The Forth Estate Comes of Age- the lady and the trump

When a historic group of un-biased observers come under attack, we have to begin to prepare from a massive seismic shift in events. News of the World-Rupert Murdoch and the possibility of more closures in the future? Extremes of one perceived estate? 

Maybe this is what causes such a flood of attention for Donal Trump. 

He came onto the scene in an age of reality TV. A time where the line between perception and truth became blurred. Experts told us that the very act of watching an event changes it's state and behavior. So we wonder how much of what we see if reality and how much how much is truth. 

I justified the Apprentice series by noting that in our day, the CEO could not leave independent of social life and media scrutiny and that therefore a series that allowed people to submit job offers in public and sit in board rooms amidst the cameras made some sense. 

And so we sat mesmerized and even took notes and dreaded those words...you are fired! 

So I wonder if in the choice of team we will have yet another event run by one of the stations in the U.S in which the most notable names in the business will compete for a chance to run the candidates 'winning' campaign. 

You cannot watch the events unfold without thinking how much of an effect this one man will have on the issue of suffrage. 

I do not know how many times I have sat on a screen watching the news and it's presentation without fearing that much of my interest was fueled by an unfortunate misuse of one genders advantage over another...at least in terms of appeal! 

Quietly I wondered if my African upbringing was at war with the American way where jocks and cheerleaders rule the day and not geeks. But there were troubling undertones and fears that many geeks would have their way in an age of vengeance and at a time when gun laws and rock music and game consoles were running the show. 

But I digress. 

The point is for some unfortunate reason I was paying more attention to pretty presenters than truthful ones and believing that perhaps truth and beauty had signed a deal. 

While presenters sat shifting nervously to conceal certain parts their anatomy while trying to give their analysis I felt constantly that they were being betrayed. 

So a reported exchange took place between a presenter and a media mogul and she clearly stood no chance. The trump was much too skilled in getting attention and raising the ratings. 

Then I remembered that perhaps the most valuable thing in a woman's psyche apart the nurturing instinct is her look. Standing before her and running for the top job was the man who has managed over the years to put a bulk of his finance behind one of the most important dates in the Female Calender-Miss Universe! 

I cannot be blamed for thinking at least in this respect that this man is a formidable foe. If not for the presidency but for perceptions of femininity in general. 

Lying Low

We were sitting for the final art exam after three vigorous years of training. 

The British system and it's methods of testing was designed to test your skills but also your ability to follow instructions. If I remember correctly the question was about the use of number 1-9 to create a abstract piece (painting). 

There were students three types of students. Those who were skilled and who needed very little practice to prove so. Then there were those who would be forced to follow the instructions a little more in addition to their limited skills. Then there was a group who struggle in the background and  through the term only to emerge and flourish at the end as victors. 

My friend M was part of the last group. He walked into the room and used the energy of the rest of the students to create something good causing him to ace the exam as one of the few top final results. 

I too was fortunate because I followed the instructions and combined that with some skill and training. 

The race of the white house could produce someone from the last category. 

A candidate that is smart enough not too say too much while using the energy of those who are front runners in the race to create a last minute strategy and plan. In the previous post we alluded to this while talking about pace setters. Migratory birds use formations to ensure that they use a limited amount of energy to fly long distances. Candidates that are known can suffer much more attack precisely because they draw attention to themselves. But the choice to fly low can prove disastrous in campaigns that call for so much visibility. 

We have not seen too much of the social media drive that fueled B.H.O's drive for the presidency or the involvement of young people, nor have we seen the massive voter registration forces that reignited interest in the electoral process for black minorities. 

What we see though is a gathering storm that will focus our attention south of the Mason Dixon line and at the borders predominantly affecting hispanic minorities-an interesting and growing voter block. 

We have also seen concerns about voter registration rules for Identification affecting African Americans as well as fall out from the Katrina Disaster that has brought about marked shift in numbers (100,000 black residents from affected areas have not returned ) ten years after the disaster. 

So the deal with Cuba is important because it helps generate much needed income flow but critically, it has alienated some of the countries historic local allies and dissidents. But also changed the dynamics of immigration, economics and trade.

You could argue that the deal with Cuba has done what some believe could happen if the debate to legalize medical marijuana in states such as Colorado is carried through causing a decline in the narcotics trade south of the Rio Grande. 

The low lying candidate therefore needs to have the pulse of the people. 

He/ she needs to know what the numbers are on immigration and the affects of the much needed reform on agriculture and trade in the southern states. 

He/she needs to have the numbers regarding movement and migration in disaster prone areas and implications of these movements on voting. 

He/she needs to know the complexities of race relations in mid-western states and the corresponding legislation that deal with the same. 

He/she needs to be able to harness new media tools for an emerging generation but also balance these with old school town hall meetings for older more influential groups. 

Pacesetters and front runners

In a season when athletes are taking centre stage, I cannot help but think about the five and ten thousand meter races. These metes often have to be governed by pacesetters. These are usually experienced but retired runners who are paid to make sure that the participants stay within a time frame. These times are flashed across the screen and at specific points in the race to make sure that the runners can achieve goals and if need be break records. 

