BobHarris.com - Who Hates Whom Bonus Chapter: Senegal, Gambia, "Senegambia," and Casamance

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Who Hates Whom Bonus Chapter: Senegal, Gambia, "Senegambia," and Casamance

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Monday, 01 October 2007

I had to cut four minor chapters of Who Hates Whom to get it down to the pocket size my editors and I were shooting for. One of the things I wanted to do in the book was highlight hotspots that usually get little attention, and I think generally the book manages that, but there are always a few things you’d like to squeeze in.

Thing is, the mainstream press in most countries tends to highlight conflicts that powerful domestic factions have rooting interests in, which leaves out a whole lot of the world. But humans are pretty similar everywhere. And it’s all potentially important. Until 9-11, how many of us honestly imagined that some guys in Afghanistan could so profoundly affect our lives? How many busy regular folks right this minute know the difference between Waziristan, Kurdistan, and Baluchistan (all of which are a pretty big deal)? So that’s why the book exists.

I'll be posting these extra chapters online, one by one, as I find the time. (Obviously, I can't have links in the paperback book itself -- which is why this notes page is also already under construction.) Consider these something like DVD extras. Although there are no hidden nude scenes, and the characters don't so much burst into laughter between shots. Far from it.

So, with no further ado, here's the chapter about the conflict in lower Casamance, the southwesternmost arm of the West African country of Senegal.

If you enjoy it, I hope you'll grab the book. After all, the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram even grouped it with other books it called “Shocks to the System,” adding (and repeating) that it might “shock some tender sensibilities.” So that’s exciting. It almost sounds like you might want to wear a cup. Depending on your sensibilities.

(Actually, that doesn’t sound like my writing. I can barely even shock a squirrel. The ones that can read, anyway.)

In any case, I’m grateful for the mention, however closely the reviewer actually read. We all have deadlines and space limitations.

That's why the Casamance chapter is here in the first place.