Literary must-not-reads

Who would have thought: a 'what not to read' booklist (quite short, mind you; and I'm not sure I entirely agree with the selections, but there it is, nevertheless)! Via The Second Pass readers are warned of the 'must-read' classics they really ought not to read. Sadly it's quite late for me, as I have endured the alleged boredom of at least half of these literary works, but perhaps you still have the chance to save yourself. And if you desire some suggested readings, do check out The Second Pass' shelf. What a delightfully curious little book blog !....

Happy weekend, everyone; and happy reading, too!

Uncle Sam's African footprint

This week's issue of The New Statesman has a curious map tracking America's 'military footprint' around the world (i.e. the global distribution of American military bases):

From the map it is quite clear that the majority of U.S. bases are found in parts of Europe and the Middle East. In Africa, bases are located in Algeria, Chad, Cote d'Ivoire, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Tunisia, and Uganda. Many of these countries were considered for the home of AFRICOM, the US-Africa military command established under Bush (Esquire, of all places, had a great piece on the Africa Command programme back in 2007. Certainly worth a read!)

Many African states have been - and remain - quite vocal over their displeasure with the presence of such bases, maintaining that they constitute a direct violation of their sovereignty. Equally so, other states appear quite enthused to garner the assistance of the United States military in dealing with various regional issues. While I do certainly have my opinions on the matter, none are yet fixed in stone. What are your thoughts on U.S. military presence in Africa?