said the pale farmers were welcome to stay in their homes, the most equal of all comrades was out of the country on one of his regular trips to prove to the imperialist powers that sanctions do not work.

Those pale farmers who decided to remain in their homes in defiance of the eviction notices were said to outnumber those who sought solace in strong waters in the north of the troubled central African nation. Most had no idea what would happen to them, but hoped they wouldn’t be killed, beaten shot or raped. Hopefully it’ll be a long weekend like any other, said one pale farmer. “We’ll drink ourselves silly and go back to work on Wednesday when the whole business will start again.”

Most analysts agreed that as likely as not, very little would happen to the pale farmers unless they were members of a new organisation that had vowed to get its money back from all the people who had looted, destroyed or hidden their belongings. For those farmers who intended to confront the government of the troubled central African nation by asking for their money back, the weekend was likely to be bothersome, said one analyst.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Editorial; Foreign Affairs; Political Humor/Cartoons
KEYWORDS: africawatch; zimbabwe

1 posted on 08/11/2002 6:03:03 PM PDT by Clive
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To: *AfricaWatch; Cincinatus' Wife; sarcasm; Travis McGee; happygrl; Byron_the_Aussie; robnoel; ...
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2 posted on 08/11/2002 6:03:27 PM PDT by Clive
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To: Clive
bttt
3 posted on 08/11/2002 6:05:59 PM PDT by Travis McGee
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To: Clive
Funny. Not!
4 posted on 08/11/2002 6:30:50 PM PDT by billhilly
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To: Clive
If I was one of unfortunate farmer, I would hold on to my deed and hang tough.

Economics will eventually overwhelm these pigs. They offer nothing to benefit anyone, black or white, except their own desire to bully others. They don't even have a cloak of idealogy, just a desire to prove that their male organ is larger than the next guy. They prove every white racist's point: you couldn't hire a better foil.

Let them reap what they sow. I just hope too many farmers are not killed along the way.

5 posted on 08/11/2002 7:33:35 PM PDT by Praxeologue
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To: Clive
Zimbawbe was a beautiful country when it was Rhodesia. A good book to read to understand the transition from white to black rule is Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight, an account of a young woman who grew up as a child of ex-pat parents as the country was being lost.

Africa is lost; it will be generations before it will be regained to civilization.

6 posted on 08/11/2002 7:38:05 PM PDT by JoeFromCA
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To: JoeFromCA; Clive; All
MPR Books - Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight: An African ...

Title: "Cry, the Beloved Country" - Topics: World/South Africa

7 posted on 08/12/2002 1:51:51 AM PDT by backhoe
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