Stan,

I was trying to bare my mind. Yes, Chinese actually speak English (& pidgin), but probably due to their socio-economic status (which is closer to the "natives"), they tend to be more at "ground level".

We agree that the USG will be challenged in its engagement in Africa. Africa is of relatively little importance to the American people & it is very difficult to sell a sustained, significant engagement there to them.

I don't have a "hard on" for AFRICOM, my views on AFRICOM are typical for an educated African (go to South Africa, you'll hear an earful). Isn't it better for me to say what's on my mind, so we can arrive at a common understanding?

About the last point - the Vietnamese saw their war in nationalist terms, it took the US a bit of time to see it that way. In Iraq, it took the US quite some to understand the rifts between Shia & Sunni or the internal workings of Iraqi society.

I see the same thing at play in Mali. Mali is being framed in terms of the "war on terror" - but it goes deeper. The French know well enough that the Tuaregs have had a long running rebellion against first French colonialists, then with the government in Bamako. Will the US have the patience to untangle this mess & engage productively with all parties in the conflict? I doubt it.

Northern Nigeria is no less complex - the US ambassador here has made statements that are so ill-judged that he had to be summoned to explain what exactly he meant.