i play pretty close attention to global conflict spots and i don't even pretend to have a solid grasp of what's happening there, with muslims fighting christians and blacks and arabs and europeans fighting each other, and china fighting the united states, and corporations fighting each other and governments competing over resources to export and a dozen different tribal groups all mixed up in it...it makes syria seem easy to understand in comparison...

the one thing i think i get is that, despite all the myriad forces fighting for control, it's only the gangs on the ground that actually have any control, and they've turned war into a mercenary business. the ideologies are really just a gloss. they're for hire. and that's the devastating reality on the ground.

http://www.msf.org.uk/article/central-african-republic-arriving-midst-violence