[talk.politics.misc] Mahoney's incorrect pleasant precedent

oaf@mit-vax.UUCP (Oded Feingold) (09/21/86)

>>4)According to NPR, the American cutoff of aid to Zimbabwe (which
>>  incidentally has one of the most market-oriented economies in
>>  Africa and consequently the best agricultural production in Africa)
>>  was universally condemned by the nonaligned nations and may actually,
>>  paradoxically, lead to an *increase* in support for Zimbabwe from
>>  other nonaligned states in terms of economic aid.	
>						[TFCSevener]
>
>    This something that I will not believe until it happens.  Many of the 
>    African Nations that cut off ties with Israel did so, because the Arab
>    Nations said, they would give them any aid they lost by the action.
						[Mahoney the decent man]
		    ------------------------------
    In this  case,  the  decent man  is  slightly in  error.   African
nations cut relations with Israel  post-1973 because they were  warned
of  adverse consequences attendant upon not  doing  so.  These  ranged
from oil embargoes from Arab states to assassination threats from Kad-
dafi.  
    It's perhaps notable that Nigeria, itself a member of OPEC and run
by generals (less likely to knuckle under to threats) did not cut ties
with Israel.  Certainly Nigeria  had  less need  of Israeli   aid than
other African countries.  It was free to  indulge its  conscience, in-
stead of parroting the horseshit the Arabs forced down other countries
throats.
-- 
Oded A. Feingold   MIT AI Lab  545 Tech Square  Cambridge, Mass. 02139
{allegra|ihnp4!mit-eddie}!mit-vax!oaf  OAF@OZ.AI.MIT.EDU  617-253-8598