-
21:42
Pandering Prejudices?
» Black Looks You would think a bookshop such as is Waterstones is an institution that encourages the attainment of knowledge and you would be right to think so. However what would you make of the same institution used by some of its workforce as a platform for their prejudicial wiles? Do they (transphobic staff) act this way [...]SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: " Pandering Prejudices? ", url: "http://www.blacklooks.org/2008/10/_pandering_prejudices_.html" });
-
15:10 Here’s Why It’s Confusing Being Me and It Might Be Confusing Being You Too
» The Displaced African I exist in an extremely odd shade of gray. This post will be as the title suggests, a confused convoluted conversation about confusion. Uncensored and unedited, straight from my brain to your eyes.
Discussion
I was talking to a friend of mine today. This guy is one of the first people I ever met when I came to this country and we both came when we were in high school and have pretty much entered adulthood in this country.
We Have a Very Strange Identity
Our identities are odd because:
1) We identify with Kenyan culture much more than we do the host culture: Here it’s a 50/50 split. Some people come in their teens and completely soak up this culture, the language, the fashion and make their friends and their lives here.
Then there are people like us who come here either 3/4 formed or fully formed (I of course speak of psychology, body, hormones etc etc very different story) who have been so shaped by the culture of where we came from and/or may have been rejected by the people here so we find it weird to change.
2) We Think and Act VERY Differently From Native Kenyans
Want clear proof of that? Look at this blog. I have 227 articles that I spent 9 months putting together simply because it was what I felt would be the most meaningful thing to do.
In Africa that = An idiot
Sure from time to time, some of us should get together and talk about what we should do and maybe even engage in projects part time. But engaging in a blog FULL TIME for 9 months where you pour everything into it and put the message and the purpose ahead of the money.
That’s absolute stupidity
The other differences are quite subtle but they are definitely there. What it boils down to though is:
I love where I am from and identify with it at the core of my being.
There are MANY things I dislike about my culture at the core.
There are MANY things I like about the Australian culture at my core.
A Few of My Favorite Things
I like the fact that people here, not always but enough that it counts, don’t wait for people to solve their problems but take it upon themselves to do so, starting new industries and social movements in the process.
I love the personal development movement.
I love the fact that people here are willing to put themselves on the line for an idea and won’t just sit on the sidelines criticizing.
I love the fact that people here actually think about their health AND take action in the way they eat and live to take care of their bodies.
I love the fact that people here are always testing out their boundaries in real life instead of in the abstract.
As I said, this meandering post will probably resonate with some of you who are just plain confused and feel like a tiny minority in a large Western country.
There Is No Sub-Culture For People Like Me
I am not saying this because of arrogance but its true. I know no one like me. I know no one who has feet in both puddles like I do. There are no songs sung about people like me, no movies made, no poets, no discussion groups, no forums.
I just have to spend my time immersed with African culture one day and put it to the side while I engage in Western affairs another day.
I have to speak with a certain slang one day and change it up the next.
Not That I Am Complaining
I think I have been too blessed in my life to just be outright angry about something that is ultimately not a bad quality problem to have.
This situation doesn’t really anger me. It just saddens me from time to time, because I am yet to resolve it. If this resonated with you, leave a comment below or email me and let me know what your situation is.
Working through the confusion,
Mwangi
-
14:05
Kenyan Banks - Raising Capital
» Rants, Raves & Reviews HFCK raised KES 2.3bn & just in the nick of time. They had the backing of Equity Bank - which had raised KES 11bn in a very smart deal earlier - and BAAM.
I expect HFCK to post solid numbers in 3Q 2008 vs prior quarters. The 'extra' cash can be placed with various banks who are 'short' on cash. Also this sets the stage for a rapid expansion for HFCK into developments for low to medium income earners.
KCB raised KES 5.0bn but the current price has fallen below the Rights price.
I expect the price to recover based on its strong balance sheet & growth prospects outside of Kenya.
I&M Bank raised KES 600mn from a (private) Bond Issue but also attempted to raise another KES 600mn in Tier 1 equity from private sources. I expect it to have been successful since they have PROPARCO & DEG on their board.
Privately held therefore less information available. PROPARCO & DEG can provide access to funds if needed. Expansion into other market segments (new branch in Ongata Rongai) from its traditional 'upper market bank' image. Relies heavily on corporate customers BUT faces increased competition from Diamond Trust Bank & NIC Bank. An interesting addition for I&M Bank is the purchase of 50% of a Mauritian bank.
Co-op Bank wants to raise capital through a New Issue of shares. I expect they will be successful in spite of all the doom & gloom.