I think this is a fitting description for the race to the white house as it stands. There have been few front runners who have sailed right through the initial party nominations all the way to the 'finals' in most cases, were shielded by the rest (like migratory birds in flying in formation) only to emerge towards the end to achieve the victory. 

So while encouraged by the appearances and attention drawn by Hillary Clinton on the democratic side and Donald Trump on the republican side, there is a possibility that all they are doing is setting the pace for the rest of the runners. 

It is also interesting to note that a ten year anniversary of the Katrina 

disaster (a hurricane that ripped through the State State of Louisiana and possibly turned the tide of the U.S public opinion) has brought about the appearance of the former presidents club of Bill Clinton (D) and George Walker Bush (R). Strategic because both pulled off a controversial eight year terms and both are bound to support the bids by close family members Jeb Bush (R) and Hillary Clinton (D). 

The pacesetters have therefore helped bring certain issues to the fore. 

While the end of the first of two presidential terms is often useful in creating some breathing room, it also presents a shift of thinking focusing on legacy. The battles to cripple the presidency (using shut downs and jerry-mandering) were a mark of these eight years and have been further amplified by determinations by the bulk of the republican candidates (aspirants) to reverse by decree many of this current presidents rulings. 

So the return to Louisiana is significant because it involves the passage back in time where the Republicans can attempt to reclaim their southern territory (bible belt) while the democrats prove their worth and demonstrate to the people in the south that the choice of change was the right decision. In my view, both parties being political animals have to defend their claims using some of the most valuable pieces in their arsenal. 

But while this is significant, these are not the issues at the centre of race as it stands and as presented by the media. 

But this weeks appearances of the 'former presidents club' have placed these two presidents into part of the pacesetter groups if only vicariously. 

We have not engaged directly with Hillary Clinton but she seems to have benefitted from the media attention...or at least she should try to. Maybe a key to this race for her campaign will be in returning to the battle between herself and Barack Hussein Obama and sifting through the noise to see why his version of change was more preferable to her version of the same. Him being an African American and her being a woman (both beneficiaries of constitutional amendments for civil rights and suffrage). 

My guess is that his subscription to the change message worked both against the republicans (and his views regarding their failures) as well as against his democratic foe (who by being in the white house for eight years-albeit as wife, was also viewed as being part of the establishment). 

The battle for the nomination is complex enough for party members and at some point the needs of the whole must be sacrificed for the one. Which is why the entrance of 16 participants in the republican race is such a challenge to call. 

Part of the battle could end up being for the house and for the senate especially if the white house is offered on the altar of sacrifice. But the brutality of coalitions is something few of us want to see. 

Immigration, Race relations in general, The economy, U.S foreign policy, Gun control. 

Regional cooperation and freedoms?

Wondering about the implications of regional cooperation on freedoms in general.

I wrote all of this because as I have mentioned before, there seems to be a replication of ideas in this region by NGOs, Opposition Parties as well as Civil Society Groups. In one of the article I mentioned how Strikes of medical personnel and teachers in Uganda, were being replicated by colleagues in Kenya and Tanzania. I also mentioned how advocacy campaigns by local opposition groups were also finding their way into certain sections of Tanzania (Activists for Change-A4C). Government too was in on the game and had began to introduce complex and costly legislative rules that would make it harder for journalists especially those with an investigative lens to challenge leaders (Kenya). In addition to this back in the home space I also found that a law had been introduced that was designed to make it hard of large gatherings to occur and at least give the government a head start in nipping in the bud any attempts to opposition groups to achieve momentum (public order management bill). 

While these occurrences took place quite a while back, we had a visit from BHO. Soon after that another left handed head of state showed up. His trip was interesting because he addressed parliament and met some important business leaders. But he also took a few jabs at the Opposition. 

His position back at home is complex and he is running government with a coalition (predominantly tribal in nature feeding off of Kenya's strange tendency to coagulate around its regional and language groups). 

In what I have referred to as schizophrenic-like foreign policy responses that pit one branch of government against another, we had no mention of the "choices have consequences" message of the assistant to the secretary of state for African Affairs J.C. 

Instead lawns were mowed and lectures were delivered to African Presidents.

But it was good to see that our man could hold his own against the great eagle and the star spangled banner (nothing against either). And as I have stated in another tweet, it was also good to see the younger man being affirmed by Kenya's second president (a trained teacher) as well as the country's third (an accomplished Economist). 

I was not certain what to make of the message delivered to the Uganda's Opposition. My concern was that the little space that was left was shrinking and that any hope of receiving assistance from Neighboring countries was suddenly vanishing. If this works against the Opposition for now, it will work against the leaders in the future. Because markets are designed around safety the time will come (if the pan African dream is realized) when the presidents will find themselves demoted to senators and their nations to states as the African Union takes shape merging the vast size and potential of our economies with some form of government. The question is where will we place our capital. 

Over to you!