Don't Even Bother With The Election At This Point

Suppose you had an election where one candidate's rallies were banned. He was continually arrested throughout the campaign, and the secretary-general of his party was held for treason. The national TV station refused to air his ads. On the other hand, the incumbent candidate rallies all over the country. People in the street would be beaten for not knowing his campaign slogan. Without a membership card to his party it would be next to impossible to get food aid.

Considering these factors, it's a testament to how uniformly awful a place Zimbabwe is and how hated a ruler Robert Mugabe is that the opponent WON the first round of voting.

I guess Thabo Mbeki met with Mugabe yesterday, but the opposition claims he's on Mugabe's side, so his role will be limited.

Thinking about Zimbabwe makes my head hurt. I long for the relative problems of funding endless war and allowing warrantless wiretapping.