I think they will expand their footprint but will they be held back by their co-operative roots? Can they attract additional business from corporates? All said & done, I think the 'increased' privatization of firms that are farmer-owned will benefit Co-op Bank.
-
The Message: A Poem for Troy Davis
» Black Looks “The Troy Davis case involves Troy Anthony Davis, an American sports coach, who was convicted and sentenced to death for the 1989 murder of a Savannah, Georgia police officer, Mark Allen MacPhail, solely on the basis of eyewitness testimony.[1] Seven of nine witnesses later recanted their testimony, but he has been unable to get a [...]SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: "The Message: A Poem for Troy Davis", url: "http://www.blacklooks.org/2008/10/the_message_a_poem_for_troy_davis.html" });
-
7:34
Blame it on the System
» Mount Kirima Plover Its been a long while since I put up something on the blog, infact even reading of blogs has been a tad bit infrequent of late and I desperately need a scapegoat to blame and after reading Mboiz’s post I decided to do like Kenyans and just blame it on the system whatever the ’system’ [...]
-
Visionaries
» Black Looks One woman’s visionaries are another woman’s flying ducks ie they joined the 1st class glossy magazine flyers club, hmm where did all that money come from then? Here is a list of 50, most of whom I would include on my personal list. Via BFM PS I dislike this word “movers” and the phrase [...]SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: "Visionaries", url: "http://www.blacklooks.org/2008/10/visionaries.html" });
-
3:17
WAKI Report: The Perpetrators of the Ethnic Skirmishes must be brought to Book
» You Missed This Guest Post by Mwalimu Peter M. N. Ngugi
The fact that the findings of the Waki team have revealed some very incriminating evidence against leaders in both PNU and ODM, is a very clear indicator that the mayhem that engulfed Kenya early this year was meticulously planned by the rich political and business elite. And as the saying goes, ‘The guilty ones are always afraid’. This explains why some politicians are in an inexpressible state of panic while others have in no uncertain terms trashed the Waki report.
In as much as it is important to forget the past and think of how best to ‘build a New Kenya’ , it is also imperative that we bring to book both the financers and the perpetrators of the atrocious acts for, if we let them go scot free, that would be tantamount to sowing seeds of impunity. It is no doubt that gross crimes against humanity were committed and all the people who aided and abetted the murderers, regardless of their stations in life, must be tried by an International Tribunal.
Every right thinking kenyan should therefore call upon President Kibaki and Premier Raila not to allow the tempering of justice with forgiveness. Everyone must carry their own cross. We must not allow ourselves to be blinded by barbarism and stupid ethnicity. It is high time that we accepted that Kenya is a multi cultural society and that the basic tenets of true Kenyanness lies not in our tribes but in our resolve to invalidate all stupid value systems that are aimed at dividing us along tribal lines. It is time that we understood that our Luoness, Kambaness, Turkananess or Mijikendaness is nothing but a biological accident for, nobody, even the high and mighty sent a telegram or an sms to the Creator asking Him to create them in this or that tribe.
Folks, we must not allow the barbaric philosophies of politicians to fill our heads with negative ethnicity, abhorrence and bloody pettiness. We must understand that politicians play the tribal card to their advantage and not for the benefit of the poor youths who kill and maim at their behest. I would like to pose this sixty four thousand dollar question to all Kenyans: What have we got to show for our barbaric acts? The whole world had held us in such high esteem and we were all proud to be called ‘Kenyans’ before all the hell broke loose. Now, when incidents of utter stupidity and unfathomable barbarism are mentioned anywhere in the world, the Kenyans in diaspora bow their heads in shame as the ethnic cleansing in Kenya is cited as one of the most barbarous and unfortunate incidents to have happened in a civilized country. Fellow countrymen and women, are the people who visited terror on their innocent neighbours not poorer than they were last year? What about the politicians? Has any one of them gone to bed hungry? So, we are fools, aren’t we? If we are not bloody fools, tell me folks, why then did we arm ourselves with all manner of crude weapons and went on the rampage just because some sick barbarians told us to do so? It is an open secret that our blood is sweeter than honey to the politicians who ‘drink’ it and we must say an emphatic “no” to politics of barbarism and blood letting.
It goes without saying that the effects of the post election violence on the economy of this country are unfathomable. Schools, hospitals, roads and railways and farms were destroyed and money that would have been put into better use has to be used to try and clear the mess. How then can we say that these people should be forgiven? If these shameless people are not made to account for their acts, tribal skirmishes will become the norm rather than the exception. We must not allow forgiveness to entrench impunity! The verdict is out; all the murderers and their political godfathers must be tried and punished for their sins.
FREE delivery of DVDs (latest) to your doorstep anywhere in Nairobi