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Author Topic: Kony 2012  (Read 3877 times)

kalaratiri

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Kony 2012
« on: 07 Mar 2012, 07:06 »

A bit of a heavy topic, but I hope people listen.

Watch this. Then come back. I'll wait.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4MnpzG5Sqc&feature=share

So, now you've done that, I sincerely hope people will support this. It is an amazing cause, with incredibly dedicated followers and volunteers. I will be doing what I can to spread the word, and I hope you all will too.

Thank you.
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Nmaro Makari

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Re: Kony 2012
« Reply #1 on: 07 Mar 2012, 10:20 »

Curses, the Kala beat me to it :P

In all seriousness though, this marks an important step in foreign policy.

I endorse this service!
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Jekaterine

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Re: Kony 2012
« Reply #2 on: 07 Mar 2012, 15:18 »

So it's ok to send others to the ICC but to exempt yourself.
I guess some animals are more equal than others.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_and_the_International_Criminal_Court

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Matariki Rain

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Re: Kony 2012
« Reply #3 on: 07 Mar 2012, 16:05 »

So it's ok to send others to the ICC but to exempt yourself.

Some quick responses here:

It's okay to fight an injustice, even if you're not currently fighting all injustices.

Hypocrisy isn't humanity's worst crime.

That said, the US's unwillingness or inability to commit itself to the International Criminal Court is pretty shameful.
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Milo Caman

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Re: Kony 2012
« Reply #4 on: 07 Mar 2012, 16:38 »

Has anyone actually looked into IC in depth? Seems they're raising funds and awareness for a cause that died a few years back.

Granted, Joseph Kony is a sociopath who needs to be tried for crimes against humanity in the Hague, but I'd suggest looking into charities that suddenly pop up like this before jumping on the bandwagon and pledging your support and/or wallet.
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Graelyn

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Re: Kony 2012
« Reply #5 on: 07 Mar 2012, 20:01 »

I tried watching the video, I really did. I think I got through 10 minutes.

Look.

When you're a privileged trustfunder from the states, it's good to try to do some good in the world.
Wandering around being shocked (SHOCKED) that things are bad somewhere else is silly and naive. This guy really was taking it to borderline hilarious levels.

So I looked up this thing myself. Yep, the guy in question is a bastard. That part of the world has thousands of those.

Sounds like a cause that will effort to raise millions (funny how they only ever need money) in the hopes that a court who is already tasked with dealing with these things will finally be able to attempt something.

That just seems, well, silly and naive to me, which seems to fit the theme. I like videos with facts and information, I'm not so fond of having every sound and shot being meticulously crafted to force a specific emotional response. Even good causes that should stand on their own seem to rely on almost ridiculously heavy-handed propoganda these days...

If I've missed something important, do correct me.

(NOTE: I would also encourage people to have a look at this: http://visiblechildren.tumblr.com/post/18890947431/we-got-trouble)
« Last Edit: 07 Mar 2012, 20:12 by Graelyn »
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Bacchanalian

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Re: Kony 2012
« Reply #6 on: 07 Mar 2012, 21:48 »

FWIW, if you had watched more of the video you'd have seen that they already managed to have an impact in getting the US government to send over military advisors and some basic technology for the Ugandan military to assist them in tracking this guy down.  Which is a lot more than your average "like this shit on Facebook because the world isn't all happy fluffy pink bunnies" shit. 

And to say that guys like him are a dime a dozen is a bit naive as well.  While child soldiers aren't at all uncommon, especially in Africa, generally speaking they're employed in some sort of civil conflict that eventually has an end when the power shifts in the region in question.  In this case, there is no such endgame for the army, but instead it is a way of life and something that will exist in perpetuity until such time as the group is put down--not just Kony, but the group as a whole, because no doubt if Kony alone is taken down three more will step up in his place to fight over the role.  If you missed that part too and/or are ignorant on the topic, Kony has expressly stated that he's not after anything other than maintaining his status quo--leading that army because it makes him feel warm and fuzzy inside and no amount of peace talks, cease fires, or other attempts to stop the violence outside of apprehending him will stop it.  In other words, he falls outside the definition of what poli sci geeks might call a rational actor, and more into the role of the self-aggrandizing leader but with a particular quirk--he has no country, just an army.

