I Likes It Raw

On September 1, 2010, the government of  a small southeastern African country named Mozambique made an announcement to the people. The announcement declared that specific items such as water, electricity, and fuel would be increasing in cost by 25%. Most importantly, bread would receive the highest increase in cost at 30%.  According to the Mozambique government, the new hike in food prices would be “irreversible”. Shortly thereafter, all hell broke loose. The residents of Maputo, the capital city of Mozambique, began rioting and looting for three continuous days.

Today, what was called “irreversible” by the government was reversed. The price of bread is now back to its original price because the government will now subsidise the cost. Wheat prices all over the world have spiked and are increasing because Russia has extended its exports ban into next year due to the extreme drought that destroyed the country’s crops. Mozambique was exceptionally hit by these circumstances because it only grows 30% of the wheat it needs to feed the country. This could be a warning sign to other African countries that have leased agricultural land to foreign countries, but that is an entirely different subject for another time.

You would have thought that the Mozambican government would have learned from the riots of 2008 when they decided to raise transport fares by 50%. That decision was also met with violent opposition by the people with the government eventually cancelling plans to raise the fares because of mass riots. The people of Mozambique have shown that they have a zero tolerance policy toward the government because the government actually sets the prices of bread, fuel, and water in their country. Half the population lives in abject poverty and unemployment within the nation sits at a firm 54%, according to the Mozambican government.

Here in America, people rioting over the cost of bread and public transportation is an absurd thought. Some would probably consider it uncivilized. Nevertheless, there are some things in America we should be outraged over but have become so indifferent to that it’s almost expected as status quo. I’m not talking about that fake ass Tea Party outrage either. I’m speaking about things that actually affect the lives of everyday, ordinary people. Things such as public officials openly lying or making embellished remarks to the public with no immediate negative pushback. For example, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer’s claims of countless headless bodies turning up in the Arizona desert near the U.S. Mexico border. Since her statement, the local authorities or border patrol officials have not been able to corroborate her remarks but you know exactly what she was doing when she made the statement.

People should have been rioting when the U.S. Federal Government handed over a blank check to damn near every major banking and financial institution in the country because they were “too big to fail” but government sponsored free healthcare for every American citizen would “bankrupt the country”. Every arena and stadium that is owned and operated by private organizations but is 80 – 90% financed by public funds should be burned to the goddamn ground. Schools that only teach your children how to pass standardized tests should be hijacked. Most importantly, every public official or community leader that sells out the people for special interests and corporate kickbacks should be assassinated by stoning.

If only there were a hand full of people in American that would react like the Mozambicans when the government makes decisions against the benefit of the people. In my opinion, a lot more people would be better off than they are now. Our civilized way of doing things did help us receive our first black president and with him came the optimism that things would get better. However, other than a changing of the guard what else has been accomplished for the people in the “greatest country of all time”.