As far as other notable instances of the same levels of this sort of thing happening (in other words, entire military groups being formed out of abducted children rather than their simply being recruited too young--kids have played roles in conflicts all over Africa, namely in Rwanda, CAF, Chad, and Sudan, and IIRC Mugabe in Zimbabwe has his own version of the Hitler Youth in his army as well though they aren't actively participating in any sort of protracted armed conflicts that I'm aware of), the RUF in Sierra Leone is the only one that comes immediately to mind, and Charles Taylor, the architect of that group was extradited into UN custody and last I heard is awaiting trial in The Hague. 
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Matariki Rain

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Re: Kony 2012
« Reply #7 on: 07 Mar 2012, 23:35 »

I'm mixed. It's well-done media (too manipulative for my taste, but I can enjoy playing propaganda bingo while watching it, and just because I'm being manipulated doesn't necessarily mean the cause isn't good). It's definitely raised awareness. It's also, seemingly, over-simplified things as it's raised awareness, in ways which are likely to affect the actions that come next and might make them less effective. Is that better or worse than not having raised the awareness? And if it's essentially acting as a fund-raiser for Invisible Children there are the usual concerns about that group's fields of activity and deliverables-to-overheads/tooth-to-tail ratio.

Maybe try this as a thoughtful response: http://siena-anstis.com/2012/03/07/on-invisible-childrens-kony-2012-campaign/
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Bacchanalian

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Re: Kony 2012
« Reply #8 on: 08 Mar 2012, 00:09 »

FWIW, it certainly does dumb things down and overdramatize/manipulate/etc, but remember who it's appealing to.  Most of us are a lot more aware of the world around us than your average Wal-Mart employee who gets their news from the tabloids and Facebook.  And there are a lot more of them in the US than there are people like us, and I imagine that's not much different across the pod despite what many Europeans might like us 'murricans to believe.  And those people have the sort of numbers that the guy is after.  He's not worried about a handful of smug internet warriors that are cynical about everything and anything.  v0v
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Bacchanalian

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Re: Kony 2012
« Reply #9 on: 08 Mar 2012, 00:21 »

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Matariki Rain

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Re: Kony 2012
« Reply #10 on: 08 Mar 2012, 01:55 »

Another article, with a link to suggestions of alternative charities working in the area which have better delivery ratios and accountability, and less military intervention to support an army and regime that are also pretty horrible.

http://thedailywh.at/2012/03/07/on-kony-2012-2/
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Jekaterine

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Re: Kony 2012
« Reply #11 on: 08 Mar 2012, 05:03 »

Has anyone actually looked into IC in depth? Seems they're raising funds and awareness for a cause that died a few years back.

*Snip*

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2012/03/20123845026717882.html
This mentions a watchdog organisation named "Navigator" that are said to be critical.
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kalaratiri

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Re: Kony 2012
« Reply #12 on: 08 Mar 2012, 09:59 »

For my take on it, I really don't care which charity or organization does something about it.

I just want a charity, or organization to do something about it. And if I can raise awareness to help them do something, then I will.
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Nmaro Makari

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Re: Kony 2012
« Reply #13 on: 08 Mar 2012, 11:26 »

If you fancy waiting around for the perfect situation, with an ideal villan (twirly moustache and all) and an obvious solution, all of this easy to explain in about 5-10 mins to average joe, odds are you're going to be decomposing in a hole before that happens.

Fact is most of us knew squat about this issue before Kony 2012.

What, you expect everyone after Kony should be wearing Halos or something?
« Last Edit: 08 Mar 2012, 11:30 by Nmaro Makari »
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Mizhara

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Re: Kony 2012
« Reply #14 on: 08 Mar 2012, 12:29 »

No no no, guys. Wait. Listen. Clearly supporting something that aims to remove one of the nastiest dipshits on the planet is a bad thing to do. Always wait for that non-existent cause that's 'better' around the corner. That'll have much more impact.
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